My Close of Service

Today marks a week since I have been back in America from my service in St Lucia. This will be my last post about my closing of service. My last week in St Lucia was so much fun and also terribly painful. Tuesday night, I was tricked into a big surprise party at the church. I was so shocked! Everyone brought a dish so we had a giant feast. They had games and performed dances and we all had a blast. Wednesday was my last day at the library, we had a party with all the kids and presented the awards for the star readers. I had cake and ice cream for them to celebrate. I also had my final piano lesson with Faith, I hope she continues to practice and finds a new teacher soon. The parent leader group also threw a wonderful party for me and the new volunteer Bree later that night. They baked lots of yummy treats, said so many kind words and we had a big photo shoot where everyone wanted a picture with me. They are such a great group of parents, I truly regret not getting involved with them sooner! Thursday was my big wrap up at the Peace Corps office. I had lots of things to return, forms to collect and sign and I officially finished my grant report. It has been cleared and completed, what a relief! I got to say all my goodbyes to PC staff as well as Greg and Jilia. That night was a little staff party at Ms. Ianna’s house which is always a great time. I will miss that group a lot, they always included me in their get-togethers. Friday was a mix of cleaning and organizing while people stopped by to take all my stuff I had accumulated. Dera and Ava also came to stay the night and again, surprised me with a goodbye party. Ava sang a song while they brought out dinner, bubbly and cake for me. Too many surprises and goodbyes this week. I was so drained from not getting much sleep and from the emotional overload. On my last full day in St Lucia, I spent it with my neighbour Sethfra. We went to the beach and it was the most beautiful day. Of course, I spent the whole day out with no sunscreen so I ended up getting pretty burned. Perfect, I was going home looking like a cooked lobster… My host mom Petrina came down to spend the last night with me. She helped do the final cleaning with me and kept me company. I also said goodbye to Ruby that night. Bree came for her so she could have her all next week. I was sad but very relieved that she would have such a great owner. I was so worried about that. A friend dropped by late that night to say goodbye and before I knew it, it was Sunday. August 21^st. The day I left St Lucia. The landlord came to check the house and mama and I waited anxiously for our ride before she found something wrong with the house. We didn’t hear too many comments, just some about the couch having Ruby hair. Just needs a vacuum which no one has here. I got a ride to church with all my luggage and from there, had two hours with my church family. I got to say a few words but I was so out of it, I don’t remember what I said really. Sister Leavitt drove me to the airport and then a long 24 hours of travel and waiting to get home.

My family and some friends were waiting at the airport to pick me up in Green Bay. I was happy to home and relieved to be back. There is a lot to adjust to. I can drink the tap water, the air is so dry and I’m cold all the time, mal pale isn’t funny here, everyone is rushing everywhere, endless comess and manje, it’s so white in every way, it’s so easy, no bugs or pests, you don’t have to lock up anything and people do not speak their mind. I am missing St Lucia but I also am excited to start a new adventure. I am so grateful for the time I spent in the Peace Corps. It was so hard in so many ways but it also the best two years. It really is the toughest job you will ever love. I can’t wait to return and visit my Lucian people soon. Thank you for your support and for reading my very sparse blog posts. 🙂

 

Pictures from Church

Some pictures of people I will miss from our little Vieux Fort branch. More to come.

From the top and left to right: Sister Tsmia, Emmy, Little Sky, Sister Georgiana, Sherba, Valence, Sky and her dad Rodrique and Sister Thomas.

 

One Week Left

A week from today, I will be back home. My Peace Corps service is coming to an end. It’s unbelievable to think that the 27 months have passed already and I dread leaving St. Lucia and the friends I have made here. On the other hand, returning to America is such an exciting thought, with its many luxuries. I wake up feeling different every day. For now, I am just spending every day doing as much as I can and enjoying the time I have left.

Some friends and I went on an adventure recently to a secluded waterfall up in the rainforest. With lots of mud and no sign of a path, we trekked through the bush and slipped our way to this beautiful ravine. We had to get someone from a nearby community to show us the way or we never would have made it. The waterfall was the best I have seen thus far and every fall and scrap to get there was worth it. We cooked lunch by the river and swam all afternoon. I loved it!

