Two Days in!

Well, I made it safely to Suriname, and to my Cary Apartment the night before last. It's nice! There is no hot water there, but it's not a big deal since it's so hot here anyway. I'm still getting used to this climate, and as I'm writing this I'm chilling out in the air conditioned room at GHFS headquarters. This is my second day "on the job" and I'm already loving it!

I've met some amazing people so far. Monique, Sylva, Chantal, Ivonne, and Ari are all members of GHFS, and I can't wait to get to know them better. Today, Ivonne made a Suriname dish for us for lunch that is definitely in the top ten best things I've ever eaten. It was white rice with salted fish and a green leafy vegetable called klaroen, all spiced up with something secret and wonderful. If all the food I get while I'm here is like that, I'm going to be a happy girl!

 Yesterday, I took a cab to hq for the first time, and I took a bus back to my end of town. So, today I thought I could just ride my bike since 'it would only be half an hour to get here'. Well, of course I lost my way, a classic move of mine, and it took me over an hour to get here. It's really hard to navigate the streets when you can't pronounce the street names! However, I did eventually find my way here, and Sylva is just going to give me a ride home today :)

I have already started hands on work with the sloths! The ones here are the three toed variety. I fed babies Rafael and Bolletje goats milk form a little syringe feeder. Just like human babies, you have to clean them and yourself up with a cloth when it's done. You know, sloths are a lot stronger than you might imagine. They can grab on really tight, and when you try to pick them up, another one of their legs just grabs right back on! Luckily, I learned the right way to remove them form an object and how to hold them properly. Also, I learned that sloths make a growly noise when they are annoyed (thanks Bolletje). Who knew?

Jade and Maxi are the two anteaters who live here, and I am learning how to care for them as well. They sleep in little kennels at night, and this morning I took them out and put them in their cages. They are strange to handle at first, they are very muscular through their whole body, especially their tails. And they are also pretty smelly, so it is best not to let them wrap the tails around your arm cause their special odor tends to linger. Also today, Ivonne and I took the ant eaters out for a "walk" in the yard. They need to get a little work out. They are so funny, standing straight up sometimes on their hind legs, and then running after you while you're playing with them. Little cuties!

Anyway, I feel like I could go on and on and on, but it's almost time to leave the facility, so I'm off for now. How does one end a blog post? So long for now :D

ps: my laptop doesn't get internet at the apartment, so I can't upload any pictures yet. But, I'm talking pics and I'll get them on here as soon as I get a chance.