It seems kind of silly for me to take the time out to write an entire entry on bathing, but I feel like it's necessary because it’s just that spectacular. Lol.
As all of you know I live in a cute little hut at the end of the village next to my new family. Huts don’t have plumbing so I do everything outside in my backyard or latrine. Every morning I wake up to the usual rooster crowing, birds chirping, and now the cows mooing, and then go outside in the morning sun and bathe. It’s so refreshing to wake up and go outside to smell the clean air and hear all those now familiar morning sounds and then bathe in chilled well water.
The morning baths are great but the night baths are magnificent. My first 3 days at site it had been raining so the sky wasn’t clear, but last night was beautiful. I’m usually as little hesitant when I walk back there at night because I can’t see well and I’m always fearful that there’s some animal lurking in the darkness. Two days ago I saw my first snake slither by me right before I squatted to use the bathroom. Anyway, last night I turned on my flashlight and did the usual check before stepping outside, and to my amazement realized I didn’t really need it that night. I could already see. I looked up into the sky and could see the moon glowing just above my head with a slight haze around the curve to brighten up the sky a little more. Every single star that exists in our galaxy was visible. In some places it looked like someone has taken a handful of dust or glitter and thrown it into the sky when in actuality it was hundreds of thousands of stars. It’s like being in a planetarium. Lol. I don’t mean to sound corny but it was one of the most beautiful natural sites I’ve ever experienced. After I finished bathing I stood there in amazement for about another 10 minutes taking it all in. Then I went back inside to read for a little bit and came back to check to see if it was the same. Lol. It was. It’s a sight you don’t see that often in the states because it’s either hindered by lights or pollution, or we just don’t take the time out to look. That’s what makes it so special.
Anyway, that’s all I have to say about bucket baths for now.
However, I do want to give a special thank you to everyone that has been keeping up with my blog, sent packages, and kept in contact with me since I’ve been away. It’s a blessing to know that I have a great support system back home. It’s comforting. It can get a little tough out here sometimes.
And for those of you that have tried to call and can’t get through, I apologize. My phone service hasn’t been that great since I’ve reached site. Sometimes it’s necessary to try multiple times before getting through. If you like you can send me an email or facebook message and let me know when you would like to call so I can go somewhere where I have service.
Anyway. I hope to have some more interesting things to share in the near future. I start teaching October 15th, so wish me luck.
Once again, thank you all so much. I love you and miss you all a bunch.
Monday, October 6, 2008
Week 1
First order of business once they left was to clean as much as I could before the sun went down. Luckily I had 3 eager petites waiting to lend a helping hand with the cleaning. It was really cute at first, but like all children they started to fight over who would do what. At that point I had to allocate a specific job for each of them, which was a task in itself since I can’t communicate to them. It’s hit me again that I’m at square one with the communication barrier. Actually, more like square zero if there is such a thing because I don’t understand one word of Maninka which the primary/ local language spoken in this region of Guinea. Very few people speak French. I’ve been using my petites to teach me the basic vocabulary so I have a better idea of how to communicate my basic needs. I have to do a lot of demonstrations and gesturing to get things across which usually ends up in an uproar of laughter, me usually being the brunt of the laughter. Sometimes it’s fun. It’s like playing charades. Lol. But as you can imagine charades gets old after a while and can become frustrating. A couple days this week I found a whole day went by and I had maybe spoken 2 words in French. At this point I can’t communicate anything (using words.)
I spend a lot of time with my energetic petites or reading in my hut. Since I’ve been here I have been the primary entertainment of my petites. If I’m not up with my door open by 7am they come looking for me. I can usually hear them before they get to the door as they approach in full sprint yelling, “Madame, Madame, Madame, Madame, Madame. Cong, Cong. Cong, Cong.” (Cong, cong is what is said when you knock because there is no doorbell.) I hear the word Madame approximately 60-100 times a day. No exaggeration. I don’t answer my door that early in the morning for them, so they’re usually out there for about 10 minutes, banging and yelling before understanding that I’m not getting up.
