seed harvest

Here is me Cutting into a Jack fruit with a machete.

After halfing or quartering it (depending on if you had let it rot or not . . .rotten fruit is like mush and doesn't require much work at all. The down side is that if you had let the fruit rot it a) has flies, b) is un-snackable during the cleaning process.) you then dig the seeds out with your hands. If they fruit wasn't rotten a pairing knife is handy. Seeds are about the size of acorns and to quote Julia Roberts, "Slippery little suckers".

They make a really good pattay but are otherwise pretty bland. High work to taste ratio but Jack fruit are easy to come by. . .so why not get some good starch from them?? Mimi and Jim are both great cooks and know how to make anything taste great!

Going rouge

Headed for the coast today. Sad to leave the farm - so many anyazing fruit, people experiences - can't even describe it in my t-30 seconds on the computer but fantastic it was!!!

Upon leaving the bridge flooded (night before) and I had to walk through rushing river water a foot+ deep as i crossed a foot bridge to get to my bus. It was very intense b/c apparently the water was rising again and all the men who had been laying on the bridge pulling drebris and logs out from under it during the morning were then yelling at me to hurry up and get going! (They were no longer on the bridge . . .) Three other people crossed with me and it was quite the exciting send off. As always, somehow I am never really alone.

Headed to see new territory. Couldn't resist the urge to see more.

So coming back.

part 2 - ecuador

Jungles here are green and lush.

I love it here. Right now I am adjactent to a computer so it is easy to say that. Being connected to the worled makes life easy.

When I arrived in country and took an open air bus 3 hours into nowhere I was in awe and trying to figure out how to stay forever. That night in alone in a screaned cabana, with sounds of night blasting lounder the the reggeatone of bastimentos, with no light other than a head lamp in an environment i knew nothing of - I was homesick for the first time since - not even sure.

Maybe it was the emotional distance of Jim the farmer, maybe it finally saying goodbye to Kevin, but in needing to turn on my headlamp and scibble in my journal - I realized there was a fist-sized spidar in my room! In that moment I did not like the jungle.

I woosed out and made Jim get rid of it. Forget pride - it was HUGE.

The farm is rad. I{ll try and talk about it later- they aren{t permaculturists which is a let down on the education end of things but it frees me up for other travels. (Hence coming 'to town' a 2.5 hour bus ride away to make contacts etc. There isn{t even phone reception on the site.

Sometimes we have power. . . it attracts the bugs though so I still stick to candles much of the time.

Gotta catch a bus back to simplicity.

part I

Panama was a Caribean paridise marded only by 2am reggae-tone blairing out of 8 foot tall speakers 100 meters from our island cabana. When it started again at 10am it was time to find a new island.

Small but fatal flaws (and simply tranversing a country) resulted in 6 habitacions in 9 nights.

I love waves and hamocks and learning to surf in warm waters. Ordering whole fish and rum drinks made with papayas or fresh but unknown fruit is decadent. Most travelers complain about how Bocas Del torro is discovered and developed - and maybe it is - but i felt away from the world. It was a motorboat skiff ride to privacy and paradise.

Little known fact to non-locals -Chinese run the show what in comes to general stores in bocas. Food, general stuff, they've got AT LEAST one store on all of the habitated islands and it is the only grocery or general store around. All the general stores are Chinese owned.

on the move

Finally made it to Panama. Went through some serious culture shock for about 24 hours.

Imaging spending 3 weeks where almost half the people wear some level of what I would describe as "non-modern" attitre, some of it some of it being Mayan clothing some of stemming from poverty and living in the hills with a lack of dental care and culture differences. I have become acustom to hearing Spanish around me, seeing goldcapped or missing teeth, the unique beautiful, undescribable fabrics, infants and two-year olds bound to their mothers backs - all as a part of my existence and i hadn´t noticed it and I hadn´t noticed until the airport.

I was cramming trying to read up on Panama (serious data deficit) . . .and naturally everyone was still speaking Spanish (Guatemala City) however they were dressed totally modern. Where was I??? How far had he mini bus driven? What continent - a dream? Am I in Spain, are they really speaking Spanish or is my head just totally swiming?? Wow, they are all realy clean and pretty . . . .

I suddenly became acutely aware of how gross I must have seemed to these increadibly stylsh people. It was as though I were in Spain rather than the Latin America I´ve been in for the past 3 weeks . . . So interrestingly, my departure from Guatemala was nothing like the 3.5 weeks i speand in the country.

Guatemala was great but now I'm Panama - and it is hot, humid and I LOVE IT!!!!

Flying in was crazy b/c Panama City the is freakishly modern - as the guide book says it is a lot like Miami. We stayed out till 4am and things were still bumping went we tool off. After 2 nights Kevin and I have moved on the the caribean boccas Del Torro island chain and are going to an outter island in the morning. This is nothing short of amazing.

I´d go into more detail but I am beat from the 4am night club thing. The whole world should have have all night discos.

Peace Out Xela

Leaving tomorrow for Lake Atilan. Stoked to bust out of the grit of Xela. Particularly since i have not had a heated shower since moving and if nother else Panahachel (where I am going on Lake Atilan) is at a lower elevation and should be warmer. As a popular spot for tourists I should be able to see Obama sworn in at Panahachel. Don´t know who is in charge here but Guatemalans are definitely curious to know what American travelers think of Obama and some have there own opinions.



Anyways, I'm trying to up load some pictures of Xela but computers have been difficult so i don´t know if they'll show.


It{s been great, time has flown by and I can´t wait to leave.


See Kevin 10pm thursday night. Amazing. Ready to bust.

something tangible

I have now been gone two weeks and 6 days and for the first time I missed something very tangilble from home. (Other than you of course)



It was a beautiful day that felt like the best of our 75 degree summer days. The park was full of venders and due to heavy protective fencing actually had green unlittered grass. I practiced my flash cards and knew about 5 words.



In these moments of sunshine I was repeatedly passed by childeren, old folks and women with babies on their backs carrying ALL SORTS of ice cream cones. Shaved ice, soft serve, drum sticks, swirls - it was nuts. I went with the drum stick thingy you get from the mobile vendor (ice cream truck withoutthetruck) since it didn't require me to move.



In this lazy bliss, I drifted to Molly Moons and craved her smooth creamy flavors. For the first time since I arrived here, with all the ups and downs, dirt, grime and cold showers I missed a tangilble inatimate object from back home.

It was fabulous.