Namatanai - Part 5 Sleep, Spiders, Lizards, and Earthquakes

I’ve been known to talk in my sleep and occasionally I even go for a stroll and do silly things like collect picture frames from around the house, have a snack, or curl up on the bathroom rug only to wake up wondering why I soberly chose to sleep on the bathroom floor.  Unfortunately for Belinda, she got to experience my sleeping habits first hand.  Let me preface this story with a few crucial details.  Their house is surrounded by a chain link fence that has barbed wire at the top and the entrance/exit is locked with a pad lock each night.  When people do come to the house they either tap on the fence with a key making a loud noise or yell “Doctor, Belinda, Doctor, Belinda” from the gate until one of them comes out.  Now, onto the story.  About 2am one night I wake to Belinda yelling “Name belong you?” about 7 octaves higher than her normal voice and then it registers someone’s knocking on the door which is why she’s asking in Pigin who’s there.  Then, it dawns on me that I’m sitting up in bed knocking on the wall.  With Belinda continuing to ask “Name belong you?” in a panicked voice I, still half asleep, realize I need to tell her it’s me.  It took me a moment to consider how to tell her it’s me so she stops freaking out but I can’t stop knocking because that would require doing two things at once, which was impossible in my half-conscious stupor.  I can’t just yell “it’s me” because that means nothing and she still wont know who it is so I decided on “It’s me, Tawny.”  Belinda thought I was offering to answer the door making her even more panicked.  At this point I’ve informed her I’m the one knocking and can now direct my focus toward stopping my hand from pounding on the wall.  I then clarify I’m the one knocking and no one has breached the secure premises and we’re all safe.  Since then, “Name belong you?” has become a running joke and I can’t ask anyone what their name is without hearing Belinda in a very high pitched, alarmed tone ask “Name belong you?”  Melanie was fortunate enough to sleep through all of this.  Lucky lady.

Belinda, with the help of Melanie, got me back.  Well, after their little prank I’m calling it even.  Both girls were outside with the pig watching it run around the yard and I was in the house keeping busy.  I didn’t realize they’d come inside until I heard them calling me to come into the bathroom.  For whatever reason I thought they’d brought the pig in side and it was in the bath.  A weird thing to think, I know, but for whatever reason I the 2 seconds I had to think about it that was the reason I came up with to explain why they were both in the bathroom and asking me to join.  I walk in and look at the tub.  No pig.  Then, on the outside of the tub I see a GIANT spider.  By far the largest spider I have ever seen in my life.  Of course, whist piddling my pants, I screamed in terror and when Belinda pushed me an inch closer to the spider I screamed some more and then bolted out of the bathroom as fast as I could while they both laughed hysterically.  They then left the bathroom and went on to start cooking dinner WITHOUT REMOVING THE SPIDER as though there weren’t still a giant freaking spider still on the bath tub.  Like any sane person I freaked out about this and begged them to kill it or at the very least take the spider outside.  Belinda refused to touch it and Melanie said the spider was fine and would find it’s way out… uhhh, yeah, after devouring half of my foot in my sleep I’m sure it would let itself out!  The thought of sleeping in the bedroom across the hall from the bathroom where the spider was or anywhere in the house knowing there was a massive spider lurking about calling all it’s homies inviting them to come feast was enough to make me assume the fetal position and start bawling my eyes out.  Ok, so that’s a little dramatic.  I did not assume the fetal position because when I considered it all I could think about was the spider sneaking up on me and having a snack.  I did, however, start bawling my eyes out.  Irrational, I know, but some thing you just can’t be controlled and my irrational fear of spiders is one of them.  I attribute it to my parents allowing me to watch “Arachnophobia” as a small child (point mom and dad).  That’s one of those things you can never come back from.  After a good, long laugh Melanie removed the spider and freed it in the backyard while I remained locked in my room to ensure no funny business with the captured spider occurred.  Not sure if you could tell, but I’m not so much a fan of the arachnids, not in the least bit.  At this point I felt I still owed Belinda a good scare, but I was willing to agree to a truce. 

It only has 7 legs... my mom pointed that out to me

A 20 Kina note is the same size as a dollar bill...
just so you know exactly how big this beast was

I stuck to my truce, however, the universe conspired against Belinda by means of a terrified gecko.  The cat proudly came into the house to show off the lizard she’d just caught.  Of course, her 2 moms and auntie were not so proud of this.  Once the cat realized she was about to lose her prize she darted off down the hall and into Belinda’s room.  I grabbed the kitty and freed the gecko, which then proceeded to find a hiding spot in Belinda’s room in hopes of evading the cat.  Belinda used a cloth to pick up the gecko and carefully took it outside.  When she attempted to free the gecko onto the banister it jumped onto her and ran up her shirt toward her face causing a shreek that was similar to the one that escape me when I saw the spider.   This sent me into a fit of laughter and I of course, reenacted the event and laughed some more before picking up the gecko and putting it in the yard.  I feel like we’re even now.

