The Blue Girl Lives! (Lisa)

Hello all. I'll add my two cents to Anthony's post, concerning our day chilling out in the Flores area:

Back in 2001 I went to Spanish school in the villages across the lake from Flores, and I lived with a local family. They were wonderful people, and really treated me like part of the family. They didn't have much - the kitchen is outside, they cook over a wood fire out there, they use an outhouse, and a family of at least 11 people lived and slept in a house the size of many American families' living rooms. (They had reserved the only bedrooms for students such as myself.)

Anyway - I decided I wanted to go back and visit "my" family. We took a minibus around the lake to San Jose (it used to be more easily accessed by boat, but now the road is paved), and started up the hill in the hot sun(these are incredibly steep hills, too). I found my old school, and the road I thought the family lived on. Things looked very different, and I had to ask around to find them. (They had built a whole new street next to the house since I left!) Once I had my bearings back, I found the place, and my "parents", Berta and Carmen. They were as welcoming as I knew they would be, and sat us down for some homemade limeade while we caught each other up on the last six years (and I introduced my husband!). The baby I knew back then is now a sweet 8 year old boy, full of hugs and kisses for the gringa he doesn't even remember - it was all wonderful.

Berta also gave me an update on the little girl who used to live next door to them. Some of you may have read my "Blue Girl" essay, about this girl - she was sick (her heart), and had a blue tint to her skin. I had agonized over what I might be able to do to help her, as her family was incredibly poor (I had done nothing, and it had bothered me for years). Berta told me the happy news that the girl is doing well. She is still a bit sickly, but is going to school and is happy. This was welcome news.

We wrapped up our day in San Jose with lunch at my former Spanish teacher's new restaurant (he quit the teaching business, married a gringa, and opened a cafe and bar). All in all, the day was a success.