I had planned to leave Costa Rica for a few months during the rainy season for a visit to Montana. Then My parents called me to come early and help fix up a house they want to sell in Florida. It was 12 solid days of hard labor - work, eat and sleep and the sleep part was marginal because I did not sleep well. The job overall was very successful.
The area of Florida we were in is near Ocala, which is in the north western part of the state. We did not have time for the beach or any other leisure activities but I took a walk by the river where our motel (they called it a fish camp) was located. I loved the woods, which is almost jungle, with it's huge tropical plants and palms, giant oaks just dripping with moss and all kinds of birds and wildlife. The river was absolutely picturesque. Other than that, to me Florida looks pretty generic. There are some lovely parks and manicured golf courses around the many, many lakes and ponds. And there is every franchise you can think of - TGIF, Ruby Tuesdays, Applebees, Dunkin Doughnuts, Movie Gallery, Wal Mart, K mart and too many more to mention. The only one that interested me was Barnes and Noble Bookstore where I found the intriguing One Hundred Years Of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. You see my heart is still in the Latino world.
The U.S.'s contrast with Costa Rica is interesting. The first thing you notice is how clean and organized everything is in the States. The roads are excellent with good road signs, everything looks manicured and manufactured but it does not have the character of Costa Rica. I appreciate the cleanliness but to me it is also boring and monotonous.
I did really enjoy a few things in Florida. I got a great Latino radio station and really enjoyed the Salsa and Regaetton. And I got to hear Gospel music at a local Baptist church. It was great! I was absolutely delighted when the choir sang a song that I learned when I was in the choir of the church I used to go to in Montana! I knew all the words! Jesus in on the main line, tell him what you need, call him up and tell him what you need!
