Update from Week One

Greetings Bridge Caribbean family & friends!!!

We have gotten off to a GREAT start here in St. Vincent (land of Mangos). On the first full day we had a fantastic time playing in the beautiful Caribbean waters at Mt. Wynne Beach. Getting there was half the fun - Romi, Celeste, Sarah and Theo were up to the challenge of navigating Kingstown to find local fruits and the appropriate place to find a local van up to Mt Wynne. We spent a great day eating wax apples, mangos, sugar apples and pineapple while playing group games in the water and having handstand contests with some local kids. That evening we met the rest of the group at E.T. Joshua Airport and our whole group was UNITED at last. We played some group games (and learned each others best dance moves) and created group rituals such as pre-dinner Chow Circles (CHOW, LOVE, and PEACE!!!) and evening meeting.

Friday 7/3 was our first full day as a group and we started off with morning meditation/yoga then headed to Kingstown for Roti and other local dishes. We prepared for our move up to Lauders by doing some massive grocery shopping then took the show up the Windward Coast to our new home at the Pre-School in Lauders run by Mr. and Mrs. Cupid. A lot of curious people in town came to visit and say hello; and many students took the initiative to play games in the front yard with local kids as our chefs prepared dinner. During the evening we revealed some great news: we were invited to Shelly and Carlton's Wedding on Saturday at the Church next door!! The same evening, David, Theo, Jahlil, and Adam stood in for the missing groomsmen who were stranded in another town and couldn't make the rehearsal.

On Saturday (Happy Bday US of A) we scouted out the location of our summer camp and began planning as a group. Every student came with great ideas and they took turns offering suggestions of how our camp should be organized. After lunch we got all dolled up for the Wedding and Theo designed a beautiful wedding card for the happy couple. Once again the groomsmen were having transportation issues and Theo, David, and Jahlil were almost called to serve as the actual groomsmen but luckily the groomsmen showed up at the last minute. We witnessed a beautiful service conducted by Pastor and Mrs. Cupid and then we headed to the reception in Georgetown. We felt so fortunate to be a part of this event! During the reception we were able to try lots of local foods like Callilou Soup and Mutton (Goat). Once the music started our entire group was dancing up a storm and inviting local children to join in the fun. During the reception the MC called upon all the single girls to come down to gather for the throwing of the bouquet. It landed right in Sarah's arms (Sorry Cory)!!! WAfter the reception we created our full value contract (A Code to Live By) and ended the evening with an impromput group rendition of the Star Spangled Banner!!

Sundays have been designated as days to fulfill the alll-important Maslow's needs, so students took advantage of sleeping in late and making a big pancake breakfast. Then we headed to church. What an experience! Students especially loved the "peace be with you" time at church where everyone walked around the room shaking hands, meeting others, wishing them well and even dancing in the aisles! After church, we decided to make the trek as planned (despite a little rain) up to a local swimming hole/river called "pavement" Although the hike was a little muddy, we witnessed some incredible vistas and exotic jungle flora & fauna! We swam through the rapids at the river and ate some yummy PB & J's! After much discussion, preparation & front-loading we decided that the group was ready for the maddess that would be J'OUVERT! J'ouvert is a local street party that brings the masses to Kingstown to celebrate the peak of Carnival. We went to bed at 9pm in anticipation of a 3am wake-up...

Our alarm went off at 3am, cereal was devoured, and we piled into Mallo's (our local driver) van to head to Kingstown for the festivities!!! We met up with the Peace Corps Volunteers on the island and experienced the energy that goes along with the biggest celebration of the year!! J'Ouvert is basically a huge street 'Jump-Up' where giant trucks play Soca music and people dance throughout the streets covering each other in paint and wearing amazing costumes. We met lots of interesting locals and danced the morning away. Luckily we were well prepared for the madness and the group did an amazing job staying together and staying safe. After several hours of dancing and marching we enjoyed a 'breakfast' of fried chicken, bakes, saltfish and breadfruit at 7:30am at a street food vendor then made our way to Indian Bay beach to wash off the paint and decompress. We made it back to the Cupids' home and napped the afternoon away, discussed how much fun we had at J'Ouvert and took a nice evening stroll through the local community.

Tuesday: HAPPY MARDI GRAS, the last day of Vincy Mas and the end of the Carnival Season. We headed into town with Mallo and watched all the different costume Krewes dance in Victoria Park in Kingstown. We were joined by Somora and Omora, identical twin teenage boys who worked closely with the Windsor Mountain group in 2008 in Barroulliae. The group spent the rest of the afternoon watching the parades throughout Kingstown and completing some tasks in the Vincy Capital. After a really hot day in Urban Kingstown we caught a van back to Indian Bay beach and spent the late afternoon and sunset in the Carribean Sea. In the evening we cooked a fabulous 'Rice DeLila' dinner in collaboration with Cupids, translated our Full Value Contract into a document and hit the hay in anticipation for Wednesday's CAMP PLANNING EXTRAVAGANZA!!!!

Student Updates:

David "Cha-Chi" Kahn: Really enjoyed the wedding and loved showcasing his unique dance moves with the locals. He also learned some new card games from Barry (one of the locals hanging out with us) and has been a great help with camp planning thanks to his extensive Windsor Mountain expertise.

Lila "Liloops" Rosenman: Has loved sleeping outsided everynight under the Caribbean stars at the Cupid's home. Lila has really demonstrated her leadership during camp planning and has become the group expert with the local fruits (favorites including: wax apples & plum roses). She also made a mean dish called "Rice DeLila" last night.

Jahlil "BounZer" Davis-Green: Jahlil was challenged with our group hike to a local swimming hole through rainforests and breath-taking scenery, he maintained a wonderful attitude the entire time and really overcame all obstacles associated with the hike! Jahlil is a champion when it comes to stepping up to help out with group tasks without being asked or when its not his "turn". Such a helpful and positive member of the group!

Arielle "Erfy" Vallet: Arielle really enjoyed dancing at the wedding, and several little girls were excited to emulate her moves! She took the leadership to speak at the local church to advertise our camp, and has amazed us with her singing abilities! Arielle has also been a strong member of the "sleeping outside" crew and has loved the fresh air, despite a few bug bites!

Celeste "TimTam" Mittman: Was a driving force that encouraged other group members to work together well as a team so that we could experience J'Ouvert safetly and as a group. Celeste really enjoyed the hike we took to a local swimming hole, encouraging others as she lead the way with a local named "Breeze"

Romi "Imor" Maletz: Has really embraced the Caribbean culture, and has made several new friends on the island, including our next door neighbor LaTonya ,age 4. Her highlight of the week was heading straight to the beach after J'Ouvert to cool off and rince off all the paint we accumlated on ourselves! Romi also really enjoyed church services.

Breanna "Brie Cheese" Hilt-Page: Loved working on our Full Value Contract and although she was challenged by the hike we took, she powered through it, with the help of singing amazing renditions of several Michael Jackson (RIP) hits. Breanna has really connected with the our host family and gets up early to chat and help Mr & Mrs Cupid cook breakfast.

Theo "Theolonious" Klein: Theo has been dubbed "The MAN" by our group. He is eager to reach our to the local community and has befriended many islanders during our first week here. He has been demonstrating his leadership skills by initiatiating some hilarious group games and teaching Jamal (a local we met at the beach) some of his mad football skills.

Sarah "Gax" MacFadden: Sarah has been impressed and enamored with the openness and kindness of the Vincy culture, and has embraced every activity with such positivity. Sarah cooked us a delicious pasta dish the other night, and we are contiuously impressed with her natural ability to work with the local kids. And most impressively, Sarah caught the bouquet at the Wedding!!!