I forgot I missed

Posted on December 22, 2014 by Laura

We are making our way back to Wisconsin via Atlanta for the holidays. Already I’m observing things that I didn’t know I missed:

1) Squirrels. I was practically giddy to observe the squirrels in my sister’s backyard. There are no squirrels, chipmunks, or rabbits in Puerto Rico. I didn’t realize how much I missed these annoying, messy creatures.
2) Steaming hot showers. We have a solar powered water heater at home. So the water never gets very hot or very cold. I love me a too-hot shower.

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Water heater and reservoir on our roof

3) Heavy blankets on a cold night. mmmmm…..snuggle….snuggle….

4) Smooth roads. Nobody knows potholes like Puerto Rican streets.

5) Understanding everything said around me.

Things I’m already missing about PR:

1) the warmth (duh)

2) speaking Spanish (I was saying ‘gracias’, ‘hola’ and ‘con permiso’ to the people in the Atlanta airport. They didn’t know spanish)

3) the blue blue skies

4) my neighbors

5) the fact that my skin and lips never got dried out

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We united the neighborhood

Posted on December 19, 2014 by Laura

Trevor and I used to have an annual Christmas party before kids. The mood was always jolly, sometimes naughty (especially when we all wrote holiday poems one year. That degenerated quickly!)
I love being social. Yeah, it’s draining, but I was so eager to create a holiday mood in spite of the fact that we were wearing shorts and bare feet outside.

Would our neighbors come to a party? What are the typical Puerto Rican customs? Would it be rude to suggest they bring a dish to pass? Would they think, “Who are these gringos and why should I come to their party?”party 3We set the date and invited all the neighbors on our street. I had not met them all yet. It was an emotion challenge to muster up courage to knock on door after door and try to say in Spanish, “I’m your neighbor. You’re invited to my party!”
Our dead end street has 12 houses. Overall, 45 people were invited! (In the end about 30 attended) I bought copious amounts of food. And I was desperate to make the party fun so I bought some firecrackers. Nothing says fun like pyrotechnics.

party 1Success! We held the party in our garage and driveway. I played my newly acquired salsa/Puerto Rican Christmas songs along with my swing holiday songs. EVERY neighbor brought food to pass. We ended up with more food at the end of the party than I started with!party 2The firecrackers were a big hit except to the little kids who all screamed and were shuffled quickly in our house by their mothers.  oops.party 4

They were so happy we hosted a street party. Many of the neighbors didn’t know each other yet. They laughed that it took outsiders to bring them all together- haha
I don’t think we’re outsiders anymore.

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Parallelogram: Kissing Perfect Strangers

Posted on December 17, 2014 by Laura

\One experience explored from two points-of-view\

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Laura\Mayaguez

How do the locals greet each other?

Men shake hands with other men. Women give a little kiss on the right cheek.  I assume men and women kiss likewise but I don’t see it as often. And not everyone does this all the time. I think it’s primarily when you greet a good friend or someone that you work with closely. It really varies from person to person. I should ask someone about this. We just hosted a neighborhood Christmas party and I didn’t see the neighbors do it much. But the parents at the school kiss each other.

Have they greeted you similarly? Is it awkward?

Only my kid’s babysitter and our Spanish tutor.  At first when the babysitter did it with me I was all “whoa! ok!” which I think she sensed then she didn’t do it much again.  I kinda missed doing it so I began the custom again.  I think people are unsure if Americans want this interaction so they just hold off.

Have your kids taken up the custom?

No.

This pic has nothing to do with kissing.

This pic has nothing to do with kissing.

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Lisa\Montreal

How do the locals greet each other?

Kiss Kiss
“French Canadians are renowned for their warmth and hospitality. You’ll be surprised how quickly you catch on to the customary two kisses, one on each cheek. These “bisous” are a common greeting, an expression of endearment among friends (and really a more hygienic salutation than shaking someone’s who-knows-where-they-have-been hands).”

