Machetes, Hippo-Therapy and Future Plans
back to work after a very long weekend :) we worked in the field next to the Hacienda, cutting down more Guava new growth with our trusty machetes. it was a perfect work day ... full sun, hot, sweaty, no breeze ... oh wait ... that's a perfect BEACH day :) .... we start work early in the morning so we can be finished by 11-11:30 when it starts getting really hot. it seemed really hot the moment we got out there. ...but again we prevailed. i was actually quite impressed. when we walked out there, you could easily see a lot of Guava 'bushes' all over the entire field ... when we finished ... there were none! :)
i fixed some spaghetti for lunch, i love going to the garden to pick fresh basil, oregano, and parsley for the sauce.
in the afternoon, 3 of us had cleaning duty; i took the kitchen. it wasn't too bad; and about the time i finished the Hippo Therapy kids arrived. since we are a small group, we all got to participate. each of the kids get a ride down the 'lane' and back, twice. each 'lap' they ride in a different position: first, sitting forward .....
then sitting backwards; ....
next, laying with their head at the horses butt ..... nice ...
and then across the saddle, .... like a dead cowboy in the old western movies ...
as soon as they left we all took a taxi into town; it was almost 5pm. i walked around and checked out prices on hostels that i might want to stay at next week. a popular one on the waterfront, Hostel San Francisco was $12, for private ...i think :)
around the corner i saw a Travel Agency. Will and i had talked about maybe getting a day tour to the island of Espanola, to the south of us. it's a small island where the Marine Iguanas turn orange and turquoise this time of the year. but i found out there are no day tours there. you can only get there on a live-aboard cruise ship.
i knew at some point i would need to learn all about the cruises; so today seemed to be a good day to get started. it should be possible to get a good price on a cruise if they are wanting to fill up their ship and you book 'last minute'. this would be my plan, since i can be pretty flexible with my schedule, most of these cruises are for around 16 people; so they aren't large; and there are 3 classes.
the one she found was the 'luxury' class. it left Monday morning for 5 days, went west to east around San Cristobal and south to the islands of Espanola and Floreana; and finished in Santa Cruz, .... which is where i want to go next... $1,300 ... i told her i'd think about it.
we talked a little about what i'm doing next and she suggested i try the hostel across the street. amazingly, the man who owns it, is the same guy that Andy and i talked to and watched as they launched his boat into the water with that front-end-loader ... i think i blogged about it my first week here. ...he recognized me and showed me the room. it's nice, clean, little balcony, kitchenette, WiFi, and he speaks great English, ... $15 ....
i also wanted to check on Hostel Laura that i read about. it's just at the edge of town and she has a wonderful little garden setting that the rooms are around. no kitchen, no WiFi, she doesn't speak any English, $20
walked in and out of a few stores, got one of those almond ice cream cones and went to the internet; ... only there a few minutes and .... my Daddy Skyped me ! ....he's never done it before ... i'm so proud of him :)
by this time the group was ready to go back ... after fixing something to eat; we sat around, quietly visited and then to bed ... REALLY, this is more like what i had expected the evenings to be :) .... it's so peaceful and quiet up there in the Highlands
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