A few random things…..
I will be on a bus from somewhere to somewhere else and then all of a sudden notice there is a fire slowly spreading along the sides of the road, burning grass and bushes and fence-posts, leaving a trail of blackened landscape behind. Nobody seems to take much notice of this, nobody is worried, nobody is fighting the fire…..it seems as though this is not out of the ordinary….surprising in a country that has a dry season that is over 6 months long.
Women carry their babies and smaller children here, ALL THE TIME. Rarely have I seen a stroller being used. I’ve seen kids as big as 3 or 4 years old passed out asleep in their mothers (or grandmothers) arms, while the woman stands there waiting for a bus or even buying groceries. These women hold onto their kids for hours at a time! Their arms and backs must be incredibly strong, wouldn’t want to arm wrestle any of these ladies!
When having a meal, most everything comes promptly, except the bill! They never bring it without asking. In fact sometimes it seems like the service staff disappear once I start thinking hhmmmm, maybe I’ll get the check now, poof, they are nowhere to be found!
The bus will stop anywhere, either to pick you up or drop you off, now that’s service! Today I didn’t see the bus coming until the last second and waved just as it went past me, I figured that was it I was stuck waiting another half an hour, but no, it came to a stop about 15 meters down the road and waited for me to get there, (I ran but probably didn’t really have to) the driver even had a big smile for me as I got on.
New, English language books are stupid expensive here, approximately double the jacket list price…this hurts someone like me who reads super fast….usually can trade books at hostels or buy them used for a more reasonable price but I am in a small town right now without any of those options, so…..ouch!
I don’t know how this can be but you can walk from one beach to the next and they will only be separated by a very small little point of land or bluff or whatever you want to call it, and the colour of the sand will change completely. One beach has dark grey almost black gritty sand and the next will be fine and white with all sorts of pretty seashells. I don’t understand how or why this happens, can anyone explain it to me?
Last thought…..mosquitoes suck! Why do they like my elbows so much?
bean traveling 