There are so many things that USED TO be different in the village of San Pedro back in the 1950’s and 60’s especially revolving around the dining table and when we remember them we even become nostalgic. Oh how do we wish we could go back in time to re-live those wonderful village experiences! This is how I recall the following.
Dutch Cheese Was King
Today if your mom were to send you to the shop to buy some cheese, you would obviously have to ask her what kind since there are so many kinds to choose from. Depending on your day’s menu, you might want cheddar, mozzarella, parmesan or Swiss cheese. However, I remember when Dutch Cheese USED TO BE the only cheese on the Island. We used to call it by different names- queso de calavera, queso colorado, queso de bola. That did it for breakfast, for the relleno negro, relleno de especie, the enchiladas, garnachas, and even the lasagna. Lasagna! You got go be kidding! Lasagna did not come to San Pedro until just a few years ago. And do you want to hear something! Dutch cheese is still the favorite cheese whenever we have Fry Jacks for supper or breakfast.
Fun with Tin Cans
Tin cans and some string can provide you with lots of fun. Try them; you won’t regret:
1. Attach a price of string through the sides of the top of two tin cans of the same size. Place your feet on the tin cans and hold on firmly unto the strings. You have now made a pair of toys we called sancos, the Spanish word for stilts. Now you can walk about feeling 5 to 10 inches taller, sort of like wearing high heels. Trust me, children love to feel tall. You can practice walking around the home, down the stairs, on the uneven grass, into the sea, among thorns, but the most fun is to walk about on a wood floor and make all that noise. It is bound to drive mom crazy, and that is the fun. Got it?
2. Bore two small holes through the center of both top and bottom of a tin can and loop a string/rope through it . Fill the can with small pebbles, corn, beans or even marbles. Now hold on to the end of the string and drag the can behind you around the house, street or park. The noise it makes is tremendous and also part of the fun. Remember that some children do love to drive mom crazy. This is a lot of fun, trust me. Children get the feeling of driving a noisy truck or tractor and they are eager to go to the store for mom and make some noise for the neighborhood.
3. Take two milk cans and bore a small hole through the bottom of each. The lids have been removed so that you have open end cans. Now you connect the tin cans with thin cotton string, any length you desire. It could be as long as from your home to the neighbor’s. You guessed it right. You now have a primitive telephone. Remember to keep the string tight. Speak clearly and loud so that if the phone does not work, you are still heard. Learn how to dial. You dial by pulling on the string sort of like playing on a guitar string.
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