I'm back in the U.S.
I had a really really long journey- over 40 hours traveling, but luckily I had no problems. I had no delayed planes (I went on 4) and all my bags made it through. I had 2 10+ hour layovers in Fiji and LA, but I managed to read a lot, walk around the airports, and look in every store. Back home I have done some shopping, eaten good food, and just relaxed. Well, I think that'll be all my updates on the blog, but if you think of anything else you want to know, email me at alyssathiel@gmail.com
Monday, November 9, 2009
Thursday, November 5, 2009
leaving on a jet plane
Tomorrow at this time I'll be about to arrive in Fiji. Nothing much new. Now I'm officially no longer a Peace Corps Volunteer but I'm still using the Peace Corps computer. And then in a couple days I'll be home!
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
"Alyssa, don't pretend to die anymore, okay?"
So I've been in Vila for almost a week now. I've been completing a lot of final Peace Corps work. We have to write up a description of our service, have a language proficiency exam, some medical appointments, meet with the boss, close our bank accounts, all of those fun things. I've also had a chance to hang out with my Peace Corps friends and some of my Futuna family that lives in Vila. There's a new group of Peace Corps Volunteers that arrived in September and are now finishing their training so I've also been spending some time imparting some wisdom on them.
Anyway, the other day I decided to go meet up with some of my Futuna family. I walked just a few blocks over to where they were and I was standing by their truck just talking to them all. All of a sudden I felt really tired and my vision went all spotty and the next thing I knew I woke up to like 20 people around me and asking me if I wanted to go to the hospital. I had no idea why, but they said I had fainted. That had never happened to me, it was so weird. Anyway I felt really hot and sweaty but they said I was cold and my face had gone white. I went to the hospital but they didn't find anything wrong with me. I just rested the whole day and felt better. The next day I went to visit my family again and they told me in Bislama "Yu no mo kiaman ded." Which basically means "Don't pretend to die." I thought that was a funny way of putting it. I guess there's no word for faint in Bislama.
Now I'm just hanging out. We have our Peace Corps Last Kakae (final meal)for the 5 of us that are leaving within the next week. We're just going to get together with the Peace Corps staff and volunteers and anyone else who thinks we're pretty cool. It's sort of a cultural thing in Vanuatu that whenever someone leaves you have to make this last kakae, even if it's not technically their last meal, you still have to make some meal where it's dedicated to them. Tomorrow is the swearing-in ceremony for the new group of Volunteers. The President of Vanuatu will be giving a speech which is pretty special. Next week all of those new volunteers will be going out to their islands.
Oh and also yesterday morning I walked to the supermarket to get some breakfast. It literally took me like 30 minutes to decide, and you know what I wound up with? Cereal and milk. But there were like at least 20 different cereal options. I'm not sure what I'm going to do when i return to the states and there's a whole aisle worth of cereal.
Anyway, the other day I decided to go meet up with some of my Futuna family. I walked just a few blocks over to where they were and I was standing by their truck just talking to them all. All of a sudden I felt really tired and my vision went all spotty and the next thing I knew I woke up to like 20 people around me and asking me if I wanted to go to the hospital. I had no idea why, but they said I had fainted. That had never happened to me, it was so weird. Anyway I felt really hot and sweaty but they said I was cold and my face had gone white. I went to the hospital but they didn't find anything wrong with me. I just rested the whole day and felt better. The next day I went to visit my family again and they told me in Bislama "Yu no mo kiaman ded." Which basically means "Don't pretend to die." I thought that was a funny way of putting it. I guess there's no word for faint in Bislama.
Now I'm just hanging out. We have our Peace Corps Last Kakae (final meal)for the 5 of us that are leaving within the next week. We're just going to get together with the Peace Corps staff and volunteers and anyone else who thinks we're pretty cool. It's sort of a cultural thing in Vanuatu that whenever someone leaves you have to make this last kakae, even if it's not technically their last meal, you still have to make some meal where it's dedicated to them. Tomorrow is the swearing-in ceremony for the new group of Volunteers. The President of Vanuatu will be giving a speech which is pretty special. Next week all of those new volunteers will be going out to their islands.
Oh and also yesterday morning I walked to the supermarket to get some breakfast. It literally took me like 30 minutes to decide, and you know what I wound up with? Cereal and milk. But there were like at least 20 different cereal options. I'm not sure what I'm going to do when i return to the states and there's a whole aisle worth of cereal.
Thursday, October 29, 2009
A few more photos
I've posted some photos for you to see:
Me, my sister, and this kid from Australia who came with his family to visit Futuna
One of my classes at school
Peace Corps or Beach Corps?
Me hard at work
Lunch
But of course the plane would get a flat tire
Yesterday I came to Vila. I left Futuna for the last time (unless I go back to visit some day). The airport agents sent a message that we had to get to the airport early because the plane would come at 8 am. I left my village at 6 in the morning and waited at the airport for a long time. The agent finally got there and said he sent a message that the plane would come at 10, so I guess that got mixed up somewhere. Anyway, 10 o'clock came and went and there was no sign of a plane. But eventually around 12:30 it arrived. When it landed, one of the tires popped perhaps on a sharp stone. Then the plane had a flat tire. They said that we may have to go on it like that, but i did not think that was a good idea. They said "you don't need a wheel to fly a plane" but I reminded them that we would have to land again. Well luckily they called the airline and they sent another plane to Futuna with 2 mechanics and 2 spare tires. They changed both the broken tire and the other back tire because they said it looked like it was going to pop at any time. I'm not sure why they didn't check that when they left the capital, but at least they got it fixed. And then instead of going on the plane whose tires had broke, which would've stopped at 2 other destinations before mine, I got to fly directly to the capital on the mechanics' plane.
Now I'm in the capital until the 7th finishing up all my Peace Corps work. The above photos show the flat tire and them fixing it.
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Mi kilem ded wan rat
Can you guess the meaning of that phrase written in Bislama? Try to read it phonetically. “Me killem dead one rat.” “I killed a rat”
Lately the rats have taken up residence in my house again. I’m not sure why they like it because I don’t have any food here. I guess they just want the shelter. A couple months ago a Mama rat and a bunch of her babies decided to make a nest inside one of my boxes of stuff. When I finally discovered them, I wasn’t sure what to do. The Mama ran away but the babies were so small they couldn’t run. But then I couldn’t make myself kill them. I just threw them outside and luckily they didn’t come back.
Then last week I awoke all of a sudden to the tell tale noise of a rat running across the floor. I got out of bed and shined my flashlight on it and it would run to another part of my house. It kept running circles around my house as I chased it so basically i was laying flashlight tag with a rat. I positioned myself by the door with the door open and got the rat to go outside. As I was about to go back to sleep, I heard it come inside again. I spent another 30 minutes chasing it and eventually it left and I went back to sleep.
Then a few nights later I heard the rat again. We played some more flashlight tag and it went outside. Even when the rat is frozen, I’m still not sure what to do and I’m scared to kill it. I was back in bed when i heard a crinkling noise right by my bed. It sounded like a rat walking over one of the bags that I store stuff in. I kicked the bag to get the rat to run away, but there was no sign of the rat. When I heard the noise again, I realized it was inside the bag. At this point I felt like I had no choice. I started hitting the bag with the blunt edge of my machete. Eventually I got the rat. It was still wriggling around but I didn’t want to chop it in half because I didn’t want rat guts in my bag. I just stood on it for awhile. Then I emptied all my stuff from the bag, took it outisde, and dumped the rat in the grass. After that I went back to sleep thinking pleasant thoughts of dead rats.
Lately the rats have taken up residence in my house again. I’m not sure why they like it because I don’t have any food here. I guess they just want the shelter. A couple months ago a Mama rat and a bunch of her babies decided to make a nest inside one of my boxes of stuff. When I finally discovered them, I wasn’t sure what to do. The Mama ran away but the babies were so small they couldn’t run. But then I couldn’t make myself kill them. I just threw them outside and luckily they didn’t come back.
Then last week I awoke all of a sudden to the tell tale noise of a rat running across the floor. I got out of bed and shined my flashlight on it and it would run to another part of my house. It kept running circles around my house as I chased it so basically i was laying flashlight tag with a rat. I positioned myself by the door with the door open and got the rat to go outside. As I was about to go back to sleep, I heard it come inside again. I spent another 30 minutes chasing it and eventually it left and I went back to sleep.
Then a few nights later I heard the rat again. We played some more flashlight tag and it went outside. Even when the rat is frozen, I’m still not sure what to do and I’m scared to kill it. I was back in bed when i heard a crinkling noise right by my bed. It sounded like a rat walking over one of the bags that I store stuff in. I kicked the bag to get the rat to run away, but there was no sign of the rat. When I heard the noise again, I realized it was inside the bag. At this point I felt like I had no choice. I started hitting the bag with the blunt edge of my machete. Eventually I got the rat. It was still wriggling around but I didn’t want to chop it in half because I didn’t want rat guts in my bag. I just stood on it for awhile. Then I emptied all my stuff from the bag, took it outisde, and dumped the rat in the grass. After that I went back to sleep thinking pleasant thoughts of dead rats.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Reading Promotion Week
This week at school we are having Reading Promotion Week. The basic idea was that they were going to cancel all other subjects and just focus on reading. However, it didn’t turn out that way at all. I guess like everything in Vanuatu, it didn’t turn out as planned. My main job in this program was to read aloud to all the classes. They want the students to hear fluent English being read. This was actually really enjoyable as the kids would get really excited to hear me read. But for the rest of the day, there seemed to be very little reading involved. There were 10 minutes of silent reading in the morning, but other than that the teachers liked to focus on this section they call “experience with a topic”. Basically they’re supposed to do some hands on activity related to what they are reading. The teachers I think interpreted this time as, let’s let the kids run wild, time. Yesterday one of the classes decided they’d take this time which is supposed to be an hour long and do a traditional bunia or bake. The bunia includes various root crops and any meat available (chicken or bat preferable). Well, needless to say, this activity which began at 9 in the morning went until 2 pm. And the whole time, the students were definitely not speaking English. I wonder if it even related to what they were reading. Anyway, next Monday they’ll do their presentations of what they have learned during the week so it should be quite interesting.
Also next week will be my last week teaching my classes. In 2 weeks from today, I’ll be leaving Futuna and heading to the capital. It still hasn’t really hit me yet that I’m leaving and a lot of these people I may never see again. I think I’m most sad about my 3 year old sister. Like all of the other people I can keep in touch with through letters or email, but my sister who is like my best friend here probably won’t even remember me when she gets older. The good thing about leaving is that I’m trying my hardest to appreciate all these organic root crops that I’m eating. Like whenever we’re having manioc for the umpteenth time that week I just tell myself, that maybe, just maybe, I’ll be thinking about manioc when I go home but I won’t be able to eat it.
