NanettePC

South Korea - Day 4 (Tuesday)

2007-09-27T16:20:00.000-05:00

On my last day in Korea we visited another shopping area and went to NSeoul Tower.

In an effort to not allow my fear of heights to stand in the way of life, I decided to go to the top of NSeoul Tower. It was a little scary, but the view was really beautiful.

Here's the group of us at the observation deck at NSeoul Tower. The sailor next to me is in the U.S. Navy stationed in Seoul. We met him out the night before this. He is wonderful and meshed right into the group during my last day in Korea. Next to him is John, another English teacher in Seoul and a friend of Marius. He's from New Jersey and just might be the funniest man I've ever met in person. Kneeling is another friend of Marius, Maryanne. She's also an English teacher in Seoul, but she teaches PROPER English since she's from the U.K. These guys made my time in Korea so great!

I think it goes without saying that small children from all cultures are sooooo cute. Korea is not an exception. The little ones are freaking adorable. Here is a little Korean girl in traditional clothes. This weekend was Korean Thanksgiving and lots of little kids were dressed up like this.

I can't blog about Korea without including a section on the use of GPS systems. EVERYONE in Korea uses these to get EVERYWHERE. The girls driving on our rafting trip used it to get us to the rapids. No maps, just GPS. Every taxi uses these all the time. I promise no one really knows where anything is. They just type it in and follow the red arrow. I swear if someone blew up the GPS system Korea would go into full chaos.

South Korea - Day 3 (Monday)

2007-09-27T15:59:00.000-05:00

Day 3 consisted of shopping, Soju and karaoke. Marius lives at the center of Seoul and is full of wonderful knowledge about the city. So he took us shopping and dining during the day.

Me with Minh at a street market in Seoul. Koreans LOVE to shop. And Seouls has about 12 billion shops.
Marius, me and Minh in a taxi at the beginning of a night to remember...or forget;)Karaoke is a very big part of Asian culture. They have these places that have a bunch of rooms equipped with video screens, microphones and a bunch of music. Everybody gets to be a rock star. Here are me, Marius and an English student (he's Korean learning English) singing karaoke.
Marius and Minh feeling good and sounding great! They are REALLY good singers!
After karaoke we hit up Itaewon, aka "the land of foreigners," for some hip-hop music and dancing. Here are me and Marius dancing with some Soju. This is magical juice. It's like Vodka light. It doesn't taste bad, can be drank alone or mixed with just about anything, and only costs $1.50 a bottle! Magic!!

South Korea Day 2 - Sunday

2007-09-23T20:55:00.000-05:00

We started Sunday with the plans to hit up a spa/massage parlor. On the subway we were reading the Korea Lonely Planet guide and found a tour of the grand palace downtown that was only offered at 11:30, 1:30 and 3:30 and it was already 2pm. So we decided to detour and check out the palace and then go to the spa place.This is Changdeokgung Palace, well, one of the many buildings on this huge landscape in the middle of Seoul. This was the main building where all the ceremonies took place. The king's throne is inside. It was built in 1405.
Here is me and Minh at the Secret Garden. The gardens are so beautiful! The grounds are so vast. The name of this pond is Aeryeonji, which means "loving the lotus."

So we spent a couple of hours at the temple then took the subway to Itaewon (pronounced ee-tay-wahn). This is basically the G.I. zone. The U.S. military base is 2 blocks from this area so it was covered with Americans. We arrived at the salon only to find out it was closed. What a deflated feeling. I had talked myself up to a mud scrub by little on Korean women, followed by massage, pedicures, relaxation, etc. Not happening. So we headed back to Minh's area of the city and decided to get the next best thing...pedicures.
Here's a pic of Minh's very first pedicure!! I can honestly say that I have started an addiction in her that will probably last forever. These ladies were really good!

We ended the day with a trip to sushi heaven.
This is my new best friend here. He is the sushi chef at a sushi place around the corner from Minh's house. He hooked up the goods. I know I didn't have to go to Seoul to see this, but he makes sushi and puts it on these conveyer belts that go by in front of everyone sitting around at the bar and you just choose whatever you want! Oh my gosh it was awesome. He uses this paddle to hand specially-made dishes to people. He hooked me up with some tune and Minh got an avocado roll. Yuuuuuum.
That ends Day 2 in Korea. Monday we are back with Marius for a tour of downtown Seoul, shopping, and drunken karaoke. Come on, you know I can't leave this place without singing like the rock star I am!! Stay tuned...

Trip to South Korea to visit Minh and Marius!! Day 1 (Saturday)

2007-09-22T20:46:00.000-05:00

Ok, so I figured I would use this blog to continue the chronicles of my international travels...since those are the only ones worth reading about;) I am in Seoul, South Korea with a girl I was in Peace Corps-Burkina Faso with. She is here teaching English at a school. Also here is another guy we were in Peace Corps with, Marius - who is also teaching English, but at a different school.
So the interesting part of the story starts on the plane about halfway from Chicago to Tokyo. The flight attendants came around for our mid-flight snack, and it was nothing other than a bowl of ramen noodles!! How funny. They gave us the bowls, then came by with pots of hot water and poured them in and told us to let them simmer for 4 minutes then enjoy! I was cracking up!
So after a 12 1/2 hour flight from Chicago I had a layover of 2 hours in Tokyo. Perfect amount of time to enjoy quite literally the best sushi I have ever eaten in my life! Wow! Then it was off to Seoul. I arrived without incident and my bags even made it with me!! Minh was waiting for me outside of the custom area. It was so exciting to see her after 9 months! I got in at 9pm and we took the bus to her house. She has this cute little "studio" apartment in a really nice area of town. She has internet, her own bathroom with shower and flushing toilet, and her own washing machine. This is not Africa my friends. It's so cute. Marius came over that night and we all stayed up talking until 2am, which on any other night would have been no problem. But we had to be up and ready to go on our white water rafting trip by 6am. Hello? I was in wonderful condition. I know, you're probably thinking, who goes to South Korea to go white water rafting? I do, that's who. We went with 2 of Minh's Korean co-workers and 2 American co-workers. So 7 in all in a mini-van. Talk about comfortable. And of course one of the Korean girls was driving, and I swear every time I looked out the front window we were on the left side of the road (they drive on the right here). That's when I started praying that I just make it through the day alive. We arrived 3 hours early (yes, 3 hours - apparently Koreans are not so great at timing) so we decided to go visit a Buddhist Temple that was only an hour away. This was really cool. It was located along a river and it was really serene, especially compared to the chaos of Seoul (a city of 24 million including the burbs).

Ok, here is me, Minh and Marius on the bridge to the Buddhist temple. The mountains are really beautiful and green. The river (or bubbling creek in the background) was really serene and comforting. I can see how Buddhist monks chose this place to try to reach the enlightened level. Puhlease do not talk trash about my chosen attire. We were supposed to be going white water rafting!! I had on shorts and a tank top and had to throw on my scrubs and sweater. I was not making a fashion statement;)
Me and Minh in front of the main temple. It was really ornate. You can see a monk praying right behind me.
A closer look at the monk praying. Noice the gold Buddha. The guy on the left is just some guy praying.
This is a humongous bell (on the right) and a drum (left) that was (or maybe still is) used at the Buddhist temple. I can only speculate what they are used for...maybe dinner? That's a heck of a dinner bell. Maybe it's used to call people to prayer. ;)
Later in my blogging I will have a list of observations I have made here. One is the fact that people here, when describing pretty much anything, really abuse the word "famous."
For example, all on Saturday one of the Korean girls showed us a famous restaurant in Korea, a famous temple in Korea, an area famous for when the leaves change colors, etc. Well, she described the man portrayed here in statue form as a "very famous" poet. So I took a picture. He actually was instrumental in leading Korea to independence back in the 1940's, and was also a poet. This statue is on one side of the temple.

So after a while at the temple we got hungry...enter my first Korean meal of my life. YUMMY. We had baked fish and kimchi (the cucumber kind and the cabbage kind) and eggplant and seaweed and rice and soup.
This is a pic of a typical meal here. The little dishes are all different and they keep refilling them whenever you finish. The big plate is baked fish that we shared. Please take notice of the scissors on that plate. They use scissors to cut meat. I'm just giving the facts here people.

Then it was off to the white waters. One note I should make is the fact that the temperature outside never really got above, I don't know...68F, and it was overcast and rainy all day. I'm pretty sure I could see my breath at various points throughout the day...maybe it was an illusion, but I was COLD. And it was funny because I was the only person raising concern about the fact that we were all probably going to get pneumonia. So when we arrived at the place, of course we were the only people rafting that day. What the heck? Who goes rafting on a day like that? We do, that's who. Oh yes, many wise decisions were made this day. No filling out any waivers or forms or anything, I don't even know the name of the company (not that I could pronounce it anyway). Just jump on the rapids and go. I don't know if you have been rafting before, but in order to make it through alive you generally need a good guide and some people in the boat that aren't completely without sense. Well, we had a good guide. And we made it out alive, even though Minh busted her ass on some rocks we went climbing around about mid-way through the trip down the river. I know, why were we climbing around on rocks when we were supposed to be rafting down the river. It's Korea my friends.

