Day 12 - Hospital tour, beach & Balenbouche Estate

Day 12 (December 12th, 2013) Cuthy picked us up at 9 am. Lekei decided to stay in Castries for the weekend as she extended her stay on the island to vacation. Dr. Hansen, Ursula, Amelia, and I said goodbye to the Leon’s (host family) and started the journey to Vieux Fort. I wasn’t feeling the best so I sat in the front seat – it was a cloudy, dreary day. It rained on and off during on the drive. I had to use the restroom about 20 miles out of Vieux Fort; it began to pour as soon as we stopped. I got soaked! Even with an umbrella. There are restrooms available to use along the roads, but for a small fee – usually $1 US. When we got to Vieux Fort, we checked into the guesthouse we stayed in the first night. Amelia and I shared the same room we had on the 1st – our first night together  After we unloaded our bags, Cuthy drove us to St. Jude’s hospital. We were scheduled to tour the old hospital with hospital administration. Part of the hospital was burnt down in a tragic fire in 2009; while rebuilding, it was decided to renovate the entire hospital. Progress has been slow due to lack of funds, but the finished product is going to be remarkable. The hospital will have roughly 115 beds when completed. We were instructed to wear hard hats during our tour – ours were robin’s egg blue. There was much debate over the color of the hard hats in the van during the ride from the stadium (current hospital location) to the old hospital. Dr. Francois was certain they were green; another said blue – teal, mint, any shade of blue-green. The group was quite entertaining. We arrived at the old hospital, and were guided by a contractor around the grounds. The hospital has two wings, connected by an outdoor walkway. The hospital includes guest quarters for volunteers – DMU sends med students to St. Jude’s. After touring the hospital for an hour, we were dropped off at our guest house. We changed into beach attire and headed to the beach for lunch. Emily, the medical resident, came with us to lunch. We met her friend, a nurse volunteering at St. Jude’s as well, at The Reef restaurant; her name is Eileen and she is originally from Ireland, but travels the world working as a nurse. I had sorrel juice – a fruit in season during the holidays – to drink. It looked like cranberry juice but had such a unique flavor, very sweet, so good! I ordered a side salad, French fries, and fish fingers. We were all starving. The food was delicious as usual. After lunch, we headed to the beach – about 50 yards from the restaurant. It was windy and the water was rough; the Atlantic Ocean is colder than the Caribbean Sea. We hung out at the beach for half hour or so then headed back to the guesthouse to get ready for dinner. Dr. Hansen made reservations at the Balenbouche Estate, a sugar plantation. The Head Nurse from St. Jude’s and Emily accompanied Dr. Hansen, Ursula, Amelia and I. It was about a 45 minute drive from Vieux Fort; it was dark when we arrived so we weren’t able to walk around the grounds and see the old equipment. The house was beautiful. We toured the home and sipped rum punch at our table on the wrap around porch. There were other guests eating dinner as well; guest houses are available for rent on the property. The meal was served family style. The meal included chicken and caper soup, organic lettuce salad, rice, breaded fish, eggplant & tomato pesto, lentils, and steamed veggies. The eggplant tomato pesto was amazing! I didn’t realize I liked eggplant. We talked about our trip and thanked Nurse Charles for her help. We headed back to Vieux Fort, said our goodbyes and headed to bed. Amelia and I were exhausted. It’s my last night on the island. I am not ready to leave this beautiful place.