An Excellent Journey: Susan's Fulbright in Panama (and Beyond): 05/07/14

Curiouser and curiouser (Wednesday)

It's another fun day in Paradise, and one with an upside-down feeling to it. The elevator (ascensor) has been playing with us - sometimes not working, other times deciding to work, though always with a threat of shutting down (regardless of whether there are people inside it) It's almost as if it has a personality of its own and wants to skive off sometimes.

So it shouldn't have been a surprise to find a sign this morning saying:

"Please use the elevator to go to floor 2 only. You must push the button "1" to go to floor 2 directly.
Do not press any other button.
Do not press the "Stop" button or open the door ever."

Curiouser and curiouser!

But continuing in an Alice-in-Wonderland vein, I wonder if this might help my Spanish?

“Speak in French when you can’t think of the English for a thing--
turn your toes out when you walk---
And remember who you are!”

Be Prepared (Tuesday)

After yesterday's downpour, I decided to bring along my brand new multicolored umbrella today. I absolutely love it - the colors are vibrant and it's HUGE - so really useful in the rain. Elba borrowed it to walk to another building and said it worked just fine.

But I didn't actually get to try it in the rain because it had stopped by the time we left campus.

Which was really good (since we didn't get soaked) and also, somehow, disappointing. Funny how that works. I suspect that in a very short time, I'll be thrilled when it's not raining when we leave.

The rain did have its effects though as the air was fresh(er) and it was cool(er) than on sunny days. Fascinating to watch the seasons unfold here.

And I'm glad that, even when there's not an actual rainbow, I will be carrying my own with me.