Selfie Sunday: Family Visit Day 1

Saturday night my parents flew in, and after jumping the proverbial gun and waiting at the airport for over an hour, their bright smiling faces emerged from their day long journey across half the globe!

It was so wonderful to see them and know that they were all mine for almost a whole week. We hung out at my place while I rounded up some dinner and they gave me and Ross tons of goodies. It's pretty fun to be so spoiled. I think my absolute favorite was two WHOLE boxes of Samoa Girl Scout cookies.

Oh happiness!

I hope they weren't too nervous zooming around the awful roads, on the left side of the road, when it was completely dark out, but we got them situated in their hotel room and let them get some rest before our adventure packed week began.

My parents landed a pretty incredible hotel, thanks to their crazy clever travel agent. This HUGE staircase to their room really put the "grand" in "Grand Anse Beach Palace Hotel." The whole week we had fun joking about how grand it was

Sunday we met them at the hotel, which is just a stone's throw from the church building. We had a fun adventure and walked to church in the morning. We ooooo'd and ahhh'd at the beautiful view, but my parents are a little spoiled because they have almost the same exact view from their hotel room. Lucky ducks.

With these two, I was bound to have incredible looks.

After Church we made some lunch then headed up into the jungle. But not before dad and ali dipped their toes in the Caribbean Sea for the first time (just like Rissa, had to get photo evidence)!

I've mentioned it before, but Grand Etang is one of my favorite places on the island. It was fun to steal Ross away to chauffeur us up there.

The lady at the ticket booth gave me some attitude when I politely asked if we could get in for free because Ross was a student.
"No. Today, you pay."

I took my parents aside and told them it wasn't worth it to look at their crusty "museum." So we said never mind thank you very much. Then the lady got more attitude and was like "whatever, you are here, just go in."

Yes we will thanks.  Typical. 

So we spent two minutes looking at their crusty posters, spending a minute taking the perfect selfie for #selfiesunday. Oddly making it's debut here on a Tuesday #betterlatethannever.



Then we took a purposeful NEAT-ure walk. I love that we drove up from the west coast, but here is a view of the east coast.

It's been a bit windy lately, and on our walk we heard the bamboo clinking together like wind chimes. I tried to capture it.



After we gracious thanked the lady at the ticket booth with many smiles and kind words and headed to the lake to try our hand at, well, hand fishing. Thanks to my cool friend CeCe. I've kinda become obsessed with teaching others about hand fishing.

No fish catches today. I would day I am a horrible teacher... but instead I will say I take great selfies and my students aren't very serious. I mean, just look at these students.



My dad was absolutely thrilled to put his feet in and have the millions of fish chew off his dead skin. No joke, this was a bucket list. What a lucky guy that he didn't have to make a separate trip to Asia.

Our last stop was the Lance aux Epines tidepools.


























Ross and dad had a fun time poking around at the crabs. Getting some awesome neat-ure shots. Classic dad. We ended the day at my apartment. I probably made something for dinner. But I am pretty sure it involved snow-cones.



It was a full and fun day. As you can tell from my dad's dramatic face, it was pretty hot.

Low Battery: Change Battery Pack

As a society (read: Americans) I think we tend to take a lot of pictures. With social media running rampant, it is a must right?

A picture is worth a thousand words, they say; they said before Facebook ever existed.



Tonight I decided to go on a little walk to the close-by beach. Being a twenty-something in 2014, I took a photo capturing device.

 It was a short walk, but after a few beach shots I got that terrible, horrible, inevitable "low battery signal." The bane of the 21st Century.

A few more shots, and it was gone. "Change the battery pack."

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO.

I had to sit there on the beach surrounded by beauty, without having a single thing to show for it.



I sat in silence and just listened to the calm of the sea lapping against the sand. I watched the sky turn bight pink and light green. I saw the hues on the water, yellows, blues, I saw the last rays of sun play on the water. I saw the cliffs and houses turn to silhouettes. And I thought of how indescribable it all was.

We take pictures to share what we cannot describe in words.

I thought of how that is a lot like feelings. We cannot use words, but we want people to see us. We want people to understand us. We want to share so that, we don't feel so alone in this huge universe. Sometimes we get real close to accurately conveying it all. But a lot of times, it's hard with #nofilter.

