I took some personal time after work today and went to the spa for a massage and a facial. Once again, I embarrassed myself though. Different spa this time and no tears or sobbing – I forgot to tip my esthetician.

I don’t understand this. When I pay, there is no place for me to add a tip on the credit card bill. When I ask, they say that they have a policy of “no tipping”. But the last time I got my hair cut, I noticed that others were leaving money on the hair stylists stations. I asked my friend who referred me to the salon about it and she said that she always leaves money.

It feels a little dirty to me to leave a twenty dollar bill on the counter as I slip out the door. So I’m going to write a card and leave the money in that. But how much? Is there a percentage that I’m supposed to leave? Or a set amount? Sometimes, I think I need help with life.

But how about some more Suriname photos?

I spent a lot of time taking photos of bugs and butterflies when I should have been stalking students. Not yucky bugs like roaches and tarantulas, pretty ones. I don’t know the names of any of them so don’t bother asking. They might be super rare or as common as dirt. I just thought they were pretty.

We did see some great big blue butterflies, but when they land, they fold up their wings when they land so it is really hard to take photos of them.

Enjoy!

Some cool bugs, on flowers of course!

The trip to the interior was both worse and better than I thought it was going to be. I feel that I cheated myself by counting down until we were getting back from the moment we left on Monday. My countdown started at 108 hours. I didn’t keep track of all of them, but it was only a few moments for me to calculate if someone asked.

It was an experience that I’m going to always have, but I’m still not sure if I’m glad that I did it.

The days were fine. It was hot and humid and I wore the same two things just so I wouldn’t ruin anything else with the sweat and mud. I bathed in the river and waved to the boatmen as they motored past every morning. The world was my sink and I brushed my teeth every morning standing on the porch of my hut and spit into the grass, knowing that the nightly rain would wash away the evidence.

I was more comfortable peeing in the woods than I was using the stall at the edge of jungle. And this was before I knew about the bird-eating spider that lived behind the toilet.

I didn’t have to sleep in a hammock, but I almost wish I had.

But the nights were the worst. Do you keep on the oil lamps, knowing that they next bug that it attracts could be a 6 inch beetle? Or how about those baby scorpions that we found living under the table? I know now that I have amazing powers of self-delusion. Once I close my eyes, I keep them closed and the monsters and bugs and everything else becomes a far away threat. When we lifted up the thatch on the roof and found four inch roaches living in the leaves, the nights became filled with bumps and rustles that during the day you don’t hear, but the in the night you have to convince yourself is just the rain.

I also learned that I am not afraid of frogs, I just have an intense dislike of them. Roaches however, I am afraid of. Especially as they are crawling on the bug nets over the beds.

But it was beautiful.

I think that I took the best photo of my life standing in the rain, with bats flying in a cave only 5 meters to my left.

Today, I’m just going to post some of the photos, tomorrow or Tuesday, I’ll post some of the funny things and give some more commentary.

See you then!

For example, on the plane, I tried the local sodas:

Green punch on the left and Cherry something on the right. They were quite disgusting. Tasted like cough syrup.

We went to the local food market and I wanted to show some of the photos. We didn’t buy any of the food to eat, but I love walking through the local markets anyway.

Dried fish.

Women buying fish (I love the expression on the poor fish’s face!!)

We did buy some fish, but for dissection, not eating. Unfortunately, it had to be stored in our fridge:

Lunch of our first day in Paramaribo, I had a local chicken soup:

It was actually very good. Chicken, rice and a pureed local root. It tasted a little like a spicy split pea soup.

But I have yet to find REALLY good food. We met the US ambassador today and asked him for restaurant suggestions, but his suggestions were all lukewarm. We tried one place tonight that his wife said was quite good for the city – a tapas bar. Tonight there was a special: three tapas and a glass of house wine for 55 SRD (about $20).

It was the worst glass of wine that I’ve ever had – bar none. The food was not special. The best dish was a baked spicy mussels, something that was obviously local. The marinated olives were green olives from a jar and black olives from a can with some olive oil and garlic. The calamari was probably frozen and mostly bread. It was quite dreadful.

My advice for Suriname? If you really want to promote tourism and draw in those cruise ships, hire some really great chefs to come and work with your restaurants.

This is for my Aussie friends: But on the positive side, they do have Milo in the local supermarkets!

I am pretty glad that I went.

First, we had a good time on the boats. Several Dutch tourists went with us to share the boat. They are also staying at the same guesthouse we are. It was cool and there was a nice breeze. I didn’t have to go out in the sun, so it was doubly nice! After the samples were processed, we ditched the students and went to lunch at one of the old coffee plantations that dot the banks of the river.

The food was pretty good, but the drinks were the best. First, the water:

The label of the bottle says “Out of the Amazon.” Yup, I drank river water! FROM THE AMAZON. Too cool.

Then, the best part – coffee after lunch:

Our coffee was instant. On an old coffee plantation. Priceless.

On the boat ride back, we then ran into a pod of dolphins! I just happened to have my camera out and got some great photos.

They are grey dolphins, but have pink bellies. They did come up to the boat and poked their head out of the water at us and I got photos of that too, but I liked this one the best.

