Water, water everywhere, and not a drop to.... brush my teeth. The last few days have been pretty uneventful, but today I woke up and attempted to brush my teeth. But when I turned on the faucet, nothing came out. The story was the same with the shower and the kitchen. I have never turned on the water to be greeted with nothing unless the water main was shut off, but then again, I have never lived in a place where hot water did not come standard in a dwelling. I asked my neighbor and he said he didn't have water either. He spoke with our landlady and she said that the entire area of the island was without water because of a broken pipe somewhere. But just as I began thinking about brushing my teeth with a water bottle, it came back on! Thank goodness. I was only without water for about 30 minutes, but that made it so that I couldn't brush my teeth, I couldn't shower, I couldn't wash a dish, and I couldn't fill my glass with water to drink! Apparently during times of drought and during hurricanes, it is common to go without running water, so there are reserve water tanks for every building to be used in case of emergency. I have kind of assumed it was like the earthquake food we used to have to bring in elementary school that the teacher put in a Sterilte container and at the end of the year we all got to eat our fruit roll ups and canned peaches. Apparently that isn't so. So I will be buying some bottled water from the grocery store to keep in my apartment just in case we really do run out of water. At least I will be the one with clean teeth.
I have been having muscle spasms in my back and they are very painful. I wanted some comfort food because I wasn't feeling well and my two favorite foods are chocolate chip cookies and mashed potatoes; although not together of course. The only ingredient I had for cookies was flour and I don't own a cookie sheet, so right away baking was ruled out. I had a couple of potatoes so I peeled them and boiled them. But then I realized I don't own a potato masher, so I used a fork. But THEN I realized I don't own milk (due to circumstances mentioned in previous posts), so I pondered how to make my potatoes creamier. I looked through my fridge and found the next best thing: Fat Free Ranch Dressing. It's basically milk; it's nearly as watery and it's white. So I gave my potatoes a couple squirts, mixed them up, tasted, threw in a dash of soy sauce for flavor and I was ready to roll. I wouldn't call them the best potatoes I've ever had, but in a pinch, they will do the trick. I definitely can't wait to have good ones at home. Speaking of which, I am coming home May 9th at 6:40PM. I booked my ticket last week.
Another thing I miss from home are the avocados. They have avocados here that are the size of small cantaloupes so I got one to try. I made a chicken burrito tonight for dinner and I was so excited to slice up my avocado. The pit was about the size of the ones I'm used to seeing at home! I sliced out a little piece, took a bite and was disappointed. Very bland. So I don't think I will be buying them again. I also have yet to find a red tomato. There are tomatoes here, but they are all green and hard as rocks. They even serve burgers with those kinds of tomatoes on them! The poor Grenadians have been lied to all of their lives. If only they could have vine ripened, perfectly ripe tomatoes. I will say that the mangoes here are better than any I've ever had in the states and the eggplant is in abundance and is delicious!
Well, it's off to bed for me. I have class all day tomorrow. Hopefully when I wake up there will be water coming out of my faucet. But never know. TIG.
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Monday, January 23, 2012
The milk tastes weird...
As my time living here goes on, I am getting more used to everyday life. I'm no longer feeling as impatient about waiting for everything. When I go outside I don't feel the humidity nearly as much as I did when I got here. My bug bites aren't killing me as much as they did; although I'm not sure if they're getting better or if I'm getting better at ignoring them. I bought a bottle of Off! with Deet and that seems to be one of the only things that works. I have continued using the vinegar on my bug bites and heat rash and that helps. I would joke and say that vinegar is like my Windex from "My Big Fat Greek Wedding," but in Grenada, the Windex is nutmeg! The more I experience the more I see nutmeg. I have mentioned that Grenada is also known as the Isle of Spice and that nutmeg is their biggest export, but not only do they put nutmeg in cocktails, they put it in pancakes, syrup (as in maple syrup, but it's nutmeg), crackers, jellies and jams. I have tried the jelly and I don't think it's very good! They have nutmeg liqueur and nutmeg extract for baking. And then, they also have nutmeg oil to put on cuts and burns as one would use Neosporin. There is also nutmeg cream to put on your joints if you are suffering from arthritis. The other day I saw nutmeg supplements to reduce stress! Talk about nutmeg overload! Ask a Grenadian what to put on any ailment or what to add to any food and the answer will be nutmeg.
