Mom comes to Ponce!!

Ok, another exciting blog! My mom came down here last week, and we had a blast. Here's a recap of everything we were able to do and see while she was her.

She came down Thursday afternoon, and drove up to the mountain. I took her on a quick tour of the station, and introduced her to all of the people living here. I then proceeded to cook a delicious dinner of dinner and dessert crepes for all of the tree census crew (Rachel, Ed, Tuber, Mark, Alejandro and Chris) and the two of us. After we ate, we shuttled off to the bio bay in Fajardo to take a tour. It really is an amazing experience, to go to one of these bays. There are only 5 in the world, and consists of a lot of little organisms in high concentrations that emit light when you touch the water. Once these organisms, called dinoflagellates, emit a burst of light, they can no longer emit light for another half hour. That means that the concentration of these little guys has to be extremely high, so that you can see so many bursts of light every time you touch the water. We kayaked through the bay to get to a lagoon where the concentration of these little guys was even higher. Every time we touched the water, little sparkles would touch our hands and light up those around it. It really is magical to see, and the kayak trip wasn't so bad either :) We then drove home and had a nice night in the apartments here at El Verde.

Friday morning we woke up an had a leisurely morning here at the station. We walked around, and I told her about what we were doing here in the forest. After talking to Chris for a while, we got on the road to take the long way down to Ponce. To get to Ponce, you can either cut down the island's middle, or you can take the long way around the coast. We started going that way, anyways. At some point, we got lost, and ended up back on 52 down the middle of the island. Ah well. We stopped for lunch and smoothies at some kiosks off the highway. My mom had her first pincho (teryaki/barbeque chicken kebab) and we had two of the fastest melting smoothies of our lives. Seriously, we couldn't even keep up. I also picked up a new purse in the style of Britto, which is apparently pretty popular on the island. A little of the island culture to bring home with me :) We then made our way down to Ponce, and checked into our hotel. It's a cute little hotel right in downtown Ponce, with a great little garden on the roof and an outdoor pool with a little fountain. After dropping off our stuff, we took a quick walk around and then went for a swim. The pool was very nice, and having most everything be outdoors is a nice way to relax. Unless it's hot out. Which it was. After swimming, we went and changed, and then headed down to the boardwalk to walk around and look at the shops. Turns out there are no shops. Just fried food. Mmmmmm. So we came back to the downtown area for dinner at Cafe Tomas, where they do not know how to serve fruit juice sans alcohol. After dinner, we just talked for a while. It's nice having your mom around :)

Saturday we slept in a bit (again), and then went up to have a lovely breakfast on the roof. After breakfast, we went out to go walk around in the markets a little, and then tried to go the the music museum. When I say tried, I mean we went during their normal open hours, but they were closed already. When we asked an info booth about it, they said that the museum kind of opened when it felt like it. Bummer for us, man. We consoled ourselves with ice cream (well, we had already eaten the ice cream), and then went to get pizza for lunch. We made it back to our hotel to cool off a bit (SO HOT), and ended up falling asleep for the afternoon. Whoops. In the evening, we went to check out a video game convention with 3 Wii systems, 3 Playstations, and 5 XBox's, 2 of which had Kinect. OHMAHGAH. So high tech :P The convention was at a mall, so we decided to go see what was going on and just shop around a little. We grabbed dinner at a sizzler, and then came back to the hotel. We went to bed early, as we needed to get up early in case we might be able to go snorkeling on Sunday.

Well, snorkeling fell through. Apparently the waves were too choppy, and it wasn't safe to take us out on the boat. However, this gave us plenty of time to go to a bunch of museums and historic areas of Ponce anyways. We started off by visiting the oldest tree in Ponce, a ceiba, which has been around for over 500 years. Pretty old tree, that's for sure. We then went up to the Serralles castle of the Don Q rum fame, and took a tour there. The castle is very beautiful, built in the 1920's by the family and bought by the historical society of Ponce in the 1990's. There is a lot of history here in PR, but as my mom and I realized on this trip, most of the history is post Columbian. Not much is known about the indigenous people of the area. I find that a little sad, in the end. Such a rich history has been lost. We then went to the art museum, and walked around there. They have the original Flaming June, which is just a gorgeous painting. Also, with my mom having a history in art, it was very interesting going through the artwork with her. I learned much more from her than I did from my art history classes, that's for sure :P After that, we headed back into the Plaza Delicias (the central plaza that our hotel was located on) to find a place for lunch. We finally settled at Lola's, which was so good that we decided to go back for dinner before we had even had our food. And, we stuck with that decision after we ate. After lunch we met up with my tree census crew (I know, we can't even go a weekend without seeing each other), as they had ventured down to Ponce for the day. We talked about what was going on up at the station, now that the REU's are gone, and meandered around the square and the shops surrounding. They left pretty early, as they wanted to get to a swimming hole for the afternoon, and my mom and I went shopping for a little bit in the square. We then went swimming again, and spent the evening watching NFNS. No regrets.

Monday we woke up and packed, and then hit the road around 11. We were aiming to get to Luquillo around 3, and planned for lunch around then as well. On the way back, we drove up 3 for much longer, and were able to see more of the coast. It really was gorgeous, and even though it took much longer to get back, we were so glad we went that way. At one point we stopped to take pictures and buy kenepas (little fruits that taste a little like lychees), and then got back on the road again. I'll post pictures tomorrow, probably, maybe. Once we got to Luquillo, we walked through the kioskos that I have become so familiar with. We had lunch/dinner at El Jefe's burger shack, which was delicious but FILLING. We ended our afternoon sitting on "my beach" and wrapping up our vacation conversations. We tried to get smoothies before we left, but she had already closed up for the night. Sad. Up the hill we went, we said our good byes, and my mom went back into San Juan. It was a lovely trip, and I wished it could have lasted forever. We'll have to make it to another trip sometime soon, because we make pretty good vacation buddies :P

Balance between the exciting and the "bland"

So, as I was just talking with my mom (potentially my most dedicated follower on this blog, even though I talk to her practically every day :P), she mentioned that she sometimes feels like even my most boring days are more exciting than her busiest days. I hadn't really thought of it that way, and I'm not sure that I agree with her. You see, there is a general excitement factor of just me being on an island for the summer that I have completely forgotten about. I know I can got to a beach in no time flat, and that I'm surrounded by palm trees everywhere I turn, but I forget that this isn't just home. I feel really comfortable here, like I've lived here for months and years, instead of just two months. Life at the station is both fast paced and relaxed, and I am definitely in the swing of things. This weekend I sat and read for two days, but also enjoyed a family dinner, went grocery shopping, negotiated a beach trip for others, did data work, and did my laundry. All the while, I just felt like I was enjoying a nice, relaxing weekend. Now, for those of you who are in those busy areas of the world, you may look at this post and think "Silly little island brain." But, I'm happy :)

In fact, even my regular work is both monotonous and invigorating. We do the same thing every day--hike out into the forest to measure trees, knowing that it will either rain on us or we will fall and get mud EVERYWHERE. However, every day is completely different--different trees, different stories, different jokes...I swear, the only thing that doesn't change is what Tuber, Ed and Mark bring for lunch. We always find a way to make each other laugh, and the movement across this great forest of ours really changes scenery in both the literal and figurative. So, maybe my day is exciting for those of you reading, and if it is, I'm glad I can share it with you. But if you were here, and if you could understand what I meant...it's not so much that it's exciting. It's just life. Plain, old, wonderful, fulfilling life. I love what I do, and I really love being here. I really do :)

Culebra!

