Thursday, June 04, 2009

"It's been seven hours and fifteen days since you took your love away"

Yesterday I completed my very first Crossfit WOD (workout of the day) at the nearby gym Buena Vida Fitness Centre, which has no a/c and rendered me a completely sweaty, red-faced mess (Cici my face was redder than yours has ever been!). I bought a three day pass for $12, which is a bit expensive, but I really miss exercising and feel like running on the streets here would garner even more unwanted attention. Plus I've seen that crazy guy twice and don't want any more run-ins with him. Despite the heat, the gym seems great, and the owner walked me through the exercises, which was super helpful since I likely would have flaked out without the attention.

San Juan del Sur has ended up being a great little beach town to spend this week (sort of the third world version of Tarifa, Spain), and I´m grateful for the hours with my tutor and to do homework and relax by the pool.My tutor has continued to inform me of all sorts of things, covering sex, among other things, today. Tonight I ran into my Canadian friend at a restaurant on the beach, and we enjoyed some Nicaraguan dancing and music. Tomorrow morning I´m going with my teacher to the local public school for a fiesta....to celebrate Child´s Day (sort of like Mother´s Day I guess), then I´ll try to sit through three hours of tutoring; but the heat is so intense that you really need to be near a fan or a/c, which my school doesn´t have, or in the swimming pool. Maybe I can convince my teacher to join me at the pool. Hopefully this week will prepare me for next week (when we´ll be outside all day in a small village doing everything from construction to playing with children).

I´ve been thinking about my favorite things about Nica, and the colorfulness of the buildings--and even garbage bags--sticks out. I mean why have a brown garbage bag when it could be hot pink, right?

In other news, Clay and I have been g-chatting and emailing every day, and I miss him. Thankfully he won´t be gone the week after I return after all, but it looks like he´ll be in Asia for most of July. Oh well, absence seems to be making the heart grow fonder.

Remember today´s lyrics? Sinnead O´Connor brought to you courtesy of a pizza place here in San Juan del Sur.

p.s. I´m grateful for the delicious shrimp ceviche I had for dinner. It´s Pedro´s, the boy I sponsor through Compassion International, favorite meal, so I wanted to have it Central American style to get a better idea of what he loves so much.

5 comments:

boohoo said...

Pink garbage bags? I want some! Do they come in other colours?

Missing Clay is a really good sign. I'm glad you two will be able to hang out when you get back :)

Ally said...

Ys: Yes, they do come in other colors--bright blue is my second favorite. And sometimes the garbage cans are fun colors too.

Jennifer Kirby said...

Careful--you might get addicted to CrossFit and you won't be able to find it for $4/session in the U.S.! Although there probably will be A/C. That song totally brings me back to singing it while playing four-square in fifth grade. Glad you're having such a good time.

A2 said...

Canadian friend? Did I miss an update? Have you mentioned him/her?

Have you ever met Pedro? Where does he live?

I am asking lots of questions today. I'm glad that you've been able to keep up with Clay and it's great that you miss him!

love you friend,
A2

Ally said...

Jennifer: I think the Crossfit gym in Chatty is pretty pricey--you're right! I'm so sore that I'm sort of dreading going back today!

A2: I probably haven't mentioned my Canadian friend (or my friend from Georgia). Pedro lives in Peru, and I've not met him yet. I hope to one day though.