"The Nature Isle of the Caribbean.."

So Dominica's cheesy national slogan really is true... the nature is it's selling point and it truly is stunning. I don't want to rub it in, but seriously look at it... beautiful or what?

The above was taken as we clambered back over the rocks after taking a dip at the bottom of the most incredible waterfall. Yes, I 'clambered' over these rocks and I'm sure I was elegant and agile! Thanks goes to Curt and Renatta for my personal tour and for acting as my spring board to get from rock to rock!  

After a strenuous rock climb, a peek at some fish and a refreshing spray from a rushing waterfall, we headed for another natural beauty and a much loved site, going by the name of Screws' Spa. This is a selection of natural hot baths or sulphur springs, run by a lovely Rasta named Screws. Honestly one of the most relaxing experiences of my life - sitting in hot natural spring water, listening to reggae, sheltered by rainforest trees and covered by a sparkling night sky. Corny?.. perhaps, but you have to admit it sounds beautiful! 

I've been eaten alive!

It is insane how many mosquito bites I have on my legs. At least 30. It's hard to count.

Aside from the traumas of tropical insects, things continue to go well...

Sunday was a celebratory feast at church, which meant my first experience of the Sunday service was incredibly lively and enthusiastic, and was followed by more Dominican food. I had no idea what I was eating but some of it tasted good!

I have started work at Pioneer Prep, and have been placed in Kindergarden. The kids are adorable, of course - and intrigued by England. Today I was reading them a book, in which it started to snow - Bryce exclaimed that he loved snow (having never actually seen it in real life), they were all shocked that it snowed in England and laughed at that fact that England is currently freezing!! They're also teaching me more about interesting Dominican food- at snack time Zayne was drinking from a coconut and Kyron taught me all about sugar cane.

Kids in general, not just at Pioneer, are extremely disciplined and very polite. The majority of preschools, held in people's houses, are incredibly strict - children wear smart uniforms and have regular routines. Ben, the son of the family I am staying with, goes to a Catholic school, where the headmaster has a belt in his office for naughty children!

I'm starting to realise the true meaning of 'developing' - Dominica is not necessarily poverty stricken or 3rd world but it is most certainly still a developing country and a long way behind the UK in terms of buildings, education, health & safety, political correctness and morality... For example: men, famously the policemen, are incredibly polygamous, and no-one seems to care; the roads are in terrible condition and the drivers are mental; limbs are often amputated because it's the quicker, cheaper option; children are provided with next to nothing in terms of school equipment (books etc) and there are no free, state funded schools.

Apologies for the lack of photos - my camera is incredibly temperamental and is currently having a bad spell. I will attempt to revive him and if not a new one shall be purchased - somehow!

I'm an Emigrant!

Here is my first of what should hopefully be an interesting blog, tracking the next 28 weeks.

In the past few days, an awful lot has happened... most notably, I now live in the rainforest island of Dominica - over 4000 miles from home.

This is more difficult to wrie than you would expect so I'm just going to bullet point the main things:

• Thank you to those who came to my party and wished me good luck for this massive adventure. I had a lovely evening - despite the tears and it was great to spend time with you all.
• Packing was a nightmare - as to be expected but, somehow I managed to get everything in, including 2kg of Haribo!  
• The 9 hours of flying was tiring and the arrival would have been lovely, had my baggage turned up. I later learnt that this is a common occurrence and the flight company LIAT is infamous for "leaving luggage in any town!" I have now got my luggage back - phewww!
• I have eaten plenty of Dominican food - lovingly cooked by June-June, who cooks lunch for anyone who happens to turn up (probably around 20 people!). Codfish (a salty dish with herbs), Barracuda, Rice & Beans, Dashin, Breadfruit, Green Banana, Roasted Plantain...
• The church is a typical Pentecostal church (although this is in fact rare as the national religion is Catholicism), and the Pastor is exactly as you would picture him - loud, and smiley :) I am yet to see the church in full swing, on a Sunday, but I'm sure it'll be very lively! 
• Yesterday I went up to the mountains in Salisbury with a couple and a farmer, the views were absolutely amazing and the oranges we picked were soooooo yummy :) The drive was rather scary though with incredibly thin, windy, steep & bumpy, unmade roads!

So far everyone I've met has been incredibly friendly and helped me to settle in and find my feet. The natural beauty of Dominica is amazing and the sun is glorious, the odd rainfall expected of the rainforest is dried up with in minutes and today I've seen lots of beautiful rainbows. The buildings and streets are mainly decrepit and in comparison to the UK things are very far behind.

I start work tomorrow at Pioneer Primary School and will be visiting more of the projects soon. 

So far so good.