I also had another scare that came in the form of an earthquake.  I have never experienced an earthquake before.  I was sitting in the house on my computer when the entire house started shaking.  I thought this to be quite curious so I walked out into the front yard and inquired about the shaking house.  Melanie and Belinda both informed me it was an earthquake (I’m a little slow at time) and not to go back inside. 

And there you have it, I lived through my own attack on the house I was staying in, a giant spider, and an earthquake.  It’s pretty dangerous stuff here in PNG but I like to live life on the wild side.

Namatanai - Part 4 Kokopo

Melanie, Belinda, and I took a weekend vacation (it’s silly to call it a vacation because everyday here feels like one) to Kokopo which is a town on the East New Britain province.  It was about a 20 minute PMV (Public Motor Vehicle) ride to the West Coast of the island then about a 2 ½ hour boat ride to East New Britain.  The boat we road over in was a banana boat with no seats.  They put a plastic crate down and some of us sat on that while other people sat on the bottom of the boat.  This doesn’t sound so bad, right?  Well, in calm water I suppose it wouldn’t have been bad at all, but with the water just a slight bit choppy it was a rather unpleasant feeling for my boney bum. 

6 am on the PMV (Public Motor Vehicle) heading to the boat

Holding on for dear life while my bum turns black and blue

Melanie and Belinda definitely got better seats 

Kokopo was lovely.  We stayed with a friend of Melanie and Belinda’s named Chris.  They met while diving about a month before and he and his wife extended an invite to stay with them any time they wanted.  It’s funny how that works here.  I had about a 10 minute conversation with Melanie before I was invited to come to stay with them.  Their friend was a lovely host and his house not only had air conditioning AND a hot shower, but it also had a TV.  Wahoo!  We definitely took full advantage of that and watched a couple TV shows and a movie. One of the highlights of the trip was eating food you can’t get in Namatanai or Kavieng.  In the picture below you can see what we had for breakfast the first morning there… meat pies, french fries, garlic bread, donuts, and a butterfinger… nom nom nom.

The breakfast of champions.

The second day in Kokopo we went to a resort called Rapopo and got a massage and lounged by the pool drinking cocktails.  I’ve been introduced to Lemon Lime and Bitters and am hooked.  Apparently it’s a popular drink in Australia and I completely understand why… Dee-lish! We got the massages for a killer deal! They had a special for volunteers and instead of paying 100 Kina it was only 50 Kina (about $25) for an hour-long massage.  And it was amazing!  One of the best massages I’ve ever had. 

After our afternoon message and lounging Chris took us for a drive to watch the sunset over Rabaul.  Rabaul is the town next to Kokopo and has an active volcano.  The last time it erupted was either in 1994 or 1996, I can’t remember what I was told.  The view of Rabaul was lovely and though we missed the sunset Chris joined in a game of “chop the stick with a machete” with a couple local kids.  How the game works – 1) stick machete in ground 2) find long stick 3) hold stick like baseball bat 4) hit machete with stick as though it were a baseball while your friends stand in the “outfield” and attempt to catch the piece of stick that was chopped off 5) repeat steps 1-4.

Beyonce pose in front of Rabaul

Chris playing with the kiddos

While out shopping one day we came across some small pillows.  I immediately thought of the boat ride back to Namatanai and proceeded to purchase one.  Obviously, since I purchased a pillow to sit on for the ride home the seas were completely calm thus making the pillow obsolete.  And even though I applied 70 spf suncreen about 20 minutes before getting on the boat I still managed to get burnt during the 2 hour ride.  Fail.  Sometimes genetics just can’t be conquered.

We liked Kokopo so much we got a cake that said it and
took it to dinner at some other expats house

Coca-Cola "Nothing like the real thing"... uhhh I'm not sure the sign says it all.  And in fact, it doesn't.  There is oversea Coke and PNG made Coke.  PNG made Coke put up this sign to say that overseas made Coke is nothing like the real thing.  Chris works for Coke and explained this all to us.

