Simply Norma

I met my granddaughter recently. She was born 3 weeks early while we were on a cruise in Puerto Rico.

She has quite the lungs when she’s hungry but otherwise she likes to cuddle in your arms and makes you feel warm. Her hands are so tiny.

Babies are so dependent on us to feed, clothe and keep them safe. This is one baby who I know will be well taken care of.

She already smiled at me. (smiles) 

Sitting on a beach chair looking out at the ocean with a sick cousin by my side, I noticed some birds and a pelican on a large rock off in the distance.

The rest of the family had decided to go snorkeling but I decided to keep my cousin company. So we sat and chatted. And chatted. And chatted. After awhile, my cousin said to me “Hey, let’s go take a picture of the pelican over there.” I explained to her that I had already taken a picture of it but she was insistent that we get closer.

Walking on the sandy beach towards the rock where the birds were sitting, I inhaled the clean ocean air and allowed my eyes to feast on the deep blue hues of the sky and the clear water. Everything was perfect.

Following my cousin with the camera in hand, I slowly made my way to the edge of the ocean. I didn’t want to get wet even though I had brought my swimsuit along.

Once we got closer to the pelican, I watched how the waves splashed behind the rocks he was on. It breathtaking!

“Try taking a picture from here!” my cousin shouted.

Closer and closer I got to this wonderful looking bird who seemed to be posing for a shot.

I took another shot as this time the birds moved ever so slightly —

I hadn’t noticed the orange/red coloring on the one bird before. This was exciting!

Completely aware of my surroundings, I gingerly stepped a little closer with just my ankles in the water. One more picture, I thought to myself.

My cousin was yelling “Over here — take it from over here!” She was a little bit deeper in the water. “Come on!”

Not one to miss a good shot, and with the birds cooperating, I waded in a couple more steps. This shot would be perfect, I told myself.

And it was! The pelican had bowed its head as if in reverent prayer and the smaller birds gazed straight ahead as if they were posing for me! It was a dream come true!

And then it happened. I noticed a huge wave coming towards the rock that the birds were sitting on. Uh oh. That wave was heading our way. I turned around to get back to the sandy beach when suddenly I felt my feet catch on something underneath me.

Pain seared through both my feet, the camera flew up in the air and I fell backwards. With hands outstretched to stop my fall, I watched as my camera hit the rock. Then I hit the water.

The huge wave splashed over both me and my camera. In the meantime, my cousin was yelling “Norma! Norma!” She was hurriedly trying to get me up before the next wave hit but the pain made it hard for me to get up. Both feet had landed on a jagged rock that was behind me.

My camera! My cousin quickly got the camera out of the water. After she helped me get upright, I felt as if water was draining from my foot so I looked down to see what it was I was feeling. The right heel had a large piece of skin protruding from it and blood was gushing out. Limping to the beach, with one arm over my cousin’s shoulder, I knew I was in trouble.

I hobbled back to the beach chair as blood continued to flow from my foot. After a few minutes, I knew I had to stop the bleeding so I went over to the edge of the ocean and dunked my foot in it as I had heard that salt is good for healing. Once back on the beach chair, I took a towel and pressed my heel against it. Ouch! My foot was now throbbing.

My cousin and I sat there for about ten minutes talking about the freaky turn of events when suddenly I started feeling nauseous and sweaty. I looked at her and said, very matter-of-factly, “I think I’m going to faint.” I explained that the sight of blood makes me faint. Her response was “No, you’re not.” I emphasized what I knew was inevitable — “I AM GOING TO FAINT.”

“You can’t do that.” Her response made me want to laugh except for the fact that my head was now starting to spin.

“It’s going to happen real soon” I said quietly. Then, she got up, walked to the edge of the ocean and yelled for the rest of the family to come in. When she returned she found a canvas towel holder and gave it to me to blow into but it didn’t have the same effect as a paper bag. As my head spinned, I saw her standing there unable to determine what to do. My oldest son came out of the water first and assessed the situation (he’d had this experience with me before — the fainting) then headed over to a bar area with my husband and younger son in tow.

Later he relayed his experience of going up to the bar and asking for “alcohol.” The woman behind the bar said “Yes, we have lots of alcohol. What kind would you like?” (how funny!) Not speaking the language very well he did not know how to ask for alcohol in Spanish. Eventually, with hand motions and a few Spanish words thrown in, the bartender gave him a can that had something in it that clots blood. After purchasing some water, they headed back to where I was.

A quick spray with the blood clotter can, a drink of cold water and some sympathy had me feeling much better — hobbling but better.