So, I promised I would write about our trip to Culebra, an island off of the eastern coast of PR. We have been planning this trip for a couple of weeks, but finally we got up and left on Wednesday for 3 days. We got up very early, leaving at 6:15 in the morning. Seth drove us to the docks to catch our ferry, and we then stood in the every extending line for about a half hour. At this point, a voice came over the loud speaker to inform us that the ferry we wanted to take was sold out, and the next one wouldn't be until 3:30. In the next 20 minutes, we mulled over our options: wait until the next ferry; go to Vieques instead (another island near Culebra); take a charter plane over. As outrageous as it sounds, we took the plane! It's only about $40 per person, so we packed into a taxi and shuttled over. We had to give our weights, as well as the weights of our bags, and before too long we were packing into a plane the size of a matchbox :P The ride was about 13 minutes long, and it was AWESOME. We touched down and got out of the airplane like it was a car. From the terminal, we hoofed our way over to a bike rental shop, and then hopped on our bikes. Mind you, each of us had at least 20 pounds on our backs. Rachel and Alejandro had 50 pounds each. Through the hot sun we rode the 2 ish miles to our campsite, where we set up shop and then immediately jumped in the ocean/took naps. We brought all of our food with us, and so lunch was kind of whenever we felt like it. The beach was beautiful, and the snorkeling was wonderful. So many colorful fish :) We had an early dinner of hot dogs, veggie dogs and turkey burgers, and then lit up an illegal fire for smores. All day we were visited by a friendly kitty, whom we named Ocelot, or Ozzy, or Oshawott. She was super friendly, and very cuddly. We had a good dinner and desert, and we all turned in very early after the long day of traveling for some pretty bad sleep spotted with insects and heat.

The next morning we woke up pretty early and made pancakes for breakfast. Ozzy made another appearance, and we all took turns cuddling. We then took a trip to another beach (Carlos Rosario) for better snorkeling. During this trip, I definitely learned that we are spoiled up here on the mountain with our cool temperatures. On Culebra, the weather was hot hot hot hot hot hot hot and humid. We hiked over to Carlos Rosario, and then snorkeled to our hearts content. The water was so clear, and the fish were even more vibrant than at Flamenco, the beach we stayed at. Parrot fish, jelly fish, angel fish....so wonderful. We then hiked back to our campsite and made tuna for lunch. We finally gave in and gave Ozzy the water from the cans. She was so pleased, and even stuck around after! We hung around again that afternoon, with Rachel Tuber and Alejandro taking a bike ride around the island. I took another nap :) Dinner was pasta, and we make even more smores. Life really is good on islands.

Friday we woke up after another crappy night of sleep. Rachel, Mark and I took a walk along Flamenco in the early morning light, and then made it back for a breakfast of cereal, peanut butter, nutella and bread. We hung around a little bit, snorkeling or reading or relaxing, and then we packed up camp and headed back to our bikes. We biked back to the bike shop, and had lunch in the restaurant below. There were enormous Tarrapin fish swimming in the docks right by our table, and we had delicious food for lunch. We were all starving and super thirsty after the bike ride, and snarfed everything down. We then walked over to the ferry dock to wait in line for tickets for our ferry later that night. A few sat in line, and the rest of us walked around the main town on Culebra to get a glimpse of the city life. The ferry came a little late, but we got on and got home in no time flat (ok, like 3 hours. NBD). Time for a weekend of relaxation and Harry Potter!!

More Pictures!

Ok everyone! I promised more pictures, and I'm making good on my word! Here are a couple of random pictures from these past few weeks here in PR :)

 This is another picture of a coqui. This guy jumped on me, then immediately wanted to jump away. It took a while to get this good of a shot, as the little guy refused to sit still! Also, notice the old computer on my lap...tear.

 This is a picture of the panoramic cave we visited on week 3. With Rich for scale, you can see just how big and beautiful the opening was, and how gorgeous the scenery was.

 Close up on the view from the panoramic cave. Lots of farmland sat below us, and there was a river running over on the right side of the grounds.

 As you can see, we are a fearless bunch. We got right up to the edge of the cave, which lead to a 100 meter drop onto the picturesque landscape below. Although, had we dropped down, I'm not so sure it would have been picturesque anymore...

 This is the flat tire I caused that day. Le sigh...

 This is a picture of the fountain in the central plaza of Ponce. I had never been to Ponce before, and I like it almost as much as I like OSJ. Really beautiful. I can't wait to go back with my mom in August :)

 Luquillo beach is probably my favorite beach out of all of the different coasts we've seen so far. Lots of palm trees, beautiful blue waters, and soft sands as far as the eye can see.

 I found a ginger! This is us on the harbor of OSJ, watching impending doom hurtle its way towards us in the form of rain clouds.

 And again, we're super cool. This is on the wall near the Castillo de Felipe. It was hot. And we are cool.

 This is on Culebra, an island off the coast of PR. We spent 3 days here last week, just relaxing and snorkeling. we aren't going to get holidays off, but who needs them when you have a view like this!?

 This is Ocelot/Ozzy/Oshawott. She was our mascot during our Culebra trip, and was the cutest little thing. We strongly considered keeping her, but unfortunately animals don't live terribly long around the station...

One last shot of the beach at Culebra to end it out. I think I need to take pictures of more things, but as you can see we are having an amazing time here. It is so beautiful, and on the mountain it really isn't hot. That can't be said for the main part of the island, but we do what we can. I'll post a written blog later today, as well. Enjoy!

A ginger in San Juan? IMPOSSIBLE!!

