All things strange and "natural" in Antigua

I really love Antigua, and everything about the island.  However, there are just some things that I must mention for the sake of humor about this little piece of land.  One of my friends was nice enough to put a copy of the first season of the TV show How I met your Mother on my external hard drive.  During the first season there was an episode where Ted's talks about how is mother always said, "nothing good happens after 2 a.m. Well the same thing applies to Antigua also....nothing good happens after 2 a.m........and if it does its funny!  On Saturday evening my group of friends convinced me to go out with them to a place called Rush. Which pretty much is just a small ashtray of a bar in the back of a little casino.....enough said right?!?! No not really, it was yet another fun time spent dancing and another experience with a weird cab ride and some intoxicated people. On our way back to our apartment our cab driver (whom looked no older than 23) informed us that he has 6 children by 4 separate women which are spread out over two continents and two islands.....what a prolific guy!  One of my friends was concerned and wanted to know if he was still with the women he had the last 3 children with....and he was thank goodness.  This particular friend also told him that back home in America that kind of stuff wasn't acceptable and it wasn't good to have that many "baby mammas".  He said what she said didn't apply to Antigua.  Here you have your babies first (or in his case a whole clan) and then you marry because it is "natural".  My friend didn't agree.  Our cab driver also gave another friend words of wisdom about not having a motorcycle! Sharing several gory stories about all the nasty motorcycle wrecks he has seen on the island....he was a little too vividly descriptive.  WOW!!!  It also seems that one cabdriver we have here in Antigua always seems to be drunk, high, or both when he comes and picks us up at our apartment.  Plus there is always an open bottle of beer in the cup holder between the driver and passenger seats.  Surprisingly enough he is the most dependable, nicest and best driver we have had.   None the less what I have learned from my two late night cab rides is that, it is ok to cheat, drink and drive, spread your seed and never ride a motorcycle......the end. 

However, the fun doesn't end there!!!  Earlier that day two of my girlfriends and I decided to take a different cab driver than usual to a different grocery store than usual on the other side of the island......not the best choice us girls have ever made.  First off the guy was late picking us up (island time....duh!!!) and then after an hour or so shopping the guy never picked us up.  After an hour of waiting and several phone calls with him saying he is almost there we decided to take a different cab.  However, that wasn't the craziest part of the day. While we waited for our cab a screaming match took place outside the grocery store where all the words the two large men screamed at each other sounded like gibberish mixed with the excessive use of the word F***.  Men, women, and children leisurely strolled by as these two men verbally ripped each other apart.  Guess you can add verbal altercations to the list of natural here in Antigua.  Not going to lie, I was pretty scared to watch those two people yell at each other.     

Oh, and all the lovely animals of Antigua!!!!  Oh how you roam free all over the island grazing in ditches and walk through grocery store parking lots......Yes there are is a small herd of momma cows, with babies and a few bulls that roam in front and beside my apartment complex and at least a few times a month they slow down traffic crossing the pavement.  So strange considering how fast and crazy the people drive here on the island.  Back home someone would hit a cow on the side of the road...weird!  This picture is one I found on the Internet and strangely enough is just right down the street from my apartment. 

  Also, it isn't unusual to have a whole flock of goats grazing across from the Epicurean...I mean like a 100 of them grazing across from the Epi.  I find this to be funny because the Epi is a better grocery store than what we have back home and we don't have goats grazing in front of our grocery store.  Again....strange!!!! 

As promised I pictures from my relaxing evening at Bay House....also a strange thing for a medical student. 

We are a cute bunch!!! Smart and fun too!!!  Look out Mom! 

A night at Bay House!

On Friday night my friends and I decided we deserved a much needed break/reward for passing all our exams!  So, a lovely evening at Bay House at Dickenson's Bay was arranged.  Words couldn't explain how beautiful and how much fun my friends and I had while celebrating!  Plus it was an amazing excuse for my girlfriends and I to dress up and to look " all cute and sexy" as one of our Utopia guy friends said!  HaHa got to love the flattery!!!  Although it was dark the restaurant was beautiful and so was the view.  Bay House Restaurant is located on a massive hill overlooking Dickenson's Bay ( most people know it as the beach at Sandals Resort).  Below is a pic that a friend took when he went for brunch at Bay House at the beginning of the semester.  Very neat see......Look close Mom and Dad!

 The appetizers and main dishes that were ordered were delicious!  I know now where I want to take Mom and Dad when they visit me in October.  It may have been the most expensive meal I have ever had but, it was probably the most fun.  I had an amazing pumpkin soup, mango smoothie, and a cheese burger.   It was a quite evening there at Bay House and it even rained while we talked on the patio.  Pretty bad ass and beautiful if you ask me!!!  I cant wait to do it again in a few weeks.  In a few days I will post some pictures that  friend took of our evening out on the town!  In the mean time I will show you pictures from their facebook page.