So we finished and changed into dry clothes. We were all pretty tired and the trip was only halfway over. The Korean girls then decided to drive the rest of the way across the country to the coast to have seafood. South Korea is only the size of Indiana, but the middle of the country is mountains. So it took a really long time (another 2 1/2 hours in the minivan filled with 7 of us) to get to the coast. Please remember that the girl driving favors the wrong side of the road, and now we are driving through the mountains. Wow. Still praying to make it through the day alive. I know this blog sounds cynical, but at the end of the day I saw a lot of South Korea and it is really really beautiful. Really. And I got to be with Minh and Marius and learn about their time here. So we made it to the coast almost at sunset and it was really beautiful. The thing about the beaches here is that they are lined with barbed wire fences, to keep the North Koreans out. That was a sight I haven't seen before. So we stopped for dinner...another awesome 5-course meal including raw fish and tons of vegetables and seaweed and kelp, etc. 5 of us shared this meal that could have easily fed 10, and they say 2-3 Koreans usually eat it. How are all these people not walking around obese? Because the meals consist of the good stuff, not McDonald's. Point taken. After dinner we jumped in the van and headed back to our side of the country. In total we drove 9 hours yesterday. Coming off of 22 hours of traveling across the world by plane, I am happy the we went on this trip, but oh so happy that we are back.

some pics

2007-08-24T12:41:00.000-05:00

I know most people stopped checking this long ago, but just in case, here are some pics. I never got the elephant pics from Audrie's mom... but here are some to leave you with.

Here we are crouching, looking for the elephants. You see here the guide that ended up leaving us high and dry;)
The view out my front door during a rain storm.
The baby of one of the women in my association.
My boys playing with the bubbles my dad sent.
More bubbles. They loved it!

I do miss them.

Good-byes and dog bites

2007-06-23T09:06:00.000-05:00

For a slew of reasons I have decided to end my service as a Peace Corps volunteer in Burkina Faso. I said tearful good-byes to my host family already. They will always hold a special place in my heart. I am finishing some end of service administrative stuff this weekend and I fly home Monday (getting me to Indy Tuesday).

So, last night I went out with some other volunteers here in Ouaga for a little good-bye celebration. As I was waiting (outside, with my back facing a waist-high wrought-iron fence) to use the restroom, I felt something grab the back of my leg, really hard. I thought it was one of the other volunteers just having fun, but when I turned around I came face to face with one of the biggest dogs I have seen in this country. He had stuck his head through the fence and bit me! OUCHY! I was wearing jeans and those teeth went right through and sunk into the back of my thigh. Not a ton of blood, but OUCHYYYYYYYY! So today I had to get a rabies shot. DOUBLE OUCHY! And I will have to have the follow-up shot Tuesday. TRIPLE OUCHY! Good Lord! Get me outta here! I'm kidding...but what the heck?

Anywho.

I will add a few more posts as I get my pictures uploaded (since that seems to be what people love the most:) A little more to share, so stay tuned. I am so happy to have had this opportunity to come here, see what I've seen, learned what I've learned, and share it all with you. If anyone has questions about my experience here please feel free to contact me at nanettemkelley@gmail.com. Thank you all for checking in to learn a little about my experiences here.

Just thinking

2007-06-19T04:45:00.000-05:00

One thing I have time to do here is think. There are much fewer distractions from thinking here than there are in the U.S. I don't have TV or constant radio in the car (car? what car?), I don't spend an hour everyday "getting ready." I just have a lot more time to really think in silence; to ponder many things I have wondered about.
So I was sitting here frustrated to no end the other day and I started wondering why I was so grouchy. Life is hard here (and I have it easier than 99% of the people who live here) and I realized that there hasn’t been a whole day that I have lived in this country throughout which I was comfortable. I’m grouchy because I am constantly uncomfortable. But what gives me the right to expect to be comfortable? Because that’s all I’ve ever known. I have always had a temperature-regulated environment; I have always had access to cold beverages; I have always been able to eat what I want whenever I want; I have always been able to take a nap when I want, or go for a run, or visit my friends or family, or fly to Jamaica for vacation. All 30 years up until now have been comfortable and easy (and I know this is because I live in a country that allows me these freedoms, and I come from a family that has provided the means for me to do anything). My natural instinct is to seek comfort because that’s all I’ve ever known. I wonder what I would seek if I never knew comfort.
I have always all my life been able to get or do anything I want. I feel so fortunate to be a woman in this world and be able to do anything I want. If I want to move to a 3rd world country and live amongst the poorest of this world, I can. If I want to move to the U.S. and make $100,000 a year, I can do that too. If I want to watch a movie, get a massage, paint my toenails and go to the store in my bikini, I can. Imagine a life in which you couldn’t get or do what you want. Imagine being a Muslim woman in Saudi Arabia and not being allowed to walk to the store without being escorted by a man, just because you are a woman. Or imagine being born into a family here with no money and your only option is to work you family's fields in order to eat for the rest of your life. Or imagine a gazillion other scenerios you could be in. Having the luxuries of freedom and choices are the ones I treasure most. So many people in this world don’t have and will never know these.

More pics

2007-06-19T04:16:00.001-05:00

How funny is this?? Meet Aaron, perhaps the funniest volunteer here in Burkina (except for me of course).
A view of the countryside on the way back to the waterfalls.
Rose, Veronica, me and Erica back at the falls. It's so wonderful there.
And you thought I wouldn't get the total international experience by coming here! These are our favorite non-Africans here in Bobo. Walid on left is Lebanese and owns the most beautiful nightclub here (Please notice the speakers, mirrors on the walls, air-conditioning in the background. It has tile floors and flushing toilets! We are talking NICE...considering most clubs here are outdoors in the dirt). And Rami on the right is Syrian and owns the supermarket where we get all our non-African goods (like Ben&Jerry's ice cream, cereal, milk, cheese, WINE!).
The roaches here are ridiculous! When I first moved to my house there were 40 of these crawling around my latrine at night. Can you imagine? I had to put a stop to that really quickly! I haven't seen any for a long time. Thank God!

Africa pics

2007-06-19T03:59:00.000-05:00

Ok, ok gee-whiz! Technology these days has made people so demanding! The requests for pics is overwhelming, so here are some to pacify you...

I'm pretty sure this is who Jay-Z is rapping about when he talks about coming from "the school of the hard knocks!" No doubt. This is about as hard as it gets.
Have I posted this one before? Who knows, who cares. These are my boys Latif and Oseifa coloring on my front porch with the sidewalk chalk my dad sent. They are always running up to me saying "Nanette, dessiner SVP? dessiner?" (which means they want to draw please:). Genius idea dad!
I'm not sure who brought in the mass shipment of fussball tables to Burkina, but you can find one on EVERY street corner in this country.
Here is a typical vegetable market. I'm really lucky, because most volunteers don't get this many options in village.Yes, this picture absolutely means you are never, never allowed to complain about your commute to work again. Period.

When it rains it pours!

2007-06-18T04:23:00.000-05:00

People who live here really love the rains because it cools everything off and it provides for a good harvest. I love the rain too. There is something peaceful about it. And when it's blue skies and scorching sun 99% of the time, a little rain is a nice change of pace. The only thing about rain here is that it comes without warning in a matter of minutes (no Dad, I can't just flip on the Weather Channel to check the radar...no TV. And even if i had one the Weather Channel wouldn't be an option. Only Burkina news and African dancing videos.), and when it rains it really does pour. So last weekend me and another volunteer were on the other side of town visiting friends and decided to head home around 9pm. We were a 20 minute bike ride from my house. About 5 minutes into the trip she got a flat tire. We asked around for a bike mechanic, but they were all closed. So we decided to walk our bikes. We noticed there was a lot of dust in the air, but figured it was because of all the cars driving past. Well 5 more minutes down the road and the winds kicked in. The winds are no joke! Dust was flying everywhere in hurricane-like winds, we couldn't even see. Then I felt a drop. Thank God for the kindness of people in this country. We were just walking past 2 girls and one of them yelled that we had to come into her house. Just like that! So we followed her and 5 seconds later the rains hit like Katrina. All the houses here (well, most of the houses here) have tin roofs, so when it rains it is defeaning. And this girl didn't have electricity, so we sat in the dark for a few minutes before she brought out a kerosene lamp. So there we were, sitting in this stranger's house, looking at each other by kerosene light, not able to speak because it was too loud, and I giggled as I thought to myself "I would never be in this situation back home." It rained for a long time and I must have dozed off because I woke up to this little old man with only one arm telling me in the local language that I could sleep on the mat that he had prepared for me on the floor. And if that wasn't ok, I could have the girl's bed. Never, never would this happen back home. I just smiled and thanked him profusely and told him it really wasn't necessary. I think it rained for like 45 minutes before we heard the rain calm enough to be able to continue walking. We thanked the girl and the old man for their hospitality and off we went. Many people offered us rides or just to push our bikes and walk with us. Gosh people are so helpful here. Sometimes on my rough days here I forget that. This was such a great reminder. We made it home eventually, grabbed a beer and stayed up laughing and talking about how funny the night turned out to be and how this was just another experience to add to the many we've had in Burkina. Never a dull moment.

