Category: Caribbean

Submitted by Meghan Bennett on the 2019 winter session program in Bermuda sponsored by the School of Marine Science & Policy…

From the very beginning of our time in Bermuda, it was very important to all of us to give back to the community in some way. During our first week here, we worked with the staff at Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences (BIOS) to remove invasive species such as the Mexican Pepper, and plant natives such as Olivewood and Cedar. This week, we continued to give back to the community by hosting an outreach event for Bermudian middle and high school students. Students from around Bermuda were invited to BIOS to learn about marine robotics ranging from drones and AUV’s (autonomous underwater vehicles) to solar powered boats. Before coming to Bermuda, I had never heard of or learned about many of the robotics we were tasked with teaching the students about, so needless to say, I was a little nervous. Despite my reservations, it turned out to be an extremely rewarding experience. The students got the chance to use and learn about robotics that very few people ever get to use. It was also nice to see that they knew way more about marine science than I did at that age, and were clearly engaged in what we teaching them. The event also gave all of us Delaware students a chance to learn more about life in Bermuda and Bermudian culture. After these experiences, I plan on making it a priority of mine to give back to the community wherever my future travels take me.

Submitted by Rachel King on the 2019 winter session program in Dominica sponsored by the Department of Geography…

Sunday January 13th, 2019

Dr. Seraphin scared us today. He told us we were hiking two hours to his cousin’s house and none of us were really prepared for what that entailed. But as we started walking, it wasn’t too bad, small inclines, but we never left the road. As we walked, it started to rain and almost every person we passed said hello and asked how we were doing. We also had a fair amount of people ask if we wanted a taxi, which we all wanted to say yes to. The walk wasn’t two hours long though, more like 45 minutes and we could have taken a shorter way to get there, but I think Dr. Seraphin was trying to get us ready for the longer hikes. At his cousin’s house we got a beautiful view of the city and he and his wife had food prepared for us which was amazing. There was fried chicken, cheese straws, quiche, meat pockets, some type of fruit cake, soren (juice), and mints. To say the least, we feasted on the food. After eating, we all sat around and talked and then went to the front yard and tried to catch a lizard. I had almost got one when my hand was on the tail, but I didn’t want to rip it off so it got away, and then another time the lizard was on my hand and Andrew’s and it slithered away through the small opening we had in between our hands. Later on, Dr. Seraphin’s cousin walked us to his neighbor’s house were we got another view of the stadium and Roseau. While there, a few of us tried cayenne peppers; they were a tad spicy. We walked a different way back to the hotel, it was all downhill and no one was complaining about that. Tonight was also the Eagles-Saints playoff game so we ate an early dinner of spaghetti and salad at 5:00 pm, watched a little of the game at the hotel and then walked over to Fort Young to watch the rest of the game. We had mostly Eagles fans in the group so they were all heart broken when the Saints won.

Monday January 14th, 2019

We had class and in the afternoon we went to the northwest portion of the island to the Indian River. This was where Pirates of the Caribbean was filmed. It was very pretty and it seemed as if we were in the jungle. While there, we saw a bunch of wildlife ranging from multiple species of fish to water chicken, herons, crabs, and we even got to see an iguana. Our tour guide must of had the eyes of a hawk because he was pointing out things to us that seemed almost invisible.  It seems that there are various types of “chickens” on the island; mountain chickens (frogs), water chicken (type of water fowl), beach chickens, chickens that cross the road…. When we finished the boat tour, a few people walked over to a small eatery and ordered food while the rest of us walked along the beach and found sea glass and tried to capture miniature crabs. There were children on the beach, too and they helped us find really cool rocks and sea glass as well as being fearless when catching the crabs. The friendliness of everyone is shocking, yet also a welcome change from some places back home. Everywhere we go, someone takes the time out of their day to ask us how we’re doing or welcome us to the island. It seems to be rubbing off on us though, because now whenever I go out, I try to ask how everyone is and if they’re doing okay.  So I am spreading kindness a little bit at a time. Today was also Ben’s birthday so to celebrate we let him choose a restaurant of his preference and we ended back up at Alex’s; the shawarma place. They forgot or misplaced Emily’s order so we ended up waiting for an extra 40 minutes trying to get her veggie pizza. We got our food to go and ate in the hotel and around 7:00 pm a cake was brought out for Ben, we sang Happy Birthday and ate vanilla cake with chocolate icing (his favorite). It was a long day so most of us headed upstairs after cake and went to bed.

