St Lucia – Page 2 – Destination NOW

My crystal ball sees many bad hair days in the near future

The weather here has been beautiful-warm, sunny, bright blue skies. It IS just a tad humid, so by the time we finished breakfast, I could have passed for Albert Einstein’s older sister. I look scary, but the kids don’t care, however I suspect there won’t be many photos of me on this blog.

Today I continued my quest for the perfect wifi spot, and future volunteers, I found it! At the bar, sit on the FURTHEST seat to the right, with your right elbow pointing into the dining room. Believe it or not, a couple of seats over and at the round table, there is NO connectivity. (Phyllis, this is my gift to you.)

So, while the wifi cooperates, I’ll do a little photo uploading.

I’ve named the path to my room the “thigh master”. I took these on my way down to breakfast this morning:

Funny story. When I arrived Saturday night,it was quite late. Knowing I have a tendency to stomp, I was very careful to “tread lightly” so that I didn’t disturb the people in the room below. It wasn’t until the next morning that I realized the only thing below me was air, dirt,and grass!

These next steps remind me of the grand plaza at Caracol. When I ascend, I need to LIFT my leg to get to the next step.

One more turn, a few more steps, and I’ve made it to the flat land.

Not to worry, though. Anyone with mobility problems is assigned a flat-lander room.

And now the moment you’ve been waiting for–more kiddie photos.

I think little Dayna is a born model.

Michelle, not to worry. Precious’ foot is fine. She was moving around so much,it was hard to get a sharp photo. Little Yasmine still isn’t talking, but I almost got a smile out of her today, and we still have another week to go!

My wine is a callin me…tune in tomorrow for more beautiful faces.

Greetings and thank you to Team One!

I’m so glad that some of the members of the first team found my blog, so I’m pleased to provide great news. The hand washing education, at least at the Kiddie Homey day care center, was wildly successful! The kids wash frequently, proudly and enthusiastically. I’ll try to take a picture before the end of my service, because it is something to behold. I had brought bottles of liquid soap with me and when one of the kiddies spotted it, she insisted that she needed to wash her hands. They are also quite fond of hand sanitizer. So Team One, savor your success. Michelle, I’ll take a closer look at the dispenser tomorrow, and will also check on Precious’ foot. I haven’t had a chance to work with Yasmine yet. She was out today, but if she is in tomorrow, I’ll get to her first thing.

I love the way Miss Frederick works with the kids. She reminds them every morning in song that they are”more precious than gold”. I’m hoping to get that morning song memorized before I leave.

Julie, if you have any questions about your project, let me know where you worked and I’ll check with those team mates for an update.

At our debrief tonight, the primary school team reported that the children were learning to write letters and could choose the recipient of their letter. Several opted to write to the January Global Volunteers, Vickie and Linda. Here are some verbatim quotes. “I loved how you treated me”. “I wish you could come back to see how I wash my hands”. Warren is going to try to get the letters to Vickie and Linda, but Julie and Michelle, if you are in touch with them, please let them know that they made their mark.

Today I found the wifi “sweet spot” by the pool, settled in with a glass of wine, thinking that I
would no longer have to sit in the reception area whenever I wanted Internet access. My success was sweet, but oh so brief. Oh well. I might not have Internet access by the pool, but at least I have my glass of wine, and cool water, so life continues to be good.

I’m in love!!!

Beautiful, funny, cute, smart, precious….I could go on and on about these kids. Suffice it to say that my heart has been stolen by these little munchkins.

I brought name tags so that I could more easily memorize their names, and I thought it would help those that don’t yet know how to spell and write their names. They really liked it. In fact, if I didn’t get out the name tag fast enough, they reminded me to get with it!

Dotty and I are loving our assignment. Yes, it is noisy, but hey, what do you expect from a bunch of kids under 5. Today we used the board books that I brought and they were a hit with all of the younger kids. Tomorrow will be Cat in the Hat day for the older kids.