Since the injury was on the bottom of my heal, I had people around me clean and bandage the wound for the remainder of my stay in Puerto Rico. Once back in the U.S., I went to the doctor who told me that we had done everything right as the heel was healing as it was supposed to with a large scab covering the puncture wound.

It’s been almost four weeks since my fall in the ocean and the right foot is healing beautifully. Unfortunately, the left foot is now starting to feel sore throughout the day and my left hand (the one that I tried to stop my fall with) is currently in a splint. It felt achy after the fall and as each day passed the pain started getting worse and worse.

Friends have told me I might have a hairline fracture and that I should get the hand x-rayed. Searching on the internet for similar injuries, the possibility that I have a hairline fracture is high but the only thing the doctor would do is take an x-ray to confirm it then put me in a splint. I’ve decided to bypass the x-ray, assume it’s a fracture and wear the splint for 4 weeks to see if it heals.

Sometimes it doesn’t pay to get closer to beauty.

 

 

 

Seven days in Puerto Rico gave me lots of time to slow down the Puerto Rican way — a slower moving body. Perhaps it’s the warm weather or the laid back attitude of the people who live on the island that causes this effect. No matter. It is refreshing to slow down..

On this trip, we decided to head to the Arecibo Observatory. But first a side trip to the “house” of Juan Ponce de Leon. My Uncle, a natural tour guide, was always aware of the small amount of time we would be on the island and visiting him — a mere 3 of the 7 days — so he was also dashing around thinking of what he could show us. A perfect host.

Ponce de Leon was appointed the governor of Puerto Rico by the then Spanish Crown. There is not much to Ponce’s house. It’s truly in ruins.

To the right of this picture is a busy road. According to my Uncle, Ponce’s house used to extend past this road to the other side but they destroyed part of the ruins to put the road in. I wonder why they didn’t build an overpass? Hmmm …

Well, it is what it is. We can’t go back and change things.

Back in the car, we passed an overlook so we stopped to take a look at some of the scenery.

Pretty plants in the area.

Our trip to the Arecibo Observatory was very interesting. It started with our GPS taking us through the “back roads.” Well, that’s what we thought but in actuality it was THE road. It was filled with large potholes that my husband tried to avoid. The area was mostly farmland and very hilly. A group of cows relaxed as we stopped to take their picture.

What’s the difference between a U.S. mainland cow and a Puerto Rican cow? Easy! Puerto Rican cows speak Spanish. (chuckle chuckle)  Seriously, I think it’s true. My cousin has a dog and he won’t respond to anything I say in English.

My first thought going up the hill is that we were lost but signs clearly mark the way.

At the top of the hill, a person in a booth waved us through the gate to where the parking lot is. Then the climb up many many stairs began although they do have a shuttle for people with disabilities.

On the other side of the visitor center we bought our ticket to get in.

Once inside the visitor center, there were many displays to read through. Some of them were hands-on so I could experience what they were talking about. These were my favorite since I learn best by sight and touch.

But I was distracted. I wanted to see the radio telescope. I’d been here before many years go but my memories weren’t very clear from that time so this would be a “new” experience.

A little history from Wikipedia …

“The 1000 foot radio telescope is the largest single-aperture telescope and contains the largest curved focusing dish on earth, giving Arecibo the largest electromagnetic-wave-gathering capacity. The dish surface has 38,778 perforated aluminum panels.”

The reflector panels weigh 300 tons.  They are dirty and I wondered if that would have any negative impact but I was told by the tour guide that it did not.

A special shoe is required to walk on the reflectors. The shoe protects the panel by distributing the person’s weight and the person cannot weigh more than 150 pounds.

In addition, there are three radio transmitter towers.

Cable cars were actually moving while I were there. A person can’t be afraid of heights to work here.

The hole below, which is almost in the middle of the collection dish, is probably where this cable car is headed.

Off if the distance I noticed a helicopter pad and a smaller satellite dish that belongs to the Observatory.

Heading back inside I went to the theatre-like room where a tour guide would be giving a presentation.

I’m sure the information would have been valuable to my learning if 1) the woman wouldn’t have spoken so fast (the accent made it worse) and 2) she would have stopped to see if anyone had questions. As it happened, I held up my hand and her response was: “Questions will be taken at the end of the presentation.” My response to her was “I don’t understand what you’re saying. Can you clarify …?” I felt like adding “Or will you repeat the whole thing for me at the end?” But I held my tongue. (good for me!)

She stopped to give clarification although I believe she assumed we were all scientists as it was still not in layman’s terms.