The parent leader group is off to a great start! We have had two meetings already this summer. Members voted for the leadership and have put together a calendar of events for the coming school year. They are an amazing group of parents and I have truly enjoyed working with them. I wish I had done this project sooner!! They are throwing a goodbye party for me after their meeting on Wednesday along with welcoming the new volunteer who will be taking my place! That’s right, the new volunteer is in the community and is just finishing her last bit of training. Her name is Bree and she will be swearing in a few days after I leave. The best part is we share the same host mother up north so she is my sese (sister). We get along great and I can tell already she will be a great fit for our community and school. We have been able to go to the beach together and also spend some time at the school to talk about projects to continue and tips for survival (for true!). We also got to go to a cricket game!! My first one!! I traveled up with some friends from Vieux Fort and met Bree and Petrina at the game. We had a blast cheering and jumping for the St. Lucia Zouks who won that night too. I have learned the game and really enjoy watching cricket. Not sure if there is any cricket back home, I will have to be on the lookout.

The library summer programme has gone so well this summer. We had six weeks of children from the community coming to check out books and work on their reading journals. This year, I have seven students who will be star readers for finishing their journals. I prepared some fun prizes for them, one being a keyring with their picture and star reader on it. Can’t wait to see their faces when they see that one. Last week we made giant bubbles outside, just for fun and the kids loved it so much. As soon as I turned around, they were covered head to toe in bubbles. I also made play dough for them the week prior and they played for hours. I had to let everyone keep their piece, there was no way I was getting that play dough back. This Wednesday is our last library day and we are having a little party to celebrate. We have been getting around 25 kids a week so I hope they all come. I have also had two teachers come to help me each week which seems like a small thing but really means a lot. They come during their vacation without being asked and they see the value of doing this programme over the summer. It’s the little successes that make all of this worth it!!

Other than the library, I have been spending the last three weeks helping with two different camps that were hosted by other volunteers. The first one was Camp GLOW (Girls Leading Our World) which was for teenage girls ages 13-18. I was a floating counselor and helped to supervise and run sessions. The camp was overnight so everyone had beds on the floors in all the classrooms of the host school. I also provided a service project to paint a mural for the school library. I designed and drew the mural and the girls and other counselors helped to fill in the colour. It turned out great, much to my relief. I realize I forgot to mention that I came late to the camp. Reason being I got Zika the week before. It wasn’t bad except for the rash. That was the worst part. I had the red-dotted rash EVERYWHERE. It burned and itched and since I am white, I looked pretty scary, esp. to the locals. I had a day of fever and some minor joint pain too. It only took a few days to feel better and I was able to move around and still do things around the house. I would have Zika again over Chickengunya any day. After Camp GLOW, I helped with a reading camp for boys in Grades 1-3. I was there for supervision, designing and printing the t-shirts for campers and counselors and surprise, surprise, another mural. The volunteer running the boys’ camp was also at Camp GLOW so he talked me into doing a mural at his school. I just finished the mural today. No more murals for me. At least for a while.

We had a beach party on Saturday with everyone involved with Peace Corps which was great as I got to say goodbyes and enjoy the beach with the other volunteers, from all the EC groups. That was a great sight to see, volunteers from my group who are about to leave, volunteers from last year who have one more year to go and volunteers who have just arrived and are about to start their service. Everyone was jealous that I am on my way out. I remember that feeling all too well. I think I will try to go for a sea bath one more time before I go, maybe on Saturday, God willing.

I am now burdened with the cleaning of my house and the distributing of my things from my house that I am not keeping or cannot bring home. There are plenty of people to help me out, not with the cleaning but taking things off my hands. So kind of them. 🙂  I fly to Miami on Sunday and overnight before heading to Green Bay the next day. So much to do, a very scary amount of time left to do it all…

 

 

Graduation and Last Days at School

Goodbyes

June was a whirlwind of National Elections, wrapping up classes, testing and organizing the parent group. I am officially finished with school and saying goodbye to students and staff was really hard for me. The school had a special assembly where each class preformed a song or poem about me and gave me gifts and hugs. I was a mess and was so touched. The children got so emotional. I love my children so much. I will miss them the most! The teachers also had a surprise lunch for me where they too shared their gratitude and gave me more gifts. This is making it so much harder to leave! They also gave me a giant cake which I promptly shared with everyone so I didn’t eat it all myself. I really love my school, the staff were so welcoming and never made me feel like the volunteer. I am so blessed to have this experience.

