The start of campo life

I am here in the mountains in my new forever home, known not as something normal like” Mountain View”, but as “The Wasp House,” as the house, which was dilapidated, was full of wasps and wasp nests when we first saw it. I am hoping they will not return.
As I said, my husband took charge of everything, including decoration, and he told me he hired a gay Dominican interior designer.  I am not sure what I expected to see when I arrived, but I don’t think that even in my wildest dreams it was a Turkish brothel.

There are floaty nets with beads hanging off them on all the windows, and there are a lot of windows. Luckily I am getting used to them now, but I do feel like I should be belly dancing.

The bedrooms are like something out of a 5 star hotel. I am told that as they are ‘de lujo’ the covers and pillows are only for show. Lujo means luxury. Whilst they do look lovely, going to bed is anything but luxury as the heavy cover has to be taken off and replaced by a quilt or duvet. Pillows have to be added too. It is the reverse process in the morning. Making the bed is now a major task.

The bathroom is also ‘de lujo’ with frilly toilet covers and towels that cannot be used as they are for decoration. My instructions are to take my towel into the bathroom and then take it back into the bedroom afterwards.

But I think he did a brilliant job, and the difference from the barrio is night and day.

I was concerned that the cats might not understand how to use the Dominican cat flap, aka hole in wall. I need not have worried as it took all of my detective skills to work out that they were using it by the muddy footprints on the floor.

There are also cat flaps on the doors which go to the upstairs and I was surprised that the cats didn't jump on my bed at night as they usually do. I found out why this morning when I got up, as Meg the dog is not allowed upstairs, but is supposed to guard the house downstairs. Obviously she prefers to be as close to upstairs as possible, as her snout was firmly jammed in the cat flap. No way could the poor cats get in.

We are slowly getting organised and had a satellite installed for television. Unfortunately it didn't work, as next to us is a mahogany forest and the satellite had no way of picking up the signal through the treetops. As usual in this country, there is always a way to fix things and husband took off shoes, climbed the 30 odd foot tree by shinning up the truck as he would climb a coconut palm and hacked off the tops of the trees. Two minor issues. One it is illegal to cut down mahogany, and secondly one of the bigger branches fell down landing straight on the newly installed hot water heater. Don’t ask me why the water heater is outside in the garden either. Quickly fixed with taypee, although as I complained about that it was then fixed properly.

There are about 15 houses/huts in our little campo village, and I will soon be able to tell you all about the neighbours. At this juncture suffice it to say they are very nice, keep bringing us food every day, all wear woolly hats (it is very cold here at the minute) and have promised me games of dominoes, dancing in the colmado and drinking rum in the park on Saturday afternoon. I had no idea there was a park here.

Chivirico comes on Friday for the weekend which I am really looking forward to. We have the stickers ready for him to decorate his bedroom, and he has decided he needs a cowboy outfit as people ride horses in the countryside.

Should be a fun weekend.