Also next week will be my last week teaching my classes. In 2 weeks from today, I’ll be leaving Futuna and heading to the capital. It still hasn’t really hit me yet that I’m leaving and a lot of these people I may never see again. I think I’m most sad about my 3 year old sister. Like all of the other people I can keep in touch with through letters or email, but my sister who is like my best friend here probably won’t even remember me when she gets older. The good thing about leaving is that I’m trying my hardest to appreciate all these organic root crops that I’m eating. Like whenever we’re having manioc for the umpteenth time that week I just tell myself, that maybe, just maybe, I’ll be thinking about manioc when I go home but I won’t be able to eat it.
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Plate Tectonics
Is that the right word to mean all the movements under the earth’s surface? The South Pacific has been a hotbed for underground activity lately. Last week there were the tsunamis and then yesterday we had a massive earthwuake in Vanuatu. It actually occurred on another island far from here and we didn’t even feel it, but after someone heard the news on the radio a few hours later, everyone was in tsunami warning mode. Luckily nothing major happened.
Last weekend I finally got the chance to climb to the top of Futuna. Futuna is shaped like a birthday cake and the very top is just a large plateau at over 600 meters. I’ve been meaning to go up it for awhile now, but when a friend came to visit, I finally went. On the 2 hour hike up, we stopped in a garden to dig up some taro roots. At the top, we cooked them over a fire along with some wild bush crabs. On the top it was really cold and al the flora was different. There was this fern type stuff growing on the outside of all the trees. Also, the rest of the island is very rocky, but up top there were no rocks, just dirt on the ground.
Also when my friend was here, we kept going to the beach which I don’t do often enough. It’s only like a 10 minute walk, and I’ll probably miss it when i’m freezing in New England next month. Anyway, he’d go spear fishing and then we’d cook the fish on the fire along with some bananas and eat them with fresh coconuts. It seemed like we were playing “stranded on a desert island” or something, because we were the only ones at the beach and we were gathering all our own food.
The other day someone built a fire near the telephone line and it broke, but then someone glued it back together. It’s sort of working now, but I think the wires got crossed, because sometimes you can hear other people’s conversations when you pick up the phone.
I’m getting close to leaving and now everyone’s been asking to buy all my stuff. I’ll make a big yard sale soon. When I go home, I plan on just bringing one bag mostly with souvenirs. I’m going to sell most of my clothes and all the other junk I’ve accumulated here. I certainly don’t need to bring 3 buckets home with me!
Last weekend I finally got the chance to climb to the top of Futuna. Futuna is shaped like a birthday cake and the very top is just a large plateau at over 600 meters. I’ve been meaning to go up it for awhile now, but when a friend came to visit, I finally went. On the 2 hour hike up, we stopped in a garden to dig up some taro roots. At the top, we cooked them over a fire along with some wild bush crabs. On the top it was really cold and al the flora was different. There was this fern type stuff growing on the outside of all the trees. Also, the rest of the island is very rocky, but up top there were no rocks, just dirt on the ground.
Also when my friend was here, we kept going to the beach which I don’t do often enough. It’s only like a 10 minute walk, and I’ll probably miss it when i’m freezing in New England next month. Anyway, he’d go spear fishing and then we’d cook the fish on the fire along with some bananas and eat them with fresh coconuts. It seemed like we were playing “stranded on a desert island” or something, because we were the only ones at the beach and we were gathering all our own food.
The other day someone built a fire near the telephone line and it broke, but then someone glued it back together. It’s sort of working now, but I think the wires got crossed, because sometimes you can hear other people’s conversations when you pick up the phone.
I’m getting close to leaving and now everyone’s been asking to buy all my stuff. I’ll make a big yard sale soon. When I go home, I plan on just bringing one bag mostly with souvenirs. I’m going to sell most of my clothes and all the other junk I’ve accumulated here. I certainly don’t need to bring 3 buckets home with me!
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Playing tour guide and late night card games
What have I been doing since my return to Futuna two weeks ago? Don’t get too excited. My absence from my blog has less to do with my “active” life here but really I just haven’t gotten a chance to use a laptop long enough to write an entry.
Well before i left Vila, I’m not sure if I mentioned that I got the chance to greet the incoming Peace Corps Volunteers at the airport. Forty fresh, naïve, excited, anxious, shocked faces arrived at the airport on a beautiful Sunday morning. They’ll have two months of training and then in November will go to their sites.
When I came back to Futuna, I came with a family of Australians. They’re friends of my host dad and were here for a visit. I had such a good time with them playing tour guide. I helped to translate, accompanied them to the beach, played some Scrabble, and walked around the island with them. It was so nice to have people around with whom I could be my sarcastic seld and be completely understood. Vanuatu sense of humor is just different from Western culture, and although I’ve gotten used to the Vanuatu style, it was nice to say whatever I feel. Also it was good practice for when I go back to the U.S. It’s not like I’ve forgotten English, but I feel like I’ve forgotten the sayings and expressions of everyday life. I’m hoping I’ll pick it up fairly quickly.
After the Australians left, I returned to my normal “work” schedule. I’m teaching the same remedial reading groups. The headmaster of the school told me that at the end of last term some of the parents of the students I work with said they’ve seen marked improvement with their children. For the first time, the ids have read at thome to their parents. That made me feel good about my work. I cannot imagine going back to the U.s> and having a “real job”. Here I teach like 2 hours a day, and if I have something else I’d rather do, like go to the airport to see the plane, I can just not go to work. But I think I”ll be glad to be busy again. I’ve had enough free time during the last 2 years.
Nothing much is new. Reading a lot and been playing a card game called 500 with my family most nights. The other night we stayed up until 2:30 am playing and the next day I slept until 8:45 which may be a record for me in Vanuatu. What happened to the old days of sleeping until noon?
Well before i left Vila, I’m not sure if I mentioned that I got the chance to greet the incoming Peace Corps Volunteers at the airport. Forty fresh, naïve, excited, anxious, shocked faces arrived at the airport on a beautiful Sunday morning. They’ll have two months of training and then in November will go to their sites.
When I came back to Futuna, I came with a family of Australians. They’re friends of my host dad and were here for a visit. I had such a good time with them playing tour guide. I helped to translate, accompanied them to the beach, played some Scrabble, and walked around the island with them. It was so nice to have people around with whom I could be my sarcastic seld and be completely understood. Vanuatu sense of humor is just different from Western culture, and although I’ve gotten used to the Vanuatu style, it was nice to say whatever I feel. Also it was good practice for when I go back to the U.S. It’s not like I’ve forgotten English, but I feel like I’ve forgotten the sayings and expressions of everyday life. I’m hoping I’ll pick it up fairly quickly.
After the Australians left, I returned to my normal “work” schedule. I’m teaching the same remedial reading groups. The headmaster of the school told me that at the end of last term some of the parents of the students I work with said they’ve seen marked improvement with their children. For the first time, the ids have read at thome to their parents. That made me feel good about my work. I cannot imagine going back to the U.s> and having a “real job”. Here I teach like 2 hours a day, and if I have something else I’d rather do, like go to the airport to see the plane, I can just not go to work. But I think I”ll be glad to be busy again. I’ve had enough free time during the last 2 years.
Nothing much is new. Reading a lot and been playing a card game called 500 with my family most nights. The other night we stayed up until 2:30 am playing and the next day I slept until 8:45 which may be a record for me in Vanuatu. What happened to the old days of sleeping until noon?
Monday, September 7, 2009
A couple photos
Chillin in the Capital
So I’ve been in Vila for a week and a half now. Why haven’t I been online every day? I’m in the big city. Normally when I come to the capital, I spend my days chatting online, devouring pizza, and taking hot showers. This current trip has been a little bit different.
I have a meeting for Peace Corps this week, but I came in early because I had some work to take care of. Also my school was on break, so I didn’t have much to do on the island. When I came, I decided to stay with some extended family of mine who live in a village on the outskirts of Vila. The good thing about Vanuatu is that no matter where you go, you have family. It doesn’t matter if it’s your mother’s uncle’s grand-daughter’s brother-in-law, if you show up that their house, you can stay with them. Anyway, I’m really glad I’ve been able to stay with some of my Futuna family in Vila.
What have I been doing? Well I pretty much lie in bed and watch movies, which has been awesome. Also I read (that’s new huh?). I haven’t been coming in to the office because I’m too lazy and cheap to pay the $1.50 for bus fare. I’ve come in a couple times though and that time I managed to get my ticket to come home. I arrive in the U.S. November 8th, so get ready! Also last week I went with my family to the other side of the island to a small village so that they could collect firewood and hunt for flying foxes (bats). Living near the capital, there’s not many places to collect firewood for cooking and then flying foxes, well that’s just a delicacy. We returned to the house and baked some flying foxes with yam in stones for dinner. Yum.
Now this week we have a conference for Peace Corps. It’s for all the people that I came with when we first came to Vanuatu in 2007. Since we’re all (or most of us at least) are leaving in the next few months, we have a conference to help us to readjust to life in the US. I’m excited because they’ll be putting us up at a nice resort and giving us food and it should be a nice time to reunite with all my Peace Corps friends one last time before we go to the States.
Well that’s all for now. Today I have my Close of Service medical to check me out before I go back and make sure I’m all healthy. I’m going to miss this free medical care when I go back.
I have a meeting for Peace Corps this week, but I came in early because I had some work to take care of. Also my school was on break, so I didn’t have much to do on the island. When I came, I decided to stay with some extended family of mine who live in a village on the outskirts of Vila. The good thing about Vanuatu is that no matter where you go, you have family. It doesn’t matter if it’s your mother’s uncle’s grand-daughter’s brother-in-law, if you show up that their house, you can stay with them. Anyway, I’m really glad I’ve been able to stay with some of my Futuna family in Vila.
What have I been doing? Well I pretty much lie in bed and watch movies, which has been awesome. Also I read (that’s new huh?). I haven’t been coming in to the office because I’m too lazy and cheap to pay the $1.50 for bus fare. I’ve come in a couple times though and that time I managed to get my ticket to come home. I arrive in the U.S. November 8th, so get ready! Also last week I went with my family to the other side of the island to a small village so that they could collect firewood and hunt for flying foxes (bats). Living near the capital, there’s not many places to collect firewood for cooking and then flying foxes, well that’s just a delicacy. We returned to the house and baked some flying foxes with yam in stones for dinner. Yum.
