A Gringa No Brasil

Surprise! I moved again! And I'm super happy about my new casa :) It's much nicer than my old place and costs the same. The ceilings are all sealed off so I have fewer critters sneaking in, the windows have screens so I don't need a mosquito net, there's a real kitchen area (sink and counter!), and I don't have to walk outside to get to the bathroom anymore. It's a Honduran life of luxury. Also, it's nicely painted. I kind of feel like I'm living in a fruit salad house - lime/honeydew green, canteloupe, and pink grapefruit. The only downer I've found so far is that it has a metal roof instead of adobe tiles so it's warmer inside. But I'd rather take the heat with no bugs than vice versa. Pictures are up in the album "super tranquilo".

My friend Leo helped me find the new place. I was complaining to him about my old house because the landlord had promised me a bunch of repairs when I moved in that he never actually finished. Since I was in a rush to move and there were very few options, I moved into the old place before it was completely ready, but it was still livable. The landlord told me he would finish things up while I was living there. However, the house was never painted, the toilet never fixed, etc. I was fed up with dealing with him and nagging him and paying more for rent than the house was worth in it's unfinished state. Leo agreed that I should move and told me he'd ask around to see if anything new had opened up. A couple weeks later, he called me up to tell me that he found my new house! He even talked the landlord down in price so that I could afford it on the Peace Corps budget.

I spoke with the new landlord and asked when I could move in. He said the house was unoccupied so it was open whenever I was ready. I told my old landlord I was moving out, called up a coworker with a pickup truck, and moved into the new place about a week and half after first seeing it. Yay! I couldn't believe how easy the process was since it took me forever to find and move into the other house. So now I'm back downtown in Barrio Abajo (literally "lower neighborhood") and just a couple doors down from my old host family. It's nice being back in the neighborhood that I lived in for so long. I'm much closer with all of the neighbors, and since it's a main street, there's a lot more going on than in the quiet little alley where I was living before. Plus, I don't have to climb 93 stairs to get home every day. Bonus!