Tuesday January 15th, 2019

We had a guest speaker today. Katie Julien, a professor at the community college for tourism, came in and spoke of the main tourism aspect of the island and how the recent Hurricane Maria has affected the island. She spoke of how the damage affected tourism in the beginning, but it started to pick up again with some people coming to the island to volunteer with rebuilding. We even learned about how some of the hiking trail segments are still out of commission, only 4 out of 14 are open to the public. Throughout the lecture, she had before and after pictures from Hurricane Maria, and they really illustrated how much destruction was caused. We thanked Mrs. Julien for coming in and speaking to us and gave her a small present as she left. By that time ,it was getting closer to lunchtime so we all split to prepare for the beach and get lunches ready. Sam and I decided to have snacks for lunch and went to the fresh market to grab some apples and then put trail mix, granola bars, and pretzels in our bags. Today, people wanted to try to snorkel so we headed south to Bubble Beach in Soufriere, with a wonderful view of Scott’s Head, a beach we went to last week. Here, we all got goggles and dove in, we swam around for an hour or so looking at the fish swimming in and around the rocks and coral. Back on the beach, we got to sit in a natural spring pool, bubbles come from the ground and heat up the water due to volcanic activity. Volleyball was also attempted, but the beach was a little small and rocky so we kept having to restart. A local joined in, too and we taught him how to bump and set the ball to keep it in the air. Colombo came back to collect us around 5:00 pm and he drove us back to Roseau with some of us singing karaoke in the back. We ended up all taking cold showers in the hotel, but it was fine after sitting in the sun all day. For dinner, we tried another Chinese place, and it took almost two hours for all of us to get our food. I think I speak for everyone when I say that we are done trying Chinese on this island.

Wednesday January 16th, 2019

Another guest speaker today, Mr. Charles, the Dominica Ambassador for Foreign Affairs came in and spoke about globalization and the role of Dominica in itself and the world. I was surprised to learn that in the agriculture sector of the island it just transitions from one type of mono-cropping to another. In the United States that’s frowned upon, especially after the Dust Bowl happened. Here they started out with sugarcane, coffee, limes, and now they’re on bananas. I’m not sure how it affects the soil quality here, but it seems they change depending on what the world is demanding. It’s a quiet day after class so  I took the time to write these blog posts and observation for class and plan on meeting with my group later on to work on our project. We went to a small buffet style place for lunch and I got mac and cheese, rice, and honey BBQ chicken.  In the afternoon, Sam and I played some cards, Sara and Emily also joined us and we played for an hour or so together. We made plans to go watch the sunset at 5:40 pm and invited everyone else to go. It ended up being Sam, Sara, Emily, Mike and me. The sunset was beautiful, although there was a cruise ship in port that blocked it a little and it was a tad cloudy, but we got to see the cruise ship leave. As we were laying on the rock wall gazing at the lavender sky above us, we noticed that there was a restaurant behind us that was still open even though it was almost past 6:00 pm. It happened to only be two buildings away from Alex’s and I guess the last time we checked it out it was closed. We went into the place to check out the hours. It was closing, but they had some leftover food, so Samantha and I purchased spinach quiches for 7ec each and Sara bought a chocolate mousse cake slice that was to die for. While we were there, we took pictures of the menu and the hours board and chatted with the worker/cook. We learned that the place was French and the lady, Fredrik, was also from France. As we were leaving and saying thanks, Fredrik stopped us and ended up giving us the leftover food they were about to throw away for free! We ended up receiving an egg salad sandwich, a brie sandwich, three pineapple pastries, and an apple pastry. We sat on the balcony and we all passed around the food to one another so we each got to try a little bit of everything. All the food was amazing and we definitely are all in love with Fredrik’s cooking. We had so much leftover that we went downstairs and knocked on Dr. Seraphin’s door and gave him the egg salad sandwich and a pineapple tart pastry. A little while later, we all met on the balcony and talked about our respective days and a few headed over to JR’s for karaoke, but no one ended up staying long.

Thursday January 17th, 2019

Today, we went to the botanical gardens and got a tour of the grounds. It was open and airy and we made friends with three dogs while there. We named them Ham, Cheese, and Potato. Our tour guide even had pictures of what the botanical gardens looked like after Hurricane Maria and it has come a long way from there, but there is still a lot to be improved upon. My favorite part was the bamboo house, where the bamboo grew together so thick and tall that it blocked out a lot of the sun from above and created enclosed walls of layers of bamboo. As we listened to the guide, he spoke of most of the island vegetation being a surface reliant, so I asked if the bamboo was spreading too much because they are known to be an invasive species, but they use rhizomes (underground shooters to spread) which wouldn’t be conducive in this rocky volcanic soil. He told me no, they are a problem and most plants they do have issues with have stolon (above ground shooters). After getting a tour of the botanical gardens, we hiked “35 steps Jack’s Walk”. It was definitely more than 35 steps up, but the view at the top allowed us to see the entire city of Roseau spread out beneath us. On the hike up, the dogs Cheese and Potato also accompanied us so we all had hiking buddies on the way up. We walked a different way back down that took us through the eastern side of the city. For lunch a few decided to go to the smoothie place across the street while the others (Sam, Ben, Justin, & me) walked around and found a new place, we went to Orchard and grabbed burgers. When we were there, we actually ran into a local (JD) who knew us and struck up a conversation with him while waiting for our food to be done. We decided to walk down to the port and eat our burgers looking out toward the sea. Since Justin hadn’t been to Le Petit Paris (French place) we headed there so he could have a look around. Ben ended up ordering garlic bread and French fries, Sam got a cake slice, and Justin ordered espresso. Everything was just as good as the food we had before. Once we had stuffed ourselves, we decided to walk around the city a little to find new places to try and to get our bearings some more. We explored the northern side of Roseau and walked so far we ended up at the Roseau River.

