Wednesday, December 6 (miercoles, 6 de diciembre)
Today we have an unusual combination of pictures ... but hey, its my blogsite!
The Sea (del mar) ... My Apartment (apartamento de mi) ... Pretty Girls (muy linda chicas)
But first, this is what we have been dealing with for well over a week now. The good news is that most of the rain is happening at night and usually it rains for short periods of time during the day followed by beautiful sunshine. Yesterday I was out on a walk with my camera and the sunshine turned to storm clouds. I waited it out under the cover of the awning at the Super Super store.
The other day I discovered the neatest view of the sea. I was walking over by Playa Chiquita (the casino). I wound my way as close to the sea as possible. I found some of the most beautiful homes built right on the sea. In between two of the compounds I discovered a public walkway leading back to the sea and a very small beach. In this picture there is a great view of Mt. Isabela with its peak, as usual, covered by clouds.
Unfortunately my birthday is just 6 days away. This is a picture of my birthday present to myself. As I continue to customize my new little "place," the one thing needed badly was a new bed. I was sleeping on two twin beds shoved together. They were old and unsturdy. Yesterday, my landlord Walter and I drove to Montellano and split the cost of this new bed. I am very happy with it. It is attractive, sturdy and just right for the apartment. Total cost ... $9500 pesos for the bed ($285.56 USD) and $1000 pesos for the sheets and pillowcases ($30.06). I am pretty sure I got the actual price on the bed as it was written on the mattress, but think I got the 'gringo' price on the sheets. Oh well!
Mi amiga Yomaris ... unfortunately stopped by the other night when my novia was there. My novia, like all dominicanas, es muy celosa (jealous). She wasn't very happy, but I just denied, denied, denied, denied and eventually got past it. I'm going to have to chat with Yomaris and come up with a code.
Another view of the sea from the little beach I found.
My kitchen nook with a little bit of a view of my new Christmas lights that I have installed all the way around the room. They are very nice at night with all the other lights off. I am going to leave them up after the Christmas season.
Mi amiga Alexandra. You didn't think mangos and men selling lottery tickets were the only things I take pictures of did you?
The huge boulders in the area, with their weathered pockmarks from being beaten by the sea for years and years, were really cool.
The next two major projects in the apartment are to somehow come up with a computer desk so I can get rid of the two tables I am now using and I need to buy a new, larger television.
Yo no conosco estas chicas. I do not know these girls yet. But, they live close and walk by all the time. I think they must be cousins or sisters as they are always together.
Word for the day ... prestamo or prestamos ... loan
To Pronounce ... press ... taaah ... most (without the t) ... the accent is on the second syllable.
I include this today because one of the negative things about living here is that people are always asking for things. The dominicans, of course, are dirt poor and to them we are very rich. So, as a result, everyday one becomes accustomed to being asked for this and for that. It is never ending and happens just about every time you leave your apartment and walk the streets. If you do not know how to say no down here, you will not last long. As my friend Bruce told me once, "Mike are going to try and support all 37 million of them?"
But what really irritates me is all the deadbeat gringos we have living down here. There is a Hungarian man living in the same apartment area as me. He has his two children living with him. He doesn't, evidently, have enough money to support himself and the children and has asked me twice now for loans. The first time I loaned him $300 pesos and he did pay it back. But, my friends told me he was going to ask again and this time for more and then more and eventually he would be too deep in debt to pay it back. So the second time he asked I refused. It was hard to refuse because his children are innocent and need to be taken care of. But, I cannot be responsible for them.
Stay Tuned!
Today we have an unusual combination of pictures ... but hey, its my blogsite!
The Sea (del mar) ... My Apartment (apartamento de mi) ... Pretty Girls (muy linda chicas)
But first, this is what we have been dealing with for well over a week now. The good news is that most of the rain is happening at night and usually it rains for short periods of time during the day followed by beautiful sunshine. Yesterday I was out on a walk with my camera and the sunshine turned to storm clouds. I waited it out under the cover of the awning at the Super Super store.
The other day I discovered the neatest view of the sea. I was walking over by Playa Chiquita (the casino). I wound my way as close to the sea as possible. I found some of the most beautiful homes built right on the sea. In between two of the compounds I discovered a public walkway leading back to the sea and a very small beach. In this picture there is a great view of Mt. Isabela with its peak, as usual, covered by clouds.
Unfortunately my birthday is just 6 days away. This is a picture of my birthday present to myself. As I continue to customize my new little "place," the one thing needed badly was a new bed. I was sleeping on two twin beds shoved together. They were old and unsturdy. Yesterday, my landlord Walter and I drove to Montellano and split the cost of this new bed. I am very happy with it. It is attractive, sturdy and just right for the apartment. Total cost ... $9500 pesos for the bed ($285.56 USD) and $1000 pesos for the sheets and pillowcases ($30.06). I am pretty sure I got the actual price on the bed as it was written on the mattress, but think I got the 'gringo' price on the sheets. Oh well!
Mi amiga Yomaris ... unfortunately stopped by the other night when my novia was there. My novia, like all dominicanas, es muy celosa (jealous). She wasn't very happy, but I just denied, denied, denied, denied and eventually got past it. I'm going to have to chat with Yomaris and come up with a code.
Another view of the sea from the little beach I found.
My kitchen nook with a little bit of a view of my new Christmas lights that I have installed all the way around the room. They are very nice at night with all the other lights off. I am going to leave them up after the Christmas season.
Mi amiga Alexandra. You didn't think mangos and men selling lottery tickets were the only things I take pictures of did you?
The huge boulders in the area, with their weathered pockmarks from being beaten by the sea for years and years, were really cool.
The next two major projects in the apartment are to somehow come up with a computer desk so I can get rid of the two tables I am now using and I need to buy a new, larger television.
Yo no conosco estas chicas. I do not know these girls yet. But, they live close and walk by all the time. I think they must be cousins or sisters as they are always together.Word for the day ... prestamo or prestamos ... loan
To Pronounce ... press ... taaah ... most (without the t) ... the accent is on the second syllable.
I include this today because one of the negative things about living here is that people are always asking for things. The dominicans, of course, are dirt poor and to them we are very rich. So, as a result, everyday one becomes accustomed to being asked for this and for that. It is never ending and happens just about every time you leave your apartment and walk the streets. If you do not know how to say no down here, you will not last long. As my friend Bruce told me once, "Mike are going to try and support all 37 million of them?"
But what really irritates me is all the deadbeat gringos we have living down here. There is a Hungarian man living in the same apartment area as me. He has his two children living with him. He doesn't, evidently, have enough money to support himself and the children and has asked me twice now for loans. The first time I loaned him $300 pesos and he did pay it back. But, my friends told me he was going to ask again and this time for more and then more and eventually he would be too deep in debt to pay it back. So the second time he asked I refused. It was hard to refuse because his children are innocent and need to be taken care of. But, I cannot be responsible for them.
Stay Tuned!
posted by Miguel at 6:36 AM
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