I heard it feels like Spring up North. Sorry to rub it in but it feels like Summer here ; ) At least to me anyways. This week was very repetitive in tasks at work. We prepared little gift bags for every 25th patient to celebrate the BFLA's 25th Anniversary.
The nights were nice and comfortable this week. I think I am adjusting to the weather because the weather only gets down into the 70s at night and I find myself sleeping with a blanket and sheet.
I wore the beautiful skirt my mom had made me on Tuesday and everyone commented on it. Raf said she should open a shop down here and sell them but I continued by telling him that she said she will never make one again.I felt very Belizean because I also wore my local bought earrings made out of coconut shell and the sandals I purchased that are similar to what girls down here wear.
Ana and I are planning a trip to Placencia (in Southern Belize) at the end of April because I would like to go there and surprisingly she has never been! It was also finalized that Sunday I would be joining coworkers for a day trip to Goff Caye! So excited!!
On Wednesday I tried 'horchata' which is a sweet drink made from rice. It was really good and reminded me of coconut milk. Ana suggested trying the cantaloupe, watermelon and many other natural fruit juices they make. After lunch, Ana and I went to a local resource center for young mothers and pregnant teens (Y.E.S.-Youth enhancement services) to give a presentation on STIs. The girls were very grossed out by the pictures we had but I made it a point to tell them that yes they're gross but this is reality and can happen to anyone that is sexually active.
Thursday we finally got a venue for the youth retreat in April but it is at a place that Ana was avoiding because there is nothing to do around the location. We left at 5 to go to Crooked Tree for a YAM meeting. I wish we could have arrived there when it was still light out because I would really like to see the lagoons we drive through during the day. After Crooked Tree, I was invited to attend a Red Cross get together with Ana (her husband works for Red Cross). I met the director, Lily, who was so funny and really nice. I also met several people from Norway who are here working on a project with the Red Cross. It was a nice little get together with wine, dessert, and guitar playing with singing. The house we were in is a beautiful house near the Princess Hotel, right on the sea. Ana was telling me that they throw some pretty crazy parties and while we were there they were planning one in May.
On Friday I entered about 100 patients into the Cytology database. This month will be really busy with the pap smear promotion at several clinics. After work Terry took me to this little store that had clothes and bathing suits for $5 Belize (2.50 US)!! I bought 5 summer shirts and I am excited to go back because I did not have the chance to look through everything.
We went to the D'Ceviche Hut later that night with Alberto. For the first time I was not feeling the ceviche and come later that night I would know why. I had two beers while at the hut and then we went to a basketball game at the sports center. I ran into Dorothy who I had taken Creole lessons with! It was so good to see her and I have been meaning to give her a call. She bought us a beer and we chatted for a bit while watching the game. She said that I must be doing very well with understanding Creole because she asked me if I had realized she just said everything in Creole and I understand everything! I knew after a few weeks I would get the hang of it : )
We left the game just as I was starting to not feel so hot and as soon as we arrived home I got really sick to my stomach. I'd like to think it was the mixture of ceviche, different beers, and the heat from inside the sports center. Luckily it did not last long so I knew it wasn't a bug.
Saturday was relaxing. I cleaned up my room and got things ready for Marielle's upcoming visit!! Around 5 we went to Daniel's mom's house to celebrate Lupita's daughter's 12th birthday. As always there was so much delicious food and drinks. Of course there was a beer in front of me before I even sat down but I surprisingly felt good enough to drink it ; )
Sunday was a great start to the week!! Woke up early to get ready for a day on an island with coworkers. They picked me up around 6:30 a.m. and were the first to arrive at the pier. One of the pictures above is the sunrise! We had 22 people going with us and we rented the smaller boat. We had to leave a couple coolers and crates of drinks to come on the other boat because there was too much weight in ours.
The ride there was beautiful with the sun rising and passing other islands. It seemed as though we were leaving the darker clouds with Belize City and heading towards the sun! We arrived at Goff Caye which is a 1.2 acre island with less than 10 palm trees, some bushes, and a couple cabanas on it. They just renovated the island and put bathrooms on it but they had them locked?! Upon approaching the island I was in awe. The crystal waters, white sand, and essence of the place is nothing I have ever seen in person. Already I did not want the day to end : (
We were the first people to arrive on the island and my coworkers did not wait a second to start drinking! They had bottle after bottle of whisky and beer. I guess this is island life : ) I think I spent the first two hours letting it all soak in. The 2nd boat arrived and come to find out a girl I had seen at the Y.E.S. building was there. She introduced herself to me as Polly. She is from Nebraska and has been here for 7 months for a Jesuit program similar to Peace Corps. She will be here for 2 years all together. I was happy to have met someone close in age to me and she mentioned that she has roommates to so I look forward to having people to go out with.
It was an amazing, relaxing day on the island. Food, beer, swimming, sun....can't get much better! I loved every second of it and it was really sad to leave : ( It was tempting to take a nap under a palm tree but I could not waste a second of this natural beauty. It was an amazing day and a great start to the week. Marielle arrives on Tuesday and I am looking forward to whatever we can get into together.
As they say here....You better Belize it! : ) <3
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