home?

I just returned from my October visit to “the big city” (Santa Cruz). I had a wonderful time seeing friends from my B-45 group. I especially enjoyed spending time with my favorite Peace Corps couple Anna and Tom. We found new hostel, which changed our whole idea of the city. We spent most of our days hanging out by a beautiful little pool and garden… a nice retreat from the busy city streets filled with loud micros and people peddling everything from Euros, to phone cards, to shaved ice. We had a couple of lovely lunches and dinners at our favorite spots, La Casona (a German restaurant) and Tomate (a pizzeria). I left feeling healthy (thanks to a couple of medical visits) and up-to-date (thanks to internet at Alexander’s café). I also returned with a new haircut, groceries unavailable to me in San Jose, Newsweek, and a few newly downloaded Itunes.

The last couple days in the city I began to feel a little on edge, even though I was having a good time. I couldn’t exactly put my finger on it until I pulled into the crazy train station in San Jose. This time, I began to smile when I saw the small wood fired grills with chicken and meat on sticks, and smiled even more so when I heard the whiney voices of women and children calling “limonaadaaaaaa” or “te manzanilaaaaaaaaa”. I felt a strange sense of relief and realized that I was home.

Other trips, when I pulled back into the station it was more of a feeling of being back in my site versus another place in Bolivia. This is the first time I felt like this is really where I live. I left the train station; breathing the air that now smells less of smoke and more of rain… it is the beginning of a new season. I am here and ready to work… lets see how things go.