Girls and nutrition

2007-06-17T12:54:00.000-05:00

I had another meeting with my girls club last week. Since malnutrition is a big problem here (there are lots children with big bellies and skinny arms and legs, and children with light-colored hair due to a lack of essential vitamins, and those are just the visible signs), I decided to do this session on nutrition. A couple of weeks ago I asked the girls to write down everything they ate and drank over a period of a week so I could get an idea of what they were eating. There was little to no fruits or proteins in their diets. So, for this session I basically listed the essential vitamins and nutrients an average person should get on a regular basis, listed what each of the vitamins and nutrients did for the body (Vitamin C good for the eyes, etc) then listed which foods available here contained each of them. Since not everyone is literate in French, I drew pictures of the foods in each groups. The girls thought it was pretty funny. I took about a half hour to explain everything to them, then we played 2 games to see how much they really got out of my explanation. They were pretty good. It was interesting to see how little they knew about (1) the nutrients essential for good health and (2) the foods readily available to them that contained these nutrients. At the end of the day I just told them they had to had to had to eat fruits and vegetables and protein whenever they could. They all were very happy with the session and promised to remember to get a variety of fruits and vegetables every week and make sure to eat more meat, eggs and milk. So far, so good.

Elephants

2007-06-17T12:29:00.000-05:00

Last week the mother of one of the other volunteers came to Burkina to visit and I decided to meet them at a town not far from Bobo that is famous for regular elephant sitings. We arrived on a Tuesday and just spent the day chatting and relaxing by the river. Since I live in Bobo I don't get the best view of the night sky because of all the "city lights." But out there in elephant land the sky was dazzling with millions of stars. And it was so peaceful as the three of us were the only ones at the site (even though nature is LOUD at night! goodness crickets and frogs and who knows what else, all harmonizing together). Our "guide" told us to meet him at 8 the next morning. Without any briefing, warning, etc. he came and got us and we set off on foot to find the elephants, our guide in front, then me, the other volunteer, her mom, and then another Burkinabe guy bringing up the rear hanging on to a 4 foot stick - like one he just broke off the tree. I wondered to myself what exactly he thought that stick might come in useful for, but I assumed he knew what he was doing. So off we (the white people) went chatting and laughing along the way until we noticed that our guide had started stepping a little more cautiously, then the talking stopped. After about 10 minutes of walking he started walking REALLY cautiously and stopping and squatting down to look under the trees. So of course we followed his lead, and looked so funny, all crouched down together peering around. The other volunteer gave our guide the new name of "African ninja." That's exactly what he reminded me of. THEN, he put his fingers to his lips (to tell us to be vewy qwiet) and he pointed straight ahead of us to where a whole line of elephants was walking by about 50 yds away. It was breathtaking! We were in awe. I started counting, one big, one baby, a teenager, another baby, another big, another medium...and then the first one turned towards where we were standing and her ears waved out really big. Then the other big one did too. Then they all turned and started coming our way! We gasped and when I turned to our guide to see what we were supposed to do he was gone! He had taken off running with the other guy with the stick! So me and the other girl and her mom high-tailed it out of there. My heart was in my throat. I kept thinking to myself, "as long as we don't feel the ground shaking, the elephants probably aren't running after us, so we should be ok." But of course images of us getting trampled by a whole herd of elephants were running through my mind. I thought "what will I do if they catch up to us? climb a tree? oh, why didn't I brush up on 'what to do if being chased by elephants' before I came?!!" It was exhilarating! We finally caught up to our guides, who were crouched down by the side of the river, and they said maybe we can go back to camp and wait for them there. Yeah, thanks African ninja! So we went back and got a beer and looked through the excellent pictures they took of the elephants. In total there were 13! Just walking in the wild! After 2 beers our African ninja came over to us and pointed at where 2 more were walking right by the camp. Soooo cool. I'll post the pics after I get them uploaded.

Tubabu time;)

2007-05-27T06:46:00.000-05:00

Well, so far so good. When I got to the meeting at 3pm there were 23 girls waiting quietly and patiently for me - 3 of whom did not attend the previous meeting. 3 girls showed at 3:15 and 4 more at 3:30 - all got the boot (Ashauna you wouldn't have made the cuts;)
I gave them a survey to fill out and bring back on Monday - to guage what they know, what they don't, what they want to learn/discuss. Generaly speaking girls here are not outspoken (basically the opposite of me), so I gave them a questionnaire to think about and write in the answers. It prevents them from having to speak in front of everyone...obviously one skill we will be working on this summer. Before long there will be a bunch of mini-me's running around this place with all kinds of priceless knowledge speaking their minds, standing up for themselves, being assertive...respectfully of course. And I promise to watch my mouth this time - don't need a bunch of sailors running around;)
In other news:
It's been hot (the rains are few and far between).
I've been sick again.
Same stuff different day in chez moi.

I hope everyone has a lovely Memorial Day weekend. Love you all!

Watch it sailor!

2007-05-23T05:51:00.000-05:00

Before I came to Burkina it could have been said that I could have been known to let a cuss word slip here or there. I’m not gonna lie, I didn’t have the cleanest mouth in the world. Fast forward 8 months, add to that this crazy heat, the slew of stressors we deal with here, AND the fact that no one knows English (or if they do, they certainly don’t know slang or the cuss words) and you have the perfect recipe for yours truly walking around with (I hate to admit it) the mouth of a sailor. I’m not proud of it. And I’m not trying to make excuses. It’s a stress reliever for me. I don’t know why, but it relieves tension to say “What the f@*%!” sometimes…or daily. Well, it has caught up with me. Oh man, in the funniest way.
I teach English to this adorable 20-yr old soccer player named Issouf. He is originally from Burkina but grew up in Ivory Coast. His dad died before he was born and his mom died when he was 2. Safi sort of adopted him when she lived in Ivory Coast and brought him back here when she came here - she pays for his housing and food and basically plays the role of family in his life. Issouf speaks Moore (a local African language), French and Arabic, but is only literate in Arabic. I’ve been working with him since February. We meet every night at 8pm to review what I have already given him and then add a little more. He is so intelligent and he works really hard. Everyday he tells me how excited he is to speak the good English. So a few nights ago we’re going through some vocab words, and he is getting them right one after the other. It’s so exciting to watch someone learn what you teach them. I was giving him the French word and he was giving me the English word. It went like this:

Me: pomme
Issouf: apple
Me: marcher
Issouf: to walk
Me: good job! chapeau
Issouf: hat
Me: jeudi
Issouf: thursday
Me: very good! croire
Issouf: to believe
Me: vouloir
Issouf: (after thinking for a few seconds) f*ck

I literally fell out of my chair laughing. I couldn’t help myself. He said it with the straightest face. I was crying! And he had NO CLUE what I found so funny. He was so confused. So I composed myself and asked him again, and after thinking for a few seconds he said it again!! Oh my gosh! I almost didn’t recover after that one. We had to move on to the next word, and of course after that I had the giggles for the rest of the night. Oh man. I gotta watch my mouth…and try to undo the damage I’ve done! Freaking Nanette!

On to another topic…I had my first meeting for my girls’ club yesterday. I requested 10 and 26 showed up – aged 12-24. I’m thinking of making 2 clubs – one for the young ones and one for the older ones. The issues facing each age group are different enough to have 2 groups. And smaller groups are more manageable anyways. One aspect of West African culture that drives me crazy is the lack of importance placed upon doing anything “on time.” I’m not even sure that phrase exists in this place. It is common to have people showing up to a 3pm meeting at 4:30pm. It makes me wonder how anything gets accomplished. It is maddening to someone from a society that is driven by time. So I explained the importance of being “on time” to my club and told them that anyone who shows up a minute after 3pm won’t be allowed to stay in the club. We’ll see how this little trial works. It will probably blow up in my face and I’ll have no one in the club. I’ll let you know how it goes;)

You gotta ask the right questions.

2007-05-17T13:34:00.000-05:00

When I leave this place I will be an expert in the art of asking the right questions. Before I came here I heard many, many stories from other volunteers who didn't find out very important information about their jobs or their community or their projects until the end of their service. It's common here (and apparently in other countries where Peace Corps exists) for people to not get the entire story or all the information (pertinent or otherwise). I don't want to say people are lying, just not giving all the information; not necessarily withholding, just not giving more than you ask for...which leads to the reason I will be an expert in asking the RIGHT questions.
Those of you who know me well (or just know me) know that I am direct (to put it nicely). I say exactly what I mean, no beating around the bush, no sugar-coating. Some people consider this a flaw, while others consider it an asset. Whatever the case, that's the way I like to be dealt with. As luck would have it, that's not the Burkinabe way...at all. It's actually the exact opposite. My organization is large and has A LOT going on. They are motivated and hard-working and aspire to be something big a great one day. Being the accountant I am (whether I fit the prototype or not) almost the first thing I requested from my organization was financial information for the organization in its entirety. 6 months later I am 200% sure that I do not know everything this organization does. I have studied all the words in french that I think might be able to convey exactly what it is I'm trying to get my hands on - all, everything, complete, entire, the whole lot, each and every one, altogether. I find out a little more each day. It is exhausting. It goes against my grain. Maybe a lesson in being indirect; definitely a lesson in patience.
I've been crazy busy with my organization since I got back. They have some big and exciting things going on and I'm doing my best to help them where they need me. I'm also starting a girls club for this summer in my neighborhood for girls aged 12-18 (the prime age range to drop out, get pregnant, make less than desireable choices for their futures) to address a lot of the issues facing girls in this country - career planning, financial management, sex ed, family planning and just provide a forum for them to discuss what's going on in their lives and answer questions they may have. I'm having a lot of successful women from Bobo come to speak with them to provide the girls with local role models who could potentially serve as mentors for them. It's going to be fun and hopefully will benefit the girls somehow.
That's what's happening with me. Sorry this wasn't funny - maybe next time.

