Back on Alerte Rouge

As of 6pm this evening we have been placed back on "alerte rouge." The storm is coming back our way. While they tell us we should be back at work/school on Thursday, my guess is no... Still OK, just a bit of cabin feaver. Bisous.

Gamede, (clang!) Round II

First, please do not panic. I am fine and I will be fine!

We have come through vigilence cyclonique (a cautionary advisory), alerte orange (danger imminent in 24 hours, schools close), alerte rouge (red alert-the worst will be here within 3 hours. this means get in your house and button up!), prudence cyclonique (post-red alert, getting better but stay put, schools closed, flooding, no water or power, etc.). After a day of prudence cyclonique, la Réunion has been put back on alerte orange; many (including myself) believe we shoud never have been taken from alerte rouge.

Cyclone Gamède is very big and very powerful, is causing a lot of destruction, and is not going anywhere very quickly.

It's strange, though, because from all the news footage of hurriccanes in the US I totally expected howling winds, trees blowing everywhere, houses shaking, etc. The winds up in Golden Gate Canyon in Colorado were much more intense than these winds! But then again, I am in a solid (albeit leaking) cement house up in the hills of Saint Denis, so I could be out of the worst of the winds, but still...

This is not to say that it is not windy or intense. I have never been in a storm quite like this- it has rained HARD for 5 days non-stop (not like in Oregon, much harder), it is constantly windy, there are leaves everywhere, our balconies are flooding, our ceiling is leaking this wierd pink water, we can't drink the water from the tap, we can see trees (tropical trees like banana trees with supple trunks, not baobabs or sequoias) leaning over or grounded, big highway bridges in the south are washed out, a dredging dock in St Denis was washed away by 10m high waves, and the Route Littoral is a mess.

We're still holding up well in the house. We're not at each others' throats, we're not cranky, and while we're not sleeping a ton, we're okay. It would be nice to get out to go to the grocery store... Our landlords have come over three times to make sure we're okay and that the house is holding up. They saved our power by untangling a branch that had downed our power line. We have closed the shutters but it gets so stale in here that we open a door or two for circulation. SEE?!?! It's bad but it's not THAT bad.

The images here are not intended to scare you- indeed they are to assure you that people are out taking these photos therefore everything is/will be okay. Think of it as a science lesson. Besides, it's always kind of melodramatic to see destruction footage.

As far as I know there have been a few injuries but no deaths. Here are a few websites that we use here to get information. It was pointed out to me that they are in French... sorry, that didn't really occur to me. If you don't want to brave the en français webpages, try googling it.

http://www.meteo.fr/temps/domtom/La_Reunion/TGPR/saison/saison_trajGP.html
http://www.meteo-reunion.com/cyclone/
http://www.orange.fr/

Cyclone Gamede

As of this morning l'île de la Réunion is on official "orange" cyclone warning, next step to come is the "rouge (red)". Cyclone Gamède is HUGE! It's like 1000 miles across or something. It is only (right now) a category 2, but it is expected to get up to a 4. The house has been boarded up (we have those wonderful French shutters that seal you in tight), we've cleared the veranda of table and chairs, the garden of loose branches and mangoes, we've stocked up on water, matches, food, etc., and now we're physically (but perhaps not mentally) prepared for spending the next 48-72 hours safe in the house. It's hot and stale in here. But, we all like to play cards, watch movies, read and cook so I'm sure we'll figure out something to do with our time.

Apparetnly cyclones in the southern hemisphere spin the other direction... unlike the toilets. My question now is, what happens if the storm starts above the equator and heads south: does it change spinning direction?

Here is a weather link if you are interested in Gamède's progression: http://www.meteo-reunion.com/cyclone/

VIGILENCE CYCLONIQUE!!

The first official cyclone warning of the year has been issued. The cyclone is called Favio and is slowly moving toward the southern coast of the island. It is far enough away (currently 400 km and will not hit us directly but will indeed get closer) that we are not really worried, but we have stocked up on water and stuff just in case because after cyclones the water is either cut off or is un-drinkable. The housemates and I are secretly (or not-so-secretly) excited for this (being cooped up in the house, using candles, playing games) though we realize it is a bit selfish. We live in a nice, solid house that will not be destroyed by a cyclone and there are thousands of Réunionnais here who are not as lucky as we are... A cyclone (cyclone = Indian Ocean, hurriccane = Atlantic, typhoon = Pacific) will be a new natural disaster for me (already got earthquake and fire), and while I am excited for it, I also hope it is mild and no one injured and no major damage done.

Z'oreilles

"Les oreilles," or z'oreilles in Creole, means ears in French. The non-Creole (aka white metropolitan French) population are referred to as "z'oreilles." This is slightly dorogatory but mostly just kind of funny... until you learn the true meaning behind the word.

