My Day with the Brownies

Today was our community day here at the center in which we all sign up to do something and go some place within the community. We can chose from an array of things; Mural painting, music, ESL, swim lessons, sports, Brownies, etc. On Wednesdays we go to them, and on saturdays they are invited to come to our campus for 2 hours! I signed up (on wednesdays) for Brownies and Mural painting. The picture below is an example of what brownies is. Brownines are what the little kids program is called, we work with 4-7 year olds and just go hang out with them. We play sports, or just talk with them. Today was sports day, and that will go until March 11. The school coned off (or blocked off) the road the school was on, and the kids raced up and down the street. There had to be at least 50 kids, easy. They all go to school in a place with 3 classrooms tops, and one male and one female bathroom. They all have their little uniforms on, and occasionally the boys wear a tie and the girls wear a dress over the light blue button-up. I dont know how they do it! I was wearing a T-shirt and shorts and was boiling! It is not even the summer, they said in the summer it gets to triple digits all the time! so today I just got to know the kids and in this picture they are convincing me to get my hair braided. So today I went to the hair salons around the island and got prices on braids, and tomorrow I will have a few! They were very convincing. They love my skin and hair color, and it is not just them. In the convenience stores they have skin whitening soap and shampoo that makes your hair flow like "a nonislander." My one friend might get her whole head! My other friend got a dred, i am not that bold. Quick fact, Bob Marley had 13 types of lice in his dreds, and they discovred two new types!!! So, no, not happening. It was so fun hanging out with the kids. The school system is different too, I have not found out too much about that yet though, but i will keep you all updated. As far as sanitation goes, when you arrive on the island all sense of that goes out the window. Yea, you brush your teeth every night, but there is no shaving, no hair products and straightening, and no one wears makeup! It is actually great to not have to worry about that, i just roll out of bed in the morning and am good to go, and the locals find it more attractive when you are 0-natural. They like the bigger ladies too, they have a Miss Big competition on the island every year! I saw a picture and she is gorgeous!! As far as showers go, there are not a lot of freshwater sources here, they just use straight tap. Our taps at the center are freshwater though just so the students dont get sick. However, when we go to the bars, the ice cubes are not filtered, so you have to be careful. But hey, you need to eat your pound of dirt a day right!? Besides brownies i signed up for mural painting, volleyball, and dominos! Bring it on!