Trouble on the homefront - Part II

2007-05-08T09:35:00.000-05:00

So my journey back to site almost did me in;) As I mentioned in the previous blog, the weather was unusually cool for the first 2 days I was back, oh it was so nice it made me wonder what I was so worried about coming back here…that all came to an abrupt end the morning I woke up at 5am to make it to the bus station to try to get on the first bus back home (the logic being that if I take the first bus leaving at 7:30am it won’t get toooo hot until just as I am arriving in Bobo at 12:30). In addition, I paid a little more to get an air-conditioned bus. That morning started out at about 100F and just increased from there. Add that to the fact that the air-conditioning was broken on my bus (shocker – and no, they don’t give reimbursements for that, freakin’ Africa;), AND the guy sitting next to me may have been the largest man in this country, AND I had been in country just long enough to get my system irregular again (no, there are no toilets on the bus – toilet…what’s that?), and you have the perfect equation for the trip from hell. Of course when I got here I had to go through 4 taxi drivers before I found one that would only charge me 4 times the real rate (it had to be the suitcase!) and then once we got close to my house complained that I lived too far and that he would have to charge me more. He got that whole day’s worth of American curse words and a little French attitude to go with it. Needless to say, he did not get any more money out of me.

Thank God Aissa was here and after 100 questions about America and China and my family and friends and how everyone was doing and how was the weather and on and on, helped me clean my house. Oh my gosh it was so dirty I had to wait until the next day to do the laundry.

Before I left I think I wrote about the president of my association moving out of the courtyard down the street because she and her husband were disagreeing about some things. I thought that after being gone a month she would have moved back and everything would be A.O.K. That is definitely not the case. She still lives down the street, so after cleaning my house I went to talk with her. Here’s how the conversation went:

Safi: Nanette! Welcome! How are you?

Me: Hi! I’m great.

Safi: How is your father?

Me: He’s great.

Safi: How is your mother?

Me: She’s great.

Safi: How is your sister?

Me: She’s great.

Safi: How is your brother?

Me: He’s great.

Safi: How are your friends?

Me: They are great.

Safi: How is America?

Me: It’s great.

Safi: How is China?

Me: It’s great.

Safi: Great. Why didn’t you call me from America?

Me: Ok, what? Anyway, how are things here?

Safi: Things are great!

Me: Are there any problems?

Safi: There are no problems.

Me: But you still live here. What’s up with that? When are you coming back?

Safi: Never.

Me: Never?

Safi: Yes, my husband is very mean, apparently he has another wife in another city and a total of 9 other kids besides mine. My father came to talk to him about many things, but he will not change. We are getting divorced. It will be final in 4 days.

Me: Ummm, ok, I see you’ve been busy while I was away. So I will be living in the courtyard with your ex-husband?

Safi: Oh yes! There is no problem with that!

Me: Really.

I guess we’ll chalk this one up to irreconcilable differences? What the heck??? Talk about freaking awkward! I didn’t even know people got divorced here. So his other wife, who also lives in the courtyard where I live (I love this woman), comes to me today and asks if I know about Safi. I told her I did and she asks me why Safi gets to leave and she doesn’t! Grrrrrrr.

At times like these we focus on things we are thankful for:

1. That I’m not one of the wives of this freaking man trying to get the heck out of here.

2. That I didn’t end up needing the toilet that wasn’t there on my bus ride here.

3. That my latrine is only 32 steps from my front door (and not, say, 100 because there would have been some accidents my friends!) – guess I’m making up for lost time;)

4. That the taxi man didn’t understand English.

5. That my electricity is finally on today (after days of 100F+ with no fan – I don’t know how those volunteers in villages without electricity do it!!)

6. That it’s really cheap to get both bike tires fixed at the mechanic who lives just down the street.

7. That I was not a child soldier (I’m reading A Long Way Gone – Memoirs of a Boy Soldier by Ishmael Beah who was in Sierra Leone during their war…I highly recommend it!)

8. That my headphones still work even though I dropped them into the bucket I was washing my clothes in! It was an accident! Woohooo, now that’s quality merchandise!

9. That I brought back enough M&M’s to keep the neighborhood kids bouncing at least until the end of the week;)

My thoughts and prayers go out to Debi Egan (and her kids) who completely unexpectedly lost her husband of 29 years last week. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen 2 people so in love, and after so many years of marriage! God works in mysterious ways. She’s such a special woman. May He give her strength to get through this difficult time and continue to brighten people’s lives everyday.

I love you all, my family and friends!

Oh man how time flies!!

2007-05-03T02:08:00.000-05:00

To say the least, my time home was pretty amazing. I have THE BEST support network ever. I had such a great time seeing my friends and family. I didn't get to see everyone and for that I apologize. Time went by so fast...all the way up until my last night home (which ended up being my first all-nighter since college - sorry about that dad, and thank goodness for 24-hr Wal-mart!). I am now back in Burkina readjusting to life here. God hooked up some UNUSUALLY cool days to help in my transition back here. It's really nice. I have slept under the stars for the past couple of nights and can't convey just how awesome that is. I will be posting again as often as possible. Thanks for keeping up with me!

It's been a long time...

2007-04-19T23:34:00.000-05:00

I've been out of this for a while, so I'll get you up to speed. Let's back it up a little...Coming home was fantastic (see prior post). I spent my first week home remembering my old easy life - driving anywhere I wanted to go, taking showers though I'm not REALLY dirty (because I now know what REALLY dirts means), seeing and talking to my friends and fam at will, and eating all the good food this country has to offer. Here's one of me with my girls Amber and Ashauna out on my first weekend home. Such great times!

Then I went to Shanghai and life accelerated a little. Everything is fast in Shanghai - quite the opposite of Burkina. We went sightseeing, hit some good restaurants, caught a great concert.
Me with my brother at the Bund downtown Shanghai. It was freeeezing!
The view from my brother's balcony. Breath taking.
And the view from his bathroom. What 25 things in this picture indicate you're not in Burkina anymore?

And now I'm back for America in April - Phase II.

People keep asking me if I want to go back to Burkina now that I'm home and it wasn't until last night that I truly thought "I need to get back there." I got off the plane from China, took a shower to get ready to meet some friends out and started to worry about what I was going to wear. Reality check - who cares? 2 weeks in and I'm back to worrying about the stuff I hated worrying about before I left. Man, life in Burkina is not easy - it's freakin' hard! But that's why I went there in the first place. Yeah, I gotta get back to the simple life where it's harder to forget the important things in life.

To all my fellow volunteers toughing it out in April in Burkina right now - keep up the good work! I know it's hot, but you're helping to make somebody's life a little better and that's what it's really all about.

Oh it's goooooooood

2007-04-04T18:49:00.000-05:00

I made it home safely and I must say it is gooooooood! I wasn't on U.S. soil for more than 20 minutes before I had a grande nonfat chai at Starbucks in the JFK airport. That's the way to start it off right!!! I have a new temporary cell number for those who want to get in touch while I'm here...(317) 796-0968. Things are fantastic so far! It's frrrreeeeeezing, but other than that everything is perfect! I had sushi tonight and am standing on carpet (these feet haven't touched carpet in 6 months and it feels so good - it's the little things I miss:) and I am in heaven.

To those in the U.S. - call me!
To those in Burkina - you should be sooooo jealous;) miss you guys!

I'm outta here

2007-04-01T16:11:00.000-05:00

I am officially on vaca. I get home Tuesday night, so get at me sometime while I'm home.
I have been looking forward to this trip for a long time - in part because I was sick for so long and it's just nicer to be in familiar territory when you're sick, and in part because I miss my fam and friends like crazy. But a couple of times as I was saying my goodbyes to everyone here I felt the early signs of maybe missing this place while I'm gone. I know! Call me crazy!

Things I may not miss:
1. 108F in my bedroom last week (I'm not exaggerating people, we are talking AFRICA hot!)
2. biking through town in the blazing sun (please consider #1 above when imagining how sweaty I get when biking) arriving at my destination covered head to toe in dirt (I'm relatively sure I have redefined "dirty" here)
3. drinking water that is the same temp as my house (please see #1 above)
4. being sick (please also consider #1 above)

But then there are the things I will miss...