Namatanai Part 3 - When Not Catching Babies

When not busy playing Doctor T-Dog (T-Dog is what Melanie and Belinda have taken to calling me) I helped out around the hospital doing a few other jobs.  AusAid delivered over 100 boxes of medicines and supplies a while ago.  I’ve been helping unpack and organize those boxes in the medicine dispensary and the storeroom.

Part of the dispensary

Another random odd job I recently did was making a stencil of a cross and “emergency” to spray paint on the emergency room door.  Nothing in the hospital is clearly labeled with the exception of the morgue.  I will say if any building should have a clear label it should be the morgue.  That's one building I would not want to accidentally wander into when looking for the paeds ward or the outpatient building.  Now, after my handy work and help from Belinda, the emergency room is clearly labeled.   I also helped Belinda put up a shelf in the emergency room.

Me teaching Belinda the art of tagging

The finished product

The mini shelf we installed in the ER to house the needles and other various things

Back to playing Doctor… Melanie asked if I wanted to help apply a cast on a broken leg and I, naturally replied, “Hell to the yeah!”  Apparently a woman walked… I repeat WALKED into the hospital with a broken tibia AND fibula.  I’m not sure if you’re aware of this, but that’s not just a broken leg, it’s a REALLY broken leg and the woman WALKED in.  Not sure if you got how hard core ladies are here, but if you missed that in a previous blog let me state it again.  Women here are HARD. CORE.  She’d been waiting several days to receive a cast and Belinda and I got to be Doctor Melanie’s nurses and helped apply it.  While applying the cast the woman grimaced but other than that she didn’t make a peep or shed a tear.  Considering I’ve never had a broken bone (knock on wood I continue that streak because PNG is not the place to break a bone) I had no idea how easy casts are to apply. 

One afternoon Belinda showed me how to give a malaria test.  After watching one she said "Ok, have at it.  I'll be in the store room if you need me."  Uhhhh, talk about baptism by fire.  It was mostly children who needed them but there were also some adults.  The reaction of the kids was mixed.  Those who knew what to expect cried and screamed before I even got out the finger pricker.  Others walked up curious with a finger extended having no idea what was to come.  After pricking their finger and taking a blood sample the reaction was pretty much all the same... a look of "What the heck was that for you crazy lady?!" followed by lots of tear.  Needless to say, I only did one day of malaria testing.  I prefer to be liked by the kiddos at the hospital rather than receive glares as I walked by.

Want to draw a crowd in PNG?  Give a white lady a malaria kit.

Look at the evil glares from the kids.

   

Another task checked off the “To-Do” list was a fundraiser for the hausik (hospital).  Old equipment and miscellaneous items were collected from around the hospital and then taken to the market one Saturday morning to be sold to whomever desired to purchase the hospital’s junk.  There were quite a few people who wanted it, especially the beds (they were unused), because we managed to raise over 2,000 Kina for the hospital.  Wahoo! 

I was the boss lady who collected all the money.  I needed a 
place to hold the money and what better a box than a 
"Lubricated Condoms" box (the hospital was giving out 
condoms among other things like skin creams and 
de-worming tablets).

Don't have an umbrella?  Just grab a chair!  Works just as well,
if not better because when you feel like having a rest you can then sit on it.

Everything not sold had to be sent back up to the hospital.  The number of things stacked
 on things stacked on things reminded me of the movie "Beverly Hill Billies."

Yes, that kid on the left stood just like that holding things in place the entire way to the hospital.  I chose a safe seat on NEXT to, not on, the tailgate and held on for dear life.  One pot hole could have made for a very bad day.

Namatanai - Part 2 Doctor Tawny

I. DELIVERED. A. BABY!  Ok, so I didn’t do it single handedly… well, I didn’t really deliver the baby, but I did help catch the baby after it was born which was AMAZING!  I walked into the delivery room and the nurse asked how many babies I’ve delivered to which I replied “Ummmm none.”  The nurse then nonchalantly asked “Ok, will you be delivering this one?”  Yeah, no I’m going to sit this one out and see how the whole birthing thing works, but no worries I’m a quick learner, I got the next one.  So the first birth I laid low and scoped things out.  I was surprised by a number of things which I will not go into detail here, but I will say one thing… There is a designated “Splash Zone” in a delivery room and said “Splash Zone” was not clearly marked and I happened to be standing in it… twice.  Also, women who give birth are legit!  I have a whole new respect for moms.  Especially here.  Imagine being in a hospital without power or running water and it’s 90 degrees outside and 90% humidity AND no drugs… that’s what women do on the daily here.  These ladies don’t mess around.  They don’t really have another choice, but that certainly doesn’t go against them on the 1-to-legit scale.