The one thing that I really miss in the grocery stores is milk. I'm not sure why but I can never find fresh milk. The milk box is always empty, as is a lot of the produce shelves. I'm not sure if they import their dairy, but someone could make a killing around here by opening a dairy and supplying the stores with a steady stream of fresh milk. So the alternative is to buy the milk that is sitting on the shelf, un-refrigerated. I'm not sure what is done to it, but unopened the shelf life is about six months. After it's opened it has to be refrigerated and consumed within five days. There are advertisements everywhere of families drinking it. "Milk for the whole family!" I was a little hesitant about it, and rightly so. I drink a lot of milk at home so I am really familiar with the taste. Unfortunately the shelf milk has a weird aftertaste and there just is something weird about the texture. I have also tried soy milk, but that is a far cry from milk from a cow. If I were to eat cereal daily, I would probably settle for the shelf milk, but since I don't, I think I will just have to wait until I get home to have the luxury of consuming milk.
I am learning that it is now time for me to speak like a doctor. I was in one of my classes and the professor asked us if we knew why most cats were taken to shelters. I did so I replied, "They pee in the house outside of their litter box." She answered with, "Well yes, but the appropriate reply would have been 'inappropriate urination.'" She has corrected many of the other students this way. I am beginning to understand why it seems that doctors are often socially inept and can't speak to their patients in a normal manor. It's because they are forced to speak like textbooks in school. Whelp, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em. So I guess it's time for me to lay in the supine position so that I can adequately achieve slumber so that when I am awakened I am capable of performing at full function. Goodnight everyone!
PS. Take a look at my new pictures that I posted! :)
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150690344978275.501272.781648274&type=3&l=4ceb579a9e
The one thing that I really miss in the grocery stores is milk. I'm not sure why but I can never find fresh milk. The milk box is always empty, as is a lot of the produce shelves. I'm not sure if they import their dairy, but someone could make a killing around here by opening a dairy and supplying the stores with a steady stream of fresh milk. So the alternative is to buy the milk that is sitting on the shelf, un-refrigerated. I'm not sure what is done to it, but unopened the shelf life is about six months. After it's opened it has to be refrigerated and consumed within five days. There are advertisements everywhere of families drinking it. "Milk for the whole family!" I was a little hesitant about it, and rightly so. I drink a lot of milk at home so I am really familiar with the taste. Unfortunately the shelf milk has a weird aftertaste and there just is something weird about the texture. I have also tried soy milk, but that is a far cry from milk from a cow. If I were to eat cereal daily, I would probably settle for the shelf milk, but since I don't, I think I will just have to wait until I get home to have the luxury of consuming milk.
I am learning that it is now time for me to speak like a doctor. I was in one of my classes and the professor asked us if we knew why most cats were taken to shelters. I did so I replied, "They pee in the house outside of their litter box." She answered with, "Well yes, but the appropriate reply would have been 'inappropriate urination.'" She has corrected many of the other students this way. I am beginning to understand why it seems that doctors are often socially inept and can't speak to their patients in a normal manor. It's because they are forced to speak like textbooks in school. Whelp, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em. So I guess it's time for me to lay in the supine position so that I can adequately achieve slumber so that when I am awakened I am capable of performing at full function. Goodnight everyone!
PS. Take a look at my new pictures that I posted! :)
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150690344978275.501272.781648274&type=3&l=4ceb579a9e
Thursday, January 19, 2012
This is Grenada
This is Grenada. Or as I have been taught here, TIG. This is what you say when things aren't going exactly how you think they should. The grocery store ran out of milk? TIG. You get the picture. Today I got on a bus to go to class and as soon as the bus went two stops, the driver announced he was going to take a ten minute break. We were on top of a huge hill that was much too far to walk to the next stop before another bus came, but now it looked like I was going to be late to class. TIG. Thank goodness I made it to campus with three minutes to spare and wound up being on time to class. Other people were late, probably due to a bus driver break, but the professor didn't say anything.
