Early Mornings

I had an early class this morning. I know a 9am start seems like a bad thing when I'm not a morning person, and usually don't start until 4pm. But it was such a beautiful sunny morning it put me in great form.

Trying early mornings
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Some of you will know of Jack Black. He's a personal development guru that was very much in vogue in Irish Life when I was there. One thing that he promotes is an internal alarm clock, which you use to wake yourself up in the morning instead of a physical alarm clock. You just think about the time you want to wake up at when you're going to bed. To my utter amazement, it actually works. Even for me, who needed an alarm clock and the radio at full volume snoozing every 10 minutes for about an hour before I got up. I'm using my Jack Black alarm clock since I came back from Ireland, and although I'm still not a morning person, I am more alert when I get up.

It even worked on Saturday, after a night out at the housewarming of another teacher's apartment when I got to bed after two, and had to be up for class starting at 9. I woke at 7.40 as planned.

The Tico day
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I keep thinking that it would be better if I could move my day to start earlier and to go earlier to bed. That's the Tico way. Most people get up between 5.30 and 6.30. I guess it's because it's bright so early in the morning and dark so early in the evening. But, also, at this time of the year the weather breaks about lunchtime, and it moves from being a beautiful morning into a cloudy and extremely rainy afternoon and evening. Although I have to say it's actually hotter now in winter than in the 'summer' or dry season!

So I'm gradually trying to reposition my day. Not with anything so dramatic as getting up at 6.30, but earlier. You wouldn't believe how many times we go to bed while hearing my landlord and his family get up for the day ahead.
Bodily functions
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One cultural difference between English speaking countries and Costa Rica is the Tico attitude to all aspects of the bodily digestive process. Students have a huge interest if someone has bowel problems. A lovely Colombian student had such problems on Saturday, and was in and out of the class constantly. The other students enquired how things were after every toilet trip. And she happily shared unembarrassed.

When we were going to the Fiesta Hotel, Marcelo, the head of the school, announced to everyone 'Please do number 2s here before getting on the bus'.

On the way back we stopped, he told us, so everyone can 'make piss'. (I hope that doesn't have this email rejecting from all your work filter programs!)

Ron's party
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One of my fellow teachers, Ron, a surfer from California, has moved to a new apartment. He had a housewarming party on Friday night.

The apartment is very typical of apartments in Heredia, and reminded me how lucky we've been. It's basically one main room, with a living area and a sink. There is no cooker, or indeed any furniture at all. We are the only people I know who have a fully furnished apartment.
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Well, that's it for another week. I began writing yesterday, Monday, but it's now Tuesday. I haven't been writing all through though! It's coming up to 1pm, and the sky is clouding over.

Pura Vida,

Éamon

Today's headline from La Nación: Oirsa paid the salaries of supervisors in MAG