To my credit, I later found out that other people had the same problem with understanding her and the content she was presenting.

The Arecibo Observatory is a place everyone should visit if they go to Puerto Rico. It is simply awesome looking!

It has also been used in at least two movies, Golden Eye ( with James Bond) and Contact (with Jodie Foster).

On my way out, I took a picture of this beautiful flowering bush.

Ahhh … Puerto Rico! Isla del encanta! (Island of enchantment)

 

 

Back in September, my Padrino (godfather) passed away in Puerto Rico. I haven’t posted anything about him yet. It was hard to lose him and I haven’t quite found the words to write about him yet. I’m sure it will come at a later time.

On a recent trip to Puerto Rico, I went to see where his ashes were buried. Normally, when you’re cremated they bury you in the ground in a coffin. Here they dig your bones up a few years later and place them in a crypt like the one below.

I’m not sure why, but I was startled to see the way it’s done. I had always assumed that once you’re in the ground that you’re there for life — not so on this island. I’m not sure how it’s done in the United States but I’d never heard of this before.

Padrino is not in pain anymore. That’s the only thing that feels right about his death.

We only pass through this life once — we really need to live it the best we can.

 

 

 

Normally, when a person dies in Puerto Rico

This past summer I noticed that ants had been coming into the house. Not a big deal — or so I thought. I would kill them one at a time, unmindful of the evil that might descend upon me for killing one of nature’s creatures. Whatever.

How to get rid of them? It was easy. I took my bottle of Windex and sprayed them — one ant at a time. They entered, I killed them.

Then they started geting a little more aggressive. A family of ants visiting, I told myself. Googling “how to get rid of ants” I found that there were a few natural ways to kill them.

First mode of attack: Baby powder. Since I had spare baby powder in the house, I dusted each one with a goodly amount. I watched as they carried their burden back into the hole they’d come from. A friend of mine told me he thought I was cruel — especially since I watched them head back home all white and dusty. That didn’t faze me.

For goodness sake! They’re ants!

They continued coming. Hmmm … I must not be giving them enough baby powder, I surmised. After a few days of dusting the ants with more baby powder I looked down and saw how my kitchen floor was being transformed into white circles of baby powder. Tip toeing around these circles made life — interesting.

But — they still came! I wonder if baby powder was making them ovulate? Wait, do ants ovulate? (she chuckles) 

I became obsessed with getting rid of these pests. My self-esteem was building and determination gripped my mind.

Second mode of attack: Cinnamon. Okay, I was a little doubtful about this one but I thought “what the hay.” Sticks of fresh cinnamon were cut in half and placed in strategic places around the family room, laundry room and kitchen. Now my house looked dusty white with the smell of cinnamon permeating the air.

No — I’m really not going crazy, I told myself silently so no one would hear. My family remained quiet on this matter as my guts wrenched inside. I hate bugs! Sigh …

By now, the ants seemed to like the family and laundry rooms more than the kitchen. I WILL get rid of them!

I put all three idea into action.

• Windex — check!
• Baby powder – check!
• Cinnamon – check!

I hit them hard and they kept coming. I knew I was in trouble. I don’t think this was a “family” of ants anymore. I believe I had a nest. Ugh!  What to do now?

Much to my disappointment at failing to kill my visitors the “natural” way, I called Rove Pest Company up and they dispatched someone in two days.

Three traps were laid down with a mix of sugar and poison. And the ants came and came! The representative who came told me not to panic when the ants started coming. She said it was “normal” and that they would take the bait back to the nest and kill the queen along with the rest of the ants.

The hairs on my arm stood up as I watched them invade this small portion of the laundry room. The urge to stomp on them was almost overwhelming but I restrained myself with a stoutness I didn’t think I had.

Was she right? Yes! I still have the traps out and after a few days I have seen nary an ant.

Calmness fills my heart now. Well, at least until spring. With the 4th mildest winter in Minnesota, I believe we will have a LOT of bugs this spring.

 

 

 

On our vacation in Puerto Rico, we visited a few interesting sites. The first one was a waterfall in Comerio. The dam has not been taken care of from what I was told.

Behind the water is a tunnel that leads to houses that are on the left (out of view). I didn’t personally see the tunnel but my Uncle, who lives here, told me about it. That doesn’t sound like my kind of place to live — having to get to your house by going underneath the dam. Eeekkkk!

Looking up and to the right, a house sits on the top of the hill. People on the island don’t seem to be afraid of landslides.

