So it's the first of August. And it's still raining. The weather supposedly dries up here around the second or third week of July. I don't know if that's true or just wishful thinking. Anyway, I'm fine with moisture, but it would be nice to forget about the Mosquitos.
I got a mosquito net from a friend and hung it above a week ago. My bed looks fitting for a Disney princess, what with all the draped and flowing white material. Yet still, I have bites all over my ankles. I guess they dine while I'm sitting around, which I have to admit, I've been doing a lot of recently. I need something engaging, that connects me with spanish-speakers. When I'm in a sink-or-swim situation, I surprise myself with my Spanish (which lands me somewhere around 'sputtering/barely afloat'). But whereas I initially had nothing to say, now I find myself with no one to speak to. People will turn away without a glance if I try to engage them. Not just anybody, usually I need info from someone. But they seem to panic and either gesture everything or don't respond. Or else they respond by rattling off one or two phrases at about a mile a minute. Saying "como?" doesn't seem to indicate that they might slow down, and indeed they may feel that they now have to speak faster, to make up for the lost time in their first attempt. Their response though, is usually to wag their heads no and turn away. Okay, not true. They also point to someone they believe to understand English. But rarely do they consider speaking slowly and deliberately to me. I don't know why i find it easier to understand conversations between others. Perhaps because I have some anxiety when they are speaking dieectly to me, that i don't have when i'm simply a bystander. I like to think I'm learning Spanish on w subconscious level, which will eventually surface suddenly and be like a new car (or sailboat) that I can't wait to try out on the open road/in the open sea.
Speaking of boats. I've been feeling so eager to get one lately. Especially since finding work. I have been daydreaming about buying a solid hull with good rigging, and spending hours on end reworking the interior. More than anything, I just want to get out on the water. I emailed a guy the other day who is on his second circumnavigation, just to see if he wants a penpal type person to corrospond with, and to give me a vicarious experience. We'll see.
In two weeks I fly to panama for 5 days to renew my tourist visa here in Colombia. I intend to look for a short-handed captain who wouldn't mind the company, and who'll let me tag along through the canal and all the way to Cartagena. Crossing my fingers, Ts and eyes.
¡Gringo!
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