That's my life right now #nofilter. This is all I got. And all I got is me. Here in Grenada, alone in my thoughts, with my battery running low. Daily, I feel like I won't make it. But I have these moments of perfect stillness in my unpredictable life where I have clarity. Moments where after the battery is dead, I still have lessons to learn. The sun will still set (beautifully) and rise again. Even if I have nothing to show for it.

SGU Campus Tour, Tidepools, and Lookout Point

Sunday, December 29th 2014

Sunday we went to church. Our church building is right on the sea. The beautiful white sands of Grand Anse beach end and its a bit rocky, that is where we go to church. It's a pretty beautiful view from the back hallway. It was probably a good idea that the chapel windows don't over look the sea because it would be distracting.

I think Rissa took some pictures with her camera. Ross and I are just spoiled so we didn't even think to bring the camera.

After church we fulfilled our Sabbath Day responsibility. Napping. That's my daily duty, but the responsibility is extra hefty on Sunday. When we had relaxed a little we moseyed over to campus to show Rissa where Ross lives and I work.

http://www.moderndaygilligan.com/2009/02/st_georges_university.html

Campus is pretty beautiful on the outside (yeah, that was kinda rude). It's a perfect setting and the bright oranges and blues are very complimentary. There is a reason why the school's promotional brochures catch everyone.

Featured in my lovely collage; Ross by his old locker, the bus stop, where I spend about a third of my life, me checking the mail (send me mail!), and the new paint job outside of Charter Hall.



Here we have the inside of a lecture hall where Ross typically spends 3 or 4 hours a day. The rest are pictures of the student center where they have a small (no TINY) convenience store, Subway, and some other places to eat including New York Bagles. Hopefully the people who make the signs aren't the same people who teach.

This is looking out from the student center, Charter Hall is on the left, Taylor Hall in the center-ish. A dorm there on the right.

We wandered to upper campus to DES where I work.



Lots of pretty views (and people) around campus!

A rare moment with Ross and I both on campus. 



It doesn't take long for a tour of campus, so after we headed to the tidepools in Lance aux Epines. Second to Grand Etang, I think this is Ross's favorite place in Grenada. It is always breezy out on the point with the tidepools.

I love the cacti! It seems so random that you could see beautiful, tropical bougainvillea then turn around and see prickly cacti.

We hung out for a while but decided that for the sunset we would go to lookout point for a better view.

Am I the only one who can't get over how beautiful my sister is? Lookout point is just a few minutes' drive from the tidepools. There is a lighthouse type thing. I always wonder what it's story is. It looks like someone is living/ squatting there now, but I wonder how it worked back in the day.

It was a perfect Sunday nice and chill. Watching the sunset was absolutely phenomenal. I still just cannot get enough of Rissa being here. It's the simple things, like watching the sunset with her, that make me so happy!

Christmas Stockings 2013 and Crab Fields

Wednesday, December 25th, 2013

Merry Christmas!

It has always been tradition in the Widdison family to wake up early and see what Santa brought for us. In a family of 6 kids, we would each get our own couch cushion space for presents. The night before we would make a a sign to put on the cushion and then when we woke up the next day our little space of heaven would be filled with presents!

Because we have no couch, this year everyone claimed their own tile square on the floor.

Rissa got a massage gift certificate and some nail polishes, Ross got some new clothes, and I got a new Kindle Fire!

Action Shot!

Charged and ready to go!

After we were done checking out what Santa brought, we went straight for the stockings. Turns out they were so full of goodies that the scotch tape didn't cut it anymore. 

I guess we were all really good this year because Santa gave us each our very own Peanut Cluster. Oh, what is a peanut cluster you ask? 

"This peanut lovers delight features a rich maple fondant center loaded with fresh roasted, hand selected peanuts and generously bathed in premium light chocolate."

They are pretty delicious, and there is a funny story I'll have to explain later.

Christmas is always a pretty lazy day, and I love how it always seems to last forever, but it also ends too soon. Since it was still pretty early in the land where our families live, we took a field trip when there was a break in the rain to the nearby Crab Fields.

Yep, that is a capital "C" and a capital "F," because it's a proper noun.

But even before we got the the field, we saw some little guys chillin in the nice humid air. If you look real close you can see there are just tons.



A little closer...



And here we are at the crab fields.



It's hard to see in this picture, but all those little mounds are from the holes/ homes they have made.



Here is a super close look at the little nuggets. We found the largest and meanest looking crab of the bunch and called him Davey Jones, because I am 99% sure that is some barnacle business growing up on his claw.



Rissa took a video too.