Our next trip took us to Old San Juan to visit El Morro fortress. The morro was designed to protect the entrance to the San Juan Bay. It was named after King Philip II of Spain. The “fort” became a part of the National Park Service in 1961. You can read more of the history by going to the Wikipedia article.

I took lots of pictures here so there will be many posted. It is very interesting to walk through this historic site although it was hard for me to visualize exactly how life was so many years ago.

At the entrance to the site, two pigeons stood together as if they were in love. And — did you know that pigeons mate for life? Just a tidbit I was told by a bird lover. (smile)

Okay — back to El Morro. The entrance is very pretty and grassy. The grass is very very green so they keep it up nicely.

We went on Martin Luther King Day which was considered a holiday in Puerto Rico so there was no fee for us to get in. Once inside, we were greeted with vivid mustard colors.

Everything seems to be left “as is” to preserve the historicity of the fort — except for the lighthouse which was recently painted and closed to visitors.

Stairs led us down to the most beautiful views.

A long walk leads to one of the posts where soldiers stood guard.

It’s a long way up —

… but people (including me) are willing to take the hike.

 These were the ovens that they used “back in the day.”

This is what the tops of them look like. I think I’m too short to reach them.

I liked taking the circular stairs down. It felt like I was going into a dungeon.

My imagination just can’t grasp that through this picturesque observation post  …

… cannonballs were shot!

My Uncle told me that in this area there was a leper colony at one time. You can see the building where the lepers were housed (upper left of the picture below). I don’t really know much about leper colonies and only know about lepers because of a story found in the Bible that tells about when Jesus healed a leper.

Additional pictures I took while walking around …

You have to be short to go under these. I wonder if the Spanish soldiers were all short???

A mask hung on the wall. It looks like some kind of animal.

The three flags that fly at El Morro are the United States, Puerto Rico and the Old Spanish flag.

This was such a peaceful area that I can’t fathom all the fighting that went on here so many years ago.

I was told that iguanas are a delicacy … uh, okay, I don’t think that’s something I want to try though.

Well, back to the top to end our trip here.

As we left, we saw a ship coming in to port. Now we had to skedaddle before thousands of tourists descended on the town.

Ahhhh … memories of the cruise we were just on.

Unfortunately those memories were short-lived when my Uncle told me that the poorest area in Puerto Rico is located right next to El Morro. They have their own cemetery next to the neighborhood. Since it is prime land, many offers to buy them out have been made but the residents have stood their ground. There is much drug trafficking here also. My Uncle told me “Si no vive alli, no debe visitar” which translated means “If you don’t live there, you shouldn’t visit.”

After leaving, we made our way through the very narrow streets of Old San Juan. Back to the mountains we go.

But what a beautiful day it was for this trip. Blue skies, green grass, lots of history —

After our recent cruise, my family and I spent a week in Puerto Rico visiting relatives. Well, actually, rumor has it that if you’re Puerto Rican you’re probably related to everyone on the island so I’m always careful not to say I’m Puerto Rican so I don’t have to visit everyone. (laughing)

Our first stop was my uncle’s house. He lives in Comerio and moved here with his wife about a year ago. From city boy to country boy he is adjusting quite well living on 2 acres. His wife on the other hand is more like me — she does not like bugs so the adjustment for her has been a bit harder.

My uncle’s house is typical for the island with tiled floors inside and outside. The coquis (small frogs that live on the island) can be heard (very loudly) at night. Even during the day you might hear one or two croaking for a mate. Roosters crow all day long too — except if it rains. This was a new revelation to me.

Young trees and herbs are planted in old tires to protect them from lizards that try to munch on them.

All of the houses I saw in this neighborhood had acreage. One house looked like it was embedded on the side of the hill. Too scary for me.

Across the street are different colored houses. I enjoy driving past all the vivid colored houses. It gives me an upbeat feeling.

After unpacking and visiting for awhile, my uncle drove us around the old “hood” — places where he, my mother and the rest of their siblings grew up.

When my uncle was a little boy, he would cross a bridge that was manned by an “old” man. Everyone had to pay a nickel in order to cross the bridge although he said it was much smaller than it is now. I’m not sure if he remembers correctly though as Wikipedia says the bridge has been there since 1908 and my uncle is not that old.

According to my uncle, on the other side of the hill (pictures above) is a cave that you can walk through and get to this side of the hill. I’ll have to check that out the next time I’m in Puerto Rico. It sounds quite adventurous.

The creek below is where my mother and sisters used to do the laundry while pounding the clothes on these rocks.

A lot of families live in large houses like the one below. Living with extended family in Puerto Rico is a common occurrence.

