days eleven and twelve

Some more classes, nothing out of the ordinary. Kristen and I went to the bank, got some money exchanged to EC$, and began walking back to the hotel. We ran into a few of our group heading to lunch, so we joined and went to Le Café. This place was adorable – it reminded me of Francesca’s, just with a little café in the back. Thank goodness for the umbrellas when it started to rain! An avocado, eggplant, and mozzarella salad later (SO good), it was sleepy time. Dominica time (aka slow slow slow) has gotten me into the not so great habit of napping on the regular, and Friday was no exception. After the group awakened from the slumber, we walked to a local restaurant. Called the Laughing Lobster, the first thing I noticed was a giant Sebastian-like painting, with dreads and a Kubuli (Dominican beer). Although it only had 2 lobster items on the menu, the food was delicious. The night ended with a group trip to Fort Young for happy hour (sidenote: rum punch is gross!) and awkward dancing, as we were the only ones who took the dance floor. We tried Garraway’s (another hotel) for some karaoke, but by then we were ready for bed, excited for ocean experience!

Another early morning for a good cause – Saturday was the “ocean experience” day I’d been looking forward to all trip! After a fruit breakfast (star fruit – tart but delicious!), we headed down the coast a few minutes to Dive Dominica. After signing some wavers and getting snorkel gear, we climbed onto the boat for an exciting day. Our first stop was the reef off Champagne beach, where we had gone on Thursday. Even though I’d already been there, it was a completely new experience in the morning hours. A sea turtle welcomed us in the water, and we swam around fish for a good 30 minutes. After climbing back on the boat, we continued south and jumped in around Soufriere. The drop off (where the reef ends and open water begins) at Champagne went down around 80 feet, what I thought was huge. I could not believe my eyes at Soufriere – 2,000 feet down! Such an overwhelming feeling of awe! We headed back to Dive Dominica for a wonderful lunch – fried plantains, rice and beans, and chicken! I love the food here. After refilling our water bottles, we set out for a three hour tour (cue Gilligan’s Island theme song) around the west coast of the island. Driving the boat around the island was awesome! Soon enough we were far enough out to see the island from end to end, so neat. A pod of dolphins decided to race us for a while, going under the boat and jumping in front for us. The clear blue water and rainbow that appeared took my breath away! What also took my breath away was the dark pink sunburn across my back, which had been covered all day and had SPF 50. Shucks! We drove through the rain on the way back to Roseau, the wind made it seem like Titanic. Getting back to the hotel, Titanic was on TV. Coincidence? The hotel made dinner for us (I LOVE the staff here!): dolphin (aka mahi mahi), mashed potatoes, pasta, and veggies. Aloed up my back, Skyped Mom and David, hit the hay at 9:45.