Back in the Saddle Again!

Well folks, it's official: I'll be headed down to Nicaragua this summer! For a week in June, I'll be volunteering at a clinic in the southern part of the country... and I am PSYCHED!

See that giant (and apparently quite beautiful) lake at the bottom of the country? Just to the left of it is where I'll be!

I'm going with FIMRC (Foundation for International Medical Relief of Children). They have sites all over the world that operate year-round and specialize in pediatrics. (A refreshing change from my full-grown patients at work!) It sounds like I'll be doing clinic work, outreach into the villages and lots of general health education.

Unfortunately, Leo won't be able to accompany me on this one. He'll be much too busy studying, teaching and keeping the Keebs in line... but one of these days!

And as an added bonus- on the way back north, I'll be stopping in El Salvador to visit my dear friend, Carolyn. She lives and works there and I will able to meet up with her for a few days of Central American exploration!

I honestly don't know how to explain how excited I am about this! I've been itching for quite awhile now to get back out there... and this opportunity dropped right into my lap! One of my absolute favorite things in the world is experiencing new and exciting places while trying to do some good along the way. I can't envision a day when that will ever change.

The Taxes Two-Step

About a week and a half ago, we received the last of our tax documents in the mail and within minutes, I got to work! With me being in school, and Leo working for only half the year, I knew we’d be getting something back, but I was curious to find out just how much. Also, this was the first year that I knew we wouldn’t be eligible for a 1040EZ, so I was curious to see just how that would go as well. And surprisingly, it went very well! Every income document, all the tuition payments and itemized education expenses, scouring the internet to make sure we got every tiny credit and deduction known to man… I think they should make me an honorary CPA just because I’m that awesome.

I waited a few days to think it over and make sure no little surprises popped up in the meantime, and then hit the submit button on Wednesday night! After a short happy dance, we headed out for what has become our traditional “Taxes-are-Submitted-Chinese-Dinner!” (It all began last year because we were starving as we left the tax office…) There’s a little place down the street that is Leo’s favorite, and we hadn’t been in quite awhile. As we walked in, the wait staff acted like we were long lost relatives who had finally come home… “You two! How are you?! We never see you anymore!” As Leo put it: That’s customer service!

However… By the time we got home, I had an email waiting for me from H&R Block. Our return had been rejected. (Say what?!) Last year, Leo didn’t have his SS# yet, so he had to get a Tax ID# in order to file. And now that he has a SS# and everything he’s earned this year is filed under it, the IRS is confused. After trying twice more to send it in, and being rejected both times… I began to worry. We could always go old school- print it out and mail it. But that would take 5-7 weeks and there was still a possibility that it would be rejected. More internet research led me to people who have been in the same situation who did just that and ended up in a bit of a pickle. Ugh.

So last night, we headed back to our friendly H&R Block office down the street and consulted a professional. It was more than a little frustrating to sit there and watch him put all the same numbers in all the same blanks that I had ALREADY DONE at home, but when all was said and done, he did manage to find us more of a refund. In fact, the extra he found was pretty much exactly the same fee we had to pay them.

I feel like Leo also learned a lot more about the process this year. (I told him next year it’s all on him!) I was explaining how once we’re both out of school, the refunds will drop dramatically, and he came up with the simple solution of staying in school forever. And when our kind tax preparer mentioned that having babies will bump the refund back up again, Leo made the very accurate statement of: “Too bad that refund won’t come close to paying for the kid.” So logical… and true.  :)

One thing that kinda shocked me was how impressed the tax guy was with our detailed receipts. He was so fascinated that we had everything and they were so organized. (with appropriate expenses highlighted!) Apparently most people just come in and guess? I found that interesting.

It definitely wasn’t as easy as I thought it would be… (when immigration is involved, it never is) But the taxes are officially filed and the refund will be arriving shortly.  Done and Done.

A bit skewed, in my opinion.

In the last week, a video has popped up on the internet:

And I have a few opinions to share on the matter-- I personally jumped off that bridge back in 2009 and it was one of the coolest, most thrilling experiences of my life so far.

Aaaaaamazing.

