6 Month Recap

Well folks, we just passed the 6 month mark of our time here at Tierra de Suenos! Wow! Half a year come and gone and what a whirlwind it has been! We survived Samana Santa (the busiest week in Latin America), May (the most painfully slow month), a broken water pump and washing machine, termites, mold, stained sheets, broken bikes (8 of them), dysfunctional neighbors, wonderful neighbors, and most importantly, each other!

We have entertained, and more often been entertained by, an impressive number of friends and family. The entire Boymer crew showed up just in time to help us butcher half a pig we bought from our gardener. Cheri, from Seattle, has yet to recover. My brother jack was here on termite duty for 6 weeks. Carol and Marty came from Vermont to shed some light on composting and frog catching, Laura DiCicco came and her brother, Peter, shortly followed with Erin Hurley. We spent most evenings keeping the neighborhood awake with loud renditions of Mr. Big’s “I’m the one who wants to be with you." Katie and Nona came all the way from London, and Chuck Esteves helped design a grill that is still sitting unfinished on our patio. Pete Mesavage came to celebrate the arrival of John Hurley, our partner, who stayed to hold down the fort while we went to a wedding back in the States. Jonny Johnston and his new wife Natalie came to visit us from Oklahoma, we hadn’t seen him since our Sophmore year in college. Ethan and Ashley stayed for a while, Brendan hadn’t seen him since his abroad year in Spain. Drew Gardiner taught me and his girlfriend, Cris, how to play Bridge, I'm still trying to figure that one out. Owen McCreight got really sunburned trying to surf, and John Heltman is here right now hiking in Cahuita with some new friends, Ursula, Kathy and Sachen. Tonight Sachen is cooking us a Hindu feast!

If I missed anybody, please forgive me. Each one of our friends and family members has helped shape this last 6 months, bringing encouragement, support and great fun. It appears we chose a good spot for getting visitors! The line-up is already looking good for September and October.

We initially began thinking about running a guesthouse because we wanted find a way to settle down yet continue to have an international experience, spending time with people from all over the world. We can honestly say that in the last 6 months this was accomplished. We have hosted guests from Colombia, Argentina, Peru, Costa Rica, States from east, south, north and west, Canada, Scandinavia, England, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, India, China, Philippines, Israel, the list goes on! It is an incredible experience to have a place where people from all different backgrounds and cultures can unite and celebrate our differences and similarities. Our lively mornings are a time of conversation and most often laughter. After all, everybody is on vacation!

So, I’d say the first 6 months of our attempt to run an international B&B have been a success. We finally met with an accountant, Marco Hamm, the only one available in the area, who carefully wrote all our important information on a scrap piece of paper and gently placed it in his wallet. Needless to say we are still getting used to the way it works down here and although at times frustrating, all it takes is some good Caribbean food, a pina colada and dancing to a local calypso band to remind us why we’re here. We are still trying to figure out how to eat all the various fruits on our property and the best marketing scheme to get people to come, but that, after all, is the fun of it.