Another day in paradise....

Tap tap. Tap tap. Tap Tap in my back. My elbows flailed into the air, body convulsed and I took a big endorphin filled breath as my fight or flight instinct kicked into full gear. "Whoa buddy, it's just me Alwin. I'm waking you up to take Sam to the doctor." Sigh of relief.... a second prior I was sure I was being prodded by the crazy horse that roams the property and is said to be a bit bite happy. How the hell would he get into the house anyway? Probably the same way everything else does. Another day in paradise...

We finally got Sam to the clinic this morning for a visit with a physical therapist/doctor and he got some great news. Nothing is wrong with his spine, it's only muscle tension in his back that has been giving him all the problems. The solution to which is a heavy dose of muscle relaxers and some physical therapy for the next couple weeks. The doctor also recommended that he carry a lighter backpack and do some exercises to build the muscles. While Sam was at the doctor's office, Alwin and I made a pit stop at the beach park in Pinones so I could do my morning jog along the ocean. It was an awesome morning, the trades challenging me during the upwind portion of the run, and the sun beating down providing the extra sweat factor.

We had our normal breakfast at one of our favorite panaderias and I grabbed an extra cafe con leche for the road. A brief trip to the drugstore and we were on our way home to get ready for the beach.

We sped back down the mountain and back to the area we had come from in Pinones, but this time we passed our beach spot from yesterday and drove onward through super cluster of food stands that line the beach in the western part of Pinones. Here we stopped for some Coco Frio (ice cold coconuts cut with a machete so you can sip the milk out) and snack foods at a stand and then parked and walked around back to what I like to call "Brad's Beach".

Brad's Beach is a tiny stretch of beach that we found a few years ago when we were here for a vacation. It is behind one of the stands, and like the other beaches in the area, protected by an old fringe reef. There is a quickly sloping beach of porous sand that leads you into a tiny tidal pool filled with little fish and sea glass. The glass has been pounded over and over on the reef by waves and is usually smooth on all edges. One of the reasons that this is Brad's favorite beach is because he usually collects the sea glass and takes it home to make interesting artwork or fill vases for clients. There were a couple children playing while their father was fishing for crabs, but he wasn't the only one fishing. Dozens of sea birds were scouring the reefs for the delicious black crabs that hide in the old coral formations. It was awesome seeing them tear them up when the caught them, and they were usually able to swallow them down with a few quick gulps.

The day passed along nicely and we got some great ideas for the orphanage project while brainstorming on the beach. We sat until sundown and enjoyed the view of the north Atlantic swells coming in. Almost every minute there was a jet plane flying over the beach. We were very close the the end of the runway for the main airport in San Juan and we got to see the first turn into the trade winds as the planes carried load after load of people off the island. You can rest assured that the other side of the runway was dropping an equal amount of people here, even though we weren't able to see it from our perspective. Luis Munoz Airport is the busiest in the Caribbean by far.

On the way home I spotted a small red car stuck in the sand at one of the neighboring beaches. We pulled over and offered our help. It was a tiny Toyota and it was buried deep in the front end. I had the driver get out and I began to dig out the tires by hand. A gentleman who had got there before us suggested we pick the car up. He looked at me and said in Spanish, "With your strength, we can just lift it!" I don't know who he thought I was, but I sure as hell wasn't lifting a car out of the sand, so I kept digging to expose the lowest part of the tread. We then made a ramp and pushed it out while it was in neutral. They were so thankful that we stopped because it was a rental and they had to get it back in a few hours! Whooo.... close one for them!

We stopped at the grocery store to get some dinner and I got to play chef again. This time it was steak, eggplant and maduros (a sweeter plantain that is closer to a banana in taste) all grilled and seasoned to perfection. Like I said... another day in paradise! Getting some planning done now for the orphanage and then going to bed. Hope you are all having a great night wherever you are! Sweet dreams!

Sam's bad back finds a cure... the ocean.

