The Good TDY

As promised, some glimpses of the recent TDY in the Caribbean during a very difficult time for a diplomatic outpost. With just a few hours notice, I learned that I was needed on the next flight out, so I packed my carry-on suitcase, went to the office the next morning to pick-up travel orders, arrange quick tickets with the in-house travel agency, get paperwork straightened out, and an Embassy vehicle took me to the airport in time to hop on the plane.

I walked out to this plane, and took off for the 2-hour flight. I brought a good paperback from the CLO office, to take my mind off the doubts of the unknown I would face upon landing.
There were some other specialists on the same flight, so the post sent out a vehicle to pick us all up and bring us into town. I got checked into a nice room at the Renaissance hotel, adjacent to the old fort, built during pirate days. (Not the hotel, which just opened 7 months ago, with not a hint of piracy to be seen).

The infinity pool at the hotel.


I quickly got to work doing what needed to be done and getting to know the key players. Work was busy, but enjoyable, and I was able to draw on my previous experiences to serve here.
A few days later some of us got to tour inside the SSN ### ### that was on shore leave. To respect the sensitive nature of this craft, this is all that will be shown here. Suffice it to say the crew were polite and professional as we toured the three storey maze of hallways in a ship much longer than a 747. I could have gotten very lost.



The hotel serves nice buffet breakfasts.

On Saturday afternoon I walked around a zoo/garden.

Beware of cars flying over speed bumps?

On Sunday I want to another beach down the island, and enjoyed the crystal clear water.

After a week and half, Mrs. Globetrotter was able to join me, and made the rest of my time on the island twice as enjoyable. I was starting to miss her.

We found a friendly church, and enjoyed the fellowship. They speak English here too, so we were very happy about that.

Strolling along the waterfront at night. Someone from the office called my hotel room to tell me that my name was on a telegram of officers who had been selected by the panel for promotion. We were humbled and very happy about the unexpected good news, and went out to get cold mango and pineapple milk-shakes to celebrate. :-) God is good.

The next day we took a sailing trip to a nearby island, famous for its perfectly clear water, white sandy beaches, and the opportunity to swim with sea turtles. We were not disappointed!On the desolate island we also explored some shipwrecks and the old abandoned lighthouse.

We swam and relaxed, and I also caught up on my reading in the shade of a thatch hut on the sand. We got to swim with the turtles. The boat provided a buffet breakfast and a hearty buffet lunch. They even provided garden burgers for us, since they heard we were vegetarian. The boat's crew also provided snorkeling equipment and fresh water showers, so we spent a good part of the day snorkeling, and diving down to the coral. It was so clear and quite cold down at the sea floor. Captain Phil said the water was about 60 feet deep, and I understood why it was so hard to stay down there for more than 15 seconds at a time.

All too soon, it was time for us to help hoist the sails and head back to the main island. We were quite red from the sun, but very happy and satisfied.

Monday was a holiday in honor of Christopher Columbus, and we motored over to a lovely national park to enjoy the natural wonders and hike around a little bit. Someone kindly loaned us their van for the weekend.

While most of these photos make it look like all fun and games, a lot of serious work was also undertaken during my time on the island. After a few weeks, an experienced professional came to relieve me, and my honey and I headed back to the South American continent to resume our work and lives there.

A light snack on the flight back. A driver from the Embassy met us and took us to our apartment. It was good to be 'home'; we're not quite sure what home is at the moment!

A few observations: Always be ready to go anywhere and do anything with only a few hours' warning. The needs of the service come first, so be happy to serve--you never know what a difference one person can make.

Be prepared for a lot of questions, both before and afterward; "What happened?" "Did they find what they were looking for?" "Was it kind of weird to be there?" and so on and so forth. Inquiring minds need to know. After all, its the needs of the service.