St. Lucia : Back in St. Lucia

Hey everyone! I apologize for not keeping up on my blog. This past month has flown and I don't know where time has gone. So here is a bit of information about my first few days back in St. Lucia which I wrote a few weeks ago on Word. I will be posting again shortly to give more information about what has been happening the last few weeks.

Well we made it last Thursday and I have been busy since. So here is a slight recap of the last week.

Wednesday night was my last night at home. I had my last burger for dinner and of course made one more Target run with mom before heading home to finish packing. I finished packing way quicker than expected, so I played banana grams with mom (little did I know that this was to waste some time). Kelsey surprised me and came home a day early from her internship thing in Kentucky! I think I was in a bit of shock. I’m so happy I was able to see her one more time before I left!

Thursday morning started nice and early with my alarm going off around 3. We left the house at 3:15 and Kelsey, Mom and Dad brought me to the airport. It was not quite as emotional as the first time I left. I have always hated change and I loved my time at home, but I was excited as well to get back to my life in St. Lucia. My flights went smoothly in general. On my first flight I sat next to a guy who was the referee in the first ever soccer game at the new Viking stadium. In between flights I quickly went to the bathroom and got food, but almost missed my flight in the process. My heart was beating so fast when I got to my gate and no one was there. I also realized at this point in time how difficult it is to carry a guitar around the airport with you, although in general traveling with a guitar is pretty easy. On my second flight I sat next to a very nice elderly couple. The lady even offered to share her blanket with me if I was cold.
Upon arrival in St. Lucia, Abby and I went through the resident line and got through customs pretty quickly. Pastor Tom picked us up and brought us home. We only have one set of keys so Casey was here to let us in when we arrived home. Before we got home he kindly did a bug check and opened some windows for us to air out the place and cool it down. Even so, it still felt like an oven when we got home. While Abby and I were looking forward to a nice and relaxing night, unpacking and such, we ended up going to Sheena’s Bachelorette party at Jen’s house which we found out about on our way home from the airport. Both of us were exhausted, but we went and even came up with a few games to play. Such a change from last year when we didn’t know anybody. This year we saw a good chunk of people just day 1. While I may have been tired and so happy to crash after the party, I was happy we went. Seeing people we knew right away, made that transition into life back home a little easier. While I was there I tried on the bridesmaids dress I was supposed to wear. It didn’t quite fit, so that got sent back with Sheena so her mom could come up with a solution.

Friday morning I was able to sleep in a bit. Abby and I headed to the supermarket and the guys came over and made us lunch (which was delicious by the way). Jen picked us up around 2 and we headed to church where we helped with decorations for Sheena and Ravi’s wedding,while we waited for the Rehearsal to start. Typical Lucian timing, the wedding rehearsal did not start on time. The rehearsal went fairly quick though. Afterwards we came home for a little while and then headed to Gros Islet with Casey and Kerne to visit Yuri at his bar. I think we shocked Yuri a bit as he didn’t expect us to be home yet.

Saturday was wedding day! I got up around 8 which is when Sheena was planning on coming with my dress. Before she arrived I received a text and a picture from her of the dress. Some bleach was spilled on it. I told her not to worry and I’d figure something out. When she got there and I tried on the dress it still didn’t quite fit, but it was better. I spent my morning coloring in the dress with purple sharpie. Jen picked us up and we went early to make sure music and everything was ready to go. Unlike most weddings in the States, the bridesmaids did not get ready with the bride. Because the dress was long, I changed into my dress at church. It was such a hot day! The wedding started about 20 minutes late with Sheena arriving at 3. In general the wedding was pretty similar to those in the States. Pastor Bram walked me down the aisle and the service was a basic Christian wedding. After the wedding, I saw one of my students who happened to be at the wedding. I was also able to talk to the Landwehrs as they were on Skype watching the wedding. Before leaving church Tina, one of the bridesmaids, put henna on me. She was going to do so before the wedding, but ended up having to go help Sheena with her makeup. We then took the church bus over to Ravi’s house where the reception was. Most of the food I believe was Guyanese and it was pretty good. The place was packed with people outside so we found a nice spot with a few people from church. The music was Indian, so I didn’t really dance, but it was cool to watch the few people who did. We headed home around 10.

Sunday morning came quick and we went to church as usual. Later in the afternoon Alexis arrived. Alexis is a friend of gradeschool. When she arrived, she had some Lucian leftovers and then we walked to Spinnakers for a drink and fries before heading home to watch some Olympics before bed. Travel days are always long so whenever we have visitors we make sure that our days are kept nice and short.