Brimstone Hill Fortress

Today we took a field trip to Brimstone Hill Fortress to eat lunch and bond more while learning some history. AMAZING views from up there. I don't know how those buses made it up that hill but I am so happy we didn't have to walk it!
Mom and Me, Caribbean Sea.














Jaclyn, Ashley, me.














Brimstone Hill Fortress














Me riding a canon














St. Kitts to the West (thicker part of the island)...the blurry haze in the sky is the rain...pretty cool!














St. Kitts to the East (towards campus, my apartment...the skinny part of the island) and Nevis in the back.














So some of the activities they had us do were pretty fun. First we had to get in small groups, split that in half and stand two feet away from the person across from you and with your pointer fingers locked with theirs, you as a whole lined up group have to lower this pole to the ground without letting it lift off your fingers at anytime or you have to start again. Second we had one half of the group blindfolded and the other half leading the "blind" person through an obstacle course using voice and touch. Then we switched. Third we had to blow up balloons, line up with the balloons between our bodies like a snake, then walking in unison, had to go up a big step, walk, then back down. You could NOT touch the balloons with your hands and if they got away or popped, you had to start all over. They were to teach us how critical team work and communication are in simple and difficult tasks. I enjoyed it. ok, I can't stay awake much longer. Goodnight all! Miss you :)

Campus and bars

Yesterday we just ran around campus ALL day. It was pretty exhausting. Met up in groups and did little get-to-know-you things.

This is me on campus with the Caribbean Sea behind me. Yea, I know , this place is horrible. :)











And this is the break area outside of the auditorium/lecture halls.







Last night we went out to this bar called the Godfather. So I volunteered to drive there (not drive home though...thank you WILL!)...I thought we were going to be killed. I turn off the main road onto this dirt road and drive, and drive, and drive. Meanwhile, all we are seeing are these abandoned bar-looking shacks. So finally, ahead in the distance we see a faint light that keeps expanding, and BOOM, we are there. It was AWESOME. Totally secluded bad, RIGHT on the beach, and loud fun music. Basically you are on the beach, you walk up to the window, order a drink, and walk away from the bar, about 15 feet and you are in the water. There was a bonfire and everything. Here is what it looked like there...kinda.
This is all outside remember. It started to POUR. Not rain, seriously POUR. But we didn't move out of the rain. I have learned very fast NOT to bother really dressing up for the beach bars. I guess that is for going out downtown in Basseterre.








Ashley and me; drunk and post-rain shower :)













It was a very fun night and I met some great people. I can't wait to go out thursday for the big bonfire bar night again. This time no waking up at 5 am the next day. Will left this morning. I am sad. He was such an AMAZING help with everything and I am going to miss him! Love you Will! (but not like that!) hehe :)

The sweet ride

So I know all of you are going to think I am totally spoiled after seeing what a sweet ride I bought here, but I figured it was worth bragging about and risking jealousy. haha.
Oh, if anyone laughs at my car, I will run you over with it. I am NOT afraid to put more dents in it! ;)


Notice the three-toned paint? Silver in the front, gray on the sides, and white/gray on the top. So creative. There is also some tape residue where the bumper was held on by duct tape at a point before they wired it on with a coat hanger. See how advanced the technology has become??









Here we have a view of the steering wheel. Notice that it is on the right. I smuggled that turtle from Mexico. He rocks out when I drive. Those stickers on the front are the registrations. Instead of being on the license plate, they put them on the front windshield and only peel them off when there is no more room.






Here we have the drivers side. There is some lovely white stuff splattered on the doors, but I have been told it washes off. I am a little hesitant to try because it gives it character.










I think the previous owner didn't want anyone to be jealous so they pulled off the Mitsubishi lettering. Oh, and for those who are wondering, the antenna does not go up. It stays nice and discreet.









This is how the car got the nickname the "super trooper". Well, that is what I call it. I guess in Europe that means it is a 4 door or something.










So driving on the other side...I think I almost killed us twice and threatened the lives of many innocent pedestrians. I tend to hug the left side of the road because I am terrified of the oncoming traffic. :) By the time any of you visit, I will be a skilled driver.

Yesterday was a looong day. Got an early start and went to registration. They didn't have the AC on so there were a ton of students crammed in rooms trying to get everything done. Good news is, everything went very well yesterday...financial aid is here and I will be getting a check on Sunday. That is when mom leaves so it is perfect timing. haha.

After a long day at orientation, I still have no phone line to call out..my cell phone can't do it. You can call here, 1-869-660-5657 to my cell phone, but I don't have voicemail and it will cost you international calling. But it dials just like in the US so don't be fooled and think it is free!

I picked up Ash and Jaclyn after we were done and we went to the beach (with Will and Mom). It was nice to hang out with them and I am really happy to have met them. At least I know I will have two friends down here if all else fails! :) We met this funny guy named Captain Sunshine, "but you can call me 'Smiling Kenny' ". (He was giving mom an aloe vera massage) He was accompanied by his "special" friend that kept cursing and flipping Will, Jaclyn, and Ash off. I wasn't facing him so I didn't see. He would stand there talking to himself and then play with his balls, flip them off, and mutter, "f-you you f-ing bitch!" HAHA. The locals are, uh, funny....