Friday January 18th, 2019

Today, we visited the emeralds pools and it was an adventure to get there. We were originally dropped off at the Waitukubuli National Trail and it was about a mile hike from there to the emerald pool. As we start hiking, we found out quickly that it’s extremely muddy from the almost daily rain here, and we’re all laughing at one another as our shoes get soaked with water and our legs covered in mud. About 20 minutes into the hike, the vegetation starts to become very dense and it was hard to stay on a path even though there are blue and yellow markings every couple of yards. Elephant grass becomes everyone’s worse enemy as it scratches at arms and legs viciously. It gets to the point of such overgrowth that Dr. Seraphin makes the decision to turn around and have Colombo drive us to the pool. Once at the pool, we all stare at a waterfall pulsating over the edge of the cliff dropping below to a small clear pool. After the hike, we’re all excited to jump in, first contact with the water proves to be a little chilly. That doesn’t stop any of us though, as some of us just jump right in and swim over to the little alcove under the cliff or straight to the waterfall to feel the massive amounts of water pound onto your shoulders. We stayed in the pool for a while and I even got the UD flag from Dr. Seraphin and swam it over so we could all take a picture. We all got out and started to dry off on a little porch that overlooks the waterfall and ate snacks and tried to sunbathe to warm up. Later in the day, back in the city we all split to grab lunches, the majority of us ended up at Orchard for burgers while a few others went to Sukie’s. While eating lunch, my group got together and worked on our homework that was due that night. Around 7:00 pm we all headed over to Fort Young for dinner.

Saturday January 19th, 2019

Carnival is today. Dr. Seraphin gave us the day off so we could experience this festival, the parade started at 3:00  pm and is passing by our hotel so we’re able to watch it from the balcony. A few of us at noon decided to explore the south side of Roseau and find a new place for lunch. We don’t want to tire ourselves too much because we have an all day excursion tomorrow for our ocean experience. At three, the parade started and from the hotel balcony we gazed down as people walked, danced, and drove by in vibrant dresses and costumes. Music blared from floats that could be felt even on the balcony. It was really interesting to see how the locals here celebrate and decorate. After the parade was finished, we walked over to the stadium where carnival was being held, there was music, vendors, and hundreds of people milling around having a good day. I was really surprised at how many people participate in this event. It seemed like the whole city and surrounding villages came out in full force.

Submitted by Andrew Evans on the 2019 winter session program in Dominica sponsored by the Department of Geography…

Today came with the realization that we are already around halfway done with our stay in Dominica. It was a scary thought, but at the same time it’s rewarding to be able to look back on past experiences knowing that there still is a lot more to come. In one of these experiences, we got to explore the beautiful reefs and waters around the island. The day started out by taking a boat to one of Dominica’s most famous snorkeling spots, Champagne Reef. On our way out to the reef, I turned around and noticed a huge rainbow across the sky and it was on of the most beautiful scenes I have ever seen.

As we arrived at the reef, the boat captain gave us an overview of the reef and we all jumped in to start snorkeling.  As we swam around, I could see the methane bubbles coming up from the ocean floor and it literally looked like you were swimming through a champagne glass, hence the name. The coral and fish life was absolutely spectacular and as I dove down I could feel the warm water coming out of the ocean floor vents. The captain told us that if you ever come to the reef and there are no bubbles that you probably want to leave the island because a volcanic eruption might be in the near future. So it is safe to say that I was very glad to see the bubbles.

After snorkeling, the next adventure was whale watching. I was skeptical at first that we would even see a whale, but the next thing I knew there was a water spout ahead and a female Sperm Whale and a calf were next to the boat. I found it amazing to learn how big family is to the Sperm Whales and that females will watch over and feed a calf even if it is not her own. Sperm Whales will also sometimes float on the surface and socialize with each other for hours. Before we knew it, the mother and her calf kicked their tails up and dove down. Seeing this was an amazing end to a perfect day exploring the wonderful waters around Dominica.

Submitted by Mallory Davis on the 2019 winter session program in Dominica sponsored by the Department of Geography…

Monday 1/14

Today marks the second week of the program. We took an excursion to the north-west side of the island; Portsmouth, where we had a tour through the Indian River. We learned a lot about the wildlife that reside there including crabs, fish, and birds. We were amazed to find out that this was where a part of Pirates of the Caribbean was filmed. The water was only a couple of feet deep, but this river is the deepest one out of all the 365 rivers on the island.