After lunch the kids rest, which gave Dotty and me a chance to stroll around the town. Good news, boys and girls. There WILL be a contest. You know how I feel about dropping dollars into the local economy, so I will be picking up a few odds and ends for prizes. All I have to do is figure out the questions. Then Game ON!! (Mike and Augusta, since neither of you are with me, you get a chance to play too). I can’t do a packing question this time around because you have already seen the contents of my luggage in previous posts. I am sure I’ll come up with something eventually.

More photos of the objects of my affection. Notice how neat and clean they are…perfect in every way.

“Be flexible, so you don’t get bent out of shape”

We start every day with an inspirational thought. Jim’s quote reminded us that we should expect and accept the unexpected.

Yesterday we were welcomed to the Anse le Raye community by Father Athanase Joseph at the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin. He is convinced that Divine Providence sent Global Volunteers to his parish, and expressed gratitude for all that the first team accomplished in January.

The service was almost three hours long, but the music was wonderful and the beautiful, well behaved children were fun to watch. Unlike the catholic church in the USA, you are allowed to bring water bottles with you and the younger children were allowed to move from pew to pew (if they were in the back of the church). I noticed that it didn’t matter whose child it was, the women acted as if every one belonged to her, interacting with whichever one happened to slide over to her.

Yesterday’s other major accomplishment was meeting all of the team members. Introductions were a variation of the game, “I’m going to the market”…then listing objects in alphabetical order, each person repeating the list from the beginning and adding on. I remember playing with my sisters on a road trip to Florida. (I even remember the first two objects were “aristocrat” and “bing”. Okay, so my sisters are weird…especially Sandy.) But back to the intros…the last person was tasked with repeating the 24 earlier names. It was actually an very effective way to get everyone’s names memorized! In the afternoon, we learned more about our fellow volunteers. Four of us are “virgin” volunteers. The rest have been on multiple projects, with some logging over twenty.

Today was our first day at the various sites. Four of us were assigned to the two preschools in town. I’ll be spending this week at the Kiddie Homey Day Center, and I’m delighted. 40 adorable, exuberant kids under age 5. This is my alternative to whining about not having a grandchild. (You’re welcome, Greg).

Dotty and I are following the recommendations of the first team, and are working with the kids in groups of two. When I asked one four year old girl if she knew how to spell her name, she said, “Miss, I could WRITE my name when I was THREE”. I guess she set ME straight.

The dinosaur coloring book I brought with me was quite popular. One three year old boy thought the dinosaur looked like a shark, or maybe a whale. He then launched into an enthusiastic story about a whale “vomiting” and Jonah had “feesh” all over his head! Once I heard the name Jonah, I figured it out.

I’m looking forward to seeing these little cuties tomorrow! Here’s Dotty with one of our charges.

One plane, two plane, jet plane, blue plane

Fortunately, our pilots realized there was a computer problem while we were still on the runway. Back to the gate, onto another plane, then three hours later we were off. Kudos to Jet Blue for making it as painless as possible. We were lucky to have a relatively mellow crowd on the plane, so grumping was almost non-existent.

I noticed a yellow Global Volunteer tag in an overhead bin, so I used my keen investigative skills to locate Jeanne. Knowing I would not be the only latecomer was quite comforting. I was confident that together we’d figure out a way to get to the hotel.

Luckily, our team leader Warren was kind enough to wait for us, so after clearing customs we hopped into the van and headed for JJ’s paradise. The hour and a half ride up, down and around the mountain could be described by numerous adjectives, but I’m going to stick with “memorable”. Suffice it to say that we were grateful that Warren was behind the wheel and used to driving on the opposite side of the road.

We joined the rest of the team at dinner, but Warren saved introductions for Sunday morning. In his introductory comments, he told us that the first team, in January build a very solid base upon which we can build.

