Sari Sari Waterfall

This is Sari Sari Waterfall. It is located on the eastern side of the island which meant a two hour ride in a minibus on a windy road. I thought it could handle it. I really did. But an early morning car ride did not sit well with the oatmeal I had for breakfast at all! For most of the ride I was sitting next to my friend Rachel, trying to be a good conversationalist and focus on something other than being carsick. When I finally called for our driver, Theo, to stop the bus I really thought I was going to be sick. Fortunately, I was able to keep my cool (completely) and walked around for a few minutes before boarding the bus again to reach our destination (which of course was only five more minutes down the road... I totally could have made it!).





There were eight spouses on the trip and our guide/diver, Theo. We hiked at a pretty steady pace for about 40 minutes alongside the river. Then, in true "nature island" style, the trail ended and we half waded half rock climbed the rest of the over the huge boulders.

to get here...

we had to do this...

and this....

Slowly but surely we made our way over to the waterfall (without any mishaps, I might add although I did slip a few times!).

And this was our reward! The water was nice and cool and refreshing. It got pretty deep in the center but there were several large rocks we were able to stand on.We swam around for a while and cooled off. After a quick snack of peanut butter and crackers, I felt ready to conquer the return hike. I was wrong. The relaxing waters of the Sari Sari had made me completely forget that the "mild" hike down was exactly as it sounds... down. Now we had to hike it back up the staircase of mud, rocks, and roots to get back to the van. You'll be happy to know that I made it without complaining once (that's the downside to traveling with a group you're not 100% comfortable being a baby around... oh, if only Justin had come!).

The ride home was gentler on my stomach and I made it back to campus without feeling too sick. This is now my favorite waterfall I've been to!

The Bookstore

Welcome to the Ross University Bookstore! I thought I'd offer a little insight into the awesomeness that is my new workplace. Mostly because I would hate to think that anyone is romanticising my job. It is so not as glamourous as you're thinking.

The front entrance of the bookstore. I never noticed that the messages posted on the bulletin board somehow have migrated down and off the actual board.

***Spoiler Warning***

You are about to view images that may completely ruin your preconceptions of the campus bookstore. Discontinue reading if you prefer the glamorized version you have created in your head that resembles a clean and polished Barnes & Noble with a trendy Starbucks inside.

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You just couldn't resist, could you? I guess I don't blame you. But I did warn you.

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The checkout counter. This is Kayla, who is doing what we do best, sitting around and eating junk food. The two teal thermoses hold the "fresh brewed" coffee. We also make sandwiches, soup, nachos, pizza, and hotdogs. Does it sound like a consession stand? Our best sellers are coffee and skittles. Together.

Inside the bookstore. "Where are the books?" One might ask. Oh let me show you.

The books are most conveniently located at the back. This means you have to walk through an overwhelming inventory of candy, chips, cookies, and sugary caffinated drinks that may tempt your poor deprived taste buds. But it will cost you...oh it will cost you. Did I mention how it resembles a consession stand?

At the bookstore, which you can see resembles a convenience store on the best of days, we offer almost expired goodies that can be purchased at a 200% markup. If you are picking up on a slightly sarcastic, disgruntled vibe, don't be alarmed. I actually enjoy a lot of things about working here. Let's see:

1. Justin and I get a 15% discount. Whoo-hoo!

2. I get all the current gossip/news straight from the students.

3. I get to use the espresso machine!

Okay, so I can only think of three. Well, don't worry. I wouldn't do it if I didn't like it. And admit it, it makes for a better post.

Service with a smile!

Hey Everybody

Hi everyone,

Sorry that I have not been able to post until now, but I've been keeping pretty busy. Thanks for supporting Ash and her new blogging addiction. You guys keep her busy so I have more time to study! Keep up the good work.

All jokes aside, I just wanted to say thanks for all of your support and to let you guys know that we miss you a whole bunch. Love you all.

Justin

P.S. - I would like to thank Travis for my smarts, which allow me to make As. Thanks bro. Oh and way to kick *** on your test.

P.S.S - The last post on here is from one of my buddies up here and yeah i did fall down a muddy hill like 3 times in 10 seconds. It is a cow trail that the "wild" cows use to get around the school and it's one of our shortcuts when we are late for class. (but don't worry i just hurt my ego).

Justin's Fan Club

Congratulations Justin!

(I'll never get tired of this picture!)

The Aerial Tram Ride

So I was looking through all the pictures I've accumulated since we arrived in Dominica and was surprised to find these pictures from the aerial tram ride we took several weeks ago. My deepest apologies for not bringing you the most current news in the Chronicles of Justin & Ashley. Will you ever forgive me? We took a bus to a place near Roseau where there was a small gondola ride over the Breakfast River. It is a new installation in the growing list of tourist activities now that cruise ships are landing on the island. We were pretty shocked to find out exactly how small of a ride it would be. Yes it lasted an hour and a half, but it wasn't even a mile long (okay, okay, I'll cut them some slack. It is almost a mile in each direction). But still, you don't have to do the math to realize that we were going SLOW!

Now I was kind of hoping I would see a boa constrictor riding down to the station where we were loading. Apparently that never happens. At least that's what our guide told us. Not that I'm asking for trouble or anything, the snakes at Cabrits were enough for me. But it would have made for a better story... and that's the truth. Wouldn't a great story about the snake that rode the gondola have made up for forgetting to tell you about this sooner?