When I do finally open my door around 9am or so within a minute and a half they are standing at my door saying “bonjour madame,” which is also their way of asking for an invite into my hut. I can’t say no because they’re too cute. Most of their time in my hut is spent in curiosity where they point, touch and ask about everything I own. Afterwards the second oldest always asks me if he can have it. That’s done by looking at me, pointing to the object and them pointing to himself. So I just shake my head and say no. When we’re outside I try and take advantage of a Maninka lesson, which can sometimes be difficult because of their short attention span. The more time I spend with the 3 boys the more I realize that all boys under the age of 12, no matter where they are from, are all the same. Like most, their attention span is limited, and the coolest thing in the world is seeing how loud they can fart or how far they can piss. So in between vocabulary words that’s usually what I’m observing. Lol.
Other than that, I’m just slowly trying to adjust to my new home, and beginning to grasp the amount of determination, patience and work I’m going to have to put in to make the most out of my 2 years in Guinea. I’m looking forward to it.
I spend a lot of time with my energetic petites or reading in my hut. Since I’ve been here I have been the primary entertainment of my petites. If I’m not up with my door open by 7am they come looking for me. I can usually hear them before they get to the door as they approach in full sprint yelling, “Madame, Madame, Madame, Madame, Madame. Cong, Cong. Cong, Cong.” (Cong, cong is what is said when you knock because there is no doorbell.) I hear the word Madame approximately 60-100 times a day. No exaggeration. I don’t answer my door that early in the morning for them, so they’re usually out there for about 10 minutes, banging and yelling before understanding that I’m not getting up.
When I do finally open my door around 9am or so within a minute and a half they are standing at my door saying “bonjour madame,” which is also their way of asking for an invite into my hut. I can’t say no because they’re too cute. Most of their time in my hut is spent in curiosity where they point, touch and ask about everything I own. Afterwards the second oldest always asks me if he can have it. That’s done by looking at me, pointing to the object and them pointing to himself. So I just shake my head and say no. When we’re outside I try and take advantage of a Maninka lesson, which can sometimes be difficult because of their short attention span. The more time I spend with the 3 boys the more I realize that all boys under the age of 12, no matter where they are from, are all the same. Like most, their attention span is limited, and the coolest thing in the world is seeing how loud they can fart or how far they can piss. So in between vocabulary words that’s usually what I’m observing. Lol.
Other than that, I’m just slowly trying to adjust to my new home, and beginning to grasp the amount of determination, patience and work I’m going to have to put in to make the most out of my 2 years in Guinea. I’m looking forward to it.
Site
I was the first one in my region to be installed at their site on Monday. We started off the day meeting all of the Guinean officials to notify them of our arrival, had a big lunch, and then it was off to site. Jesse and Carolina accompanied me to my site because they weren’t until Tuesday. I had really mixed emotions about coming to site. Part of me was so excited to jump in and start teaching, meeting new people, and starting my secondary project ( I still am excited), but the other half of me was a little hesitant. It had finally hit me that I was no longer going to live in a protected environment where I knew exactly who to talk to if I needed something or was in trouble. I was about to move to a Guinean village by myself where I didn’t know a soul or the local language. Now that I’m here things are going well and understand that the Guinean Peace Corps experience is not suppose to be a walk in the park.
When I first arrived I received a warm greeting from my new petites. They are adorable. There are 5 of them, but 2 are infants. 4 boys and 1 girl. We searched for the superefet or someone of authority to notify them that I had arrived, but we had no luck, so we just moved my stuff into my new place.
Much to my surprise my hut was not in as good a shape as it was the last time I saw it during site visit. It was like walking into an unkept attic after maybe 3-5 years. When I walked in there was piles of dirt in the curves where pieces of the wall had collapsed during a thunder storm. The walls were also covered with “termite houses,” these ugly brown things composed of termite poop. It’s not so bad only because when you touch them they crumble like dirt so they are easy to clean. Apparently the termite problem is common in huts. I also have a few holes/openings in my thatch roof. So when it rains there are a few puddles that form next to my back door. Unfortunately I’ll have to live with this until the rainy season has finished. The pagaye/straw is not available until the dry season has come. Luckily I think there are only a few more weeks left for the rainy season.
Other than that, everything else was fine. I just had a lot of work cut out for me. We continued to move the rest of my things in, set up my mosquito net, cleaned my mattress, and Jesse assembled my water filter. After the necessities were finished it was time to say goodbye. I hugged Jesse and Carolina just before they got into the Peace Corps car. This would be the last time I would see them for a couple months. As they pulled off and waved goodbye it was finally a reality that I was on my own.
