Christmas at Sainte Marie

Dear Friends and Family,

I am just on my way back to site after a restful and relaxing Christmas vacay to the Isle of Sainte Marie ; which is to the East of Madagascar. Right now, I am enjoying a last walk on the beach at dusk on the shoreline of Tamatave before heading back tomorrow. There are lots of families out this evening enjoying the beach and a number of kids are still swimming in the ocean. I stayed in the capitol two nights after our Peace Corps Conference and had the chance to go with friends get a photo with Santa. Only in Madagascar Santa doesn’t ravel by a sleigh pulled by reindeer, rides around on his motorcycle and has shades to protect his eyes from the blazing sun.

Before going to Sainte Marie I visited a Parc near the Eastern Coast of Madagascar. There were various species of lemurs, cameleons, frogs, snakes, and lizards. Some of the lemurs were free range and it was fun to see them swing from the tree tops. It was difficult to find them at times as they hid in the branches, but I could hear them call out to one another and then I would watch for a rustle of leaves.

I arrived on Sainte Marie on Christmas Eve. That evening the hotel I where I stayed had a multi course buffet dinner. I was mostly a fan of the chocolate cake to be honest. Christmas morning; after talking with my family on the phone; I went for an early morning stroll along the beach looking for seashells. After that I went to a nearby church for Christmas service. It zas such a beautiful day and the cute little church was on a cliff overlooking the ocean. After lunch and some reading on the beach I went in to the town to meet up with other Peace Corps Volunteers who had also come to the island for Christmas vacation. It was nice to meet up with them and celebrate the holiday. We ate dinner at a nice restaurant on the beach and I had a yummy plate of shrimp spaghetti and fresh fruit juice. The next day a few of my friends biked up to my hotel. We spent the afternoon swimming and eating snacks on the beach. My friends saw lots of bright colorful fish when they went snorkeling out into the deeper waters. Yesterday I went on a hike to a large waterfall and then continued to look for shells along the beach. I hope I have enough to give to friends at my site and also make a small wind chime. The last night before leaving the island I had dinner with a French couple visiting from Paris as their father owns one of the restaurants in town. It was a nice way to end the week and a good reminder that I have a resolution to start learning French in 2011. I think they were unimpressed by my lack of knowledge but they both spoke some English and one of their friends spoke some Malagasy.

Have a Happy New Year,

Teena