We were also able to celebrate and honour the 27 parents who adopted practices from the workshop and interviewed to be in the parent leader group. At our school’s graduation, I was able to say a few words about these amazing parents who have not only adopted practices but also have created their own and are motivated in helping their children succeed. I had one parent share her thoughts about the workshop and her experience in helping her children. I was amazing! I wanted to share her comments, she sent what she was going to say so I could read over it. Here is what she said…

“I’ve always been a reader, always interested in learning but I’ve never been a teacher. This workshop has taught me alot in the means of making my kids excited about learning. It has also closed the door on procrastination because there is now accountability. My daughter doesn’t let me forget that I’ve to give her word a day. That is one of the methods that I’ve implemented at home. A word a day where they pronounce it as much as they can on their own before I help them. Also by not just telling them the word but having them try to break down the word, it has improved their confidence and they try more. We do model reading and paired reading. Model reading entails reading with expression and punctuations. This is also quite successful as I also give rewards in the form of stars and everyone wants a star especially if another sibling has already gotten one. I’ve learned how to break down the words to better aid them in pronunciations. The homework chart is also an accountability tool as it holds both myself and the kids accountable. It serves as a physical reminder and a rule that’s not to be disobeyed.

What was learned in that workshop requires work. It is not a one day miracle cure but requires hard work on both the parts of the parents and child and also consistency. I hope my story will serve as a motivation to all parents because at the end of the day it’s not about us. It about the future about equipping our kids with the knowledge, education and skills to function in the world. I also look at it as spending quality time with my family and knowing I’ve played a significant part in educating my child. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank the organizers of this workshop. It was truly an exceptional experience and shows your dedication to helping the students and families. I thank you”

These parents are so inspiring and I can’t wait to hear about how they will positively affect the community and school. We are having our first parent group meeting this next week to discuss what this group can achieve this coming school year. I also included a picture on the previous post of our group logo that we put on the front of the shirts. On the back, it reads “My Child, My Responsibility: Beyond the Academics.”

For the last day of school, we all went down to the beach for a nice time to celebrate. We cooked a one pot of saltfish, green fig, plantain and dumpling over a fire and went for a sea bathe. Lots of memories were made. Now I have reports to make and sleep to catch up on. I am ready for the summer library programme which will be every Wednesday and there are a few camps I am going to help with. It will be a fun summer. My tickets have been bought. I will be home for the 22^nd of August. My time here is almost over.

 

Pictures of my farewell assembly

 

I wanted to put pictures of staff and students with their names to remember.

Grade Six –  Front row: Anneil, Sierra, Reanna, Donavan, McKell, Kavon    2nd row: Jennavive, Quain, Demetra, Jason, Junior, Sherquan, Kyana

 

Grade Five –  Front row: Calise, Kazia, Curshel, Kurtlan, Marlon    2nd row: Joansha, Ed, Ethan, Quain, Shirneil     3rd row: Sierra, Joshua, Vandan

 

Grade Four –  Front row: Al, Devonne, Kemany, Saquain    2nd row: McMillon, Sunisha, Nikisha, Tanya, Fernando, Jervon, Linus   3rd row: Jeanil, Shernika, Sharma, Darnell, Darrell

 

Grade Three – (not really in rows…)  Front row: Taya, Leeam, Neville     2nd row: Jaymiah, Synovia, Allize, Ciarra, Cherine, Jazzelle, Jerome   3rd row: Abigirl, Ucilla, Chontay, Willka     4th row: Sylvan, Taj, Breon, Zeyan, Endez, Ranny, Aiden, Kimany

 

Grade Two –   Front row: Narjma      2nd row: Noah, Quaine, Leslie, Stella, Kernilya, Jermiah, Kershawn    3rd row: Jaimane, Johnelle, Deandre, Dalliar, Jessica, Marissa, Karson, Syra

 

Grade One – Front row: Evianne, Lorn, Christian, Delton, Alisha, Anatalia, Ariann, Chervonn, Curtis, Amanie    2nd row: Caitlin, Neigle, Tyra, Tayjsha, Sherlana, Emani, Jaden, McKenzie, Bryeon, Kevin, Nikayla, Maria

 

Front: Ms. Chris     2nd Row: Ms. Marcia, Mr. Cooman, Ms. Marcellina, Ms. James, Ms. Ianna, Ms. Jawahill     3rd Row: Teacher Terry, Ms. Emma, Teacher Vincent

Parent Workshops are over!