Loading up for the snakeless tram ride.

The ride takes you up through the rainforest, and since you are traveling at a frustratingly slow speed (really speed isn't the right word here) you have a LOT of time to check out the flora and fauna. Well, maybe just the flora. There was a hurricane that passed through this part of the island ten years ago and all the birds and snakes (that's pretty much all the wildlife around here) relocated to the north of the island. So our guide told us about the two hundred species of ferns. Here is a picture of the view we had riding through the rainforest. All I could think of was the movie Apocalypto when everyone is running through the forest for days on end. I much prefer a gondola ride in the raiforest to running for my life.

Our guide was totally bummed out when we decided to get off at the top to see the suspension bridge because it was pouring down rain. Rain in the rainforest? Most definately. And yes, we did have an umbrella, but our frequent use of umbrellas has only proven to us how ineffective they can be when a.) sharing with your spouse and b.) you are walking forward (maybe it is just me, but I can't keep my legs dry when I walk under an umbrella). The walk was totally worth it though.

Ashley, Norah, and Lauren at the suspension bridge.

Here we are on the bridge... Justin thought it would be fun to swing the bridge right as we took the picture. In case you couldn't tell, it was SUPER fun!

I guess since you've made it this far, you aren't really upset enough to boycott this fashionably late edition of the Chronicles. Admit it, you love me!

Big Day for Justin

Everyone please be thinking of Justin today. He has his first round of exams!

This is a picture from Moo Cow Trail on the way to our apartment. The rainbow ended right at our building (to the right).

We're Online!

Welcome to the newest format of the Chronicles of Justin & Ashley: the blog. After a month of attaching only five pictures per email and waiting hours for the files to upload, I've taken the advice of some of the more tech-saavy subscribers (thanks, Daddy and Katherine, you were right) and taa-daa here we are. Hopefully you will enjoy the instant gratification of pictures AND text together. So without further ado, let the posts begin!

note: I've attached all the previous editions below, in the new stylish layout. Feel free to share with whoever is missing out!

Savonne Paille

Maybe I should change this to Ashley's Island Adventures, because Justin isn't seeing a lot of action anymore!

Hello all! I hope everyone is enjoying their Diet Dr. Peppers, chips & salsa, mashed potatoes, and bacon cheeseburgers. Yum! We finally got an order of chicken breasts delievered from Roseau. It was a 33 lb. box of frozen breasts from Brazil. Justin was so excited! I swear it took an hour to wrap those suckers up and jam them into the freezer. Thank goodness our neighbor Lauren is nice, she let us put some in her freezer too! If you're thinking WOW Ashley, I can't believe 33 pounds of chicken wouldn't fit in a freezer, you've obviously forgotten that your standard fridge/freezer in Dominica is about a half of the size of a normal one in the states. Same with ovens. Good thing I didn't bring my nice cookie sheets, there's no way I could cram them in! Back to the chicken. It is SO TOUGH! There was a point in time where I was worried about the saline injections and hormones in the chicken I would buy from the good ole HEB. How silly was I????!!! You definitely need it! The first few times we tried cooking this chicken I would cut the smallest bite ever and then choke it down with a swig of water (oh how I miss pasturized, homogonized, processed, refridgerated cow's milk!!!). It is getting better. A little. Don't worry about Justin blowing away in the wind because he is so starved though, all this doesn't phase him at all!

So on Tuesday I went to the local school, Savonne Paille. I'm working with Mr. Mitchell's 4th/5th grade class. I'm not sure how old Mr. Mitchell is, but I doubt he is much older than I am.

Mr. Mitchell and some of his students.

This is his first year to teach, and is currently uncertified. Interestingly, the certification process in Dominica only focuses on Kindergarten. Apparently, if you know how to teach Kinder, you are certified to teach at any level. Hmmm, I'm not sure what to think because I haven't seen a certified teacher teach yet. So this presents an awesome opportunity for me to jump in and really mentor Mr. Mitchell.

The principal of the Prep School at Ross, Kerri Burchill, and I are also working on a Professional Development day for Savonne Paille to present February 21. Kerri is great, and I know I'm going to learn a lot from her.

So back to my main point, on Tuesday I got to work with a group of 8 fifth graders (the whole class!) on reading comprehension. It was fantastic. The students are very polite and anxious to please. I've attached a few pictures of them for you to see. School attendance is not enforced, and the Ministry of Education is VERY unorganized. The school building itself is pitiful, but we are working on raising money to fix the windows.

Hope everyone is doing well. Keep me updated on what's going on at home.
Love,
Ashley

My first snake(s)

Yes, I saw my first wild island snakes (plural, more than one: three to be exact) this weekend! I've been anticipating this moment since before we arrived. I usually keep a sharp eye out for any movement along the trail that leads us to campus, but haven't spotted any near our apartment. I'll admit I let my guard down. Especially after asking a hike leader about snake sightings a few weekends ago. The guide laughed and assured me that it wasn't often that you come across snakes, especially Boa Constrictors, which are native to the island.

So on Saturday, I got up early to go to the market (Justin slept in for the first time since we got here!) and then met up with Julie and Lytle (two spouses I've been working with in the schools) around 8:30 to go for a hike. We had decided to hike up to Cabrits, which is an old fort on the north end of our bay. We walked through Portsmouth along the coastline(past the one small section of sandy beach called Purple Turtle) and up into the mountian to the entrance.

