BATS

Tamana Bat Caves...I have been looking forward to going to the bat caves since I came to Trinidad, and last night I finally got the chance. The caves are home to millions of bats that fly out at dusk in search of food. There are mostly fruit bats and insect bats found there. Dave (fellow Fulbrighter), Mary (friend from church) and I went with a small group from Hike Seekers, heading to the famed Mt. Tamana. The journey began with the narrowist, bumbiest, most unlevel road I've ever seen in my life and ended with a barely visible path through the bush. We suddenly just stopped next to a fig tree and our leader said, ok we're here! We got there right around 6pm and as we made the steep, slippery climb to the mouth of the cave we could see a couple of bats flittering around. The higher we climbed, the more bats passed by overhead and the excitement built! Finally we reached what looked like a big hole in the ground that was the mouth of the cave. We took up a place in front of the mouth of the cave as the darkness began to descend on us. The darker it became, the more bats began to trickle out of the cave until there were hoards of them whizzing past us. You couldn't move, you just had to stand up straight and still and they flew by all around you. I could feel them whoosh past close to me on either side and tried to become as small as I could so they wouldn't hit me!




We all did get hit though...some of the younger ones didn't have the best radar! I got nailed on the back of the leg (and after letting out a bit of a scream) discovered that I had quite disorientated the bat and one of the guides grabbed him and stretched him out so we could see it. The bat seriously had the scariest little face I've ever seen. It had a little horn on its nose, intense eyes, and its miniature fangs were biting at the air. It's face kept contorting trying desperately to fight off his captor. (Don't worry, we let him go and he was just fine!)


We then ventured around the back of the cave where we could actually go inside. The place was littered with bats, they were in every nook and cranny. There seemed to be a lot of younger, little bats in this part and they weren't flying around, just hanging. The place had quite a smell to it and water kept dripping from the cave ceiling...at first we thought it was bat poop and were VERY happy to discover that it wasn't!




Overall, this has been one of my favorite experiences here in Trinidad so far. It was so cool to feel the bats whizzing by and then to see them all over the cave. Not something that I want to repeat frequently, but a priceless experience for sure!

Fatal Error

I really thought that I had things around here pretty well figured out...turns out not so much. Today I learned of some cultural mistakes I made for my project and then made a really embarrassing misinformed assumption while running errands today.

Trinis love letters (and stamping things, but that is a whole other matter). You have no idea how many times I have heard "Well you have to make your request in writing by sending a letter to..." some director with a strange title and an impossible to spell name. Just today I was asking to get some information from the hospital like what year it was built and what the bed capacity is, and I was sent away to write a letter with all of the information I want listed. And these letters have a special format and you need fancy letterheads to make them believable. Well today I also learned that in many cases a letter from me is inappropriate because I really am a nobody here. The letter has to come from my mentor, who has a fancy post at the university and is a professor. He must introduce me and my project and then if the person responds positively, I can communicate with them. Well the director of the largest HIV treatment facility and therefore a pretty important piece of my research on HIV facilities, is a bit of an egomaniac and a big protocol nazi and was VERY offended by the fact that I sent him a letter and refused to have "an audience" with me. Now we have to gravel at his high and mighty feet for him to allow me to do any work at his clinic. So while it might have been my cultural error, I really hate writing letters and would prefer to make my own contacts, but it seems that my lowly status will force me into a backseat.

Ok this one is much funnier and more embarrassing...I have a checking account here at Republic Bank and today I went to deposit a check. I also needed to go to the grocery store, so instead of going to my usual bank, I opted to go to the one right next to the store. Thought I was being pretty clever there...turns out not so much. I went in and filled out the deposit slip, waited in line for the teller and went through with the whole transaction. At the end I asked for my balance...$13,000 and some change. WHAT? Holy cow, I was expecting about $2,000 (Trini money, don't forget!). I asked the teller if she was sure, she said yes, so I walked out, slightly confused. While I was getting groceries I started thinking about it and it just wasn't adding up...she said it was a savings account, but it is a checking. There is 6 times more money in there than should be. I headed back to the bank, this couldn't be right, my money had been deposited in someone else's account, that had to be it. I told them what I thought had happened and, looking very concerned, they took my receipt and ID and went to chat. They then came and asked me where my account was...I said I had opened my account on campus. Well guess what-I was at the RBTT bank, which I thought stood for Republic Bank Trinidad and Tobago. It doesn't. They are completely different banks. Yes, I tried to deposit a check at the wrong bank.

You've suffered through all this reading, so here are some pictures

The frogs are invading!! The Logie's have a nice pond and I often find frogs waiting at the gate when I get home at night. It is like they know I'm coming home and that I'll let them in!


At Sports and Family Day for the church I've been going to. This was one of those blindfolded, find the golf balls while your partner shouts directions at you kind of games...we got 2nd!


Can you find me? oh right I'm the really white one in the middle! Here are some of my team members!


Me with the group of people that I came with. Carol is right next to me and was the first person I met at the church.


The habitat house after the last day I was there...I can't believe how far along it is! They are hoping to finish it in the next few weeks.

So there you go...check back soon because on Saturday I'm heading to a bat cave and I'll put up pictures as soon as I can!!