He also told us the St. Lucia project is unique in that the teams are bigger, and we are being dispersed throughout the community. In his words, “there are lots of moving parts”. The 27 of us are formed into teams for the infant school, preschool, primary school, secondary school, medical, home visits, computer education,construction and community gardens.

He left us with this thought for our first day:
“Leap and the net will appear.”

Here are some visuals of my home for the next two weeks:

My room—WAAAY up the hillside.

The most I’ve ever weighed…

Whew, our luggage scale was definitely a worthwhile investment. My checked bag weighed in at 48.5 pounds on the JetBlue scale, almost identical to the reading I got at home. (I left a little cushion, to allow for calibration differences.) So, between my checked luggage and my carry on bag, I am tipping the scales at 74 lbs…not counting my back pack. I have never even come close to the weight limit on ANY trip, even when we had to bring clothes for two climates. As you can see, I DID squeeze some clothes into my carry on.

Fortunately, while I was still in the packing stage, I connected with Michelle and Paddy, two incredible women who were members of the first team assigned to the Kiddie Homey Day Care Center. They clued me into the cheap laundry facilities at the hotel, which meant I could bring fewer clothes and more supplies. I also stocked up on protein snacks to supplement the box lunches I’ll be getting, and stuck in an umbrella (for the frequent, brief surprise downpours). Thanks to them, I feel prepared–at least when it comes to packing!

I was not thrilled about flying out of JFK, because the trip from central Jersey to that airport is normally rather arduous. What a pleasant surprise to get from my garage to the gate in an hour and a half! That includes going through bag drop and security. Of course, leaving the house at 6:15 AM on a Saturday might have SOMETHING to do with it, but if Mike has an easy drive back home, and if fetching me on a Saturday night goes as smoothly, then JFK will definitely be a future travel option. The jet blue terminal is beautiful and well designed. I love the free wi-fi, which is something that Newark airport lacks.

Time for another adventure

I leave on Saturday, March 10 to serve on a Global Volunteers project in St. Lucia. I’ve never been to the island, but from what I’ve read, it is very lush and beautiful. Unfortunately almost 30% of its population live in poverty. Community leaders in Anse la Raye invited Global Volunteers to send teams to help deliver essential services to the children in their village with the hope that by working together, over time, the cycle of poverty will be broken.

The St. Lucia project is new. I will be a member of only the second team, so this will be a learning experience for everyone. I just got my assignment and was thrilled to learn that my team will be working with 75 preschoolers, from infants to age 5.

The first team returned a few weeks ago with lots of helpful information, including a list of things that the preschool needs. Books, school supplies, soap, hand sanitizer and baby bibs were in short supply, so for this trip, I am packing very differently. Ah, Dr. Seuss, I’ve missed you. We spent oh, so many nights together. This will be a fond trip down memory lane.

Good thing I own a luggage scale. This stuff alone puts me at 29 pounds! Fortunately, I have never been a fashionista because this stuff took up half of the one checked bag I’m allowed.

I chose to work with Global Volunteers because I love their philosophy. Teams only serve where they are invited. They work under the direction of local leaders, doing whatever those leaders request. Because self-reliance is a primary goal, the volunteers work hand in hand with the locals. In fact a key requirement is that there be at least as many locals working on a project as there are volunteers.

There is no proselytizing–no hidden religious or political agendas, other than a desire to promote world peace.

The organization cautions its volunteers to remain flexible, noting that things don’t always turn out as planned. Well, considering that my INITIAL plan was to serve in Italy last October, and I had to cancel because my retina inconveniently decided to detach 6 days before I was scheduled to leave, I figure I’ve had a bit of experience with plan changes.

I’ll be going on this trip alone. I don’t know anything about the other volunteers on this second team–how many, where they are from, who they are, but all will be revealed by next Saturday night. We will be working all this first weekend, but will have a break the second weekend, so I’m hoping to get a chance to see the island.

Adventure awaits!

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