We hiked along a pretty wide path which was nice and shady. Little salamanders scampered out of our way which reminded me of Jurrasic Park becuase you can hear swishing movements in the bushes on either side of you. And a movement caught the eye of my friend Lytle and lo and behold there was a SNAKE! Lytle and Julie were scrambling to get out thier cameras and I was scrambling to find a safe place to stand where I could see all 360 degrees of possible snakes slithering my direction. The snake was totally not interested in us and left. His friend was equally chilled out (I'll remind you of the island theme:no worries) and stayed coiled up in the shade.

So we continued our hike to the ruins of the Battery which were overgrown with vines and trees, very Indiana Jones. So we're being silly and taking pictures when Julie looks up the wall and says in a very calm voice, "Ashley, don't come over here." Of course I knew she meant "ASHLEY!!! THERE'S A SNAKE!!!" So I again tried my technique of finding a nice clearing of path to stand in where I could monitor all possible angles of snakey-ness. She got a good picture of it climbing up the wall of the fort though. If you can zoom into this picture and get a good look, you will see that this is a HUGE snake!!! EEWWWW!

The path continued onto the other side of the bay where you could get a pretty good glimpse of Guadeloupe.I tried takinga picture, but the hazy blue of the island blended in with the ocean.

I stood in grass for the first time in a month! Fort Shirley is the main attraction at Cabrit. It was built when England and France were fighting over the island, but the cannons were never used. In this picture, If you look out across the bay, Ross University is at the far left.

We walked all the way back, and when I finally reached the apartment, I was pooped! I spent the rest of the weekend relaxing while Justin studied.
Hope everyone is doing well.
Love,
Ashley

Getting down to business

For all you Chronicle addicts who have been checking your inbox every evening (we won't mention those of you who check hourly, but I appreciate you) hoping to receive another brillant edition filled with entertaining stories and subtle comedy, this one's for you.

Classes have kicked into high gear for Justin and he's taking it like a pro. You'd never know that 1. He only studied in college right before the exam AND 2. He's been out of school for 18 months (he was really worried about that). He has made it to class every day and comes home and reviews the days material and then previews the next day's lecture. He is a studying machine! This past Saturday he studied in a group with his buddies Robert, Kyle, and Greg on campus from 10 in the morning until almost 10 in the evening. On Sunday he took a break from studying and played in a dodgeball tournament for an organization he joined called Salyvia. His team of brainy study buddies won the whole tournament! So to celebrate, they went sailing. I was so disappointed I couldn't go because I was working! Robert rented a sailing pass which lets him take a boat out whenever he wants to. I don't think he's an experienced sailor, but it sounded like a good idea, so why not?! The owner of the boat didn't even go out there with them, but Justin said they caught on pretty quickly. Apparently they were supposed to stay in the bay, but got a little over adventurous and went out far enough to see Martinique. When they returned, the owner of the boat was like, "what were you doing, mon? We thought we'd have to go out and rescue you, mon" But in the nonchalant manner that most medical students who have taken out huge loans and are looking for a thrilling, adreneline rush, they just replied with a "well we made it back okay." The truth is, they almost didn't make it back because the winds were pretty fast and they overshot the pier and had to back track. Anyway, Justin had a blast and is already looking forward to his next sailing adventure. Today he had his first dissection in anatomy lab. His group worked on the back of the neck and the base of the skull. He said that he really enjoyed getting his scapel out and digging around.

As for me, I'm staying very busy. At the prep school on campus, another spouse, Julie, and I are reorganizing the library. The current system has no accountability for student to return books. So we are taking inventory, pasting pockets and cards into the cover, and colorcoding the reading level of each book. We've done about half. The day school has a sister school in the community called Savonne Paille. Last Thursday, the principal of the Ross school, Julie, and I went over to Savonne Paille to meet with the Principal, Mr. Seaman. He is a very nice man who is arranging for us to come in and work with his students. The school is several miles north of Portsmouth and has about 50 Students and four classrooms. Their major area of need is reading skills and reading comprehension. So I'm going to go up to the school every Tuesday to work with the fourth/fifth grade class on reading skills. The teacher in that class is Mr. Mitchell, and this is his first year to teach, does not have a certification, and I'm not sure if he went to college (probably not). Today, I just sat in his class and observed and then we talked during lunch about what I could help him with. We decided for right now, I would work with fourth while he works with fifth during their reading time. That will allow him to give better feedback to each of the students and focus on key skills. I'm excited to help out but I do feel a little nervous about being the "all knowing American teacher." I'm attaching a few pictures of the school 470 is the side of the building you see when you drive up. 469 is the front of the school. 467 is the view from the school. Ross is located on the second bay, so you can tell it is quite a distance from campus. 471 is the kindergarten classroom. I didn't get a chance to take picture of the students because they had gone home for lunch by the time I pulled out my camera, but I'm going back next Tuesday. The students seem really sweet. When I came into the classroom this morning, they each took turns standing up and introducing themselves to me, "hello my name is Edmund and I'm 10 years old", and so on.

I'm also working at the bookstore about three days a week. One thing I like about working at the bookstore is getting to know the other students. The other day, this guy came in to buy coffee and he looked at me for a second and said, "I know you. We went to school together." I was so taken aback I asked "what school?" to which he replied in a "duh" tone of voice "look at your finger" DUH! I wear my aggie ring for a reason, after all. I felt pretty dumb. So this guy also went to A&M. But the really weird thing is that we actually took a class together and (it gets weirder), we worked on a project together! Seeing his face so out of context, I never would have recognized him!

