The common questions with answers

This is April...the computer just thinks that it is Kevin since he was the one to log in.

What do we eat?

We eat a ton of rice...almost every meal. Lots of starches in the Panimanian diet. Lots of beans, lentils, some corn...but not like any you know...starchy corn. Some plantains and bananas for Kevin. HOt dogs are a favorite for some reason and there are many ways to cook them. I have eaten more hot dogs here than in the past 10 years in the States.

We eat lots of fruit including mangos, pifa, pineapple, banana, papaya, coconut, and others that I am forgetting the names to and have never had in the States. Panamanians tend to like fruit mostly as a juice or frozen treat....btu they eat it regular too. Fried food is a favorite. In short most PCV women here tend to gain a little wieght (which is not thrilling) and most PCV men tend to loose a little...how in the heck that works out I do not know.

How is your health?

Good. Very little in the way of health problems. I have had diareahh just a couple of times...usually when I have to get on a bus or boat soon which is a thrilling type of stress. But stomach issues have been very minimal. The water here is good to drink in most areas straight from the tap.

We have had some thrilling bug bites. I have had bites a couple of times now that have grown to be 7 inches wide, slightly raised, hot, and hard. The one time it felt a bit like chicken skin on the surface and lasted about two weeks. The second time was different and when way in 4 days but was fun until then.

I was stung by a small scorpion (body about an inch long without the tail) the other day when I picked up my shirt. Very suprising and not fun but not awful. It hurt good for 15 minutes and then hurt dully for 20 minutes and then that part of the finger was without much sensation for the rest of the day. They tell me that scorpion stings can also make your tounge loose feeling but I did not experience that.

Kevin joined me in the insect fun this past week on the island. He had more bites than I did for once in his life. THey were mostly no-see-ums. Looked a bit like a bad case of chicken pox. But those will go away soon.

What is the temperature or weather like?

Not as bad as I expected to be very honest. It can be very hot and humid....but that comes just before the rain storms....so you know that the humidity will end at soom point. The temps are not bad...not as high as Baltimore last summer. THe rain cools everything down. It rains almost daily, quite often as a thunderstorm, which I love. Usually in the afternoon, but sometimes in the morning or at night. I can´t complain because it is not as bad as Baltimore was with days around 100 and high humidity last year. I was prepared for that to be true here as well but so far that is not true. THey tell me that summer (Jan, Feb, March, April) will be quite different so I will update you them.