I am finally having a chance to report on the parent workshops my school held. I could not be more pleased with the turn out. After all our hard work encouraging parents, we had a total of 55 parents total come! 55! From our small rural community, I was thrilled. Everything went smoothly and shockingly, the workshops started on time. That is another big accomplish for the Caribbean. Even Saturday was a success despite the downpour that happened and the fact that we didn’t have the key to open the office or kitchen for the first hour. Everyone on staff had a role either facilitating one of the three session or managing the food, rotation bell and camera. We all had a great time seeing the parents’ excitement and enthusiasm. Many parents told me they had never been to a workshop before. I was grateful to give them the experience and opportunity to learn more ways they can support literacy in their homes. Each parent got a bag we had made by a local seamstress with a folder of handouts, notepad and pencil (which MANY parents took notes), and a container with materials and supplies to use at home. Parents completed a survey after the last session and the overwhelming response was to have more workshops in the future, even to make it an annual event. A great sign that it was what parents needed. At the end of the workshop, parents also received a certificate of attendance and a challenge. They are now asked to implement 3 practices in their home by July and those who do will be the newest members of our parent leader group in the community and receive a t-shirt and certificate at our school graduation. So I still have a bit of work to do, besides all the reports I have to make that has piled up. It was all worth it. Best part is I went around the day after the workshop and asked students whose parents participated if their parents started anything new with them when they came back home. From what the students were able to tell me, at least 25 parents had started the night of the workshop to use the practices they had learned. Awesome!

Immediately after the workshop, I hopped on a bus and went up north for a Peace Corps conference. All the volunteers from my EC86 group from the different islands came for our Close of Service conference and it was a rollercoaster of emotions. We gave a lot of feedback since we now have completed two years and were also the first group of the primary literacy program for the Eastern Caribbean. That got heated and we all enjoyed venting together. It was informative as our staff shared struggles returning home, finding jobs, going back to school, working for the PC agency and even the Foreign Service. We found out ways to manage our last three months and our long lists of tasks to wrap up everything. We also got to reflect on our service and share how we feel we have made a difference. There were tears and really sweet moments too. And the FOOD! We stayed in a really nice hotel and the food was excellent. I guess that was our thank you present for our service. We also had a beach party and got to go out for the last time as a group. I had to do all my good byes to all my friends, it seemed unreal and August 22^nd is still far away in my head. I guess all the stress from the workshop, the overwhelming COS conference and the bitter cold of the AC at the hotel (don’t laugh, the AC really messes me up, I can’t handle it!) together made me fall ill. When I got home, I was really sick and had to call the doctor. I ended up getting strep throat and spent the next 6 days in bed. I’m finally going to go back to school tomorrow. The Ministry of Education decided to come visit our school tomorrow so now I get to give presentations tomorrow to the Minister of Education, his whole team and also Peace Corps on what I have been doing at the school for the past two years. Great. Back to work!

 

Adventure to St. Kitts!

My dad came to visit me for my two week Easter vacation this year and boy did we have a nice time. We headed up North after Easter Sunday (had a mini program with my primary children at church – we shared the 12 symbols of Easter) to spend the night with my host mom. Early the next morning, we bravely hopped on a LIAT plane and flew to Antigua where we had an 8 hour layover. With plans of seeing the island of Antigua and going to swim with stingrays, we were denied by the immigration people to leave the airport. We went upstairs to the desk attendants who tried to help us get out but we soon realized that it was pretty hopeless. I guess we didn’t have the right connections since it was under the discretion of immigration whether or not we could leave for the day. So we enjoyed our layover spending the day at the airport which was pretty small and for one of us, very cold. They have great AC. Finally, it was time to arrive at our final destination and just a 20 minute flight later, we were in St Kitts! We spent 4 days at a lovely resort, too lovely because we struggled finding reasons to even leave. Lots of relaxing beach time under cabanas, delicious food, spa time and massages, hunting for diet coke, and socializing with the pride of cats that lived there. We tried to feed one the cats some of a pizza we were eating and it resulted in a vicious mauling from another cat. To this day, we do not know if that cat survived and our conscience got a little heavier each night when we did not see it. We did venture out into the “real world” one morning to take an island tour. It was great to see what another Caribbean island is like. We saw the Brimstone fortress which was impressive, some gardens and local artwork, a museum about the song Amazing Grace (don’t ask me what it has to do with St. Kitts, we didn’t see a connection worthy of a museum) some black volcanic rocks, lots of remnants of sugar cane plantations and MONKEYS! Although there were quite a few guys walking around with monkeys in diapers for the tourists, we were able to see monkeys in the bush. St Kitts, which is a nickname – original name is St Christopher, is more flat with a few mountains in the middle and is much smaller compared to St. Lucia. They also speak an English dialect and I failed at many attempts to try and pick some of it up. The time flew by and soon we were back to brave more LIAT flights (for those who are unfamiliar with THE Caribbean airline, its famous for being unreliable).

