Of a Week Away

I gotta say, I wasn't feeling all gung-ho about a week at the camp.  Some people complain about ruts, but I'm usually pretty content with a good routine, and I don't go jumping at every chance to do something different.

 

This time, of course, I didn't have much of a choice.  So I went.  (Maybe with a bit of grumbling under my breath.)

 

But...tell you what, getting out of the city was a breath of fresh air.  Literally and figuratively. :)

 

And it was a bonding experience, if nothing else.

 

 

 

We don't have orchards of mango trees in California, but there's something about rows and rows of trees that reminds of driving through California.

 

Which made me both happy and homesick.

 

 

I'm thinking of opening a bed-and-breakfast out here.  I'll call it The Lone Baobab.  Has a nice ring, doesn't it?

 

 

 

We had to stop on the way to the camp to drop someone off, so most of us took the opportunity to stretch our legs a bit (read: swing and take pictures).

 

 

 

Marie-Claude, Michaela, and I took turns swinging.  Don't tell me we were too old for it.  We still fit on the swing, and we didn't break it, so that's that. ;)

 

 

 

 

 

Some preferred to swing upside-down in hammocks.

 

 

Aaannnd...we're back on the road again.

 

I love tree-lined roads.

 

 

 

 

- - -

 

They told us the camp was "right by the ocean", but I wasn't exactly sure what they meant by that.

 

Turns out it was right on the ocean.  Like, the dining room screens were wet with salt-spray and I could hear the waves as I fell asleep.  That close.

 

 

 

 

 

 

- - -

 

We had eleven kids along, which made things fun.

 

 

 

 

 

Hi, Hailah!

 

 

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Kara and Muriel (below) were a lot of fun to work with in the kitchen.  I hadn't had much interaction with Kara until this week, but I really enjoyed getting the chance to know her better.

 

 

Sunday afternoon/evening we got settled in...had spaghetti and garlic bread for dinner...

 

 

The kids (and some of the adults) took every chance possible to be out on the beach - playing soccer or swimming or playing in the sand.

 

There were some pretty serious tans by the end of the week.

 

- - -

 

 

 

 

It was the bird that was supposed to be in focus here.  Oops.

 

 

 

 

The flamboyant trees are in all their blazing glory right now.  Rainy season is just around the corner.

 

I'm excited and dreading it at the same time.  Dreading the humidity and the heat and the flooding (and the list goes on).  BUT I'm so looking forward to some good thunderstorms!  That and a bit more green around here. :)

 

 

 

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Here's our sleeping quarters.  There were nine of us ladies in this dorm (plus a baby).

 

 

 

 

This is how the world looks from inside a mosquito net.

 

 

This is the little house on the prairie where Marie-Claude and I had our sessions. 

 

For better or for worse, you could see the beach quite clearly from the windows.

 

But we were dedicated and allowed nothing to distract us.

 

Ha.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Every time someone talks about going to the beach, I think, Ugh.  Sand and seaweed and trash and droves of barely-dressed people running around...no thanks.   But without fail, when I'm actually at the beach, the ocean works its magic, and I remember how much I enjoy the waves crashing on the sand again and again.

 

And happily, the stretch of beach right in front of our little camp didn't have a lot of seaweed or trash or people.

 

Of course, there was that one day when the whole beach seemed to be covered with dead fish, but other than that...

 

 

- - -

 

 

We had both African and Western meals.  This was Monday's lunch of chebu yapp (rice with meat and veggies...and side note, there's about a million different spellings of that, so I just picked one that looked good to me).

 

Around this bowl, there were six of us girls, and no fewer than five countries represented.  How's that for an international group?

 

 

Here's the outside kitchen.  There was also a kitchen in the dining hall.

 

 

And here's Muriel in the indoor kitchen, getting ready to slice cheese for sandwiches.

 

 

Oh, yum.

 

I lovelovelove cheese.  That's not exactly breaking news, I know.  But some truths bear repeating.
 

- - -

 

 

A chart on the progression of phases in language learning.  (The workshop had to do with our French program, you recall.)

 

In case you're wondering, I'm right smack dab in the middle of the chart, in the "Deep-Life Sharing" phase.

 

 

 

 

I was looking through one of the books they were using, and the pictures just made me laugh.  Imagine a town overrun by flying frogs.

