I’ll be honest — when I come to Trinidad, sometimes I don’t do very much. Sure, I could use my time to go to the Gasparee Caves, or hike El Toucouche mountain, or trek out somewhere to go buy a specific kind of doubles, or whatever. But quite frankly, after the past year, where moving was a way of life and month by month things could change all over again, I am quite happy to just be here, in old familiar territories, to just relax, and enjoy the simple pleasures, such as…

• Watching the parrots roosting in the tree across the road (see pic above… the kiskedee is NOT impressed)
• Picking chadon beni from the garden to make smoked herring
• Counting hummingbirds fluttering around the Barbados Pride flowers
• Playing with my niece and nephew
• Watching my favorite shows in English (not Japanese)
• Gazing at stars at night from my grandmother’s porch
• Seeing how much has changed and how much has stayed the same
• Swimming in the pool
• Drinking coffee in the cool temperature of 6 am, before the sun has come over the mountains
• Listening to old calypsos on the car radio while driving down the road
• Talking shit with friends and family

What else do I need?? Not every trip has to have a full itinerary of things to do and places to go. I really am quite content to just… be… here.