The rest of the time we had, we relaxed and enjoyed the sun at the beach. We did make a massive Mexican dinner for all 8 missionaries in the branch. We had everything (enchiladas, rice, beans, chips and homemade salsa) and for dessert I made tres leches cake. It was my bad to assume they had at least heard about this delicious milk-soaked cake…when I gave it to them, I got comments that it was interesting and different. My favourite was that it was the moistest cake they had ever had to which one elder shouted “It’s wet!” But they ate all so it must have been ok.

Overall, a restful and fun break from school. But Dad had to go and I had to get back to work. From the first day back at school, I have been busy working on the workshop and also subbing for my Grade Two class whose teacher had surgery and will most likely be out for the rest of the term. The money for the grant has arrived so we have finished ordering all the materials we needed online, all of which should arrive before May 18^th. We can only pray! I have started teaching Self-Reliance classes again through the church. This time my course is My Job Search which is learning skills to introducing yourself, networking, interviewing and resume writing. My class is small but they are hard-working which is more important. My piano student I am teaching after school is doing very well too. She is determined and I know she will be able to play on her own before I go.

My neighbour who lives at the back of the house recently got a kitten and a puppy. So I designated myself as the groomer/part-time caretaker since they are not getting “proper” attention. I was able to convince their owner to buy medicine for them, he didn’t seem to understand the need. They also get bread and rice to eat so I will keep trying to persuade him to throw in some protein some how. They came infested with bugs and malnourished but are now looking healthy and happy, for the most part. I also have my neighbour’s dog Monty on my route so it’s becoming an animal clinic around here. I could ignore it but I guess I can’t lucianize myself completely, even after all this time.

 

Grant, Sports and Cake

I got some good news on the grant my school and I wrote for the Parent Literacy Workshop. It was approved!!! Our budget is $3500 US, we are pumped! After 3 days of registration, we had over 50 parents sign up…crazy! The workshop will be in May and will focus on ways on how to support literacy in the home. We hope to spark a desire for parent involvement in the school and children’s education as well as establish a parent leader group made of those parents who take the initiative to get involved. We are designing a logo and t-shirts and will be making kits for parents to take home with materials and books. Everyone is excited and all the staff and teachers are helping in facilitating different sessions for parents to rotate to. And of course, there will be a lunch after so that will help with the attendance! More to come!

It’s the end of sports term at school. This past week was our District sports meet and we didn’t do well as a school but the kids had fun and did their best. While there are many disadvantages our school faces (no field by the school, no private coach, fewer students, etc)  I really enjoyed getting involved in helping coach our team – a fun side project this year – and cheering them on. At least we are participating and we just received word that two of our students have been selected to represent our district at Nationals. We should also have fun sports this coming week. The students get to play games like sack races, obstacle courses, lime on a spoon, etc.

Sister Thomas and I are become quite a team. Not only do we co-teach our gospel doctrine lessons at church, but our cake decorating is getting better. She and I made a birthday cake this morning, one of our best. We practiced making fondant roses…pictures below.

My neighbour downstairs has gotten a dog and consequently, a new friend for Ruby. His name is Mounty and he is one of those white, fluffy dogs that always look like they need a bath. We let them play in the yard, chained since he is a little too manish. He escapes a lot and talks to Ruby through the window in the middle of the night. Mama is not too happy about that…at least we won’t have any puppies, I’m too young to be a grandma!