Well, I successfully guided a ginger around San Juan this past weekend :) He landed on Thursday evening at SJU, and Ed and I picked him up there. We then made our way to our hotel in Condado, called the Sandy Beach. It was very cute; the hotel was a u-shaped building, with a courtyard through the middle, and the hotel was literally 20 steps from the ocean. Every morning we ate breakfast in this courtyard, with the sun shining down on us. Our room was small but comfy, and it was everything we needed. We spent the first night walking along the beach, as Chris had never been to a beach O_o Crazy, right? He loved it at night, and had a great time playing with the tide as it splashed his feet. Not surprising, the boy is a fish. We then went to bed, looking forward to the days ahead of us.

We woke up the next morning, and promptly went to the beach. Of course, he loved it. He was just having the time of his life fighting the waves, and proclaimed he could stay there all day and not get bored. I believed him, honestly. He was just having the time of his life in those waves. We spent a couple of hours in the ocean, during which I made a new fishy friend and Chris did not get burned. After that, we went into Old San Juan to meet Ed for lunch. He took us to one of his favorite restaurants, and we talked about everything from work to sports. Original, I know :P After lunch, Chris and I took a small tour of the streets, and then made our way to a shop that sells handmade gifts. I had bought my mom a thunder machine there when I was here in '09, and she wanted me to bring her back 3 more. When I asked the cashiers if they had any, they yelled and then said no. Typical. However, they did have one at their other store, and so I promptly went and bought it. Chalk one more up for the win. We then had ice cream, walked over to the Castillo de San Felipe and sat on the lawn there. It was a gorgeous day, but hot, so we were just happy to talk while sitting on the grass. We then went on a walk down the Paseo de la Princessa, and then had a long wait for Rachel, Tuber and Alejandro to meet us for dinner. It was nice, though--Chris and I sat and talked, and just took in the beauty of OSJ. Finally we got the go from Rachel to go the the restaurant, but not before one more hiccup. We ran into a man who was telling us a story about his father and him getting mugged in a bad part of OSJ. It was raining, and so Chris and I didn't really know what to do. At the end, he asked us for $8, and so I gave him a $10 to help out. He thanked me, and told me to email him at any point. He also mentioned that his father was the DA of Milwaukee. Chris and I both laughed, and told him we were from Wisconsin. He said we would know his name then. Of course, we didn't. We then went on our way to dinner, and had a wonderful dinner at a pizza place with Tuber, Ed, Alejandro and Rachel. Then it was off to bed.

The next day was a little less eventful. We woke up later and had a relaxing morning, and then headed to a surf shop to rent surf boards. Chris, for those of you who don't know him, is a major wake board fan, and has wanted to try surfing for a really long time. Unfortunately, when we got there, they said that the waves were flat and that it would be a waste of our money to rent boards. So we walked to the beach nearby, and upon getting there I realized that this was the beach where Tuber had his phone stolen O_o. So we were careful, and went swimming at this beach for a little while. We then made our way back to the surf shop, where Chris bought a pair of sandals. Since we came back, they gave us a 10% discount. So nice of them! We then went back to our hotel, swam a bit there, and then showered and got dressed for dinner. Sort of. We also passed out on the bed mid conversation due to being completely exhausted. Silly college kids. We went out to dinner at a little restaurant down the street, and Chris had mofongo (mashed plantains with stew) for the first time. He was pleased, but I don't think it's his favorite :P We then walked around Condado, and talked a lot. That's kind of what we do. We ended the night with some ice cream and some tv, just relaxing to round out a wonderful weekend :)

Sunday was check out day, so of course we slept in :P We had one last swim in the ocean (which was wavy, and so Chris cursed whatever god he could think of at the time), and then packed up and headed out. We stopped for lunch, then caught a cab to the airport to say goodbye. Alejandro picked me up and shuttled me to the WalMart in Rio Grande, where Rachel met me a couple hours later. And thus endeth our weekend in San Juan. We both wished it could have been longer, but it really was a wonderful trip with many great stories and a great person to spend it with :) Pictures soon!

Wonderful weather we're having, huh?

One thing that has been hard to get used to here is the weather. It will be predicted as beautiful and sunny for the whole week, and then it will pour. The reverse happens as well. A good example is this weekend. We were planning on visiting Culebra, an island off of the east side of PR (usually paired with Vieques), but the predicted weather was thunderstorms the whole time we were there. So, we decided to postpone our trip, as we wanted a beautifully clear trip for snorkeling and sleeping on the beach. Of course, because we decided not to go, the next three days were practically rain free, with a tiny bit of rain on Friday morning and some sprinkles here and there throughout. Typical. But, we made use of ourselves by patching Barbie's flat tire and heading to the beach here at Luquillo, which is the same beach we went to for Noche del San Juan (running into the ocean backwards). It truly is a beautiful beach, and we couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day. We've gotten a good feel for each other's idiosyncracies ("No, Rachel, I still don't want to go swimming" is in all of our arsenals now :P), but you can guarantee that there will always be at least one person willing to go to the beach if you ask. I mean, who wouldn't want to go?

The weather makes work a little more difficult as well. While we are all hardy people, we have our breaking point with rain and cold. Inside the forest, it is always a nice temperature, and in the sun we never have to worry about overheating or frying. However, once it starts raining, work becomes just a little more testing. Wet clothes are one thing, but looking up to ID trees becomes more treacherous when you are dodging raindrops every .5 seconds. Also, as data recorder, I have the short end of the stick when it begins raining. We use write-in-rain paper, which is waterproof--the water just beads up and can be wiped off in light rain. When it starts to thunderstorm, however, it doesn't matter how waterproof your paper is; it's still paper. I have lots of tricks, but in the end we always come back with a lot of soggy paper balls at the bottom of our clipboard. We make the best of it in the rain-lots of jokes, lots of laughing, and the idea in the back of our heads that if it really does get bad, we can always go in. So, in the end, I'm just trying to paint a picture of the soggy mess that we were today upon coming back from the field after 3 hours of thunderstorms :)

Next blog will 1) be from my new computer, 2) have lots of pictures, and 3) be all about chris' and my adventures in San Juan! He's coming here for the weekend, and I am extremely excited :) Everyone should be as well!!

Saving Space

So I haven't really had many adventures in the past week, save for the introduction of a car called "Barbie" that we as volunteers are occasionally able to drive. So far we've taken her into Fajardo for dinner, and into Rio Grande for an oil change and groceries. And yet somehow in the sitting-in-our-parking-lot stage of things, she managed to get a flat tire. Typical. TIPR.