Deep in contemplation...how can you not love him?
These are my little angels;)
Musicians and dancers - you couldn't pay to see it this good in the states. They are amazing!
It took 7 photo attempts (7!!!) to get them to smile. And even then I couldn't get the little girl in the middle (without a shirt) to crack. Isn't she the most adorable!!
Need I say more?

Burkina pics

2007-03-17T15:52:00.000-05:00

1. This is the cutest little girl who was at a gardening project we were visiting. A Burkina organization fenced off (to keep the roaming animals out) a field and divided it into 10 gardens (for local families to grow food for their families to eat and to sell) and built a well that supplies all the water for the gardens. And then the family has to pay back the costs over time witht he profits from selling the produce. Very interesting project...but not half as interesting as the little girl with the cup as big as she is;)
2. Here she is walking up the path with her mom. All in a day's work.
3. Can you tell I love the kids here. They are so frickin' adorable!
4. Here's a lady who works at a chicken coup who was so sweet and happy. When we got the cameras out, she jumped right up and smiled. Love it.
5. A formation teaching us about micro-lending (lending small loans for small businesses - growing and selling vegies, sewing, grinding up flour, peanuts, etc for cooking)

Pics with me

2007-03-17T15:46:00.000-05:00

1. Me with my yoga instructor. He is fantastic! (it took 3 shots to get him to smile)
2. Me with some other volunteers at Mexican night at our boss's house - we try to keep it diverse:) Yuuuum.
3. This is me and Audrie tonight - it's St. Patrick's day and a lot of people wrote "Kiss me I'm Irish on their bodies," but Audrie is not Irish so she wrote "I'm a mutt." Peace Corps makes people do strange things.
4. Me with Mark - our token Filipino (he's here in the bureau with me right now, so I felt obliged to add him:)

Ok ladies, let's go fishing

2007-03-15T23:45:00.002-05:00

You know the old saying "buy a man a fish, feed him for a day; teach a man to fish, feed him for a lifetime." That basically sums up the first mission of the Peace Corps. We are here to build human capacity instead of handing out cash (like a lot of NGO's do, and many times it ends up wasted, stolen, etc) or building buildings (that sit empty cluttering the horizon because they couldn't be maintained) because somebody wanted to "make an impact" or have something that shows how they helped Africa. But here another concept has been identified that could be added to the saying...something like "teach a woman to fish, feed the next generation." The point being that while an educated man can go out and work and provide for his family, an educated woman will educate her children. I have never been a supporter of helping a category of people based on sex, race, religion. I don't believe in organizations/associations/whatever established to promote any one category of people - whether it be women, catholics, African Americans. As far as I'm concerned we are all human - and though we weren't all born equally, I think we should be treated equally. I don't think anyone needs handouts or special recognition nor do I think someone should get a job or a scholarship just because they happened to be born Latino or Jewish or whatever. In addition, I don't think Africa needs the rest of the world to hand them money because they are poor. The people here are perfectly capable of fixing their own problems and giving money only teaches people to be creative in ways to get more money rather than addressing the underlying problems. The only way I think a difference can be made is through education. So...since I do agree with the notion that an educated woman will most likely pass education on to her children AND since I was placed with a women's association here in Burkina, I am having less of a problem with focusing my efforts here on educating women.
Thanks for listening to me work this issue out via blogspot. I hope everyone is fantastic. I miss you all and will be home in 16 days...I can taste the Starbucks already;)

Leah - I still have all the teeth I came here with.
Brent - My thumbs are in the same condition as when I arrived back in Sept.
Fear not my friends! On the whole I am the same on the outside...it's the inside that's having the makeover. Toodles!

Quickie

2007-03-12T20:40:00.000-05:00

1. Me with my host mom - love her love her love her
2. This was me (and some other volunteers) in the back of a taxi setting records in this country tonight - we got 9 in this hatch-back taxi - not including the driver and not including anyone riding in the hatch-back. phenomenal!

Mid-training update

2007-03-11T07:45:00.000-05:00

My first week of training was fantastic! It has been wonderful to see all my co-volunteers with whom I came here from Philly and spent the first 2 months in Burkina. We started with 39, 1 girl left in October, 3 girls left in January, and 1 girl left in February (some were medically related and others just didn't want to stay here). That's not so bad considering the circumstances (i.e. Burkina Faso). And the rest of us seem to be getting along nicely at our sites. We all have our struggles, but on the whole people seem happy and motivated.
Of course it was so great to spend time with my host family too. They really are fantastic. This week we will spend in the capital city visiting various NGO's (non-governmental organizations) with which we could potentially collaborate on projects at our sites. Now that I'm back to 100% health I'll be ramping up the workouts this week and taking advantage of the pool (at the Embassy) and the great food here in Ouaga - life is all about timing my friends:)

When I read other people's blogs I notice that lists seem to be great way to present a decent amount of information while still providing maximum humor (kind of like David Letterman's top 10). So I started a list of things you can get here for 100CFA (the equivalent of 20 cents in America according to my last exchange rate check). So here goes...
1. 1 bike tire repaired (I should know)
2. 1 small bag of cashews
3. 1 pack of lotus (the small packs of kleenex that serve as our toilet paper)
4. 4 tomatoes
5. 1 thumb sewn back on at the local health clinic
6. 1 calabash (see the half-shell bowl looking things that I hung on my wall in my house - pictures are a few posts back) - these are often used for drinking dolo (the local made beer)
7. 3 carrots
8. 2 wicker baskets
9. 1 watermelon
10. 1 day of parking your bike at the internet cafe
11. 2 teeth pulled at the local health clinic
so this is my top 11 things that you can buy here for only 20 cents each! I would say that's a bargain!

The countdown is getting exciting!! Almost in the teens! 20 days and 20 nights! Wooohoooo!!Miss you all!!

Back home again...Burkina syle

2007-03-08T04:59:00.000-06:00

Seeing my host family again after 3 months may be the best feeling I've had since I've been here. Earlier this week they had a small welcome back party for me and when I walked in the door I was overwhelmed with hugs and kisses and smiles and such a sense of peace. I love my host family to pieces. My host mom is her same larger-than-life self going 100 miles per hour. She got her driver's license (for a car - not so common here) while I was gone and made really great improvements with her boutique. What a woman! My host sister turned 9 while I was gone and I swear grew 5 inches. She's gonna be a knockout very soon! My host brother missed my ipod more than anything I'm sure, but I had to put the smack down on him to hit the books in preparation for his big test coming up. Boys - what can you do. My host dad kissed me on each cheek twice and wanted to know every detail about Bobo and my work. You know the priest came over and was asking questions in English and I was responding to all of them in French! They were so impressed with how far I've come with the language. I hadn't realised it until now that I understand most things and can respond easily. They prepared my fav meal for dinner and after dinner my host dad took my hand and told me how much they missed me and that when I left I left a big hole in their hearts and in their lives that only I could fill and that they were so very happy to have me back, but they knew I would leave again and they would feel hollow again. It made me shed a tear because I felt the same. Bobo is good, but this is home for me here in Burkina. Did I mention I love them to pieces? My perfect little Burkinabe family - mom, dad, brother, sister and 2 dogs. Oh my goodness the dogs remembered me and went crazy when I walked in the courtyard - jumping around and wagging their tails ferociously! Sigh. It's good to be home...Burkina style.

Deathbed

2007-03-02T18:46:00.000-06:00

Sorry I've been away for a while. I got amazingly sick last Thursday while visiting a volunteer for her birthday and ended up in the hospital for the week. Fear not, I think I am finally recovering and hope to be back to 100% momentarily. There are not a lot of positives to write about being sick here, so I will just say that the Dr. I saw here was super nice and I'm not dead. The end.
I came to Ouaga yesterday because FESPACO - not sure what it stands for but it is the largest African film festival which is held in Ouaga every other year - is taking place this week. I came in to watch a couple of films on my way up to training back in my host family's city starting Sunday! I am not sure I have to say how super duper happy I am to be going to see my host family again. Love them. I saw Blood Diamond (realtively new movie about the diamond industry in Sierra Leone) today - in French so, needless to say, I didn't understand every word, but I got the message. Man, it's going to be good when I get fluent in this language:) After a week up in my host family's city I will come back to Ouaga for a week, followed by a week in one of my neighboring volunteer's villages, followed by a week back in Bobo, followed by U.S.A.!!!!!!!!!!!!!! woooohoooooo!!! 30 days and 30 nights.

