Thursday, December 25, 2008

Final Post

It has been a while since I posted about my last few days. They were quite hectic, but as usual God came though and it was something to remember. I was able to pack all my things despite the fact that it seemed otherwise. I was able to cover the cost of shipping my things thought I didn't expect to pay as much. I didn't miss my flight though I was paged and had to run to catch the plane. What's important is that I made it home safely.

My experiences in Barbados have been many. I have learnt a great deal about myself, about the country, about the people. I made some good friends. I was able to pursue my dream. It was bittersweet to leave, because Barbados was a nice place to be. But leave I must and did. But this one thing is certain- it will never be forgotten.

Farewell Bim!

PS: Merry Christmas to all who may read this, and a great year to come!

Monday, December 8, 2008

Sunday Affair

I hoped to have gone to church with the family I normally go with. But I have not heard a peep from them. So I went to another church by myself. This is, after all, the last Sunday I will be in Bim. The service was ok. Had to leave early though.

I left while the Pastor was giving his message. I had a lunch date with two friends (one I prefer to think of as an aunty). It was a nice lyme. Came home after and started packing.

In the night, two friends and I went to St. Lawrence Gap (the "hip strip" of Barbados). There are a lot of restaurant, bars, etc. At first the plan was to go to Cafe Jungle, but I looked at the menu and was feeling for absolutely nothing on it. So we walked a good distance (the 2 girls in shoes that give us height) and we chatted along the way. We ended up stopping and dining at Cafe Sol, a Mexican restaurant. Food was good. I had a mexiBurger with fries and water...thought about ordering some fancy drink but the fullness of the stomach didn't allow. We chilled a bit, had some deep and some light convos and some light attempts at latin dancing (since next door was playing it). We then chilled by the seaside while we waited for our taxi to come.





A pretty good day. Seem to be having a few of those lately. Feels good :-)

Thanks BS and RI.

Saturday, December 6, 2008

Saturday All-day Lyming

This morning I went to Lucky Horseshoe to eat breakfast with a friend. Was nice and the wind was rather cool. After that we went into town. She got some of the things she wanted done, and so did I. We then passed by CERMES to drop off the four bags of bottles I managed to collect (which were stored in my room), only to realise we had company, one of who she wanted to ask to do something. So spent a long time there before heading home.

I must mention that I was stood up for lunch for the 2nd time by a group of people. Will not go into the details.



I got home and got ready again to leave. This time another friend was taking me out. She took me to Mama Mia, where we had a really good meal. The evening was somewhat dampened when the man told me I shouldn't have mixed the sauces since its not done in Italy, and had he been the one serving us, the side of tomato sauce would not have been given. Won't get into details, but my friend was somewhat upset about it. We left, having decided we were not gonna buy the pizza we planned to to take away with us.

Leaving there, we went to visit some of my friend's family. Was a nice and hilarious little detour. After that we went to Lord Wilaby's Tavern, where I had a BBC (Bailey's Irish Cream, banana and coconut cream mixture). It was really nice. And no alcohol to be drunk from! We chilled there a bit and chatted, then headed home.





I was out for pretty much the entire day, and I had a good time. Thanks to MW and SY for making the day good.

Friday, December 5, 2008

TGIF!

Today I was to wake up at 7.30 am to be ready for 8.30am to head out to do my business on the road. Somehow I just couldn't get myself out of the bed. So all that was pushed back an hour. Went and did a bank draft for the money I did not use for my research. Handed it in along with the receipts and photocopies of them.

After that, I headed to town with very little money since I left all my cards at home unintentionally. I did some window-"shopping", and then met with my friend who was taking me to lunch. On our way to the Red Bamboo, he saw two other of his friends, so he invited them as well. It was a nice lunch. The food was good and filling, and the company and conversation were good.





After that, I went to get some pictures printed. Ended up waiting for OVER AN HOUR and ended up leaving them to catch the bus to go home. I tried to keep telling myself that these things happens to build my patience...working on it. Got home dog tired! Still a good afternoon though. Thanks VP.

Later in the evening after some rest and a shower and clean hair (which was a spur of the moment decision since I was just gonna wait til next week n go to the hairdresser), I got dressed and went out with another friend. We first met in J'ca, but reconnected in Bim. She took me to TGIFridays since the other place she wanted to take I will be going Sat'day with another friend. But it was a good decision. I had chicken quesadillas with sour cream and salsa, etc, (the latter stuff being a waste except the sour cream) and I enjoyed it (to my surprise). The virgin daiquiri had much to be desired...perhaps less sugar would have helped greatly.





Dessert was an oreo ice-cream. The damn thing was so hard I had to stab at it. I ended up ditching the oreo and eating the ice-cream in the centre. Figured that was wise...maybe a sign too. It was giving me heart-burn and a work-out that I didn't need. Plus I didn't want to pay for any broken spoons! Thanks JW.



It was a good day. I guess good-byes don't have to be as sad as that one I had with my landlady yesterday. She had to be away and won't be here when I leave. But perhaps it's full-circle since she wasn't here when I came. Hmm...

PS: I still have not gotten the ok to go home, which means I don't have my ticket either. But I will still consciously try to go with the flow. Things will work out...

Thursday, December 4, 2008

They've Started

Goodbyes...I don't like them! But they are necessary for whatever reason.

Wed night I was supposed to go out with someone and company, but they cancelled. I ended up going out with another friend. We went to a movie and oh my goodness!! The thing was horrible! Beside the swearing (unnecessarily so) and the crude nature, it was pointless to ridiculous. I thought it would have been a good since Brad and George were in it! BIG mistake. And since it was a spur of the moment lyme, we didn't check the reviews, etc. The company was good. Got to know a bit more about my relatively new friend and vice versa, so it was a good lyme none-the-less. Thanks DB.

Thurs I had lunch with another friend (former classmate). We went to a really nice place called Il Ferno which is Italian. Was a good lyme- company and atmosphere and the view!!!





The day was somewhat spoilt because I felt sick after we ate, but I think it was due to the chinese I had at the movies the night before. Was suspicious of it, but ate it anyways. Feeling like you wanna throw-up can dampen any lyme. But I felt better, and we were still able to chill and take in the scenes. And the talk was inspiration for his gift which I got afterward. He helped me a great deal with my project, so I figured it was appropriate to say thanks in a tangible way.

In the night I was to go out with YDS project team. Turns out they were tired and couldn't make, and they assumed I had nothing on Sat. So no lyme. I was actually looking forward to it, but alas! Instead, I stayed home, sent some important emails, sorted through some documents that I will be leaving, etc. So still a productive day.

The rest of the week is pretty busy. More details after the fact.

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

Depending on People

The more I experience in life is the more I realise I should be less inclined to depend heavily on people. Somehow I end up being disappointed or hurt or upset.

It seems the date I was hoping to go is not gonna happen. Communication has not yet been sent to the relevant authorities from UWI, which means more delay. But instead of being upset, I'm going with the flow. Things happen for a reason and I intend to make the most of them things, whatever they may be.

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

It's In!

Tues, December 2, 2008, sometime after noon, I handed in my research paper officially. It was such a relief. It also felt surreal. It's another step in the journey to return home and somehow it hasn't quite sunk in.

I came home, ate the lemon chicken that was lacking lemon, but was ok none-the-less, and celebrated by myself. In the evening, I went to my last YDS meeting. It was productive so I was happy about that. Came home, ate some more, watched tv...with no guilt...well just a little.

The week ahead is going to be hectic. I have people to see, money to return, things to finalise, and PACKING! Should be interesting.