Going Away Parties

Dave and I both celebrated our last days of work yesterday. The court had one of their infamous breakfast parties in my honor. Everyone chips in and brings their specialty and we end up with enough food to feed each of us for a couple of days! Here is a little sampling of what we had. The first photo shows some deviled eggs, tuna, and crab, complete with crackers to eat them with. Also featured is coconut bread - white and wheat. Then there is the variety of pastries. The second photo has the fruit salad, mini donuts, bananas and fresh mangoes from someone's tree. Finally there is the tray full of johnny cakes, more pastries, and cheeses. Missing from the record is half of a cake from Dave's work that I brought in, as well as the plate of lunch meats and the pot of chicken soup.

Chicken soup is very different here from in the states - at least from the states I've been to. Everything goes into the pot. Just toss the chicken in, bones and all. Throw in some corn on the cob, ON the cob, and carrots, celery, etc. Everything but the kitchen sink. Chicken soup was one of the only things I hadn't tried until yesterday. I am not a fan of eating around bones to get to my food, and having bones in soup just seemed more complex than necessary. (In the Caribbean, if something you're eating could have bones in it - it will. Sometimes if you order fish, you'll get the whole fish. yes, including the head.) I had my first (and second) bowls yesterday. I was careful to avoid getting any bones in my bowl. As for the corn, I just picked it up and ate it with my hands. It was very tasty - soft and juicy. Yum!

Everyone at the court has been very welcoming and kind - really bringing me in as a family member. They have made sure that Dave and I got to experience the VI as they know it. They've told us which local restaurants to go to - the ones hotels sure don't tell their guests to go to. They laughed when we said "we're going to swim 5 miles" but they offered their encouragement nonetheless. They've given us local cookbooks so we can make our favorite local foods when we return to the states. Any time I had a question about the culture, food, another island, or where to get the car's a/c fixed, I always got great answers and advice. I will miss them all!

Friday night we celebrated with Dave's coworkers. Dave's boss treated everyone to sushi at Buddha Bar. So much fun and very yummy. Dave's work experience has been so different from mine here. The turnover at Ecotours is pretty high, as it is in general among young people who move here from the mainland. Someone at the dinner last night said he thought two years was about the average amount of time people live here before they head back. He also warned that once you're here for seven years - you can't go back. Dave has seen many people come and go at work. As his manager said, it really gets to you after awhile - it's so hard having going away parties all the time, saying goodbye to the friends we've made. And now we're those people leaving. Hopefully we will have the chance to come down here for a swim race, a triathlon, or just a visit sometime in the not-so-distant future.