 

Oh, and check out this book I found at a bookstore in the nearby town.

 

 

Calvin and Hobbes.  In French.  I so wanted to get it.  It's a good thing I didn't bring much in the way of spending money.  LOL!

 

- - -
 

 

Nearly every evening we took walks along the beach.

 

 

 

 

Ruth, Marie-Claude, Patricia (another language helper), and Veronique (who helped watch the kids during the week)

 

 

 

 

 

Can you spot the crab?  There were tons of them along the beach as dusk fell.  Thankfully our bare feet remained unharmed.

 

 

 

 

 

- - -

 

So this World Cup that everyone is talking about?

 

I'll let you in on a secret: I'm not a sports person.  At all.

 

And it's actually not a secret.

 

But anyway, although I could pretty much care less about the whole thing, I went along with the rest of the gang to watch Thursday's Germany vs. USA match.

 

Which was the first soccer game I'd ever watched.  Not in the World Cup.  In my life.

 

And considering the fact that it was my first, and quite possibly my last, I felt a bit cheated.  We missed the first half-hour of the game.  Why, you ask?  I'll get to that in a minute.

 

 

Gotta love Donovan's face in the middle there, eh?

 

We had both Germans (Michaela who is sitting right next to me is one of them) and Americans.  Little Michael's parents were coaching him on the drive.  "Now Michael, when the US scores a goal, you're going to cheer, right?"

 

Michaela and Ruth told him, "No, Michael, when Germany scores a goal, you're going to cheer, because Germany is where your cousins [that's what he calls them] are from."

 

In his matter-of-fact little voice, he said, "No, I don't think that way, because I'm a little boy."  He didn't end up watching most of the game.  He amused himself by playing with sticks and trying to scare us.

 

What was funniest to me, though, was how into it some of the Africans were.  They were some of the loudest in cheering for their chosen teams.

 

 

 

The first attempt was the best after all. :)

 

 

We went to a bakery down the road from where we were staying.

 

 

(The sign on the right - made by Haurell - says, "U.S.A. We will win!!!"  I don't care much for over-confidence.)

 

 

After everyone was settled in and sipping their soda and eating their pastries, we had some technical difficulties.  Like, the internet wasn't working, so we couldn't stream the game.

 

We set off to find another place where we could watch it.

 

 

Half an hour later, we found this little restaurant/resort place and everyone settled in once more... 

 

 

 

Some of our number were rather uninterested in the game, and preferred sitting by the pool or playing with sticks.

 

 

I can't exactly blame them.

 

- - -

 

 

We had two movie evenings.  Fun.

 

There was some debate over whether we should watch this movie in German or in English.

 

English won.  I have no clue why.

 

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Haurell the Infamous.  (He goes to my church and to say he's a character would be a mild understatement.)

 

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Michael, lookin' cute...

 

 

His little sister is equally cute, but rather difficult to get a picture of...

 

 

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We had an occasion to celebrate during the week.

 

 

Happy birthday, Kathryn!  She's the one on the left. :)

 

(And by the way, I'm so glad you spell your name with a K.  Kathryn with a K is so much more alluring than Cathryn with a C...)

 

 

Donnie and little Mao (who was far more thrilled to play with the frosting than he was to eat it)

 

 

 

 

Unfortunately the blurry pictures don't quite do justice to his milk mustache or his cheesy grin.

 

After dessert, we had a bonfire.

 

 

A love a good bonfire.  And on the beach?  Even better.

 

Add a guitar, and it's just about perfect.

 

That bonfire left Your Love Never Fails running through my mind over and over.  Which means that I've been singing it over and over (poor neighbors).  And listening to it on repeat.  In English and Spanish.

 

It's how I roll.

 

- - -

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nothing can separate
Even if I run away
Your love never fails

I know I still make mistakes

You have new mercies for me every day
Your love never fails

You stay the same through the ages
Your love never changes
There may be pain in the night

But joy comes in the morning

And when the oceans rage
I don't have to be afraid
Because I know that You love me
Your love never fails

The wind is strong and the water's deep
I'm not alone in these open seas
'Cause Your love never fails

The chasm is far too wide
I never thought I'd reach the other side
But Your love never fails

You make all things work together for my good

You make all things work together for my good...

 

It could very well be my theme song for the past just-over-ten-months.