Where shall I spend me money today?

So here in Picard there are several prestigious shops I think the world needs to know about. You never know what could happen if the world gets wind of what's going on here. There could be a rise in jealousy.

So I stayed at the Hotel de Champ when I visited last Fall and they were building a bar. They now have gotten it running. They even do a pick up service. It consists of climbing in the back of this pick-up truck and riding up this crazy steep hill. The owner told me he wasn't quite as worried about them getting down the hill. Once they're drunk they can totter down on their own. (The truck is so nice. It's held together with duct tape :) They throw parties all the time for everything; superbowl, minis, holidays. I haven't been up since October but its a a great place to stay if you visit Dominica.

Here we have our brand new KFC and Rituals combo. Imagine what America would be like with this addictive chicken. Then with Rituals its a hit. They are pretty close to an American Starbucks. But what america is missing is their belgian chocolate chillers. Not a normal day if you've got one of those delights. Ok so for reals, it was pretty exciting that they got it finished. It was little more than a hole in the ground when I visited Dominica in October. Before this it was quite exciting if someone brought some KFC back from Roseau an hour away.

This grand fixture is the Swarma van. They sell these pita bread meat sandwiches that are similar to greek gyros. they're pretty good. So there is usually quite a line to get one and since Dominicans are not known for fast service. Its quite a wait to get one. Also as far as I know this van is a permanent fixture. It's always there.

These buildings are called The Shacks. They are little shops all connected that sell all sorts of food. And responsible for a good part of the Ross students lunches. The shop with the yellow sign sells the best juice ever. And there are fresh fruit vegetable shops, and all sorts of ethnic food and Bbq and pizza. 

Of course even though there is a Rituals down the road this is supposed to be the real fake Starbucks. They just wanted to make it more fun to say.

I love that bench. It says Life is Simple. As if we needed a reminder. It's so true. And I kind of like this simple life. I've almost forgot the keeping up with the joneses thing in the states. Its great to just live.

Now this one will be a new one to all you Americans. We have our very own 7-11. Now its got everything you can think of and more. (Or so the sign says) Its true to the sign and is open from 7 AM to 11 PM. What a concept!

On the other side of this wall is our James Store. Now this store is great because it has so much stuff. Its whole second floor is devoted to kitchen ware and all sorts of other random useful and not so useful things. Its a little scary to shop for food here though. This store is one of the few that doesn't have a security guard. It also is low maintenance and there is a lot of expired food and sometimes buggy food.  So you really have to pay attention to what you''re buying. I bought some Lasagne Noodles there and when I opened them at home they had been infested. You also have a hard time returning things. They just don't like going through the trouble here in Dominica.