Day 25

The connection hell is starting again – that one man was on the computer at verizon all morning, and I ended up taking a gua gua to Samana. It was a pickup truck, and I sat in the open back. I loved seeing everything on the route so open, but I probably got fried. When dropped off, I argued with the driver – he demanded 60 pesos, and I told him it was 50 yesterday. I feel stupid, trying to argue when I don’t know the langage, and I must sound like a moron, saying “non – cinquenta pesos” over and over.

I was able to see everything on my laptop at the computer store in Samana, but was unable to access my bank account, despite trying all possible ID / password combinations.

On the way back the gua gua was packed, but everyone shifted to make an open seat for me. I spoke with a young man from San Juan, DR, who had gotten up and headed out this morning at 6 AM to get to Casa Marina, the all-inclusive here, to interview about possibly getting a job for he and his band. He said he was the DJ, and he spoke 6 languages, which he told me he had learned on the internet. he was nice, but had an intensity about him, and he didn’t smile.

When I got back Amy and the kids were out. I did some sketches for Computerworld. They returned while I was finishing. They had gone to a tiny opening on the ocean nearby, and caught hermit crabs.

I went to the verizon store. Thomas was there. I got on the computer, sent out my sketches. Hung around hoping against hope that I would get an immediate response. No go. Thomas was trying to recruit people for the soccer game, including Alain at the verizon store. Alain told him he had heard from people that there had been a big fight at the soccer game and didn’t want to play. I went back home, and Amy left with Lane to go to the verizon store. It was getting near soccer time, and I asked Benjamin to get ready to go to the verizon store. He was staring intently at his yellow plastic bucket from the beach, and told me “ssshhhh – Dad – be quiet. You never caught hermit crabs before.”

At the soccer game, Cyril told me his network was down, and he didn’t know when it would be back up. I asked him if he needed parts, and he said yes, but you couldn’t order them in the DR, because if they were shipped here there was a large tax. I told him I would ask any friends who were visiting to bring any supplies with them.

At the soccer game, a couple of the Italian guys are very friendly to me - an older guy name Fumio (?) and a younger guy, Denali, who is very good. Many of the people at the soccer game smoke.