As you can tell, we're settling into our life here and getting down to business. I'll try to keep you updated with all the ongoings. Thanks for all the emails I've been getting, I love to hear from you too!

The first week of school

Here's a little update of what we've been up to this week. While it is definitely not as interesting as past editions of the Chronicles, this is the reason that we came here (as sad as it is to admit).

Justin has completed his first week of classes (horay!). All week he has had a morning block from 8-12. His professors rotate through the days of the week so one morning he may have biochemistry and anatomy and the next cell biology and Doctor Patient Society. In the afternoons he goes over the material and previews the material for the following day.

Of course, it is about to get a lot tougher with class continuing after lunch some days until 5 (and then find time to study when you aren't in lab). On Wednesday, he had his first study session that is led by one of the campus psycologists. They reviewed test formats and strategies to use when taking the test. Justin said it was pretty helpful. Staying on top of all the material was pretty easy for him this week because he's had classes in the hard subjects (biochemistry and cell biology) and is really focusing on anatomy and physiology which is mostly memorization, and as a professor reminded them in orientation, you have your own personal cheat sheet! When I quiz him on the muscles of the back (yes, that's right, I'm learning some stuff too...I'm not sure how that will help me, but I like spending time with him), he paces back and forth doing kempo and stopping to shrug his shoulders (levator spinae and trapezious) or do some other back muscle flexing to help him remember.

On Thursday, he had his first anatomy lab. It was just an introduction so he didn't get to cut anyone open yet. Actually the "Gross Anatomy Lab" is exactly what its name suggests: Gross. The lab itself has huge windows all along one side so that students passing by can get a look at what's going on. Last week during orientation, all I could see were the huge metel strechers that hold the bodies. Then magically on Monday morning as I was walking to my favorite spot on campus (the SGA lounge where I can sit and plug in my laptop in an airconditioned room and use the school's electricity while I compose the awesomeness that is the Chronicles of Justina & Ashley), I glanced to my left and was totally "Gross"ed out to see that thirty bodies where now resting on the stretchers. The cadaver fairy had come in the middle of the night. I'm not sure where they came from but every time I pass by I'm thankful I'm not the one that has to go in there and breathe in the formaldehyde fumes and peel back layers of skin and fat and.... yeah, I'll leave that to Justin.

Anyway, apparently, there aren't enough bodies to go around. First and second semester students share cadavers with the first semester working on the back and then second semester coming in and flipping the body to work on the front and then first semesters flip them over again to work on the back. Plus, the first semester students have been divided into three sections. So section A does the first disection and explains it to B and C and so on.

For lunch, we've discovered the awesomeness that is "The Shacks." Right outside the main campus there are two rows of stalls where locals sell food. Mrs. Lambert (the lady who helped us at the market) has a stall that sells healthy food. You can get pizza, fresh fruit juice, sandwiches, and our favorite, chicken. I've found out from the spouses that there isn't any fresh chicken meat available in the stores. You have to buy frozen meat that has been shipped over. We haven't made the investment yet, so we like to have chicken from "The Chicken Man." With his trusty set of three webber grills, he cooks up a mean chicken breast.
We like to meet for lunch, when I'm not working.

Working?, you ask. Why yes, yours truely got a job at the campus bookstore. The shifts are either 7-2:30 or 2:30 to 9:30. It gets a little intense, but there is a steady string of caffine/sugar addicts who can't get enough of the 6 EC coffee (lets take the term coffee lightly, please don't imagine a glamorous starbucks styled drink but a weak brewed brown colored hot water) and the 4 EC bags of skittles. EC is the currency on the Island (Eastern Carribeans). The exchange rate is 1 US for 2.67 EC. You do the math. We also sell overpriced folders, pens, books, diet cokes, oh wait, everything in that store is overpriced. Luckily I get a 15% discount which knocks a coffee down to 5.10 EC. But it does make the time go by and give Justin time to study at home without me bothering him. And I like the girls I work with. It is only 3 shifts a week so I have plenty of time to do other things. Another spouse, Julie from Arizona, and I have undertaken the task of reshelving all the books in the prep school's library. We've got a job ahead of us!

This afternoon, Justin had his white coat ceremony. As the spouses waited outside the annex under a tent (what were we waiting for? oh, we were just waiting to see if there was going to be enough room for us in the auditorium) we watched the president and prime minister arrive in their Hyundai Sonata with a Nissan SUV full of security detail following with semi automatic guns. It was impressive. They finally piled all the faculty and political dignitaries inside (Ross does provide over 50% of the countries GDP) and found room for 20 extra people. Don't worry... I pushed my way in. We listened to people talk and then the students filed down rows at a time to put on their white coats as they begin their studies to be a doctor.

Tomorrow I'm going to the market on my own. Wish me luck.
You could also drink a cold glass of milk/starbucks/diet doctor pepper in my honor.

Ashley

Freshwater Lake, Trafalgar Falls, and Scott's Head

Yes, that's right, another episode of the Chronicles coming to you from the Nature Island of the Carribean: Dominica. Some of you may find it hard to believe your luck at getting two editions back to back. You must remind yourself two things: 1. Justin is in school now 2. Ashley is not. Now I will no longer find it difficult to write quality emails in a timely manner.

