Update September 2005

Oct 8, 2005
Hi everybody
It has been hard for me to get to the Internet to keep up the communication.
We were confined on our mountain for 14 days. The first 2 days were because John began major repair work on the roads making them impassible. I actually had to ascend and descend (on foot) a 25-foot pile of dirt and rubble to get home one evening. Then we had torrential rain causing the river to overflow and the roads from our mountain to town impassible. People in lower ground were flooded and had to evacuate. We were fortunate that we only lost electricity for two days and had to eat sparingly. Then John had problems with his bulldozer and backhoe delaying the repair of our roads, which had worsened with the flash floods. We have great neighbors further up on the mountain whom we got to know better through this experience. Eric and Lenore had us to dinner one night and we eventually worked out a system where Eric let us use his car, which was on the other side of the rubble to go to town to get groceries. There was a steep 35-foot drop after the rubble that had to be negotiated on foot. This was not a planned repair—I don’t know if John realized how much there was to do—he was actually up in the mountain ridge (4 stories high) with his bulldozer pushing boulders into the road. However, now that our access almost back to normal, we are very pleased with the end result: a new and better and safer road through the mountain

Construction on our villa is coming along very well. The pub is beautiful with curved archways for doors. There will be a 50-foot by 8-foot pool in front of the pub and Joe is adamant that there will be a bridge over the pool. We are planning for the pub to be a club with members, rules, etc. We want it to be attractive for people to come up our mountain for a draft beer and we are planning to offer the best beer in the area at the lowest prices.

The landscaped garden is beautiful but the weeds are virulent. I planted some hibiscus clippings, which took root very quickly. We will need help with the garden upkeep and probably house upkeep. Our previous outdoor helper was at a 20% show-up rate and now we are facing reality—that we find someone else or we do it ourselves. Our former housekeeper, his wife, wasn’t working out either. So, for now we are doing our chores ourselves. However, I wish I was here the day she showed up to clean the house on her HORSE—that would have been a sight. It is rural here with a “resort” type area 3 miles away at the ocean. The interface of many cultures is interesting.

Except for the 14-day hiatus, we continue with our Spanish lessons. Just being here is a language-learning laboratory. I get practice calling the electric company when our electricity goes off, talking to our construction workers, and trying to conduct any kind of business—many people here have not learned English. My Spanish is still very limited and people are patient. Sometimes, I am not sure what is being communicated. I am also trying to figure out how to get Internet at my house with my borrowed cell phone. Between the language, culture, etc, it takes a long time to get things done.

It is very healthy here. Temperature has been in the 70’s and it rains at least once per day, often at night, keeping the vistas many shades of green. This is the rainy season—the worse the weather gets. We wake early, go to bed early, and get plenty of exercise. And the challenges are part of the overall adjustment to a new life.

We love it here—the air, the foliage, the sunsets, the rain, the new experiences-forever challenging and beautiful. Pura Vida (pure life), they say. Write back. Come visit—the roads will be better in the dry season. Love. Helena (and Joe)