SHARK!

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New pictures: http://brookeroebuck.shutterfly.com/

March 23, 2009 7:41pm, Home in Freeport

Hi, Everyone!!

Sorry it’s been so long since I’ve last written - my life has been extremely busy. Third semester is full of classes, clinicals, patient interviews, and studying.

So what’s new? Well, my parents just left today after being here for a week. We had a great time together and it was nice to show them around the place I live. They stayed in an all-inclusive hotel on the island, which they enjoyed, although there were about 800 spring-breaking college students there at the same time. They also rented a car and rode around the island for a bit, although there’s not really a whole lot to see outside of Freeport. We went to a fish fry one night, which didn’t go over so well, as the fish are served with their heads still on and bones intact, which made Mum lose her appetite instantaneously. We then enjoyed a little Burger King. My dad, Tom, and I also went scuba diving! Yep, that’s right - I took the plunge into shark-infested waters. Tom was able to do a little teaching for my dad before the dive, and then we were off to the great blue abyss to a dive site called something like Poppa Doc. Once the boat captain pushed me into the water (not too much of an exaggeration), the first thought that came to mind was SHARK as I fell backwards into the water, but I soon surfaced and put my eyes directly on Tom, who was fighting off a reef shark. That’s just a joke. He was hanging onto the descent line. So I flippered over to him and hung on to him for dear life, then descended to about 45 feet. My dad came down later and we all dove together where we saw a sunken ship and two engine blocks. There wasn’t a whole lot of sea life on that particular dive, and we actually did not see any sharks, which Tom said was very unusual (Tom dives about twice a day as part of his internship at the dive shop). We also got to enjoy an extra day with my parents, courtesy of US Airways overbooking their flights, which was excellent.

What else? Tom recently returned from a two-week trip to the Dominican Republic where he became a certified scuba diving instructor (CONGRATS, TOM!!), so he is now able to certify people to dive. He is currently interning at a local dive shop as I mentioned, awaiting the lift of a hiring freeze. He has also started a masters degree, which continues to keep him out of my hair during the day (that was just a joke - I really enjoy having him around!).

Tom and I also got to witness the latest space shuttle launch from Kennedy Space Station in Florida. We went out to a secluded beach here in Freeport and were able to watch the space ship’s ascent. It was AMAZING. We thought it might look like a shooting star in the sky, but it was actually clearly visible, and it left right around the time the sun was starting to set, so the contrail that was left took on all the colors of the rainbow. It was definitely very exciting.

How do I like the island? Honestly, it’s okay. The island is very, very flat with the highest elevation being around 300 feet. Most of the roads are along the inland, therefore there is not a lot of scenery of the ocean. There are a lot of trees, but all of them have sustained substantial damage from past hurricanes, so only the tops have branches. I’ve found that there’s not a lot to do unless you want to spend money shopping in the local places, and that’s really for tourists. I miss Dominica a lot. There were so many things to see there and I was surrounded by my friends all the time. Here, it’s possible for me not to see people for weeks at a time and it doesn’t feel like there’s any real comradery amongst the students because everyone lives so far from each other. I miss the social interaction a lot, as well as having close-knit friendships.

Some other observations about the island: People either own extremely nice rims or ride around on a donut tire - it’s one or the other, there is no in between. There are about 5000 car wash places and ALL of them are done by hand. It’s not as hot here as Dominica. Pina coladas are amazing. Coconuts break toes. Lizards still have curly tails. Owning Burger Kings and KFCs allows you to live in the biggest mansion on the whole island. Conch fritters are yummy. If there is a restaurant that does shark feeding, it is only a ruse to get you to stay for three hours through all three sharks feeding to order more food - you will not actually see any sharks.

Well, I think that is all for now. I need to get caught up on work here, as the semester is quickly coming to an end. I will be home in about one month from now, which is very, very exciting. I can’t believe I am almost halfway through my stay here in the Bahamas - time has flown!

I hope everyone is well and will see you soon!

Love,
Brooke, the brave diver of shark-infested waters

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Comments

[Lenie]

WOOOWW
And I'm guessing Tom is your bf? You're halfway done! Time definitely flies.