Welcome Home! (or not)
After four months on Clove Island, I left my 10 mile radius and went on vacation to another island. This other island had things like electricity 24/7, air conditioning (yay, sleep!), and clean beaches, along with a smattering of good shopping (can we all say "Oreos!" together?). It was a wonderful few days of relaxation, good sleep, swimming, and sight seeing. It was a lot of fun, and quite relaxing in general.
We took a boat back to Clove Island today, which was a beautiful ride and very peaceful. We played some card games, read books, and just relaxed.
Then we arrived back at "our" island. Immigration was no biggie: the official came on board and stamped passports as we exited the boat. I was the first one from our group to exit the boat.
Upon reaching the landward end of the gangplank, I asked the official at the bottom where we could pick up luggage. "Tomorrow" he said.
"No, I need it today. Where do I get it?"
"Tomorrow. Customs is closed. Return tomorrow."
Oh. Well then. They could have told us that before we trustingly put our luggage in their care. It might have impacted my packing style.
The other teammates came down and heard the same verdict. All agreed that this was unacceptable, but evidently the order came from the head of customs, who wasn't there at the time. Oh, the head of customs? Well let's call him then! So one teammate used my phone (which still had some credit) to call the head of customs. By this time the boat was emptied of passengers and only a few people were remaining on the dock.
So he talked with the head of customs who said "Well, if you can see your bags, you can get them." Sure, alright. But wait, the boat is moving to another dock for the night! So we made the long hike to the boat's new mooring. We were tired and hungry, but determined to get our bags! Men started unloading the luggage into a large truck for storage overnight. The third bag off the boat was mine, and I told them that in the local language. The man glanced at me, then started to ignore me.
"No, stop! That's my bag!"
He looked at me. "Get it tomorrow."
"But _____ said I can have it today." My teammate who called the head of customs was there by that point and backing me up.
The conversation went back and forth a little, each time I was insisting that he couldn't put my bag in the truck, but needed to give it to me. I needed it today, etc. and so forth.
And finally, finally, at last he let go of my bag and I took it.
Fortunately, the other teammates were able to retrieve their bags without problems after that. But well, welcome back home!
Praises: for a good vacation, safety in traveling, beautiful weather, and power when we returned home.
Pray: that the power situation would be better overall. Rumor says that it's supposed to be a lot better now, so hopefully that's the case. Also pray for a good jump back in on language learning. I was encouraged to see just how well I could get around on another island with the language I'm learning here. Language learning takes determination though, and I'll be working on it for another couple months still.
 |
| Having fun |
We took a boat back to Clove Island today, which was a beautiful ride and very peaceful. We played some card games, read books, and just relaxed.
Then we arrived back at "our" island. Immigration was no biggie: the official came on board and stamped passports as we exited the boat. I was the first one from our group to exit the boat.
Upon reaching the landward end of the gangplank, I asked the official at the bottom where we could pick up luggage. "Tomorrow" he said.
"No, I need it today. Where do I get it?"
"Tomorrow. Customs is closed. Return tomorrow."
 | |
| Making waves |
Oh. Well then. They could have told us that before we trustingly put our luggage in their care. It might have impacted my packing style.
The other teammates came down and heard the same verdict. All agreed that this was unacceptable, but evidently the order came from the head of customs, who wasn't there at the time. Oh, the head of customs? Well let's call him then! So one teammate used my phone (which still had some credit) to call the head of customs. By this time the boat was emptied of passengers and only a few people were remaining on the dock.
So he talked with the head of customs who said "Well, if you can see your bags, you can get them." Sure, alright. But wait, the boat is moving to another dock for the night! So we made the long hike to the boat's new mooring. We were tired and hungry, but determined to get our bags! Men started unloading the luggage into a large truck for storage overnight. The third bag off the boat was mine, and I told them that in the local language. The man glanced at me, then started to ignore me.
"No, stop! That's my bag!"
He looked at me. "Get it tomorrow."
"But _____ said I can have it today." My teammate who called the head of customs was there by that point and backing me up.
The conversation went back and forth a little, each time I was insisting that he couldn't put my bag in the truck, but needed to give it to me. I needed it today, etc. and so forth.
And finally, finally, at last he let go of my bag and I took it.
Fortunately, the other teammates were able to retrieve their bags without problems after that. But well, welcome back home!
 |
| Land ho! |
Praises: for a good vacation, safety in traveling, beautiful weather, and power when we returned home.
Pray: that the power situation would be better overall. Rumor says that it's supposed to be a lot better now, so hopefully that's the case. Also pray for a good jump back in on language learning. I was encouraged to see just how well I could get around on another island with the language I'm learning here. Language learning takes determination though, and I'll be working on it for another couple months still.
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