When I first arrived I received a warm greeting from my new petites. They are adorable. There are 5 of them, but 2 are infants. 4 boys and 1 girl. We searched for the superefet or someone of authority to notify them that I had arrived, but we had no luck, so we just moved my stuff into my new place.
Much to my surprise my hut was not in as good a shape as it was the last time I saw it during site visit. It was like walking into an unkept attic after maybe 3-5 years. When I walked in there was piles of dirt in the curves where pieces of the wall had collapsed during a thunder storm. The walls were also covered with “termite houses,” these ugly brown things composed of termite poop. It’s not so bad only because when you touch them they crumble like dirt so they are easy to clean. Apparently the termite problem is common in huts. I also have a few holes/openings in my thatch roof. So when it rains there are a few puddles that form next to my back door. Unfortunately I’ll have to live with this until the rainy season has finished. The pagaye/straw is not available until the dry season has come. Luckily I think there are only a few more weeks left for the rainy season.
Other than that, everything else was fine. I just had a lot of work cut out for me. We continued to move the rest of my things in, set up my mosquito net, cleaned my mattress, and Jesse assembled my water filter. After the necessities were finished it was time to say goodbye. I hugged Jesse and Carolina just before they got into the Peace Corps car. This would be the last time I would see them for a couple months. As they pulled off and waved goodbye it was finally a reality that I was on my own.
We're Official
So the next 4 days after Forecariah are a complete blur. Thursday all of us ran around Conakry frantically doing our shopping for our sites. It was somewhat overwhelming trying to figure out what you need in your house for the next 2 years. But it was fun.
Friday was the big day. Everyone woke up bright and early, put on there best Guinean attire for the swearing-in ceremony which was held at the U.S. Embassy. It felt sort of strange walking into the embassy. It was like being in America again with air conditioning, marble floors and countertops and a security system. I think I’m starting to forget what those things feel like. Anyway. The ceremony was pretty short and too the point and our speakers were great. Walking out of that building was such a great feeling. We were official volunteers now! All 25 of us made it through training. (If you guys don’t know, this doesn’t happen that often. In a lot of cases people quit before training is complete.)
There was nothing but celebration for the next 2 days. That evening our director invited everyone over for a pool party and bar b-que. It was a good time and was actually the perfect day to have it. The weather was great! And we ate hamburgers and brownies!
The next day was more time for shopping and celebrating. Sunday was the day departures for site would begin. Each region was taken separately. The first group to go would be the Hauters (Me, Carolina, Christina, Jesse, and Levi) because we have the furthest to travel. We woke up at the crack of dawn Sunday morning (5am) to begin the voyage. Before leaving all of us gathered around in astonishment as our driver Konde loaded our mountain of luggage on the top of the car. I can’t begin to tell you how much luggage we had. None of us thought it was possible to travel in one car, in that distance with that amount of luggage, along with 8 people. It was definitely a site to see. The goodbye was difficult too (but I didn’t cry this time. Lol.) I had grown close to a couple of people that weren’t coming to my region so it was tough to say goodbye to them. We finally pulled off around 7am and began our 12 our journey to KanKan.
Friday was the big day. Everyone woke up bright and early, put on there best Guinean attire for the swearing-in ceremony which was held at the U.S. Embassy. It felt sort of strange walking into the embassy. It was like being in America again with air conditioning, marble floors and countertops and a security system. I think I’m starting to forget what those things feel like. Anyway. The ceremony was pretty short and too the point and our speakers were great. Walking out of that building was such a great feeling. We were official volunteers now! All 25 of us made it through training. (If you guys don’t know, this doesn’t happen that often. In a lot of cases people quit before training is complete.)
There was nothing but celebration for the next 2 days. That evening our director invited everyone over for a pool party and bar b-que. It was a good time and was actually the perfect day to have it. The weather was great! And we ate hamburgers and brownies!
The next day was more time for shopping and celebrating. Sunday was the day departures for site would begin. Each region was taken separately. The first group to go would be the Hauters (Me, Carolina, Christina, Jesse, and Levi) because we have the furthest to travel. We woke up at the crack of dawn Sunday morning (5am) to begin the voyage. Before leaving all of us gathered around in astonishment as our driver Konde loaded our mountain of luggage on the top of the car. I can’t begin to tell you how much luggage we had. None of us thought it was possible to travel in one car, in that distance with that amount of luggage, along with 8 people. It was definitely a site to see. The goodbye was difficult too (but I didn’t cry this time. Lol.) I had grown close to a couple of people that weren’t coming to my region so it was tough to say goodbye to them. We finally pulled off around 7am and began our 12 our journey to KanKan.