Some pics for your enjoyment

2007-03-02T18:37:00.000-06:00

1. Me with the girls in Banfora.
2. The goats on top of the buses never cease to amaze me.
3. Here are the kids from my organization's daycare center. The little girl with the braids standing by the pole is quite possibly the cutest person in this country. This was a dedication ceremony (UNICEF donated playground equipment to the daycare center that my organization manages) and every time a new song would come on she would jump up and starting dancing and the teacher (at the far right of the picture with her son strapped to her back) would come over and sit her down and then it would happen all over again when the next song came on - like every song was her favorite. She is ADORABLE.
4. Ok, this was mere hours before I wound up on my deathbed (see next post) and, looking back, I wonder if this had anything to do with my sickness...but I really don't think so. This is the pig that Audrie's (American girl standing next to me) village killed and cooked for her birthday celebration. According to the girls it was some gooood eats, but I didn't get to try it.

waterfall pics

2007-03-02T18:31:00.000-06:00

ok sorry for the delay. here they are...
1. a view from the top
2. Leslie and me after we hiked to the top of the falls.
3. Leslie by the falls. It was really hot this day and the water is freeeeezing, so sitting here you get a nice cool mist.
4. People from everywhere come here to cool off. They were having so much fun.
5. Me sitting at the top. Somehow I forgot my fear of heights during this trip. That's an improvement!

les cascades (waterfalls)

2007-02-21T06:11:00.000-06:00

This past weekend I took a little trip to the waterfalls that are situated about an hour (by bus) south of Bobo. There is a chapter in the book I read today (The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants – I generally don’t like fiction, but I needed something entertaining that I could read in one day like watching a movie…man I miss movies…) that starts off with a sentence that exactly conveys what I felt sitting at the top of the falls…”The sunset was too beautiful. It almost made her feel panicked because she couldn’t save it.” She’s talking about a sunset, but I felt the same way listening to the water rushing by me and staring out over the West African horizon. It was B-E-A-U-tiful and so relaxing and I wanted to bottle it up and take it with me to have some everyday and share it with my friends and family. I have felt this way before when I go on trips and see or experience something so spectacular and I want to turn to Steph or Dad or Amber and say “isn’t this beautiful?” Don’t get me wrong, I love doing all these things, I just like to share it with those I love. So the pics will have to do it for you for now…until you come visit me:)
We (me and Leslie, the other volunteer in my waterfalls pictures) took a bus to Banfora and stayed the night, then got up the next morning and biked to the waterfalls located in Karfigula – about 15km away according to the people around these parts, but we are convinced it wasn’t that far. It was a hot day and the water was sooo cold. We spent the day frolicking around the waterfalls, biked back to Banfora, and then I caught a bus back to Bobo. Short trip, but sooooo wonderful.
Couldn't get the pics to upload, so I'll try again Saturday...stay tuned;)
Miss you all! Be home in 40 days and 40 nights:)

Feb pics

2007-02-12T06:38:00.000-06:00

1. Here's my little problem child. I was spying on him having breakfast. He can be so cute when he's not being a devil! Right after this pic he chased the chickens around the courtyard.
2. Muslims praying by a building. They have calls to prayer 4 or 5 times everyday. They just stop, drop and pray - sometimes RIGHT on the side of the street.
3. Me and Leslie last weekend.

Steph - I'm working on getting some good shots of Bobo. It's difficult because as soon as the camera comes out people get crazy and I lose my status as a volunteer and drop right back into the category of "typical American" or "tourist" that I've been trying to hard to shake. I gotta do it on the down low! Stay tuned...

Hello stranger

2007-02-09T12:05:00.000-06:00

Sorry I've been away for a while - just a little sick, but doing better now.
Gotta give it up for those Colts! That made me happy, so happy. I wasn't even able to watch the game and didn't find out about the win until the following afternoon, but it put a smile on my face that lasted a long time - even being sick. Mo, I would love to stick up for you right now sweetheart, but I think you got what you deserved. Gotta be careful when you talk all that smack about a team that was surely not going to win;) Stick with soccer, it's better for you. Ok, I'm done with the football talk.
Steph - yes the kids here are UNBELIEVABELY adorable with all their "s'il vous plaits" and "mercis", but when I have a neighborhood full of them on my doorsteph constantly it kinda takes away that burning desire to start spitting out my own. I am happy just trying to make a positive impact on the ones who are already here. I'll take more pics of them since you like them so much;)
I hope everyone is fantastic! I miss you much. Be home in 53 days...not that I'm counting or anything:)

Question of the day…

2007-02-09T12:03:00.000-06:00

Why is it so much harder for a rich man to give than it is for a poor man?

The other day I saw this lady give a bowl of rice to a beggar. And he turned around and split it with another guy. Here is a guy whose possessions consist of the clothes on his back and he gladly gave half of his meal to someone else. HALF! Yet there is a man wearing a $1,500 suit and $200 shoes who lives in a $500,000 house and has 3 cars and a boat walking down the street with $300 cash in his pocket and cannot manage to give the change in his pocket (not half his cash, not half of the food in his house, not 1 of his 3 cars, just the dimes weighing his pockets down) to a homeless man on the street. Why is that?

What the....?

2007-02-01T06:40:00.000-06:00

I came out of my house yesterday to find this little Miss Sunshine on my front porch. No doubt some relative of Mo's sent to taunt me until Sunday (because after that the Colts will be Superbowl champs!!!!!!). Can't you just hear her..."But Nanette??? Why can't I have a bonbon???? I don't understand!" I know darling. You just can't. You see my girls in the background coming to teach her a lesson (just like the Colts are going to do to the Bears). Get outta here with that mess!
And here are my little Colts fans - notice who isn't in the picture? That's right - we had to have her taken care of!

Ok, these are just jokes!

Attention Colts and Bears fans

2007-01-31T07:18:00.000-06:00

This (in addition to my myspace page) is not the proper forum for superbowl smack-talking. I think you guys probably have plenty of other areas to express your team spirit. Dad, Mo behave!

That being said...

Go Colts! Go Colts! Goooooooo Colts!!!!

Hey! It's MY blog! Thank you for abiding by the rules;) Go Colts.

Random pics

2007-01-31T07:02:00.000-06:00

1. Here's Aissa (my Judo girl) getting some mangoes for us. Not sure why I was suprised that it was hot when I bit into it. Maybe because I've only ever had mango in a smoothie or mixed drink of some sort. Guess when it's 100F outside the mango is going to taste warm - different, but still yummy:)
2. Mdm O #1 - my fav lady in Bobo with her problem child, and then my little stutterer on the right. That's really how all the women carry their kids here. He's a little old, but she still babies him - maybe that's why he's rotten!
3. Me with some other volunteers. The beginning of a wild night in Bobo:)

Alright Steph!! - Here's my house.

2007-01-31T06:52:00.000-06:00

1. Where the magic happens...sleeping of course! without mosquitoes:)
2. Thanks to my friends and fam it looks like Wal-greens exploded on my top shelf. More beauty products than clothes! Oh how times have changed!
3. My "kitchen."
4. My "living room." - same room as kitchen:)
5. This color of blue is probably my least favorite in the world, but that's what it was when I moved in. How does the saying go...volunteers can't be choosers? Something like that:) So I worked with what I had.

C'est la vie.

2007-01-31T06:45:00.000-06:00

Problems on the home front have resulted in Mdm O taking her kids to live with a neighbor a couple of blocks away for a few weeks. When I went to talk to her about it she had a smile on her face and kept saying there’s really not “a problem.” Where I’m from, taking your kids to go stay with a friend for a few weeks usually is the result of some kind of problem. But she just said, “that’s life sometimes.” She wasn’t crying and depressed and making it a bigger deal than it was. She was smiling and friendly and realistic. You do what you have to do and you move on. Tomorrow brings another day. This is life here. Some things are so different and I feel I have so much more to learn from them than I could possibly teach them. Sure I’ll teach them accounting and business management skills, but they are teaching me basic human skills (that so much of America lacks) all the time. Burkinabes generally don’t sit around feeling sorry for themselves. Sure there are problems here - malnutrition, corruption, domestic violence – heck, show me a society that doesn’t have problems. Are their problems any worse than ours? At least people here take care of each other.
I was sitting in my courtyard yesterday cutting up my watermelon and talking with Mdm O (the first wife – my fav woman in this city) and her 20 yr old daughter Aissa (my Judo girl and now my French tutor). They were asking about America and we got on the subject of homeless people. I was telling them that there are many more homeless people in America than there are here. They asked me why and I told them it was because Americans are self-centered and indivualistic. People work and earn money for themselves. And when someone has a lot, they keep it. Here, when someone gets something, they turn and share it with others. It’s almost automatic. I give Aissa a bag of M&Ms (a little individual size!) and she doesn’t open them and eat them or keep them to eat later, she turns and splits them among everyone in the courtyard. (Steph, in this way I feel that you are a little Burkinabe. I don’t know anyone who shares like you do – and you always share the good stuff; the best bite of your sandwich with the middle of the meat and the tomato, not the edge with too much bun; the part of the ice cream that is perfectly mixed with the chocolate chips and the nuts, not just some plain vanilla. You would fit in perfectly here.) Here, beggars come by the courtyard and ask for food or money and people give what they can. If they have an extra 100CFA they give it to them, or if they have prepared some rice, they give them a bowl. They don’t yell at the guy and tell him to get a job or ask him why he is in the situation he is in. Maybe they don’t care, or maybe they know that could be them or their brother some day and would want someone to take care of them. They don’t sit around and theorize that if you feed these people it will only perpetuate “the problem.” Whatever the case, they take care of them because that’s what people do. And wouldn’t you know it, just then a guy comes to the door and they look at me and tell me that he is a beggar. I thought to myself, why hadn’t I noticed them before? People are always stopping by the courtyard – some are friends and apparently some are beggars – and I’ve never been able to distinguish between them before. I’m pretty sure that’s the way it’s supposed to be. So I gave him the rest of my watermelon.
A girl that finished her service just as I was getting here wrote an article about the Burkinabe culture and things that we could learn from them. Below are the highlights:
They take care of each other.
They live with the environment and use what they need – not in excess.
Families live together – aunts and uncles and cousins grow and share their lives together.
Children are raised by the community – every adult is their aunt or uncle.
People here don’t have much, but they are generally happy.
Psychological disorders are rare – many don’t know what depression means.
When there is a conflict, they resolve it, forgive and forget in order to maintain peace.
People greet one another – quite literally, everyone!