Half Way Day

So today is officially my half way point, wow. 5 months down, 5 to go, once again wow. And sorry I haven't written lately, but it seems that as I've reached my midpoint, things are pretty...normal. I actually feel like I now have a fairly normal life, it is just that I'm in a tropical paradice instead of the corn fields of Illinois or Iowa. My research project is going really well at the moment. Monday I start at my second (of 5) main health care facilities that I am looking at, so I'm very excited about the progress of things. I am also playing for a women's soccer team (like a real team with practice and games and everything), taking a dance class and tutoring once a week at a home for children with HIV. So things went from really slow paced to pretty busy busy! So in honor of my half way point, here are just a couple of my favorite Trini things thus far...

1. Even just the beginning of the rainy season has left the mountains the most amazing green color. Add in a bright blue sky and it is wonderful.

2. Trini phrases..."Just now" meaning anytime in the next, oh, hour. "You going good?" is pretty much how are you. "Mash Up" has many meanings surrounding something being broken or hurt and "Bounx" is to hit something/someone. There are countless more, but I'll spare you the language lesson at the moment.

3. The food...the delicious, fried, breaded everything, the fact that you can get all kinds of things in coconut flavor and all of the wonderful fruit.

4. The fact that the world cup is broadcasted everywhere, you can talk about the day's game with a random person on the street and in general, on any given night you can find a pick up game to play in.

5. Trini Phones. Many people in Trinidad have 2 (or more) phones, one from each of the major phone companies. Most phones are pay as you go instead of contract so they trade off depending on which has minutes. They also tend to use one phone for people they actually want to talk to and the other for the, well for the other people. See people in Trinidad give out their phone number like candy, anyone you meet is liable to give you their number for any number of reasons. Even Brenton was given a phone number on the plane here to come eat at the restaurant the guy worked at, which is an hour from where I live!

Well there you go, 5 months, 5 wonderful things about Trini life. Here's to 5 more great months!

On the Catwalk

I'm convinced I could be a model. But let's start at the beginning of the day, we'll get to the model part. Thursday was Corpus Christi Day, which is a Catholic holiday, I think. I feel like a bad Christian since I not only don't know what it is celebrating, I have actually never even heard of the day before. But the point it we get the day off here in Trinidad, land of the holidays (we also had Monday off for Indian Arrival Day) so, making the most of my free day, I started it off with a hike to Marianne River and ended it with my first ever runway show at Trinidad's Fashion Week. So it is rise and shine at 5:15, I set off to the hike meeting place where I would meet Snake...that's right the hike leader is called "Snake." That right there should tell you that he was a very interesting character. I rode with him because I didn't have transport and he told me all about his trip to California, which included a lot of topless spring breakers and eating road kill, yeah I said interesting. The hike was actually quite easy, and ended with a beautiful waterfall that we got to both bathe in and go to the top of. However we spent a great deal of time walking through the river, which meant being barefoot over small, sharp rocks...my favorite thing ever. I must have extra sensitive feet or I am just be a super big wuss because I just can't handle the rocks. If hell is catered to each person, mine would be walking miles barefoot in this river. The waterfall was worth it though, absolutely beautiful. So Snake also is supposed to take me back to the taxi stand after the hike, but he decides that I need a tour of Maraval, where he lives,(other people were in the car, so I was pretty confident that I wasn't being kidnapped) and we set off driving around the little village. We headed up the huge hill and had to stop after to let the car cool down...we had to stop later at a gas station to get oil because the car was starting to overheat! I was glad to finally get home!

"Snake" right before he kissed the poor frog we found on the trail


A pretty view, but check out those rocks...brutal, I'm telling ya

So after a nap I get ready for the big Fashion event!! I got quite a dose of fashion just waiting for my group to show up, the crowd attending the show was quite fashionable. This pretty much means that the men were wearing impossibly tight pants and the girls had tiny little dresses and big, big heels. So once you were in your section, it was open seating, and we picked terrible seats...such fashion show rookies! We couldn't see either spot where the models posed, but we had a good view, unblocked by tall people or big hats. Turns out we picked the night that was all swimwear, which was a little disappointing because I wanted to see some evening wear, but there were some really cute things. And of course there were some really weird and really small things! I am convinced though that I could be a model. I might need to do a few more sit ups and practice a bit with big heals...but I totally could've fit right into that show. Some of the models were not of the anorexic bread, they were actually normal sized, even with a hint of normal-girl love handles. They weren't particularly tall, nor were they particularly good looking and a couple had huge boobs, which is totally uncharacteristic if you've ever seen America's Next Top Model. So watch out Trinidad modeling world...I'm coming!

Me on the runway, the start to a promising career, I'm sure

The group before the show starts...Ocene, who I met that night is from France and an intern at the UN, then Camille, my Trini friend and Pamela, who I also just met and is from Italy. So we had 4 countries represented!


So I'm pretty sure that we totally weren't supposed to video anything, but here is my favorite line..."I Love Trinidad" and it is all red, black and white.

Other exciting events this week:
Research is booming! I've met with reps from the Ministy of Health, learning whole bunches about the computer system pilots. I've started at my first hospital and have things in the works for my next facility.
Wednesday I am going to start playing soccer with a real girls team...with practices and games and everything, so that is cool!
I am quite close to being half way done with my grant, which I can't believe. Some days I'm excited that I'm getting closer to coming home and some days I feel like i have so much more here to do and see, but I'm trying to just get the most out of each day!