Tuesday 1/15

Today, we had a guest lecturer, Katie Julien, the director of tourism on the island. We learned many important aspects of the island as well as all it has to offer including hiking, bird watching, snorkeling, scuba diving, exploring the second largest boiling lake, and experiencing the black sand beaches that surround the island. She also spoke about how Hurricane Maria decreased tourism substantially for the island and destroyed a lot of hiking trails.

Today, we also took a trip to Bubble Beach, which is located a couple of towns south of Roseau. The locals call it “Bubble Beach” because of the bubbles that rise from the ground in the water due to the volcanic activity on the island. We went on a small snorkel adventure and were able to see small reefs, sea urchins, and a plethora of fish.

Thursday 1/17

We walked to the botanical gardens today in Roseau. There is a lot of flora that persist in this area, however, Hurricane Maria destroyed a lot of its progress. The locals are in the midst of restoring a lot of the grounds, but most of the flowering trees that are there are the only ones on the island. After leaving the botanical gardens, we went on “Jack’s Walk”, a walk that is supposed to be 35 steps, but is actually closer to 200. From here, we could see a panoramic view of Roseau and some other villages farther north.

Friday 1/18

Today we drove, once again, up to the northern part of the island to view the Emerald Pool, a fresh water pool that is deposited by a waterfall overhead. To get to the Emerald Pool, we thought we had to hike through the Waitukubuli National Trail. It should have been a 20-minute hike to get to the pool, but the trail was very overgrown and was covered in elephant grass (which left us with cuts all over our arms and legs), so it took us an hour and we ended up having to turn back. Then, we decided to take the easy way out and go to the main entrance of the Emerald Pool, walk down a few steps, then jumped right into the chilly water. The water was colder than usual because of the lack of sun in the cave-like area. On the drive back to our hotel, we saw our first Jaco parrot in a tree, an endangered species on the island due to Hurricane Maria.

Sunday 1/20

Today was a day that we all were very excited for. We woke up at 7:00 am, had a quick breakfast, and set out to go snorkeling at around 8:00 am. Our tour guides took us out on the Caribbean Sea on a boat to Champagne Beach. They call it this because of the same bubbles that appear to rise from the ocean floor. We saw multiple reefs, many amazing fish species, a couple of eels, and hundreds of sea urchins. Later today, at 2:00 pm, we set out once again on the same boat to go whale watching. The tour guides said they couldn’t promise that we’d see any whales, but we were lucky enough to see five different Sperm Whales; four full grown females and one calf. This was an amazing experience since this was my first time to see a whale in person. The trip took about three and a half hours which was nice because we got to learned a lot about the different whales and dolphins that are near this part of the world and cruise around and relax as well.

 

 

Submitted by Rachel King on the 2019 winter session program in Dominica sponsored by the Department of Geography…

Sunday January 6th, 2019

Two car rides. Three flights. Eighteen and a half hours. We finally made it to our hotel in Dominica. First day consisted of traveling from southern Delaware Friday evening up to Newark, Delaware, waking up at 2:00 am on Sunday to drive the 45 minutes to Philadelphia International Airport. From there, we had three flights from Philly to Toronto (why we went so far north before heading south is a mystery to me), from Toronto to Antigua and finally in Antigua we took a little jumper plane to the North Eastern airport in Dominica. Upon arrival, the views from the plane were breathtaking. The blue waters sparkled with reflected sunset rays, and the plane skimmed a mere hundred yards from the sea below to the landing strip that borders the ocean. On our drive south through the island (90 minutes) it went from dusk to nighttime, thus the stars came out in force and splattered the sky like graffiti. The music our driver played in the van was different, but surprisingly sounded a little bit like American music mixed with Spanish hip hop. Something that shocked me was how the drivers honked and flashed their high beams seemingly at random. Later on, I thought it was to warn the drivers ahead of them that they were coming around a sharp turn or to tell people walking on the side of the road to watch out, although sometimes they seemed to honk their horn to say “hey, what’s up”. Once we checked into the hotel, we all slowly found our room, worn out from our day of traveling and got ready to go to dinner at Exotica, a small restaurant 20 minutes drive from the hotel, where we got to meet one of Dr. Seraphin’s friends, Alfie. Dinner consisted of either vegetarian, fish, or chicken as the main course, salad, rice, corn bread of sorts, some other vegetables, and purple kush kush (kinda like mashed potatoes), served with a guava juice and a passion fruit moose for dessert. Compliments to the chef (Mrs. Fey, Alfie’s wife) because if you ever find yourself on this, tiny little island of nature, that’s a place you should try. Once back to the hotel, everyone went to their respective rooms and most likely took a shower and passed out, because I for one sure did.

