Yokwe from Majuro

Where do I begin!! What a day!

Well first off, we are in Majuro and it is beautiful! We arrived safely at about 10am (4pm MN?) and came to our hotel the MIR (Marshall Islands Resort) So far we are pleasantly surprised at what a decent place it is. The reviews had killed this place but they offered us a good rate and Shawn talked to the manager and we have a nice room with a view of the lagoon and 2 queen beds. They moved in a larger fridge, a coffee maker, and a microwave for us. So far no bugs (in the room)- I have not yet seen a palmetto bug or any roaches. I have seen a good size spider which we have named Bob. He lives on the palm tree right outside our balcony and he better stay there! I check on him every few hours to make sure he’s still there and hopefully dead. Shawn says he’s not and probably just full.

THEN WE MET HER!!!!!! And she is so adorable! At 1:50pm our hotel phone rang and it was Maddy (the social worker for RMI) saying that they were here and heading to our room. I starting pacing and hyperventilating as Shawn paced and tried hugging and kissing me to calm me down. Then we heard a knock at the door. Shawn opened and the first person I saw was Emita. Rosita (BirthMom) was holding her and we invited them in to sit. She handed Emi to Shawn and sat down. I wanted to grab her and hug her and hold her – both Emi and Rosita- but it was so awkward. Rosita doesn’t speak a word of English and the few Marshallese words I know are not enough to ask or answer questions. So we gave her a coffee table book about the Twin Cities that she flipped threw as we held Emi. She had questions about the weather in MN and we asked about siblings. Emita sat and cooed and smiled and was just such a happy baby! She was wearing a pumpkin orange outfit, green socks (with little dinosaurs) a pink headband and her hair in a little spout on the top of her head! ADORABLE! She has huge almond eyes with long lashes and big chubby cheeks. We think she’s about 12lbs but not over 15. When she walked in I actually thought that wasn’t her because she was so small. We are so in love! It was so hard to hand her back. We gave Rosita taxi money so she can visit us tomorrow. She said she’d be here at 10am. I can’t wait.

After Emita and Rosita left, Shawn and I went to explore! We went walking down the road (the only road) to all the little shops along the way. We stopped to eat at The Flame Tree and it wasn’t bad either. Shawn had Tuna and I had a noodle dish. The prices were reasonable and the food was good. We’re planning on eating there again. Then we bought some of our supplies. We bought a box of microwavable noodles, water, bowls, dish soap, and the newspaper. We’re here for a month and we can’t eat out for every meal. We’ll probably buy more snacky-type foods since it’s so hot here you lose your appetite and don’t want full meals. Oh and Shawn wanted me to mention that our case of bottled water cost $9.10.

So here’s the deal on the poverty…. If people spoke Spanish, I’d be right at home. It makes me sad that Americans who travel here are shocked by what they see. Travel into Latin America, NOT Cancun or a beach in Costa Rica, but actual towns and you’ll see the same thing. Dogs roaming the streets, cinder block and tin roofed housed, kids wandering around, trash on the side of the road, cars rusting out in someone’s yard… It is very sad and my heart breaks for them.

Tips for Future families:

MIR- pretty decent (so far)

Flame Tree- not to American health code standards but food is good and cheap and we’re not sick yet =) ((fingers crossed))

I’m surprised at how much Majuro is like a little Asia. All the food is Japanese or Chinese and they put soy sauce on the tables.

It’s hot but not crazy hot. It’s humid but the breeze helps.

Many things are not priced in the Supermarkets. So far we’ve stuck to the priced items. Except for the water- That was a nice surprise at the cash register!