Now this week we have a conference for Peace Corps. It’s for all the people that I came with when we first came to Vanuatu in 2007. Since we’re all (or most of us at least) are leaving in the next few months, we have a conference to help us to readjust to life in the US. I’m excited because they’ll be putting us up at a nice resort and giving us food and it should be a nice time to reunite with all my Peace Corps friends one last time before we go to the States.
Well that’s all for now. Today I have my Close of Service medical to check me out before I go back and make sure I’m all healthy. I’m going to miss this free medical care when I go back.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Let's try a video...
I uploaded that last post and it was so quick! I love broadband internet. I decided to try to upload a video too. This is some people from Futuna performing a custom dance at the Tanna Art Festival.
From the big city
Well I'm in the capital now so as a treat, I've posted a photo from my trip to Tanna. That's at the circumsion ceremony when we're all dressed up in custom clothes.
I'm in Vila now for a couple of weeks. Today I accomplished a lot of the work I had to do so that's good. Normally it takes awhile to get anything done, but today things went fairly smoothly. I even had time to eat a Greek salad for lunch! Yum.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Measles Vaccination Campaign
So what's happening in Vanuatu now? We're trying to eradicate measles. That's probably a good idea since last month at least 4 kids in my village got it. They decided in all of Vanuatu they'd vaccinate every child ages 1-5. Then they decided to have Peace Corps Volunteers go and check on the vaccinations to see if every single child in the country get vaccinated. I guess I'm lucky, since I think in total on Futuna, there were less than 70 kids or something vaccinated, but on some of the other islands there's a lot more. Anyway, I had to walk around the island and check to see if the kids got vaccinated or not by the health workers here on the island. Well I found out that lots of kids hadn't been vaccinated because the day of the vaccinations the Mamas were busy with a church workshop. I wrote a note to the health worker who lives in a different village and luckily he returned to vaccinate all the kids. This past weekend I walked around the island to check on the other villages as well and it looks like everyone's been vaccinated so hopefully no more measles. Also while I was on the other side I bought a chicken for $5 and we should be killing it and cooking it up tomorrow for my birthday. That's about it on the what's new front here. We're in our last week of school for this term and on Thursday we are having an Open Day/ Music Day for the parents to come to school and receive the report cards and then for the students to perform some songs and dances. Should be exciting.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Things that wouldn't happen at a school in the States
-Announcement to all students: You must bring your big knives to school tomorrow. If you forget, you will be punished.
-Instead of having normal classes, all students grades 1-8 will be required to spend 2 hours collecting stones and coral in bags bigger than their bodies and carrying them up the massive hill to the school in order to “beautify” the school. … And the next week, “why are all our students sick?” Maybe because school has turned into a labor camp. The funny thing is the students prefer the hard labor to actual classes.
-What do we do with all these old books that we no longer need? Put them in the toilets for toilet paper.
-Some students don’t have desks or chairs and sit on the floor or on cement blocks. however when it’s time to fundraise, the main priority for the school is a sound system.
-Students in the 10th grade have never seen a dictionary and don’t even know what it’s for. (Now our school just got a supply so they’re learning).
-A prayer group comes to the school to run out the devils that are haunting the school and causing the students to get sick.
-When it rains, some classes go home because the classrooms leak, and others shut all the windows and light candles to continue with their work.
-A teacher doesn’t come to school for a whole week, but their students still sit in their classroom without any supervision.
-The “school aid room” which is a cabinet in the office consists of cotton balls and medicine for Big Leg which is most likely expired.
-Students are suspended from school for helping their friends meet up with a girlfriend or boyfriend.
-Students spend the afternoon weeding the flower beds or cutting the grass with a machete.
-2nd graders take final exams even though they can’t read.
-Instead of having normal classes, all students grades 1-8 will be required to spend 2 hours collecting stones and coral in bags bigger than their bodies and carrying them up the massive hill to the school in order to “beautify” the school. … And the next week, “why are all our students sick?” Maybe because school has turned into a labor camp. The funny thing is the students prefer the hard labor to actual classes.
-What do we do with all these old books that we no longer need? Put them in the toilets for toilet paper.
-Some students don’t have desks or chairs and sit on the floor or on cement blocks. however when it’s time to fundraise, the main priority for the school is a sound system.
-Students in the 10th grade have never seen a dictionary and don’t even know what it’s for. (Now our school just got a supply so they’re learning).
-A prayer group comes to the school to run out the devils that are haunting the school and causing the students to get sick.
-When it rains, some classes go home because the classrooms leak, and others shut all the windows and light candles to continue with their work.
-A teacher doesn’t come to school for a whole week, but their students still sit in their classroom without any supervision.
-The “school aid room” which is a cabinet in the office consists of cotton balls and medicine for Big Leg which is most likely expired.
-Students are suspended from school for helping their friends meet up with a girlfriend or boyfriend.
-Students spend the afternoon weeding the flower beds or cutting the grass with a machete.
-2nd graders take final exams even though they can’t read.
Monday, August 3, 2009
Long time, no blog: an explanation
Maybe you’ve been wondering where I’ve been. Well I went on a fun-filled trip to the nearby island of Tanna. Although Tanna is more developed than Futuna, I did not have internet access there. I will try my best to recall the evenets of the last few weeks.
I arrived on Tanna on Saturday July 11th. There are 5 Peace Corps Volunteers on the island who were such a great help in hosting me. Also two other PCVs from another island ame down just to “lukluk ples” (look place or sight see). We spent our first two nights in the village of Port Resolution where we explored the natural hot springs. Some were boiling and we coked bananas in them. Others were the perfect hot tub temperature although whenever a wave came from the ocean it felt a little chilly. We also fot to paint our bodies with multicolred mud- a real spa experience.
After that we went to another village to witness a circumcision ceremony. Eight boys ranging in age from 4-8 years old had been circumcised and then in hiding for over a month. While in hiding the older men of the village looked after them. The ceremony was like their coming out party. Everyone got all dressed up (women in grass skirts and men in pieces of cloth wrapped around their waists) and painted their faces. They shared out tons of food and killed lots of pigs. Then we danced until the sun came up the next morning, and by we, I mean them. I went to sleep around 2 am I think.
After the ceremony we explored other parts of Tanna. We climbed the world’s third largest banyan tree and had an interesting experience bathing in a creek in the middle of the jungle. We also made lots of delicious food over the fire including enchilladas (tortillas from scratch) and pizza.
The next week there was a large arts festival for our province (Tafea) and the indigenous people of New Caledonia (a French territory that neighbors Vanuatu). There were lots of custom dances, concerts, soccer games, and foo. For the opening the Vanuatu military marching band performed the macarena. I love that the highest (and only) military body in the nation has time to do that. Also there were 2 official pig killings during the opening to strengthen the bond between Tafea and New Caledonia. Nothing better than killing a pig. Throughout the week I ate lots of ice cream and hamburgers and also caught giardia- a water borne parasite that makes you “sit sit wota” (shit shit water, try to figure that one out).
The festivities ran until July 30th which is Vanuatu’s Independence Day. 29 years now. I returned to Futuna and now am going to relax and recooperate from all the fun. Tanna was lots of fun but there were tons of people who I didn’t know and it’s nice to be back on an island where everyone knows my name.
I sent a CD of photos home so hopefully my mom'll get a chance to post those on my webshots at: http://community.webshots.com/user/alyssathielpcv/
I arrived on Tanna on Saturday July 11th. There are 5 Peace Corps Volunteers on the island who were such a great help in hosting me. Also two other PCVs from another island ame down just to “lukluk ples” (look place or sight see). We spent our first two nights in the village of Port Resolution where we explored the natural hot springs. Some were boiling and we coked bananas in them. Others were the perfect hot tub temperature although whenever a wave came from the ocean it felt a little chilly. We also fot to paint our bodies with multicolred mud- a real spa experience.
After that we went to another village to witness a circumcision ceremony. Eight boys ranging in age from 4-8 years old had been circumcised and then in hiding for over a month. While in hiding the older men of the village looked after them. The ceremony was like their coming out party. Everyone got all dressed up (women in grass skirts and men in pieces of cloth wrapped around their waists) and painted their faces. They shared out tons of food and killed lots of pigs. Then we danced until the sun came up the next morning, and by we, I mean them. I went to sleep around 2 am I think.
After the ceremony we explored other parts of Tanna. We climbed the world’s third largest banyan tree and had an interesting experience bathing in a creek in the middle of the jungle. We also made lots of delicious food over the fire including enchilladas (tortillas from scratch) and pizza.
The next week there was a large arts festival for our province (Tafea) and the indigenous people of New Caledonia (a French territory that neighbors Vanuatu). There were lots of custom dances, concerts, soccer games, and foo. For the opening the Vanuatu military marching band performed the macarena. I love that the highest (and only) military body in the nation has time to do that. Also there were 2 official pig killings during the opening to strengthen the bond between Tafea and New Caledonia. Nothing better than killing a pig. Throughout the week I ate lots of ice cream and hamburgers and also caught giardia- a water borne parasite that makes you “sit sit wota” (shit shit water, try to figure that one out).
The festivities ran until July 30th which is Vanuatu’s Independence Day. 29 years now. I returned to Futuna and now am going to relax and recooperate from all the fun. Tanna was lots of fun but there were tons of people who I didn’t know and it’s nice to be back on an island where everyone knows my name.
I sent a CD of photos home so hopefully my mom'll get a chance to post those on my webshots at: http://community.webshots.com/user/alyssathielpcv/
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
The Languages of Vanuatu
Someone posted a comment on my Q & A blog about the French language in Vanuatu so I decided a good topic would be on languages in Vanuatu. Also, who are you that posted the comment?
Here the 2 official languages are French and English and the National Language is Bislama. Then there are over 100 local languages and with a population of about 200,000 that makes the most languages per person in any country in the world.
French and English are the official languages, meaning they are used for government purposes. These include school and some government offices, but I’d say mostly Bislama is used in government offices because it is the common language for everyone. When the French and British ran a Condominium government, they set up various schools throughout the country. So now the schools remain using the language in which they were founded. I’m not sure on the actual figures, but I’d say English is the language in probably two thirds and French in one third of the schools. With that being said, all of the students learn the other official language starting in 4th grade. It’s like a foreign language in the states where it is only taught a couple hours a week to begin with. So at the English schools they have a class called French and at French schools they have a class called Anglais. I think it is way too confusing for the students. Like the students in year 10 here are studying for their national exam in French, but they don’t even have a fluent grasp on English yet. So sometimes the questions will ask for them to translate something in French into English, but they just don’t know the English words.