In other news, we are heading to the interior on Monday. Plans have changed yet again, so I think we are taking boats instead of planes. Will keep you updated!

Seriously.

We are leaving for the interior in three days and the news just keeps getting bad. Sleeping in hammocks – that are made of rope. Not cloth, rope. No pillows. The hammocks are not in a room, or house, but in a (hopefully) covered open structure. Don’t even ask about the sanitary facilities!

And you know what? I’m OK. I’m calm. I’m not freaking out. While yes, I have checked to see how much it would cost to change my ticket and come home on Monday, I am going to stick it out and sleep in the jungle for four nights. I’m not going to eat meat while I’m there, but I am going to have a good time.

I’m also much less concerned about schedules and being someplace and doing something at all times. I found myself just sitting with some students this evening, listening to them go on about their sorority, and I was OK with it.

So I think I’m going to investigate this doxy thing. It could be a turning point!

Gratuitous photo of the mudflats.

More tomorrow!

The first morning here, I opened up my curtains and I thought I had gone to heaven. Just outside my window was a mango tree that has orchids and bromeliads growing in it. I wonder if I could smuggle some back? Probably not going to risk it – I really don’t want to end up in Suranamese jail!

I did grab my camera and spend some time walking around the gardens outside the apartment. Just a couple of pictures of the flowers and plants:

Pardancanda in bloom! This is one of my favorite lilies back in my Michigan garden. I was amazed that it grows in such different climates.

I think this is some sort of orchid, but I’m not sure. I’m going to get a better close-up before I leave. I wish I had brought my tripod…

A dendrobium with the most amazing air-roots. The rain from the night before was beaded on the green tips of the roots, magnifying them and making them sparkle.

The smallest, cutest pineapple I’ve ever seen! Even though it might look full grown, it was only about four inches tall, including the crown. Is this what snack boxes are made from?

A hundred things to see and I haven’t even left my apartment!

When we did finally make it out into the city, it was just for a quick walking tour. Just a few photos and comment tonight, because it is getting late and I am tired.

The city of Paramaribo is really interesting. It is a blend of Dutch colonialism and modern architecture. The population is very diverse too. But underneath it all, it is a developing nation. I guess people are too worried about living to worry about the details like trash in the gutters and fixing the sidewalks.

This is a beautiful street in the downtown area (a UNESCO world heritage site since 2006 or so):

It reminded us a little of New Orleans with the houses so close to the street.

But this is a sight that you see way too often:

Some of these old houses are going to ruins. Even some of the nicer ones are showing obvious signs of neglect and decay.

The Suriname River is the center of life in the city. Everything that’s anything is on the river.

Even though a bridge was built across the river in 2000, many people still use boats to ferry across. If you eat at one of the cafes on the river, you can see the boats crossing about every 15 minutes.

We have to be up tomorrow morning around 7AM to get to the docks by 9AM and my bed is calling me. More later on some of the food and drink that I’ve been having in the area. Oh, and there might be some more orchid photos. Just warning ya.

______

Update 1: Bird on the Window

Yes, the update is phrased correctly.

When I talk on the phone in the house, I like to roam. It is impossible for me to sit still. I wandered into the dining room and opened the window and this sight greeted me:

That must of hurt! I didn’t see any bird on the patio below so either he shook it off, or … Well, you get the picture.

__________

Update Two: Deer – 15, Vanessa – 1

As you know, I love to garden. And I LOVE tulips. But I have almost given up trying to plant any because of the wonderful deer population in my neighborhood. Well, I guess Mother Nature took pity on me because everything that has been happening in the past couple of months.

I got ONE tulip this year. Woo hoo!! It’s not the best photo, but it was starting to rain and I had to make do with what I got.

______

Update Three: Evil Never Gives Up

The gratutious cat update – Indi is still doing OK. She’s eating small amounts and things seem to have equalized (use your imagination). She spaces out sometimes and occasionally cries for no reason but she’s still walking around and even hissed at Max the other day! She can’t jump up on anything high anymore (YAY!! No more cats on the counters!!), but she can still make it on to the bed and the couch.

She’s still bitchy and likes to cause messes though. I was home on Thursday and heard a big clatter and crash. I ran to the stairs and there she was, soaking wet on the tile floor. Apparently, she stuck her head in the watering can, on the landing of the stairs, to drink the water and got stuck when she tried to pull her head out. Both she and the watering can ended up at the base of the stairs.

Needless to say, I laughed hard.

_______

Update Four: Hammocks

Heading to South America in six hours! I’m starting to get excited. T-7 for the jungle adventure.

Stay tuned!

Our talk with the vet was about what I had expected – and remember, I’m a pessimist. Basically, there isn’t anything more that they can do for her. She’s not responding to the steroids like she used to and all of the diagnoses that they are working with have steroidal therapy as the major component of her care. At this point, it’s just wait and see.

So we’re hanging in there. She ate a little bit last night and is currently curled up on the couch next to me asleep. As long as she is keeping food now, she got a chance for awhile. We’re not talking years and maybe not even months, but awhile.

I don’t have to go to work today so I’m hanging with the puss before I head to South America on Sunday. Keep us in your thoughts!

An old photo but a good one!