Miscellaneous Memories

Hammocks on the beach, bonfire and Bob Marley; lightning on the horizon, silver streaks backlighting Christ on the hill. Tiny kitten, perched on a palm stump. Sixteen years old Finn, studying abroad in Costa Rica; shock of red hair, the only gringo in his village. Vultures eating a dead dog on the highway. Vultures sitting on the picket fence, every picket. Seeing Isla de Ometepe suddenly, after crossing the border-- the frustration melting away as the twin volcanoes rose from the beautiful lake at sunset. Being pulled onto a moving bus through the emergency exit. Relearning how to use the camera. Finding a crab in my bed-- in the mountains. Laughing while gasping for breath in the raft. Coconut rum and coke. Hearing about swine flu in Mexico. Hearing about robbery in Guatemala. Hearing about robbery in Nicaragua. Seeing Honduras fall to Anarchy on the news. Meredith being robbed in Costa Rica. Is this a cursed continent? US blowing a 2-1 lead over Brazil, to lose in the last 15 minutes. Being told the shower will work later; that the internet will work later; that the bus leaves every half hour; that the bus leaves every hour; that this bus leaves in three hours, no this bus leaves in a quarter hour. The dancing flower photograph. Running trampoline style across a suspension bridge. Looking for iconic photos; sometimes finding them, sometimes finding something better. Malinche flowers strewn like rose pedals. The fattest pig ever. Orchids on the path, the relentlessly steep path up Conception. A whole plate of french fries, and never a drop of mustard.