Tuesday, July 20, 2010

That's what it's all about!

Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 4:00 - 6:00 we are tutoring in a small center here. We have been asked to help teach the students English and have been doing so, in part with songs. Last week we taught them "head and shoulders," which we sang and did movements to. We then drew the parts of the body we had referred to in the song and labeled them. Yesterday we reviewed that song and then taught them the Hokey Pokey. I've never had so much fun doing the Hokey Pokey! After pen and paper time, the lady who runs the school asked the kids if they wanted to sing one more time and one boy, Gerardo, shouted out "Hucky Pucky!!!!" We all laughed and gathered to sing and dance the song. They were learning, having fun... we were also learning and having fun. That IS what it's all about!

Last night we went to a great restaurant called Le Jardin. The food ( as with every I've been here, really) was so fresh but also unique and full of flavor. We split a 4 seasons pizza, 4 cheese macaroni and some shrimp ravioli. The waiter, Miguel, was young, short statured and spoke some English. After we had finished eating he came up and told us that he had a problem. In his broken English, he told us of an American girl he had met. She is tall and pretty he said. She had too much to drink and got lost. She stopped him and asked him for help. She was vomiting and feeling awful. Miguel took her to his house, where he and his Mama took care of her and eventually reunited her with her friends. His problem? He wanted us to tell him how to approach this girl about dating. I guess we looked like we would be experts on this subject LOL. He said he is the kind of girl he could have for a wife. We all laughed a lot and the other waiters jokingly gave him a hard time when they heard what he was asking us about. We told him to just be her friend for now and show her around Puerto Escondido. Taker her to hear music, buy her a flower, etc. He was unsure how to tell if she liked him " like that." We gave as much as advice as we could and wished him luck. At one point I asked him if she was "caliente." This bent him over laughing as, phrasing it as I did I had asked him if she was horny. Oh well. We left the restaurant laughing and shouting adios to our new friend. We all felt good. That's what it's all about.

This moring we ate breakfast at a beach restaurant as we watched part of the Quick Silver surfing competition. The best surfers in the world, are apparently here for this competition. Knowing nothing about the surfing community and culture, we asked some questions of thos around us. Andy, teh manager where we are staying, is also a surfer and explained some of the judging and rules. The judges sit in a high stand with dividers between them so that they can't see how the other one is scoring. The competition is set in 20 - 30 minute heats. The surfers swim out (which looked exhausting and took forever in the monstrous waves) and try to time a perfect ride. They are scored mostly on how far and long they ride. You can recognize the surfers pretty easily, most of them have longer hair and many of them have lightened the tips of their hair, though some, I'm sure, have lightened naturally from the sun. They cheer each other on and speak in terms I don't always understand. A couple times a board broke under the intense waves and small boys vie for the broken pieces. They can keep them or sell them, but they seemed to be very prized possessions. The announcer would let everyone know who was wearing what color and which color had caught a wave and then what their score was afterward. People from all over seem to come together into this common culture of sun and surf. They watch, cheer, eat, laugh and gasp at the huge crashing waves. We join in for all of these because.... that's what it's all about.

4 comments:

  1. Your writing talents are awesome. I would pay to read this stuff. :)

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  2. It is very enjoyable reading. I love the songs and dancing with the kids. I just need more for math topics. :-)

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  3. Kristi I told them that math is really not necessary in life. LOL
    Dad, you will be getting my bill :)

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  4. Your exploits are now being reported on the hit blog Donut Taste Good. Sweet!

    http://donut-taste-good.blogspot.com/2010/07/guest-blogger-donut-excursion-super-che.html

    ReplyDelete