Aside from Barbie, things were relatively quiet this week. I think we're all starting to realize that the station is rather small, and we have little to no privacy...ever. Our rooms house way more people than they're meant to; the kitchen is always overflowing with bodies; there is always someone coming or going from the big building, and there is always someone there to ask you what you're up to, whether you're ready to talk or not. It takes some getting used to initially, but there is also a backlash about 4 weeks in (hey, that's today!) where you realize all you want is to be by yourself, in your own room, minding your own business. It comes and goes, but its something to be aware of. Everyone here is still wonderful though, and I couldn't have asked for a better crew of "housemates".

I guess there was one or two other events in this past week. On Sunday we resurrected an old ping pong table for a healthy round robin to determine "the champ". I made a valiant effort, winning my first seed against Whitney and then getting whomped by Tuber 21-2 in the second round. Ah well, I was not built for sports. TJ the DJ ended up winning, and we all gave him a hearty pat on the back and a well deserved "Good Jorb!" Also, why has no one else thought of the nickname "Lazir Lizar"? GENIUS.

Also, there was a barbeque at the house of one of the professors for the REU students, so we all piled into whatever vehicles we could find and made it out there. One thing to note about PR is that all of the houses are extremely small in comparison to Continental standards. It has nothing to do with economic viability or any lack of space; simply put by Bob, what use do these people have for a large house when they have a perfectly good outside that is available year round? This has been hard for me to get used to, as most houses are smaller than my grandmother's house, but it is something I can support for sure. Economically, environmentally, and emotionally viable. Two thumbs up. Read my paper on Midwest flooding for that to make more sense. Anyway, the barbeque was delightful. I killed at baseball, or, as the others would put it, "made an ass of myself," and everyone seemed to really enjoy themselves.

One final note--as soon as I get my new computer (which will be on the 14th when Chris comes), I will post more pictures. It's not easy to do on public computers. Hasta luego!

A word from the wise

Never announce out loud that you are having a round of really good luck. If you do, subsequently:

*You will fall on your butt. In a puddle. On rocks.
*You will make ramen, and then decide it looks better on your feet.
*You will choke on tea. Serves you right for drinking tea.
*You will spend hours working on data, only to have it expire into the abyss that is the intertubes, never to be found again.
*You will spill juice all over your computer, thus frying it and preventing it from ever working correctly again. And thus branding yourself a true moron.
*You will wash your laundry, only to find that your laundry didn't actually get washed and troll-washer just made a free dollar.
*You will go on a trip, and get a blow-out in the newest tire on the truck.
*You will be on the same trip, and your driver will get pulled over by a cop who is out of his car, and give him a speeding ticket during the only stretch he was not speeding.
*You, being deathly afraid of heights, will be faced with a 15-foot jump into rushing water, only to slip and fall, almost falling off of the edge. In a stroke of good luck, you will save yourself with your feet and had about 6 inches before the edge.
*You will still need to jump off the 15-foot drop, as it is the only way to get down. Safe travels. Hope you don't land on your back....ohhhh, good attempt. 7.2.
*You will realize that in saving your life, you have sprained your wrist. Or you're just a weinie, and can't handle pain. Either way, enjoy sporting a wrist wrap for the next week.
*Also, suddenly rain. Only during fieldwork, though.

These accounts are likely to be encountered within the next few days after said "lucky" statement. Prepare yourself. You will need:

*Spare food
*Spare computer
*Spare arm
*Ace bandage
*Indelible funds
*A hug

Community living

For those of you who have never lived in a place where at least 20 of you are vying for kitchen space, dorm space, communal space, and, to be completely honest, sometimes personal space....you are missing out.

The mornings here at El Verde are among the most beautiful I have groggily stared at through my half closed lids. The sun doesn't hit above the trees until about 8 or 9, so at 7 when we get up for work, the light is still dim enough to be pleasant and welcoming before turning scorchingly hot and bright. Luckily, for that part of the day we are in the dark forest. Those of us who leave for work at 8 mingle in the kitchen and on the porch at 7ish, and eat our breakfast or make our lunch in the tiniest space possible so as not to impede on the other 100 people around. While it sounds uncomfortable and frustrating, it actually becomes somewhat routine and reliable, and really not uncomfortable at all. You can remember who gets up when, and who you need to dance around to get to the door or the fridge. It's a dance, and as everyone knows, we are all just dancing through life (yeah, I hate myself too).

It is also an interesting blend of people here, to say the least. As an example, I give you last night, which was la Noche de San Juan, a night where Puerto Ricans go to the beach at midnight and jump into the ocean backwards. Of course, we all wanted to go. So the REU students and the census gang (us), along with a couple of other El Verdeans piled into a few cars and drove down into Luquillo to hang out and relax before jumping into the sea. During our waiting room time, we had conversations ranging from the philosophical to the geographical to the emotional and to the down right hilarious. Everyone spins their own web, and it is truly inspiring to see what everyone has to say about things you may have thought common place. Plus, who doesn't like jokes?

As a perfect example of our ingenuity, what did we do on Wednesday night? We made an Apples to Apples: El Verde game. That's right. We made one. And then spent the better part of two hours playing it. This way, we could put in whatever nouns and adjectives we wanted, such as alarm clocks, turtles, Bear Gryllz; elegant, ostentatious, and floppy. I may not have won, but I think that may be the most fun I have ever had playing Apples to Apples. And those of you who know me know I love Apples to Apples. Enough said.

In short, life here is unique. We make our living working in the forest, and then come back to our little jungle oasis to have conversations about work or play (mostly work....we're nerdy). I find myself more drawn to the people here every day, and I hope that the atmosphere that surrounds this place has reached you guys a little. There is something very welcoming about this little remote station, and I hope that I have become a part of that inviting force. Or will soon come to be.

So many beaches, so little time :)

So, this weekend began with a massive excursion to the same waterfall that I mentioned last Wednesday. The one by the parrot reserve? Still no parrots, but this week we had about 10-12 people make a clown car out of Alejandro's truck and hike it all the way back. I realized I never put up pictures of it last time, so here is the beautiful yet secluded "watering hole."

 Quite quaint, don't you think? The rapids are really mild, so it makes for a nice place to sit and swim around. Also, the pool is quite deep and infested with shrimp :P Not the worst infestation I've ever heard of. Mostly the annoyance with the shrimp is they'll nip at your legs if you're in the same place too long, which isn't really an issue for this group. Lots of climbing, lots of swimming, little shrimp action. That pool ends in a more rapid set of...rapids...good choice in wording right 'cher. That heads itself down into a very steep waterfall, and a glorious view out over the forest and into the oceanic wonderland.