After we got back from Bay House we spent some time at other Utopians apartment's celebrating the end of the week and the completion of mini 1.  I just feel fortunate to have an amazing group of friends and people to share my med school experience with.  It is really neat to get to know people from all over the world that have been brought together for one man cause - to become physicians!  To be honest all I seem to think about lately is how all of us have come from different states, countries, and socioeconomic backgrounds yet we all get along well, and strangely have a close bond.  Having as many friends as I do here in Antigua is something that I don't take lightly, nor for granted.  I appreciate the sense of feeling protected and cared about that comes with having such an amazing group.  It is also neat on evenings such as the one at Bay House, when you get to reflect on things that we all have done together and all the things that we all wish to do.  These future plans can be something fun like, wanting to go hiking on the island, snorkeling or something as serious as classes or residencies........makes life seem pretty surreal for this small town farm girl that never thought her dream of going to medical school would ever come true.....nothing short of amazing as far as I am concerned. I just hope that I can make it through and make my family proud.  That is all that I want at this point in my small life.  This path may be rough, tough, and grueling but it is also beautiful and a privilege. 

Mini one!!!!

Hello Everyone!!!  Sorry for the delay in updating the blog but I have been super busy preparing for my first exam.  It has been an exhausting last 2 weeks and I am ready to see places other than campus and my apartment.  Hopefully this weekend my friends and I are going to the beach and partake in some shopping in St. John to celebrate completing and passing our exams!  I think I need a new dress!!!!  The exams here on campus were crazy and nothing short of wild!!!  On Friday we got to complete our first wet lab exam composed of 10 questions.  These questions covered everything and everything related to the cardiovascular system.  The stations included preserved hearts, plasticized hearts, full cadavers, and preserved limbs.  Even had a question or two pertaining to ECG and ECG leads (thought that would only be on the written HSF exam)!!!!  Each station was 30 seconds long and that included your traveling time between stations!!!  Needless to say if you didn't know your stuff you didnt have time to try to figure it out!  It was the quickest 5 minutes of my life!!!!!  It was fun and exciting despite being a test.  I was really surprised to see the large amount of students pacing the pretesting holding area and near break downs!!  Made me kind of scared!

Monday marked the first day of my actually med school exams!  The exams started at 1:30 in the afternoon and went to nearly 7 p.m. that evening.  It is like reliving the mcat over again!!!!  That test must be related to Satan!!!  For each of the 4 sections we got moved to different classrooms and had various assigned seating.  The funny part was that for 3 of the 4 sections I got seated next to some of my closes friends on campus!  So much for that AUA!  There was no time to do anything but book it through each of the sections.  The HSF (human structure and function) section was an hour and a half and 70 questions!  The rest of the sections were shorter but you still just as intense!  After the exams I was so exhausted that I didn't even know how to function!!!!  It felt incredible to be done. I thought it was amazing that my best friend had bought a bottle of champagne at the beginning of the semester to celebrate when we completed our first exam!  It was great to stand out in the parking lot of our apartment and pop the cork and all share out of it to celebrate.  It was delicious!

Our celebration was short lived I went to bed and I had class again the next morning.....back to the grind!  It wasnt too bad though considering I didnt have morning classes and I only had one lecture that afternoon.  Even after class I studied my notes and read the material just to make sure that I dont get behind.  Although I study every night this time I didnt have to cram the night before an exam.  It was a slow progression of learning! 

This past week we didnt have our usual Sunday night dinner! It was sad but I know that we will more than make up for it this uncoming weekend. Last week we had cheese stuffed shells, bread, cookies, and dip! It was amazing and delcious! One of my friend even came up with games for all of us to play. It was nothing short of hysterical! These are some of the picture from the previous weeks dinner....

 

 

 

 

I will do my best to add more to the blog over the next week upcoming days. I need to reflect back on some of the adventure of my friends and I and see what I have missed.....and need to share.  Until next time........

One month down!