There is one girl who is in most of my classes and she comes in late every day and leaves early and watches Netflix and takes naps during the little time she is in class. We have dubbed her Stevie Nicks due to her behavior. It amazes me that someone could work so hard to get to be here and then throw it all away. At least I will always have entertainment when she comes to class. I met a guy today who overheard me talking about how I went to Cal Poly. He said, "Oh, Cal Poly SLO?" He was excited because that's where he went. I informed him I went to Pomona and he wouldn't speak another word to me. There are definitely some interesting ones down here. The people I like the most are the locals. All the security guards have good stories. Especially the one across the street whose fingernails on one hand are probably longer than a centimeter each. There is also an old man who works at the grocery store who walks with a cane and his only job is to collect the carts. Because it takes him so long to walk with a cane and push a cart, I attempted helping him, but he was too proud. His name is Mike. I talk to him every time I walk by. All of the locals are extremely nice except for one select group of people; the grocery store checkers. They are all middle aged, overweight women who sit on chairs while they work and scan the items slower than I even though possible. Then when they're done, they just look at you. They don't tell you the price; they expect you to look at the screen and figure it out. The Grenadian grocery checkers are a special breed indeed. TIG.
Yesterday I was walking down the street and a Grenadian woman pulled her car over on the street, rolled down her window and said, "Honey, your legs look horrible!!! You need to go to the drug store and get some hydro cortisone cream for your bug bites!" I thanked her and told her I already did and she went on her way. If a stranger notices enough to pull over on the street, I know my bites are pretty bad. I actually have been looking up remedies and vinegar relieves the itch and redness of bug bites and helps with heat rash as well. I tried it in the shower last night and although it stung badly, my legs seam better today. I have also been eating garlic and taking vitamin B12 as suggested by my research. I apply citronella cream every time I walk out the door. Hopefully within a week or so I won't be getting eaten alive. But, alas. TIG.
Tonight I took a shower and I had hot water the entire time!! It was amazing! The water pressure, as always, was very low, but at least I didn't mind standing under the faucet for what seemed like an eternity to get the shampoo and conditioner out of my hair.
Tomorrow I have to dissect a dog. I'm assuming they will be the feral dogs that run around the island. This will be the first dog I have ever dissected. Perhaps sickeningly, I'm very excited to see what it looks like. The biggest thing I have ever done was a rat, so this is finally starting to correlate with what I want to do. I've got to get really good at working on the dead dogs so that I can eventually work on the live ones! I just joined the Grenada SPCA. With them, I can go around to the different communities and vaccinate, spay and neuter the dogs. It will be a good learning opportunity as well as a good way to give back to the community who welcomes us into their lives as we go through school.
It's about bedtime, as I am four hours ahead of most of you who are reading this. I have school tomorrow and then off to the farmer's market to buy fresh produce and meat. It sounds like a simple trip, but I'm sure there will be some bump in the road, both literally and figuratively. But that's part of the adventure. Because as always, TIG.
There is one girl who is in most of my classes and she comes in late every day and leaves early and watches Netflix and takes naps during the little time she is in class. We have dubbed her Stevie Nicks due to her behavior. It amazes me that someone could work so hard to get to be here and then throw it all away. At least I will always have entertainment when she comes to class. I met a guy today who overheard me talking about how I went to Cal Poly. He said, "Oh, Cal Poly SLO?" He was excited because that's where he went. I informed him I went to Pomona and he wouldn't speak another word to me. There are definitely some interesting ones down here. The people I like the most are the locals. All the security guards have good stories. Especially the one across the street whose fingernails on one hand are probably longer than a centimeter each. There is also an old man who works at the grocery store who walks with a cane and his only job is to collect the carts. Because it takes him so long to walk with a cane and push a cart, I attempted helping him, but he was too proud. His name is Mike. I talk to him every time I walk by. All of the locals are extremely nice except for one select group of people; the grocery store checkers. They are all middle aged, overweight women who sit on chairs while they work and scan the items slower than I even though possible. Then when they're done, they just look at you. They don't tell you the price; they expect you to look at the screen and figure it out. The Grenadian grocery checkers are a special breed indeed. TIG.
Yesterday I was walking down the street and a Grenadian woman pulled her car over on the street, rolled down her window and said, "Honey, your legs look horrible!!! You need to go to the drug store and get some hydro cortisone cream for your bug bites!" I thanked her and told her I already did and she went on her way. If a stranger notices enough to pull over on the street, I know my bites are pretty bad. I actually have been looking up remedies and vinegar relieves the itch and redness of bug bites and helps with heat rash as well. I tried it in the shower last night and although it stung badly, my legs seam better today. I have also been eating garlic and taking vitamin B12 as suggested by my research. I apply citronella cream every time I walk out the door. Hopefully within a week or so I won't be getting eaten alive. But, alas. TIG.