This week we spent a little more time at the pool, just hanging around and chatting. It was a Friday, after all, so we were all ready to kick back and relax a bit after a long work week. If this is the way we plan on relaxing on Friday nights, I could definitely get used to it. For a better view of this place, and us actually in it, take a look at the video Ed posted on my facebook page!

The next picture was not found on google. It was not doctored. This was taken with my phone, and all beauty that emanates is complete natural and was even better in person.

Seriously?! Every beach here is so pristine, with palms lining the shores of sandy beaches and crystal clear blue waters. The water was so warm as well, with no pointy things on the bottom and lots of sand to run through my toes. It was heavenly, especially after the rain we had been experiencing at the station. 

 See? Truly amazing. While we were here, we also found and rescued a leopard printed sea slug that had washed ashore, ate fresh coconut that we got ourselves out of one of the palms, and some of us even practiced our slack-lining. Beyond all of these excursions, we mostly sat and enjoyed our day of resting on a beach in the hot sun, cool breeze, and salty ocean water with friends galore and plenty of food (including the coconut) to spare.

After the beach, Morgan took us for a treat--smoothies! Since she used to live here, she knew about a kiosk that sells the most spectacular smoothies we have ever tasted. So sweet, so thick, so creamy, and so so delicious. Rachel and I followed Morgan's advice to get the mixed fruit smoothie, which contained strawberry, pineapple, banana, maraschino cherry, guava, mango, papaya, dragon fruit...probably other things as well, but mostly what it contained was fantastic flavor. Rocio got a coconut one, and honestly I'm not sure who made the better decision. Hers was so clean and coconutty....that is definitely what I'm getting next time. But, the mixed was a good choice as well. For sure. Here's the proof!

 

L to R: Morgan, Rocio, Rachel, and that random sweaty Jewish girl who keeps jumping in these pictures. Get outta there!

As for Sunday? Well, what's better than a lazy day interspersed with games like crosswords and Taboo with friends? I tell you, life here is rough :) And Monday brings our first full work week! See you guys again soon!

A regular work week and a new beginning

This post begins my story time, rather than my laundry list of daily activities. We are starting normal field work not, and thus my daily routine is going to be the same for the next three months. So far, I'm really enjoying it. We work in teams of three, with two measuring and identifying trees and one data recorder. For my team, I record data while Tuber and Alejandro measure trees and yell info back to me. It's a very efficient system, and as Tuber can tell you, more efficient than other systems we tried :P We have thus far been making it through a little more than a quadrat (20m x 20m) per day, which is the goal that Chris and Jill had in mind for us! Success!

However, because our days have started to become a routine, I'm going to use this blog more as a descriptor of our not-so-usual goings on. For example, on Wednesday we had a few more arrivals into our room. The chronosequence people showed up, adding two more bodies to our room--Rocio from Maine, and Kathy from Hawaii. We also welcomed Morgan, who has been to the field station many times before. She used to live here in Puerto Rico, though now resides in Montana. She is back doing some last minute data for her lab, and is only here for the next few days. As I get to know her more and more, this fact makes me sadder and sadder. She is such and asset for all of us to have here, as her personality keeps us grounded and her experience on the island is vast and wholly beneficial. I am getting to know her really well, and it makes me sad that she is only here until this coming Thursday. Sadness. More stories involving Morgan to come, I'm sure.

As for the weather here on the island? On Thursday, we literally got rained out of the forest. We were working on our census when we started to feel some drops. Being hardy people, we obviously continued working, thinking nothing of it. Over the next few hours, some amount of water only slightly shy of the entire Atlantic ocean poured down on us in batches of 5-10 minutes of varying severity. One round was sprinkling, one round was literally a bucket being overturned, and another was a shower head with the pressure turned all the way up. And why did we finally decide to call it a day? Not because we were soaking wet (which we were); not because we couldn't see 20 feet in front of us because of all of the water falling (which it was); not because of the worry that we were going to slip and die on the walk back because of all of the water flowing (which I didn't quite do, but I did obtain a quality bruise on my butt). Nope. We turned in because we COULDN'T HEAR EACH OTHER OVER THE RAIN. We were four feet apart, yelling "THE DBH IS 55." "6?!" NO, 55." "9?!?" NO!!!!!!!"

The hilarious thing? El Yunque doesn't get enough rain to qualify it as a rain forest. It qualifies only as a "wet" forest. And after last Thursday, I can only respond to that in one way--Yes. It most definitely does qualify as a "wet" forest.

On top of the Chronosequence people arriving, we on the tree census had quite the realization. We had all thought we were quite the lovely bunch of coconuts when we arrived. Oh no. This truly is a motley crew. First you have Rocio, who is a very happy outdoorsy girl and is absolutely gung-ho on us going salsa dancing. Then you have Anna, who wore the shortest shorts I have ever seen to walk around in the rain forest (excuse me...WET forest). Next there's Brian, a tall black guy with the thickest dreads and beard I have ever seen in my life. Finally, there's Kathy, who is in her 40's and from Hawaii. All seem super excited to be here, but good lord did we all get a nice giggle watching that pack walk through the forest.

Life around the station is really quite busy, to be honest. With all these people around, there is always something to do, and always someone to talk to. Personally, I find balancing it to be much easier than I would have expected. It's amazing how well we are all getting along, and how enjoyable the whole experience here is turning out to be. I can start a conversation with anyone here and find myself really exploring a whole new friendship that I never knew would blossom. It really is a magical place here, and I'm discovering more about the botanical, the social, and the spiritual every day. To be here is a very unique experience, and I hope that you who are reading this area getting at least a little bit of a sense as to what life here is like. If anything, that is the goal of my blog.

For tonight, I'll end with a picture of a Coqui--a frog that inhabits this island, and really is their national icon. This little guy, thought maybe not always in sight, is ALWAYS able to be heard at night. I got a chance to snag a picture of one last night, so here you go!

For a frame of reference, Here is how big they are--the size of not quite half of my finger. Also, if you want to hear what they sound like: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-YKkyadflo

Pictures, finally!

Okie dokie! So here are a few shots from the station where we're staying. It actually looks a lot like the pictures on their website, but it takes a little getting used to when you actually live here :P Also, these are slightly out of order. I'm cool. Next time I'll be more on top of it.

This is the front of the dorms and the kitchen. The area to the right is the kitchen, and the two buildings on the left are dorms. I'm staying in the very back corner. I bet you can guess how good the cell phone service is here :P

This is the room in which Rachel and I are staying. It's pretty nice right now, but soon we're going to be sharing it with 5 other people. 7 people living in this little room. Tiny tiny tiny.

