Before I launch into the dramatic events of yesterday I need to do a quick catch up. So here goes. I saw the doctor last week who told me I had a virus, which in my opinion is another way of saying I have no idea what’s wrong with you. Go away. But I feel a hundred times better now, largely due to having hired a car this week thus avoiding hours of carrying ten kilos of teachery stuff around, spending a ridiculous amount of time wandering around the supermarket during the two hour lunch breaks and waiting in the hot sun when already exhausted for stupid taxicos that never arrive. I’ve also found a car to buy (with the help of Lisette’s friend Jean Jaures (A.K.A David – weird nickname huh..?) which should, fingers crossed, be ready for me to collect next week. So anyway, time for the drama...
Yesterday when I was heading back to the car after having spent an hour on the beach at Tartane (one of my new after-school activities since having a car), something very peculiar happened. My legs started shaking quite violently. Thinking I must have overdone the exercise this week and silently cursing my aging limbs, I carried on walking. But then I started feeling like my stomach was wobbling too. Baffled I looked around for the car thinking I’d better put myself to bed early and get some rest tonight. ...And it was only then that I noticed that in fact it wasn’t me that was shaking. It was the rest of the world!
My little car was lurching backwards and forwards, the trees and lamp posts were waving madly and the ground looked like it was rippling. Everyone on the beach was rushing around in a panic but no one seemed to have any idea what to do. And being somewhat of an earthquake novice myself I wasn’t sure what to do either. I decided to get out of the way of the trees – seemed sensible as they looked as if they might fall any minute - and stand still (or try to – difficult when walking on a huge earth jelly) in the middle of the car park.
And so I stood there, bemused rather than scared, and watched the bizarre spectacle of the earth shuddering, as if trying to shake us annoying humans off its back.
There had been another earthquake two days earlier but it was less intense (and I didn’t feel it as I was driving a very noisy rattling Citroen Saxo at the time) and of course there was the one which terrorised Courtney in the night a week or so ago too. So when this one started I wasn’t too concerned. I thought it would be a minor tremor, a bit of a grumble and then back to business as usual. So when it was still going after what felt like about thirty seconds, I started to realise it was probably quite serious.
In fact this earthquake measured 7.4 on the Richter scale and even made it onto the BBC news website. It might have just been a slow day for stories of course but when I got home after going out for dinner with Courtney (did I mention that having a car is AMAZING!) I even had emails and messages from people at home who were worried I might have perished.
All the schools in Martinique were closed today so they could be inspected by safety officers, which meant the weekend started early for me. So I used my extra day to get all my boring shopping and tidying out of the way. And tomorrow Courtney and I are driving up to pick up Nick at his house and then try and retrace our terrifying bus-on-cliff face journey up to Anse Couleuvre that we made last weekend on the boat trip day.
I LOVE having a car!
No comments:
Post a Comment