Tonight I took a shower and I had hot water the entire time!! It was amazing! The water pressure, as always, was very low, but at least I didn't mind standing under the faucet for what seemed like an eternity to get the shampoo and conditioner out of my hair.
Tomorrow I have to dissect a dog. I'm assuming they will be the feral dogs that run around the island. This will be the first dog I have ever dissected. Perhaps sickeningly, I'm very excited to see what it looks like. The biggest thing I have ever done was a rat, so this is finally starting to correlate with what I want to do. I've got to get really good at working on the dead dogs so that I can eventually work on the live ones! I just joined the Grenada SPCA. With them, I can go around to the different communities and vaccinate, spay and neuter the dogs. It will be a good learning opportunity as well as a good way to give back to the community who welcomes us into their lives as we go through school.
It's about bedtime, as I am four hours ahead of most of you who are reading this. I have school tomorrow and then off to the farmer's market to buy fresh produce and meat. It sounds like a simple trip, but I'm sure there will be some bump in the road, both literally and figuratively. But that's part of the adventure. Because as always, TIG.
Monday, January 16, 2012
Pictures
Here is a link to my pictures for those of you who do not have Facebook! This is what I have uploaded so far, but I have more to come! Just click it or copy and paste it into your browser.
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150690344978275.501272.781648274&type=3&l=4ceb579a9e
Moving Day and Day One
As I mentioned before, I live in dorms, but they are off campus and require a 10 minute bus ride to get to school. St George's University (SGU) feels bad for those of us who live in Grand Anse because we have older dorms which are relatively far. They also don't want to pay for the utilities for the buildings we live in, so they are trying to move all of us from Grand Anse to True Blue (which is on campus). So my roommate got an email that said she was the next to move and had to pack and go to True Blue by the next day. We all packed using space bags, so without a vacuum it's nearly impossible to pack all of our stuff into our suitcases again. So we went to the housing office and asked them if she could stay and they informed us that not only did she have to move, but all of us were eventually going to have to move to True Blue. They told me that I was next, but they couldn't tell me exactly when. So it was likely that I would have to move while studying. Keep in mind that the only way to get to campus is by bus, so I would have to wait for the bus each time I took a load to campus.
So we started looking for off campus housing. Four other people in my dorms were also interested in moving out considering housing was being so inconsistent. So I contacted a real estate agent and he took us to a beautiful four bed, three bath house in the next housing community over. While it was beautiful, it was in an inconvenient place. The place is called Lance Aux Epines. To get from there to the grocery store (which is where I live), you'd have to wait for the infrequent bus, ride it to a certain stop, get off, cross the street (treacherous), wait for another infrequent bus and then get off at the grocery store. Then to go home you'd get to go through that whole fun house backwards! We looked at a few more houses in Lance Aux Epines. One of them required you to climb up a super steep, long dirt road that was full of potholes. Because of all the rain and our loads of books, we decided that wasn't the most opportune place to live. The second place had huge dead bugs everywhere! They were all over three inches long and the place was so dirty! The third house was nice, but a little expensive, and the landlord seemed like a drug dealer. So we politely declined all of those houses.
As we came back from our house hunt, hot and tired, we found apartments in Grand Anse. They were across the street from our dorms, so they're in the prime location and they were reasonably priced. So I signed my lease and moved in. I now have my own studio apartment which is pretty good sized. It has a balcony and a small kitchen. My bathroom is also small and I don't have very good hot water or water pressure, but that's normal for Grenada. I just bought myself a nice fan so that I don't have to constantly use my A/C. Electricity is very expensive here.
A random piece of information: I have an address, but it is extremely expensive to ship anything to Grenada, and then once I get it I have to pay taxes on whatever you sent me. Customs opens your box and determines how much you pay. A guy told us that last year his grandma made him cookies and it cost her $50 to ship them. When he received them, he had to pay $20 in taxes. So those were $70 home made cookies! Be thankful for the USPS!
Today was my first day of class. It wasn't too bad. One of my professors should be on the show hoarders; she has 17 dogs! She also has a bunch of birds and cats but she didn't talk about them much. Another one of my professors was born and raised in Tanzania and his first language is Swahili. He's very difficult to understand, but seems like a very nice man.
