Eating Mangoes Over the Kitchen Sink...

Having Friday off, not because of Cholera as I expected but probably more along the lines of severe indigestion-slash-heat exhaustion, I was entitled to a three-day weekend. Needless to say I was spent on Friday and spent most of my time in bed and then doing laundry, so I was ready to venture on Saturday. Genevieve was unavailable for our usual market strut because she was leading an orientation for the free English classes she gives in St Marc. So, at breakfast I tagged along with Patrick who was going into St Marc to go to the bank. The bank in St Marc, and I'll go ahead and assume in the rest of Haiti as well, is like the DMV only without numbers. The wait, and disconcern for your human nature is the same. Afterwards we sauntered to the market in St Marc. I hadn't been here for awhile and I only say 'sauntered' because the sun was beginning to make it's mark. Earlier in the morning I fluffed my feathers and thought, "I can go to the market alone, I speak French, I've been before, I can do it." And, no. Especially in St Marc where Creole is the norm and French does only lend itself to those who could afford to learn it. I bought papayas to make more fruit leather, always avocadoes, and found a new character, a man selling machetes that he casually (Patrice) slung across his body. I let him make way through the throngs; followed him through the mosh pit. We found a moto and came back to the school. I only got to pit one of the papaya's, one was horribly over-ripe to the point that the seeds were grey. So, I did get ripped off in that sense. So, this morning I asked the chef in the cafeteria here how to tell when a papaya is ripe. No more of that nonsense. The fruit leather I started yesterday morning is still in the oven. Either I mixed something wrong or the power really has been fluctuating that much this weekend; I say the power, but that's just me.

We came back, got lunch and went straight to Montruis. Patrice had gone yesterday with Marc Andre (not Anthony as I would have liked to have believed) during his bike lesson. Everyone here knows someone who knows someone who is a property manager for a "beach front property". So, we rode in on Marc Andre's coattails (kind of literally, we were on his bike for about a 30 minute ride, yes about 50-60 mph, open road, no helmet, God is with us...) and strode into an amazing property. The house was idyllic. I knew at that moment if I could live there, I would never leave. It is owned by a couple who live in Port-au-Prince and rarely come on the weekends, leaving it open to...us! There was even a pool that was said could be filled for 500 Gourdes, or, I'm estimating here, around $12. Not bad. I found mangoes on the way in, we bought some cold Prestige and were set. We stayed until the sunset.  Montruis is my favorite beach so far because the shoreline is really rocky and covered in sea urchins (Chacos, best invention EVER!) and coral and fish so tons to see. We walked around the cove and stumbled upon Indigo Bay, which is a private resort on the coast. It was a stark, stark difference to what we know so far in Haiti. I thought, imagine coming here and this is your only idea of Haiti, obscene. So, we stole a chair, bought some coconuts and pretended we were there too; until we got kicked out. Fine, we can swim for free, in the same ocean, about 500 yards away. We also figured out a way to get on the salt boats that skim the coast and end up in Port-au-Prince. They're gorgeous and remind me of Somalian pirate boats--at least the photos I've seen. I'm dying to go down the coast on one.

We finally made it back to school in the dark and grabbed our saved plates from the cafeteria. On our way back, we came upon a parade of sorts. The St Marc soccer team had just won their league standing. I felt like I was riding through the reports you see on TV, uncontrolled people in dark streets, gas torches shooting into the night sky, random people screaming, "blanc! blanc!". I thought it was the end. And I was just on the back of a bike! Luckily I was on the back of Marc Andre's bike and everything was fine; still alive Mom!

Today I woke up early, put laundry in and made coffee at home!! Ah, the little things. After breakfast I cleaned the lot of shells we collected in the beach in the washing machine (don't tell anyone) and cleaned a trashy corner in our house. Somehow this house 'accumulates' things from previous inhabitants. Nothing is thrown out because: they don't know whose it is, it was here when they got here, or I think she's coming back next year. Vunderbar, I'm throwing it away. In the midst of all that I found business envelopes I needed, more stickers for the kids I needed, Bananagrams which I was craving to play (already started Doran and Sumpter!), a FAN that WORKS, and....snorkling masks and flippers! What!! Which is what I've been dying for at Montruis. So, chalk it up, great day, finished by digging into those mangoes over the sink (cutting like Cheatham!). Tasty devils. Here's hoping your Sunday was as equally rewarding and fantastic!