Foreign car sales, etc.

After two weeks of trying, my previous blog post finally uploaded, but much has happened since then. 

Many goodbyes have been said, to students, teachers and friends. Most of them have been much harder than expected. I had no idea how sad it would be to leave the people that have become so close these past 7 months, definitely friends that will last, regardless of time and distance. And the biggest, and certainly most difficult, goodbye has yet to be said, my farewell to my fair Guadeloupe. These past few days, weeks, months have made me realize what an incredible place this is. It truly is one of the most beautiful places on earth. I've learned a lot here, I've expiriences a lot here, I've done a lot here and I will never be the same because of Guadeloupe and everything that came with it, the good, the bad and the beautiful.

However, right now, I'm in the process of selling my car, a much much different expiriences than I had imagined (or rather, hoped) after my 20 back up plans failed to produce anything, I resorted to asking my landlord for help. I really love my landlord, but I knew exactly what would happen when I asked him, and so far, I'm spot on. I knew it would immediately be taken into his hands and I would actually have to do the things that need to get done in order to sell my car, including cleaning it, checking things, etc.    Anyways, he found someone to look at it, and so this afternoon was spent at the house of the potential buyer.  They're an older couple, very guadeloupean, very hesitant about driving a manual car, j'suis pas habituer eh. Never did I imagine myself sitting on a porch in 35 (Celsius) degree heat, explaining to a woman in French how to drive an automatic because she only knew how to drive a manual all the while my landlord (who had to ask me how to get the car to move backwards, because he also doesn't know how to drive an automatic) is out on a test drive with the husband.  Then when it switched and I was waiting on the porch with the husband, I just had to nod and take estimated guesses on what was coming out of his mouth, because I only understood about 3% of the creole/French quiet mumbles coming out of his mouth. Nonetheless they were both very sweet, hopefully sweet enough to buy my car. So, we will see, we will see. But for sure, an expirience like none other, one I will definitely remember for a long time to come.

Anyways enough words because I know the photos are much more desirable, so here are a few from the wonderful adventures of late

There's now 3 baby chicks, so cute, so cuddly 

My amazing tuna at the amazing restraint where my teachers gave me such a nice goodbye lunch followed by so so many Gwada presents 

Iguana at the beach

Burning the sugar fields

The amazing lunar eclipse at 3am on Monday night

We rented electric bikes when we went to Les Saintes yesterday, it was so fun. Those things are awesome.

Tourment d'amour and girmon gateau. Delisious 

Unreal beach

Coconut on the beach

The bay at Les Saintes

Potentially best meal of Guadeloupe: Dorade Maracudja, a local fish Dorade, with passion fruit sauce.

Les bonnes

The other night while hanging around with some other assistants talking about expiriences in Guadeloupe, a question was asked that was something along the lines of "what are things you've gotten used to in Gwada that's really not normal." There are many but I just had one of those moments right now, sitting in the computer room at school when all the power went out and I was completely unphased. I just remained at the desk in front of a blank computer screen, headphones in but no longer playing music, and started working on something else in a dark room, as if nothing was wrong or out of the ordinary.

Anyways, I'm not sure if it's because it's nearing the end or what, but these past few weeks here have just been really nice. Maybe it's the whales I've seen while walking on the boulevard, or the amazing massive waves of the ocean, or the beautiful waterfalls, or being with the other assistants that have become lifelong friends for sure or maybe the way one of the chickens loves to listen to me practicing my mandolin, but whatever it is, Im realizing how much I will miss this place when I leave.

Premiere chute du carbet

Temporary exhibit at a museum in Pointe a Pitre

Cochon

A church service we almost unknowingly interrupted

Window view

Blood spit on my blanket this morning from the war the Mosquitos waged against my face last night. I think they won, and I think I'll wash my face with bug spray tonight 

Martinique the beautiful

Yesterday I got back from my "vacation", techinically it was a vacation from my vacation; but wow oh wow, it was so amazing.  

I went to Martinique, another French department about a 45 minute plane ride from here.  When I told my landlord I was going there, he said "c'est parielle" meaning, it's the same [as Guadeloupe], which I had also heard from a few others, nonetheless, I went, with two other assistants.  

Flying over Dominica on the way there

One of the assistants, Alex, babysits for a family in Guadeloupe and the mom's parents live in Martinique, so we stayed with them in one of the most amazing houses I've ever been to.  They lived right on the ocean.  

Martinique was not at all like Guadeloupe, in my opinion. It was absolutely beautiful, not that gwada isn't by any means, but this place was something else.  We hiked Mt. Pellé, the volcano there, that in 1902 destroyed the entire town of St. Pierre, with only one survivor.  

We visited the Presqu'ile (which literally means, almost island) which had the old plantation of Chateau Dubuc, after we got a nice/strange/weird/interesting inpromptu tour by a worker that sang to us as we drove up to the lighthouse, then to a crazy path along the cliffs.  

