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Thursday, February 10, 2011

Know all about Lizy's experiences identifying Fish in Punta Gruesa!

It shouldn't be hard, I know. A fish is pointed at. You write the name of the fish on your slate. I know my fish God damn it! I have memorised all the pictures in Mr Deloach's helpful guide and all the flash cards on base.... but reviewing the slates on the surface shows that the live spots are

eminently necessary: "Ceaser Grunt? .... noooo... Lane Grunt? .... noooo... "Is that thing on
the fish list??" (confusing half black 'White' Grunt with lines and a tail spot). You know though, it's immensely satisfying knowing what you’re looking at... "Bar Jack...tick....Nassau Grouper...tick...(oh yeah).... Mutton Snapper... tick... awwwwwwwww! OMG I love him!" (adorable spotted trunk fish, bless his spots and his box shape and the mad flapping of his little pectoral fins).

I think the coral guys have it better now we're on to live spots; I KNOW they learned the Latin names and all, but at least coral doesn't rush off and hide in a hole. After some dispute over the very slight differences between some juvenile fish I think pretty much everyone has mastered that list too now. Fish sizing next...

The highlight of the week (because I can't really say the pirate party can I?) has been the
TEFL teaching in town. Incidentally, the parrot, the shoulder parrot prop for the party that Tim fashioned from a coconut, a seed and some palm leaves... was amazing. This bird, seriously, I hope I track down a photo of this bird to upload.

Yes, so TEFL was immensely fun and satisfying. We had a good turnout of locals hoping to pick up the basics for the budding tourist industry in the area. I can't wait for the next opportunity, whereby I can play my newly contrived suitcase game and might actually have come to appreciate that if you ramble in English, however many times you repeat the sentence, however slowly, however punctuated, the students don't speak any English for Heaven's sake Lizy and won't understand you. All you get back are really slow, punctuated, nonsensical sentences in Spanish....

Week three conclusions: cameras should must be banned on party night. There is no greater
feeling, nothing more satisfying on this earth, than leaning against a post, covering your feet in
wet sand and rubbing them together. Sorry, I mean I am not meant to scratch.

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