There are wild dogs that roam the island. Most of them seem to be nice, but they all have mange, the females are all pregnant, they all have heart worm and a tic borne disease called. These diseases cause all the dogs to die at a young age. None of them are very adoptable.
There are many excursions on the island available. I have been to a few bars and restaurants, but I have yet to try much else. There is snorkeling and diving. There is a tour of the Grand Etang, which is a rain forest and you get to see waterfalls. There is a fish fry every Friday and you can ride a catamaran up the coast for about an hour to see them cook up fish and taste it. There is a running program on Saturdays that picks you up in a bus and drives you for a while. Then they drop you off in the forest and you follow the leader and run for a while. Your eventual destination is a bar with good deals on food and drink. Carnival comes in February and August. It's Grenada's equivalent to Mardi Gras. Everyone says it's so much fun! I have yet to try any of these adventures, but when I have free weekends I will!
Whelp, it's about time for bed for me. I have to wake up and go grocery shopping and then go to class.
So we started looking for off campus housing. Four other people in my dorms were also interested in moving out considering housing was being so inconsistent. So I contacted a real estate agent and he took us to a beautiful four bed, three bath house in the next housing community over. While it was beautiful, it was in an inconvenient place. The place is called Lance Aux Epines. To get from there to the grocery store (which is where I live), you'd have to wait for the infrequent bus, ride it to a certain stop, get off, cross the street (treacherous), wait for another infrequent bus and then get off at the grocery store. Then to go home you'd get to go through that whole fun house backwards! We looked at a few more houses in Lance Aux Epines. One of them required you to climb up a super steep, long dirt road that was full of potholes. Because of all the rain and our loads of books, we decided that wasn't the most opportune place to live. The second place had huge dead bugs everywhere! They were all over three inches long and the place was so dirty! The third house was nice, but a little expensive, and the landlord seemed like a drug dealer. So we politely declined all of those houses.
As we came back from our house hunt, hot and tired, we found apartments in Grand Anse. They were across the street from our dorms, so they're in the prime location and they were reasonably priced. So I signed my lease and moved in. I now have my own studio apartment which is pretty good sized. It has a balcony and a small kitchen. My bathroom is also small and I don't have very good hot water or water pressure, but that's normal for Grenada. I just bought myself a nice fan so that I don't have to constantly use my A/C. Electricity is very expensive here.
A random piece of information: I have an address, but it is extremely expensive to ship anything to Grenada, and then once I get it I have to pay taxes on whatever you sent me. Customs opens your box and determines how much you pay. A guy told us that last year his grandma made him cookies and it cost her $50 to ship them. When he received them, he had to pay $20 in taxes. So those were $70 home made cookies! Be thankful for the USPS!
Today was my first day of class. It wasn't too bad. One of my professors should be on the show hoarders; she has 17 dogs! She also has a bunch of birds and cats but she didn't talk about them much. Another one of my professors was born and raised in Tanzania and his first language is Swahili. He's very difficult to understand, but seems like a very nice man.
There are wild dogs that roam the island. Most of them seem to be nice, but they all have mange, the females are all pregnant, they all have heart worm and a tic borne disease called. These diseases cause all the dogs to die at a young age. None of them are very adoptable.
There are many excursions on the island available. I have been to a few bars and restaurants, but I have yet to try much else. There is snorkeling and diving. There is a tour of the Grand Etang, which is a rain forest and you get to see waterfalls. There is a fish fry every Friday and you can ride a catamaran up the coast for about an hour to see them cook up fish and taste it. There is a running program on Saturdays that picks you up in a bus and drives you for a while. Then they drop you off in the forest and you follow the leader and run for a while. Your eventual destination is a bar with good deals on food and drink. Carnival comes in February and August. It's Grenada's equivalent to Mardi Gras. Everyone says it's so much fun! I have yet to try any of these adventures, but when I have free weekends I will!
Whelp, it's about time for bed for me. I have to wake up and go grocery shopping and then go to class.
