100 ways I know I'm in Nicaragua

Just back from a border crossing into Costa Rica to renew our visas. I was struck by how different things can be just on the other side of an imaginary line on a map. So in honor of our hundredth blog post--in no particular order--here are 100 ways that I know I'm in Nicaragua.

1. trees full of flowers
2. white pineapple
3. "Que onda?"
4. fire on the mountains
5. learning my new names "Hermana Cherly, Chilo,  Chela, and Chellita"
6. being married to "Don Yonatan"
7. rain begins--no body's walking pace alters a bit
8. "La Prensa, La Prensa, La Prensa..."
9. family of five--one motorcylce--no problem
10. cardboard door mats
11. cold drinks from a plastic sack
12. bag full of chickens
13. giant vegetable baskets
14. rolling down the windows for the first cool air as you drive up the mountain to Jinotega
15. blood tests with no vacuum tube needles
16. blood tests with no lids for the vials of blood
17. tiny ants in the keyboard
18. giant leaf cutter ants in the street
19. ants in the sink, shower, couch, hallway...
20. fireworks
21. Cordobas
22. keys, keys, keys
23. the sound of angry pigs early in the morning
24. moldy cabinets
25. mosquitoes: there is no off season
26. gallo pinto: breakfast of champions (or lunch, or dinner...)
27. "Yo tengo gozo en mi alma, gozo en mi alma, gozo en mi alma y en mi ser..."
28. the coffee
29. nacatamales
30. watching old women sorting dry beans
31. clicking lizards (yes, lizards make noise, and it's loud)
32. the smell of fresh bananas
33. "Do you want chicken and rice, or rice and chicken?"
34. shelf stable milk (suspicious snarly mouth here)
35. monkeys for sale
36. banana trees in flower
37. cacao!
38. the buses
39. carrying everything up on your shoulder or head
40. the never-ending, usually disappointing search for cheese
41. "Que busca? que busca, que busca chela?"
42. malanga
43. coffee drying in the streets, the valley, the sidewalks, the hillsides...
44. howler monkeys calling across a valley
45. after a gust of wind, hearing "Why does my mouth taste like poop?"
46. knowing the answer to that question
47. someone giving you their number (place in line) at the meat market
48. learning about--and struggling to accept the realities of class distinctions
49. market-kid hugs
50. bromeliads
51. THE ROADS!!
52. kisses and handshakes at every meeting
53. coconuts fresh from the tree
54. swerving to miss livestock in the road
55. people before tasks, relationships before rules
56. rain on a corrugated metal roof
57. hot stone-ground tortillas
58. accepting that things take time
59. bats in the cool of the evening
60. always wearing shoes
61. the smell of passion fruit on the stove
62. parrots
63. laundry day in the river
64. calla lilies growing in a field
65. an unexpected bond with other expats
66. the wind in your sweat standing in the back of a pickup
67. coconut palm trees
68. chatting from inside the bathroom with visitors outside the apartment
69. grocery store shopping like visiting a museum ("ooo...ah...look at that!")
70. the excitement and encouragement of an arriving US group
71. the different excitement of watching them leave
72. "alabare, alabare, alabare, alabare, alabare a mi Señor"
73.  hoof beats on cobblestone streets
74. chaya in butter
75. windows that open in to unexpected places
76. sore arms from shredding cabbage
77. the fine art of standing in a doorway enjoying street theatre
78. plantain chips
79. hitchhiking?--totally normal
80. church schedule: ends at 8--still standing in doorway at 9:15
81. our love affair with our electric fan
82. learning to be available, and to value those unexpected "talks" that (looking back) were the important tasks of the day
83. stars from the rooftop
84. building a fire under an enormous pot of soup
85. some of the best jokes on TV are the funny translations
86. being able to walk to anyplace in town
87. machetes: the duct tape of Nicaragua. It can do everything!
88. appreciating the surprise "recess time" when power outages or fumigation send everyone out into the streets
89. learning to lay in a hammock. No, not that pool-side kind--the old kind.
90. cold jocotes
91. James 2: 1-12 acted out in real life at each Sunday service
92. working out James 2: 13-25  the rest of the week
93. a deep and new-found appreciation for the marvels, and rarity of modern plumbing
94. iguanas: it's what's for dinner
95. coffee and picos (honey bread)
96. the panic on Jonathan's face when they call on him to speak in church
97. the smell that stays with you after cuddling with some kids who don't get to bathe
98. volcanoes! with lava and smoke and fire and everything
99.  4:30 am--the city is hopping. 7 pm--shops boarded up, streets empty
100. seeing God at work