Most people refer to z'oreilles because the white folks from France all have red ears, i.e. a sunburn. This is the cute meaning for z'oreilles. What the original meaning signifies is when the English and French colonizers held the natives in slavery, the slaves (Marrons) often ran away and hid in the mountains. If they were found their ears were cut off as an indication that they had runaway... hence the "zoreilles."

One fish, two fish, red fish...

A Day In The Life...

I have found that it is very hard to have a daily routine here. When I was in college I would get up, go to class, work out, come home to shower and eat, go to class, then to work, study in the evenings, and that was life. This routine (and close proximity of home-school-gym) made it easy to fit everything I needed or wanted to do into one day. As a dedicated "multi-tasker," I thrive on busy days and crammed schedules. This was before I moved to Réunion.

Here no day is the same because my work schedule is so inconsistant, but I will try to give you a general idea. The Creoles here get up really early (probably because it's so darn hot) but I usually get up around 9. Mostly this is because I fall asleep late because there are so many dogs barking. First the little yippy ones start, then after a few minutes the deep-voiced big dogs decide they need to comment on the situation, and for the grand finale both together. It is SO obnoxious! But, I digress. Getting up is nice because, while it's hot, we have a beautiful veranda with a spectacular view of the ocean. My roommates and I usually eat breakfast out here to catch a bit of a breeze.

If I have to get to work, I need to leave at least an hour and a half before I need to start class because that is how long the bus route takes. I walk down the chemin des orangers past 7 barking dogs, a slew of chickens and geese, and dozens of fallen mangoes to the bus stop, about 7 minutes away. To get to work I take the 7 down the huge hill that is Moufia to catch the 10 (which is ALWAYS late). The 10 takes an ambling route through St Denis, but I kind of like the journey. I usually get on early enough to get a seat in the back, which is a miracle becuase it doesn't really occur to people here to move out of the entrance of the busses. They just all stand there making it hard for more people to get on. If they moved, they would all have more room, but I guess they like their cramped, sweaty quarters and their view of an empty back of the bus. I like to use my time in the bus to read, but you can be sure that I am the only one doing this.

The IUFM (where I work- Institut Universitaire de la Formation des Maitres) is on the opposite side of St Denis from where I live, in a posh area called Bellepierre. I am legally not allowed to discuss anything about the establishment on any kind of public forum, so I will simply say that I have anywhere from 3 to 6 hours of class in any one day (usually conversation classes), then I make the long journey home. Getting the 10 back is the most stressful part of my day, but once I am on I'm good to go.

My life pretty much revolves around the bus: I walk to the bus, I wait for the bus, I ride the bus and I do it all again later.

On days that I give private English lessons my routine changes a bit: I prep at 9:30 for my student who comes to the house shows up around 10, we work for an hour, then I rush off to the IUFM. When I go to another's office usually around 11, I take the bus and walk a bit. Another tends to meet me at the house around 5pm. These lessons are fun and challenging for me. Each student (I'm thankfully down to just three) is at a different level (one very beginner, another about "year 3-4", and another who is quite good) and this makes for quite a bit of preparation time. I enjoy my time with my students and I love seing them progress, but I do not want to do this forever. I much prefer teaching French. My débutant student usually shows up with fresh lychees or pineapples from his garden.

Food shopping is the other way I spend my time. If not every day, I go to the market every other day. Because it's quite a walk up the hill to get to our house, I can't carry too much a once. Plus, I like the idea of getting fresh fruits and veggies so frequently, even if I know I have seen the same cucumbers at the stand for atleast 8 days. It is a skill to pick out the freshest produce. Walking around the Petit Marché with my brightly-colored straw basket makes me feel like I fit in, even though I know that to everyone there I do not. Then I head to my favorite grocery store (Champoin) for the stuff I can't get in the market, then take the 7 or the 8 home.

Getting home is always a relief after the walk up the hill. There is usually at least one roommate around; it's nice to not come home to an empty house. Cooking usually works itself out nicely: someone starts around 6 and the Spanish girls never at until 10pm. We normally don't have to fight for space or dishes, but there are moments... I especially like our weekly house dinners.

Now that we have the Internet there is somewhat of a queue for using one of the three computers, but usually everyone gets a little bit in. Since I don't own one of the computers here I usually wait until it seems like one of the owners has finished, but sometimes it becomes necessary to ask to use one. Since the Internet arrived we are somewhat less social with one another, but I guess there's enough talking that occurs in other parts of the day that I don't feel like we are totally anti-social.

The bathroom that I use is in Cleo's room, so I try to get ready for bed before she goes to sleep. Our bathroom is bright pink- my favorite! The toilet is in a separate room (typically French).

This was long and perhaps boring, but sometimes that's how I feel about my days here. I'm glad I captured a small essence of my life in a blog. Seriously, though, most of my days are, overall, good. I usually always enjoy my time at the IUFM, I love shopping at the Petit Marché, and I enjoy cooking at night. Thanks for reading, now enjoy some pictures!