Devastation

The taxi pulled up outside of El Rancho and we saw the gates were open which was a bit unusual. When we looked inside it was heartbreaking. We had been warned by Omar that there had been some damage but we weren’t expecting this. The two beautiful Parota trees were nowhere to be seen, The Jacka tree was gone, and so were about six coconut palms. Almost all the mango trees, the platano and banana trees were gone as well as our lovely little papaya. At least Omar can’t steal them when we’re not looking anymore. Also, all the foliage around our patio was nowhere to be seen.

It was devastating. Omar and a bunch of other guys were working away trying to make the place look a bit better. It must be serious as Omar was working on a Sunday, which he rarely does. The good thing down here is that things grow quickly so although it won’t quite be as it was, I’m sure it will look great in a year or two. They are already planning on planting more trees. Raquel said our rent money will be for new trees.

I got the car started after cleaning up the battery terminals and we went into town for supplies. Luckily the beer and wine store was open even on a Sunday. Then off to the beach to drown our sorrows with a Margarita, a glass of wine and a bite to eat. It feels good to be back. We paid about $30 for two meals and two drinks each. Yesterday in Nanaimo we paid $60 for some wings and fries which we shared, and three drinks. And people wonder why we live here half the year.

We hadn’t had much sleep on the plane so we both crashed for a couple of hours. It will take a few days to acclimatize but we’ll get over it. Wine helps.