Cats, Dreams and Broken Hearts

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I left my headset in Chinandega for the boys. They loved sitting in front of the television with each of them using an earpiece and the silence throughout the rest of the house was welcomed so I figured it was a good addition to Enoes house. The three families that live next door to each other share the same roof, so the boys, who actually live two doors down are often at Enoes house watching television.

I have started a list of things to bring with me the next time I visit Chinandega. Toys for the children and some things I would like Enoe to have...like a dish drainer, for example. She lives a very simple life.

Often when visiting these countries, I leave with a better appreciation for the things I have taken for granted. Things such as turning on the tap and having a choice of hot or cold water...or even water at all. In Nicaragua, the water, like the electricity, is often inexplicably shut off for hours at a time. It reminds me of the first King's Peak trip Craig and I took together many years ago. King's Peak is a 32 mile round trip to Utah's highest peak in the eastern part of the state in the high Uintas. We spent 5 days in the wilderness, collecting our water each day and then filtering it...which turned out to be quite a chore. At the end of the trip when we walked into the house I went into the kitchen for water and turned on the tap. To have water come out by just lifting a piece of metal was fascinating to me at that moment, and so I called Craig into the kitchen to watch as I turned the faucet on and then off again. I'm sure Bruce and MaryAnne thought we had lost our minds. We both laughed about it yet for weeks after had a new appreciation for instant, drinkable water.

One of the saddest things about my travels, both in and out of the United States, is that everywhere I go I meet people I want to know forever yet know I will never see again. Sometimes it breaks my heart.

I am now at the Bearded Monkey in Granada where I slept last night and I can't tell you how comforting it is to be in a familiar setting. I met Wendy from Wales and Richard from Sweden and we spent the better part of the evening discussing relationships. It was great fun to hear how single people from other parts of the world view the whole relationship issue.

I had the strangest dream last night...I was at the airport making my way to my gate and while going down the escalator I found a large, grey tabby cat lounging on one of the steps. How the cat was lounging on a moving escalator I could not answer. It's one of those oddities that make perfect sense in dreams. So in my dream, I picked up the cat and since it had obviously lost its owner I took it to the lost and found where it was placed with 5 or 6 other cats. Apparently in my dreams cats are often found in airports. I dont often dream of cats and so imagine my surprise early this morning to find a large grey tabby cat sprawled out on the counter when I went for a cup of coffee. I had not known the Bearded Monkey had a pet cat wandering around. One of the guys in my dorm told me the cat slept with him most of the night, which he was quite content with since he loves cats and misses his own. I must have seen it sometime in the night to have dreamt about it.

Am off to Laguna de Apoyo, otherwise known as The Jewel of Nicaragua.

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