In general, I find the students that went to French schools have a very good grasp of the language. They tend to use French when speaking to each other. However, at English schools the people are more reluctant to speak English and often just use Bislama.
Bislama is the national language and it began as a Pidjin English but has evolved to its own language. It has influence from French and English. Lots of things sound just like English but with an accent, but other words come from French like “Lafet” means party and comes from the French “La Fete” or “sora” means ear and comes from the French “Les oreils”. Then there are some words that were just created in Vanuatu like the names of plants and animals. Bislama is very simple to learn because there aren’t very many rules in the grammas and once you learn basic sentence structure, it comes quite naturally.
Local languages are very abundant with each island often having many different languages that are still in use today. The local language is a child’s first language, typically. Then they will learn Bislama by hearing visitors from other villages or islands speaking it as well as all national media. When they go to school, starting in 1st grade they will learn French or English and then in 4th grade they will start learning the other language. They have an amazing ability to learn languages. Also, oftentimes they know multiple local languages. Like if you get married and move to a different island, you will most likely learn that island’s local language because that is what all the people speak on a day to day basis.
In terms of the question about how French would help here, that would depend what you were doing. I for one don’t really ever use it. Sometimes I’ll read some French articles in the newspaper (the newspaper contains articles in the 3 main languages). Other times I’ll listen in on the French class, but I don’t really help in that at all because I’m sure the French teacher has a much better grasp on French than I do. I think if you were to come work at a French school, then obviously knowing French would be pretty important. Other than that, I guess French would be used in the tourism industry with tourists from France and New Caledonia (a French territory that neighbours Vanuatu).
Alright, well there’s a bit on languages in Vanuatu.
Everything here is progressing as usual. The flight schedule has now been changed again so we now have 2 flights a week instead of just one. Also we have a new plane coming here that we bought from China. It’s a big one – 16 seater- as opposed to the canoe or tin can that held about 8 people (if they didn’t have any bag). Also there’s talk going around that the Prime Minister is going to come to our island to visit, but the water was rough so the ship couldn’t run. Maybe next week. He would be coming just to do an official visit, but he actually comes from Futuna too so it is a pretty big deal.
In other news, I am craving salty French fries and mozzerella sticks with tomato sauce and maybe also some pizza. Do you think Dominoes would deliver?
Here the 2 official languages are French and English and the National Language is Bislama. Then there are over 100 local languages and with a population of about 200,000 that makes the most languages per person in any country in the world.
French and English are the official languages, meaning they are used for government purposes. These include school and some government offices, but I’d say mostly Bislama is used in government offices because it is the common language for everyone. When the French and British ran a Condominium government, they set up various schools throughout the country. So now the schools remain using the language in which they were founded. I’m not sure on the actual figures, but I’d say English is the language in probably two thirds and French in one third of the schools. With that being said, all of the students learn the other official language starting in 4th grade. It’s like a foreign language in the states where it is only taught a couple hours a week to begin with. So at the English schools they have a class called French and at French schools they have a class called Anglais. I think it is way too confusing for the students. Like the students in year 10 here are studying for their national exam in French, but they don’t even have a fluent grasp on English yet. So sometimes the questions will ask for them to translate something in French into English, but they just don’t know the English words.
In general, I find the students that went to French schools have a very good grasp of the language. They tend to use French when speaking to each other. However, at English schools the people are more reluctant to speak English and often just use Bislama.
Bislama is the national language and it began as a Pidjin English but has evolved to its own language. It has influence from French and English. Lots of things sound just like English but with an accent, but other words come from French like “Lafet” means party and comes from the French “La Fete” or “sora” means ear and comes from the French “Les oreils”. Then there are some words that were just created in Vanuatu like the names of plants and animals. Bislama is very simple to learn because there aren’t very many rules in the grammas and once you learn basic sentence structure, it comes quite naturally.
Local languages are very abundant with each island often having many different languages that are still in use today. The local language is a child’s first language, typically. Then they will learn Bislama by hearing visitors from other villages or islands speaking it as well as all national media. When they go to school, starting in 1st grade they will learn French or English and then in 4th grade they will start learning the other language. They have an amazing ability to learn languages. Also, oftentimes they know multiple local languages. Like if you get married and move to a different island, you will most likely learn that island’s local language because that is what all the people speak on a day to day basis.
In terms of the question about how French would help here, that would depend what you were doing. I for one don’t really ever use it. Sometimes I’ll read some French articles in the newspaper (the newspaper contains articles in the 3 main languages). Other times I’ll listen in on the French class, but I don’t really help in that at all because I’m sure the French teacher has a much better grasp on French than I do. I think if you were to come work at a French school, then obviously knowing French would be pretty important. Other than that, I guess French would be used in the tourism industry with tourists from France and New Caledonia (a French territory that neighbours Vanuatu).
Alright, well there’s a bit on languages in Vanuatu.
Everything here is progressing as usual. The flight schedule has now been changed again so we now have 2 flights a week instead of just one. Also we have a new plane coming here that we bought from China. It’s a big one – 16 seater- as opposed to the canoe or tin can that held about 8 people (if they didn’t have any bag). Also there’s talk going around that the Prime Minister is going to come to our island to visit, but the water was rough so the ship couldn’t run. Maybe next week. He would be coming just to do an official visit, but he actually comes from Futuna too so it is a pretty big deal.
In other news, I am craving salty French fries and mozzerella sticks with tomato sauce and maybe also some pizza. Do you think Dominoes would deliver?
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Q & A
I realized that there’s lots of basic day to day things that I do here that I never talk about. I’ve decided to answer some basic questions. If you have any more questions, send them to me because they make good blog topics.
How do you go online or even use a computer?
True, there’s no electricity here on Futuna. In Vanuatu there’s only one power company and I’m pretty sure they operate on only four of Vanuatu’s 83 inhabited islands. but on Futuna, multiple people have purchased personal solar systems. We charge the laptop using the solar or using the school’s generator. Then to go online, I just connect the telephone line to the computer (do you remember dial up?). The phone company gives free internet to the school which is awesome.
How do you send and receive mail?
There’s no post office on my island so to send mail, I give my letters to someone who is leaving the island to put at a post office. To receive mail, th epost office in Port Vila (the capital) should put any mail for Futuna on the plane that comes once a week. I live about a 40 minute walk from the airport so if I know mail is coming, I go to pick it up. If I don’t go, someone usually brings it to me.
What clothes do you wear?
On my island it is a rule that all girls must wear skirts that come below the knee. I normally wear shorts underneath because we do lots of hiking. Then I just wear a t-shirt (no tank tops allowed). For shoes, the fashion on my island is to wear imitation, Chinese made Crocs so going with the culture, I also wear them. They only cost about $3 in the capital and they’re good for walking through the mud.
How do you do laundry?
I put all my clothes in a basin with cold water and detergent. I then scrub them against a bumpy stone or if they’re really dirty, I use a scrub brush. Then I change the water in the basin and attempt to rinse out the soap. I wring out my clothes and hang them on a line where it can take anywhere from 1 to 3 days to dry.
How many books have you read?
132 and counting
Any more questions? Send them to me.
How do you go online or even use a computer?
True, there’s no electricity here on Futuna. In Vanuatu there’s only one power company and I’m pretty sure they operate on only four of Vanuatu’s 83 inhabited islands. but on Futuna, multiple people have purchased personal solar systems. We charge the laptop using the solar or using the school’s generator. Then to go online, I just connect the telephone line to the computer (do you remember dial up?). The phone company gives free internet to the school which is awesome.
How do you send and receive mail?
There’s no post office on my island so to send mail, I give my letters to someone who is leaving the island to put at a post office. To receive mail, th epost office in Port Vila (the capital) should put any mail for Futuna on the plane that comes once a week. I live about a 40 minute walk from the airport so if I know mail is coming, I go to pick it up. If I don’t go, someone usually brings it to me.
What clothes do you wear?
On my island it is a rule that all girls must wear skirts that come below the knee. I normally wear shorts underneath because we do lots of hiking. Then I just wear a t-shirt (no tank tops allowed). For shoes, the fashion on my island is to wear imitation, Chinese made Crocs so going with the culture, I also wear them. They only cost about $3 in the capital and they’re good for walking through the mud.
How do you do laundry?
I put all my clothes in a basin with cold water and detergent. I then scrub them against a bumpy stone or if they’re really dirty, I use a scrub brush. Then I change the water in the basin and attempt to rinse out the soap. I wring out my clothes and hang them on a line where it can take anywhere from 1 to 3 days to dry.
How many books have you read?
132 and counting
Any more questions? Send them to me.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Showers
I realized I forgot to write about showers in my last entry about the coldness.
I literally feel like I'm freezing when the icey water comes out of the tap. But people here are adament about daily showers so if i skipped a day, they'd be all over me. In fact, most of them shower twice daily, but I'm a once a day person. But on the cold days, i really just want to cozy up in my bed with my 2 blankets. Nonetheless, I must shower, so now I have taken to showering in the middle of the day. After I eat lunch when the sun is strong I hop in the shower. I let the water trickle on me enough to get wet, and then i run out to change. I can't even imagine trying to wash my hair with that cold water. Last year it was so much easier when i didn't have any hair! I am now only washing my hair like once a week, but that's fine.
I could boil water over the fire and put it in a bucket to take a shower with, but firewood is a scarce commodity mostly reserved for cooking or heating up water for the babies to wash in. If I asked for hot water, I think they'd laugh.
What else is new? We had a staff meeting today that went from 10 am to 1 pm, but it was actually really cool, because all the teachers decided that we'd speak English in the meeting. it's an english school so they should speak english all the time, but a lot of them aren't confident in their english, but today they really tried. I was happy, and I think it'll help the students to improve their English if they hear the teachers speaking English outside of class time.
Also i'm not sure if I mentioned how the secondary school students (9th and 10th grade) finally moved into the dorms at school last weekend. The dorms (made out of bamboo and grass roof) each hold maybe 20 students or so. They should've been completed last year, but they just finished them this year. They also built a kitchen and dining hall out of various plant materials. Most of the secondary schools in Vanuautu are boarding schools I think coming from the fact that before there were only a couple run by the french and english governments so the kids all came from different islands. The sec. school here just started last year, and most of the students are from Futuna but there's 4 from another island. But even the kids that are from here sleep at the school. It's just the custom here to sleep at the school. They study at night together and do work at the school. Also if at the end of the year, they pass a national exam they can go to 11th grade and then they will have to leave our island and board at some other school so now they're taking it like practice sort of.
That's all for now.
