I can see why life in the tropics is so different than that in the Pacific Northwest.  Take wind for example. At home, wind is the harbinger of change.  Usually it heralds the arrival of foul weather. In the tropics, it does suggest change, but possibly only fleeting, and often welcome.  Last night as we left our hotel for a street adventure, the breeze was almost cool– as opposed to the blast-furnace it has been– and instead of torrential downpour, there were just a few refreshing sprinkles of warm rain.

Our walk took us through the neighbourhood where shops of all sorts lined both sides of the street.  Over the course of about a kilometre, we went through about 3 different sorts of areas– quite noticeably impoverished to industrial to moderate/middle class-ish. We passed food stalls, fruit carts, auto-repair shops and many “$2” stores. On every street, there were stores that sold beer and other liquor. We group of 8 westerners caused a bit of a storm too.  It wasn’t unusual to have someone “whoop” from a car window, or worse, almost cause an accident from staring out the window rather than paying attention to the oncoming traffic. The streets are already treacherous–there are sometimes lines on the road, but seems to be more of a *suggestion* really, than anything else. We are constantly mindful of cars, motorcyles, scooters and bicycles, any of which may appear on the street or sidewalk, honking horns or ringing bells not as warning, but more as a demand to move out of the way.