 

Happy 37th Independence Day!

It has been a busy month at school. We had our road race and sports meet these past two weeks, both went well and the kids enjoyed running and racing each other. We also celebrated the 37^th year of Independence for St Lucia. There was a District Independence Rally in Vieux-Fort and some students, staff and I went to support. The music was fun but the speeches were a little long. The Prime Minister of St Lucia, Dr. Kenny Anthony, was there and I was able to speak with him which was exciting. I also later found out that our school was on national news from the rally and the sports meet and people told me I was sighted in both segments…I need to watch the news more often! The day before Independence weekend was National Colours Day so I had a dress made with the colours of the flag. My favourite dress I have had made so far! I promised to wear it next February, where ever I will be and send pictures. Later that day, all the volunteers made their way up to Castries to meet the new U.S. Ambassador to the Caribbean. She and her team who are stationed in Barbados asked us questions about living in St Lucia and we asked many questions about Foreign Service and the narrow chances of getting through the application process. It was very informative. The last fun activity I want to share was a presentation by Environmental Health officials sent by the Ministry to all the schools. They are teaching the children about the Zika Virus since it has infected the majority of the Caribbean and will most likely be in St Lucia soon. But instead of the not-so-child-friendly presentations they normally give, they came with a giant mosquito costume to demonstrate how the virus is passed from person to person. Every student listened and it was a great success. The presentation ended with our students singing a chant to get Zika out and chasing the mosquito out of the school. I am now currently in the process of writing a grant for some funding for a Parent Literacy Workshop the school wants to host in May. Its proving to be a lot of work, I hope we can submit it in time! 6 more months in St Lucia…time is flying by now.

My New and Last Year

School is finally over for 2015. Term 1 was really rewarding and I put everything I had into it. But I was so beat and tired, I really needed a holiday. I worked so hard that I earned a wonderful visit from my mom! We had such a blast. We explored the markets in Castries and hiked in the rainforest. We went on the MaHaut trail which is a little under 3 miles but the hardest part was how slippery every step was since it was so humid and wet. It was so green and beautiful but the best part was we had an amazing encounter with the St Lucian Parrot! Three parrots perched in a tree right above us and jumping around and squawking, I’m pretty sure at us but we did mind. It was crazy and not a very common thing to see. We were very lucky. My mom also helped me get ready for Christmas Programme that the branch had the Sunday before Christmas. We had musical numbers from members and missionaries and had 2 recent converts read the story of Christ’s birth. There was quite of bit of rehearsal needed so we practiced and practiced with all the groups involved. The primary, Elders and Sister Missionaries sang, a young and brave girl sang a beautiful solo and the Relief Society was more than happy to share a song. I was relieved everything came together since when we arrived the morning of, the church had no power. We have an electronic keyboard for a piano so you can imagine my horror. Lucians love to sing but they are better with a piano. But the power returned in time and things went well. I wish I could tell you about the concluding speaker, our new Mission President but my mother and I got out of there before the end of the meeting. I felt so rude doing that but it was worth it. We caught a ride with my host mom and headed up North to catch a ferry to Martinique! I was trying to be excited but I was so stressed about missing the ferry. There were so many stories of the ferry leaving early and we were cutting it close. We got to Castries and picked up our tickets and made it on the ferry in time. 2 other volunteers from the new group were there as well which turned out to be a huge blessing later. The hour and a half long ferry ride was a lot more rough then I thought it would be but it was nice standing on the deck outside. It was a beautiful, Sunday and we were glittering with salt crusted all over us when we arrived. It was all worth it. Martinique is really unique. Such a strange balance between Europe and the Caribbean. Martinique is owned and a part of France. It is France and you get the impression very clearly. One of these indicators is the fact that few, very few, people were willing to or maybe were not able to try and help us out in English. I know little to none (closer to none) French and mom had some French locked away from high school which sometimes came out in Spanish. We had such a fun time trying to get around and communicate. I don’t mind looking like a fool so we fumbled out way through and I did get to learn some valuable phrases like “I’m sorry, I don’t speak French. Do you speak English?” The 2 volunteers that came however were – I would say – fluent and really saved us when we first arrived. They had rented a villa outside of Fort de France (the capital where we were staying) so we stuck with them and got something to eat before they took a taxi out. It was a little hard to find something to eat since the whole city was shut down. It felt like a ghost town. Sunday afternoons are not the best time to be out. But with our French experts, we managed to find a crepe shop at the Le Savan Park. Turned out to be a delicious and perfect place to watch the city change to night. As we were eating, families and children began to appear and soon the park was full of happy people playing and walking. It was surreal to see, especially living in St Lucia for so long. It was so safe and happy and delightful. My favorite part though was a scene with these rougher looking guys playing some loud Caribbean music from a speaker and they were the only reminder to me that we were even in the Caribbean at all (the city seriously looked European). Anyway, low and behold a group of at least 7 police officers appeared and searched the men and after a small and heated argument, were told to turn down the music. And they did. WHAT??? That was when I really was able to accept that we were in France because that would never happen in any other Caribbean Island. The rest of our time was full of exploring, walking, eating so many yummy things and my favourite, shopping!! We went to two malls, so shameful but the shops were so pretty and the European clothes were so nice. The malls were even decked out in Christmas décor. I really needed this getaway. Our hotel we stayed at was charming, old and full of quirks. It was in the perfect location, in the heart of downtown and right across from the happy, utopia park. We even got a continental French breakfast every morning. We got brave and also took the local buses around the outskirts of town. One trip we took was a plan B but was really splendid. We only had to ask a million people in our very lacking French for directions to which bus we need but we finally found it and headed to Le Jardin de Balata, a beautiful and well-kept botanical garden. You needed a map, it was a maze of themed gardens and ponds and was high up in the mountains. The best was the ending, a walk through the trees! They had suspended rope bridges you could walk up in the canopy. It was a wonderful adventure.

