As I get myself ready to fly back to Canada for a two-week visit, it occurs to me that I have some information for travellers to Costa Rica that might be useful. Anyone travelling to Costa Rica must have a passport that is valid for more than 3 MONTHS. Last February, we got to the airport in Buffalo and the airline ticket agent said I could not board the airplane because my passport was only valid for 2 and a half months. That day deserves its own blog entry and maybe I'll write about it some day, but for now it suffices that I share this information. Like the Boy Scouts say 'Be prepared!'.
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Today, I tackled painting the guesthouse. We had bought the paint last week, but I still had some cleaning to do before being able to start properly. I managed to put the first coat in the bathroom, the changing room area and the kitchen. I also started on the kitchen cabinets with a contrasting colour, but was unable to finish today. It's looking clean and fresh. It will look and feel even better with a second coat. I'm not sure if I'll have the time tomorrow to work on it since I have school in the morning, then I'm meeting Angela (the volunteer English teacher who is leaving in a few weeks) for lunch to go over the curriculum and to get as many ideas as possible. I need all the help I can get! And then I'll come home for a few hours before going back to Copey for the adult evening classes. And since I'm leaving for Canada early Wednesday morning, I may have to wait until I return to finish painting.
I just wanted to redeem myself. We tried the marmalade this morning and it had, indeed, thicken to a nice consistency and it was delicious. It might have needed just a tad more sugar, but lovely all the same.
Last Tuesday, Kevin and I were given a bagful of oranges by Rolando during the coffee tour. So, what does one do with so many oranges before they go bad? Well, after juicing a whole lot, which was delicious by the way, I looked for other creative ways to use them up. I remembered that Kevin loves marmalade, so I searched and found a recipe on the internet. I've never made jam before, but there's always a first time. Here is a heap of orange peels in my compost bin. I did keep some of the peel for the marmalade, as called for in the recipe. This is my first attempt... but it poured out like very hot orange juice (all that stirring and reducing, and still so liquid). I secretly convinced myself that it would thicken up as it cooled. When I showed it to Kevin (to be honest, I was more excited about the jar I found... isn't it great?) he looked at me with that face that says 'I hate to have to tell you this, honey, so I won't, but please know by the look on my face, that whatever is in that pretty jar, is NOT and will never become marmalade unless you reduce it further.' He had a taste of this yummy juice and said it tasted just like proper marmalade (except for the consistency part), so with that encouragement, I decided to take heart and reduce it some more. Man oh man, I stirred as it boiled and eventually... and I do mean 'eventually', it got thicker. It reduced to the point that pouring it back into the original jar was ridiculous... my intention wasn't to make a huge batch since I didn't know if I'd make a mess of things (who me?), leaving it inedible, BUT I was hoping to have more than a thimble worth! So, in this much smaller (not particularly attractive) jar, I poured the much thicker... but still not really quite thick enough (yes, I did, yet again, convince myself it would thicken as it cooled). Then, I decided second batches are always way better anyway! So until next time... For those of you who have been following our story and are having a hard time remembering the cast of characters, here is a breakdown:
The scene: Rio Blanco (where we live. We live 1/2 kilometer from the one-room school) Copey (about 10 minutes west of our place) Santa Maria (about 10 minutes west of Copey) San Marcos (about 10 minutes west of Santa Maria) San Pablo (about 5 minutes west of San Marcos) The cast: Family who works for us and have become our friends: Martin (father) and Clara (mother) of Brian... is married to Diana.... and they have one daughter, Tamara Nacho... single right now as far as we know Paola... single Nicole Elizabeth is the Spanish teacher at our one-room school. She lives in Copey. Catalina is the English teacher at our one-room school. She is married to Gogui. They live in San Pablo, west of San Marcos. The students: Tamara and Kevin (grade 1) Nicole, Sharon and Daniel (grade 2) Daniela (grade 5) We lost Lindsey and Jefri along the way. Dairy farmer neighbours: (just 5 minutes up the road from the school) Abel (father) and Elly (mother) of Roberto... is married to Adriana (no children). They live on the same property as Abel and Elly, but in a separate house. Thomas... is married, but we've not met his wife, Violeta, and children. They live in Santa Maria. Violeta... sister to Roberto and Thomas, whom we have yet to meet. Bird expert and beef