Ah…life on an island…where the pace is relaxed and reliable internet service is non-existent.

So, it’s been about two weeks since my last post due to internet issues on the island (the whole island) and a lot has happened since then. First of all, my in-laws arrived for a two-week visit after having their first-ever flight cancelled, being told that there were no hotel rooms available in the area due to a conference, being sent outside the security area for a “complimentary toothbrush” for their overnight stay in the airport (and not being told that once they left the secure area they would not be allowed back in), and being told that they would not be allowed to get their gate-checked bags back (which contained daily medications). Thanks for the memories US Airways…you suck!

At one point we had a moment of phone service here on the island and Matt’s mom was able to let me know what was going on. Immediately I began the search for a place for them to stay for the night (not knowing that they were outside the security area without access to any amenities). Having connections with someone who works for a chain of hotels comes in very handy as does Facebook which I was able to access from my cell phone. Through this connection, I was able to ascertain that there were, in fact, many rooms available in the area with shuttle service for the airport, just none that the airline wanted to pay for since the cancelled flight was their fault. After finally being able to call back to the US and get in touch with them, my husband and I felt much more at ease when they told us they’d be staying in a hotel for the night and getting a hot meal instead of trying to sleep in the lobby of the airport beside the ticket counter.

The next day as they were rerouted through St. Thomas we found out that their bags had been lost by the airline. Under normal circumstances, this would just be a huge inconvenience but the bags contained critical medication needed by my father-in-law and we had no idea if the medication was even available here in Saint Kitts. Another round of phone calls back to the US (this time on my cell phone at international rates) began trying to trace the bags and make sure they made it to the airport in time for their arrival. We each spoke with no less than three people both in the US and in Saint Kitts giving information about the bags and flight numbers, etc. only to be told that there was nothing we could do without a tracking number (which Matt’s parents had with them and they were in the air on their way to St. Thomas). Luckily they were rerouted through St. Thomas though because, being a USVI, they were able to find a pharmacy that could call back to the US and have the prescription transferred there to be filled; something we would not have been able to do here without taking him to see a local doctor who wouldn’t be in until Tuesday (Monday was a Saint Kitts’ Labour Day Holiday) Since our internet was down, we weren’t able to help them with rescheduling their flight or even communicate with them during much of their trip. Being first-time fliers they were at the mercy of the airline and airport personnel. This made things very stressful on both ends of the spectrum. So, after leaving home early Friday morning, the Hagas finally arrived at our home around 10:00 pm Saturday night. Though they were tired from the trip, all it took was one hug from Kylie to help ease the stress.

Since their arrival, the in-laws have experienced first-hand the realities of living on an island. Not because of things they’ve been able to do here but because we spent almost ALL of last week waiting on the internet guy to show up and fix our line. He came every day for a few minutes at a time; each day leaving without being able to fix the problem. Needless to say, I’m sure they were bored to tears. At least we have the pool and they were able to travel back and forth with me to pick up Kylie from school so they were able to see some of the island along the way.

By Thursday, we finally gave up and decided to start exploring the island with a trip to the southeast peninsula and Reggae Beach Bar & Grill. Lunch was the Mahi-Mahi sandwich and it was delicious!!! Best food on the island so far! We visited the resident monkeys and spent some time people watching on the beach before heading back to pick the girl up from school.

Of course, we’ve also taken them to some of the normal tourist spots like Brimstone Fortress and Port Zante/Downtown. Overall it’s been a very enjoyable time with them and it’s going to be hard to say goodbye Monday morning. But, there’ll be trips home to look forward to as well as visits from family and friends. Hopefully next time everyone can travel with much less stress though. Until then I’ll get back to writing about our experiences as a family of three (plus two big baby dogs).