I literally feel like I'm freezing when the icey water comes out of the tap. But people here are adament about daily showers so if i skipped a day, they'd be all over me. In fact, most of them shower twice daily, but I'm a once a day person. But on the cold days, i really just want to cozy up in my bed with my 2 blankets. Nonetheless, I must shower, so now I have taken to showering in the middle of the day. After I eat lunch when the sun is strong I hop in the shower. I let the water trickle on me enough to get wet, and then i run out to change. I can't even imagine trying to wash my hair with that cold water. Last year it was so much easier when i didn't have any hair! I am now only washing my hair like once a week, but that's fine.
I could boil water over the fire and put it in a bucket to take a shower with, but firewood is a scarce commodity mostly reserved for cooking or heating up water for the babies to wash in. If I asked for hot water, I think they'd laugh.
What else is new? We had a staff meeting today that went from 10 am to 1 pm, but it was actually really cool, because all the teachers decided that we'd speak English in the meeting. it's an english school so they should speak english all the time, but a lot of them aren't confident in their english, but today they really tried. I was happy, and I think it'll help the students to improve their English if they hear the teachers speaking English outside of class time.
Also i'm not sure if I mentioned how the secondary school students (9th and 10th grade) finally moved into the dorms at school last weekend. The dorms (made out of bamboo and grass roof) each hold maybe 20 students or so. They should've been completed last year, but they just finished them this year. They also built a kitchen and dining hall out of various plant materials. Most of the secondary schools in Vanuautu are boarding schools I think coming from the fact that before there were only a couple run by the french and english governments so the kids all came from different islands. The sec. school here just started last year, and most of the students are from Futuna but there's 4 from another island. But even the kids that are from here sleep at the school. It's just the custom here to sleep at the school. They study at night together and do work at the school. Also if at the end of the year, they pass a national exam they can go to 11th grade and then they will have to leave our island and board at some other school so now they're taking it like practice sort of.
That's all for now.
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Ples i kolkol (it's cold)
Maybe you won’t believe me, but it has been really cold here lately. I always thought living in the tropics would be like living in a constant state of heat, but I was wrong. For the past month or so, I’ve been really cold. I mean it’s not New England cold, but after living here for almost 2 years, anything below 75 is cold. Anyway, I started just wearing my jacket at night, but now oftentimes I even wear it during the day. Also, some days I even wear socks. For some unknown reason I brought like 10 pairs to Vanuatu that I NEVER wear. But now, I’m wearing them. I sometimes wear long pants underneath my skirts, but that looks pretty ridiculous. If I had a winter hat, I’d wear it (lots of people here do). Maybe I should take it upon myself to knit one, although as of now I can only knit things in a rectangular shape, but I guess what else do I have to do?
So I guess we do have seasons in Vanuatu. This is the cold season. According to the Vanuatu Meteorological Society, the temperature in my province (Tafea Province) has a low of 60 degrees which is actually quite chilly if you ask me. I’m not sure where this information comes from, seeing there’s certainly no weather station on my island, but it’s probably from a nearby island. Anyway, I’m sure most of you reading from the States are now experiencing warm to hot temperatures. Summer now for you all, so think of me here in the frigid area of the South Pacific.
So I guess we do have seasons in Vanuatu. This is the cold season. According to the Vanuatu Meteorological Society, the temperature in my province (Tafea Province) has a low of 60 degrees which is actually quite chilly if you ask me. I’m not sure where this information comes from, seeing there’s certainly no weather station on my island, but it’s probably from a nearby island. Anyway, I’m sure most of you reading from the States are now experiencing warm to hot temperatures. Summer now for you all, so think of me here in the frigid area of the South Pacific.
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Staff Social Gathering
I find it hard to write about what's happening here on a daily basis, because at this point it all seems so normal to me. However, recently we had our first staff social gathering for the teachers at the school so i decided I'll write about that.
Thursday was a Public Holiday here: Ascension Day. We had a staff meeting (see previous entry) and decided to move the holiday to Friday so that we could have a 3 day weekend. Fridays here are always half days. I'm not sure why, but we made Thursday a halfday and in the afternoon had our social gathering.
The Social Gathering Committee decided we'd get together and bring raw food and roast over the fire (like take unripe bananas, throw them on the fire with their skins until they're black, and then remove the skin and eat). Well not surprisingly things changed. This event which was planned to begin at 1 pm wound up starting around 3 when we all met at school. We lit a fire but instead of roasting, they just cooked everything in pots. We had quite the variety: manioc (root crop), banana, rice, chicken, two kinds of crabs, and two types of canned meat and fish. Around 7 pm al the food was ready. We brought it up to one of the new classrooms that were just built. We got our food and one of the teachers brought his TV from his house. They turned on the generator they've been using to power the saws and other tools for the new classroom. After a couple light bulbs burned and some wires were crossed, the TV was up and running. We watched 2 DVDs: one of a Vanuatu string band and the other of some famous Vanuatu singer. I prefer those types of videos (singsing as they're called here) compared to the typical Asian action movies that they like to watch. Anyway around 9 pm, the event ended and I returned to my house. The next day there was no school and it was raining and somehow I slept until 10 am. I think that's the latest I've ever slept in Vanuatu.
Just as a side note, it's been really cold here lately. I have no way of knowing the temperature, but maybe it's been in the 60s. I wear a jacket sometimes! I especially miss hot showers now more than usual. I'm glad that it's not sweltering hot all the time like one might think of the tropics, but I know when I go back to the U.S. I am going to freeze.
Thursday was a Public Holiday here: Ascension Day. We had a staff meeting (see previous entry) and decided to move the holiday to Friday so that we could have a 3 day weekend. Fridays here are always half days. I'm not sure why, but we made Thursday a halfday and in the afternoon had our social gathering.
The Social Gathering Committee decided we'd get together and bring raw food and roast over the fire (like take unripe bananas, throw them on the fire with their skins until they're black, and then remove the skin and eat). Well not surprisingly things changed. This event which was planned to begin at 1 pm wound up starting around 3 when we all met at school. We lit a fire but instead of roasting, they just cooked everything in pots. We had quite the variety: manioc (root crop), banana, rice, chicken, two kinds of crabs, and two types of canned meat and fish. Around 7 pm al the food was ready. We brought it up to one of the new classrooms that were just built. We got our food and one of the teachers brought his TV from his house. They turned on the generator they've been using to power the saws and other tools for the new classroom. After a couple light bulbs burned and some wires were crossed, the TV was up and running. We watched 2 DVDs: one of a Vanuatu string band and the other of some famous Vanuatu singer. I prefer those types of videos (singsing as they're called here) compared to the typical Asian action movies that they like to watch. Anyway around 9 pm, the event ended and I returned to my house. The next day there was no school and it was raining and somehow I slept until 10 am. I think that's the latest I've ever slept in Vanuatu.
Just as a side note, it's been really cold here lately. I have no way of knowing the temperature, but maybe it's been in the 60s. I wear a jacket sometimes! I especially miss hot showers now more than usual. I'm glad that it's not sweltering hot all the time like one might think of the tropics, but I know when I go back to the U.S. I am going to freeze.
Meetings in Vanuatu
I feel like this is an important subject to talk about to get a little insight into Vanuatu culture. I don’t know, maybe I just never attended enough meetings when I was younger, but whenever I attend a meeting here, I am struck by its orderliness.
First off before every meeting the secretary writes the Order of the Day on the blackboard. It looks something like this:
1. Prayer
2. Welcome
3. Roll Call
4. Order of the Day
5. Last Minute
6. Matters Arising
7. Other Business
8. Announcements
9. Prayer
These meetings aren’t big ordeals (in my opinion). Sometimes there may only be 4 people in attendance, but still It must follow this format. The Chairman and Secretary sit in the front. When we get to Matters Arising, in order to decide anything even like “Alyssa will do a workshop on Friday” there needs to be someone to make a motion: “I move that Alyssa will do a workshop…”. Then someone will Second the motion. Lastly they will ask the house to say “yes” or “hemia nao” (roughly translated as “that’s what I’m talking about.”) if they agree. Only after that can we move on.
Meetings (which undoubtedly start late due to Black Man Time as opposed to White Man Time which means On Time) always run past 2 hours. Sometimes there’s only one thing on the agenda, but people like to talk and restate the same ideas. I tend to sit down with my notebook and write down one o a million plans I have for when I leave Vanuatu. In all the meetings I’ve attended, I’ve yet to make a motion.
I don’t know about other places, but all the meeting I’d been to, we’d never done that, but I’m sure one day these formalities will come in handy. The thing I see in Vanuatu is that once they find a system that works for them, they tend to sticvk with it and are very hesitant to change it.
First off before every meeting the secretary writes the Order of the Day on the blackboard. It looks something like this:
1. Prayer
2. Welcome
3. Roll Call
4. Order of the Day
5. Last Minute
6. Matters Arising
7. Other Business
8. Announcements
9. Prayer
These meetings aren’t big ordeals (in my opinion). Sometimes there may only be 4 people in attendance, but still It must follow this format. The Chairman and Secretary sit in the front. When we get to Matters Arising, in order to decide anything even like “Alyssa will do a workshop on Friday” there needs to be someone to make a motion: “I move that Alyssa will do a workshop…”. Then someone will Second the motion. Lastly they will ask the house to say “yes” or “hemia nao” (roughly translated as “that’s what I’m talking about.”) if they agree. Only after that can we move on.
Meetings (which undoubtedly start late due to Black Man Time as opposed to White Man Time which means On Time) always run past 2 hours. Sometimes there’s only one thing on the agenda, but people like to talk and restate the same ideas. I tend to sit down with my notebook and write down one o a million plans I have for when I leave Vanuatu. In all the meetings I’ve attended, I’ve yet to make a motion.
I don’t know about other places, but all the meeting I’d been to, we’d never done that, but I’m sure one day these formalities will come in handy. The thing I see in Vanuatu is that once they find a system that works for them, they tend to sticvk with it and are very hesitant to change it.
A grapefruit tree growing in the kitchen?
Does this not happen in the U.S.? I guess I’ve forgotten how fertile the soil in Vanuatu is. When I first arrived, they told us new Volunteers how really you don’t need to bother planting things. You just throw the seeds in the ground and it’ll grow. Of course I remembered my middle school science lessons and thought that it must be the combination of sunlight and rain that causes the seeds to grow.
However the other day, we were sitting in the kitchen when my dad said, “Oh look there’s 2 grapefruit trees beginning to grow.” Sure enough I looked underneath the bench I was sitting on and there were 2 six inch tall plants growing. I took his word for it that they were grapefruit trees. They could’ve just as easily been weeds, but my dad dug them up and transplanted them into plastic bags so that they wouldn’t get trampled in the kitchen. When they’re bigger and stronger, he’ll replant them in the soil.
