I can´t remember what i´ve already written. This is just a short one.
Starting to settle into a routine and get things worked out now.
We are allowed to drink once a week and shop once a week. Tonight is the first booze up. Woohooo. I think i´ve well and truly sweated out any toxins in my body from before comming so its well deserved.
The work is sooooo bloody hard. We´ve just finished diggin three by two/three metre holes for a communications tower. Concrete goes in this arvo. I will be the biggest latin lover by the time i return.
Its really funny that we even take the tools in our sheds for granted. No such luxuries in Panama. Its shovels/pick axes and that´s about it. The tradies who are showing us how to do it are MASSIVE and make us feel very inadequate. No beer guts in sight.
I cooked a soup last night. It went down like air conditioning in 40 degree heat would - not so bad. We also prepared something a little special. Cinnamon/coffee/chocolate custard with peaches and icecream. For us, this was a little slice of Gods own kingdom. You learn to appreciate Coke, Pringles and Snickers very quickly when faced with....beans n rice... rice n beans.. bean and... hang on... noodles.. no... rice.
Cold showers are a god send & we don´t have hot taps soooo...
Paul Kelly and Darren Hanlon are aussie hero´s and i listen to them on the ol discman everynight before i hop into my flea-ridden shambles of a mosquito net which i have filled with: a blow-up pillow, a inner-sheet (thanks Heath), a sleeping bag, a thermorest and a mattress which was in the room when we got here. Me thinks to mattress was not to clean to begin with. It´s getting a wash tomorrow.
The sunsets are PHENOMINAL (colours and stuff).. and the noise after dark is even more noteworthy. We´ve taken to massive fits of laughter when four of us lads are sitting on the ´porch´having a smoke and the dogs (all 3 billion of the buggers) and everyone´s christmas carol noise boxes (attached to their lights on the front of their houses) and booming stupid electronic tunes becomes this tip of the delirious ice-berg.
The people are still smiling. Now we´re doing English classes we´re having some more to do with the community as well. Andy and I act everthing out while someone teaches. We have a ball, and funnily enough its good preparation for killing those high powered business meetings - learning to talk in such a simple way in front of a stiff audience.
Anywho i´m buggered from shoveling clay this morning so it´s time to walk back to my red and white painted compound surrounded by the kind of fences you´d see at a derelict footy ground in WA, walk past the 1970´s inspired ambulance which services the whole city of approx 20,000 and have a kip before the booze fest.
Once again. My love, regards and cheers - sort out which group you fit into on your own.
Peace out from Puerto Amulles.
Jules.
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