I have landed in Jurassic Park.

It is now January 2, 2013, and I have so much to talk about.

Shooting back to when I landed:
 The plane ride in was fascinating! The island looks like a giant green mountain range form above. I'll be honest, I wasn't sure how the heck the plane was going to land. There didn't appear to be a single flat surface. The plane landed safely on a tiny runway,( the size of a pack of gum) and I was reminded of when we landed in Puerto Rico and saw a giant iguana off to the side on the runway. I checked in with customs and had no issues. I hopped into a full van of students and left my luggage on a truck to be transported separately. I was lucky that I wasn't one of the few people that had their luggage lost at the airline. The ride was a little shock for a few reasons. 1.) They drive on the opposite side of the road. 2.) Traffic signs do not exist 3.) pedestrians are everywhere and run from the road like crows scattering when a bus comes whizzing by. 4. who needs a speed limit? The roads are as wide as the bus with large trenches on both sides serving as ditches or graves (dual purpose I suppose). So as we drove 75 kph around sharp turns and hills and potholes and dogs and children. The ride took about an hour. I felt as if I rode the carnival teacup ride 16 times straight and finally felt the need to be queasy.

I later arrived at the Jenner complex (nicknamed the Barn) where I was welcomed with paperwork and a hot meal. I called  my Mom and Sarah from the phone and let them know I arrived safely. I then met my landlord who drove me to the apartment and introduced me to the ways things are done. I have a propane stove, and I have to buy units of electricity from the store for anything to work, otherwise it literally shuts off. I have posted pictures to my Facebook page of my room but I'll toss a few on here if I can figure that out.

The last few days were orientation and we heard basic info and some stories. Mr. Sheakly described his tour to the boiling lakes where his one-legged tour guide lead his pack to the boiling hot springs. Unfortunately for the tour guide, his name was Skippy. yes Skippy. I burst out into a laughing fit in the middle of the lecture hall. Skippy. no legs. not much skipping to be done. HA HA.  Another presenter talked about hurricane safety like "don't try and surf during a hurricane". Yet of course. You know he wouldn't say something like this if someone didn't try doing it. It's like the obscure warnings on the side of hair drier ."Please don't take a bath and dry your hair at the same time"  DUH! I get it haha.

Today I went on a tour on the Indian river and it was really nice! I'll post pictures above. I was told that on this river the Pirates of the Caribbean filmed the seen where Jack visits the witches hut. Down the river was a really cool bar hut where they sold rum punch. I was told that there wasn't any punch in the punch but I'll leave that story to those people. I returned to campus and set up my bank accounts and got a LIME phone service (contact me if you want the number). After that I went to the BBQ where I was given a fresh coconut to drink out of. ( it was really delicious and had an odd texture). It is probably better for cooking so I'm going to dry it out and cook it in my rice tomorrow.

I played a few games of ping pong with a 5th semester student from Israel named Zack and he confirmed the possibility of coming to MI for my 5th semester. I then walked to the IGA (supermarket) and purchased several bags of heavy groceries and lugged them half a mile up a freaking hill to my apartment. I looked ridiculous or savagely manly. I'll let the passers by give you the verdict.

And that has been my day thus far!