Have they greeted you similarly? Is it awkward?

I have yet to work out all the kinks of this custom.  For example, when saying goodbye to a friend I’ve had over for coffee then yes – kisses.  But when saying goodbye to this same friend after the kids get on the bus in the morning, then no – just a wave.  Never from my landlord.  Never with our sitter (but I suspect there should be and she is just abdicating to my role/lead as the adult.)

I like this custom.  Did they do this in Bermuda?  I can’t remember but I don’t find it awkward.  Bring on the love.

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Have your kids taken up the custom?

Out of nowhere one day, maybe after kissing Daddy goodbye in morning, Arlo stopped the proceedings and said “No, no!  In Montreal they do it like this!” and proceeded to plant a kiss on both cheeks.  Oui!  Early education, people!  Farrah Star, eyes never wavering from her brother, was clearly intrigued so Kris in turn taught her how to bisous-bisous.  So now – inside our house at least – we are all doubled-upped on kisses all the time.

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Mayaguez Zoo

Posted on December 12, 2014 by Laura

Knowing it would be hard to beat the nationally known Milwaukee County Zoo, or the free Henry Vilas Zoo in Madison, we thought we’d check out the Mayaguez Zoo with our new friend’s from D’s school.  It’s the only one in Puerto Rico and it’s conveniently close.

IMG_2317 IMG_2307Cheap to get in, relatively easy to get to.

IMG_2326They had all the big animals you’d expect, but the giraffes were obviously missing 🙁

IMG_2334I guess the animals looked happy enough.  Though I bet any animal in a cage wants more room.

IMG_2323There were free roaming birds ALL over.  With their free roaming poop.

IMG_2303I wonder how many kids fall into this cage every week.

IMG_2313P.S. Sorry I’ve been lax about blogging.  Yeah. Chikungunya SUCKS

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Parallelogram: Deck the Concrete

Posted on December 9, 2014 by Lisa Bagchi

\One experience explored from two points-of-view\

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Laura\Mayaguez

I didn’t know what to expect in terms of Christmas decorations in Mayaguez, or even my neighborhood. It’s so warm it doesn’t feel like Christmas time to me.

Turns out IMMEDIATELY after Thanksgiving is over, people of Mayaguez get ready for Christmas at warp speed.

I was excited to see that many homes, maybe 15% of my neighbors put up Christmas lights. We slapped up some blue lights on our palm tree outside. Which turns out to be pretty subdued compared to other homes… We enjoyed taking walks around to look at the fun people had decorating.

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Yes that’s yoda. Darth seems to be decapitated.

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Our neighborhood common grounds even got a huge metal lit tree.

However, it seems us crazies are the only ones who keep their lights on all night. What’s the point of Christmas lights if not to light up the night?

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Lisa\Montreal

I jumped the gun on Halloween decorations by hanging ours at the end of September.  Turns out my Canadian neighbors wait until after Thanksgiving (mid-October) to hang them, most sensibly.  But here we are on December 7 and there is only a smattering of Christmas decorations to be seen.  Once again I am ahead of the curve only there is no curve since there is no other holiday between now and Christmas.  I’m just alone.  Crazy American-style.

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I’m thinking it could be fear of theft that drives these scrooge-like streets.  The folks next door had a lovely tree tied up on their porch until one day they didn’t.  Turns out someone took a cigarette lighter to the rope ties and took off down the street with a fully lit and decorated Christmas tree, leaving a trail of smashed ornaments behind.  Never mind that the folks next door run an AIDS HOSPICE.  How do you say Grinch in French?  Is it “Dick”? “Le Dick?”  It was this event that made me move Big Santa inside the house though I desperately wanted him at the door – so much so that I hung him there anyway so I could say I did:

_MG_5356Kris was right though, someone would surely take Big Santa and I am emotionally attached to that man.  And Kris.  Ba dum bum.