My dear readers! I am so thankful for the soon to be millions of you reading my blog! How's that for positive affirmation? Bueno. Today, we awoke to a sunshine we haven't seen up here in the forest in a long time! Barely a cloud in the sky, the light was twinkling in my room through the trees and greenery and woke me up with a warm hello. I stretched out like a lazy lion and jumped out of bed with the ease of a house cat. Sam and Alwin had risen from slumber a bit before me and were sitting in the porch/dining area when I got up. I could see from the look in Sam's eyes that he was in great pain. We had been asking Lucy to get us in touch with a good Chiropractor, but it was the weekend when we had last spoken with her and she said nothing was open. Sensing Sam's pain and the eminent danger that he might kill all of us, I made haste to Lucy's house to ask her help. She was able to find a full service physical therapy clinic right in Rio Grande that would take Sam, but not until the morning.

Shit. What to do? Well luckily for him, Sam had mentioned how he felt pain free in the ocean the day before so I figured we would spend part of the day at the beach. This time we headed west towards San Juan sticking to the coastal roads that meandered through Loiza and Pinones, two shanty towns on the islands north east coast. We stopped for our usual sandwiches and coffee at a different panaderia and enjoyed a nice breakfast. We even had free entertainment from the conga line of ants whizzing past our table on the floor near the bakery coolers. Don't get me wrong, the place was very clean, and the food delicious, but it was kind of crazy to see how many of the little buggers had invaded. They moved about in single file, except for the ones carrying food, who did so in a communal effort of mass strength. Ants moved in a steady line coming in and out of a little hole in the wall. Each one stopped to communicate with the next passing one in rapid fashion as if to compare GPS coordinates and mission plans! I told Sam and Alwin about my ant fetish and how they react when you kill one in the line. They totally freak out! But I didn't activate the little boy in me this morning, and the ants were spared my terrorism. Satisfied, we carried on with our beach plans.

After a brief stop at Walmart to pick up snorkel gear, we cruised the coastal route through the towering palms and brush. A large section of this road was a forest and beach preserve, which made for spectacular views and Robinson Crusoe like daydreaming. I kept getting glimpses of old huts and homesteads long left behind and couldn't help but dreaming of living on the wild coast eating coconuts and catching my own fish from the reefs. There were small food shacks, some opened for business, many closed, that popped up occasionally on both sides of the road. You could smell the fresh 'pinchos' roasting on the grills. Tender pieces of chicken, pork, and various seafoods popping and sizzling on kabob sticks. Mmmm.

Soon after the twisty road straightened out, we found our spot; a broad and wild beach park that was protected from the big Atlantic swells by an old coral reef that had long since dried out. It made a mini lagoon of sand bottom beach that was nice for wading and swimming, but not so much for snorkeling. Maybe 4 feet deep at its deepest point, the beach seemed to be a favorite for families with little ones. It was awesome watching the 6 foot waves crashing into the reef, then trickling over the lagoon, their power rendered useless by the fortress of old coral.

We spent the rest of the day here. I caught up on some reading. Sam mostly played in the water with the new snorkel gear, and Alwin was back and forth enjoying both. I had a couple locals ask for juice to finish off their bottle of Vodka with and I quickly became the bartender as they came back a few times over the next hour with a shot of booze in their glasses, waiting for the all important mixer. The afternoon ended with Sam bitching about being cold. The trade winds were blowing hard, but the air was still pleasant so Alwin and I forced him to change his state of mind by screaming over and over again, "THE WORLD WAS MADE FOR SAM!!!!!!" Our loud bursts and songs eventually cracked a smile in Sam's face and we decided to complete our evening in San Juan.

We stopped at a bar for a few drinks and chatted with some cruise ship passengers from England, then I stopped at the cigar shop to refill my small stash of cigarillos. I'm not a smoker, but these little hand rolled cigars flavored with rum, chocolate, vanilla, coconut and a host of other tropical delights are nice to puff on at night up here in the forest. We strolled the city and enjoyed all of the festive lights and displays in the Plaza de Armas and the rest of the city. It was amazing and Sam was starting to pine for a little snow. I quickly thought about missing snow and all of the comforts of home on Christmas, but instantly became grateful for the chance to live it here in the beautiful, balmy weather. Yeah, I suck... I know!

I am going to shower up and hit the sheets, we are taking Sam to the doctor very early in the morning and I am going to try to jog some miles tomorrow so I can keep up with my training. Hope you are all having a fantastic night!