Thankfully, we had heeded the warnings in the camp documents and brought a solar panel and battery with us. Managing to keep 2 phones, 2 head lamps, an iPad, a GoPro, headphones and occasionally other people’s devices charged was a fun challenge for Paul.
Lost in the Woods - If you ever get a chance to come for a walk with us into the wilderness, you should be prepared to get off the trail at least once or twice.
You know where this is going, right… Last week at Can Ponet, Cesar showed us his hand drawn map of the area and said we should go for a walk. After gathering ferns one morning, we decided to take the long loop (45 minutes) - using our “memory” map. Within 15 minutes, we realized that neither our memory nor google maps were of much use. 90 minutes later, having butt-skidded down a good chunk of a very steep hill, we arrived at home - dirty, scratched and smiling!
Not a Dirt Tan - We play outside a lot. After one of our excursions years ago in Trinidad, we removed our socks and noticed how dirty our legs were above our socks. The term “dirt tan” has been a part of our vocabulary ever since.
While at our farm stay in Nepal, the expectation was that we would wash (hands, arms, feet and legs) before going inside. The first time, Amma, was there to inspect our cleanliness. She pointed to my real sock tan, which looked a lot like a dirt tan, wondering why I hadn’t washed by legs. I said, “tan” and rubbed my wet leg to show it wasn’t dirt. I doubt she understood the word, but the sign language was effective.
I Have Hives - For one of many possible reasons, like food, bugs, plants, ... I (Gayle) have hives. And I mean red, itcy, nasty little buggers, mostly on the right side of my body. I'm guessing they're related to digging fence post holes by hand or removing black berry vines from the orchard at Can Ponet in Spain. One patch, in an undisclosed location, even looks like the constellation Orion. Did I mention they're VERY itchy?