How did they wind up growing inside the kitchen? Well my guess is that one day we were eating grapefruit and we spit out the seeds on the dirt floor. Logically the seeds started to sprout and there you have it the beginnings of a grapefruit tree.
However the other day, we were sitting in the kitchen when my dad said, “Oh look there’s 2 grapefruit trees beginning to grow.” Sure enough I looked underneath the bench I was sitting on and there were 2 six inch tall plants growing. I took his word for it that they were grapefruit trees. They could’ve just as easily been weeds, but my dad dug them up and transplanted them into plastic bags so that they wouldn’t get trampled in the kitchen. When they’re bigger and stronger, he’ll replant them in the soil.
How did they wind up growing inside the kitchen? Well my guess is that one day we were eating grapefruit and we spit out the seeds on the dirt floor. Logically the seeds started to sprout and there you have it the beginnings of a grapefruit tree.
Sunday, May 17, 2009
What I did (or didn't) do on my 2 week vacation
To start with I only brought one book to read for two weeks. I tried to pace myself, but I finished it within the first week. I also did not bring any paper so I’m now using those empty pages at the back of the book to write out these blog entries.
A two week vacation may sound glamorous, but think again. I, along with my Futuna family, spent my 2 week school break on what they call “The Other Side.” This is a popular phrase in Vanuatu which really just means the other side of the island. I packed a few clothes and a toothbrush and made the couple hour trek to the other side.
My family is from The Other Side but they just live by the school now because my dad’s a teacher. They like to go to the other side for a break from the busy, hectic life at the school. You see, in the village at the school, they say there’s a lot of noise- telephones ringing, music playing, roosters cockadoodle doing, and babies crying. Well on the other side, there’s still roosters, but not much of the other distractions. Plenty of time to sit and do nothing.
Alright so to get back on topic, the first day I arrived I came down with a nasty cold. In Vanuatu, for every cold they say “flu” and naturally people start saying I have swine flu which I guess isn’t really funny at all, but now if someone sneezes, the new joke is “swine flu”. It used to be Dengue Fever (mosquito borne illness) which is a much more likely possibility- one person on Futuna got it already, but I don’t see swine flu arriving anytime soon. Well luckily I brought 2 bandanas which I’ve been using as a Kleenex alternative. It works fine but is still kind of gross.
My family has a plot of land on the other side where they’re planning on building a house. Note-planning, meaning now there is not a house. Some of the materials have arrived so they put up a makeshift corrugated iron shelter. Also some of the wooden beams are strewn across the ground so we slept on them. It’s better than sleeping on the muddy ground, but since the beams aren’t nailed down to anything when someone turns in their sleep, everyone feels the floor move.
Luckily the last time they came, my family had dug a toilet, and after only a few days while we were here they built a seat and a door. Before that it was a “squat and hope no one looks” situation. In terms of a place to take a shower- nope. Most people here have no problem showering in the open with their clothes on, but I chose to take my bucket of water behind the house and once again hope no one would come.
So it’s been a nice, relaxing vacation. (Not that the last 20 months haven’t been one long vacation). Luckily a package came for me the day I walked here with a People magazine. I’ve now read the issue cover to cover at least 5 times. I’ve got to keep up with my pop culture, but some stuff goes over my head, like what’s Twitter? I have learned a lot too, like by thoroughly examining the advertisements , I’ve come to the conclusion that Americans now want products that are “natural”, “organic”, and “green”. This ranges from skin care to paper towels to snack food, water, laundry detergent and even cat food. What do these labels even mean? Maybe these people should come to Futuna to experience organic!
We’ve been digging up a daily root (manioc) to eat and we’ve been killing a chicken and cooking it quite frequently as well. I can hardly imagine most meat eaters wanting to witness chicken slaughter, but if you’re eating it, you have to face the truth. At least here the chickens have a good life.
Well I still have a few days left here. Like I mentioned earlier, I’m writing at the back of my book. Maybe I’ll reread the book, but I may have to use it for toilet paper soon.
That was the entry I wrote while I was still on break. Today was our first day of school for Term 2, but the students just weeded the grounds and then played sports, because over 40 of the students were absent (I think the total is 120 for primary school). Also 2 teachers weren’t back yet. The plane came today so I think tomorrow we’ll be back up and operating.
A two week vacation may sound glamorous, but think again. I, along with my Futuna family, spent my 2 week school break on what they call “The Other Side.” This is a popular phrase in Vanuatu which really just means the other side of the island. I packed a few clothes and a toothbrush and made the couple hour trek to the other side.
My family is from The Other Side but they just live by the school now because my dad’s a teacher. They like to go to the other side for a break from the busy, hectic life at the school. You see, in the village at the school, they say there’s a lot of noise- telephones ringing, music playing, roosters cockadoodle doing, and babies crying. Well on the other side, there’s still roosters, but not much of the other distractions. Plenty of time to sit and do nothing.
Alright so to get back on topic, the first day I arrived I came down with a nasty cold. In Vanuatu, for every cold they say “flu” and naturally people start saying I have swine flu which I guess isn’t really funny at all, but now if someone sneezes, the new joke is “swine flu”. It used to be Dengue Fever (mosquito borne illness) which is a much more likely possibility- one person on Futuna got it already, but I don’t see swine flu arriving anytime soon. Well luckily I brought 2 bandanas which I’ve been using as a Kleenex alternative. It works fine but is still kind of gross.
My family has a plot of land on the other side where they’re planning on building a house. Note-planning, meaning now there is not a house. Some of the materials have arrived so they put up a makeshift corrugated iron shelter. Also some of the wooden beams are strewn across the ground so we slept on them. It’s better than sleeping on the muddy ground, but since the beams aren’t nailed down to anything when someone turns in their sleep, everyone feels the floor move.
Luckily the last time they came, my family had dug a toilet, and after only a few days while we were here they built a seat and a door. Before that it was a “squat and hope no one looks” situation. In terms of a place to take a shower- nope. Most people here have no problem showering in the open with their clothes on, but I chose to take my bucket of water behind the house and once again hope no one would come.
So it’s been a nice, relaxing vacation. (Not that the last 20 months haven’t been one long vacation). Luckily a package came for me the day I walked here with a People magazine. I’ve now read the issue cover to cover at least 5 times. I’ve got to keep up with my pop culture, but some stuff goes over my head, like what’s Twitter? I have learned a lot too, like by thoroughly examining the advertisements , I’ve come to the conclusion that Americans now want products that are “natural”, “organic”, and “green”. This ranges from skin care to paper towels to snack food, water, laundry detergent and even cat food. What do these labels even mean? Maybe these people should come to Futuna to experience organic!
We’ve been digging up a daily root (manioc) to eat and we’ve been killing a chicken and cooking it quite frequently as well. I can hardly imagine most meat eaters wanting to witness chicken slaughter, but if you’re eating it, you have to face the truth. At least here the chickens have a good life.
Well I still have a few days left here. Like I mentioned earlier, I’m writing at the back of my book. Maybe I’ll reread the book, but I may have to use it for toilet paper soon.
That was the entry I wrote while I was still on break. Today was our first day of school for Term 2, but the students just weeded the grounds and then played sports, because over 40 of the students were absent (I think the total is 120 for primary school). Also 2 teachers weren’t back yet. The plane came today so I think tomorrow we’ll be back up and operating.
What more can you ask for?
than a piece of bread and a packet of instant coffee mix? How did I reach this point where I ahve almost forgotten about $5 iced soy caramel macchiatos and now rejoice when I get a full serving of "3 in 1 instant coffee mix"? I'm not sure where to begin my story, but I think I should preface it with the fact that I regularly drank iced soy lattes for the past few years. They were in my blood, that is until i came to Vanuatu.
My coffee addiction came to a halt when I was placed in a village of decout Seventh Day ADventists. They don't drink any caffeinated product so there goes coffee and tea. We did drink the occasional what i like to call Hot Sugar Milk which consisted of powdered milk and sugar mixed together with hot water. It's a lot better than it sounds. For quite awhile it was my beverage of choice. Then one "cold" night I was sleeping a little ways up the side of the volcano. THe next day we'd be getting up early to climb to the top. I hadn't been that cold since I'd arrived in the tropics. Our host graciously gave us mugs, a thermos of hot water, and some sugar. THat was when i learned to appreicate Hot Sugar Water. (Just as a side note they call all hot beverages tea, so if you come and they offer you tea, you should probably expect Hot Sugar Water). I downed cup after cup that cold night before climbing the volcano.
When i moved to my new island, i was living amongst Presbyterians. They love to drink sugar water. Everyday at least twice a day I drink a cup of sugar. When we're lucky, we have brown sugar which is tastier than white sugar. On the occasion we'll mix the sugar with a lemon leaf or orange leaf. But then, I discovered the store sells 3 in 1 Instant Coffee Mix. Which is sigar, coffee, and milk all in one. Apparently Presbyterians don't have a ban on caffeine. When it's in stock, we drink it all the time. but since the household has like 8 people we can't afford to buy a packet for everyone. Typically 2 or 3 packets will be divided amongst everyone and then extra sugar will be added. A typical breakfast is a third of a packet of instant coffee with some Breakfast Crackers.
What are Breakfast Crackers? I guess the best equivalent would be matzah, unleavend bread eaten at the time of Passover. It's basically just dry, tasteless, cardboard. We break them up and put them in the tea and eat them with a spoon. On the rare occasion someone will make bread. There's no butter or toasting of the bread involved, but just the fresh off the fire bread makes my day. ANd if I get a full packet of coffee intestead of a third, well I just don't know what else I could ask for.
My coffee addiction came to a halt when I was placed in a village of decout Seventh Day ADventists. They don't drink any caffeinated product so there goes coffee and tea. We did drink the occasional what i like to call Hot Sugar Milk which consisted of powdered milk and sugar mixed together with hot water. It's a lot better than it sounds. For quite awhile it was my beverage of choice. Then one "cold" night I was sleeping a little ways up the side of the volcano. THe next day we'd be getting up early to climb to the top. I hadn't been that cold since I'd arrived in the tropics. Our host graciously gave us mugs, a thermos of hot water, and some sugar. THat was when i learned to appreicate Hot Sugar Water. (Just as a side note they call all hot beverages tea, so if you come and they offer you tea, you should probably expect Hot Sugar Water). I downed cup after cup that cold night before climbing the volcano.
