First Week in CA

Homemade pupusas

Fresh peeled coconut

It’s been a great week so far here in Tegus, spent mostly with family, relaxing and enjoying how time seems to have slowed to a crawl for us. We’ve been waking each morning to the light sounds of the spinning fan and the breeze drifting in through the open window, not to mention the barking of stray dogs and the morning call of neighborhood roosters. We also hear the calls of street vendors, selling plump, ripe avocados and papayas as big as my head. Fernando’s mom, Carolina, has been nothing short of an angel with us, preparing an elaborate breakfast each morning, complete with hot tea, guanabana juice freshly squeezed from her tree, homemade refried beans, fresh cream and salty cheeses, hardboiled eggs, fresh papaya, and let’s not forget an amazingly creamy, tangy guacamole made from her own limes and the same plump avocados sold to her by the singing vendor in the early morning. After a quick warm shower, we’ve been out the door and off to visit his grandmothers and cousins, which usually means enjoying a cup of rich black coffee while the smell of lunch cooking fills the room.

We’ve been laying low in the evenings, but Saturday night was a great exception as Fernando was scheduled to headline a big annual party, ElectronikZone Fest. We set out with his sister and sister-in-law, meeting up with several of his longtime friends. It was warm inside, so we hung around the entrance in the cool night air talking amongst ourselves until our favorite DJ went on, then it was time to make our way to the front row to dance and shout our hearts out with all his other fans (trust me, he has plenty of them here). After a successful set, we mingled for a while then headed to a friend’s house, where we spent countless hours playing Rock Band (namely The Beatles!), singing painfully loud and out of key. Needless to say we found ourselves crawling into bed as the roosters welcomed the rising sun, and were all left without a voice the following day.

ElectronikZone Fest

Luis Fer

Tati

Last night we made our way to Fernando’s brother’s place to share a few drinks and visit his niece and nephew, who are 5 and 7, respectively. Not only are they absolutely adorable, but also are extremely creative, polite and affectionate. They spent most of the evening working on their drawings for us and wouldn’t let Tia Marisa or Tio Fernando walk into the room for fear their surprise for us would be ruined. After presenting us with elaborate images of butterflies and Spiderman, we cuddled with them for a while and they made us promise to bring them new crayons to create more drawings for us to put up on our (nonexistent) fridge. Have I mentioned how much we LOVE these kids?!

Mami Telma

After a “lighter” breakfast of sweet oatmeal and green tea this morning, we headed a few miles outside of the city to visit Fernando’s grandmother, who welcomed us, as always, with black coffee and sweets. Her small house sits high on a mountain, surrounded by clucking chickens, skinny stray dogs, and roaming brown cows. We sat with her a while, taking photos and sharing details of our Miami life. On our way back home, we parked on a street overlooking the city, and stood for a while snapping photos and taking in the views of both the surrounding mountains and the busy city below.

Tegus outlook

Wild goat

Homebrewed coffee