barefoot

           

Noni fruit and flowers in our yard


No stoplights.  No sirens, no traffic.  Today we walked to the post office, grocery store, market, office store…  all located withing a mile of each other on the one paved road in town.  The bank closes at 2:30, but she told us what to get for bug bites.  The hardware store is also where we can get internet, the water-taxi, and the cheapest beer (completely useless since we don’t drink beer) in town. Wilson, who works at our favorite restaurant in town told us where to get the freshest, cheapest produce, and which day the truck comes through with goods like crockpots, bicycles etc.  Oh, and he told us where to go fishing!  And the dog out on their patio is named Skippy; he belongs to everyone at the restaurant (and anyone else willing to scratch ears or share food). 

Our landlord was born in this little house we are now renting.  He planted and knows all the plants and life in our yard- coconuts, bananas, aloe, noni fruit, yucca, chaya (a tree with leaves that you can eat like spinach) coco (taro- a root plant).  There is frangapani (plumeria), hibiscus, bougainvillea, ixora, jasmine…. mmm all right here in the yard. 

Coconuts, bananas, and taro root (also known as elephant’s ear, growing in our yard.

  

The post office has one employee, but no p.o. boxes because they know all the residents by name.  The locals smile, greet you, remember you the next time they see you.  And they are always barefoot.

There are two hammocks in the front room.  We have a fridge, a stove, a tv (weird-  who would watch cable when they are in paradise??), and a flushing toilet.  All the windows are open, I can smell the ocean and hear crickets.  And it’s only day five.



Variety of flowers, all growing in our little yard!