Farewell
Our return from Mamou would mark our last week and a half in of training in Forecariah. It was a bitter sweet occasion for me. I tried to spend as much time with my family as I could, at the same time reminiscing about my first week in country and all the difficulties and struggles I encountered, and realizing how much better things have gotten, the adjustments I’ve made and the relationships I’ve built. I know it’s only been 3 months but the time has flown by so quickly.
The day finally arrived for our departure from Forecariah and our farewell ceremony. Before the ceremony I packed up the last of my belongings and my sister Djnabe helped me put on my complet that she had just had made for me. It fit perfectly. We took a few last minute photos outside of the house and then headed up to the Maison de Jeunes where the ceremony was being held. As we walked, I couldn’t help but be overwhelmed with a feeling of sadness as I thought about the first day I had awkwardly walked down that same street but with anticipation and curiosity about what was to come. I was sort of shocked at the way that I felt that last week and day with my family. I never thought that after only two and a half months I would have grown to care about them so much. They are like my real family. The ceremony went really well with the exception of the hour and a half delay. But then it was time to say goodbye. I held myself together for most of the time until the last 2 minutes before getting on the bus. I remember getting that big lump in my throat just before I started. Lol. At that point I couldn’t control myself anymore and I felt those hot tears come rolling down my cheeks. As I looked up, Djnabe had turned away from me in an attempt not to start crying. It didn’t work. Lol. We both hugged and cried until it was time to leave and I thanked her for all that she had done for me. Afterwards we got on the bus and waved goodbye as the bus pulled off. I have this permanent image of seeing my brother Ibou from the window smiling and running along side of the bus waving and yelling, “Au Revoir Mimi.” Lol. I’m going to miss him.
The day finally arrived for our departure from Forecariah and our farewell ceremony. Before the ceremony I packed up the last of my belongings and my sister Djnabe helped me put on my complet that she had just had made for me. It fit perfectly. We took a few last minute photos outside of the house and then headed up to the Maison de Jeunes where the ceremony was being held. As we walked, I couldn’t help but be overwhelmed with a feeling of sadness as I thought about the first day I had awkwardly walked down that same street but with anticipation and curiosity about what was to come. I was sort of shocked at the way that I felt that last week and day with my family. I never thought that after only two and a half months I would have grown to care about them so much. They are like my real family. The ceremony went really well with the exception of the hour and a half delay. But then it was time to say goodbye. I held myself together for most of the time until the last 2 minutes before getting on the bus. I remember getting that big lump in my throat just before I started. Lol. At that point I couldn’t control myself anymore and I felt those hot tears come rolling down my cheeks. As I looked up, Djnabe had turned away from me in an attempt not to start crying. It didn’t work. Lol. We both hugged and cried until it was time to leave and I thanked her for all that she had done for me. Afterwards we got on the bus and waved goodbye as the bus pulled off. I have this permanent image of seeing my brother Ibou from the window smiling and running along side of the bus waving and yelling, “Au Revoir Mimi.” Lol. I’m going to miss him.
Counterpart Workshop
It’s been a few weeks since I’ve given an update. A lot has happened since practice school. The following Wednesday after the practice school award ceremony we departed for Mamou to participate in our 4 day counterpart workshop. Here, each volunteer met with the person from there village who they will be working with on secondary projects or any other projects related to the village. In most cases it was the principal of the school or another colleague. I was fortunate enough to have the only woman counterpart at the workshop who happens to be the principal of the college (middle school) I’ll be working for. Before we were all introduced I remember seeing her from across the room and thinking to myself, that would be so cool if she was my counterpart. And I was ecstatic to when I found out that she was. We’re going to be the only 2 woman that work at the school. It’s rare in Guinea to find woman in positions of authority. Like many countries this is a society dominated by men. Within my 2 years of service I want to begin something that involves better education of women. I have to do a lot of research to figure out exactly, the who, what, when and how of what I want to do. Anyway, other than being fortunate enough to have a woman as my counterpart there aren’t too many exciting details to share about the workshop. Each day of the workshop was comprised of various information sessions describing the goals, roles, and expectations of those involved in Guinea’s Peace Corps Education program. C’est tout.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