I have to admit, I’m growing pretty fond of this place;)

4 months down

2007-01-25T03:23:00.000-06:00

So I've been in this country for 4 months now and here are a few observations:

Happens every day…I’m riding my bike down the street and I come upon a group of 5-6 guys sitting on the street corner in my neighborhood (or the next neighborhood or downtown or anywhere for that matter – it’s never hard to find a group of 5-6 guys sitting on a street corner). They are just staring at me (all of them, without fail) and what, from my experience in the states, I would refer to as mean-mugging me – straight mean-mugging. But I know better because they aren’t like that here. So I say “Bonjour” or “Bonsoir” and all at the same time they are smiling and waving and yelling “Bonjour! Bonsoir! Ca va? Et la famille? Et la journee?” and on and on and on. Happens every day, on just about any corner. It’s like it has to be silence until I say go and then they race to see who can get the most words in before I ride out of earshot. It’s so bizarre! It makes me giggle. And I wonder, what are they thinking when they are just staring at me? Are they waiting for me to saluate them? Are they waiting for me to fall down or something? Are they wondering where I’m going, what I’m doing, why I’m in their country? Some are because they ask after I greet them. They never speak first. The only people that speak first are the kids who are responsible for letting everyone around know that there’s a white person in the vicinity and the guys (usually walking alone) that want to sell me something or become “friends” or what-have-you. Women never speak to me until I speak first.

I have also noticed that when I decide to walk from our Peace Corps office here in Bobo to downtown or from downtown back to the office (which is about a 20 minute walk one way) I never walk far before I have someone more than happy to walk along with me, as far as I am going that day. So far they have been really nice guys just gathering information about me, and I satisfy their curiousity because it’s nice to have someone to walk with and talk with sometimes. I wonder if I just kept on walking right out of downtown to the edge of the city and then out “en brusse” if they would keep going with me. I’ll test this at a future time.

Most everyone I come in contact with assumes I am French at first. They don’t get a bunch of Americans in these parts I guess. But when they find out that I’m American it’s like well that changes everything. Many request that I take them back with me when I leave. I tell them I’ll think about it over the next 2 years and get back to them. Everyone wants to go to the land of everything – oh America.

So I was out in the city last week and some guy comes up to me and is talking a mile a minute about how beautiful I am (good Lord that is a stretch!) and do I have a cell phone because he would really love to have my number and blah blah blah and oh I’m American, well he really would like to marry me. So I stopped and I looked at him and smiled and then told him that I would really love to marry him but that I already have one husband in the U.S. and one in France and one in Burkina and that I’m only allowed to have one per country. Really wish I would have had my camera out for that one. The look on his face was priceless. I think the ridiculousness of each of our stories was about equal – what do you think? Sometimes ya gotta have a little fun, right?

Christmas in January!

2007-01-20T07:04:00.000-06:00

I went to the post office today to find 4 packages waiting for me! I don’t know why, but when it rains it pours here! And it was such the greatest day to receive these! I am right now sitting in my house in what can only be described as a Target explosion! I have been opening and unwrapping things for the last 45 minutes and now I sit amidst all the things I forgot I liked so much! I am surrounded by so many wonderful things that my friends and family so thoughtfully sent halfway around the world for me and I feel soooo loved. Gosh, everyone is so great!

First of all, to my amazing co-workers at Blue, you guys are wonderful! I knew when I was there that I worked with the most fantastic people in the world, and this just proves that again and again! I love you guys. Shawn - the picture of you and Kara and Barklie is hanging on my wall. You guys look so happy and beautiful! Lisa – of course I should have known you would be concerned with my dental health! You are such a sweet person! The card is really really nice (and also on my wall), and the tea if perrrrrfect. The books were a really great idea. April - you are adorable. I have already started The Pursuit of Happyness. The lip gloss and shampoo and shower gel (which is now bucket bath gel) and the tank tops and the nail polish and the BURT’S BEES stuff is all so fantastic!!! I am going to look (and smell) like a girl again! Oh my gosh I forgot this stuff existed. Thank you thank you thank you everyone for thinking of me and going through the trouble to get this stuff together and send it all the way here. I really do appreciate it!

Teresa - my favorite Martha Stewart clone! I could smell your package before they even brought it out of the back room of the post office! You have thought of everything – from the fruit roll-ups to the little bottle of wine (I miss getting together with you, but we will catch up when I’m home in April). And packed it so professionally! Thank you so much for thinking of me during the hectic holiday season and sending this stuff. Your wedding pictures are also on my wall. You look absolutely beautiful! I am really sad I couldn’t be there for it. It looks amazing! Thank you so much for sending the pictures.

Diana - you are the best. Thank you so much for the goodiesJ It is exactly what I needed. All of it. Perfect.

And Steph – as always, you come through like a champ with everything from protein shakes all the way down to Betty’s Christmas cookies. I love you.

When I go to the post office, or anywhere in this city, I ride my bike. When I receive 4 packages in the mail, the only way to get them home is to strap them to the bike and pedal them home. So I was able to put the 2 packages sent in envelopes in my bookbag and then I strapped the 2 boxes to the back of my bike. I was just pedaling along, thinking how lucky I am to have so many great, thoughtful friends and just having a good day when, as I was going through a busy intersection, the boxes fell off the back of my bike. It didn’t even occur to me to get upset or frustrated. I just picked the boxes up and walked them and my bike to the other side of the intersection and for 10 minutes (during which 4 different people approached me and offered to help) tried to find the best way to restrap them on my bike. As I was standing there I thought how I would have been so self-conscious in the U.S. if this happened. I would care who saw me and how stupid I looked. But it didn’t occur to me to care here. And that’s a great feeling!

Fear not, everything arrived safely at my house and now I am going to go take a bath and wash (and condition) my hair and put lotion and deodorant (which I always wear anyway - come on, I'm not THAT out of touch with being a woman:) and lip gloss on and paint my toenails and brush my teeth with this whitening expressions toothpaste and drink some tea while I read my book – thanks to my friends and family! I love you guys!

No doesn't always mean no...kind of

2007-01-18T05:12:00.000-06:00

My brother’s girlfriend (Jenny – who moved to Shanghai, China with him just after I came to Africa) posted a blog (http://johnandjeninchina.blogspot.com) this week that made me think about the fact that no doesn’t always mean no (similar to “yes doesn’t always mean yes” – see prior post). My brother and Jenny are going through many of the same experiences I have been (frustrations with differences between cultures, amusing language mistakes, and a ton of things that just don’t make sense…to us), even though they are in China and I am in Africa. This post is dedicated to John and Jen in China – you are not alone mes amis.

This particular situation has actually happened more than once. I am at a restaurant with a few other volunteers. On the menu for breakfast they have plain bread, omelettes, and omelette sandwiches (which is just plain bread with an omelette on it). I order an omelette sandwich and the waiter tells me “c’est fini” which means “it’s finished,” or “there are none.” (This expression is one of the many Peace Corps jokes because we get this response to the strangest requests…for instance, at the gas station we pull up for gas and they tell us “c’est fini!” or we go to the market for eggs or bananas or just about anything and on any given day you get “c’est fini.” Oh, ok, so all the eggs in Burkina Faso are gone? Yes. Thank you. It’s unbelievable, because the next day they have them. But that’s just my reaction because I come from the land of plenty where there is always gas and there are always eggs.) Ok, back to the waiter…so I ask him if they have eggs and he says yes, so I get an omelette. Then he moves on to the next person at the table who asks if they have just plain bread and he says yes! Ok, hold up, so you have eggs and you have bread, but the omelette sandwich “c’est fini?” He responds, “yes.” Ok, then I would like to order just an omelette and just plain bread, separately – which, by the way, costs the same as an omelette sandwich. Ok, that is fine. Arrrrgh! It’s just one of the many things I come across daily in this country that does not make sense to me. It seems logical if they have bread and they have eggs that they would be able to provide an omelette sandwich. But it is not so. I used to get really confused and wonder if I was missing something, but have since given up and just accepted that this is the way it is sometimes. Oh Burkina.

Ok Jen – there ya go. I hope you get your cold sprite (at McDonalds - please keep in mind that you are lucky to have McDonalds and KFC) next time without the 15 minute debateJ

Trip to village

2007-01-18T05:08:00.000-06:00

(Ok, sorry the pics are out of order - I really suck at this!)

