Hot Sunday

The morning started very hot as we took the 20-minute walk to brunch. By the time we arrived, I was sweating and not very lovely. But the food was great and the company even better. Gabi ate like a horse again and enjoyed some raspberries and blackberries, which are new to her.

We then went shopping for a few "necessities" in the market. We found a couple of table runners, toys and gifts for people back home. The girls were antsy, so we headed to the central park and let them play. Reagan found a boyfriend and they blew bubbles for a while. Gabi climbed on the benches.

It was at the central square that we had an altercation with a couple of young girls. These young ladies (probably 12 or 13 year olds) sell their wares in the square to tourists. The police run them off usually, but they typically manage to make their way around. Today, while I was playing with Gabi on the bench, one of them sat down and started talking to me. She wanted me to buy something for $1. I said no repeatedly and then agreed. It was actually something I wanted, but when I went to get the money she said, "It's $20." I didn't even have that much cash on me. And I didn't want it that bad. She kept after me, dropping the price from 20 to 15 to 12 to 10. When I said no, she got upset and said, "You stink!" Well, I laughed. I told her that she was the one that presented her goods for $1.

Kristin talked to these girls for a while and offered to buy them an ice cream instead of buying their stuff. They agreed and told her that they wanted to go to the expensive ice cream shop. I said no, primarily because I didn't want to get into a long drawn out affair. We were already worn out and still had errands to run. Instead, we bought an ice cream from one of the street vendors. They overcharged Kristin 5 times the normal price and were then going to give the money back to the girls. Kristin busted them and asked what the normal price was. The little boy working the ice cream stand fessed up and returned the money. Well, Kristin was hot!!! And I don't blame her. Anyway, we were aggravated by the negative response to a kind act. Oh well.

We finally got home after grocery shopping and picking up a toy for Gabi at the outdoor market. When you get home after walking around Antigua, you are dirty. You are generally hot and very, very dirty. There is a lot of dust and exhaust that circulates in this country. The air quality is terrible. And as you walk through town, it attaches to you like a parasite. You feel like you could peel the layer of filth right off of you. It's very odd that it doesn't seem to bother you as you go about your business. That's probably because everyone else is covered in that same layer of filth. It's lovely. Despite that, I still love it here very much. More every day, in fact.