Well, it’s official. The
tickets are bought, the bags are packed, and I’m even checked into Delta
already. In approximately six hours I
will be on my way to Saint Lucia for 3 weeks.
This trip is organized through Des Moines University (DMU) as a three
credit course called “Cultural Applications.”
I, Dr. Mary Hansen, and three other female students will be going
to Saint Lucia to volunteer with the country’s Saint Jude’s hospital. Our main goals are to learn about providing
public health assistance in a different country and increasing the overall health
of the people of Saint Lucia. As to what
we will actually be doing, well, that’s still sort of up in the air. The time I received an update I was told that
we will be touring in several retirement homes, or the equivalent of retirement
homes in Saint Lucia, and teaching individuals with diabetes and hypertension
how to manage their illnesses through diet and exercise. This could be completely wrong. I guess we’ll find out when we get there! The course lasts for two weeks and then my
family will be joining me at an all-inclusive resort for a week of vacation.
Over the past few days I’ve been working on gathering all
the supplies I needed and packing my bags.
Packing for this trip has been especially tricky given the circumstances
of this trip. I will be working during
the week in a professional capacity and, therefore, need to bring the
appropriate clothing. However, during
the evening and weekends, as well as my last week, I will have free time in which
I will want to be lounging around in summer clothing and swim suits. This is all complicated by the fact that I
won’t have any access to laundry facilities for the first two weeks. Needless to say, I packed the biggest
suitcase I could find in my parents’ basement and filled it to the brim. I had to do a little rearranging to meet the
weight requirement, but I managed!
Tomorrow I will be meeting my professor and my three
classmates for the first time at the airport.
Dr. Hansen, myself, and the one other girl who lives in Iowa will be
meeting at the Des Moines Airport at 4:30 in the morning (gross!). We will me the other two ladies at the gate
in Atlanta. We arrive in Vieux Fort, Saint
Lucia at about 4 PM local time (which is two hours ahead of CST) and hopping in
a car to drive 25 miles to Castries, the capital, where we will be staying for
a majority of the two weeks we are there.
I decided that I wanted to do during this time abroad in
order to keep my family and friends updated on my activities and to keep a
record to help me remember what happens during the trip. I will post as frequently as possible given
my work load and internet access. There
will be pictures posted with my blog posts as well as on Facebook, most
likely. The title of the blog, for those
who are wondering, means beautiful island in Saint Lucia’s creole
language. The picture is of Soufrière
Bay and the Twin Pitons in the southwestern portion of the island. Please feel free to follow along on this new
adventure I’m having!
Pictures of the packing process:
Sorry, Charlie! You can't come with. :)
