Just arrived at site for my 3 month challenge. Basically I have 3 months to get to know my village and its people and start thinking about possible projects. Peace Corps has a list of objectives I'm supposed to complete, and I also have some personal goals:
learn people's names
have my own garden in my backyard
come up with some sort of solar food dehydrator (plenty of mangoes to experiment on!)
improve my Mandinka
joke/socialize with the women
learn to dance
learn the roads/villages of Kiang West
have a mortar and pestle made locally
plant a tree in my yard
start beekeeping
fix my back screen door
At present I am pretty much coming to the office in the mornings to sit in on meetings and read project summaries and proposals and such. I have also been able to see some of the project's herds. In the evenings I sometimes join the women in the garden, which is so much fun. It will make my day when I can finally understand all that they are saying. I have not ventured to the schools yet as I am not sure if I will have the time to really work with them, though I did run into the headmaster of the lower basic school (equivalent to elementary school in the States) and he seems interested in having me work with them. I am not sure what I want to do there but I figure I'll stop by there at some point and discuss it further. He has worked with PCVs in the past, so this could be promising.
There is Internet at my office, so hopefully I can keep some regular updates. That is all for now, I miss everyone!
TIA moment: There is a lizard living in the office (it scampered across the floor during a meeting) and nobody really has a problem with it. As long as it's not a snake everyone is happy to let it be.
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Friday, March 11, 2011
Swear In!
Swear in day finally arrived! We had our ceremony at the US Ambassador's residence this morning. Pretty nice view of the beach, I would totally go into foreign affairs for a view like that. Pictures will come later. The ceremony was relatively short and sweet, ending with us trainees attempting to sing. While the applause was loud, the ambassador later advised us not to go into singing as a career. Everyone looked lovely in their asobis (matching outfits). Fortunately mine did not fall apart as the zipper is somewhat unstable.
The grand group shopping expedition began this afternoon after swearing in and lunch. All of us crowded into the cars to buy stoves, gas, kitchen supplies and gardening tools. I thought shopping in the US was a chore, it's even more of a hassle in a foreign country where everyone stares at you like you're a walking ATM. We will be shopping for next few afternoons, hopefully I can find everything I need without too much trouble.
What I bought today:
gas can w/ a single burner (the double was waaaaaay too expensive)
shovel
machete
bamboo cutting board
cooking pot
nails
TIA moment: The driver throwing the FULL gas cans off the top of the car onto to the ground.
The grand group shopping expedition began this afternoon after swearing in and lunch. All of us crowded into the cars to buy stoves, gas, kitchen supplies and gardening tools. I thought shopping in the US was a chore, it's even more of a hassle in a foreign country where everyone stares at you like you're a walking ATM. We will be shopping for next few afternoons, hopefully I can find everything I need without too much trouble.
What I bought today:
gas can w/ a single burner (the double was waaaaaay too expensive)
shovel
machete
bamboo cutting board
cooking pot
nails
TIA moment: The driver throwing the FULL gas cans off the top of the car onto to the ground.
Friday, March 4, 2011
Site Visit
Iyoo it is hot. And this isn't even hot by Africa standards. My heat tolerance needs to go up pronto.
Just got back from site visit. It went very well, lot of introductions, names and information thrown at me at once that I will unfortunately probably forget most of. On a positive note it looks like I will have some access to electricity and Internet while at work, which was unexpected. My new family is very big and quite friendly. I'm pretty sure my new house is smaller than the one in training village, but I'm not complaining, It appears to be brand new, LOVELY. I actually stayed at my work station's grounds since my house doesn't have a bed yet, hopefully one will be ready when I get back.
We are back in Kombo (city area) for ten days, having our final lectures, language and technical tests. Then we swear in on the 11th, do a crazy amount of shopping in two days, and then head back to site for three months. During this time all thirty of us trainees will be staying at the transit house - if we weren't tired of each other already we definitely will be after ten days.
TIA (This Is Africa) moment: There was a bat in my work site room when I first got there and we spent a tiresome 15 minutes shooing it out. TIA
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
This is Africa
Back to the Internet! Woot! Training is almost over, thank goodness. All thirty of us trainees are staying in the new transit house, hence the Internet.
It's actually quite amazing the things that have suddenly become normal, many of which people at home would never believe. However, I will share a quick list:
free-roaming cows, goats, sheep and chickens
roosters in the morning (and all day)
communal food bowl
eating with your hands
biking in sand
bathing out of a bucket
fetching water and carrying it on my head
getting laughed at while carrying water on my head
dodging donkey carts
drinking attaya
brooms with no handles
oranges, lemons and papaya straight off the tree (mango season is almost here!)
cashew fruit (America you are missing out)
There are many more, I just can't think of them.