Monday January 7th, 2019

At nine o’clock breakfast in the hotel to start the day, everyone looks tired but sitting with excitement. With the time difference being an hour earlier than home, we’re still adjusting to waking up earlier. Today was more of a relaxed day, Dr. Seraphin showed us around the city a little, hitting the bank for currency exchange, finding local restaurants and cafes, and locating the local vendor markets, grocery stores, and pharmacies. We ate lunch at a small restaurant a block away from the hotel and most people got chicken roti, a burrito like item filled with chicken, potatoes, and a yellow sauce. After a satisfying lunch, we headed back to the hotel and rested and prepared for our big dinner that night with Mrs. Irene John, Mayor of Roseau, Mr. Petter St. Jean, Minister of Education, and Mrs. Alice Jacobs, Bishop, along with her husband Mr. Jacobs. Throughout dinner, we learned about their professions and what they’ve been focusing on after Hurricane Maria came through and brought havoc and destruction. They’re all very proud of how far they’ve come in fifteen months, but are still striving for better. Mr. St. Jean educated us on the inner working facets of their government, how the parliament was selected and the senators got their seats along with the two main parties. They also briefly discussed their resources and how they have 365 rivers, one for every day of the year; although they considered any body of water that empties into the ocean a river, even if it is really only a small stream. Overall, it was a fairly quiet dinner with a lot of food and many questions answered by our honorable quests.

Tuesday January 8th, 2019

Beach day! Oh, and our first day of class. Class started a little after 9:00am once everyone had finished breakfast and headed down to the conference room which also doubles as our classroom. First class consisted of history of the island and what Dr. Seraphin expects of us when we go out on excursions, what we should be looking for, to remember to make observations, to ask questions, and to enjoy ourselves. Farther into the class, everyone started asking questions about different aspects of the land, ranging from agriculture, insects, flora and fauna, to culture. Class ends and we all go back upstairs to get ready for our beach day. Someone sends a text about meeting downstairs and ten minutes later, we’re all gathering in the restaurant seating area on the main level in the hotel. Dr. Seraphin finds us and heads out to seek a person to drive us to and from Mero Beach which is about a 20-25 minute drive north of Roseau. While Dr. Seraphin hailed down a van, we walked down the block to a grocery store where we picked up snacks and water bottles. Fast forward 25 minutes as we made our way to the small, but gorgeous gray sand Mero beach. The drive there was corner after corner of amazing views, vibrant colors from the rainbow colored buildings, to the lush greens of the mountain foliage, and the glistening Caribbean Sea that the road dipped and curved around.  We arrived around noon and asked the driver if he could come back at 4:00pm to pick us back up, he agreed after showing us where the wash rooms and beach front restaurant was. The next four hours involved a lot of sunscreen, laughs, and pictures. Sam spent the majority of the time diving down and finding little treasures or picking up trash from the ocean bottom. I noticed while we were there that there weren’t any locals on the beach; when we first arrived there was only one other small family. As the day went on, six other people joined us, but it was by far on the opposite side of being crowded. I did talk to one local man who was down by the rocks and he showed me some of the small fish he had caught and what tools he used to catch the fish. He was going to go farther down the beach and use his catches as bait. Four o’clock rolled around and our driver chauffeured us back, taking a slightly different route allowing us to see more of Roseau, but from a new angle. On the drive, I noticed that on some of the roofs on the flat buildings there was metal sticking out, looked like rebar, and they had placed glass bottles on top of them. I’m not sure if it was for decoration or symbolic, but it was interesting. Once back, showers took place, and some aloe was readily applied. We made a plan to go watch the sunset by the cruise ship port and grab dinner afterwards. We found a small shop out by the water and got pizza, fries, and chicken shawarma. On our walk to and from sunset and dinner, we befriended a dog and named him/her Jeff. Later on, we played Uno on the balcony of the hotel and then migrated into Sara and Emily’s room for some more cards.

Wednesday January 9th, 2019

Today was structured a little bit differently. Instead of having class in the conference room, where our guest lecturer was suppose to come, we went to his house instead because the evening before he was in the hospital. Alfie opened his home to us and we all sat together on his porch and he told us about the local institutions and how they’ve changed for the worse and for the better. We ranged from topics regarding police, governmental positions, post Hurricane Maria issues, agriculture, and the mountainous terrain obstacles and solutions. After we had talked for a while, Alfie offered to show us his property and it was stunning. Being that high in the mountains, he had a gorgeous view of the town and ocean below as well as all the flora and plants he cultivates. He had bananas, almonds, guava, two cows, avocado, and many others that I cannot recall. As we walked through his property, he explained the growing season and when most of the plants bear fruit (typically twice a year), what vegetation was edible and how to know when to eat it, as well as showing us his favorite spot. Upon leaving, we headed back to the hotel where we also got lunch; lunch consisted of potatoes, rice, salad, and chicken. Post lunch, we did some errands together, picking up snacks, finding some goodies to bring back home, as well as visiting the vendors down by the port. What I noticed as we were walking around is that most places start to close around 3-5pm, so it makes it harder to find meals for dinner since we’re not used to that schedule yet. But we ate again at Alex’s cuisine down by the port and got it to go. We ate back at the hotel balcony and as we were eating, we wrapped presents for our guests from the dinner on Monday and put candy in bags for the children we were visiting the next day. Later on, we went to JR’s for karaoke night and met the Arcadia students  who are also in Dominica for a short study abroad (only one week).

