Keep in mind that when the weekend rolls around I breathe a huge sigh of relief because I can finally share the responsibility of keeping our three daughters safe and sound on this side of the world. I never have to worry about getting lost because Andy always drives on the weekends. It's not nearly as stressful when he looses his way. I usually just sit back, relax and just focus on parenting - without the added stress that living in a foreign country brings.
So when Andy told me that we would be taking a short boat ride off the island - I was so excited! I imagined sitting on the top deck, enjoying a tropical cocktail while breathing in the fresh, salty air that surrounds us everywhere we go. When I saw the ferry that would take us from one island to the next I thought to myself, "you're kidding me, right?" Somebody had obviously mistaken the S.S. Minnow for the beautiful yacht that I had dreamed up in my head....
Think I'm exaggerating? Think again. The S.S. Minnow:
Uh, huh. It was awesome. Andy and the girls loved it, so who was I to complain? Upon arrival to our destination I looked out toward the fast approaching coastline and thought for certain we were taking a pit-stop to refuel, reload, pick up my yacht, perhaps? ... anything! Andy is not seriously taking us to that uncivilized-looking mass of land in the middle of nowhere! Nobody noticed when I started whistling, "just sit right back and you'll hear a tale, a tale of a fateful trip - that started from this tropic port, aboard this tiny ship..."
Andy actually had a particular part of the island that he wanted to explore so we walked along until we found a couple of shops (I guess that's what you would call them). We quickly learned that there are no cars on this island, with the exception of "taxis" (but they were certainly not the kind of taxis you and I are used to). You either walk it, bike it, or take a cab. We decided to find a taxi because we weren't sure if Mia could handle the dirt roads on a bicycle. I really don't have the words to describe how different this place was from the shiny, beautiful island that we are living on now. The picture below pretty much sums it up:
Uh, huh. Also super awesome. So we all climbed into an old, beat up "Volkswagen-bus-sort-of-vehicle" (which Andy and the girls also loved) and we were off... Here is a snapshot of the inside of our taxi from the back seat:
A few minutes into our bumpy, dusty, sweaty commute Andy spotted a couple of wild boar. Of course Maggie then needed an explanation as to why she couldn't try to catch one, take it home, make it her pet... Andy had great, logical answers like "they are wild animals, they need to stay in the wild..." My answer was simple, "Have ya ever seen Lost?
We reached our location and began walking around in search of Starfish, because Andy had heard that you could find lots of Starfish off the coast of this particular island. We were immediately greeted by monkeys and of course the kids loved that. During our walk around the island we also saw several 3-4 foot Monitors. That's a great, big, giant lizard in case you were wondering. Huge. Lord, help me to be brave!!
At the end of our walk we met an entire family of wild boars! Mommy, and her 4 babies. Now most of you know that I am slightly overprotective of my kids (that's an understatement in case you don't know me well). So when I see a mother boar in the wild with her babies, I stand in front of my kids and think, "take me! take me! spare the children!" But there is also the photographer in me who thinks, "man, that would be so awesome to get my kids in a shot with a wild boar family..."
They would hide in the trees and bushes for a while, then literally walk within a few feet of you. Since the locals didn't seem to be concerned at all, I decided to snap away. I guess the boars here are nice? Either that or the mean ones on Lost are fake! :)
Here are a few more pictures from our time on Gilligan's Island:
The biggest coconut I've seen yet!
Searching for sea shells
Showing off her treasures!
Maggie with the coral she found along the shore
Don't you just love the coconut garland?
Finally drinking my tropical cocktail as I write this. I told Andy I earned it for all of my bravery :) All joking aside, I think it was the most fun my kids have had since we got here. A pretty good day in my book.
Come join us on our adventures! We have a spare bedroom waiting for you...
Jenny