On Sunday Justin and I went on our second Island tour with the university. I've been really pleased with the Director of Student Life, Mary Taylor. She has done an excellent job of organizing fun tours of the island. I feel it is student loans at their maximum potential.

We loaded the bus at 8:00, but of course we didn't actually go anywhere until 8:45. Partly because students were arriving late and partly because we're on island time. I would say 90% would be because we are on island time. No biggie.

We drove south along the western coast to Roseau and then east into the heart of the island. Our first stop was Fresh Water Lake. It is a natural lake that was used as a stopping point by travelers crossing the island. We were disappointed at first because there was so much cloud cover you couldn't see the mountains on the other side very well.

We took a hike on a trail that was made of split logs sitting in mud. This made it difficult to appreciate the rainforest around us because we were concentrating on not falling into the mud. It reminded us of the show most extreeme challenge where the asian teams compete against eachother in impossible obstacle courses. Luckily (unlike in the tv show) neither of us fell. We hiked and hiked with no end in sight (and no sight other than the forest surrounding us) until we had just enough time to get back to the buses. The clouds had cleared out around the lake and we were able to take a few pictures.

Me and our neighbor Lauren. If we ever call you, it's on her phone!

Of course the bus didn't leave on schedule because the snack bar opened and one of Justin's classmates had to have an egg sandwich. I was glad that person wasn't on our bus... I think eggs and busrides don't mix too well with the steep curves and tight turns of the road. Obviously it did for her.

Our next stop was Trafalgar Falls. They are two waterfalls (not close enough to photograph together) that you can hike up to. There is also a hot spring that makes a jacuzzi on the way. We didn't have time for the jacuzzi (plus we were already sweating from the hike) because we decided to climb up the huge boulders and get a better view of the waterfall. It was a lot of fun (plan on a trip to Trafalgar falls if you come visit) and we got some beautiful pictures. The bus drivers served iced sorril (the drink we made from the flowers) and we were on our way.

We stopped and ate lunch at this old stone barn that had been converted into a jazz bar. We ate rice and fried fish with passionfruit juice. It was excellent.

Our last stop was Scott's Head. This is at the southernmost tip of the island, where the Atlantic Ocean and Carribean Sea meet. No sandy beaches here. It was all smooth round rocks that were very difficult to walk on. We went swimming on the Carribean side because the waves were gentler and we didn't want to get slammed into the rocks by waves (we decided to take the smart route seeing as school hadn't even started ). The water was cold but clear and very refreshing.

I slept on the bus ride back to Portsmouth.

I hope everyone is doing well.
Love,
Ashley

The market

I must admit, I was pretty intimidated by the thought of going to the market. Not only for the reason that I look like a sweet, innocent American who can easily be scammed, but because I would have no idea what I was buying and how to cook it.
Now you may be thinking, Ashley, what's the problem? You've told us they speak English and that the locals are very nice... put two and two together and ask them! You would be correct except for the fact that I find it extreemely difficult to understand what they are saying. Partly because their accent is thick and partly because their dialect is different from what I am anticipating. Case in point: yesterday we went on a tour of the island and the bus driver asked us if we liked "foobaw." Do you:
a. nod and smile
b. ask him to repeat it for clarification (only for him to say it the same incoherent way)
c. act like a complete idiot and ask him what that is
For us on the bus, it took several questions to figure out he was talking about the sport you play by kicking a ball around a field (football=soccer) Anyway my point is that if I went to the market and bought strange items from a toothless old lady who tried to tell me how to cook it, Justin would starve to death.

So you will all be so pleased to know that that will not be his fate. Being the lovable, outgoing, and social person that I am, I boldly struck up a conversation with the school nutritionist who gave a lecture on local fruits during orientation when we saw her on campus. Her name is Mrs. Lambert and one of the first things she told us in her lecture is that she is one of 16 children and two of her brothers have been Prime Minister (of Dominicia, that is). She studied nutrition in England and then returned to Dominica on a personal mission of encouraging young students to eat healthily, locally. AND she totally offered to take us to the market on Saturday and then come back to our apartment and show us how to cook. Score!

In preparation, Justin and I bought a big soup pot, a pyrex casserole dish, and a mixing bowl to add to our measly collection of one pot and one pan. We were excited.

So to market, to market...

In order to find all your items you must arrive at the market early. The alarm went off at 5:50 and we were out the door by 6:15 (that's right, we, Justin CAN wake up that early on a Saturday after all). We waited at the main road for a couple minutes hoping to catch a bus into town, but started walking after not seeing one for several minutes. We walked about 10 minutes before we waved down a flag and rode into town arriving at 6:35. We met up with Mrs. Lambert and began our market adventure.

The market is a collection of wooden tables and pickup trucks along a street that ends on the beach. We started at the far end with a truckload of coconuts and a man with a machete. These aren't your regular coconuts. Instead of brown hairy coconuts, these are larger and green. You cut across the bottom to make an opening for the coconut water to come out. It is funneled into an old water bottle and then cut in half. The meat on the inside it a clear jelly that has a texture similar to avocado. We tried a bite and while it didn't taste like coconut, it was good. We also left a water bottle with him so he could fill it with coconut water while we shopped.

We went from stall to stall buying normal things like bananas, plantains, string beans, tomatoes, spinach, and yam. We found okra and Mrs. Lambert asked if we had had it before. We told her yes, that we slice it and cover it in cornmeal and fry it. The look on her face was so surprised! She cooks it the same way! So we bought some okra to fry.

