Exploring the island....over a month ago.

About a month ago I explored the island with some friends. It was super fun to get out and see more of what Dominica has to offer. Here they are:

Not too long into our journey I realized I had drank too much water. So we decided to pull off into a little town to use the bathroom, fill up on gas, and get directions. It ended up being a neat little place and the people were really nice. The houses looked especially colorful. We ended up using a bathroom at a laundry mat! Who knew they even existed down here!!! And to do one load it cost 2 ec, which is about 80 cents. Much cheaper compared to the 25 ec we have to pay to get a load of laundry done at home.
Random story that happened while we were stopping. A man in a car also pulled over to ask if I wanted to take his picture. I said no, but then I did. He asked if I was married or if I knew of any white girls that were looking for a husband. I told him I didn't know of any, but if I did I had his picture and would come back and tell him. Hahaha, we both laughed at that. Unfortunately the picture is too dark. So I didn't post it.

Houses.

A church and cemetery.

Driving up a mountain in Dominica.
The entrance to Emerald Pool. This is the first trip I have been on with a groomed trail, signs, and an entrance pavilion with food. It was a nice experience, but definitely more touristy, hence the groomed path.
A face on a tree.
Emerald Pool.


Here I am walking to the waterfall. The pool wasn't very deep, but I still had to swim over. Or you could go the other way and climb over some rocks.

Me and the waterfall. So cute.

Here is the entrance to Trafalgar Falls. I haven't really explored the southern half of the island. Supposedly this is the desert side, and we live on the jungle side of the island. There was a noticeable change in the landscape and lushness, but it was still a jungle. I thought the cliffs were pretty cool.
One of the falls.
Me and both of the falls. This picture dosen't do them justice. They are huge!!! Like a 100 ft tall (maybe, I'm really bad at guessing distances/lengths). The waterfall on the left is hot, because it's a natural spring and has minerals in it. The right is cold. So the two come down and eventually form one river. But at the bottom of the falls is a bunch of rocks that create pools. So you sit in one hot and 5 feet away is freezing cold. And then there are a few in between. It was so much fun.
One of the hot pools that we sat in.
Unfortunately I didn't take more pictures, because we were climbing rocks and I didn't have Ben with me to hold the camera. I didn't trust myself. But hopefully you get the gist and I can take Ben there to get some more pics.

Some wedding photos.

I was talking to a friend today about why is it when we have nothing to do we don't do anything. Maybe if my time down here were a few months I wouldn't be so lazy and sleep in till nine everyday. I often think of America and how amazing it is....we really had some doers when it came to developing our country. I think Dominicans became lucky....or somehow it just happen that they got their country.
But anyways....it's interesting that during all this free time (although I'm more busy this semester) I don't update my blog everyday, visiting teaching comes to the last day of the month, I don't read a book, finish my thank you notes for the wedding, or write in my journal (something I should work on). I have a ton of time to perfect myself with these little goals, but I don't. Or it takes me a while. It's interesting how when people are busy and it seem like there is no time things get done.
Who knows how I will survive once I get back to America. But in the meantime here are some wedding pictures. Obviously the engagement photo was a teaser, because it has taken me about a month to get these up. But, I'm having a little trouble downloading all my wedding pictures...so that's my excuse. Here are some "detail" pics. Enjoy.

Honey jars with peoples names and seating number.
Table arrangements.


The most beautiful bouquet ever! Ben's mom is amazing.
Top of the ice sculpture.
Me and some of my bridesmaids. Best friends from college.
The guys boutonniere.
Market Street Grill, the location of our Utah reception.
Ben with his brothers, my brothers, and groomsman.
My family. My favorite picture of me with my dad.
*more pictures to come. This is really all that was able to download.

#1 Beach

So a few weeks ago I went to #1 beach with some friends. It was so much fun and the perfect day. It's the beach that Johnny Depp is being chased by the Indians in the third movie...i think it's the third movie. Anyways it was pretty neat. There is the ocean and then right behind the beach is a river. So we took on the waves, and then played in the river with the kiddies. Actually, I should tell you this beach is beautiful!!! A must see spot.

View of the ocean from the river.
Another view. My favorite picture.

The river side. It's the perfect spot for kids...about a foot of water.
My friends Chelsea, Margo and Me!!!

View of the beach facing east.
View towards the west. This beach is wonderful because it's huge, flat and isn't black sand.
Some of the group heading down the trail towards the beach.

Mero Beach

I achieved my goal this month. I went on a spouse trip for November. Yay! And I actually went on a few more trips as well (shortly to come). Mero Beach is located about half an hour south of campus. It was a nice trip because it was a short ride, but something different. And the beach was huge. There were also lawn chairs for rent....luxury item. A few friends from church came and I also met someone new. So it ended up being a really nice trip. The only downside is that it was a day the cruise ships came in. So instead of having the beach to ourselves we had to share it with about 40 other people. Dumb.


Beautiful beach.

Me and some of the other spouses on our lawn chairs.

Two of the super cute girls in nursery with me. It was time for a snack.

Me and my friend Chelsea. Not the best picture of me. But cute.

Treasures

One day a few weeks ago I went for a run. Silly. I finished my exercise at the beach so that I could walk along it to cool down. I must have been rewarded for running because I found a ton of treasures! Maybe I should run more.....

Dried up reef.

A baby conch shell. We have about 20 of these in our house.


A giant conch shell that had a lot of wear and tear on it. It isn't super pretty, but I thought it was cool that I found one this big.


A baby sea urchin.
And the big prize! I found this sea urchin covered with spikes. It still had it's leathery beak-y mouth attached and smelled really bad. So I gave it a good wash and tried to get some of the spikes off. It's still on our porch outside, drying off and dying.

Here it is clean. Impressive! It's size is about the palm of my hand (5 in or so).

So I apparently I have moved on from crabs to shells. Yay.