 This is the other half of the station, where the labs, offices and storage rooms are. Inside here is our conference room, which is always air conditioned. A little break from the environment in order to keep all machines working in tip top condition. And I definitely can't complain :)

 Here is said conference room. The computers are for anyone's use, and there are usually at least 2 or 3 people in here. Kind of like everyone's office, where everyone's interested in what's going on.

 This is us in the field. From left to right--Random jewish kid, Rachel, Mark Baran, Ed, Jill our Scottish/Northern English professor (who kind of looks like a mix between Maria Terres and my history professor from ZA Lara), and Tuber. This is what we've been doing for the last few days. IDing trees. We are pros at it now, you don't even KNOW!!

 This is an awesome picture. Also, the one on the left is Alejandro, the grad student/researcher who is going to be helping us with our tree census, and has been taking us on tours of the island. On the right is Ed, basking in the awesome.

 This is a shot of the bay near Old San Juan. This city is so beautiful at sunset, I could stay here for months and not get enough of the beautiful colors and sounds.

 Again, the Paseo de la Princesa which is a walk around the outer wall of the city. Posing for the picture are Alejandro and Rachel.

 So beautiful. I can't get enough.

 It just looks so picturesque, doesn't it? I wish we could go walking in this city every weekend. Ugh. It makes me so happy to be here.

 ...And now we're back at the station. Like I said, I'll work on the ordering of pictures soon :P This is our storage area. Again, soon to be shared by 5 more people, but for now Rachel and I are doing a good job of being frugal (we each have one shelf and one drawer; there are more shelves by the other set of beds)

 This is the little courtyard that lives in the middle of all of the dorm areas. There's a hammock in the back, truly completing the relaxed island jungle look to the area. Usually there's at least one person sitting in one of the chairs or sleeping in the hammock, either doing some work just hanging out. We really are a little community here, and get along as such.

And to wrap it all up, this is one of our two kitchens. There is a stove and oven in the back, a deep freeze under the window, and a monstrous fridge to the side that you can see. This is typical of the amount of people in the kitchen at any given point...we like to eat :)

So, there you have it. A small tour of my life up to this point. I'll keep posting pictures as they come, and eventually I'll make a facebook album of them as well. So enjoy, and I'll see you again sometime this week!

The weather here is in the dictionary under "hilarious"

I have recently learned to appreciate something I have never thought about before--working car windows. In Seth's car, none of the windows will move. Luckily, one of them is permanently down so we get a little airflow, but holy bujesus. Never again will I take this for granted.

We started this weekend right by heading down to the beach in Old San Juan. Rachel, Mark, Tuber and I all crammed into Seth's car and headed on the long journey into the city. About a half hour into the trip we were all so sweaty that we absolutely had to pull over for BK milkshakes :) However, a word to the wise--a blackout shake from BK is not a shake at all. It is in fact a "coke float". If you knew this, understand that I do not eat at fast food places very often, and I am a n00b.

Back in the car! This time, however, we weren't too hot. We were still wet though--we got caught in a torrential downpour. Remember that window that wouldn't go up? Yeah....lots of water. At one point, a car passed us and threw a wave of pavement water in through the window. At least we weren't roasting anymore!

Once at the beach, we set up shop in the shade of some beautiful palm trees and then took a dip in the ocean. The water was beautiful, as was the weather (finally). We swam in the clear blue water for a while, and then made our way to a rock outcrop a little ways away. Before we got there, Seth had warned us to be careful for sea urchins, which we hadn't really listened to. Luckily, we had listened to him enough to check these rocks. Holy crap. SO MANY URCHINS. There were some that were the size of a big basketball. And slippery rocks surrounding them? Double trouble! It took me 10 minutes to walk 15 feet. Upon reaching the end of the outcrop, I stepped onto the pointiest rocks I have ever set foot on. Even high tailing it couldn't get me out of there fast enough, as I couldn't move without stepping on slippery rocks, sea urchins or pointy sand rock. I finally made it out of there with only one bloody injury on my toe and no crunched sea urchins. Success...?

After braving the urchin rocks, I took a snooze on the sand and talked with Alejandro, Seth, Tuber and Mark (Rachel was off exploring the grassy area near there). While we were sitting, a group of locals grabbed Tuber's lunchbox to root through it. I didn't understand why, until Tuber got up to get it back and started asking where his iPhone was. Yeah. They took it. Tuber kept asking them to give it back, and they kept telling him that they didn't speak English. When Alejandro came over, they told him to get Tuber away as they were a group not to mess with. Then some cops came by, and the group threw the iPhone away so that the cops wouldn't find it when they were searched. Tuber went to check for it, but they threw it into the ocean. Good bye iPhone. Never to be found again. Luckily, Tuber is an unphasable guy. He took the whole thing really well, and we were able to continue with our day. He is such a trooper. I really admire people who are able to not let things like this get to them. Maybe he'll give me lessons :P

After that whole fiasco, we were off to Old San Juan for some touristy things. We started off by walking along the Paseo de La Princesa, which winds along the old wall of the city. It is such a pretty walk, especially around sunset. We also grabbed a couple of glasses of orange juice, because it was being sold along the way. I love this place; it sells juice on its walkways :) We then made our way to some other historical areas of the city, with Alejandro as our guide. There is a totem pole made from old pottery to commemorate the 500th anniversary of the founding of the island. Next we were off to the Fort San Felipe del Morro, one of two forts around the area. This one has a beautiful big lawn surrounding the enormous fort, which really looks like a historical piece of this area. We sat there for a while, watching people fly kites and chatting about previous groups that had done this tree survey. It was really nice to just be out in the city, enjoying ourselves away from the station for once.

We made our way to the other fort to just see it from the outside, as the sun had already gone down. I had seen this fort the last time I was in OSJ, and it was definitely a less grand fort than San Felipe. I have picked a favorite :) Then we went to a brewery for dinner, and ventured off to the police station to try and file a police report for Tuber. Didn't work. They offered to file some paperwork if they thought it would benefit him in getting a new phone, but he didn't think so. So, we ended up just heading home, getting home around midnight. All in all, a good day. Topped off by hilarious sun burns. All over our backs :P

And Sunday? Groceries. And sleeping. ...thats about it. Yup. Ohh, brownie nuggets for dessert! (South Africa road trip friends, you know what I'm talking about :P)

And I promise, pictures tomorrow! I have a couple more to take, and then I'll put some up.

I am also going to find a new emoticon....sometime...  

WHY IS MY INTERNET IN SPANISH

But seriously. I hope that this will help me learn some Spanish, but at some point I would just like to understand what I'm clicking on :P

Today we ran to the kitchen when we got up to check if the fridge was still broken. Yup.

