Saturday (or the one in which not much happens)

So Saturday was July 4th. Unfortunately, no fire works show for us here. Cesar tried ("Aren't fireworks illegal here?" someone asked him. "Yeah," he responded, "but who cares?"), but, unfortunately couldn't procure anything for us.

It was generally a pretty mellow day. We started off with a facilities tour; as nice as the Padres' complex is, I think I might prefer the Mets. Yes, the Padres facility is more high-end (think opulent resort versus functional, modern space), but it feels just a little cramped. Although they're trying to procure more space, for now, the Mets just have a little more room to play with. (Again, I'm trying to get this photo situation sorted out--when I do, you'll be able to compare for yourself.)

After the tour we did something pretty cool, though: we went out into the community on a "scavenger hunt" (which was really more of a way for us to do some research). The town of Najayo really is very poor, and is lacking some basic infrastructure. In good times, electricity runs about two or three hours a day. In bad times, when the government doesn't pay the private electric company (which happens frequently), the electricity goes off altogether. Although there were some other items on our scav lists (a photo of a kid playing petilla, photos of three kids in sports jerseys) the biggest concern was talking to people in the community, asking them how they ran their businesses and what the community needed most. Four themes emerged on the needs front: a pharmacy, better health care, a community center, and fresh produce--all very basic needs.

After that, we all had the chance to take a much-needed nap before our 4th of July BBQ. The Man Cave (the 10-person room usually used by players trying out for the Padres) was just filled with passed out dudes. At the barbecue, my "vegetarianism" went out the window as soon as I saw the ribs--I wouldn't want to offend the chef, you know? (And, besides, the vegetarian options were just more white rice and "salad" composed of 90% cabbage--and I've had my fill of those.)

Sunday was really a much more exciting day, so check back later for a (potentially drunkenly-composed) write up on that. I'm trying hard to catch-up; maybe I'll be back posting in real time by the end of the trip.