February 18th: I Don't Have A Good Title

Hey, you all still hangin in there? Don't get too excited, maybe just put Hoarders on mute because this post isn't thrilling enough for you to actually turn it off (and besides that show is grossly fascinating, am I right?)

Hmmm. So. Again I don't have anything huge to report, just a few small things. Last week my dad had a few days off, so he and I did some fun things. There's a big hotel, the Karibe, which is up the mountain a bit. It's quite luxurious, and it's become a thing to go there for the day to take advantage of the pool. You pay a fee up front, then throughout the day you can order drinks/food and it's deducted from your fee. Pretty slick. It was so relaxing and peaceful up on the mountain. The air was cleaner up there, and we had a lovely view of the mountainside. It's not something we would do every weekend, but when you really need a break from the compound or the embassy, it's perfect. A lot of people will go away for a weekend to nice beaches in the north or south, sometimes to the Dominican Republic. It's nice that it's so close; in fact we're going there to meet up with my older brother for his spring break. So if anyone wants anything, let me know.

The lobby at the Karibe

the pool and swim-up bar

More of the pool

Cool entrance

view of the mountainside

Dad and I also had ourselves a little adventure yesterday. One of his coworkers, S, had a "Drinks & Dogs" happy hour up at his house near Petyonville. We're currently dog-sitting for our neighbour A, so we decided to go. We're also borrowing her car, since ours hasn't come yet. On our way up, we mostly knew where to go until we tried to find Rue de Frere (the road we needed). Dad accidentally turned a street early, so we wound up driving all over the place trying to get back onto Rue de Frere. M, the dog, was so startled by some of the pot holes we drove over that he launched himself into my lap and sat there, shaking, until we arrived at S's house, thoroughly jolted and feeling a little sick. All in all, it was an adventure but not one I'd like to go on any time soon.

Today was a bit odd. I went with some friends G and C to an art gallery, which was beautiful. Of course, I ran into some slight problems called I Forgot My Wallet and Carsickness Due To Eating Before Driving. Unfortunately C wasn't feeling so hot either, so we had to call it a day and head home. Positive side: I saw some absolutely beautiful art. Expensive, but lovely. The art here is so colourful and bright, heavy on the orange and green and yellow. It can be a bit overwhelming, but I really fancied this painted metal gecko that hung on a wall. It was kind of like Australian Aboriginal "dot art", just different colours and patterns.

I am currently sitting on my bed in my room with M the dog snoring next to me. He's a pug and he likes to sleep at the foot of my bed-under the blankets- and he snores like none other. It's nice to have something to look after right now, when I don't really have anything to do or anyone to hang out with.
I am starting to miss DC, because of how much freedom I had there, the friends I was making and the cool places I could visit. I do like it here, it just so happens to be extremely limited.
Cool thing though- my friend E is coming to visit at the end of March! I'm excited beyond words, because I want nothing more than to share this place with all my friends. I'm already making a list of the things we'll be doing...I'll keep you posted. That's the point of this, after all.

Right, I realize that wasn't a super interesting post but ya know, I work with what I have. S'laters, keep it real.