Thursday January 10th, 2019

Breakfast at 8:30, and at 9:00am we left to walk to the Alpha Center, a school for students with disabilities, and 20-25 minutes later we arrived. We had to walk up a small hill; reflecting upon this, none of us are prepared for these upcoming hikes if walking up pavement for a few minutes made us tired. At the Alpha Center, we dropped off gifts we brought from home for the students, ranging from coloring books, pencils, crayons, notebooks, to Uno and Twister. We then got a tour of the school and I was surprised to find that they only go to school in the morning, they get out at 12:30 pm. After the tour, we split into small groups and chose a room and either helped the teacher  am or sat and watched the lessons and the interactions with the students and what they were working on that day. My first group was upstairs with the older students and I watched as they were sewing. It was amazing to see some of the items they had already created, such as bed sheets and pot holders. A few people actually bought some and are going to take them home for gifts. The two boys that were there were making pairs of pants, and it was really neat to watch them work. At 10:30 am, they had break and we all grouped back up and passed out a little bag of candy to all the students, 40  students are enrolled, but not everyone was there, so some little ones got extra sugar. After break, I went downstairs and chose the room that was learning math. Here, we each got a student and after the teacher gave her instructions, we helped our respective students try to learn the number 6, how to spell it, how to draw it, how to count up and down from it. It was eye-opening to see how the students were learning the longer we worked with them. My student didn’t really know how to write too well so I would put little dots in the paper for him to follow. It was a wonderful experience and we plan to go back again on a slow day to help out more. We left around noon and headed back down to the city for a quick lunch, which we grabbed at a local supermarket and then ate back at the hotel. It was a slow evening.  Tired from the previous days, most of us took naps and got reinvigorated for dinner. Dinner took place at a Chinese place a few buildings down, and let’s just say, we will not be going back. Ever. We also grabbed ice cream and then walked back to the hotel for a quick round of cards on the balcony.

Friday January 11th, 2019

Routine morning; breakfast first, lecture following regarding mostly content about our trip on Saturday to the Kalinago Territory, and then some errands around town before we left to go to Scott’s Head. We ran to the bank to exchange more money, got sandwich makings for the beach, and bought a soccer ball. Around noon, Colombo, our driver came and picked us up and drove us to Scott’s Head which is south of Roseau. When we arrived, it was cloudy and slightly raining, but that didn’t stop us from setting up camp on the small sliver of sandy beach that was there. I was surprised to see how much damage the hurricane two years ago had caused while we driving, there were a lot of buildings that were under construction. But to say we enjoyed ourselves at Scott’s Head is an understatement.  For an hour and a half or so, Samantha, Andrew, and I were swimming around with goggles checking out all the life under the sea. The views were phenomenal and words cannot describe the beauty or how it felt to see the vast ocean just spread out before you. It was a humbling moment, yet I wouldn’t of not wanted to experience it. While there, a few of us hiked up the small hill to the top of Scott’s Head to get a panoramic view of the Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea clashing together. Back down below, some beach volleyball was going on, where we were trying to keep the ball in the air for as long as possible. Soon 4:00pm arrived and Colombo was waiting to take us back to the hotel. But instead of taking us directly back to the hotel, he took a slight detour and showed us some sulfur springs, which was really cool. The water was hot, it felt like a hot tub. At the hotel, showers first and then we all got ready to head over to Fort Young for dinner, we even got Dr. Seraphin to come out and stay for a while. After we all ordered dinner and got seated, Dr. Seraphin told us stories about previous study abroad groups and what they did, and he told us about his childhood. I couldn’t even imagine growing up here and from what our professor told us, it was something he thoroughly enjoyed and now cherishes. While at dinner, the amount of jokes and stories that were exchanged made everyone laugh and bond even more, even Dr. Seraphin got in on the jokes and made everyone chuckle a few times. We were all having such a great time we didn’t end up leaving until ten o’clock at night.

