Hot Dog Dreams, Bull Touching, and Why I Love Trips to the Pueblo

I miss hot dogs. It has been SO long since I have had a really good hot dog. I'm craving a big beef one with all the toppings- like chili, cheese, onions, jalapenos. They have hot dogs here... but they're nothing like the American ones. Don't they have really good hot dogs at street stands in New York? One day I want to go to new york and buy one on the street. A frank. A weiner. With all the works. Yes.... I will do that! Maybe that will be my treat to myself at the end of this Peace Corps journey... a trip to New York to eat an awesome hot dog. Ooooh and bagels, and a corned beef reuben, and matzo ball soup. Sounds like a plan. Who's with me?

I don't even know why I am thinking about hot dogs so much... my stomach is in awful shape the last couple days. I don't really feel like eating much. And when i do it... it feels gross. Last night I was eating pupusas, I can't believe how much I like those things. I was sitting here at my house at my table and it occured to me "wow, this is some really awful food." A really awful food that I have surprisingly aqcuired a strong taste for. Maybe because it's not peanut butter and jelly or ramen noodles. I never would have eaten crap like that in a previous life... and here I am in the peace corps loving pupusas. It's amazing how much one changes when living in a different environment.

So I passed through San Vicente yesterday on my way home from San Salvador. I arrived a little nauseous after the bus ride on the super smooth Super Especial bus with his a/c, fancy seats and movies playing. Yea, it was a rough ride. I arrived in San Vi to buy my food for the week before going back to my site. I wasn't feeling so hot when I walked into the grocery store, and I looked to my left and there was this comfy looking canvas foldy lawn chair just sitting there on display with all the kiddy pools and floaties they had as part of their summer sale. I was like "SWEEEET!" What luck. So with time to kill before my bus came, I just sat their in the lawn chair of the perfectly air conditioned grocery store watching the shoppers pass by. Super Selectos, I love you. Finally, I felt I had recovered from the nausea of the bus ride and was ready to shop.

This brought me to thinkin about all the things I love about my trips to San Vicente.

1. Getting to read books on the bus for an hour there and an hour back. That's a lot of chapters I can get through. It makes the ride faster and more entertaining. And people don't talk to me, they just stare at me while I read. I wonder why they stare? Is it because they never see anyone reading books, especially books that thick, or no one ever reads books at all. Especially ones in English!

2. Going to the office on a Saturday for some good peace and quite time to work on a computer. I can't work much at home. Internet's too slow. No printer. And I feel bad when people see I am spending so much time alone in my house during the day. Can't really work at the computer lab at school because the kids always crowd around my computer watching my ever move. And I feel bad sitting in front of a computer instead of hanging out with them. So thanks to the San Vi office for giving me a nice place to get some work done.

3. Getting frozen chocolate covered bananas on a stick covered in cocoa krispies and eating it while I shop around the market, buying cheap stuff, always negotiating lower prices.

4. The sweet, old toothless lady that sits in front of the Catholic church in the park and sells candles. We've gotten to know one another because I wait for my bus there. I sit next to her and we talk. I can always count on her to keep track of whether or not I missed  my bus.

5. The friendly people at the cake and sandwich shop that wear big tall chef hats and know me by name. They always greet me and ask me how I'm doing when I walk by. They have pretty good paninis over there.

6. Pupusas for breakfast at Comedor Mary.

7. Meeting up with Jamie for chicken wings and beer at our favorite cafe in the park. Sitting on the balcony upstairs gives you a wonderful view of the park with its Catholic church, clock tower and volcano in the background.

8. The air conditioned Super Selectos.

9. Sitting in the pews of the catholic church and reading my book while I wait for my bus. Is that rude?

10. Buying my favorite snack on the bus on the way home. 25 cents (or as we say... "una kora") from the lady with lots of makeup and bright pink frilly make up. Sliced cucumber with salt, lime, hot sauce, and this poweder made from the seed of ayote called ayguaste.

In other news, I noticed Roxana, Milton's 16 year old sister who just graduated from 9th grade last year was looking quite round and large in the belly yesterday. I didn't want to ask... but it she was looking pretty preggo to me. Ay dios mio. She's just a baby herself. She can't have a baby. I was even going to look for scholarships for her to maybe go to high school. She won't want to go now. Well who knows, we'll see... maybe I'm wrong. Maybe she's just getting fat? Oy. I doubt it.

In case you're wondering how Milton is doing... he is doing pretty well I suppose. His arm still looks funky from his burn, with skin looking all dry like he's a reptile. And the skin seems to still be sensitive and thin. This kid falls more than any 3 year old I have ever know. Ok well I haven't known many 3 year olds, but he is ALWAYS falling and hurting himself. Is that normal? Maybe most 3 years have parents that keep a closer eye on them to make sure they aren't getting hurt all the time. And he comes back to my house crying with cuts all over himself and I get out my medical kit and put some neosporin and band aids on him. One the days that I can't get him to stop crying I whip out my camera and start taking pictures of him. That always does the trick and makes him smile immediately.

Milton smiling despite the boo boo

Just last weekend he showed up down at my neighbors house where I was eating pupusas to hang out with me. He had left home and walked there all by himself. He's sneaky like that, always running off. I told him he shouldn't do that... it's dangerous. What if a car were to come? A few years ago a 4 year old was killed here in my community because he was out running around and got hit by a bus in the street.  But anyway... still love the kid. We are going to the beach next Sunday with a bunch of other people from the community. He has never seen the ocean before, so that will be fun!

Off to the hammock! Need my stomach to settle before I can go out walking in the sun.

Paz y amor. Here's a few more pics to leave you with.

Don Chepito loves his bull, Nino. He was showing me how nice of a bull he is and was encouraging me to ride him.



This is as close as I could get. Chepito is right, he's a very nice bull. But I'm still wary of cows after one tried to attack me. I ended up feeding Nino salt out of my hand. I don't think I need to do that again. Cow tongue. Gross. Unless you are eating it at a NY deli.



I have two gallinas that sleep on my front porch. See them on each side of the door. I am not fond of this because they and their gazillion baby chickens that sleep up under them poo all over my porch. Gross. They used to sleep behind my house but Marinita is afraid they will be stolen. Meanwhile, one of our new puppies has been killing and eating lots of the baby chickens. Marinita and Chepito want to kill her, but there's an easy solution. Feed the dog.