Green week and spoiling Baxter

A week ago, on a Sunday, we went for a drive towards 'Arnosvale'. Here stands a big house where Roger used to live. We went to see how it was. Unfortunately it was locked, and since there is no one really living there, we couldn't get in. We could walk in the garden though, and we were allowed to pick any food we wanted from the trees. It was awesome to do. Anthony and I found a very long and a very thick bamboo stick. While a cow was chewing some grass in the background, we smashed out some oranges(very high, we actually considered me climbing upon Anthony's shoulders to be able to reach higher, but since there was a tiny abyss, we both stayed on our own legs), mango’s, sour sobs(One had to smash it out of the tree very carefully, like hitting a Pinata which isn't allowed to break, but is only meant to fall down. The other one had to run and catch, before it smashed on the ground) and pawpaws. We also took some cuttings from nice trees and a cutting from an aloe vera. The one aloe vera which used to grow around the house where we are living was picked by locals here because they use the plant for all kinds of stuff (shampoo or medicine). So we could use a new one. Then we ended the day by finishing off the puzzle.

Tuesday, it was Anthony's uncle's birthday. And so we baked him Raisin Rum Brownies and a pizza. Anthony's parents went over for a visit, but we stayed home and cooked some pasta. In the supermarket we had found a weird version of the vegetarian soy chunks I told about before. This vegetarian things were called 'Bacon bits'. Tiny pieces of dried soya flavored with bacon flavor. We tried it but I already found the smell pretty funny. We ate it and it was not so grandeur, most of it eventually went to Baxter's food plate (with an actual golden painted circle on the edge).

When it got Wednesday we mainly finished the fruits from the big house we picked. And also more fruits from the market. So Anthony and I decided to try to grow some fruit trees. We sowed apple, lime, sweet pepper, passion fruit and paw paw.
During the week the morning glory, 'afrikaantjes', spring onions, rocket salad, coriander and tomatoes all germinated. They grow quite fast too. So we had to create beds in the garden. We weeded the ground and dug out a bit of earth. Then we used stones from the earth to make the edge of the bed. Then we cast the stones with some leftover cement. When the morning glory's are big enough to survive the danger from outside, we will place them into their beds. We planted the tomato plants into bigger pots Therefor we had to drag lots of earth from the flat bid down the hill. The earth we needed had been lying there for a while already, so we had to weed it first. We also find quite some centipedes which we all had to chop into pieces. When we finally filled something like 10 buckets we had to drag them uphill, very steep. Fortunately we managed, with a little help from the car too. And now our tomato plants seem to be doing fine in their new pots. The pepper seeds also germinated, but they had the weird habit to grown downwards. We just replanted them and now they're fine too. Maybe we will make our own pepper sauce in some months.
We ended the day by roasting some corn on the barbecue. You actually have two kinds of corn. 'Local corn', which is practically popcorn on a stick after roasting it, and the cooking corn, which is more soft to eat after roasting.

We have a hole in the ground where we throw the organic garbage in to transform into compost. But downhill, also a friend of Roger lives. Now, when we were finished eating the corn, Ann threw down the garbage. And while she was throwing, she was telling us how bad she was at throwing. When she just finished her sentence we heard a loud 'bang'...As we are throwing down the garbage we got to know a little more precise how near the house actually is to the compost heap.

On Thursday we went to the city just for fun, and took a look at 'Little Tokyo'. It's a collection of rum-shops. Everybody who owns one is not doing quite more than sitting underneath their shop ( which is only a sheet fixed in between two trees) with their friends and drinking their own drinks which they are supposed to be selling. We bought a blender and some mango's and made a really nice mango juice with it. From now on we can make so many nice juices, cocktails, soups and even falafel. In the evening Anthony and I wanted to enjoy Boer Zoekt Vrouw, so I plugged in the insect-lamp and then I let it fall down. Pieces of mosquitoes, wings of moths and paws from grasshopper flew out of the thing. If I remember well, I saw some dust puffing out of it, too.

We really noted that last Friday was a Friday the 13th. We had a lot of bad luck with the electric devices. A sharp disc where you can cut metal with flew of from its handle. Than we plugged in another machine. The plug got overworked, but the fuse didn't stop the electricity. So we all smelled a disgusting fishy smell, and the plug turned out to be smoking. Fortunately we discovered it before it started burning. And at last the shower stopped while showering. So covered in soap the shower had to be repaired. Fortunately there weren't real accidents.

Saturday morning we went to shop and stopped for a drink at a rum-shop. There a man walked by offering some fish. But he was dragging it in plastic bags, no idea for how long already, in the burning sun. We didn't buy any. At the rum shop we had some nice drinks. Rum shops are everywhere here. Along the road. And people often stop there for a drink during their drive. Quite funny. In the evening, Anthony and I had a nice dinner outside. We were just chewing our rice and plantain when all of a sudden the most fancy fireworks blew up in the sky. Then a bonfire was lightened at the beach. It was a very fancy dinner.

Baxter was spoiled a lot this week. I already mentioned his bacon-bits pasta dinners. The day before I poached him an egg. He also got dog food from Holland. We took it from Holland because certain dogs from Holland...have too spoiled taste buds for it. But for Baxter the dog food's a real feast. We had to protect him thrice at the beach. At first some bull-alike dog almost attacked him. The man who owned the dog told us he wouldn't jump out of the garden, but one minute later it was walking on the beach. So on our way back I dragged Baxter trough the seawater(he's too afraid to walk trough the sea himself). After that some savage child found it very amusing to throw stones at him so we had to shout of the water to tell the child to cut it out. Then some dude with a puppy came telling us that if our dog would fight his puppy, we had to fight him. (I'm glad for him though, our dog didn't attack his puppy. Cause then he would have been quite KO). Anyway, Baxter needed lots of protection from us that day.
We also washed him with both shampoo for shiny hairs and an anti tick and flea shampoo from the vet(they were also selling soft drinks and candy bars for humans here).
We wanted to get him over his fear for the sea, so we decided to just lift him in. And he just swum. Even while I was actually still holding him in my arms, he already made his paws move as if he was swimming. So that's that, we know he can swim. Unfortunately we can't say he likes it. So now and then, when police cars or ambulances are rushing along, we do some howling with the pack, too. All this seems to really tighten the bond...
Baxter, after all threats and hard times, is turning into a very nice pet. He gets really playful, rolling over the floor, drooling, biting us in the hands, arms and ankles very tender,running away from us and running towards us again.

The bathroom is getting neared to finished everyday. Anthony and his dad did a lot of chopping away old tiles, mixing cement and plastering the wall in this tiny, warm and humid space. Anthony and I made a box for a step with the wood which used to be our bed. Then we cast it. Now it is drying and soon it will replace the broken step in front of the house.

Yesterday, we went for a trip with Rachel to Fort Charlotte, but I will put that on the web-log tomorrow, since that's a lot of text.

Grietings vrom de sunni Kerrebiejen