More Fruit

So I finally ate the maracuya. Turns out it's just passionfruit. I don't think mine was quite ripe yet, it was very sour. I read online that they are supposed to be yellow or purple, and this one was green so...yeah. I'll try it again, but it was a little disturbing looking. It was kind of like a pomegranate, where you eat the seeds, but the seeds are covered in this slimy stuff, kinda like the cacao. But sour, very sour.

I'm feeling sick, but I can't tell if it's because of climate changes or allergies, or if I actually have something. Since I only have two bug bites, I doubt it's malaria.

Now that we've had a week to adjust *sort of* we are starting our new schedule this week. Can you believe we only arrived a week ago? It feels like a really long time.

Today we ran our errands. This started with going to the ATM at the closest bank and pulling out all our money for the week, plus enough to fill our Internet SIM card, because apparently watching Netflix is a really good way to go through your internet allowance for the month. More on the Netflix later.

Then we went to the Pharmacia Kielsa to try to fill Zach's Rx without a prescription. Not surprisingly, they didn't care we don't have a written prescription. The biggest problem was translating the generic name into Spanish, then figuring out which of the two different packages was the one we actually wanted. So we got that figured out, then they had us wait. Still not exactly sure why, but I think they had to run to the Pharmacia Simon two doors down to get some more because they were out. So they had us come up to the counter again. Then go back to the wall. Then we went up to the counter and she took my debit card, and as she swiped it, the power went out. So we waited some more. The power came back on, she rebooted her computer and took my debit card again, power went back out. Ok, let's see if we have enough cash. Now, this particular medication, without insurance, costs like $10 in the States. Surely the amount of cash we just got from the ATM will cover it. Well, yes it did, but we were literally counting out our last few lempiras, which to put it into perspective, was like rooting around for the last 20 cents you know is in your purse somewhere. So. Back to the ATM.

Did I mention the power had gone out? The ATM decided to freeze, so we had to go into the bank. At the bank are the typical guards with guns that you see outside pretty much every store, and like pretty much every store, they used the metal-detecting wand on Zach, even making him lift up his hat and pull out his cell phone, but waved me on through with just a smile. Apparently, in Honduras, girls don't carry guns. So we wait some more. This seems to be a great Honduran custom, waiting in line. Everywhere you go, everyone does it with no complaint. It's very orderly, and quiet. Slow, but quiet. Maybe we're all just grateful for the time in an air conditioned building. So we get to the teller, and she takes my debit card, and swipes it on a credit card machine, essentially just making a purchase for the amount of cash I want. Interesting method, I like it. Too bad places in the States won't do that.

Next to the pulperia to get saldo for the interwebs. I got distracted by a kitten under the table, which kept trying to eat my fingers instead of letting me pet it. O well.

Then down the street, past all the honking taxis, on the way to Maxi Dispensa. Apparently we haven't been gone too long, I still remember the hand gesture to tell the taxi driver we don't need him. It still cracks me up that every taxi in line will honk at us, after having seen us wave off the last one. The one place I never see a taxi waiting is at the Maxi Dispensa. At all the other markets, there are a couple taxis parked and waiting, but never there. Hmm weird.

O Maxi Dispensa, how I've missed you. I can't find plain salt, and your brown sugar comes in hard rocks, but you're full of interesting things to look at, and your alcohol aisle is never empty. Not that I need the alcohol, but it's fun to look at.

Also...new fruit! Well, actually, it's not new. We saw it last time we were here, but usually on the ground and flattened, this time it was at the store and looked edible, so we picked some up. This is called rambutan.

It looks like something my parents took me to pick one time in California, that was called gooseberries or elderberries, I don't remember. It was spiky and weird looking, that's the point. These are actually quite pretty with their bright red coloring. And, I checked online, I think I picked some ripe ones. Here's a photo from online that shows what they look like when opened.



Our shopping choices for this week are...interesting. I feel like a kid fresh out of mom and dad's house, trying to figure out what we need to set up house. Actually, that's kinda what we are right now. Yay spaghetti and hot dogs! Thankfully, we have a good reserve of Coke that will last us at least two days.

So we are home again. Tonight we study and relax, and tomorrow starts our service week.

I just figured out how to turn my computer into a hotspot (without having to buy an adapter, I might add) so finally I can download the Watchtower to the tablet to study. We were able to get new KMs to replace ours, so I'm starting to feel whole again. We had all our materials in an envelope in a suitcase, but the envelope got soaking wet, then ripped and everything was destroyed. I'm still not sure where our Jeremiah books or songbooks are. On the bright side, we remembered to pack our personal Bibles this time. I really missed mine last year.

So..Netflix. Apparently, if you already have an account, you can use it in Honduras. The only difference seems to be that the English subtitle option disappears and is replaced with Spanish and Portuguese. I was so excited and watched a bunch of movies in bed cause I'm sick, and then remembered that although we pay for Internet a month at a time, we are only allowed to use 4 gbs each month. Of course, I did not remember this until after I had used our allotment. Oops.

The other thing I was excited about, was that we had left a bag of stuff at a sister's home here, and we got it from her a couple days ago. We had been wondering what we left, maybe there would be something cool that we had forgotten about. Nope, not really. Our laundry basket, some natural disinfecting stuff we had brought from the States that I like to use on our veggies, and Monopoly. That was the highlight. I'm glad to have those things, but everything else we kept in there, not so much. It's funny the things you think are important at the time seem like such a waste later. But hey, with Monopoly, Quelf and the Bible games we have, I think it might be time to have a game night.

My cousin in Canada sent us a message the other day. She said it was really hot the other day, it got up to 28 degrees Celsius. Funny, I set the A/C to 30 to cool down. Please, no one tell me what that equates to in Fahrenheit, I'd probably cry.

Well, I think it's time for a siesta.