Sunday at Pagua Bay

Were you looking for a post yesterday? Ah well, I was at Pagua Bay. There was the jewellery show that I mentioned previously. So, we went up there and had lunch and hung out with the people there and ogled all the lovely stuff for sale. The artist is a Dominican guy who now lives in St. Croix but comes back a few times a year. He had some gorgeous stuff for sale. I restrained myself though. I have spent enough money on the two paintings, and as you all know, I really don't need any more jewellery. He was very nice and we talked for quite awhile. It was a nice afternoon.
As for Saturday - our trip to the market was in pouring rain, but it was still fun.

This past week went by in a blur it was so busy for me at work. It was American Thanksgiving so there we turkey dinners happening all around.

That's it - that's all I have to report. Boring huh??? Well, I could tell you about the great weather we're having - do you want to hear about that? I thought not.
Later...

First Annual Blaircourt Rum-Off

Well, it has finally happened - the First Annual Blaircourt Rum-Off occurred last night. This auspicious event occurred after much discussion in the neighbourhood as to who has the best rum punch recipe. There was a lot of trash talk that had to be silenced.

As you can see it was quite an official affair at Allan's place. Each contestant brought their rum punch and an hors d'oeuvre. I was the convenor (the only one who knew which punch was which) and assigned a number to each punch, poured it into the little sample cups, called the group in, gave everyone a scoring sheet where they ranked and commented and off we went to sample. What a hoot!!! We had nine different punches, a ton of great food and Allan's Cincinnati Chili after - a layered concoction - that was really good. Boy did we need food.

Allan created a scoring form on Excel and we entered the scores and declared a winner. It was quite funny. John L. said that Allan "geeked up" the scoring. Geek is now a verb.

There were some disappointed contestants but in the end a really good punch won. I have asked for the recipe and will post it in the future.

We had some great food and a lot of laughs. We had a first prize - a bottle of good rum, and a last prize - a bottle of not so good rum.

While not quite hurting today, a quiet day is in order, after awesome plaintain pancakes with rum sauce for breakfast ( a little hair of the dog). It is a gorgeous sunny and warm day and I think I will be reading a book in a chair on the deck after I finish this.

On another note, the Art and Craft Fair took place this weekend at school. Many local artisans showcased their work. There were some really amazing things to see. I bought two paintings from Annika Wide - a Swedish-born local artist, who actually lives right behind me over the ravine. I went to her house last week for a private showing before the fair, as I wanted to have first pick. I bought two amazing paintings as my 50th birthday present to myself. I will post pictures of them next week. I don't want to post too many pics at once. I do hope that you are enjoying the pics as well as the blogs.

That's it for now. Bye.

Look what showed up yesterday

Hey, look what showed up here yesterday. We saw it come in and dock by Cabrits for the day, so we could see it from here. It is the Club Med 2 and it now makes rounds of the islands - now that hurricane season is ending. The big cruise ships dock in Roseau, but the smaller ones dock here at Cabrits.

How cool is that - check it out on the web. Sounds like a great cruise. I was told it comes weekly now so we will be seeing it regularly.

Speaking of making the rounds, we are in the process of deciding what we are going to do over the Christmas break - those of us who are staying here. We are thinking of New Year's on one of the other islands - just for fun. Since it is my 50th I want to do something really special. Perhaps Martinique, Guadeloupe or Barbados. St. Lucia got hit with the last hurricane but it wasn't too bad so things should be in pretty good shape there.

Well, I see on MSN that there was a snow storm in Minnesota. I guess you guys didn't get it though. Good thing - it's pretty early for that. I sure won't miss that. It is hot here today - hot and sticky - no breeze.

Well it looks like my job is going to be changing to the accommodations - btw - for those of you who are not sure, it is accommodations for students who require them academically -not housing. I may be doing some travel too to other Ross sites, like Bahamas, St. Kitts - vet school, Miami, etc. That should be fun. I am looking forward to this. It is not the job I thought I would be coming for but it's better.

Okay, better move, I have to make a dish for dinner at Mary and John's tonight. She is bbq'ing a pork roast and made Key Lime pie for dessert. I am doing a veg dish. mmmmmmmmmm.

See ya.....

Love to all,

D

More great pics

This is the view from Toucari Beach on Friday. It was just nearing sunset and we were on a walk. It was so pretty just then, the sun was shining on the water and the pelicans were sitting on the post and over a little to the left on the water. Some were flying around catching fish.
Isn't it gorgeous? I thought so. It was so serene.

Today is another gorgeous day. The sun is bright and hot but there are the usual clouds over the mountains. The weather is really interesting here because it can change so quickly - and often does.

I know some of you are following my food journey too, so I'll give you that update as well. As usual we went to the market yesterday morning and last night I made a vegetarian moussaka with chick peas in it- it was really good. Today I am making another layered type of baked dish - kind of like a squash and spinach lasagna. I am not too happy though that the tomatoes aren't great right now - they are fine to cook with but not really good to eat in salads, etc. I think I want to grow some. There are plant vendors at the market so I will pick some up and see how they do.


I am really busy at work getting into the other part of my job that I have inherited - the accommodations coordination. I am hoping that it becomes full-time because there is a ton of work to do here in this regard - coordination of services for students, acquiring the necessary equipment and doing some faculty training. This is a really new area for this school - not for all med schools, but it is here. I'll keep you posted on that one.


Okay, time to go and get something done. My deck is also calling me - I am going to sit and read a book on it today - no trips planned. There was a faculty trip to Pagua Bay with some river tubing, but there were a lot of people and kids signed up. I thought I would prefer some peace and quiet instead. At the end of the month there will be a jewellery exhibition there so we will get a small group to go then. I am looking forward to that. There is a local guy who makes some very pretty stuff and Pagua Bay is a really nice setting. It is on the east side of the island - the Atlantic side - and tends to be pretty wild and windy - not like my side - the Caribbean side, which tends to be calmer. There are some pretty good waves on my side today so I can imagine what it's like on the other side - should be some wild tubing.


I know that a lot of people are reading this blog. Thanks. I hope you are enjoying it. Don't be shy about commenting.


Miss you all,