Today I have to get a pin number for my bank card so I can access my money! I have been unable to touch any of it since Friday. No fun. Mom and Will have been life savers. After the bank I have to get pet food, listen to some lectures on living off campus, then a lot of mingling, eating, and fun times at the BBQ.

I still miss you all :(

OH. and a Happy Birthday to Shane! I hope your one arm doesn't hinder your ability to eat LOTS of chocolate (although vanilla would be way better) cake! :)

Turtle Beach

Hi. So today we went to Turtle beach with a bunch of other students. Not nearly all of them, but quite a good amount. I finally got to meet the guy Robby that lives in Orange County that I never got to meet up with, I saw the guy Mike that I had lunch with (he is from New York), and I got to meet two of the girls that I had been messaging on Myspace, Ashley and Jaclyn. I met a ton of other people too. I really got along well with Ashley and Jaclyn, and Ash and I found that we know people that know each other...small world. :)

Here are the three of us. (Me, Ashley, Jaclyn) Unfortunately Jaclyn is starting as vet prep which means that she will not be in class with Ashley and me...but we can still hang out!)











This is Nevis, the sister island to St. Kitts as seen from Turtle Beach. I didn't take more pictures...drank a little too much to remember to do that :)










We were all going to try to meet up with the on-campus group because they are going out to dinner, but without cars it was not possible. So Will just ordered pizza and we are going to have another quiet night at home. Probably for the best because I have to be up at 6am tomorrow to get ready for orientation. I am really excited now because everyone I have met so far has been really friendly. I think I will make some awesome friends here :)

I hope everyone is doing well!

Port Zante, St. Kitts :)














Marriott Beach Resort














Atlantic Ocean...so warm!














William and his handy alcohol booby bags...haha














Frigate Bay area from the golf course on our journey home from the beach.














Will carrying me through some nasty looking puddle on the way home :) Thanks William!

Apartment pictures!

This is the bed set up at the hotel in PR.












My yard in St. Kitts as seen from my front porch.













My porch and more yard.













William looking shocked in my living room :)













The kitchen/dining area and entrance to my bedroom...Jack with scary eyes!












The kitchen













My bedroom (one door-with Will's arm- leads to the kitchen, the other is my bathroom.)












My messy desk and closet

Arriving in St. Kitts

Hello. So I read somewhere that a 'must do' while here on St. Kitts is keep a blog for family and friends. That makes enough sense. I am not patient enough to add pictures or anything right now, so it will be pretty boring to look at...just a lot of reading.

So as most of you know, Mom, Will, Hollywood, Jack, Kahlua and I left San Diego on August 22nd at 7:25 am. The flight to Dallas was boring and I think I slept the entire time. We were delayed in Dallas then told last minute to change terminals...that was tons of fun with the entourage of animals. We get to the gate and realized that we are not going to make our connecting flight in Puerto Rico...great. So we get to Puerto Rico to discover that the last flight to St. Kitts left for the night. Now it was up to the airline to find us a hotel...WITH the pets. They finally get the hotel set up and we were pleasantly surprised at the results. It is called the Normandie and it is in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico. We walked in to find a ton of unique artwork on the walls in the hallways, and a dog bed with bowls, food, and treats all ready for Hollywood. I was very happy. She was too. Jack was not. :)

We stayed the night then made it to St. Kitts around 3pm the next day (Thursday). Only 18 hours after we were originally scheduled to arrive. The vet check on the animals was really quick and the customs agent didn't even open our bags. That was a HUGE relief because we had a lot of items that were taxable. The Ross University welcome committee was waiting outside and I spotted Michele, the housing director that spent all of her time with me when I came to visit in May. It was very nice seeing a familiar face. I met two other students and they both seemed very nice.

We went shopping and spent over 750 on groceries...but that was in EC...Mom almost died when she saw the price until she realized the currency. So everything is in Eastern Caribbean Currency and that is about 2.7 EC per US dollar.

I finally got home and was able to unpack my things. My apartment is supposed to be for two people, but they are renting it to me as a one bedroom...just locked the second bedroom. They are letting mom use it while she is here so that is really nice. It is a nice yellow interior with a bright green trim...makes it all bright and happy inside :). The AC works great. The landlord is a very nice lady so I may just stay here the entire time I am in school down here.

Friday we went to campus to look at the cars for sale by the students. I found a lovely Mitsubishi Gallant Super Saloon! It is a 94/95 (not quite sure) and it has really pretty rust on some spots to go with the carefully placed dents on the body. You have to give her gas to start, but when she starts I get a free massage since it shakes a lot. Once she warms up she runs. But she came with AC and a CD player...plus the price was right. I don't get to drive her until Monday because we left the checkbook at the apartment and didn't get it back to school in time. I already got my Kittitian drivers license so I am good to go.

Today we were supposed to get picked up by Chris, my orientation leader to do some shopping, but he forgot. Haha. Oh well, at least he called us to tell us he forgot so we packed up some stuff and trekked to the Marriott. Mom got the bright idea to cut through the golf course so we had to make sure no one saw us...I guess they get pretty pissed. But when we did it that way, it didn't take long. I can see the ocean from my bedroom window beyond the golf course. :)

So tonight we are going to watch a movie. Mom just made us dinner and we are all relaxing. The animals are very happy here, I love my apartment, and I am excited to start school. Time for a movie. We are meeting up with more off campus first semester students tomorrow to go to the beach...I will update when I can. Miss you all!

Hayley :)