Barefoot beach

Monday, July 25, 2011

St. Kitts here we come! (almost)

Hello friends and family!

I am so excited to be sharing this new blog with you all. Rob and I will be leaving for the Caribbean island nation of St. Kitts (Nevis is St. Kitt's sister island, and together they form the Federation of St. Christopher and Nevis) one month from today! These two islands are the smallest country in the Americas in size and population. They are part of the Leeward Islands in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies. (Sounds exotic, right?!) The west coast of the islands face the Caribbean Sea, and the east coast faces the Atlantic Ocean. (Right: View of Nevis from St. Kitts).

We are relocating to St. Kitts so that Rob can attend Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine. Our official move date is August 25, one month from today, and Rob's first day of classes is September 5; he will be taking Intro to Veterinary Medicine, Micro Anatomy and Embryology, Gross Anatomy, Physiology I, and Animal Nutrition. (I will be taking Beach Bum 101, Snorkeling, SCUBA certification, Hiking through the rain forest and up Mount Liamuiga (left), Shell Collecting... heehee) Our first week on the island will be full on school/island living orientation, learning not only about what Rob will be doing each day in class, and throughout his time at Ross, but also how to get around the island, where things are, and what to do in the event of a hurricane. Sounds important enough, right?

Rob will be in class and studying A LOT, but luckily there is a group called the VIPs, made up of spouses/families of other Ross students. I hope to join in on all the fun activities that they do while our loved ones are busy being book worms!

The first semester we are on the island, we will be staying on campus (we will be in the building on the right in this picture). They have furnished apartments, and we will have an spare bedroom if anyone wants to start planning a visit! We will be coming back to the states for Christmas, and then for the second semester we will be living in an apartment off campus. Looking for a nice apartment will be one of my tasks while Rob is in school first semester.

Rob and I are really looking forward to our time in St. Kitts, and these last four weeks will be flying by. We are going to be visiting NYC/NJ this weekend to see my family, and in 2 weeks we fly out to the Washington state to visit with Rob's grandparents. After Washington, we will be home for 3 days before we leave for St. Kitts. Hmm, that sounds an awful lot like our move to Egypt last year... get married, 5 days in Mexico, 2 days home, move to Egypt. Oh well, at least this time we will be staying in the same hemisphere!

We can't wait to share our new island adventures with you!

side note- The last few months we were in Egypt were a bit hectic what with the revolution, my crazy work schedule, and some last minute traveling (to the White Desert and St. Catherine's Monastery and Mount Sinai in Egypt; Petra, the Dead Sea, and Jerash in Jordan- everyone should go to Jordan, seriously. Loved it.) before we moved back to the states. I felt bad that I did not get to share those last few months of excitement with you through my blog, but I just didn't have the time. Plus, I was technically a government employee, and thought it might be prudent to keep my blog mouth shut!