First Week
Getting accepted to a grad school in a foreign country with three weeks notice can be a stressful situation. Not only did I have to get last minute doctor's appointments, I had to say goodbye to my friends, family and everything I knew and move to a place where I knew nothing and no one. I packed two suitcases and a backpack with all of my belongings and got on a plane. Getting to Grenada was a nightmare! I flew from LA to New York, but my flight landed late and caused me to miss my flight to Trinidad. After six additional hours and the stress of flying standby, I got on a plane and headed for Trinidad. Little did I know that was going to be the worst part of my trip. I landed in Trinidad at 10:30PM and had to go through customs. I was granted a one day visa and had to collect my bags from baggage claim because the third flight I was going to fly demanded that I check them AGAIN with them.
So off I went, dragging 130 pounds of luggage with me and a backpack on my back. The restaurants in the Trinidad airport were comprised of Subway, KFC, Church's Chicken, and Royal Chicken. The only thing open that late was KFC, but chicken looked like it was really my only choice anyway. I waited in a line that should have taken about five minutes to get to the register, but since I was now on island time, it took me nearly twenty! I ordered one piece of chicken, one side of mashed potatoes, and a drink. She told me my choices were "Pepsi or Red." I chose Red and it was tasty. But then when the total was over $30 dollars, I couldn't believe it! It turns out the Trinidad currency is called TT's and one TT is worth 16 US cents. It wound up being very cheap.
After I gagged down KFC, I sat around the airport until I was supposed to fly out at 6AM. I stood at the ticket counter for two hours and they said they didn't have record that I was on the flight! I had to wait again until 2:30PM to fly out. By then I was exhausted, hungry and I needed a shower! I finally landed and went through Grenadian customs. I had to declare my laptop and get taxed on it just for bringing it to the country. I owed $25 USD, so I handed her two twenties. She said she didn't have change in USD or EC (the currency in Granada). So I asked to pay with my credit card, but the machine was down. I had three ones in my wallet and she said that if I didn't produce two more dollars she was going to keep my laptop. Thank goodness other students in line were able to give me two dollars!
Representatives of my school met me on the sidewalk and we took shuttles to our dorms. First of all, they drive on the left side of the road here, which I have never experienced. The streets are very rutted and narrow and the drivers speed down the street and swerve. It is terrifying! When crossing the street it's as if you're playing a real-life game of Frogger. You have to look both ways a bunch of times because you're not exactly sure which way they are coming and then you have to run!!! There are no stop signs or street lights so when approaching an intersection it is typical to expect catastrophic crashes, although I have yet to see one. The drivers here honk at EVERYTHING! They honk when they turn corners, when stopping, when going, to move around a car, to say hi to the person walking on the street. It is a constant, endless honk-fest.
I got to my dorms on Grand Anse Beach. Grand Anse was nominated the 7th most beautiful beach in the world in 2002. It is amazing. I met my roommate, Maegan, who is from Maryland. She is a vet student and very nice. We immediately went to the beach and swam, which felt so good after such a long travel! The awesome part is that I put on my bathing suit, walked down stairs, out the gate and to the water. Not too shabby. The actual inside of the dorms are very old. They have two twin beds, a small fridge, two desks and chairs, a shelf, a small closet and a bathroom. The hot water doesn't work in the shower. There is also a crack in our bathtub that has been repaired with stucco. There is a communal kitchen downstairs with four burners, a microwave and a fridge/freezer. These dorms aren't great, but they are on the beach and right across the street from the grocery store. The people living on campus have to take a bus to here to get groceries. All in all, I'd say I got the better dorms.
This week I have had to go to orientations all week for my program. It is nice to see the school and meet professors. It was also nice to walk around campus to find things. The buildings are very nice on the outside so they present well in pictures, but on the inside they are usually pretty old and look like a typical college hall. The sidewalks are very uneven and cause all of us to trip dozens of times a day. I have yet to fall down. The worst part is that since it rains so much, the water has to go somewhere so the solutions to drainage aren't exactly the safest. There are open ditches everywhere, including the campus, where water is constantly draining. Chances are, there isn't a bridge near by, so you just have to step over them carefully. The sidewalks are typically slatted so that the water can run through them into ditches under them. Not only can you catch your toes in the holes, but the pieces of cement from slat to slat are not always flush, so it is a huge trip hazard. When walking across grass and dirt, it is typical to have puddles. The problem is, it is not always easy to tell how deep the puddles are and yesterday I stepped into a seemingly shallow one and it went above my ankle!