When i moved to my new island, i was living amongst Presbyterians. They love to drink sugar water. Everyday at least twice a day I drink a cup of sugar. When we're lucky, we have brown sugar which is tastier than white sugar. On the occasion we'll mix the sugar with a lemon leaf or orange leaf. But then, I discovered the store sells 3 in 1 Instant Coffee Mix. Which is sigar, coffee, and milk all in one. Apparently Presbyterians don't have a ban on caffeine. When it's in stock, we drink it all the time. but since the household has like 8 people we can't afford to buy a packet for everyone. Typically 2 or 3 packets will be divided amongst everyone and then extra sugar will be added. A typical breakfast is a third of a packet of instant coffee with some Breakfast Crackers.
What are Breakfast Crackers? I guess the best equivalent would be matzah, unleavend bread eaten at the time of Passover. It's basically just dry, tasteless, cardboard. We break them up and put them in the tea and eat them with a spoon. On the rare occasion someone will make bread. There's no butter or toasting of the bread involved, but just the fresh off the fire bread makes my day. ANd if I get a full packet of coffee intestead of a third, well I just don't know what else I could ask for.
Monday, April 20, 2009
Random update
I realized that my blog entries are getting rather boring I guess because my life here has become some regular. Like the littlest things that I’m sure at the beginning I would rant and rave about have all become normal. I no longer am surprised by the 6 inch spider on the toilet “seat”. I don’t worry when the tap no longer has water. I just go and fill up my bucket and dump the cold water over my head. I still brush my teeth outside using only my water bottle as rinse water. I read by flashlight at night. I can’t sleep past 7 or 8 because of roosters (which I guess is an improvement from when I first got here and woke up at 5). I no longer view an island dress as a huge fashion faux pas and uncomfortable garbage bag type heat insulator. Instead I view it as a convenient article of clothing that dries quickly and I don’t care if it gets ruined. I think it’s completely normal for school to be cancelled due to rain (I mean how can you have class when it’s raining INSIDE the classroom). When I hear that there’s a staff meeting at 3:30, I automatically assume that it’ll start at the earliest at 4 pm (ISLAND TIME) and of course go for hours to make sure that everyone has stated their opinion multiple times and repeated the opinions of others. I don’t get offended when people call me “fat fat”. In fact that’s a compliment here. If they say you’re skinny, it sort of implies that you’re sick. I view a flying fox (ie bat) as a prime meal. I mean it’s a good alternative to the normal tin fish. I see eating rice as a sign of wealth. Having 8 people watching a video on my 2 inch ipod screen is completely reasonable. Sugar mixed with hot water is the best drink ever. I have nothing else to do on a Monday I might as well walk to the other side of the island to the airport just to see who gets off the plane or what mail might come. Washing my clothes in a bucket is not all that bad- it gives me something to do to pass the time. So a 2 year old can wield a 2 foot long machete and manage to open a coconut? That seems normal to me. “All kids must bring their knives to school tomorrow otherwise they will be punished.” Instead of class this afternoon, we’ll be going to the beach to carry coral and sand up the cliff to build the new classroom. Of course, I take off my shoes when I go in any building. And obviously I wear shorts under my skirt every day, who doesn’t know that? When kids scream or cry when they see me, it doesn’t phase me too much, however, being called “missus” still really annoys me. I got bread for breakfast this morning- just plain bread, no butter or anything, and I felt like the luckiest girl ever. I spend my entire days speaking a foreign language (Bislama) while trying to learn another one (Futunese). I find it totally normal for people to sit around, pick lice out of their hair, and then eat it. When people say they want to eat my cat, I know they are not joking around (the cat went in the kitchen at night and ate all the food). In fact I haven’t seen the cat in awhile, and I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s now in someone’s stomach. I’m sure there’s tons more things that I’ve just gotten used to being here, but it’s hard to think of them from this side. Maybe it’s weird that I would have to fly 30 minutes across the ocean just to go to the post office or the bank or to buy some cheese, who knows? And maybe it’s weird that although I have access to the internet, I have no access to a doctor of any sort on the island. Well, at least there’s webMD. But I guess in the end, it’s really just the same. We all have to work and eat and socialize. And most likely when I get back to the U.S. I’ll be looking back through my rose-colored glasses and dreaming about the tropical paradise that is Vanuatu.
Random update
I realized that my blog entries are getting rather boring I guess because my life here has become some regular. Like the littlest things that I’m sure at the beginning I would rant and rave about have all become normal. I no longer am surprised by the 6 inch spider on the toilet “seat”. I don’t worry when the tap no longer has water. I just go and fill up my bucket and dump the cold water over my head. I still brush my teeth outside using only my water bottle as rinse water. I read by flashlight at night. I can’t sleep past 7 or 8 because of roosters (which I guess is an improvement from when I first got here and woke up at 5). I no longer view an island dress as a huge fashion faux pas and uncomfortable garbage bag type heat insulator. Instead I view it as a convenient article of clothing that dries quickly and I don’t care if it gets ruined. I think it’s completely normal for school to be cancelled due to rain (I mean how can you have class when it’s raining INSIDE the classroom). When I hear that there’s a staff meeting at 3:30, I automatically assume that it’ll start at the earliest at 4 pm (ISLAND TIME) and of course go for hours to make sure that everyone has stated their opinion multiple times and repeated the opinions of others. I don’t get offended when people call me “fat fat”. In fact that’s a compliment here. If they say you’re skinny, it sort of implies that you’re sick. I view a flying fox (ie bat) as a prime meal. I mean it’s a good alternative to the normal tin fish. I see eating rice as a sign of wealth. Having 8 people watching a video on my 2 inch ipod screen is completely reasonable. Sugar mixed with hot water is the best drink ever. I have nothing else to do on a Monday I might as well walk to the other side of the island to the airport just to see who gets off the plane or what mail might come. Washing my clothes in a bucket is not all that bad- it gives me something to do to pass the time. So a 2 year old can wield a 2 foot long machete and manage to open a coconut? That seems normal to me. “All kids must bring their knives to school tomorrow otherwise they will be punished.” Instead of class this afternoon, we’ll be going to the beach to carry coral and sand up the cliff to build the new classroom. Of course, I take off my shoes when I go in any building. And obviously I wear shorts under my skirt every day, who doesn’t know that? When kids scream or cry when they see me, it doesn’t phase me too much, however, being called “missus” still really annoys me. I got bread for breakfast this morning- just plain bread, no butter or anything, and I felt like the luckiest girl ever. I spend my entire days speaking a foreign language (Bislama) while trying to learn another one (Futunese). I find it totally normal for people to sit around, pick lice out of their hair, and then eat it. When people say they want to eat my cat, I know they are not joking around (the cat went in the kitchen at night and ate all the food). In fact I haven’t seen the cat in awhile, and I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s now in someone’s stomach. I’m sure there’s tons more things that I’ve just gotten used to being here, but it’s hard to think of them from this side. Maybe it’s weird that I would have to fly 30 minutes across the ocean just to go to the post office or the bank or to buy some cheese, who knows? And maybe it’s weird that although I have access to the internet, I have no access to a doctor of any sort on the island. Well, at least there’s webMD. But I guess in the end, it’s really just the same. We all have to work and eat and socialize. And most likely when I get back to the U.S. I’ll be looking back through my rose-colored glasses and dreaming about the tropical paradise that is Vanuatu.
Sunday, April 19, 2009
And the phones are fixed!
Well finally the people from the phone company decided they'd send someone out to fix our telephones. They fixed them and now I'm back online! Yah!
Be sure to check out my photos on my webshots:
http://community.webshots.com/user/alyssathielpcv
Since being back, I've been doing reading groups with the weak readers in grades 1-6. They're going well and it's a much needed area. There's no special ed here at all so all the kids are just in the same class, even though some of the 6th graders can't even recognize letters.
We only have 2 weeks left and then the end of term 1. We have a 2 week vacation before term 2 starts but I'll be staying on Futuna the whole time.
Lately we've been eating a lot of rice since the ship has come. (It came while I was in Vila). What else? Now that I have an ipod I am not so bored. I watch the same 5 episodes of The Office which one of the teachers here had on his computer. They never get old (well at least not yet).
We've had a couple of torrential downpours lately which have caused water to literally run into and through people's houses like rivers. I feel sorry for the people who have dirt floors, luckily I have cement. But now it's nice and sunny. We're moving into the cold season so it's still hot in the day but at night I use a blanket and sometimes I wear a jacket.
Well send me an email. I'll be checking my email occasionally. Or send me a letter/ package of goodies.
my address:
Alyssa
Peace Corps Volunteer
Ishia School
Futuna
Vanuatu, South Pacific
Any snack food or pop culture magazines would be appreciated, but also random surprises are nice! Nothing beats a good letter!
Be sure to check out my photos on my webshots:
http://community.webshots.com/user/alyssathielpcv
Since being back, I've been doing reading groups with the weak readers in grades 1-6. They're going well and it's a much needed area. There's no special ed here at all so all the kids are just in the same class, even though some of the 6th graders can't even recognize letters.
We only have 2 weeks left and then the end of term 1. We have a 2 week vacation before term 2 starts but I'll be staying on Futuna the whole time.
Lately we've been eating a lot of rice since the ship has come. (It came while I was in Vila). What else? Now that I have an ipod I am not so bored. I watch the same 5 episodes of The Office which one of the teachers here had on his computer. They never get old (well at least not yet).
We've had a couple of torrential downpours lately which have caused water to literally run into and through people's houses like rivers. I feel sorry for the people who have dirt floors, luckily I have cement. But now it's nice and sunny. We're moving into the cold season so it's still hot in the day but at night I use a blanket and sometimes I wear a jacket.
Well send me an email. I'll be checking my email occasionally. Or send me a letter/ package of goodies.
my address:
Alyssa
Peace Corps Volunteer
Ishia School
Futuna
Vanuatu, South Pacific
Any snack food or pop culture magazines would be appreciated, but also random surprises are nice! Nothing beats a good letter!
Friday, March 27, 2009
Back to Futuna soon
I am really not sure when the last time I updated my blog was. I think it must've been before I went to New Zealand. So I went to New Zealand to meet my parents. We all came back to Vanuatu, and then we spent a week on Futuna. I'd say to sum up what we did there: play scrabble and eat laplap. There was lots of rain but it didn't hinder too many of our plans. We still went snorkeling, fishing, hiking, and took a trip to the "store". After our week on Futuna we went to a luxury resort on the island of Tanna. We returned to the death defying volcano that was spurting hot molten lava rocks hundreds of meters in the air. Fun, huh?
