Friday, June 25, 2010

Hellos, goodbyes, and some good times in between

This entry is a sandwich.

A fun sandwich, with the bun made of hellos and goodbyes.

Above we have Kai with three of his buddies, one afternoon at the pier. These boys are all from the Dominican Republic. For some reason they have decided to watch Kai's back at school. Although they don't spend time with him at school, they call him "Primo" (cousin). We think it is because although he is not one of them, he is a cousin to them. The resemblance is striking.

But wait, back up the bus...I am getting ahead of myself.

Hello #1 :

Ok, here is a photo of a group of our visitors. We are posing with a display of what 20 guilders can buy at the local bakery (sodium free)**Front: Emily, scratching her chin before the feast, Moi, Henry, my nephew

Back row: model Connely Packard, the everlovely Frances, and Allison with baby Isabelle (Allison is Frances' sister in law).

**dutch law requires all island bakeries to bake salt -free. This is due to high numbers of hypertension and diabetes and the cost involved in treating the people. Hmm.


Hello #2:

No party is complete without Kathy. Arriving from New York, Kathy joined us for a few days. On top is the adorable Poeske, begging for a ride on the dune buggy

St. Kitts in the background at botanical gardens.

Q. How many people can fit into this 5 person Jeep Cherokee?

  • A. 10 persons, 2 boogie boards, 1 surfboard and a turtle floaty

  • Fact: no seatbelts required on Statia

Introducing Allison to Zeelandia

Homeis of Statia. Yo, for real.

With Frances about to go back to the states after 6 months with us, Henry will take her place for a couple of months. Charles now has 3 teenagers to torture him and drive him to behave like a wild, trapped animal daily. Commence the daily prisoner beatings.Sophia gets practice babysitting little Isabelle, who as a matter of fact, hardly cried or fussed the whole trip. She was a great baby.

Boys looking for the white whale.

Zsa Zsa and stylist



***Now for the sandwich middle***

No blog would be complete without the fine dining of Smoke Alley and a party

While we are all sitting down getting ready to order drinks...


A certain 5 year old takes matters into his own hands and is caught at the bar ordering his own drink and a straw from the bartender. We were relieved that he ordered something non-achoholic. Did these people sitting next to him not find this an odd situation?

Philippe giving Charles instructions on how to get more Sprite without getting caught twice. The key, Charles, is to do it in French.

Side note: Philipe is French, his fiance Soledad, is Argentine. They lived upstairs from us and we have been friends with them for our entire stay here. We have really really enjoyed their company.

This time it is Ethan's party...FIFTEEN. Good grief, what happened to the time? If you don't believe me, count the candles.

The next day:

Kai, Charles, and los Primos


This is the fish that was caught for the festivities

This is the man who caught the fish. He is Naldo.These are the people who ate the fish...Matt the trusty scuba instructor, Jamaican bodybuilder and pastry chef, Vinnete, 14 year old Julicia, her daughter, and the best mezzo soprano gospel singer I've ever heard, and Sole. In back: Ed playing peek-a boo. Also caught for the fine dining: King crab. Julicia enjoying it whole-heartedly

Q. WHich if these fabulous things in the island did Emily, Allison, Laura, and co, do in ONE (the last one) day?

A)7AM Hike the Quill and descend into the volcano
B)11 AM A final Scuba dive/snorkel off the boat
C)2 PM snorkeling at private beach
D)4PM Swimming at Zeelandia
E)7PM Crab/fish/Conch soup cookout at pier

F) All of the above

G)None of the above. Too busy packing


Fact: Pineapples produce exactly ONE fruit before they die.

A: F. We crammed as much in as possible.

On our morning hike:

The best view of the island. We had to hike a trecherous single track goat trail to get there, but worth it.

(pause)

Now for the goodbyes:

Goodbye, Philipe and Sole. Off you go to Argentina, then to Brazil to start your own scuba business. We are going to miss you. Charles especially. Both boys may look jovial here, but it was actually a miserable moment when they realized they were losing their buddy.
Goodbye #2:


Goodbye, dear Frances. We will miss you. Back to Provo, real school, schedules, seatbelts, closed-toe shoes, curfews, chores, and responsibilites. You are going to miss us.

No ending is complete without the sunset.
It reminds us how much we miss those we love already.


The End

PS Thanks for the gift you left the boys upstairs when you moved away, Philipe. And Ethan, the answer is no. You can't go down to Happy City and sell it.

8 comments:

  1. I think you are having way too much fun!

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  2. When is your hello back here?! Sooooooo miss you.

    Loved this post!!

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  3. Two points of confusion:

    Is Connely's name Kai now?

    Is that POT!?!

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  4. Answers to Beth's questions:
    Connely changed his name to Kai shortly after starting school. Locals simply cannot pronounce his name, among other words (like "asked" and a pletora of others). He may be keeping the name when we return, if it will stick.
    Yes, that is marijuana. Philipe left us 3 plants, all male I beleive. it's legal to own and smoke it here, and he enjoyed his. Bt he couldn't take it to Argentina I guess.

    Happy City is where all the local druggies hang out.

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  5. Awesome fun! 115 degrees misses you! it looks WAY too cool there for Arizonans!

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  6. actually, it's hot in a different way. We have no a/c and it is humid. But it only gets about 90 degrees. However, with humidity, it's sweltering some days. I am glad we have the beach and not water world. the beach is free, and as you can see, Zeelandia is always deserted and we are always the only ones there. It is a private beach to us. Luxurious. Why didn't any of you come visit???

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  7. Laura- I really enjoy all of your posts! Your experiences are just unbelievable and wonderful all at the same time!!
    Sandie and Bob, your neighbors

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  8. This comment has been removed by the author.

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