Thoughts of home

Having been here a year, it’s possible to compare the start of the rainy season this year and last, and there’s so much more rain this year. We’ve booked our holidays home to Ireland in July, and Jack’s started guitar lessons.

Travelling home
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I hate searching for complicated flights on the internet. I always end up with about 16 browser windows open, and flit between them tweaking dates to try to get the best fare. This time the best fare turned out to be a crazy route. But still, best fare is best fare, and we’ve gone for it.

We’re leaving here on July 2nd, arriving into Dublin on the morning of 3rd. We don’t leave Ireland until 31st, so it’s a good long break. The route we take is, wait for it, on the way out; San José, Miami, St. Louis, Chicago, Dublin. And then on the way back it’s Dublin, London, Miami, San José.

We’re really looking forward to catching up with people at home, and I’ll have so much more time than my quick trip last August.

Things you miss from home
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Whenever anybody comes out, they always ask what we want brought over from Ireland. To be honest, there’s really not a lot that we miss. I’d kill for a batterburger and chips, but it’s not very realistic. What I’ve got people to bring so far includes the predictable Barry’s Tea. I didn’t bring any with me, because I think the milk abroad is often dodgy. But it’s fine over here.

I’ve also asked people to bring Blu-Tack. I’m not sure why, but you can’t get it here. There is a fantastically equipped American office store called Office Depot, which has more items than I’ve ever seen available in Ireland in it’s large warehouse. But no Blu-Tack. It’s amazing how much we’ve managed to decorate the apartment walls since it’s arrived.

The only other thing is a favourite from my childhood. Erin Irish Potato soup. Just a simple packet soup, but ideal for days with tropical rainstorms. They should use that in their advertising!

Guitar lessons
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I got Jack a guitar for his birthday, and he’s now taking lessons. My boss’s brother, Colin from the US, is a very good player and is giving him lessons for just over €5 an hour. So he’s practising loads at the moment, shredding his fingers away in the process.

Drifting exchange rate
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Another aspect of Tico life is that the currency, the Colón (or Columbus), is constantly falling in value. When we arrived it was C467 to the dollar. It’s now C508, a fall of nearly 9%, and that happens year in year out. It doesn’t fluctuate. It just falls.

Because of this, the dollar acts as a surrogate currency. Most of our bills are in dollars, and they have a dollar conversion rate to give you this months total in colones for payment.
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Well, that’s it for another week. The rain continues. A couple of minutes ago we couldn’t hear each other speak for the din on the tin roof. There’s a respite for the moment. So until next week.

Pura Vida,

Éamon

Today’s headline in La Nación: Schools fail to check schoolbags daily (for weapons!)