Yesterday I went to a bazaar that was hosted by the school. They had local food and crafts for sale. I tried some shrimp and rice and a pineapple smoothie (with fresh pineapple!), but no one I know, myself included, has been brave enough to eat the popular local dish. It is called oil down and it's chicken and salted beef in oil with some other weird spices and stuff. Not only does it look gross in person, it looks bad in the pictures where it's supposed to look good! We will see who will be brave enough to try it first. Grenada is also known as the Isle of Spices, so there are spices for sale everywhere! Their main export is nutmeg, which is unfortunate because they put it on everything and I don't particularly care for it on much except pumpkin pie. Their second common spice is cinnamon.
At the bazaar I found some natural bug repellent with citronella. Thank goodness! I have been eaten alive by mosquitoes. The mosquitoes down here carry dengue fever, which causes you to be very sick, so hopefully I don't get it! Yesterday I counted and I had 45 bug bites below my knees. No exaggeration. I have more above my knees and on my arms and body, but I didn't have the heart to keep counting. I'm not sure I can count that high anyway. In my room I have a citronella candle and a bug net around my bed. I take every precaution I can to not get bitten. Not only am I bitten everywhere, but every time I walk outside I sweat to death because of the high humidity. This has lead to heat rash on my legs. Hopefully I get acclimated soon.
Speaking of climate, the weather here is about 85 degrees everyday and stays that way nearly all day. It doesn't get much cooler even at night. The humidity is the worst I've ever experienced, but I am getting used to it more everyday. I am nearly on the equator, so I guess it's to be expected. The most inconvenient part about the weather is the rain. It clouds up in no time at all and then there is about a 10 second warning where about five raindrops will fall. And then it pours! I have had to run several times to find shelter because it started pouring on us and we only had a few seconds notice. But usually after about five minutes, it stops raining and then everyone goes about their day. Unfortunately the rain is followed by even worst humidity. I've just learned to always carry an umbrella and water.
I have met some interesting people in the dorms. Most of them are from the east coast. A few are from the Midwest. There is a guy named Bucky who is from Oklahoma. I checked his passport. That is his legal name. There is a guy who is from South Africa who took 40 days and sailed here. I am by far the youngest; most people are around 26 but I've met people who are 38. I am the only one so far who is from California and I have not found a single person who has been to Disneyland!
This transition has been extremely difficult, but with every day I get more used to it. It is definitely culture shock to go from the US to a third world country where everything happens so slowly and I have to depend completely on public transportation. I guess I have to get used to living on island time.
So off I went, dragging 130 pounds of luggage with me and a backpack on my back. The restaurants in the Trinidad airport were comprised of Subway, KFC, Church's Chicken, and Royal Chicken. The only thing open that late was KFC, but chicken looked like it was really my only choice anyway. I waited in a line that should have taken about five minutes to get to the register, but since I was now on island time, it took me nearly twenty! I ordered one piece of chicken, one side of mashed potatoes, and a drink. She told me my choices were "Pepsi or Red." I chose Red and it was tasty. But then when the total was over $30 dollars, I couldn't believe it! It turns out the Trinidad currency is called TT's and one TT is worth 16 US cents. It wound up being very cheap.
After I gagged down KFC, I sat around the airport until I was supposed to fly out at 6AM. I stood at the ticket counter for two hours and they said they didn't have record that I was on the flight! I had to wait again until 2:30PM to fly out. By then I was exhausted, hungry and I needed a shower! I finally landed and went through Grenadian customs. I had to declare my laptop and get taxed on it just for bringing it to the country. I owed $25 USD, so I handed her two twenties. She said she didn't have change in USD or EC (the currency in Granada). So I asked to pay with my credit card, but the machine was down. I had three ones in my wallet and she said that if I didn't produce two more dollars she was going to keep my laptop. Thank goodness other students in line were able to give me two dollars!
Representatives of my school met me on the sidewalk and we took shuttles to our dorms. First of all, they drive on the left side of the road here, which I have never experienced. The streets are very rutted and narrow and the drivers speed down the street and swerve. It is terrifying! When crossing the street it's as if you're playing a real-life game of Frogger. You have to look both ways a bunch of times because you're not exactly sure which way they are coming and then you have to run!!! There are no stop signs or street lights so when approaching an intersection it is typical to expect catastrophic crashes, although I have yet to see one. The drivers here honk at EVERYTHING! They honk when they turn corners, when stopping, when going, to move around a car, to say hi to the person walking on the street. It is a constant, endless honk-fest.