As of today I have been in Antigua for a complete 4 weeks and it has been amazing!!!  I love every bit of my short time here in Antigua.  It has been amazing making friends and living an independent life as a medical student.  This past week has been one of monumental events!!!  On Friday for the first time I got to hold a real preserved human heart in my hands!!  It was amazing to see how such a tiny intricate organ can work non stop someones entire life!!!  I find it to be completely mind blowing and in the very least thought provoking.  It made me feel very small.  The whole lab experience was very enjoyable and I had a wonderful time getting to see specimens and full cadavers.  Since the first exam is only a week away, this week was my first experience attending small groups studying and tutoring sessions.  In one regard it was really helpful and was slightly humbling in others.  I felt very prepared in some areas and not so prepared in others....physiology is for sure going to give me a run for my money.  I have been told that class can be very difficult if you don't keep up on the material.  I will emphasize this again and again.....med school is like trying to drink a lake dry.....it feels just about impossible to feel 100% comfortable with such a large volume of information.  I also felt very proud that I went an entire week without taking an evening off!!!  When Friday arrived I was so exhausted I needed to take the evening off!!!  During our 4 hour lecture on Friday I could hardly focus and I knew that I needed some extra sleep!!!  I also knew that since I was out of pants and socks I also needed to do some laundry!!!  So, while other individuals spend the night camped out in the library studying or going out partying I was going to spend the evening in taking naps revolving around when my laundry was coming out of the washer or dryer....I was an amazing night as far as I was concerned and much appreciated!!!!

Today my girlfriends and I spend the morning and early afternoon on campus attending our own personal biochemistry tutoring session and eating lunch at the campus shacks!!  Yummy!!!  I felt like I learned so much and I am looking forward to the other study session my friends signed me up for tomorrow!!!!!   Today my friends and I also made a trip to the Epicurean and purchased food and good for our weekly Sunday dinner!!!!  I am excited to make ricotta cheese shells and chocolate chip cookies!!!!  Looking forward to tomorrow!

On Wednesday I had FCM and needless to say it was intense and very interesting.  We got to critique other students as they took vital signs and social histories.....I am not looking forward to the day where I have to be the one critiqued!!!!  My day will be coming soon I am sure!  We also got to spend several minutes taking each others blood pressure....I still need to work on that.

Keeping Busy on the Island

It has been a while since my last post but trying to prepare for my first exam has taken top priority.  Med 1's first exam is in two weeks and I am feeling the weight of the material starting to bare down on my shoulders. However, I am slowly catching up and I am sure that by tomorrow morning I will be completely caught up with reviewing and feeling comfortable with my notes....then on to the next set of lecture topics.  However, it isn't all work and no fun.  This past Sunday my friends and I held our first weekly pot luck dinner and it was amazingly yummy.  We all seemed to gorge ourselves since this is the first decent meal we all have had since we have arrived on the island.  Chicken, Salad, potatoes, and even fried plantains!!!!  It was my first time having plantains and it is now officially my favorite food ever!!!!  My roommate did a great job.  One of the boys even purchased a cheesecake!  Oh, how us Americans missed Sara Lee.  So much for those 15 lbs I have lost since I arrived on the island 3 weeks ago.



I also thought I should also state how much I love my apartment!!  A very neglected topic!  Coming from a small 4x10 bedroom and a shared bathroom at home to my current apartment has been quite enjoyable!!!!  I now had a queen size bed, my own bathroom and a giant dresser!  I have so much space I don't even know what to do with myself!!!! I will be sure to post more pictures later on of my actually bedroom just for you mom!!!!  It is amazing!!!

However, sadly there are some individuals that don't really like their apartments and find it beneath them to live there....I would love to see where they were living before.  No, it isn't the most glamorous but I really do love it here and all the people that call Utopia home.  If you do live in one of the outside facing apartments you will have an issue with ants.....but Antigua is a big giant ant farm as far as I am concerned.  They are at the school (inside and out)....on all the sidewalks....in most apartments, and they have our pool at our apartment surrounded and held hostage!!!!  Be careful to not set your book bag down on the ground anywhere on the island otherwise you will have a bag with ants running all over it and I am sure you will end up bringing several of them back to your apartment.  These ants also bite!  My legs the first two weeks I lived here were covered in red spots that resembled chicken poxs.  Itchy!!!  I found this article to prove my point! http://www.antiguaobserver.com/?p=59625.


This past week was the first full legitimate week of classes and lab. The required labs for med 1 students are foundations of clinical medicine (FCM), anatomical small group session, and cadaver lab.  During FCM we have being taking each others blood pressure, and practicing taking patient histories. It may seem simply but it is strangely intimidating to get in front of a group of your peers and perform these task.  Plus you don't want to loose points for forgetting steps to the interview process.  The purpose of anatomical group is to review what was learned in human structure and function that week and apply it to actual cases. We are expected to participate, answer questions and debate the validity of our answers.  It is very helpful and is by far my favorite class on campus.  It truly adds another layer to the learning process and helps to clarify gaps you might have in regard to the material.  This past week in cadaver lab we studied the basics of the cardiovascular system and were presented with two cadavers and several individual hearts to study.  Again very fun and breathtaking!!!!  Getting to see the actual valves for the first time was nothing short of amazing.  God is truly great for making something so beautiful and perfect inside our bodies.