Hurricane Earl is passing quickly, and we will hopefully get outside soon. First day of orientation was canceled, but that's okay. The hurricane has given me some time to update everyone on what has happened in the past few days. We left on Thursday and all seemed to be going well since our plane from Chicago to Miami got in early. Unfortunately, the plane to St. Kitt's had not yet arrived. After about 2 hours waiting, we got on the plane and sat for an hour and then got back off. We were supposed to get on another plane, but after another 2 hours, we got back on the same plane with a different crew and finally took off. We landed at 6 local time (5 central) and got off the plane by stairs and went through immigration. Then we had to wait for our bags to arrive and after watching the baggage go around for an hour, we came to the realization that our luggage had not arrived with us :( We had to make a claim to hopefully get our luggage later, but it was sad to be going to a new place with no stuff. Everything here is on island time, which means there is no rush, so it took over an hour waiting in line to describe our lost luggage. Finally got to my new house and was pleasantly surprised. It is spacious and comfortable and air conditioned. After a long day, all I wanted to do was sleep.
The next morning we went to the grocery store, which is very much like at home. Prices for american brands were higher, but local alternatives were available and cheaper. Not sure how I feel about buying meat yet. We went back to the airport and our luggage had still not arrived. We went out to eat and then went to the strip, which is a stretch of beach on the Caribbean that just has a lot of bars, at least ten in row. We met some more students and I was thinking how much my friends from Madison would love all these bars and the beach.
We were supposed to go to the beach, but because of the hurricane warning, we had to go shopping for hurricane supplies. So we picked up water and candles and extra food. Later, when we went to the airport, our luggage had finally arrived! I have never been so happy to take a shower. We went out to dinner and visited the strip again, but were home early.
Sunday morning we went to Shipwreck Beach. I'm told there are monkeys there that come and eat out of your hand. Fortunately, the monkeys were all hiding from the hurricane and i didn't have to see them. The water is so warm and salty so floating is easy. We swam and then laid on beach chairs on the black sand. Of course, SPF 50 sunscreen was not enough and I burnt, but not horribly. As the wind picked up, we had to leave the beach and headed to the Marriott to try to get a room because the power frequently goes out and they had generators. Unfortunately, there were no rooms available so we just swam in their pool until we headed back. Around 7, our orientation group all got together and the parents that were with us cooked dinner. We played card games and ate and drank and had a good time. It started raining and we hightailed it down the mountain back to our houses so we were ready for Hurricane Earl.
When I woke up this morning the hurricane was in full force. Everyone else in the group lost power and are probably still without power, but we never lost ours. I still have cable, internet and air conditioning. Hurricane Earl has moved north and the rain and wind are subsiding. We start orientation tomorrow. Unfortunately/Fortunately, the next tropical storm is set to hit us during the first week of school, so we'll see if we get more hurricane days.
Lots more to tell, but will write more later when I get the chance!
