Brazil

OK so it has nothing to do with Nassau, Bahamas - Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He rocks!



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Emily the Brave

Here is Em relaxing on the hammock that Mark just installed. She loves it and likes to lounge there for a few minutes in the morning before she goes to school.

Speaking of school...When we lived in Reston we worried that Em would grow up thinking that life was incredibly easy and everyone gets exactly what they always want. Why wouldn't she think that. Fairfax County is one of the wealthiest counties in the entire United States. We knew that bringing her to the Bahamas would expose her to some tough issues. She would witness 3rd world poverty first hand which we knew would be a good thing in the long run. It is important to know about the world outside the insular United States. She would learn how difficult life is for some,feel gratitude for what she was lucky enough to have and continue to develop her incredibly generous spirit. We would also have the opportunity to send her to private school (St Andrews) - and not just any private school but a world renowned IB school that would give her an amazing education and open up a world of opportunity to her when it came time to graduate.

Last weekend Emily went to a birthday party in the Atlantis Resort. The little girl was 10 years old and had arrived at the party with her inner circle in a stretch limosine. After the few thousand dollar 3 hours at Atlantis she was taking her inner circle for a sleep-over at the British Colonial Hilton. Oh dear. This is a little more excessive than Fairfax County.

Last week Emily brought home the permission slip for her 3 day school trip to a neighbouring island. Without spending money the price was $800. Ouch! This is a transition year for us and although we could scrape the funds together, that is a lot of money for a trip she won't remember two years from now. But it isn't really about the money (Mark even offered to give up our vacation so that she could go if Lisa was that upset about it), it is about understanding that you have to work for things. They aren't just given to you. When you are an adult and living in the real world you don't get to jaunt off to a neighbouring island for a couple of days without planning for it.

Lisa struggled and didn't sleep, she spoke to both Mark and Tom and finally decided she could not be a good Mother and say "Yes". It was too important a lesson - if not a tough one. Lisa sat Emily down and explained it all carefully and gave Emily all the reasons. She told her that we will reconsider for next year, and if we do it she will have to work to contribute towards it. She cried - a lot - and said she didn't care about understanding she just wanted to go (I know Em, I know)but we sat and cuddled and talked until she calmed down. When she did Lisa read her this blog post that she had read that just that morning in the midst of her anxiety. What a coincidence. Emily said she was sadder than both the girls in the story - but she did stop crying.

We have an amazing child. She pulled herself together last night and got right down to creating her own blog (sniffling the whole time). This morning she was as sunny as our patio. We adore her!

A small note

Hi, Emily here! NEWS!!! I am starting my own blog! Come visit me at http://www.emilywithcoconutmilk.blogspot.com! See you there!

Emily's First Catch, Marks' First Goal!

Sometimes you have to listen to the words of a nine year-old who told Lisa last week that she never pays any attention because she works too much... time for a break. This morning was gorgeous and hot and sunny and the ocean was still. Lisa and Emily went snorkeling (well Lisa is still getting the hang of it with no floaty so she went almost snorkeling) and Emily brought in her first catch. She dove down to the bottom of the ocean and brought up this conch. He wasn't big enough to eat though so we had to throw him back. The afternoon was spent on the Rugby Club field at Mark's first Bahama's League game where he scored his first goal in the Bahamas! In the words of the Bahamanian youth on the sidelines - "that old man is da best playa on da field - you teach 'dem Pops!"

Review of Cafe Matisse, Nassau

Last night Emily had a sleep-over date. In fact she still isn't home having begged to continue the date by attending Serena's dance classes with her. Anyway - since Emily seems to have more of a social life than both Mark and Lisa do lately, we decided to go out for dinner at one of the most recommended fine-dining restaurants in Nassau. It's called Cafe Matisse.

The restaurant is downtown, up a side alley just off of Parliament Square. It is in a gorgeous old classic Bahamian house - stone archways, deeply polished wood window frames, staircase and window beams. We were thrilled with the ambiance and energy as the place was humming. It didn't seem to have many tourists but was filled with Native Bahamians (although pre-dominantly the white ones) which we took as a good sign. There were fleets of waiters (all black men for some reason) in crisp white shirts and aprons bustling around the place. Because we didn't have a reservation we didn't get our preferred seating (out on the green, tropical patio surrounded by fairy lights) but scored an inside table for two which was very charming.

The waiter was at our table in seconds offering drinks, in fact we hadn't even looked at the wine list so Lisa ordered a chardonnay (only to be disappointed when the wine list revealed her favorite Pinot Grigio) and Mark a beer. The menu was exciting, if expensive (which is why we skipped the appetizers). Mark was thrilled to discover they had home made pasta, one of the owners is Italian) and ordered Tagliatelle with a Lamb Ragu and Sun-dried tomatoes - $22 for pasta - Ouch! Lisa pondered the duck with balsamic fig dressing, but settled on the Pink Trout with Lemon Grass over artichokes, shallots and portobello mushrooms - $34.

Order placed - this was where the trouble started. We were quite hungry having not had any lunch and we sat and sat and sat and sat. It was over an hour before our food came. When it finally did come the presentation certainly left a lot to be desired. Mark's pasta wasn't too bad, but Lisa's fish came on a very industrial looking white plate, with very droopy shallots piled in droves over a tasty looking piece of fish. The artichokes and mushrooms proved more difficult to find. There were maybe two artichokes suffocating under all those shallots and the mushroom were initially mistaken for potatoes. They were a funny brown color and cut in to chunks like home fries.

Now for the taste. At $22 that had better be darn good pasta. Although the taste and texture of the actual noodles were good the sauce was tasteless - except for a mild taste of lamb whose flavor did not match anything else on the plate. The fish truly did look tasty. The first bite was immensely promising as Lisa chose the crispy, juice infused edge of the fish (mostly the fatty skin), but hope was quickly crushed. The trout was "chokeably" dry and overdone. Lisa was particularly excited about the lemon grass since it is one of her favorite ingredients but there wasn't a lemongrass taste in sight. The shallots tasted just how they looked, overcooked and slimy and the mushrooms were bland. What a shame.

We had been considering desert as the menu looked quite yummy but decided to cut our losses and go home. This is where we do have to give "props" to Cafe Matisse and apologize for giving them such a bad food review. The credit card we had specifically signed up for to use in the Bahamas (no foreign transaction fee) and that we have only used once, was inexplicably turned off. The owner and manager of the restaurant were very kind. They let us call a US 800# (a cost to them) and even offered to let us just come back and pay another day. We are debt phobic of course and when Capital One wouldn't turn our card back on we paid with another card, but it was very kind anyway.

We had a little chat with the owner about Northern Italy, he welcomed us to the island and we left. The owner said "see you soon" as we walked out the door but unfortunately I don't think he will. We are mostly open to giving second chances but with a $104 receipt burning in our pocket we are afraid this second chance just might be too expensive.

Stinky Photography

Wish we had a photographer in the house - it's obvious we are no Keith Barraclough. Last night the moon was absolutely amazing! The clouds were creeping across it's face and casting shadows in the moon path that led across the ocean right to our patio door. OK so Mark had to point out to Lisa that it was only a matter of perspective - but it felt like the moon was blessing us.