So, the first birth I assisted in I rubbed the woman’s back and fanned her with a piece of cloth.  About 30 minutes in my arms started to get really tired and I took a short break.  Momma was not having it.  She looked at me and started fanning herself urging me to continue.  Then I thought about what this mother was going through and I had no right to complain about my burning biceps so I continued to fan her.  About 3 minutes after the birth finished momma was up and walking out of the delivery room.  Really, these ladies are HARD. CORE.  After baby was born I got to clean him off and hold him until mom was all cleaned up and ready for him.  I asked momma for a picture with the baby afterward and she agreed.  Below is me and the lovely baby boy who was not too happy about the “cold”, bright room he was forced to enter.

Belinda calls all the newborns Ewoks because that's what they all look like.

Since then I’ve helped with 7 other births.  Doctor Melanie gave me free range to watch and help with whatever I can which is super rad considering I could never do any of this in The States.  Things here are much different though.  I have CPR and First Aid training and a crash course on infant resuscitation Melanie gave which is as much, if not more than the majority of the hospital staff.  They obviously have more experience than I do, but very little training.  And considering the hospital has no power there is very little that can be done beyond basic measures to keep someone alive.  What an amazing experience it has been to help welcome these babies into the world.  Shout out to Doctor Melanie and “Doctor” Belinda for making it possible.

And when there aren't any babies to catch I am not above going into the paed's ward and finding one who looks like they need a cuddle... and by that I do mean whichever baby looks at me without screaming because I'm a scary white lady is the lucky one to get some snuggle.

Tell me this kid does not look desperate for a white lady cuddle and relieved to have
been pried from its mother's arms to get one. 

Namatanai - Part 1

The next few blogs are all going to be about a trip to Namatanai where I stayed with two sisters, Melanie and Belinda, for 3 weeks.  Instead of write one really long blog I’ve decided to write several short stories in no chronological order.

Melanie is a doctor and Belinda is a construction manager and both are here volunteering at the Namatanai Hospital.  They invited me down to stay with them and help out in the hospital.  We never really discussed how much time I’d spend with them so I packed enough clothing for a week… and 3 weeks later I finally made my way home.  They have an adorable kitty, cleverly named Kitty Cat (aka Chiger… she is striped like a tiger with a spotted belly like a cheetah), who’s quite charming until about 4:30-5:00 in the morning when she decides it’s a great time to play and then attacks your feet through the mosquito net waking you in a panic thinking you worst childhood nightmare is coming true and you’re about to be pulled out of bed by your feet.  Yeah, the first morning was a bit of a shock.

Belinda with Kitty Cat on her lap and Melanie petting Lightning

Kitty Cat's spotted belly

The lovely Kitty Cat modeling in the grass

In addition to a kitty they also have a pig named Lightning McQueen because she has racing stripes.  If you thought Maroru was my only pig friend you would be wrong.  She is adorable and follows Belinda around like a little puppy dog and greets Melanie at the gate when she comes home for lunch with lots of excited snorts and the occasion dog bark.  Like Maroru, Lightning also enjoys a good belly rub.  Kitty Cat is not so sure about Lightning evidenced by the skeptical look she’s giving the pig in the photo below.  Kitty Cat often finds a nice, discrete spot to watch the pig.  Any time the pig is out all mischief comes to a skreetching halt and Kitty Cat watches pigs every move.  We spent many-a-hours watching the cat and the pig run around the yard.  Who needs a TV when you’ve got hilarious animals to watch?

Cuddling Lightning

Kitty not so sure about the pig

Lightning enjoys toes as an afternoon snack

Kitty at the top of the stairs watching the pig

Pig also enjoys snacking on clothing

These stare downs occur often and usually end with the pig bulldozing Kitty

The generator that provides power to the town broke which means there is no power at the house unless the hospital generator is on (their house is connected to the hospital’s generator).  This is great except for the fact that the hospital needs diesel in order run the generator and diesel is in short supply here so the generator doesn’t spend much time on.  With no power that means the electrical pump for the water supply to the house doesn’t work.  But there is a hand pump so we’re still able to get water at the house.  In order to shower it would take lots of hand pumps… no bueno.  So for showering we’ve been going to local was-was (wash-wash) holes and bathing in fresh water streams where the locals bathe.  The water is really cold which is suuuper nice after a hot day of sweating and no air condition which happens to be everyday here, but I’m not complaining.  I loved it there and thoroughly enjoyed showering in streams, making dinner by candlelight and flashing lights, and watching a cat and a pig for evening entertainment.