There is a dried flower called Sorril that is boiled in water with orange peel, cinnamon, clove, and ginger. Mrs. Lambert told us that it is only around in the winter months and is a Christmas-y thing to dring. It reminded me of Jamaica, a juice that you can get in Mexico and Bolivia. We bought the ingredients to make that too.

pumpkin, plantains, root crops, oh my!

We bought what Mrs. Lambert called pumkin but was more like a squash, with a green and white marbled skin and orange meat inside. She introduced us to all the roots that they use here instead of potatoes. There is Cush Cush, Anya, and Dasheen. They all look similar and are boiled and used in soups or mashed.

fried plantains, fried breadfruit, boiled breadfruit

We bought breadnuts that you boil with salt and crack off the shell to get a nut similar to an almond but soft. There is also breadfruit that is round an green but has a white starchy meat inside that is just like a potato.

breadnuts and breadfruit

pumpkin soup and boiling breadfruit

We bought mahi-mahi and yellowfin tuna from the fish stalls. They just cut the fish into steaks with their machetes and dropped them into a plastic bag! I was slightly disgusted. Ok, really grossed out.

By the time we were done shopping I was worn out but it was only 7:45! Our shopping bag from IKEA (thank you, Chris) was loaded with food. Mrs. Lambert had purchased quite a lot herself. We were pretty surprised that she only came with one small bag. She had told us earlier to bring a bag and lots of plastic bags because the vendors didn't always have them. We came prepared. She didn't. We lent her several plastic bags to carry her goods but the handles on them kept breaking. I didn't think we'd make it back to our apartment! We bought the coconut water on our way out. We caught a bus back to Moo Cow Trail and struggled with all her bags down the trail. When we got home we unloaded and started cooking.

We made the sorril drink. We fried plantains. We boiled the breadnuts. We boiled the breadfruit. We boiled the pumkin, We boiled the Dashin, the cush cush, and the anya. We even boileda banana. The pumkin and roots and banana went into the soup. We snacked on breadnuts and started frying the boiled breadfruit. It was just like french fries!

Mrs. Lambert didn't really like our kitchen set up. Before we started the soup she kept asking if we had this or that. We were like, "Noooooooo, thats why we went to the market with you" and "You didn't tell us we needed that." Apparently we should have brought a pressure cooker and a blender with us from the states. Who knew? We also haven't found a good knife, so Justin had to wake up our neighbor upstairs to borrow one. The pan we were frying things in kept sticking. She asked where we had purchased it (a general store called Best Buy). She told it is was a bad buy. We told her how we had had a hard time finding things like good pots and pans and how we were surprised. Everyone has to cook, you'd think they'd be easy to find. Nope.

Besides that, Mrs. Lambert was so nice. She was the biggest help in the market, showing us what vendors to use, and what to look for in the different products. Everything she showed us how to make was pretty good. When we were pretty much done, she left all her groceries with us until her husband could come to pick them up since there was so much. Then we crashed! I was exhausted and completely tired of cooking. Lauren (our neighbor) and her friend Norah came over later to try everything out.

We ate the mahi-mahi last night (see it in the marinade in the attached pictures) with mashed breadfruit and sauteed spinach. Our first completely homemade Dominican meal!

Hope all this talk about food didn't make you too hungry. If it did, I suggest frying up some breadfruit and a nice bowl of pumpkin soup... hmmm.... that's what I'm going to do.

Love y'all,
Ashley

The Housing Tour

Before you read this you must understand a few things:
1. This was our first full day in Dominica, we arrived the night before and had no concept yet of where we were and how things operate here (we're on "island time, Mon")
2. We didn't make housing arrangements online because we wanted to actually see our options for ourselves.
3. It has taken me this long to write the story that happened a week ago becuase I want to give it justice. If you can read this much, and still have any energy in you (bathroom breaks are allowed), please let me know how I did.