Here’s Big Santa on our Madison house just last year:

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I was all set to leave Big Santa with the Madison house; I felt he belonged there forever but then a neighbor changed my mind saying “Even if you can’t hang him outside your new place, hang him inside on a big white wall for drama and flair.”  And he was right.  Big Santa belongs with us, wherever we roam.  And speaking of Madison vs. Montreal, we rent here.  I had to ask my landlord permission to decorate.  I’m 44 and while there are far, far greater problems (see second paragraph), that sure didn’t feel good.

In the end I’m not sure what’s happening with the Plateau’s decorations as there aren’t even many peeking through the windows.  Our streets couldn’t be more idyllic for lit-up door frames and railings.  I hope once again I’m just excessively, ignorantly early.  Until then, ho ho ho from the Obvious Americans!

Here’s some Montreal gorgeousness (some lights included) if you’re still in the mood:

The Best #Montreal Instagram Pictures

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Ruta Panoramica

Posted on December 8, 2014 by Laura

It’s there on the map.  A faint purple line that transects the entire island. The Panoramic Route through the mountains.  We’re mountain driving pros, right? Let’s go see what we see.

edited-0002 edited-0026 edited-0030 The route starts/ends in Mayaguez so it was an easy start. We weaved, we wended.  We missed a turn, we back tracked. We saw a few vistas, but it was not a scenic drive like in the Rockies. Mostly you get to see what life is like up in the hills.

edited-0021I don’t think I could ever live that far away from a major city.

We ended up in the tiny town of Maricao.  Small square, but a cute Cafe Gelato where we had lunch. This town has a coffee festival in February 🙂

edited-0041 edited-0042 edited-0097 edited-0033 edited-0067 edited-0049All that twisting and turning on the way home made my head dizzy.  Sadly, I think I’m getting old.

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I have chikungunya

Posted on December 5, 2014 by Laura

Little did I know when I wrote my last post about Chikungunya that I already had it.
Started with some joint pain in my thumb. Then my entire spine hurt, then hips. Crappy, searing pain.
Last night I went to bed at 10:30 but didn’t sleep until about 1am. P woke up and wanted me to lay by her until she fell back asleep. I was in such pain I almost couldn’t get off her floor!
Fever, horrible aches…I couldn’t even make a fist.

This morning I put out a cry for help. We don’t have any doctors in place yet. We just got our health insurance cards only last week! I texted every Puerto Rican I had the number for.  It’s such a blessing to see how people rally around you and try to help.

IMG_2684Yanira, my neighbor came to the rescue again.  She’s the one who diagnosed P’s ear infection and prescribed antibiotics in her living room. She was working in a clinic today and said she’s take care of me.

IMG_2686I did feel taken care of. I had to lay in the clinic for an hour and a half with an IV. When I didn’t sleep, I thought. I thought about no matter how old you are, you can still want your mama to wrap you in her arms. I thought about how blessed I am to be able to provide those loving arms to my kids. I thought about how we’ve managed to carve out a support network here in Puerto Rico. How I’ve only lived here 3.5 months and I already have a tropical disease. How confirming that I have chikungunya would actually be a relief.  Sometimes labels are good things.

No matter how crappy I feel, there's always a little energy for taking selfies!

No matter how crappy I feel, there’s always a little energy for taking selfies!

Loaded up with prescriptions I headed home. Thankfully the kids are patient with the out-of-it mama.  There are some plus sides.

-I will be immune to Chimichanga (as I call it) from now on.

-Symptoms should go away in 7-10 days,  Better to get this now than over Christmas.

-I’m not really contagious. I suppose a mosquito could bite me then bite someone else, but this disease is giving me the chills so I’m more likely to wear pants and long sleeves.

 

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Thoughts on being a white minority

Posted on December 5, 2014 by Laura

One of the reasons we moved to Puerto Rico was to give our kids a broader experience of the world. To experience diversity, learn another language, and live among people who are different, yet like us.

