Susana Field

A “Too-Hard” November: Nica Nugget #109

December 23rd, 2020susanafield1 Comment

November was just too hard, bracketed early on as it was by two Category 4 hurricanes which slammed into the same place on the northeastern shore of Nicaragua. As if seven months of the coronavirus weren’t enough. And coming right after a rainy month of October already. On November 3, the first hurricane, Eta, hit the northeast coast, miles away from us down here in the southwestern corner of Nicaragua as we are. But it still brought 8 days of torrential rain to us. And cold. In anticipation, fishermen had pulled their boats out of San Juan Bay. Workers had …

Dry Season/Rainy Season: Nica Nugget #108

October 13th, 2020susanafield0 Comments

San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua, has two distinct seasons. They are totally different than the seasons in the more northern latitudes of North America and Europe which experience relatively cold Winters, mild Autumns, hot Summers and mild Springs. Here, in Central America we have two seasons: Dry Season and Rainy Season. Let me elaborate… Dry Season Dry Season coincides roughly with the northern latitudes’ Winter, roughly beginning in mid November and ending in early to mid May. The local Nicaraguans call it their Summer, despite the fact that we are located in the Northern Hemisphere. Dry. Dry Season is dry, …

Digging For Clams: Nica Nugget #107

October 10th, 2020susanafield0 Comments

I’ve been walking laps on the beach at low tide lately with my friend, Maureen, and one or both of “my” dogs. Well, technically I’ve been walking laps on the southern end of the beach since the rains of late have bisected the beach in unequal halves. Maureen lives in town, which sits on the southern and longer (by 1,000 ft or so) continuous stretch of beach that makes up San Juan Bay, than the northern side of the bay where I live. Separating the two sides of the bay and bisecting the beach, is the river. I could walk …

October 2017 Flashback, Tropical Storm Nate hits San Juan del Sur: Nica Nugget #106

October 8th, 2020susanafield0 Comments

On October 5, 2017, Tropical Storm Nate hit San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua. We were spared the severe destruction that impacted many local families and many communities out in the campo. We got off lightly, and we had the resources to survive the inconveniences during the storm, and to hire out the work to make repairs and improvements to our home. But, for us North Americans, unused to flooding and going without electricity and water for days on end, and unused to seeing boats cast up on shore, it was a humbling and scary experience. I wrote about its personal …

Independence Day 2020: Nica Nugget #105

September 15th, 2020susanafield0 Comments

This year, Independence Day celebrations in San Juan del Sur didn’t include the grand parade I shared with you in 2018, but it did bring more local tourists to town and the beach than I’ve seen here in years. It rained and was overcast. But that kept the temperature down and made it especially comfortable to walk on the beach and people watch. I love seeing families enjoying themselves on the beach. It’s free. It’s fun. It’s foolish. It’s seldom, if ever, I’ve seen an angry or annoyed or sad person at the beach. Everyone’s smiling or staring out over …

Robbed While Sleeping: Nica Nugget #104

September 12th, 2020susanafield11 Comments

Tonight will be the one-week anniversary of the night we were robbed while sleeping. The thief broke in through our locked guest room window. And then walked through our living room and into our bedroom. While we were sleeping. The thief picked up John’s metal tool kit which was on a shelf by John’s head, along with two overnight bags. The thief also removed two purses of mine off of a hook. And picked up the laptop from on top of a table right by me. While we were sleeping. At 2 am John woke up and noticed that our …

Barking at Vibrant, Incessant Life: Nica Nugget #103

August 30th, 2020susanafield1 Comment

Our backyard. It extends for miles and miles really if you count how far we can walk through the jungle on dirt once we leave our front door. This particular day I walk up the canyon by our house. Ruffo is with me and off the leash. He was so happy to go on a walk after days of John and I being sick. Immediately though he took off, crashing through the undergrowth and out of sight. Soon I heard his barking and then the screaming back by monkeys who I hadn’t yet seen. One monkey must’ve been caught off …

August Nature Sightings: Nica Nugget #102

August 28th, 2020susanafield4 Comments

The Mot Mots have gone. The clouds of butterflies have disappeared and left behind just a scattering of loners. The cicadas that were here screaming in the heat of mid April are now silent and who knows where. But the sandpipers have returned to the beach. The Kiskadees are always around, as well as the Stripe Breasted Wrens who make their nest over and over and over again in my neighbor’s hanging twig lampshades but never seem to raise any young. The fireflies are out, but oh how I would love to see them again in great number like John …

A Break in the Rain: Nica Nugget #101

August 27th, 2020susanafield2 Comments

While Hurricane Laura makes landfall in the United States, we’ve had our own unrelated tropical depression happening here in San Juan del Sur. Since last week, the skies have been overcast and rainy. The dirt roads have turned to mud and puddles. The air temperature has cooled. And my husband has come down with his annual cold, although now in August rather than in September like the past two years. I too was feeling headachy and congested over the weekend, so I too stayed indoors. But how frustrating and curious. We have been so incredibly cautious these past almost 6 …

Two Years and 100 Nuggets: Nica Nugget #100

July 31st, 2020susanafield0 Comments

Today is my two-year anniversary of writing Nica Nuggets! And today I am writing Nica Nugget number 100! That’s 50 per year. Had I written four more, I would have averaged one per week over the past two years. As it is, I’ve found that I’m not that regular. There are times when I’m truly inspired, like during rainy season when the beauty here is overwhelming. The dry season, I’ve found, tends to dry my creative juices up too. My subject matter has also fluctuated. Now, during the pandemic, I’m restricting my contact with people, so I’m not meeting new …