alice: A month in the Caribbean

It was the summer of 2011. I had been waiting for it since an year. My advisor Dr Hudson decided to take me to the island for a month on a field project. I was so excited about it. That is one reason I made a half hearted search for the jobs in the Electrical Engineering field after my Masters. Every time I had an interview I would be scared that if selected I am going to be barred from the trip to the island. So I should never fret over doing a PhD and not making dough like my engineer friends. You get what you think is most important for your existence. That's how it works in life.
My journey started from Reno airport where my friends and brother see me off. I had a big layover at the Los Angeles airport. I spent most of my time in people watching. Being from India I like the feeling of being around lots of people. It makes me feel comfortable and at home.
My last flight was from Miami to St Croix. It was a small aircraft with around 40 people. The moment we landed at St Croix, everyone started to clap that we made it. I realized later that it was not only because the aircraft was shaking and had hit a rough phase of cloud during its course but it was a simple island custom. It was raining heavily when I landed. The airport was so small that it felt like a small railway junction. All my luggage was drenched. I was carrying an important rack for our CCN spectrometer in my cabin luggage and that bag was one of the last to arrive. My boss was upset that the LA airport authorities had made me check it in. He had already planned to sue them in case its lost. He gave me good grief over the time we waited for the bag.
We left for the resort hotel 'The Buccaneer', which was like a small dream world. The life outside the Buccaneer and inside the resort with three beaches at your service was quite a contrast. I had a big room with view towards the ocean. I was sharing it with another girl from Germany called Anja. She had reached there the night before. When I knocked my room, a petite girl with long hairs done into pleats and a big smile opened it. My boss was very keen in getting the instruments and his joy knew no bound to see it as I unzipped my suitcase. He is one of those kind of people who display their anger and joy with all vigor. He explained to me that he would take me to the airport at 8 am tomorrow and left. The place looked like a palace from the times of Mughal era. I felt very grand during my entire period of stay. They had a big welcome hamper with wine and fruits and cheese and crackers with a card addressed to my name.

We used to work on the plane all day on a down day and till the flight would take off on a flight day. There was no air conditioning on the plane. It was very hot and humid on the island. There were big mosquitoes with stings that would leave mark for days. I had a bad time with the itches. My advisor got me some ointment which was much needed to relive the legs. Every time you go out one has to apply a generous amount of anti insect gel which was provided by the hotel. There were meetings and briefings every day. And then there were hard down days when the pilots get an off to relax and drink. I went to another island on one of these days which was uninhabited. It was covered with white sand. I tried snorkeling in the middle of the sea. I could see colorful fishes all around me. I experienced bioluminescent while kayaking in the salt river bay. There were kayaks in our resort which could be checked out. Every Tuesday there used to be a social where we had refreshments and some live music. I saw stilt clad performers first time. We had the best of breakfasts. First time after having moved to the States I had a summer where I could relish on juicy and sweet mangoes. I love mangoes. I would load my plate with mangoes and more mangoes until its out or I have to leave.

I made a few friends as well. We usually used to go out in groups. There were around a total of 50 researchers, scientists, students, pilots and crew members congregated for the project called ICE-T which was an acronym for Ice in the Cloud Experiment-Tropical. Me and Anja had a good time together. We both were quite people and hence would be with our laptops and talk only when required. I met another guy Thomas from Australia who was fun to be with. He had spent his childhood in Fiji and hence had childhood memories of Indian people and food, the later being more fond. His Mom used to make rotis and he had lost the tava somehow . I have promised him that if we cross paths again I will get him one. I spent most of my time with my boss working on our spectrometer which needed to be tinkered every day for calibrations and various other reasons. I think everyone was of the impression that my boss gives me no off even on the off days. I did not mind working as I was on an island. I met two scientists from NCAR whom I got along very well. The first one Tom took me to a great place that had fish tacos with mango chutney. I have to confess that the island food had some spice, that my taste buds were better accustomed than the bland food in the US.
I met my current advisor Dr Cotton in the last lap of the campaign. He was visiting for a week. Someone introduced me to him. I feel amused now that I had never heard his name before.
It was an eventful one month with new people, culture, resort life, fresh sea food and flying experiences in the cockpit.

I wish to take my loved ones one day on a tropical vacation when I won't have to worry for work. All I would do is relax and have fun.