THE GRINGAS

I have met a whole lot of incredible women here in a very short time. First, a small group that was just getting together for a potluck – I had made contact with one of them formerly through the internet. There, I met Gloria, the only single woman in that group, and we are becoming good friends. We share a sense of adventure [i.e. let’s just hop on a bus and see where it takes us]. And amazingly, her US home is in Sebastopol, my old stomping grounds in California. She set out four years ago to just travel, and has spent 3-6 months in various places all over the world. She came to Costa Rica for another short stay and has just found herself staying longer than usual – a full year now here in Grecia. She’s talking about the next jaunt, though, and already I know I am going to miss her.

Then, through Gloria, I was invited to another group called “Blooms” which is just an informal group of women that meets once a month for a potluck breakfast and a gathering with little or no purpose. There were about 20 women at this particular meeting, and they each stood up and introduced themselves and shared what they are up to in Costa Rica. An incredibly interesting bunch. Artistic endeavors, charity work [i.e. creating libraries for Costa Rican children who have, by and large,] little or no access to books), running a non-profit breed-and-release program for macaws, etc. I loved all of them, and having admitted that I have a background in event-production, I am sure I will be called on as various fund-raisers get planned. I will be visiting the macaw breeding place next week to take some pictures and talk about helping them with their website. The website and the birds are beautiful by the way. Take a look. http://www.hatchedtoflyfree.org. Be sure to check the “wallpaper” link. There are some fantastic photos to use on your computer screen.

Yesterday, Gloria and I rode with Judy (another woman from the group) and Boyd her husband, to San Jose to see an Orchid Exhibit at the National Museum. The Orchid Exhibit was small and a little bit disappointing but was accompanied by a tent full of food offerings. I had a pupusa, a soft cornmeal pancake with a bean-and-cheese filling, covered with shredded cabbage and fresh salsa – delicious! After the exhibit we walked over to the local arts-and-crafts marketplace where many of the goods were from Nicaragua, Guatemala and Indonesia. It was interesting. The vendors are real practiced with their English.

And then we stopped at the “Chinatown” area downtown (there are a lot of Chinese in Costa Rica, having been brought here originally to build railroads) and went into a store where we bought all kinds of interesting foods. I bought a packaged soup, label all in Chinese, except for a tiny phrase “Torpid and spicy beef.” I can hardly wait to try it.

A delightful day in a new place with new friends.