Thanks for the two letters! The sender knows who he/she is. No packages yet though (hint hint).
Swear is in a couple weeks, yippee! We will be visiting our sites soon, will bring that update later.
It's actually quite amazing the things that have suddenly become normal, many of which people at home would never believe. However, I will share a quick list:
free-roaming cows, goats, sheep and chickens
roosters in the morning (and all day)
communal food bowl
eating with your hands
biking in sand
bathing out of a bucket
fetching water and carrying it on my head
getting laughed at while carrying water on my head
dodging donkey carts
drinking attaya
brooms with no handles
oranges, lemons and papaya straight off the tree (mango season is almost here!)
cashew fruit (America you are missing out)
There are many more, I just can't think of them.
Thanks for the two letters! The sender knows who he/she is. No packages yet though (hint hint).
Swear is in a couple weeks, yippee! We will be visiting our sites soon, will bring that update later.
Monday, January 10, 2011
Salamaaleekum!
That means, "Peace be with you."
Finally here! It only took 30 hours! Our flight was delayed out of Brussels, so our entire group got to hang out in the Brussels airport for about 8 hours. Fun times. But we made it and that is all that matters.
Our group of 30 is currently living at a lodge, but we will be going to our training villages tomorrow, which is really exciting. So far we have been having lectures on the culture, norms and a little bit of language. There are many languages spoken in the Gambia, and the one(s) we each learn depends on our final site. They have not told us where that will be yet though, yay surprises!
It averages about 80-85 degrees here during the day, and cools down to about mid-60s at night. It's actually pretty nice, but this is the cold season, so it will get hotter in a few months.
We just received cell phones, virtually indestructable Nokias (insert Titanic reference here). We will also be getting bikes eventually.
I'm not going to attempt to load pictures at the moment since the connection is pretty slow and there is a queue for the computers, but hopefully I can get them up eventually. That is all I can think of for now, I will try to make my next post a little more detailed.
Finally here! It only took 30 hours! Our flight was delayed out of Brussels, so our entire group got to hang out in the Brussels airport for about 8 hours. Fun times. But we made it and that is all that matters.
Our group of 30 is currently living at a lodge, but we will be going to our training villages tomorrow, which is really exciting. So far we have been having lectures on the culture, norms and a little bit of language. There are many languages spoken in the Gambia, and the one(s) we each learn depends on our final site. They have not told us where that will be yet though, yay surprises!
It averages about 80-85 degrees here during the day, and cools down to about mid-60s at night. It's actually pretty nice, but this is the cold season, so it will get hotter in a few months.
We just received cell phones, virtually indestructable Nokias (insert Titanic reference here). We will also be getting bikes eventually.
I'm not going to attempt to load pictures at the moment since the connection is pretty slow and there is a queue for the computers, but hopefully I can get them up eventually. That is all I can think of for now, I will try to make my next post a little more detailed.
Monday, January 3, 2011
Final Packing List
It's finally here! Staging starts tomorrow! Here's the final packing list:
Bags
Army duffel bag - the size of a duffel but with back straps (checked)
Kelty Redwing 2650 backpack (carry on)
drawstring bag
Clothes:
2 pairs cotton cargo pants
1 pair jeans
1 pair plain cotton pants
3 pairs capris
2 pairs shorts
2 long skirts
3 tank tops
2 T-shirts
1 hoodie
20 sets underwear
4 pairs coolmax socks
4 sports bras
2 regular bras
Shoes
1 pair tennis/hiking shoes (Keen)
1 pair walking sandals (Keen)
1 pair flip flops (Teva)
1 pair flats
Toiletries
2.5 bottles conditioner (Iso)
1 year supply contacts + solution (I hate glasses in hot weather)
2 pairs glasses (PC requirement)
1 bar soap
loofah
razors
toothbrush + toothpaste
hand sanitizer
hairbrush
tampons
8 sticks deodorant
1 small and 1 large towel
nail clippers
tweezers
1 jar coconut oil (works as a conditioner and skin moisturizer)
aloe vera gel
goldbond powder
Bedding
inflatable sleeping pad (REI)
lightweight sleeping bag (Cocoon)
1 set queen size bedsheets
2 pillow cases
1 travel pillow
Kitchen
Crystal Lite packets
Twizzlers
mints
measuring cups and spoons
veggie peeler
kitchen knife
knife/scissor sharpener
small frying pan
Cliff bars
Electronics
portable solar charger (Solio)
battery charger + AA rechargeables
ipod (3rd generation nano, 8GB)
travel speakers, battery powered
shortwave radio, battery powered
netbook/laptop (acer aspire one)
portable DVD player (Toshiba) + a few DVDs
LED lantern/headlamp, battery powered
flashlight that lights up when you shake it
1 gameboy + Pokemon Silver (don't judge me...)
