transient landmarks

here's an interesting fact about san miguel: there are no permanent signs for stores or cafes.  a shop opens, they put out a small sign, they close, the sign goes away.  different stores are open at different times of the day, some take siestas, some are open on weekends, the few streets i walk never look the same.  for those of you who understand my geographical handicap you can imagine what this does to me.

i went for a walk on sunday after i arrived and there wasn't much going on, i managed to find a crappy small grocery store (about a tenth the size of a 7-11).  the next day i'm walking with my 'eccentric' new friend and we find a fantastic grocery store with everything i need.  i go back later and can't find it (it didn't occur to me that it would be closed and all traces of its existence swept away).  so i walk and walk and get lost (and if you remember from my first day, 'all roads lead back...', well, that's bullshit.  roads lead to more roads which lead to the other side of town).

so now i understand that i need to find more concrete landmarks so i set out after class with tracy and she takes me to an even more fantastic grocery store.  after she leaves me i try to retrace my steps while its still open and i discover my second locational handicap.  i spend so much time watching my feet so i don't fall down a curb or stumble on the cobblestones or fall in a hole (or trample a beggar) that i completely forget to look at the street signs.  i have no idea where we just were.

so the good news is that every day is a new adventure in which i don't need to go more than a few blocks each way.  the bad news is that i'm doubting my ability to make it out of this town, much less into another country.  i'm going on a walking tour of the city in an hour, and this weekend tracy and i are going to learn how to ride the buses.  babysteps, i guess.

i carry a picture of my front door in case i need to show it to a taxi driver