What would it be like to be a minority? I’ve only been in the minority once before in my life. In London at an Indian wedding.  It was me, a German guy, and 2 black British people at one table, and about 200 Indians around us. It was fascinating.

There’s been a lot of talk recently about what it’s like to be a minor in the USA today. I had hoped that moving to a place where our looks/speech/traditions are not the norm would help us to understand this issue a little better.

As I thought more about this and observed, I realized being a minority is easy. At least for my family. Why? I really could come up with only three, relatively simple answers.

1) I’m white. Even though I don’t look Latina, I don’t stick out.  People don’t turn their heads to look at us (ok, only to admire my daughter’s blonde hair but you know what I mean).  Maybe I’d have to travel to rural Asia or Africa or other areas (southern Mississippi?) if I really wanted to experience what it feels like to look really physically different. Maybe then whatever it means to be white wouldn’t follow me there.  But as it is, the privileges/open doors/general easiness because of my skin has followed me here.

2) Puerto Ricans are just plain nice. So far, I haven’t experienced any (known) inequalities given to me.  I don’t think I’m getting a special (i.e. raised) price on services. Once in the food store I think a lady was mocking me because I wasn’t understanding her. But truthfully, I was ignoring her because I think she wanted to butt in line. So I didn’t care. In restaurants when we ask for a table I think a few times they seat us in a specific section where there is an English speaking server. But I think that’s maybe more along the lines of being nice than discriminatory.

Now if we were Mexican, I think we would be treated in a negative way. Puerto Ricans and Mexicans don’t get along at all.

3) The social circles we are in are mostly like the ones we were in in Wisconsin: mid-upper Middle class.  My neighborhood here is full of doctors, professions and engineers.  Most of the people I meet have either been educated in the States or have family there. Does this mean they are more opened minded and accepting than Puerto Ricans living in the rural parts of the mountains? Dunno. I don’t know enough of them to know. But I think it does factor in.

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After all is said and done, are we giving our kids a broader perspective of the world? Definitely.

Will they be more accepting of people who are different than them? I certainly hope so.

Are we experiencing what is feels like to be a “minority” (with all that word entails?) No.

It was still a good move to make.

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Chikungunya

Posted on December 4, 2014 by Laura

Chikungunya. Hard to say, nasty to get.

A mosquito bites you. You get a fever, then your joints ache something fierce.  Which can stick with you and flair up for 6-12 months.  Fun!

So far the outbreaks have been mostly around San Juan. But slowly it’s spreading westward. My friend Alvin got it 🙁 and our massage therapist says more and more of her clients have it.

So Trevor and I started getting a little worried.  I mean, I could deal with getting sick, but lemme tell ya, I’m scared to think what would happen if Trevor or the kids get it.  There’s not much of a cure besides drinking OJ and taking tylenol. (My son hates both).

I bought Deet-free Citronella bracelets for the kiddos. They lasted about 15 minutes before they became playthings and ultimately ended up decorating the tree.  Uh, I’ll use bug spray from now on.

IMG_2679There are no screens on the windows, or screen doors on the house…so, I guess we’ll just have to keep killing the skeeters in the house as they enter.

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Cafes: the continuing search

Posted on December 3, 2014 by Laura

My daughter has been helping me continue my search for the best cafe in Mayaguez. Or rather, she comes along because I promise a snack.

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The rather small with crazy parking cafe called “Clara’s” was an instant hit. Friendly staff that don’t require you to pay until you’re done eating (which always makes me feel weird). Pastries, acai bowls, and yummy coffee.  Ms. P even made a friend there!

IMG_1869Of course, the staff all spoke English to me even while I was trying to speak Spanish haha

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We also tried the Acai Bowl cafe on the Plaza Colon downtown.  Not as much ambiance but a yummy acai bowl and they have a diverse menu.

I’ll be back to both places!

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