Packages!

9/24/2011


Today I got some packages!  Thanks to Dad and Mom, they sent me a small army's ration of food.  It was fantastic.  Thank you!

Botanical Gardens

9/21/11

After sitting around for a couple days, I decided to go out and visit the Botanical Gardens.  They are managed by the University and span throughout a 300 acre park. They claim to have around 2000 different species of plants. It has winding, scenic roads and trails that you can walk.

 Tortugas!

 It was nice!

Casual Comments 2

9/19/11

I have noted that Puerto Ricans are colorful people.   They like to draw and paint grafiti on any available surface.  They like to outline things as well. During the day you can see spray-painted outlines of stopsigns, streetsigns and poles on the ground.   Check out the pictures.

DAY

 NIGHT

...and it's like that all over town.

Watch out for Pigeons!! They're every where!!!! 

There was a neat heat lightning storm the other day.

So, there are some customs here that are quite different than back home.  When men and women great each other they kiss on the cheek.  A simple hand shake or pat on the shoulder would suffice but they like to be touchy-feely!  Another custom is to say "Buen Provecho" before eating.  It means "enjoy your meal" or something to that effect.  The odd thing would be is that strangers will say it to you.  For instance, I was sitting in a restaurant having a meal and as people left they said "buen provecho" to me.  It's weird to have a stranger wish you a good meal. 

I plan to go to Old San Juan next week and explore.  Expect pictures!

Casual Comments

9/12/2011

My poor fan has been chugging and churning the toxic airborne tar of San Juan for two weeks and as a result has blackened the fan blades. I removed the outer shell and wiped it down with a damp rag which removed much of the gummy, glopulent, goo as seen here in this photo. (It doesn't do it justice.)

My proceeding thought was “Wow, I breath this stuff”. Puertoricans do not seem to have an understanding of environmental protection. San Juan has a overrunning litter problem. It is an interesting cultural phenomenon that an entire group of people turn a blind eye to the piles of trash lining the streets. Bam! Boom! ... go the sounds of puertorican cars backfiring. Their poorly maintained cars pollute the city with a fine coat of atomized cancer. And mother nature works her destructiveness at the rate of one drop of rain at time, one gust of wind, one salty spray of sea against exposed metal as her power slowly corrodes buildings and streets. The few city trees jockey for position underground in an epic battle of roots versus pipes. Building facades that were once lovely architectual artwork are now crumbled, chipped away by time, air and water. Oh the city that is San Juan.

On a lighter note, I went to the beach again. This time I rode up to Condado beach near Old San Juan. They were nice and I visited a small outpost from colonial times. It's fascinating to be near something that was built 500 years ago.

I found an interesting mosaic piece and church.

The other night the sunset mixed with the rain clouds and produced this erie purple haze. Check out the pic.

Well, classes are still going good. Differential equations is very challenging, but I have an eagerness to learn. My medievil literature class (which I had no idea it was going to be a 'medievil' literature class, just picture Shakespeare in Spanish) is frustrating because my teacher talks with the speed of a person whose had 5 extra tall cups of the most caffenated coffee. Plus she speaks 'puertorican' spanish, which is a lazy version of spanish where the speaker swallows lots of consonants. “Cada dia” becomes “cadia”. Or “Estoy buscando la lapiz” becomes “Etoy bucando la lapi”. It's frustrating!!!!

Asbestos!

9/4/2011

I read an interesting note today. Posted on a bulletin board in the dorms, a note read, “ASBESTOS EN LA RESIDENCIA”. Intrigued by the word 'asbestos' printed in all capital letters, I began to read:

“The insulating panels next to the windows contain asbestos. As long as they are not perforated, you will be safe.” Followed by a certified 'OK' by some group called OPASO that my health shouldn't, wouldn't, couldn't be affected by the known cancer causing carcinogen encased behind a thin sheet plywood, which so happens to be a foot away from my head during my daily 8 hours of sleep. This building rocks!

The other day I went to Isla Verde on a quest following my google map with the big red X over stores that sold souvenirs.  After purchasing a few over priced trinkets I headed to the beach and threw my towel down to soak up some rays.  It was very peaceful.  I was the only one there except for the few early riser beach-bums and sand joggers.

Just off the beach was this nifty cemetery.  I was hoping it was full of ancient Spanish explorers who spent there days sailing around the Bahamas, battling winds and waves in the search of Gold and other "tesoros".  To my disenchantment, it was a bunch of people who passed away from the 1980's.  

And this cool mosaic...

Just a note on my health, I have that slight pain on the left side of my chest again. I was fine until about a week into my arrival when I started to notice it once again. Some of my family know that I've had this feeling before. In fact, I've had this feeling quite a number of times within the last couple years. It's unnerving, scary, and frustrating because I don't know what it is and if I should be concerned. It feels like a burning sensation with the occasional sharp pain like I've been stuck with needle. It also radiates down my arm. Some days I feel really lethargic. Sometimes I feel like I'm going to pass out or throw-up or I'm on the verge of having a heart-attack. Occasionally I have this horrible sensation that radiates throughout my entire body, which is the scariest. I take meds for anxiety, but I know it's not the cause. I can physically feel a difference on the left side of my chest and arm than I do on my right side. I should probably go see a doc. Who knows, maybe it's the asbestos ;)