Nov 29 - I Chat With A Young Traveller At The Pool Who Is There Recovering From An Illness I Really Hope I Never Get

Peace Corps volunteer
Felled by chikungunya. Yikes.
In two weeks, eight sick

Nov 28 - The Mural-Painting Event, In Which No Mural Gets Painted, Brings Home The Discomfort Of Being An Enthusiastic Extranjero When The Locals Don't Show Up

Shamed face behind sign
White guy on the boulevard
Protesting catcalls

Nov 27 - At Any Rate, I Had Always Planned On Walking Home, Especially Because I Saw Avocados For Sale On The Next Block Over

Is that your sixth beer?
Too many to drive me home
Though no one seems fazed

Nov 26 - I Use My Charm To Send Money To Honduras With Nothing For ID Except My B.C. Driver's Licence (Scandalous)

Bank Lady doubts me
No passport. No cedula
I just smile, hoping

Nov 25 - A Bit Of A Hot Walk Home All The Way From Plaza Inter, But It's Worth It To Not Be The Only One Who Doesn't Have A Birthday Gift For Matilde On Friday

Nice dish in my pack
Three strange stick-spirals in hand
Birthday gifts for all

Nov 24 - Sometimes The Canadian Has To Be The Bridge Between Two People Reluctant To Speak Of Unpleasant Things

Cultural learning:
They say, 'Oh no, don't tell her.'
But they mean, 'Please do.'

Nov 23 - On The Need To Identify What You Want Before You Go

So many photos
Though she has imagined more
Next time, a clear plan

Nov 22 - Here I Am Again Assembling The Eighth Annual Family Christmas Calendar, But I Feel More Festive Once It's Done And We Head To The Cuban Restaurant For Roast Pig

Eight freakin' hours
Labour of love, Paul tells me,
then buys me lechon

Nov 21 - I Give Up On Metro Centro When It Turns Out To Have Nothing I Need And Catch The Bus For Mercado Israel

First stop: Copy guy
Umbrella. Broom. A sheet set
The locals' Wal-Mart

Nov 20 - And The Feria Is On, Albeit Nearly Flooded Out By A Torrential Rain That Has Never Been Seen In 18 Years And Makes Me Worried That The Big Tent Will Collapse Again

Apio, she says
No, broccoli. I feel cheered
by the muddy crowds

Nov 19 - In Which I Am Overwhelmed With Longing For My Own Car So I Could Drive The Hell Away From Our Northern Stop At A Normal Hour Instead Of 10:30 PM

Waiting, but for what?
Sandals soaked, tall guy bleeding
Nothing goes as planned

Nov 18 - Rosetta Likes Our Skype Calls But Draws The Line When They Drag On

She's a patient girl
Until she's not. No fussing
Just the cold shoulder

Nov 17 - The Reason For The Work-At-Home Day Falls Apart, But I'm OK With That

Landlord at the door
The fan-fixing man can't come
Oh, well. Home is nice

Nov 16 - Row F At Ruben Dario Theatre For Shuichi Hidano And His Amazing Masters Of Taiko

Big drums, sparkly suits
Small crowd; blame the embassy
Though our seats are great

Nov 15 - Mostly You Should Know Better Than To Believe A Bus Tout, But When It's That Or Continue Standing By The Side Of The Highway, You Just Ignore Those Inner Voices And Climb In

No worries, he says
The bus will empty out soon
He's lying. But nice

Nov 14 - A Weekend Getaway To Paradiso Has Me Wondering If TripAdvisor Would Consider Haiku-Style Reviews

Icy mojitos
Turquoise water, good burgers
Free stays past check-out

Nov 13 - I Don't Know What Has Changed But The Love Is Missing Here

They were all good pals
just a few months back. No more.
Time together: Tense

Nov 12 - A Quiet Office After A Retreat To The North Gives Me Time To Log Hours Of Photo Uploading

All these memories
Are at risk of being lost
Google Drive, save us

Nov 11 - The Standard Wednesday Protests Outside The Courthouse Are Disrupting My Walk To Work

I'd have been scared once
Police dressed in riot gear
Now, I'm just annoyed

Nov 10 - I Pick Up Four Tickets To An Invitation-Only Night At Ruben Dario After Paul Sways A Suspicious Japanese Cultural Attache

Paul, you sweet talker
He can charm an embassy
And we get taiko

Nov 9 - Things Are Still Crazy, But It's Clear That The Wave Has Crested And We'll Soon Be Coasting Peacefully On Calm Waters. Phew.

Whoa, they love that post
We hunker down, waiting for
sweet obscurity

Nov 8 - The Media Requests And General Craziness Continues As The Share Count Rises Past 15,500 And Even The Twittersphere Lights Up

One day you're no one
And the next, Margaret Atwood
is retweeting you

Nov 7 - Off To Salvador Allende To Watch The Nica Families Enjoying Their Saturday

Lunch on the water
Gangs of cartoon characters
hustle for photos

Nov 6 - Daniel And I Go Viral On Facebook And It Scares The Hell Out Of Both Of Us

A few cheery words
But then the shares exploded
We are unmuzzled

Nov 5 - Got My PowerDirector Game On Again With An Eight-Minute, Confetti-And-Sparkles Photo Collage From All The Foros

Back making movies
They love me best for this work
What the heck. It's fun

Nov 4 - The Late Afternoon Ride Home On The #102 Is Particularly Pungent In This Blasted Heat

Serious bus-stink
Sweat trapped in polyester
No escape. Can't breathe

Nov 3 - Happy Birthday, Friend, But In Truth I'll Be Glad To Have A Longer Stretch Between All These Food-Laden Celebrations

Some days are writeoffs
Lost to tent setups, grilled pork,
And way too much cake

Nov 2 - My Thoughts Turn To The Splintery Wood Of The Seat In Front Of Me On The Two-Hour Bus Ride To Pochomil

Are short legs the norm
or do people just suffer
as their knees scrape raw?

Nov 1 - In Which I Do My First Walk to Roberto Huembes Market And Am Reminded Of Why I Usually Try Not To Get Lost In This Section

The stink of warm meat
This time I see iguanas
Lips stitched to stop bites

Oct 31 - At The Pool For A Fabulously Long, Hot Day Of Doing Nothing

Two pigeons join me
Nervous of the depth, they pause
Then plunge to drink. Gone