The Storm's Produce

          The rainy season is really underway now.  We are getting heavy showers almost everyday.  They are almost always accompanied by a spectacular thunder and lighting storm.  Even though there are large drainage ditches along all the roadways there is still flooding that happens.  When it rains hard during the night, our driver has to wade through a flooded dip in the road to get to our compound.  Whenever he is late, we know why.  The flooding has been especially bad on one road adjacent to the main road through town.  The city hired a crew to build underground drainage tubes to help alleviate the problem.  The tubes form a large "t" under the intersection.  The main road was closed for two weeks which caused a large back-up of traffic which went right through our neighborhood.

Looking North

Looking South

The cement slabs do not all come together to form a tight seal.  Clint and I made a comment that someday I bet the water leaks will cause a problem.  Sure enough this week on our way to work we saw a big truck with it's back tires in a sinkhole at this intersection.  I don't think they planned this very well.

They hit a water main.  Check out the guy taking pictures of us taking pictures of him.  We probably get our photo taken more often than the local politicians.  He was more interested in getting our picture than worrying about the gushing water.  Also, take note of the guy in the flip flops.  This is a standard dress code for construction workers.

          This afternoon we had another big rain shower and then a huge gust of wind hit.  It really pounded on our metal roof and then the usual thunder and lightening show began as well.  I took pictures out the front door and the back windows.  I didn't dare open the back door because when it rains hard our kitchen floods from under the back door.  There was already a puddle so I can imagine what would have happened if I had opened the door.  The banana tree that was up against the compound wall behind our flat either snapped or fell against the wall.  All the large leaves were right in front of my kitchen window and we had a big branch of bananas hanging down where we could touch them.  I had taken pictures of this branch a while back.  It was interesting watching the flower bud on it drop petals and reveal a new bunch of baby bananas. 

This picture was taken in March.  I could see these bananas growing from my kitchen window.  The petals come off one at a time around and around the bud to reveal the new bunch of baby bananas each time one would fall off.  As they grow the black end gets shorter and comes off.  The tree is very sticky and the branches are really broad.  The wind opens the strips on the big leaves.

This is the same branch of bananas now two months later.  They needed more time but the storm brought the tree down into our backyard.  We asked the expat from Jamaica for advice on whether we should cut it off.  He went to get his machete.  The news quickly spread and our guard arrived with a machete and then the neighbor to the east popped up over the wall with a machete in his hand too.  

Sadly, these baby bananas will not grow any bigger but we had enough bigger bananas to share with most of the expats, the guard and the neighbor.  They will take about four days to ripen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They twirled the branch after each bunch of bananas was cut off until they reached the end.  Each bunch of bananas looked just like what you buy at the store.  I took a video of the whole process.  Clint is talking to the neighbor.  He lives in the unfinished home next door.  The shell of the brick home is done and the roof is on but the owner ran out of money to finish it.  We think this guy is just guarding it but he could also be a squatter.  We just wave to him as we come and go. 

This is the bud on another branch still on the tree hanging high above the wall.  If the tree is only leaning on the wall these may still grow but I have a feeling the tree broke when it hit the compound wall.  We shall see.  They will not be ready before we leave for the summer but the guard got a good look at them so I am sure he will enjoy them.