Then we came back to Vila. Unfortunately I had some Peace Corps meetings/trainings to attend to so my parents toured the area on their own. Now, I'm in a little bit of a rush since I need to go to the airport to see them off. This time in Vila is so different than before. This is my first time even checking my email. I don't want to sit on the computer. I'd rather talk with my friends here than try and deal with the turtle paced internet.
Well I am hoping my parents will be able to post more pictures on my webshots which I think is at:
http://community.webshots.com/user/alyssathielpcv
it's the same link as all myo ther pictures.
I'm not sure if I'll check my email again before I return to Futuna. And then our telephones have been broken for awhile on the island so I'm not sure when the next time I'll be online again. Maybe just in September!
Then we came back to Vila. Unfortunately I had some Peace Corps meetings/trainings to attend to so my parents toured the area on their own. Now, I'm in a little bit of a rush since I need to go to the airport to see them off. This time in Vila is so different than before. This is my first time even checking my email. I don't want to sit on the computer. I'd rather talk with my friends here than try and deal with the turtle paced internet.
Well I am hoping my parents will be able to post more pictures on my webshots which I think is at:
http://community.webshots.com/user/alyssathielpcv
it's the same link as all myo ther pictures.
I'm not sure if I'll check my email again before I return to Futuna. And then our telephones have been broken for awhile on the island so I'm not sure when the next time I'll be online again. Maybe just in September!
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
In the Big City
I haven't written in awhile since every phone on the whole island of Futuna is broken (there's 8 phones in total). I don't know what the problem is, but it has prevented me from having access to the internet.
Anyway, now I'm in the capital, Port Vila. I arrived on Monday and am here on official Peace Corps vacation. It's not much different than when I'm here on "work-related leave" but at least I don't have to feel guilty about sitting around on the internet all day (wait- it sounds like Futuna).
Coming in to town, lots of people from Futuna gave me things to deliver for them since our communication outside of the island has gone to zero. So yesterday I had a busy day running around town to different places. Everything was very successful, except when I went to go pay for and confirm my domestic tickets for my family. They said my booking had been cancelled which was confusing because they told me they'd hold it until March 10. When I asked why, they said that now Futuna no longer has flights on Thursdays, so that means that we'll only have flights once a week now- Mondays. Anyway, I wasn't sure what to do about my parents coming to Futuna, but we've decided that they're going to come for a whole week. I think the people on Futuna will be rather surprised when we arrive a few days early, but hopefully they will be accomodating.
Anyway, other than that, not much is new. Before I left Futuna I did some reading assessments and when I go back, I will begin to run groups for weak readers. Now I'm in Vila for about a week and then heading to New Zealand to meet my parents before we come back to Vanuatu. Being in Vila is rather stressful compared to being on Futuna, and also dealing with all the typical Vanuatu style problems in planning the trip can be annoying. At least I feel like I'm learning to be a lot more of a patient person.
Alright, well nothing else is new really. I had cereal for breakfast and it was delicious! I had a milkshake yesterday and I've bought 2 pineapples from the market in the last 2 days. I'm staying at a friend's house and she has a refridgerator so that's pretty awesome too!
Send me an email if you get a chance while I'm still in town!
Anyway, now I'm in the capital, Port Vila. I arrived on Monday and am here on official Peace Corps vacation. It's not much different than when I'm here on "work-related leave" but at least I don't have to feel guilty about sitting around on the internet all day (wait- it sounds like Futuna).
Coming in to town, lots of people from Futuna gave me things to deliver for them since our communication outside of the island has gone to zero. So yesterday I had a busy day running around town to different places. Everything was very successful, except when I went to go pay for and confirm my domestic tickets for my family. They said my booking had been cancelled which was confusing because they told me they'd hold it until March 10. When I asked why, they said that now Futuna no longer has flights on Thursdays, so that means that we'll only have flights once a week now- Mondays. Anyway, I wasn't sure what to do about my parents coming to Futuna, but we've decided that they're going to come for a whole week. I think the people on Futuna will be rather surprised when we arrive a few days early, but hopefully they will be accomodating.
Anyway, other than that, not much is new. Before I left Futuna I did some reading assessments and when I go back, I will begin to run groups for weak readers. Now I'm in Vila for about a week and then heading to New Zealand to meet my parents before we come back to Vanuatu. Being in Vila is rather stressful compared to being on Futuna, and also dealing with all the typical Vanuatu style problems in planning the trip can be annoying. At least I feel like I'm learning to be a lot more of a patient person.
Alright, well nothing else is new really. I had cereal for breakfast and it was delicious! I had a milkshake yesterday and I've bought 2 pineapples from the market in the last 2 days. I'm staying at a friend's house and she has a refridgerator so that's pretty awesome too!
Send me an email if you get a chance while I'm still in town!
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Busy at school
I've been rather busy at school lately. We are now in Week 3 (they're really big into counting the school weeks here). So far I've helped with a few different things. I worked with the 1st grade who really need a lot of work. Lots of them don't know how to write their names or the letters of the alphabet. I also sorted tons of books in the library. Now I'm working the combined 2nd and 3rd grade class on reading. I have discovered that some of the students cannot read at all- like they don't even know high frequency words like the, to, and. But at least it gives me a good idea of what to work on while I'm here. My next work is tomorrow I will be running a small workshop on teaching spelling. Then next week I will be giving some reading assessments to class 2 and 3 that all the peace corps vols in vanuatu have to do. Then only one more week and I head out to Vila and then New Zealand for a brief vacation with my parents. Then we'll all come back to Vanuatu together so I'm excited.
We had a bit of rain and wind due to a cyclone in nearby New Caledonia but now it's sunny again. Nothing else too new here.
We had a bit of rain and wind due to a cyclone in nearby New Caledonia but now it's sunny again. Nothing else too new here.
Sunday, February 1, 2009
PHOTOS and more
http://community.webshots.com/user/alyssathielpcv
Go to this website and the first album (nov-dec 2008) and you'll see tons of Futuna photos!
School has started on Futuna. Unlike Ambae, school here actually started on the first day that the government decided. I helped out a bit in the 1st grade classroom with english seeing as these kids are supposed to be in English school but don't know a word of English. Now I'm busy sorting through the gigantic piles of books that are scattered throughout the various buildings at school.
It's been hot here lately and the water has been really finicky. Some days it runs great and then others (like this whole past weekend) it doesn't run at all and your dirty clothes just pile up and pile up. Luckily we have a rain tank but that's just enough water to drink and cook with and if you're lucky shower (otherwise you just go to the ocean to shower).
Nothing much new. Oh I bought a bag of flour and now my family is making bread sometimes which is really really nice for breakfast (as opposed to these things called breakfast crackers which are just flavorless hard crackers). Also I've started eating with the teachers again now that school has started so I like that as well.
Not much else. Our internet was cut for awhile due to the school not paying the phone bill, but now I should be back online.
Go to this website and the first album (nov-dec 2008) and you'll see tons of Futuna photos!
School has started on Futuna. Unlike Ambae, school here actually started on the first day that the government decided. I helped out a bit in the 1st grade classroom with english seeing as these kids are supposed to be in English school but don't know a word of English. Now I'm busy sorting through the gigantic piles of books that are scattered throughout the various buildings at school.
It's been hot here lately and the water has been really finicky. Some days it runs great and then others (like this whole past weekend) it doesn't run at all and your dirty clothes just pile up and pile up. Luckily we have a rain tank but that's just enough water to drink and cook with and if you're lucky shower (otherwise you just go to the ocean to shower).
Nothing much new. Oh I bought a bag of flour and now my family is making bread sometimes which is really really nice for breakfast (as opposed to these things called breakfast crackers which are just flavorless hard crackers). Also I've started eating with the teachers again now that school has started so I like that as well.
Not much else. Our internet was cut for awhile due to the school not paying the phone bill, but now I should be back online.
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Ice cream, cheese, bread, and pineapple
Honestly, what more could you ask for than ice cream, cheese, bread, and pineapple? I went to Tanna (the nearest other island) and had a wonderful time eating. I also went to the bank and post office since we don't have them on Futuna. Tanna is quite the tourist destination apparently. While I was there, I saw tons of tourists who mostly come to see the very active volcano that shoots up molten rock every minute or so. I also found that on Tanna when I started speaking Bislama all the locals really liked me and wanted to talk to me. I guess they're tired of all the tourists. One morning a bunch of tourists loaded into a truck to go to the volcano on the other side of the island. The locals who were driving the truck asked me if I was going and I said I didn't have the money (typical Alyssa, huh?). Well anyway, I sweet talked in Bislama and they invited me to go on the tour for free (which is like $120 normally). It was pretty sweet I must admit. i was scared though, because this was a real volcano. It's not like Disney World. When the rocks come shooting up, there's no barricade to keep them from hitting you. And people have been hit by the molten rock before. I only stayed up top for like 5 minutes and then basically ran back down.
Now I'm back on Futuna. Nothing too exciting. I should do laundry today. But first I need my internet fix- it's been too long. It's really weird that it's 2009 now. Like when people ask me when I came to Vanuatu I can no longer say "last year". That's weird. I spent all last year in Vanuatu. It was fun to talk to all the tourists on Tanna because it really made me feel like I've integrated quite well. People tended to be impressed by Bislama which I totally forget is even an oddity. I mean I just feel like everyone must know Bislama. Anyway it's also weird to think that I'll finish my contract this year! Now people are asking me what I'll do when I go home- yikes! Maybe I'll submit my Starbucks application sometime soon. That could at least hold me over for a few months until Omega Teen Camp 2010.
Alright, well I hope everyone's 2009 is going well. I was tired on New Years Eve so I just slept, but in the morning we did get to celebrate by drinking one cup of juice each. Lucky, huh?
Now I'm back on Futuna. Nothing too exciting. I should do laundry today. But first I need my internet fix- it's been too long. It's really weird that it's 2009 now. Like when people ask me when I came to Vanuatu I can no longer say "last year". That's weird. I spent all last year in Vanuatu. It was fun to talk to all the tourists on Tanna because it really made me feel like I've integrated quite well. People tended to be impressed by Bislama which I totally forget is even an oddity. I mean I just feel like everyone must know Bislama. Anyway it's also weird to think that I'll finish my contract this year! Now people are asking me what I'll do when I go home- yikes! Maybe I'll submit my Starbucks application sometime soon. That could at least hold me over for a few months until Omega Teen Camp 2010.
Alright, well I hope everyone's 2009 is going well. I was tired on New Years Eve so I just slept, but in the morning we did get to celebrate by drinking one cup of juice each. Lucky, huh?
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