Christmas here was really nice and I had the opportunity to integrate myself into the Chamorro holiday traditions--which ARE extensive! LOL. I was invited over to several families house for "dinner" and managed to make two of them (much to the chagrin of my poor belly!) I really can't say enough how very welcoming everyone has been. The first family we went to, Vanessa and Eddie had lots of family there and quite a spread on the beach behind their house. It was nice to sit near the beach and watch the children play in the water with their parents. The other family, The Ogo's, are also very supportive and welcoming. They also have two adopted children. I have to say that one thing I have noticed here is that children are cherished and raised by EVERYONE. The kids are just learning to walk and go from one cousin, uncle, aunt or Grandparent to another. The adults get down on the ground and play with them, hold them on their laps, take them in the water, feed them and discipline them (gently) when necessary. In some ways it is a very formal place with lots of customs and respect but on another level it is very free and tolerant of the little things in life. It is not uncommon for children to be fostered in one home, on one island or another for long periods of time; or for children to be sent to the US for parts of their schooling with an Aunt or Uncle. I would have to say it is a very holistic approach to family life.
That said, Rota has it's fair share of challenges as well. Families are so close and invariably there are conflicts and times of strife-which tend to pull large extended families in different directions for a time. And given how small Rota is (3000 people) just about everyone is related to one or another on one level or another, so you can imagine it can get to be a sticky mess if left unchecked. I have not seen anything too bad as I think they nip it in the bud as soon as possible. Another thing I notice about here is that there is very little "out of control" behavior. Don't get me wrong the Rotanese love their "Bud Light and BBQ" but I have not seen, or heard any of them get out of hand or loud. The loudest I hear is the distant Karaoke machine and the occasional off key singing :) No, I have not become a crooner yet, but they are trying their best to indoctrinate me!
The job front is going well. Since I got here I have managed to get my surveys back in order and even rehab a few juvenile birds that were brought in at different times by locals. The Yellow Bittern, was super neat and docile. S/he just needed a few hours to recoup and then I was able to let it go in a local marsh. As you can see, just jumped off my hand and into the reeds s/he went happy as you please. Sir Bites A Lot was OBVIOUSLY a bit more of a challenge. This Tropic Bird was NOT a fan of being kept and quite frankly was more interested in trying to bite my fingers than the chopstick with the fish. As you can see in the picture I am quite surprised and s/he is quite unconcerned and was willing to wait it out. I am happy to say another successful release once s/he got airborne--although I am pretty sure there was one attempt to poop on my head!
Patrick's visit here was super wonderful, despite the fact he could only stay for 9 days. He was not only a champ for the times when I had to work (which I tried to minimize I promise!) but was very helpful in organizing the Christmas Bird Count AND became loved and adored by the locals. In fact they not only threw him a going away BBQ the night before he left but also 5 people got up and met us at the airport at 2am to see him off because they wanted to tell him one last time to be safe and come back again soon. He really got along with one of the gentleman, Gerald (or "G" for short) who bestowed a great honor to him by giving him a handmade sinahi necklace, which is a traditional necklace that implies respect and importance. I would say his visit was quite the success and since he left I have had more than one person tell me they miss him.................I try my best to act surprised. As you can see we got some fun snorkeling in and were able to visit a couple of the ancient Chamorro villages with "Latte's Stones". These were the pillars that the indigenous peoples built their houses upon and they say the ones here are about 3,000 years old. If your interested to know more: http://en.wikipedia.org/
Since Patrick had to leave the day before my birthday, my friends decided to throw me a beach "birthday" BBQ (do you see a trend with the BBQ thing???) There were just a few of us, but as you can see we had a lovely time and it was perfect in my opinion. One of my co-workers Robert brought his kids and we had lots of fun playing on the beach and just relaxing in general. That said, his eldest, Rena, made me the sweetest Birthday card! BTW-the Taotaomona is there version of the scary spirit..........I'm not sure HOW good my imitation is :)
More adventures to come soon.............I hope this finds you smiling and enjoying your holiday season :)
Happy Happy New Year again!
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