We had our first day at the actual plot, but not before learning even more plant ID's. So far we are doing alright, and Jill is very impressed with our progress :) I think she's being nice. I'm definitely trying hard, and slowly but surely I'm getting past the point where they all look like tall brown things will littler green things on them! Sad, huh?

Once we made it to the entrance to the plot, we started on a trek through the plot itself. The plot is about 500m North to South, and we walked the entire length. Along the way we learned more plant IDs, getting our total to about 55 or 60 by the end of the day. Once at the end of the plot, we snaked our way around to a pit that was dug a little outside of the plot for the purpose of carbon analysis. The perfect place for a lunch! We ate and discussed what we could do on our first weekend. We then headed back, and what had taken us 4 1/2 hours to get to the top of the plot took us about a half hour. Jill had so much to tell us about the trees, we hadn't even noticed how long it had taken us to get there. The walk back wasn't so bad, just a little muddy and slippery. That might take some getting used to, but I think I'll be ok. Thank god I brought my hiking boots!

After we got back, we had a quick break and then started looking at samples of leaves that Alejandro and Chris had brought back for us to identify. More practice! This part I really enjoyed, as it's right up my alley--puzzles :) We all sat around a picnic table and used our ID sheets to identify the branch samples in front of us. And we succeeded! 54 samples, and only 4 wrong ones! 3 of them we didn't know yet (tricksy hobbitsess...) and one was a dried leaf that we should have looked at more carefully. Success!

And our first real trip to urbanization was today! We went as a group to a bar in Luquillo, where Chris lives. We had dinner, and some people has some drinks. I myself lucked out with DELICIOUS pineapple juice, which is always amazing. Also, fish tacos are something I could definitely get used to. Delectable! After dinner, Tuber, Ed, Rachel, Seth (another grad student), Alejandro and I walked down by the kiosks on the beach, poking our heads in every so often to see if we could get down to the beach. Finally there was one open, and there was sand between my toes once more. The water here is crystal clear, even in the nighttime. We walked and talked along the shore, and dipped our feet in. The water was lukewarm and wonderful, and just what I needed after a long day of work. We then headed back, ready for the weekend to really start tomorrow.

PS, we also bottomed-out Seth's car on the hill up to the station. We're fat.

PPS, sorry these two posts aren't as eloquent as the first, I am half asleep right now and have practically no idea what I'm writing :P

PPPS, hi :)

Day 3: Fridge Breaks :P

Thursday we started with a historical lecture from our director Jill, who has been with the El Verde station since 1994. She talked about the radioactive experiments that were conducted in the 60's, and paved the way to the creation of this station. She then introduced the research we will be doing here to the rest of the people here at the station; censusing the growth of the tree populations within a 16-hectare plot to assess growth patterns after hurricane damage and natural growth patterns (with a little land use on the side). It was really beneficial to hear this information again, but unfortunately I am only a lot sleepy and can't remember everything :P

After the lecture, we had our first day in the field. What did I do today? Just walked around a beautiful rain forest :) We spent a couple of hours learning different tree species, as we will need to be able to identify trees fairly quickly in the field during the actual census. We got through 26 species in the first round. That would sound like a lot, if we didn't have over 130 species total in the plot. WOO! Keep on trucking. After a quick break for lunch, we came back to the field in order to practice the protocol for the census. We each had a chance to write information, take measurements such as DBH (diameter at breast height), and to identify trees. We talked a lot about different situations to watch out for, and what to do if they arise. With all of the information in our protocol sheets and all of the help that Jill, Alejandro and Chris have been giving us, we will definitely be successful in our data collection.

After our work was done, we decided to take a walk down to the waterfall about 5 minutes up the road. It was so beautiful when we walked passed it to get to the parrots (none of which we saw, for those who are wondering), that we had decided to go back and climb on the rocks. Once we got up there, Rachel and Tuber (Mark Baumgarter) found a path to climb up through the woods that surrounded the waterfalls. It was a pretty steep climb, but it was surrounded by really amazing foliage and of course an amazing waterfall. Plus, climbing is always great when you're climbing with friends. On the way down, we practically had to slide on our butts, it was so steep. But, we made it, and we make it all in one piece. Once at the bottom, Ed waved us all over to the other side of the bridge. He pointed down, and lo and behold, there was a girl playing her trumpet on the side of the river. How he heard it over the roar of the water I will never know, but it was so cool. She was very good, and it seems like a good idea to me if you're working on playing louder--play louder than a rushing river!

We then headed back to make dinner and relax for the night. When we got done eating, a couple of the REU students asked us if we had known when the fridge had turned off. We had noticed that it hadn't been very cold, but we hadn't even started to think that it had actually shut down. So we spend the next few minutes trying to figure out what to do with our food that needed to be kept cold (the fridge that broke down was the size of at least 4 normal fridges, and was practically full). After that, we played the "do we remember anything from the plant ID's we learned today" game. I am so not ready for this. But, I also got to play some guitar, and that is always a good day :)

A long day, a longer day, and a wonderful rain forest :)

I'm going to preface this blog with the statement that I know that I took TIPR from my South Africa trip's TIA. However, I introduced it as such when I first got here, and it has already been said about 30 times, so I'm sticking to it. Perhaps as I move along in this experience I might change it, but it has thus far been a defining factor of my short time here.

The trip began with a tearful goodbye to Chris, and with my deciding that I needed to stay up the whole night before my 3:30am bus trip to Milwaukee. In retrospect, not necessarily my smartest move. However, I did get a chance to read through my South Africa blog, and I realized that I wanted to write a more in depth and eloquent description of my time here. The blog was a great reminder of the wonderful time that I had in ZA, but it definitely didn't sound that way. So, this is my second chance to convey to everyone who reads this the truly amazing time that I am having abroad.

At 3:30am, my wonderful mother trekked me to the park n ride, and I hopped on a bus to Milwaukee. From the bus I lugged my 110+ pounds of crap to the ticket counter, and donated 80 of it to the checked baggage fund. I then hiked to security, which was a surprisingly long line, considering they had closed two of the security lanes. You would think that when the line extends practically to the lobby, they would find it useful to employ the 6 extra workers just standing around to open the other lanes. After getting my guitar case checked  (not surprising, I had stashed a blanket and umbrella in with the guitar and 6 books and some cereal in the book pocket), I got on a plane to Atlanta. Upon landing at Atlanta, I walked onto my next plane and took off shortly after for the Rich Port!

