Chapter 13: All work and no play makes for a productive day.

The next day I awoke to the offensive odor of pesticide drifting into my cabana – and realized that my little slice of tropical paradise and the “eco” hotel I was staying in was not at all “eco” and was contaminated with probably several gallons of Raygon to keep the bugs at bay. So although we had been entreated to conserve the precious water resources, apparently no effort was being made to keep the toxic pesticidal chemicals out of the aquifer. A later conversation revealed that although there were some superficial eco features to this eco establishment – they really had a long way to go in terms of ecofreindliness – a problem that surfaced at a number of different places on this trip – green washing has definitely infiltrated the tourism industry.

That day I got down to some serious work – it is kind of hard to work with turquoise waters and comfy hammocks right outside your door – but then again, the sea breeze and the sound of the waves make for a pretty choice office environment – so while my roomie went out diving for the day, I sat on my ergonomic mattress with the double doors of my cabana swung open and had a very productive day – and after a quick after-work swim, I was feeling ready for another life altering dinner at Casa Iguana – unfortunately, lightening never strikes in the same place twice and this night’s dinner paled in comparison – however doubling up on the basilito did help a little, and the after party which consisted of yet another bonfire, the breaking in of a new guitar, an excellent ukulele performance, lots of nice conversation, and definitely a bit too much rum - more than made up for the lackluster food. This time the party was on the other side of the island – which made for a long walk home with a very intoxicated roommate – but luckily a good Samaritan neighbor made for an excellent chaperone through the dark and scary jungle and back along the deserted beach.

The other side of the island...

(Tanquillo's pub)

(mainstreet - actually more like main sidewalk since there are no cars or roads of any sort)


The things you have to cross to get to the other side...

(Jungly bit)

(residential bit)

(another jungly bit)

(the rural bit)

After about an hour of trying to sleep I decided to wake up for the sunrise and was surprised to find a few other people attempting the same thing – however, all of us were let down because it turned out to be a cloudy day and there was no sun to be seen. I went for a walk, and for some breakfast and finally for a four hour nap - followed by several hours of hanging out at Tranquillo's, a cute little outdoor bar/pub/restaurant type place (which was the site of the party the night before) eating gooey chocolate chip cookies covered in whipped cream, and drinking fresh lemonade. Finally, went for a lobster dinner (the local special) at a little place in town, and wandered home again for a quiet night.