Rebekah and the Motorbike
So today I had my first ride on a motorbike...and I was scared silly. Many Ticos (that's what the Costa Ricans call themselves) ride motorbikes or scooters around on the hills here; they're a lot easier to manuever on these bumpy roads, I imagine. I hadn't planned on taking a motorbike ride, in fact, I feel pretty certain that they are accidents waiting to happen. The roads are beyond bumpy- they are uneven, they are filled with huge mud filled holes, and they are all UPHILL. And I have yet to see a person wear a helmet. The elementary school teacher in me cringes everytime I see a person go flying by on his/her motorbike, hair flapping in the breeze.
But...today was an expection. There is safety, and there is courtesy. Today was an issue of courtesy. One of the workers on our house was riding by on his bike when I was walking to the store in Monteverde. On the way down, he offered me a ride and I politely declined. He smiled and went on his way. On the way back home, however, (when the road is uphill the whole way AND it had started to rain AND I was lugging a heavy bag of groceries) he passed me once again and offered once again. He waited and smiled and gestured to my bag as if to say, "Come on. You don't want to carry that ALL the way back up the hill?" Plus, I knew he was going back to my house anyway...and it felt very rude to turn down his offer again... and so I got on. He asked me if I spoke Spanish and I told him that I did (but just a little). So he explained that I needed to put my feet on these little bars. I put my feet on and then hesistated over where to put my arms. Certainly it was evident that I needed to hang on to him. If I didn't hang on to him, I would surely fall while zipping along. But the question was...where do I hold him? Around the waist? Is that strange? And what about my groceries? I couldn't hold me arm around his waist AND hold the groceries somehow. Do I put the groceries in this lap? On the front of the bike? I don't have enough Spanish to sort all of that out.
So I opted for an awkward sort of shoulder grip with my groceries balanced very precariously on my knee. I was certain that either i was falling off that thing or my groceries were. Every bump in the road, I held my breath, imagining the impact of dirt and rock on my face. He kept looking at me in the mirror by the handbars and laughing as I squealed in terror. He told me, "No tenga miedo!!" (Don't be afraid!) and smiled. We bumped along at a relatively slow pace, actually, but still it was scary.
But! We made it home unscathed. After getting off the bike, it seemed appropriate to ask his name, as we had recently been in such close contact. His name is Tonio. And he was very nice to give me a ride home.
I also had two conversation entirely in Spanish today. One at the grocery store with the man who works there, asking him if what I was holding was indeed an orange ( I was uncertain because it was green). I also talked to the secretary at my school a bit and she introduced me to the school's fix-it guy who also fixes stuff at teacher's houses. At least I think that's what she said.
But...today was an expection. There is safety, and there is courtesy. Today was an issue of courtesy. One of the workers on our house was riding by on his bike when I was walking to the store in Monteverde. On the way down, he offered me a ride and I politely declined. He smiled and went on his way. On the way back home, however, (when the road is uphill the whole way AND it had started to rain AND I was lugging a heavy bag of groceries) he passed me once again and offered once again. He waited and smiled and gestured to my bag as if to say, "Come on. You don't want to carry that ALL the way back up the hill?" Plus, I knew he was going back to my house anyway...and it felt very rude to turn down his offer again... and so I got on. He asked me if I spoke Spanish and I told him that I did (but just a little). So he explained that I needed to put my feet on these little bars. I put my feet on and then hesistated over where to put my arms. Certainly it was evident that I needed to hang on to him. If I didn't hang on to him, I would surely fall while zipping along. But the question was...where do I hold him? Around the waist? Is that strange? And what about my groceries? I couldn't hold me arm around his waist AND hold the groceries somehow. Do I put the groceries in this lap? On the front of the bike? I don't have enough Spanish to sort all of that out.
So I opted for an awkward sort of shoulder grip with my groceries balanced very precariously on my knee. I was certain that either i was falling off that thing or my groceries were. Every bump in the road, I held my breath, imagining the impact of dirt and rock on my face. He kept looking at me in the mirror by the handbars and laughing as I squealed in terror. He told me, "No tenga miedo!!" (Don't be afraid!) and smiled. We bumped along at a relatively slow pace, actually, but still it was scary.
But! We made it home unscathed. After getting off the bike, it seemed appropriate to ask his name, as we had recently been in such close contact. His name is Tonio. And he was very nice to give me a ride home.
I also had two conversation entirely in Spanish today. One at the grocery store with the man who works there, asking him if what I was holding was indeed an orange ( I was uncertain because it was green). I also talked to the secretary at my school a bit and she introduced me to the school's fix-it guy who also fixes stuff at teacher's houses. At least I think that's what she said.
posted by Rebekah at 8:19 PM
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