We arrived in Dominica on Friday night and were bused from the airport to the University Housing Office. They gave us a room to stay in for the night and told us that breakfast was at 7:30 and the tour started at 8:00. So on Saturday morning we woke up at the crack of dawn (yes it was only seven but our bodies were still on Texas time where is was five) and went down to the lobby where we ate cereal with the incredibly-nasty-at-room-temp milk, canned fruit cocktail (yes that's right folks, on the island that advertises so many fresh fruits that they fall from the trees at your feet, our first fruit is canned!) and weak coffee. At about 8:15 the Housing woman “debriefed” us in the lounge. Through her thick accent the only important information that I could dicern was that most apartments have prepaid electricity so you can track how much you are spending. As far as I could tell, the logistics of the tour were not mentioned. She handed out a list of available housing, and we loaded into buses. Justin and I had plenty of time to comb through the list because we sat in the bus at the housing offic for at least 15 minutes with the drivers all in the office chatting it up and no one telling us the game plan. This is where we met our new friends, Greg from California and Kyle from Chicago as we bonded over the absurdity, unorganized program that is the Ross Housing. We still had no idea how the tour was actually going to work and were under the impression that it was every man for themselves. Little did we know that's exactly the was it was going to be. But being the innocent new arrivals we were, we picked apartments that we all (everyone on the bus) wanted to see. Needless to say, we were extremely confused when the bus actually started moving to find out that all 5 buses were going on the tour together and to just sit back and relax. You can probably imagine the scene: Justin sitting back in his seat on the bus heeding the words of the bus driver in his worry free island-perfect attitude and me with my back rigid trying to figure out where the hell we were going and how we were going to compete with 30 other students! So we drove to the first place and were told that this was a one bedroom apartment and to get out of the bus and check it out. So all thirty of us entered this apartment and politely tried to walk through it (tracking mud all on the tile, but hey, there was no doormat) while figuring out what apartment it was on the list, what was included (internet, cable, pots and pans, etc), and how much for rent. To us, it seemed nice but we weren’t ready to say yes to the first place on the list so someone else did. Actually two people did. BUT because they hadn't told us what to do when we found something we liked, they both talked to the landlord who was hanging around. Apparently we were all supposed to know that this was a big no-no (after all, why would you speak to the landlord when you're with the incredibly efficient Housing Office?) The landlord got confused about who asked for it first, they were both under the impression that they were going to live there, and the housing officers had no idea what was going on so we all piled back in the bus and continued. Random landlords that had room for rent came outside, waved us down and showed us their room. NO one told us what property we were seeing or anything. PLUS the housing officers didn't want to leave an apartment until someone had claimed it. They were very reluctant to leave a place without renting it and after we had seen four or five apartments we returned to the Housing Office. Justin and I had seen some possibilities, but by the time we could agree that it might work, someone else had claimed it. Back at the housing office, they dropped off the students who had already picked a place so they could get their bags and this is when they realized two people were under the impression that they were going to the same apartments. Again we waited in the bus for at least 15 minutes while the arguement and confusion ensued. Apparently you are supposed to tell the housing officers (not the landlord) when you are interested in the property. The girl who lost her bid on the first apartment we looked at got back in the bus and we resumed our "tour." Honestly it felt more like an auction with the apartment going to the first bidder to see the apartment and then run back to the bus to tell the housing officer. There wasn't anything wrong with the apartments we saw. A lot of them had a/c and most of them had a kitchen. The ones with twin beds were automatically out of the question. The big thing for me was they we're asking us to choose apartments without seeing all the options. How would you know if the next place was going to be better or worse? The auction continued. We went all up and down Banana Trail which is the collection of streets right across from the university. The bad thing about Banana Trail is that the roads are very muddy when it rains (we got to see that firsthand, of course) as well as steep. So by the end of the Banana Trail tour the guide was getting impatient (not that we were the only ones hesitant to pick an apartment so quickly, there were still about ten of us) and he pretty much told us that we better pick soon. We had to find an apartment before the next plane of students landed that afternoon. So the clock was ticking, the Housing Officer was impatient, and Justin and I were totally stressed out. The bus started moving and again, we had no idea where it was taking us. We figured out we were on Moo Cow Trail which is off the main road between the university and the annex (where first semester students have their classes). Immeadiately we decided we liked Moo Cow Trail because the trail is rocky (not muddy), it is close to the annex, and it isn't as crowded as Banana Trail. Our first stop was actually a place we had seen on the handout and liked because it had cable, internet, and dishes, not that the housing officer told us. We had to figure it out on our own, of course! We walked down the driveway and through the patio gate with the other 10 desperate students. You could see the competition in their eyes, but I was ready. Before Justin had even made it inside I rushed over to the Housing Officer who was leaning against the porch rail, arms crossed, bored out of his mind and said "we'll take it!" Only then was I able to absorb the effects of my rash decision. The apartment was clean, with tile in the front room and wood in the bedroom. The "kitchen" corner of the front room has lots of cabinet space, with dishes, a microwave, table and two chairs. The rest of the fron room holds a television, love seat, and arm chair. The bedroom has a double bed with a matress (no box springs) and a wardrobe. I breathed a sigh of relief, but Justin wasn't convinced. We got back in the bus to take everyone else to the next apartment building and as they walked through the next apartment, Justin and I contemplated our new home. It wasn't a long conversation-there weren't many other choices from what the housing officer said and we needed a place to live before the next plane load of students came to pick through what was left of the housing options. We decided that it would work for at least the first semester and we could always move again later. So finally we made the trip back to the housing office where we were dropped off so that the tour could continue where we faced our next big dilemma. They couldn’t get intouch with the landlord. We sat in the office for a while with everyone ignoring us (after a week on the island, we've found that's pretty normal, you can wait at a counter for 15 minutes easily with the person behind it not giving you the time of day). Finally they asked us what we were doing. We explained again that we couldn't get in touch with the landlord of the apartment we wanted to rent. The guy looks at us and says "what do you want to do?" Justin replied, "well, we want to move in." To which the easy-going guy responded, "okay, we'll do that then." He handed us a key, put our bags in another bus and we got in and left. So here we were with a key to an apartment we didn't feel like we had permission to be in, our bags at our feet, and the driver of the bus backing up to return to the housing office. What else could we do? We put our bags inside and checked everything out. That's when we started to panic. The microwave didn't work. The 110 outlets didn't work. The internet needed an ethernet cord which we didn't bring because we had no idea we would need one. We felt like we'd been jipped. There was only one option and we didn't like it. We walked the 12 minutes back to the housing office where they pretty much told us to just stay the night there and maybe they could find the landlord the next day. We paid for a small amount of electricity to make it through the night and went to Picard grocery store where we bought 4 cans of black beans, some ramen noodles, peanut butter and crackers, frosted flakes and shelf milk. Of course, when we got home, we realized that while we had dishes, that didn't include pots and pans. So we did the only thing you could do if you were a new student on an unfamiliar island, with no pots to cook beans, a microwave that didn't work, and no appetite to eat cereal for dinner: we went out to eat Chinese food.