They have about 50,000 jumps a year and have been in operation for over 10 years. So far, the cord has broken ONCE. And as for the "croc-infested river" below? Ha! Yes, there are probably a few crocodiles, but that's a crazy fast moving river underneath one of the most gigantic waterfalls in the world! I doubt it's a hot spot for crocodiles to hang out. They prefer quiet water where they can be lazy in peace. And the commotion of her and her long, bulky bungee cord hitting the water would've scared them all off anyway!

What's the rate of car accidents in the United States nowadays? 1 in 70? 1 in 100? Different organizations give different numbers... But either way- it's WAY higher than any bungee jump in Africa. A bungee jump that is optional. (Kinda like driving a car...)

I would jump again tomorrow given the chance. Life's too short to sit around being bored.

ps- I can no longer say I returned from the Peace Corps "last year." And that makes me sad. :(

A tropical venture.

I know it's been awhile since we got back, but with Christmas and New Years and all, there's been a bit of a delay with blogging. In a word- Puerto Rico was phenomenal. We managed to maintain the perfect balance of exploration and relaxation and got to see just enough of the island to make us want to come back many, many times in the years to come.

After landing in San Juan (and sitting on the runway for 30 minutes because there were no gates available), we finally made it into a taxi and headed toward our hotel in the old part of the city. Apparently there was a huge concert going on that night, so traffic was an absolute nightmare- and our taxi driver (a fiesty Puerto Rican woman) took every opportunity to scream at nearby police officers through the van's open windows. She was upset about the fact that they had blocked off an entire lane of the road for the concert. During the drive, there were multiple incidents of road rage- including honking at nearly every car we saw, almost running over a few innocent tourists, and continually barking orders to anyone who dared to defy her. While honking, she loved to scream things like: "See?! My horn is LOUDER!"  What should been a 15 minute ride turned into over an hour... and Leo and I exchanged several skeptical glances along the way, but we did finally arrive safely! We kissed the ground, dropped off luggage, and headed out- exhausted and starving.

That first day was spent exploring the old city, including the amazing El Morro. It's an enormous fort that was built in the 1500's, and we spent hours wandering around it, finding every passageway imaginable. It's been attacked over and over throughout the years, and has never fallen. Definitely cool.

The next day we set out early to pick up our rental car and head to the eastern part of the island. And the rental car ended up being an adventure in itself… We got a little Suzuki from Allied Car Rental, and in short: I do NOT recommend that company. (I have said such on Trip Advisor.) The car was covered in dents and scratches, had only one hubcap, no floor mats and a keyless remote that was worthless. We paid extra for a GPS that didn’t even work, AND they overcharged us all around! Unfortunately, it was too late to find another option by the time we figured all this out, so we sucked it up and made our way east to El Yunque Rainforest.

We hiked, explored and enjoyed the unbelievable beauty of the area for hours… 

Soooo gorgeous! Of course, there was one very minor traffic incident on the windy, narrow road as we came around a sharp corner. Basically, our mirror smacked the mirror of another guy, but there was no damage to ours…It was a tense few minutes of my very broken Spanish trying to communicate with him and his very broken English, but finally we agreed that we were both in the wrong. So we merrily continued on our way. No police assistance necessary. 

 After the rainforest, we continued further east to Fajardo, where we met up with our guides for a nighttime bioluminescent bay adventure! There are several bays around Puerto Rico that have particular types of algae that glow in the moonlight. So we hopped into kayaks to go out and see them close up. While we don’t have any pictures of ourselves on the water, these stock photos I found will give you an idea of what it’s like.

 Anything that touches the water glows. Our kayaks, the oars, our hands and feet as we splashed around… it was AMAZING. And we also discovered that we’re kind of awesome when it comes to kayaking. Our guides, during our pre-trip meeting, joked that many divorces take place on the water, and that fighting with each other due to the kayak doing its own thing is never the answer. But we rocked it! Several members of the group capsized on the way back to shore, trying to navigate through the extremely narrow channels lined by trees in complete darkness… but we made it without incident. It was an incredible night.

The final days on the island were spent lazing about on beaches, wandering the streets of the old city, mastering the public bus system ($.50 each way!) and thoroughly having a wonderful, wonderful time. 4 ½ days was WAY too short to see and do it all… but hey, there’s always next time!