jerky maker: Holly... she lives next to Roberto and Adriana's farm. Brian works with her. She's originally from the States, but has lived here most of her life. House builder/ power of attorney to previous owners/ helping me with the vegetable garden/ huge help to us in general: Isabel... is originally from France, but has lived in CR for 30 years and is married to Urs, who is from Switzerland. Nacho works with her. Apple orchard neighbour Cindy and Albarito, mother and father of: Sharon Thomas Cindy speaks a bit of English. They live right beside the school. Coffee plantation farmer Rolando and Maritza Friends of Cindy and Albarito, whom we met at Albarito's birthday party Sept 15th. They live in Santa Maria and Rolando's coffee plantation is just north of San Marcos. Rolando speaks English. Retired Arizona couple: Cindy and Larry They are friends of the previous owners, which we've happily inherited and they live in Santa Maria. Lawyer: Diego and his wife, Maria Fernandez They live in San Jose. Copey Learning Center: Seidy... head honcho with her sister Naomi. There is a board of director, which I can't remember all their names right now. Angela... Peace Corp volunteer who has been teaching there for the last 2 years and will be leaving soon. She's the person I'm replacing. These are the current adult students, which I'm sure I'll be writing about more in future: Dina Milena Jose Roger Gregory Victor I think that's as thorough as I can get for now. There are people we've met along the way, but the above are the main characters in our story. As I was walking back from the garden later this afternoon, I felt something hit my back. Then I felt a sting. Ouch! Man that really hurt. I remembered Holly (the bird expert) mentioning that baking soda takes bee stings away. I don't know what stung me...
I've never been stung by a bee or wasp before, so this was my first experience. I quickly asked Kevin to rub a baking soda paste on the sting since it was in one of those hard to reach places on my back. The paste worked immediately! Like a miracle cure. One for the books and worth remembering! P.S. Since this post, Kevin and I have discovered that lemon works even better! Since we have free lemons all over the property, we are now opting to use this new antidote. The acid in the lemon neutralizes the sting immediately. We slice the lemon in half and simply press the lemon onto the sting and leave it there for a minute or two. And voilà! Good as new. My personal style is pretty much to jump in with both feet whereas Kevin is all about research and preparation. I rarely take the time to read instructions, manuals or recipes, etc. Sometimes my method prevents me from procrastinating, or double guessing myself, so in some ways, it works to my advantage. Sometimes, on the other hand, a little preparation, a little reading up would alleviate a whole lot of wasted time and effort.
This morning, I decided to plant the small potatoes Isabel gave me. She had given them to Roberto and Roberto gave them to me yesterday, when I was practicing Spanish with Adriana. Isabel hadn't mentioned any special way to plant them, so I thought I'd simply do what we did with the carrots. I prepared the bed, got rid of the weeds and rocks, added compost and lime and placed the small potatoes with the eyes down, because I figured the roots would need to go down. After two hours of working my fingers to the bone... Kevin came by and mentioned that my bed was way too wide and too high. It should be flat and narrow. What? Are you kidding me? For a split second I thought 'what does it matter?... maybe my way will be better... maybe it will be heralded as the new way of planting potatoes!' Then, I came to my senses, and realized that the last thing I want is to lose a whole crop of perfectly delicious potatoes and have to start over anyway. So, I dug deep (literally and figuratively). I found the small potatoes and put them back in the bag. Feeling completely and utterly gutted, with the sun beating down on me, I went inside to hydrate and to get on the internet to find out how I should proceed. Did you know that it is recommended that I place my little potatoes in a tray in a bright, dry place (this process is called 'chitting'... yes with a 'c') to allow them to sprout. First mistake! Once they sprout, I should place the potatoes in a shallow, narrow trench. Second mistake! And then when leaves start to grow, I start covering them with dirt and repeat this stage as the plant grows. Oh, and never use lime in the soil. Hmm, third mistake! I'm batting a thousand... good thing I listened to Kevin (oh how I hate to admit that he was right!). Once I was armed with the information I looked up on the website and youtube, I put the small potatoes in a tray, eyes upward. I will wait until they are ready. I will use the bed I prepared for some other goodies, so nothing will be lost. I have another spot where my potato crop can grow. I will chalk this day to another day of learning. |
EASY
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