portable alarm clock w/ thermometer
digital camera (Nokia)
2 USB sticks (16GB and 2GB)
Misc
star chart
3 books
3 cross stitch patterns + supplies
scissors
2 photo albums
2 swimsuits
1 pair sunglasses
ATM card (Visa)
$200 cash
Leatherman
sunblock
bug repellent
bungee cords
combo lock
various decks of cards
Bags
Army duffel bag - the size of a duffel but with back straps (checked)
Kelty Redwing 2650 backpack (carry on)
drawstring bag
Clothes:
2 pairs cotton cargo pants
1 pair jeans
1 pair plain cotton pants
3 pairs capris
2 pairs shorts
2 long skirts
3 tank tops
2 T-shirts
1 hoodie
20 sets underwear
4 pairs coolmax socks
4 sports bras
2 regular bras
Shoes
1 pair tennis/hiking shoes (Keen)
1 pair walking sandals (Keen)
1 pair flip flops (Teva)
1 pair flats
Toiletries
2.5 bottles conditioner (Iso)
1 year supply contacts + solution (I hate glasses in hot weather)
2 pairs glasses (PC requirement)
1 bar soap
loofah
razors
toothbrush + toothpaste
hand sanitizer
hairbrush
tampons
8 sticks deodorant
1 small and 1 large towel
nail clippers
tweezers
1 jar coconut oil (works as a conditioner and skin moisturizer)
aloe vera gel
goldbond powder
Bedding
inflatable sleeping pad (REI)
lightweight sleeping bag (Cocoon)
1 set queen size bedsheets
2 pillow cases
1 travel pillow
Kitchen
Crystal Lite packets
Twizzlers
mints
measuring cups and spoons
veggie peeler
kitchen knife
knife/scissor sharpener
small frying pan
Cliff bars
Electronics
portable solar charger (Solio)
battery charger + AA rechargeables
ipod (3rd generation nano, 8GB)
travel speakers, battery powered
shortwave radio, battery powered
netbook/laptop (acer aspire one)
portable DVD player (Toshiba) + a few DVDs
LED lantern/headlamp, battery powered
flashlight that lights up when you shake it
1 gameboy + Pokemon Silver (don't judge me...)
portable alarm clock w/ thermometer
digital camera (Nokia)
2 USB sticks (16GB and 2GB)
Misc
star chart
3 books
3 cross stitch patterns + supplies
scissors
2 photo albums
2 swimsuits
1 pair sunglasses
ATM card (Visa)
$200 cash
Leatherman
sunblock
bug repellent
bungee cords
combo lock
various decks of cards
Sunday, November 28, 2010
One Month Until Departure
Okay, so a little more than a month. Staging starts on January 4, 2011 in Chicago. No extra flight to Philly or DC for me!
A lot of people have asked me what I'll be doing, and to be entirely honest, I'm not really sure. Here is the description verbatim that was in my welcome packet:
"Animal Husbandry Volunteers work to enhance farm families' nutrition and household income through improved livestock management techniques. Activities include promoting vaccination against common diseases; teaching young farmers better livestock management techniques; improving approaches to marketing farm products such as meat, wool, and eggs; developing land use plans for pastoral farmers; vegetable gardening; range management; and bee keeping."
So yeah, pretty broad range there. I don't know anymore than that.
As far as I know, I will not have reliable access to electricity or the internet in Africa, so updates and photos will be infrequent, but I do promise to make an effort.
That's all I can think of to write right now. I have one week left of my internship at Kentucky Reptile Zoo before heading home for the holidays and all the pre-departure shenanigans. Hopefully I get to see everybody before I leave!
A lot of people have asked me what I'll be doing, and to be entirely honest, I'm not really sure. Here is the description verbatim that was in my welcome packet:
"Animal Husbandry Volunteers work to enhance farm families' nutrition and household income through improved livestock management techniques. Activities include promoting vaccination against common diseases; teaching young farmers better livestock management techniques; improving approaches to marketing farm products such as meat, wool, and eggs; developing land use plans for pastoral farmers; vegetable gardening; range management; and bee keeping."
So yeah, pretty broad range there. I don't know anymore than that.
As far as I know, I will not have reliable access to electricity or the internet in Africa, so updates and photos will be infrequent, but I do promise to make an effort.
That's all I can think of to write right now. I have one week left of my internship at Kentucky Reptile Zoo before heading home for the holidays and all the pre-departure shenanigans. Hopefully I get to see everybody before I leave!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)