We touched down on time to a mist and cloud covered Puerto Rico. I suppose I should have expected it, as that was what I was told PR looks like most of the summertime, but I still had this fairy tale image in my head from when I came here two years ago of beautiful blue skies and sunshine. Not that the island isn't gorgeous under cloud cover. Even from above, you can see that the green spans for miles, and even the cities have this picturesque history about them that is just breath taking. I went to grab my luggage at baggage claim, and found that it was soaking wet. Ah well, TIPR. Upon going out to the Area de Reunion (I have got to learn how to do Spanish accents on my keyboard...), I met up with 3 of my 4 co-volunteers, as well as our leader, Chris. We talked for a while, as we needed to wait for Mark Baumgarter (why do I use his full name? We have two Mark B's on this trip :P). When he got there, we signed a couple of papers in Spanish, realized that we could have been signing our souls away unknowingly, and headed off to the University to deposit them. Everything here is truly beautiful. It makes me remember why I was so anxious to come back. Yes, there is poverty, and yes there are areas of low income and it is visually distinguishable. But it doesn't matter, because the culture is there, the environment is there, and everyone just seems generally happy. Will I keep the rose colored glasses? Get back to me in a few weeks, I'm still completely smitten :)

After leaving the university (also beautiful), we headed off in the direction of the forest and a fruit stand. There were a few on the side of the road, so we pulled over and I picked out some perfect mangoes. I cannot even wait, but they aren't ripe yet....oh well. Then we went to the grocery store, just to fill Frances with even MORE weight (We named the van Frances...no, it was not my idea :P). The store was filled with food very similar to the US, which I guess I could have expected, being that PR is a territory of the US. Still, it was interesting to see the differences; for example, we don't usually stock entire walls of rice and beans. After getting groceries, it was time to take the scenic drive up into the rain forest to the station where we are going to spend the next 3 months.

The station is VERY secluded, but in a good way. It's in a very floral area of the forest, surrounded by huge trees and gorgeous flowers. There are apartments just down the road, but the 5 of us are staying in the dorm area, along with about 10000 other people. Except really. It's crowded, and it's only going to get more crowded. I'm interested to see how the kitchen is going to work, but that is a bridge we will cross soon enough. Rachel and I are together in a room that is about the size of my Lewis dorm room, and there will soon be 7 people sleeping in there. We are sharing a bathroom with the guys next door, but so far there haven't been any issues. If what Rachel and I have worked out is correct, we each get one drawer and one shelf for our stuff, which has proven to be more than plenty. We then went over a few more logistical things, and then all turned in for the night pretty early, as we were all totally wiped. I could get used to this :)

THE NEXT DAY (this is a long post, feel free to go grab a snack and read this later :P)

Rachel and I woke up at 745, luckily 15 minutes BEFORE and not after our first meeting. We'll be more careful from here on :P. We hurried to get ready and get over to the conference room, as today began our first day of orientation. It started slowly, with some paperwork that needed to get done and some rules and regulation talks. All very self explanatory things, but I'm glad we went over them. You never know what is expected of you in a new place, and Chris is doing a wonderful job getting us settled in. After the paperwork, we took a longer tour of the station, discussing each of the rooms and their function, as well as a little bit of the history of this place. We walked the whole campus, and talked about a few more rules and guidelines for living here. We were then turned loose to read over our 33 PAGE PROTOCOL. Oh my goodness. It is so specific, I don't think I'll ever be able to not know what to do in a strange situation. But, this is the 5th time they've run it, and so they do have it down to a science (lawl). So from 10 to 1, we were able to relax and read it over slowly.

At 1, we met with Chris, Alejandro (a grad student/technician who will be helping on our project) and Jill (another director of the project) to discuss the protocol more in depth. We started with discussing the plot, which is a 16 ha plot just off our campus and extending deeper into the rain forest. There are a lot of specific details to the protocol that I won't go into now, but suffice it to say they will come up later, and I'll be sure to mention their importance. At 4 we had to adjourn, as there is a weekly seminar for the REU program on Wednesdays at 4. This week the topic was benthic ecology, which is the study of the bottoms of lakes, rivers, and marine ecosystems. It was really fascinating, as it brings light to a whole environment that is overlooked by so many, including myself. They play such an important role, and yet it is so easy to forget they even exist. I was hoping that I would continue to learn while I was here, and it looks like I have gotten my wish, in more ways than one :)

After the lecture, the 5 of us decided to go on a hike to try and find some Puerto Rico parrots. They are among the 10 rarest bird species in the world, so we were really hopeful. There is a parrot sanctuary right down the road from us though, so that is why we though we had a chance :). On our way out, Alejandro alerted us to look for a waterfall that we wouldn't want to miss, so we made that a goal of ours as well. The hike to the waterfall was almost entirely uphill. We are on a mountain, so I should have expected it, and yet it still took all of us by surprise. It was muted by the luscious greenery that surrounded us, and by the sounds of the coqui serenading us as we walked (coqui are little frogs that make this loud "co-KEE" noise, and they are all over the island). We talked about our lives in the real world, and made jokes and just tried to get to know each other better. It took us about 75 minutes to get to the waterfall (again, all up hill), and Alejandro was right. The waterfall had created this serene pool in a totally secluded area of the forest, and from the pool the water cascaded down the rest of the forest to another waterfall that we had seen on the way up. It was incredible. The water was so clear and cool, and the sky had finally opened up to blue. I cannot think of a better way to spend an afternoon/evening.

Once we had had our fill of the waterfall (not literally, of course), we set off back to camp. It was a much shorter walk going down hill, but by the time we got back we were all beat. I still managed to cook cous cous with a mushroom/tomato/cheese salsa for dinner, but it took some effort :P And now we have the rest of the night to do as we please!

I know this has been long, but bear with me. I just want to give you an introduction to the 4 other volunteers who are here with me this summer, so when I reference their names you know who I'm talking about!

Ed: Went to Rutgers, from New Jersey, is completely in love with PR and never wants to leave.
Rachel: Went to Tufts (we knew each other prior to the program), from Seattle, and is desperate to have me go running with her. But I am a lazy person, and she captained crew, so I think she might be a mite disappointed in me...
Mark Baran: Went to Cornell, from New York, and has thus far been pretty quiet. Really nice guy, though.
Mark Baumgarter: Went to UW Stout, from the Eau Claire area (I know, two Wisconsinites!), and really likes photography.

There is obviously more to come on these guys, but for right now that's a short introduction. They are all really nice and friendly, and we are all getting along very well. I'll end here for now, and I'll try to keep this updated as regularly as I can! Enjoy (if you got this far)!