Saturday January 12th, 2019

Today we visited the native people of the island, the Kaliango’s. We drove about an hour and a half up and down the mountains through winding roads.  By the time we got there, we were all so happy to be out of the car and on the ground. When on the drive, I noticed that most of the rivers that run downhill have a pipe system that they used. I think that maybe they used this method so that erosion isn’t as bad and it’s a way to control where the water hits the ground beneath it. While there, we got a tour by one of the natives, and he explained the history and how things used to work and how they work now while still preserving the culture. The views of the Atlantic side of the ocean was something out of a movie, which isn’t surprising because two of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies were filmed in Dominica. What I thought was interesting about the people was how much they’ve incorporated new technologies into their daily lives. Our tour guide was really neat showing how they used old techniques combined with new methods to make cooking or making tools more efficient. While at the territory, we all sat underneath a patio and ate our packed lunches, most of us got peanut butter sandwiches or cheese sandwiches; the peanut butter were far more superior than the cheese ones. On the drive back to Roseau, our driver (Colombo) stopped and went down a narrow path and we found ourselves at a hiking trail. We were going to the Kalinago Nature Trail down to the Snake Steps, a myth that the snake came out of the sea and was a monstrous creature that they used to “worship” as a god. The hike downhill was a little slippery because it was raining beforehand, but the view made it worth it. The hike on the other hand had us all winded and dying from the heat and the uphill climb. Back at the van, we all took a water break and then prepared for the ride back to the city. At the hotel, we took showers and retreated to our respective rooms and took naps or worked on homework or something of that nature. Samantha and I went and sat on the balcony and I worked on my blog posts while she wrote in her journal. As the sun was setting I called it quits and headed back in to get ready for dinner downstairs in the hotel restaurant. We got stir fry, salad, plantains, baked chicken, mashed potatoes, and for dessert we got ice cream! It was a long day so a few of us went to bed early while the others watched some YouTube/movies together. By 11:00pm everyone was back in their own rooms and getting ready for bed.

 

Submitted by Grace McKenna on the 2019 winter session study abroad program in Martinique sponsored by the Department of Languages, Literatures & Cultures…

As week two in Martinique comes to a close, we also reach the halfway point of the winter session. This week, my biggest hurdle to jump over has been the food. Most of it is so delicious, fresh fruit and vegetables everywhere I look. Anywhere I go, I can grab a coconut and can count on being able to order a crepe with a salty or sweet combination. However, the quality standards are much, much lower than those in the United States.

Very frequently, I go to grab a drink of milk and I get the slight aftertaste of dirt. Chips still taste like the ground where the potatoes came from, and fish is basically just a steak. Bones, skin, and eyes all included. The flavors here are also pretty extreme. If you order something with mustard, you should expect the entire thing to taste like mustard, instead of a mix of flavors that include the actual item of whatever you ordered (chicken, for example). Mayonnaise has mustard in it, too. Fish tastes exactly like every bad smell you’ve ever smelt in your life, and frequently I come back into my room after dinner and snack on some of the foods I’ve bought from the grocery store because I didn’t like dinner.

My biggest problem is with the chicken. Any and everything that says it has chicken in it, you should expect chicken wings. Meat still on the bone, and sometimes the skin sagging off like wrinkles. These past two weeks, I have been offered chicken wings in some shape or form at least once a day. In soup, with rice, with potatoes, and very frequently for dinner. It’s not tasteless – I am just tired of having to cut the meat off the bone all the time (not a finger food here!), and I am tired of eating chicken wings in everything the Martiniquians could think of.

But that’s not to say all of the food is like this! There are some really interesting and delicious things here. McDonald’s had a blue cheese burger with actual slices of blue cheese. I had tacos the other day that were some of the greatest tacos I’ve ever eaten in my life. The consistent fried plantains and rice makes me very happy. I like the lamb, the cheese, and the “igname”— translated, this means “yam”, but the vegetable is very different from what we would call a yam in the United States. This is not a sweet potato. Overall, I enjoy about 3/4 of the meals I’ve had here. It’s just that the other 1/4 have been so prominent, that I find it hard to remember all of the delicious parts.

Submitted by Nicole Steplewski on the 2019 winter session program in Bermuda sponsored by the School of Marine Science & Policy…

The week of January 13th-January 20th has been incredibly exhausting. There has been a packed schedule every day, and I could not have asked for anything better. The cultural shock I mentioned from last week about driving on opposite sides of the road has slowly been becoming a more comfortable fact, but I still have not gotten used to it. There was one piece of information that I was told in the beginning of this program that I did not believe until today. I saw the same man today that I saw yesterday. Although this does not seem like an interesting fact, it proves just how small of an island Bermuda really is. Bermuda is only fourteen miles long! It is almost crazy that such a miniscule piece of land can be one of the most expensive places to live, and such a popular tourist attraction.

Speaking of tourism, Monday January 14th, I had a wonderful opportunity to experience something new. The group ventured off to kayak in and around Ferry Reach, which is the strip of water that our housing unit resides on. There, our tour guide taught the group sensitive information about mangroves, how essential they are for marine species (since many of them only find habitat in mangroves), and how they help preserve the integrity of the land to help prevent storm surges. I personally never knew how important mangroves can be for the environment, and with that whole day being dedicated to such an important habitat, I gained a new appreciation for them.

