January 27, 2011

Hey all,

Well, I survived the opening of the church! For 3 days and nights we had bus loads of people arriving for the worship, music and food. Each evening folks were splayed out all over the house sleeping on the floor...it was crazy. There was dancing and singing and prayer...I'd say we had 500 people there Sat & Sun! We slaughtered our cow and had massive amounts of meat, bean, rice. We sold soda and chips and sweets to raise money...it was like a mini concert scene! The people were wonderful and had such a great time...nothing like this has ever reached this part of Belize!

Now that we are all cleaned up and back to semi-normal (I say that because there is always something happening like today when I got stuck in some mud taking a neighbor home) I have taken some time to relax and enjoy the sea. I met a couple of fishermen who took me out to the Cayes for 2 days of fishing and we also visited a Garifuna settlement up the coast called Punta Negra where only 8 families live. We were invited for a wonderful lunch of red snapper, rice and beans and enjoyed great conversation. Our fishing trip wasn't as successful as we would have liked and we only filled one of the 3 coolers with fish but what a blast! I caught a baracuda and I even snagged an eagle when he swooped down and grabbed my bait as I was trailing my line!!! Trust me, after 2 days fishing at sea with no fresh water I was definitely stinky!! We brought all the fish back for my family and shared it with everyone! While out on the sea I saw rays, dolphins, starfish, many beautiful birds. A toatally cool experience.

I'll be spending the next week working on the house and I may take another overnight trip to Punta Negra to visit my new friends Miss Paula and Miss Sue, two very nice Garifuna women who are raising 7 children in this remote place where the only access is by boat. There is a school with only 8 children who attend. I am loving the fact that I am exploring more of the area and it's feeling more and more comfortable with each passing day.

I'll post pictures tomorrow...I just realized I brought the wrong cord to the internet cafe...ugh!! I've got some amazing photos!

Sending peace, joy and love from PG!

Brenda Bonita