thank you + Nha Terra S.Nicolau+ pics

Beautiful people,

First and foremost, thank you all for remembering me on my 23rd bday... it was soooo nice to receive all your messages :)

Instead of partying and doing all that was expected from me on that day, I stayed home instead. It was a day of reflection upon this past year of my life. I was able to reflect mainly because i couldn't move after stuffing my face with my mother's special lunch and my neighbor's special desserts :).

Mama's special lunch:

- octupus cooked on a traditional wood fire

- grilled shrimp

- plantains

- capeverdean cuscus

- white wine (made in Fogo, Cabo Verde :) )

Neighbor´s (Sofia) special dessert:

- traditional capeverdean rum cake!!!!!!

- capeverdean style cheesecake!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Year 22 definitely was definitely not the best year for me but I'm treatin' year 23 completely different. Changes will definitely be made in the life and times of Crislaine Brito Medina and i'm hoping those changes will lead me to see many of you very very sooooon

So to start off positive:
As some of you may or not may not know, Cabo Verde is made up of ten islands and eight islets. We currently have two local airlines that fly between the ten islands except for Brava and Sta. Lucia, which do not have airports. However, since Sao Nicolau is not on the government's list of priorities, flights to and from my mother's hometown are scarce, especially during the summertime and there are many immigrants that fly in from the States, Holland, France, England, etc. to visit the motherland.


Sooooo, all of the above makes it hard for me to flind flights to Sao Nicolau but aaaaahhhh HA! I found two tickets for Rosalie and me two weeks ago that came back on Sunday...so i went to visit my granma!!!!!!!!!!! Ya'll would not believe how GREEN my village is. It has not rained this much in years!!!!! Being there was an amazing experience, especially for my lil cuz who is soooooooooooooooooo American. Unfortunately however, due to climate change and high elevation I got a li sick and couldnt fly back on Sunday. The next available flight was the following Wednesday..... i wasn't too upset about that though :)

Check out the beeeeeeautiful, breathtaking island of S.Nicolau---- and my villagetown , Todj

the lil' yellow house is my family's...where my granma currently lives

This football pitch is usually dry as anything and all u usually see is dirt and a ball made out of socks being kicked around.... check that out FIFA!!























This is called "fundo" (deep) where people go to wash clothes because there isrunning water there. You have to climb down a steep rocky cliff to actually et there, thats why they call it "fundo".

typical village center building...i got plans for S.Nicolau one day...






















The wrinkely white lady in the middle is my Queen, my granma!!!!

Tarrafel is a fishing village that is quickly becoming modern and developed... the beaches there have black sand, which is used for thereaupetic treatments... and yes, i sucked up my cowardly fear of heights and travelled there by car on the sketchiest road eeeeeeeever :) I love Cabo Verde, Mama A.