Sparkles...

One cannot work all the time. Just like at home, somedays you are too tired to be social or go out. Somedays, however, you just need to get off the ship. Believe it or not, you would never have to leave the ship as food is cooked and served. You walk down some stairs or down the hall to work. Laundry, library, and friends are all on the ship. Included are just some of the sparkles of the past week or so outside of the smiles and bright eyes of the patients here. 

This week, I have taken several opportunities to enjoy the area. Last Sunday, Kalinda and I went to a local beach where we could swim. The sand is white, the water blue, and the water sparkles. There are golden specks in the sand that are stirred up by the crashing waves. The water is full of them when the water recedes. So beautiful. Sorry...no picture.

The reason we went to the beach was to participate in a surprise birthday celebration of the ortho team lead. She was surprised. Kalinda and I enjoyed a new restaurant for us. It was a delightful day in the shade with a breeze and delicious fish and fresh vegetables.

The next day, the true surprise occurred. Noel stated in October that she missed going to scary events in the fall. Her husband organized a scavenger hunt around the ship and dock to be scared at every stop. The last stop was the warehouse on the dock where we all gathered after scaring her for treats and slacklining.

Tuesday, Dean and his wife went into town and found candy canes and popcorn kernels. When he came to show his finds to us, we immediately said, "We should have a movie night." Tuesday night The Rehab team gathered in Dean and Marcia's room. Kalinda and I popped popcorn on the stove for the first time. Dean and Marcia provided orange Fanta and Coke with ice cubes. I brought my laptop and Kalinda brought her speaker and Sister Act II. We all settled in to the cabin and enjoyed the movie and each other's company. Community at its best!






Another evening, I was invited to enjoy fondue. I am often marveling at the cultural melting pot I am living in here. A Swiss, two Canadians, two Americans eating cheese fondu and zebu (a type of cattle) in a open air restaurant owned by a Swiss (I think) by the beach in Madagascar. The Swiss friend confirmed that the cheese fondue was authentic.

Yesterday, a friend who is a nurse and I took the opportunity to go to the beach with the sparkling water. It is so relaxing as there are not people coming by asking you to purchase knicknacks. In fact, we had the stretch of the beach to ourselves expect for two young boys who parked themselves beside us. We were very mindful of our belongings and nothing happened. I enjoyed watching the younger one play in the waves; jumping, kicking them, diving under them. They both would come out wet of course and roll around in the sand covering their entire bodies with sand. They were throwing sand at each other, digging holes, piling it in their heads. Boys will be boys in any culture :)

Other daily happenings: I have also enjoyed having some deeper conversations with crew members. Conversations beyond...how long are you here? Where do you work? Where are you from? What do you do at home? Last night and tonight two different cruise ships were docked beside us. Usually we have other commercial ships. With the internet at our finger tips, information about the ships was quickly found out and spread. Both were long and very expensive cruises. The port we are in is very clean. I was reminded again today as I was walking in the port just how clean. Every week, workers sweep the sidewalks, clean the chains and posts that hold the chain and wash a white metal fence that separates an area of the port from the sidewalk all by hand. They also edge the grass with a shovel.

Ship Boutique Finds. There is a thrift store of sorts where crew who are leaving donate their unwanted things. Every Monday and Wednesday evenings and Friday mornings, it is open for crew members to look for treasures from shampoo, food storage containers, shoes, clothes, yoga mats, books, games and the like. It is a wonderful system.

Well, I hope you enjoyed my sparkles...I will try to get photos for the next blog post.