Was-was at a lovely river 

18 people in a 10 seater on our way to was-was... the day before we had 22 on the trip home,
 but only 20 on the way there... hmmmmm

Halice which is where we went was-was the most because it's close to the house 

Belinda brought a beach ball to play with which was a hit

The beautiful Sohun

If you can't find me I'm the glowing figure on the right

Have you ever seen a prettier bath tub?

I'm On A Boat

Go ahead, sing it.  You know you want to… “I’m on a boat!  I’m on a mighty large boat!”  Okay, so those aren’t the actual words, but I don’t know who’s reading this blog so that's my edited version.

I received a phone call from a friend asking if I wanted a cooking lesson.  You see, I’m good at many things but when it comes to the kitchen, well, my skills are lacking.  I’m learning, but many-a-things still manage to get burnt or end up tasting a bit off if I cook them without supervision.  And cooking here is a bit different for me as well. First of all, I don’t have the internet at home so consulting the all knowing Google is not an option when I’m in a crunch.  Secondly, to get to the market I’d have to ride my bike about 4 miles each way to get any ingredients I don’t have at the house.  And, last of all, I’m not sure what the markets do and don’t have yet so I’d hate to make that trek only to find out what I need is not on the shelves.  Oh and appliances are a bit different too.  The temperature is in Celsius and you have to click a switch to turn on the outlet before turning on the appliance.  This is something I’d forgotten the first time I went to use the stove.  After 15 minutes of trying desperately to turn on the stove and failing I decided to scratch the pumpkin soup I was attempting and just make rice in a rice cooker for dinner.  I’m a pro at making rice… put rice in cooker, add water, flip switch, and presto about 15 minutes later you have rice. 

Back to the original story.  I received a call from a friend asking if I wanted a cooking lesson.  She knows cooking is not one of my strengths.  I eagerly accepted because she’s a phenomenal cook and I’ll love to learn a couple of her tricks.  Then she admitted she was hosting a dinner that evening on her boat and needed help preparing it.  It was a win-win for both of us.  She got an extra hand in the kitchen and I learned how to make a couple new dishes… and then eat them.  I like food.  I like food a lot.

On the way to her house I asked what we were to be making only to hear her stress-FREE reply of “Oh, I’m not quite sure yet.”  Even when I know exactly what I’m cooking I’m a basket case.  I envy people who can throw things together last minute to make a beautiful meal without much thought.  I hope to be that kind of person one day, but am not counting on it.

We started with chopping an unripe paw paw (papaya) to make Green Paw Paw Salad.  You have to Julienne and entire paw paw, a couple tomatoes, a couple red peppers, and green onions.  Then for the sauce it’s honey, lime juice, olive oil, and fish sauce.  You toss it all together then add roasted peanuts on top.  This was delicious!!!  I’ve made it again at home since and got rave reviews.  If ever paw paw were the ingredient to use on Iron Chef I’d certainly win with this salad.  Yes, it is that delicious!

In addition to this Green Paw Paw Salad I also helped with a Thai Beef Salad. It was nice to have Thai Beef Salad and to learn how to make it.  I love, love, love, Thai food and after only a month here I miss it already.  We also made crab cakes.  That was basically all I helped with.  It doesn’t sound like much but all of that chopping took about 3 hours.  As for the rest of the dinner, we had lobster tails, fresh Mackerel that was caught that afternoon by a couple other guests who attended the dinner, the best oysters I’ve ever had, brown rice with green beans, chick peas, and corn, a vegetable medley with roast potatoes, carrots, some kind of greens, onions, and whole mini garlic pods (I’m not sure what a bundle of garlic cloves is called), homemade pizza, some kind of chicken dish, and sashimi Mackerel, I believe.

Dinner on the boat was delicious.  There was good food, good company, and dolphins swimming round the boat with a beautiful moonrise as the backdrop.  It was a lovely evening, a lovely evening indeed.

The whole table

Crab cakes, Thai Beef Salad, and Sashimi

Pizza and Chicken

Veggies and Green Paw Paw Salad

Rice dish and Thai Beef Salad... again :)

Tid Bits

For starter, I've heard a few complaints that people were not able to make comments.  Since I’m new to the world of blogging I’m quite clueless about it, but I did go into the setting and changed it so everyone can comment which is something I was not aware that I needed to do.  Long story short anyone can now make comments if they’d like to.