I got to my dorms on Grand Anse Beach. Grand Anse was nominated the 7th most beautiful beach in the world in 2002. It is amazing. I met my roommate, Maegan, who is from Maryland. She is a vet student and very nice. We immediately went to the beach and swam, which felt so good after such a long travel! The awesome part is that I put on my bathing suit, walked down stairs, out the gate and to the water. Not too shabby. The actual inside of the dorms are very old. They have two twin beds, a small fridge, two desks and chairs, a shelf, a small closet and a bathroom. The hot water doesn't work in the shower. There is also a crack in our bathtub that has been repaired with stucco. There is a communal kitchen downstairs with four burners, a microwave and a fridge/freezer. These dorms aren't great, but they are on the beach and right across the street from the grocery store. The people living on campus have to take a bus to here to get groceries. All in all, I'd say I got the better dorms.
This week I have had to go to orientations all week for my program. It is nice to see the school and meet professors. It was also nice to walk around campus to find things. The buildings are very nice on the outside so they present well in pictures, but on the inside they are usually pretty old and look like a typical college hall. The sidewalks are very uneven and cause all of us to trip dozens of times a day. I have yet to fall down. The worst part is that since it rains so much, the water has to go somewhere so the solutions to drainage aren't exactly the safest. There are open ditches everywhere, including the campus, where water is constantly draining. Chances are, there isn't a bridge near by, so you just have to step over them carefully. The sidewalks are typically slatted so that the water can run through them into ditches under them. Not only can you catch your toes in the holes, but the pieces of cement from slat to slat are not always flush, so it is a huge trip hazard. When walking across grass and dirt, it is typical to have puddles. The problem is, it is not always easy to tell how deep the puddles are and yesterday I stepped into a seemingly shallow one and it went above my ankle!
Yesterday I went to a bazaar that was hosted by the school. They had local food and crafts for sale. I tried some shrimp and rice and a pineapple smoothie (with fresh pineapple!), but no one I know, myself included, has been brave enough to eat the popular local dish. It is called oil down and it's chicken and salted beef in oil with some other weird spices and stuff. Not only does it look gross in person, it looks bad in the pictures where it's supposed to look good! We will see who will be brave enough to try it first. Grenada is also known as the Isle of Spices, so there are spices for sale everywhere! Their main export is nutmeg, which is unfortunate because they put it on everything and I don't particularly care for it on much except pumpkin pie. Their second common spice is cinnamon.
At the bazaar I found some natural bug repellent with citronella. Thank goodness! I have been eaten alive by mosquitoes. The mosquitoes down here carry dengue fever, which causes you to be very sick, so hopefully I don't get it! Yesterday I counted and I had 45 bug bites below my knees. No exaggeration. I have more above my knees and on my arms and body, but I didn't have the heart to keep counting. I'm not sure I can count that high anyway. In my room I have a citronella candle and a bug net around my bed. I take every precaution I can to not get bitten. Not only am I bitten everywhere, but every time I walk outside I sweat to death because of the high humidity. This has lead to heat rash on my legs. Hopefully I get acclimated soon.
Speaking of climate, the weather here is about 85 degrees everyday and stays that way nearly all day. It doesn't get much cooler even at night. The humidity is the worst I've ever experienced, but I am getting used to it more everyday. I am nearly on the equator, so I guess it's to be expected. The most inconvenient part about the weather is the rain. It clouds up in no time at all and then there is about a 10 second warning where about five raindrops will fall. And then it pours! I have had to run several times to find shelter because it started pouring on us and we only had a few seconds notice. But usually after about five minutes, it stops raining and then everyone goes about their day. Unfortunately the rain is followed by even worst humidity. I've just learned to always carry an umbrella and water.
I have met some interesting people in the dorms. Most of them are from the east coast. A few are from the Midwest. There is a guy named Bucky who is from Oklahoma. I checked his passport. That is his legal name. There is a guy who is from South Africa who took 40 days and sailed here. I am by far the youngest; most people are around 26 but I've met people who are 38. I am the only one so far who is from California and I have not found a single person who has been to Disneyland!
This transition has been extremely difficult, but with every day I get more used to it. It is definitely culture shock to go from the US to a third world country where everything happens so slowly and I have to depend completely on public transportation. I guess I have to get used to living on island time.
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