Chateau Dubuc

Slave dungeon

View from the lighthouse

One night we went to Habitation Clément, which was so beautiful.  We got there right as it was closing, just in time for one gouter (taste) of rhum, then we walked around a really nice sculpture garden, so beautiful. (I'm really running out of adjectives, everything in Martinique was just so magnificent).  Saturday we went out on the boat witht the family we stayed with.  It was so cool, first we stopped at a deserted island, literally just deserted out in the middle of the Carribean sea.  

Then we went to a little island, docked, and ate a delicious picinic on the boat.  The mom was such an amazing cook, we ate dinner with them everynight, one night she made fried plantain gratin, wowzuhs.  Then Sunday, our last day, we went down to the beaches and natural reserve in the south of the island, again, so so beautiful, so so majestic.

Tuna Colombo

Blan à manger

Anse d'Arlet

Happy spring

Happy spring! Although nothing has changed here, it's still 82 degrees everyday. I'm sure that sounds really nice in theory, but I miss seasons. I think being here makes me realize having seasons is really important, it gives people appreciation for nice weather and a chance to enjoy the spring time after winter. Nothing ever changes here, it's always the same.

A painting they have displayed at my school, pretty striking.

An apple at the beach

It's one of those Mondays that I woke up very tired, not wanting to come to work, but get out of bed and get to school by 7 just to find my teacher isnt there and now I have 3 hours of free time at the school until I have one class to teach.  But can't (or shouldn't) complain, especially since I only have a two day, 5 hour work week.  Becuase Thursday is Mi-Caréme, a day in the middle of lent where they revive the carnival and take the day off from work, school, and whatever they gave up for lent, I don't have classes.  So I'm going to Martinique from Wednesday to Sunday.  

This weekend was really nice. We hiked Chutes Moreau which was very beautiful and a great hike.  Sunday we did a Gwo'ka (the traditional dance here) workshop with Ronnie (or Wonnie, in creole) the cool rasta man that we did the Kalabas workshop with last month. He taught us some drum rythmes of the dance on the traditional drums, then we worked on some dance steps. Really a nice time.

Chutes Moreau

We had to cross the river 8 times during the hike. 

Last weekend, we went to Saute d'Acomat, which could be one of my favorite places so far. It's a really small waterfall in Pointe Noir that leads to a nice river with lots of big rocks.  At the bottome of the waterfall is a really deep pool of water so you can climb the waterfall and jump off.  Another girl and I climbed it and jumped off, it was so cool. We didn't go very high, but there were people jumping from the very top, it hqd to be about 50 or 60 feet high.  

Saut d'Acomat

Jaguar we saw on our hike...just kidding, it was at the zoo.

Amazing chocolate from the Maison cacao

Cool sky on the boulevard

Allée Dunamoir, a road off the highway lined with enormous plan trees. It used to be a road that lead to someone's plantation, now it is just a place people go to drive down, take wedding pictures at, and picnic. We had our potluck picnic here.

It's been awhile

I haven't written on this in a long time, notnecessarily because I haven't been doing anything, but because I have been doing things. That, and the fact it does get hard to so this on my phone then wait for three days for it to upload. I will be nice to have wifi again someday. Anyways, we started back to school Monday, kids are crazy as ever. Not sure if I mentioned their craziness before the Carnival break, but it was something I've never seen. Kids wearing the craziest outfits and hair, glitter everywhere. The class that is usually bad anyways was straight up out of a movie scene nuts. Parading around the classroom, putting in masks, yelling, basically everything except paying attention. Anyways, now there back to there normal level of crazy, so it's good.

The break was really nice but it's crazy how fast it went. Isaac came and visited from Saturday to Saturday giving me the chance to be a tour guide/translator, while getting the entire grand tour of the island again. And that's what we did, circumnavigate the island hitting every major spot, in one week.

A goat being shipped on a ferry ride from another island (don't worry, it's alive, just sleeping. I promise.)

My patate from a patisserie, basically it's a huge choco truffle wrapped in almond fondant. So amazing. But when I got it the lady was like are your hungry and I was like not really and she said well then you're going to want to share. She obviously didn't know the size if my stomach, because apart from a few bites I shared, I ate that whole thing. Although, I did have quite a belly ache. Well worth it.

Saut lézard

Mardi Gras carnival in Basse Terre, lots of fun

One day we went to Désirade, a 45 minute ferry ride (which was extremely rough on the way there, people were getting sick on the ride, I would have been next if it would have been any longer) away and rented a scooter. SO awesome. I will definitely have one of my own within 5 yrs (would have been sooner if it weren't for a certain parental insident after high school 😊) the island is beautiful, really different and we did some grey snorkeling.

Remnants after my landlord cut us soo many coconuts

Isaac eating bananas on his birthday

The awesome painting I got at the flea market in Moule on Sunday. I also got a Polaroid camera at the flea market the week before. Super cool.