Animals - around the house, on the streets

Toto, I've a feeling we're not in New York anymore!

Gecko chilling on the leg of my couch.



Another lizard, looks more like a crocodile type. It's one of those lizards that can ditch it's tail, and it's around a foot long.


This gigantic whistling frog was chilling on my steps. A cat ate him later. Yum. If I was in France it would be haute cuisine. Instead, it's a dead frog on my steps.


My archnemesis, the sea turtle. They come ashore to lay eggs. The beach near the Hilton is the best place to spot them. You use a red flashlight (so that you don't scare 'em) and look for turtle tracks in the sand. They look like tire tracks. Once they start laying, they enter a trance and you can walk right up to them and take pictures.


There are pigeons. They're brown and they fly up to my window at work all the time.


But no squirrels. Monkeys instead.


And baby sea turtles. Unfortunately, I don't have pictures but I rescued 150 on one occasion (I was playing tennis, they start crawling across the court, confused by the lights, I put them in a big box and dump them in the sea). Since 1 in 1000 survive to adulthood, I actually saved 0.15 adult turtles. Go Go Biodiversity!

T minus nine days

My days in Barbados are numbered - nine, to be exact. Five more days of work.

I've done everything that I've wanted to do here (including rescuing baby sea turtles) and some things I didn't (like getting bit by a big scary adult sea turtle), so only one thing remains. That, of course, is to get my drink onnnn.

Well, I guess that's not the only thing. It would be nice to say goodbye to everyone, make use of the sun, put myself further in debt, and post stuff on the blog that I haven't had a chance to yet.

Q: What do you do on a four day weekend in Barbados when a dear friend is visiting?

Do: Go on a catamaran cruise. These sailboats find great spots to snorkel with sea turtles, dive into shipwrecks, and relax on the beach. 

Hard to Do: Look good snorkeling

Do: Bring your hermanas Kimberly and Ladan.

Don't: Get your fingers bit by a sea turtle, fall down on your face and bust your lip, or get sunburned.

Perhaps Do: Visit Harrison's cave. 

Do: Go to the beach and take lots of cliff pictures. Suck in your stomach.

Do: Explore the east coast and the sugar cane plantations.

Don't: Get lost. This is virtually impossible when all maps are inaccurate and not to scale, there are no road signs, and when the guy you invited just so he can drive you around doesn't know a single road on the island. Take taxis.

Do: Show off the beautiful embassy where you work!