If I had to say one disappointing thing about Martinique, it was the fact that it was a Caribbean get away for Europeans so there was still a lot of Caribbean touristy things and Caribbean food. It makes sense. It was just what I wanted to get away from, just for a little while. I was just not too happy to have ground provisions and salt fish served when we went to a nice restaurant at our hotel. Still delicious though and we had our fill of crepes and pastries too, don’t worry. It was so sad to go. We left early for the ferry since we were still scared of missing it. Things were ok until it was check in time. I won’t try to describe what we saw that day but it was pure chaos and a very Lucian experience. The majority of the passengers were Lucians returning home with their European spoils. The ferry ride back was much different than the one we came on. There was a storm and lots of rain and everyone was miserable. Customs back on St Lucia was a disaster and we finally reached home after dark, way later than we thought. We left Martinique at around 2:30pm and got home around 8pm. We waited in that customs line for the majority of the time.

We didn’t get much of a rest after that because the following day we hosted a Christmas Eve party for the sister missionaries and one of my fellow volunteers. We baked and cooked all morning and cleaned the house. We even successfully made sorrel, a local and holiday drink where you soak these deep red flower pods and add spices like cinnamon and ginger. Our Christmas Eve feast was delicious, especially the picnic ham we got. If you don’t know what that is, it’s an economical choice to real ham and is made up of a part of the pig’s shoulder that is smoked to give it that yummy ham flavour. It was also the only choice at the store so we enjoyed it. After, we made gingerbread houses the traditional way with real gingerbread we baked, royal icing and candy mom brought. We also had a present swap game to play and everyone had a really wonderful time. I could tell everyone was missing home so the night was a success in trying to cheer them up. The sisters returned the next day to skype their families which turned out to be quite a sad event for them, each call ending in sobs and tears. It’s hard being a missionary.

My friend Jaclynn came on Christmas day and we enjoyed Christmas and my mom’s last night here together. The next day, there was a Christmas party at the church and from there, we dropped mom off at the airport. The next day turned into a week of sickness with a sinus cold for me. I was lucky to have Jaclynn there to take care of me. We had a nice New Years in since I was sick and there isn’t much done to celebrate New Years here anyway. We finally had a chance out of the house later in the week and had a fun get away at Coconut Bay, the resort here in the south. We had a day full of swimming and relaxing and eating until we almost burst. It was hard to walk to the bus stop. With a not so eager heart, I returned back to school that Monday. I know the rest of my 5 months at school will fly by and I can feel my time here ending soon. I hope I can make the most of it. It’s such a strange feeling to be leaving this life I have here. I will try not to dwell on it. Not yet.