One of the saddest stories I heard from different relatives on the island is about the fighting that goes on for one’s inheritance. The inheritance law stipulates that when the father dies 50% of the property goes to the mother (if living) and 50% goes to the children that are alive. Throughout the island you can see many homes like the one below that are abandoned. Many families squabble over their portion and would rather let the houses deteriorate than “give in.” This one is in a prime location — right across from the river.

One thing I learned while I was in Puerto Rico was that my father (who left us when I was 5 years old) has land and a house here although he lives in Massachusetts. This means that I am entitled to part of that property when he passes away. The property is in the middle mountainous portion of Puerto Rico near where my uncle lives. I will be following up on this soon as my father is in a nursing home with Alzheimer’s and the property will have to be distributed shortly after he dies.

It was a long day riding through the curvas (mountain curves). There are so many of them and people don’t drive slowly even when the road only allows for one car at a time. Quite scary. I’m glad I didn’t have to drive the whole time we were here.

Time to sleep and listen to the coquis of Puerto Rico.

 

 

The Caribbean Princess  is similar in a lot of ways to other ships we’ve been on. There are shops, a casino, a photo gallery, an art gallery, opportunities to take tour excursions or just relax.

The people on this ship seemed to be old’er — not too many children running around which gave it a more relaxed feeling.

Before we sailed, we had training on how to put our lifejackets on and everyone had to go to their “muster” stations (meeting areas) for general safety instructions. While this is happening, the cabin stewards go through the cabins to make sure that everyone is in attendance. This meeting is mandatory and something I hear did not happen on the cruise ship Costa Concordia during their recent grounding in Italy. (On all of our previous cruises, we have always had this mandatory meeting.)

Each cabin has a life jacket for every person. These are extras in case you’re not near your cabin if something happens.

In the middle of the ship is the purser’s desk. The people assist you with just about anything: change (for the laundry room), information on the tour excursions, expressing any concerns, etc.

There are stairs (or elevators) everywhere. I tried walking up and down the stairs to get exercise (in case I over-ate) but found I was overdoing it as I walked plenty throughout the day.

This was one cool elevator (on the right). I liked the design on the outside and the fact that I could see everyone as I was going up and down.

There were a LOT (and I mean a LOT) of people who would sit and watch the movies that they had running day and night on the big screen TV. (I was not one of them.) Free popcorn and ice cream counters were around the corner. And the dining room buffet was not that far away either. It was very convenient if you wanted to hang out here.

On Saturday, they showed the football playoff games.

There were many areas of the ship where you could sit, read a book or spend “alone” time. There was always someone around ready to offer you a drink though. Soda used to be free but now they charge you for it. Since I’m not a soda drinker I didn’t buy any of the soda “cards” for unlimited drinks on the trip.

 

 

I didn’t spend too much time in these rooms/clubs. Instead, I preferred walking around and seeing/meeting the many different people from throughout the world. I met one couple who were from Europe and they take 2 cruises a year. Can you imagine?!!!!

The ship has art auctions but I decided not to attend them as the art is normally over-priced. The last cruise I was on (for my 25th wedding anniversary) also had art that was displayed/sold and I won a French art piece at a raffle. When I got home, I checked online and it seems lots of people “win” these art pieces and sell them on Ebay at very low prices. I framed mine as it was a nice memento.

I did like the art that was displayed throughout the ship.

When the ship was at a port I walked through the casino a few times to get to the other side. It was not busy because the casino is closed when the ship is in port.

This was the view from our cabin balcony looking down.

Every evening my family would go to the Princess Theatre where they had entertainment which included Las Vegas style performances or comediennes.

The long corridors in the ship don’t seem as daunting as they look. By the second day you pretty much know which way you are heading (if you pay attention, that is).

On Thursday I headed to the laundry room. I assumed no one else would be there but I was wrong. There were two other families doing their laundry. The rest of the week the laundry room was pretty quiet. It was interesting to me that one of the families doing laundry was Puerto Rican. I think we (Puerto Ricans) have a “thing” about doing our laundry even when we’re on vacation. Very odd. I must’ve picked up the habit from my mother.

I liked the layout of this ship although for the first couple of days I had no idea where I was going. There were many more things to see and do — an outdoor basketball court, an indoor gym, swimming pools, a spa and salon.

Lazy or busy — it was always my choice what my day would bring.

I always chose the lazy day. I have enough busy days at home.

Additional Cruise Posts

• Day One
• Day Two
• Day Three
• Day Four
• Day Five
• Day Six
• Day Seven
• Food on the Ship