Secondly, there is still no start date for the sanitation project but last I heard it will start this summer sometime around July.  Until then I’m just hanging out and keeping busy.

So here’s all the tid bits of my life in the last week or so…

I did not go to the West Coast as planned because another opportunity came up to go to Rabaul (in East New Britain province), but that fell through.  I’ll make my way to the West Coast to catch up with Monica and GIlmay at some point in the near future.  I did, however, go to the market and sell buai. Lucy, the woman I sold buai with, made me introduce myself in Pigin to every person who approached the table.  She then explained to all the ladies around us that I wanted to learn Pigin and they joined in on it.  I was made to introduce myself to more people than I can remember.  One man asked how much the buai was then he asked how much for me.  Lucy told him 20,000 Kina (1 Kina is about 50 cents USD).  I was very upset by this and corrected her by telling the man my bride price was 5 million Kina.  Everyone got a kick out of that except his wife who walked up and introduced herself with a half amused half annoyed tone.  Oops!  Below is a picture of Bongo at the market selling buai.  Now, the back story of Bongo.  At my surprise going away party my uncle and Papa gave me Bongo and said to take pictures with him everywhere I go.  Pictures of Bongo will end up on the blog periodically.  It’s grown into a bit of a project and I’ve been told to write children’s books of Bongo’s adventures… we’ll see about that.

In hopes of becoming more independent I purchased a bike.  It’s a single speed, back peddle breaks bicycle… fancy, I know.  On my first ride the peddle fell off just as I was pushing down on it.  This led to a bit of a fall, but thankfully other than a bit of soreness I escaped unscathed.  While walking the rest of the way into town with my bike rolling along next to me a man asked if I needed help.  He then went and got the tools needed to fix the bike and not only put my peddle back on, but he also tightened the other peddle and my seat to ensure I did not have any problems with them in the future.  I offered to pay him, but he refused.  The bike worked great after that for about 4 days and then I went to ride it into town again.  Just as I got off the deck and out onto the driveway it began raining so I turned around and went back to the deck until the rain subsided.  Then just as I got off the deck a second time and out onto the driveway my chain locked making it impossible to peddle.  Once again I returned to the deck.  Apparently the chain of my new bike needs grease. So I hitched a ride into town.  A few days later I had my chain greased and all was well… that is, until I went to ride it.  The chain locked again and after a different man on the side of the road fixed it I went to peddle away and the plastic peddle broke in half.  Thankfully there was a small metal peg sticking out that worked as a peddle and I was able to make it home on my bike.  So much for my attempt at independence.

Last time I was here I made it 2 months without being eaten alive by mosquitoes.  This time I have not been so lucky.  I was using mosquito coils at night which produce a smoke that deters mosquitoes, but I was having some problems with my asthma and decided between the smoke and the cat, the smoke I could get rid of and thus began my search through the house for a mosquito net.  I found it and went to set it up but the rope connected to each corner was too short and thus began the search for rope, twine, yarn, something to suspend my mozzie net.  Nada.  I couldn’t find anything that would work until I came across a box of paperclips.  That’s right folks in true MacGyver style I fashioned myself a rope of paperclips and it has worked spectacularly.  Take that mozzies!  Haven’t had a bite since… well, I haven’t gotten bitten AT NIGHT since then.  Unfortunately, I can’t walk around in the safety of my mesh cage to avoid mosquitoes.

A group of expat moms asked me to teach their children sign language.  For the last two Wednesdays I’ve gotten together with the kids and have attempted to teach them American Sign Language.  It’s a bit difficult because the kids range in age from 19 months to about 11 or 12 and it’s basically playtime with me teaching them the signs for whatever they’re doing.  It takes me back to my preschool days.  I’ve been asked by a couple of the moms to work one-on-one with their kids rather than a group setting which I think would be far more beneficial for the learning process, but they’ll lose the social part of it. 

I think the last thing I have to share is the most incredible sunset I’ve seen.  Last week I went with some friends to Nusa Island (about a 3 minute boat ride form where I’m at… it’s super close) to have lunch and hang out on the beach for the afternoon.  On the way back we witnessed the most amazing sunset I’ve ever seen.  The sky closest to the sun was the most brilliant shades of yellow and orange and as the sky shifted away from the sun the colors became vibrant pinks and purples.  The whole sky was alight with various colors.  Then, as if that were brilliant enough, three dolphins popped out of the water with the sunset as their backdrop.  THEN, they swam up to the bow of the boat and led us part way up to the dock.  In-credible!  Nothing more to say than that… incredible!