On our walk back Rissa was pretty impressed by all the colorful flowers. I too easily forget that so much of the U.S. is currently dead and cloaked in white snow. I also learned that Bougainvilleas are Riss's favorite! 

Accidental NEAT-ure Walk!

Saturday (12/21)- The adventure never ends!

Days like this, I can see how people like Grenada. But that is because with me not working, and Ross not in school, and endless amounts of government loan money repay-able at 9% interest (joke), we can be tourists. 

I've been pretty crabby lately because I just want Rissa to be here! She left this morning, but won't be here until Sunday evening. The suspense is killing me! I think in an effort to distract me, and get out of the house, Ross and I headed to the tidepools here in Lance aux Epines. I've been there plenty of other times. I blogged about it twice before, here and here. 

It's one of my favorite places. There is always a breeze, and you are on a little peninsula so you are surrounded by ocean and crashing waves. And besides 800 used condoms, there is no one else ever out there. 

It's no Leo Carillo, but maybe I like the spot because it reminds me of home. My family would always always go to the tidepools, field guide in hand, and climb around looking for animals and creatures in the rocks.

Above is a different view, looking out towards Hog Island, that big greenish lump you see in the center-leftish. Beyond that I think is Secret Harbor and Calivingy.

As you can see, if gets a little windy out there! So of course Ross is a big fan of the place. 

We just hung out and watch the huge waves crash on the rocks.

There was this little spot where the waves would wash into this crevice and create a kind of geyser. 

We noticed a ton of little crabs scurrying along the rocks. I don't think they thought it was as fun to watch the huge waves crash on the rocks have huge waves annihilate them. 

 Happy kid loves the sea! And probably the sea water mist on his face.

 The water was actually very clear today.

The storm clouds and rain were coming and going, it couldn't decide if it wanted to rain or pour. I didn't mind, because we stayed relatively dry.

When the clouds looked too much to take we took cover under a few trees, then eventually headed back home. Little did we know, we were in for a Neat-ure Walk!

Please watch one of my favorite videos on all of YouTube (and thanks to Ali and Cass for showing it to me)!

"Without a doubt, coming out into nature is one of the coolest things to do!"

"Oh! SCORE!" And iguana. Or as the locals say, an "iguanhur!"

These are for you daddy! My dad has been wanting a picture of an iguana since I told him there was one that lived at my old place. We would find him in the tree, or out sunbathing between the banana trees. 

This is Ross saying, 

I don't know why it looks so minuscule in that shot.

"That's pretty NEAT!" 

After walking a little bit we saw this bird just bobbing on a bouy. Ross didn't think it was real.

"This is a pelican, you can tell it is a pelican from the way it is!"

That was the extent of the cool wildlife. I say that because, who knows how many other bugs and birds and neatness we passed by without even knowing it?! All I know is,

"Not too often do you get all this neatness in one location!" 

HAPPY TRAILS!

University Club (The Freedom Continues)

The second day of Freedom and it still isn't getting old. I mentioned in my previous post that grades were finally released today. I think that is when it really hit Ross that he was DONE. It feels so good to hear the students talking about "pharm" and "ICM" (two fifth term classes) and know that is US! I know that the next few months will fly by, and honestly, I am okay with that. I will miss the good things in Grenada, but at this point, the lows are so low that the good times just aren't worth it.

I digress. 

Last night I finally got around to making some refried beans. After spending a long and devastating year in Grenada without fresh refried beans, I packed down a few pounds of peruano beans in my luggage this time. Man, when those beans are made up, I did not regret a single ounce of that luggage space. Worth it!

Today I had to go to a meeting on campus for a research project I am working on next term. It was short and sweet and I got to see my really amazing friend John. He is one of those people who can just change your whole day for the better by seeing him. 

I came home after the meeting to see Ross frying up some fresh tortilla chips from scratch. He asked me if I was proud of him, knowing his way around Maseca like a pro. Pretty good considering when we first met he couldn't even fold a burrito. 

That afternoon Ross and I headed to the University Club, which, I guess I have never blogged about. It's a fancy place the school owns, where they put up visiting professors. They have a fancy restaurant, bar, pool, and a fakie creepy-sand beach. It's a fun place to go to relax and enjoy a picturesque Caribbean setting.

We swam for a little bit, and collected some shells. Ross convinced me to play bocce ball. Here he is, pretty proud of this round he won. 

It's great to be able to just hang out and do whatever we want whenever we want to do it. Definitely my style!