Wednesday, September 27, 2006

Flying High


I came here for the work. I was not looking for fun. But fun seems to have found me.

Where has the misery gone? Has it been swept away by constant company? Due to our "Normas de Seguridad" (see upcoming post), I have not been able to reach my full loner potential. I am almost never alone, in fact. I spend my descanso (rest time) with my co-workers/roommates.

Maybe I feel better in the absence of constant frenzy. In New York, I was in a rush every minute of every day of every year. Always running. I ate my lunch in the elevator while running to a meeting or hiding in the hallway between patients. Here, we go home for lunch, followed by a lengthy siesta.

On the weekend, our whole team packs up our 4-wheel drive vehicle and we head out for an excursion. We meet up with our friends from Olopa, somewhere in between Olopa and Puerto Barrios. Our weekend days are spent breakfasting (pic below), then lying around in a hammock. Sometimes we go to a swimming hole. Generally we have a long lunch, then a nap. By evening I am ready for a beer or two or three. Then I get dragged out to the nearest disco, against my will, where I am forced to dance and drink, and sometimes jump in a nearby lake to cool down.

Maybe it is the tranquility of Guatemala that has mellowed me out. There are no visible signs of the long bloody civil war. Despite the poverty, this country is beautiful: rolling hills, thick green jungle, wildlife, tropical flowers that grow like weeds. Or, could it be that I am more comfortable around the wayward MSF ex-pats than the marrieds with children and Park Slope or UWS real estate? (No offence to all my beloved friends in this category-- it was a rhetorical question...)

Will I have to change my username to euphoric? No no, never fear... I´m sure dysphoric will be back before I know it.
Pic at left is from the boat on Rio Dulce. Pic above right is Finca Paradisio, near El Estor.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thanks for this blog! It's great to be able to keep track of you and your adventures, and perhaps live slightly vicariously...especially since I sort of fit into that homebound category of people you may or may not feel that comfortable around...It's great to hear that your dysphoria has turned to euphoria, even if it may be fleeting!

Your adventures so far kinda remind me, in some small way, of a certain summer excursion to Israel many years ago...

oh and by the way, LOVE the marching band outfit! Greta's right...it really suits a hottie like you!

Anonymous said...

Thanks for this blog! It's great to be able to keep track of you and your adventures, and perhaps live slightly vicariously...especially since I sort of fit into that homebound category of people you may or may not feel that comfortable around...It's great to hear that your dysphoria has turned to euphoria, even if it may be fleeting!

Your adventures so far kinda remind me, in some small way, of a certain summer excursion to Israel many years ago...

oh and by the way, LOVE the marching band outfit! Greta's right...it really suits a hottie like you!

nomad said...

thanks susie. you may be married with children, but at least you aren´t cuaght in extended adolecense. or is it adolesence? or adolescence? at least you can spell...

Anonymous said...

I can feel the oppressive heat and I can hear the helpless whizzing fans trying to cool off the hospital. And I too have a crush on Sole and I think I will dream in Spanish tonight. I get it. Thank you for taking us there with you.It's exactly the kind of NYC escapism that I am yearning for (having been back here for a few weeks now.)
tell us more!

nomad said...

Dreaming in spanish is nice, but I hope you don´t wake up in a pool of sweat like I do every morning. give the babies a kiss for me. miss you--

nomad said...

thanks max. wish I was there to help. feel better. lots o love.