The group was introduced to an extremely respected scientist, whom we all call “Dready”. Dready took the group on another tour around the Walsingham Caves where we gained knowledge of his mission to help save and preserve mangroves, and the steps he has been, and will continue, to take as he re-creates and grows new mangroves.

The group also had the pleasure of running a workshop for local schools, with middle and high school aged students. This workshop took place for most of the day on January 17. Throughout the day, the University of Delaware students were split into multiple groups, and each group was responsible for creating a lesson on robotics and how useful and beneficial that can be to both marine science, and whatever fields those students could be interested in. Personally, I chose to teach students about arduinos, which is basically a miniature computer system that the user would use to create circuits, controlled by a programming language, to complete simple to complex tasks like turning on a light, making that light blink, etc. From the start, I had absolutely no idea what an arduino was. This was a challenge I was willing to take on, and eager to do so. I have to say it was a struggle to learn as much as I could about arduinos in less than 48 hours to be able to teach students, but it was an extremely rewarding experience.

From the start, I could not register that I was actually traveling to Bermuda. Now, with only six days left in the program, it feels strange to leave. I have become accustomed to seeing the water everyday, and I feel very much at home. However, my real home is calling. With six days left, I have no doubt that I will continue to grow.

Submitted by Lindsey Auerbach on the 2019 winter session program in Barbados sponsored by the Department of Human Development and Family Sciences and the Department of Hospitality Business Management…

This is my placement location. I am working with 6-7 year olds. In Barbados, they do not go by “Grade 1, 2, 3…” they go by “3-4, 4-5, 5-6.” So far I have been helping out with math and comprehension. I am so amazed at the education level the children have. They are all so bright and so smart. They do not let the few resources the school has stop them from constantly learning. I keep thinking to myself “different, not less.” This was a quote we learned when we had our orientation. The children are not less than me, I’m not trying to save the world, I’m just learning about differences in education. There is nothing wrong with the way teachers educate children here, it is just different from the United Sates. I am so overwhelmed with joy when I step into this classroom because I know that I am doing something that betters me, and if my presence can put a smile on one child’s face for the day, then I know I have succeeded. I have started to have a new level of respect for teachers. Elementary school teachers teach students the core basics in order to advance. Writing and reading is second nature for us, but the teachers in Barbados have to teach them every step. And that is something I am amazed by.

Submitted by Sara Dooley on the 2019 winter session program in Dominica sponsored by the Department of Geography…

Dominica so far has been absolutely breathtaking. We all arrived safely and exhausted, but not so much so that we forgot to notice the views. On our hour and a half drive from the airport to the hotel, we noticed how mountainous the island actually is and how beautiful and bright the stars in the night sky are here. The island is truly gorgeous and deserves the name “The Nature Island”.

Within the amount of time that we have been here, we really feel as though we have been accepted by the locals and are treated as we are ones. We have learned our way around the city of Roseau, where our hotel is, by walking the streets and exploring. We have found many food places. Our favorite spot so far is a little French place called La Petite Paris. Many restaurants in Dominica close around 4:00/5:00 in the afternoon, but La Petite Paris closes later which works for our American dinner time mentality. The restaurant also makes some of the best food I personally have ever tasted (sorry, Mom)! The restaurant workers and locals know and recognize us whenever we see them now. Other friendly locals who may not know us will come up to us and ask us questions. We also have started to feel comfortable enough here to go up to some locals and ask what their favorite things to do/see are or to ask for suggestions on where we should go or what we should eat, they are very helpful.

We have done many fun things since we have been here. Just within this short time, we have had dinner with some of the dignitaries here, visited the Carib Territory (the indigenous people of Dominica), had 3 guest lectures, toured the Indian River (Calypso’s home from Pirates of the Caribbean movie), volunteered our time at the Alpha School (for children with disabilities), toured the botanical gardens and Emerald Pool. My favorite thing we have done so far is visit the Alpha School and work with the children. I spent the day walking around to multiple different aged group classes and observing how they learn. I also was able to sit with some of the younger children and do some crafts that the teacher had assigned them. Spending time with the children and seeing how much they enjoy the school really made me happy because many children here with disabilities are hidden away and kept from schooling. We enjoyed our time there so much that we plan on going back before the program is over to volunteer more of our time!

Being here has been kind of a culture shock for all of us. We didn’t expect the people to be so outgoing and friendly and it was slightly off putting at first. The food has been mostly chicken, rice, fruit and salad. They drive on the other side of the roads here, the roads are very winding and go up and down the mountains and the drivers beep at each other for so many different reasons (even just to say hi). One thing that we found odd at first is that children would see us and come up to hug us. We found out later that since Dominica is very mono-ethnic, children are not used to seeing people who look like us and they get very excited when they do. We are growing so accustomed to these things that when we get back home it will be hard going back to our old ways. One thing is for sure, I am enjoying the 80 degree weather and the sunny beaches and am in no way ready to go home just yet!