If you've made it this far in the story, you will be happy to know the next day, we decided to heat the beans up on the stove in their can and eat peanut butter crackers. It was a real feast. It wasn't until two days later we found out how to turn on the 110 power so we could use the microwave. Yesterday we went into town and bought a pot and a pan. We still haven't heard from our landlord. "No worries, Mon" is all we can get out of the housing office. After 6 days in the apartment, we've decided that we really like it and hope everything works out with the landlord.

Ashley

From the beginning...

Hello all and welcome to the Chronicles of Justin & Ashley! Sit back, grab your bifocals and turn on your desk lamp, I have a lot of information to unload! For those of you who didn't get the email yesterday, I apologise. My addressbook online malfunctioned and I could only send messages to emails I've memorized (a pathetic few). Fortunately, it is working today.
We've found a apartment on Moo Cow Trail, only a 7 minute walk to campus and are pretty pleased with it. Stay tuned for a future edition where I chronicle the awesomeness that is Ross University Housing Tours. I'll need a lot a strength to give the story justice... so be patient.
We started orientation today, with several professors and Univeristy officials welcoming us to the Island. It is a mixture of stress (apparently the workload is going to be pretty hard- you should have seen the looks of terror on the faces of Justin's classmates when this information was given!) and this completely laid back attitude (my new favorite saying is "no worries, mon"). Nothing has started on time (especially if it is raining, which is pretty much always) and there is a very realistic attitude about the workload that is to be expected.
The campus is pretty nice. All the freshmen are in the Annex which is a 7 minute walk uphill. That is where we've been meeting for orientation, and seems pretty high-tech. Justin is really anxious for classes to start. I can't blame him, the orientation is made up of these professors who are telling them how hard it is and what to expect. It does seem like they have two good programs set up to help students learn how to study and review the massive amounts of material they cover every day.
The bookstore isn't open until tomorrow, and the spouses club doesn't have it's first meeting until monday so I'm really just hanging in limbo until i figure out what to do with myself. I've scoped out a few "spouses" (those I'm pretty sure are not also going to school) and they all look pretty normal.
There are two students that we met from A&M who both seem nice, but we really haven't gotten a chance to hang out with them. One is named Chris, and he even lived on Spring Loop right down the street from us this past semester! The other I haven't technically met but is and old football player from A&M (i'll get you his name ASAP, daddy so you can look up his stats). He is married and his wife and baby are with him, but I haven't actually spoken to her.
Our two new friends that we hang out with a lot are Greg from California and Kyle from Chicago. Greg is married, but his wife isn't coming because she is on disability with some weird back muscle problem. They've only been married since August too. Kyle is engaged and he's getting married between semesters in August and then his wife will come up to the island to live. Her name is Andrea and he said that he thinks we would get along well. We have one neighbor moved in so far (The semester doesn't start until the 8th so returning students aren't back yet). Her name is Lauren from New York. She's very nice and easy to talk to so that will be nice.
We haven't started unpacking at all as of yet, for some reason we're both having a hard time adjusting to the time change. I'm glad things start at 10:00 because that still feel like 8:00 for us.
So far we have only eaten one Dominican prepared meal. It was on a tour of the island and the only snack bar was serving meals instead of snacks. Sadly for Justin, they ran out of chicken before we got a chance to order so we only got beans and rice. It was pretty good and didn't make us sick, either. Other than that our eating experience is not what I expected at all. The market is on Saturdays, but we had to go on the housing tour on Saturday and missed it. That means no fresh meat,fruit, veggies until Tuesday. And then EVERYTHING is closed on Sunday so by the time we found that out on Saturday night, we ran to the "grocery" which is really just a dry goods store and bought frosted flakes, milk, ramen noodles, 3 cans of black beans, vienna sausages, peanutbutter, and crakers. We drank the local Kubuli beer on the way back to our apartment to relieve the stress! Then we realized that we had plates and utensils but no pots or pans. Being the good boy scout he is, Justin heated a can of beans on the gas stove and we roasted vienna sausages on the open flame. Accompanied with peanutbutter crackers is was a very satisfying feast! There is a pizza place that is pretty good and two chinese restaurants. The best we can figure is that some student complained to his parents about the lack of good ethnic food and being the entreprenuers they are, moved to the island to provide hungry med school students with satisfyingly delicious fried rice and general tso's chicken. I won't complain. Everything was closed again on monday to celebrate the new year and then today is Merchants day (so much for going to the market of Tuesday). hopefully tomorrow we can find some pots and pans, and a few other necessities at the Best Buy (the local general store).
The first semester students are having a "Bar-B-Q" tonight in a few minutes. I was talking to Lauren from New York about how my initial thoughts were of brisket and ribs (she had no idea what a brisket is) but upon further thought, it will probably be hamburgers and hotdogs. There are a few other differences in culture we've noticed between Texans and everyone else. On new years we mentioned not being able to eat black eyed peas and Kyle from Chicago and Greg from California looked at us like we were nuts. There are so many other things to tell you, but we've got to go (some type of meat cooked on an open flame is awaiting us).
Thanks for reading this much. To rest your eyes, I suggest looking out into the distance and enjoying the view of the sun setting on the carribean sea. Oh wait... that's just my view. Well you can enjoy the picture of it at least!
Ashley