Well I made it to village and back (with the help of my friend dragging me onto the bus…if that’s what you want to call it…to get there). But I am happy I went. I had the best time. Her village is only 60 km away, but it takes 2 ½ hours to get there because the road is so horrible. Let’s start from the beginning. The transportation we used to get there can only be described as Jed Clampitt’s (from the Beverly Hillbillies) OLD truck (see pic #4 above). It was essentially a ridiculously old pick-up type truck with a cover to pack all the luggage on top. We had to stop every 40 minutes to put water in the radiator (I’m guessing since I am no mechanic). The driver could turn the steering wheel a complete turn before it would catch the wheel – so he was basically turning that thing back and forth over and over the whole trip. The very good thing about this trip was that my friend negotiated for us to sit in the cab with the driver – just me, her and the driver. I say this was a good thing, but it also meant that we could see the road ahead and that was scary. It is amazing to me how they travel that road (if you can even call it that) day after day. It’s safe to say I feared for my life approximately 4 times during the 3 hour ride – maybe “feared for my life” isn’t the correct phrase to use, but I definitely thought we were going to tip over – partly due to the road conditions and partly due to the vehicle conditions...oh Burkina. And there are these guys who ride on top of the vehicle. They are there to load and unload the goods up top – we had 3 bags and 2 bicycles between the two of us; I saw them put a motorcycle up there and then the baggage for the other 15 passengers in the back. I see these guys all the time on all kinds of trucks in this country. Some trucks have as many as 30 guys on top! Ours only had 3 or 4 maybe – who knows, I wasn’t leaning out the window trying to look – but at least that many hopped down at one time or another.

So we finally arrived, unloaded our stuff, and headed to the market to greet her co-workers (and the rest of the village). I think she told me there are approximately 8,000 in her village, and I’m quite sure I met all of them – or at least they saw me. I’m kidding, but it was like being center stage the entire time. I live in a city where there are always a few foreigners running around so I am less of an anomaly, but in the village there is just her (and we’ve only been here for 6 weeks, so she’s relatively new). So when I showed up it was an event. This was the same girl I was supposed to visit a few weeks ago and couldn’t get on the bus (if you can call it that). She had told them I was coming and then I didn’t, so I essentially stood her and the village up. I really have never been in a situation where I am stared at from every direction. Wherever we went in village there were people around, and they would stop what they were doing and just look. At any given time I could count 6-10 people just looking at me – from down the block, from across the street, from 2 feet away, everywhere. That took a little getting used to. Of course the people were super friendly (most people in this country are) and they seemed happy to put the face with the name.

Her village is absolutely beautiful. There is a river and rice fields and a mango grove (where we went running every morning - see pic #1 above). It was quiet and relaxing and when the sun set I got to see the magnificent starry sky I’ve been waiting to see since I got here. It is impossible to put into words the magnificence of the black night lit up by a zillion stars. I loved it. We rode our bikes to a neighboring village to visit a potential partner organization. More than a few times along the way I had to remind myself that I am getting paid to ride my bike through the West African countryside! It was beautiful!

Monday afternoon we met one of her co-workers for lunch (if you can call it that). We ordered a couple of beers (see pic #2 above) and then he ordered some food for us – which ended up being “rat de brusse.” From the sound of it we decided it was some type of rodent, and it’s impolite to turn down meat, so we ate it! I’m still not 100% sure what it was, and it was good up until I looked down and saw that I was about to take a bite of a claw at which point I lost my appetite. All in a days work here in Burkina.

It was really a great trip. I’m going back in February because we have decided to bike the road from her village to Bobo – 60 km. It might take a while…actually it might be faster than that truck we took! Stay tuned for that story in Feb.

Pic #3 above is a beautiful African sunset - on the toughest days this seems to make everything ok.

Care packages

2007-01-12T08:46:00.000-06:00

I have received a lot of emails about what I want in care packages. If you are planning to send me one and haven't yet, hold off and let's just do lunch when I'm home in April (or dinner or breakfast - heck my schedule is open. oooh, or Starbucks. how I miss Starbucks...). I'm going to be gone to training during the month of March and then home for April and I don't want any packages sitting here that long, especially during those months because it is CRAZY hot here during that time. Thank you for your desire to help me out. Can't wait to see everyone when I'm home.

Pictures encore

2007-01-12T08:25:00.000-06:00

1. This is just a really cool picture taken by one of my co-volunteers.
2. This is the bus I took to a village with one of my friends last week. This is a really great bus and it was only half-full. Super comfy ride - not at all like the bush taxi I couldn't take.
3. This is an everyday site here. The donkey carts are used to haul stuff around. Notice the lady in the background pumping water. I don't have to do that because I actually have a water spicket in my courtyard, but most of the other volunteers have to do this to get water. It's a workout (so I hear).

Back from Ouaga

2007-01-12T08:21:00.000-06:00

My stay in the capital city ended up being twice as long as originally planned, so when I returned home yesterday I got quite the welcome. People were kissing me on my cheeks and telling me how much they missed me and how happy they were that I was back. The kids came from everywhere and for a split second I thought to myself, “Wow, they are really happy to see me.” But I know better…so out came the bonbons and they were literally squealing with delight. I think it was Jenny that sent me Pop Rocks (great idea!) and I decided to give them to the kids today along with the lollipops. I’m pretty sure they thought it was Christmas all over again (well, they would have if people here got presents on Christmas like we do in the U.S. – but you get the analogy). I had to recheck the ingredients on the wrapper because I would have sworn that those were straight crack. They were literally hopping around like bunnies. Poor things must have been going through terrible withdrawals while I was away. It was hilarious.

Today was an awesome day. The weather was absolutely beautiful; it was sunny and there was a light steady breeze all day and it was the perfect temperature; I got to talk to my sister twice (thanks for calling Steph); I washed my clothes on my front porch while I listened to jazz music; I finished a great book about the life of a phenomenal neurosurgeon at Johns Hopkins – Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story…read it if you get the chance. It was an awesome day.

I was sitting under the mango tree looking up at the clear blue sky wondering why today seemed so great and I realized that it was just so quiet and peaceful. Then I realized that I had not seen the man of this compound (Mr. O) since I got back yesterday afternoon, which is odd because he is ALWAYS around. I could just feel a sense of peacefulness from everyone. The courtyard was vacant this afternoon and I was sitting under the tree when Mdm O (the first wife) came and sat with me. The concept of living in the courtyard with a polygamous family was annoying to me at first, but I have really taken a liking to the first wife. She is the sweetest woman. She works and works from way before I wake up in the morning until after I go to sleep at night. She is patient and easy-going and her face always lights up when I come around and she always says, “Oh, Nanette.” But she also keeps her little problem child in check (at least when she’s at home). I always try to keep her laughing because she has the best smile. So she sat next to me and we just talked for a while. Then she brought out her photo album to show me. She showed me pictures of her mom and brothers and sisters, and then she showed me pictures of her 4 older kids that don’t live here. I’ve only lived here a month, but I’ve been here through the “holidays,” and thought at least one or two of them might “come home” for the holidays. But none showed up. So I asked her if they ever come to visit. She told me they never do because her husband is so mean. When they were growing up he apparently hit them (and her) a lot, so when they moved away they never came back. She asked me if I noticed how he is always mean to the kids, and I had to admit that I have. I haven’t seen anything physical. I’ve actually tried to just not notice him because he’s not nice and I didn’t want to build this disliking towards him, but it is what it is I guess. I asked her if she ever went to see her kids and she said she doesn’t have the money. I ask these questions like they are just common sense…”why don’t you just hop on a bus and go see your sons and daughters like I go see my friends for the weekend.” But it’s just not that easy here. Things that used to seem easy to me just aren’t. “If you want to take a trip, save your money and go.” But she doesn’t have a “job.” She is a mother of 7, with 3 kids still at home. She is the first wife in a compound where she works nonstop, everyday. I used to think, “If you can’t afford 7 kids, don’t have 7 kids.” But many women here don’t have a say in “family planning.” Men have multiple wives that they impregnate at will and they just deal with it. Oh, things used to be so simple. She has a sadness in her eyes that I see a lot here and I hate it. It’s peaceful today because he is not here. Sitting there today, just her and me, under the beautiful blue sky with the wind in the mango trees, I felt so sad for her. I’m used to seeing a problem and fixing it, but how do I fix this? I just want to say, “It doesn’t have to be this way.” Ok Miss Smarty-Pants-Fix-Everything-American…what are you going to do about it then?

And some more...

2007-01-06T12:55:00.000-06:00

1. Soccer game
2. My host mom, brother and sister (how can you not love them!)
3. Me (with braids) with my priest
4. Me last week with the only chiuahua (taco bell dog) in this country. I had a hard time giving him back to his owner.

Tabaski photos (beware)

2007-01-06T12:48:00.000-06:00

Here is the goat killing holiday in its full glory.
1. The boys skinning it.
2. Omar cookin' up the head. (I didn't taste it.)

More pics

2007-01-06T12:42:00.000-06:00

Ok, here are some more for you picture addicts!
1. My gremlins (problem child on far right, my little stutterer on far left, the gremlins in the middle)
2. My house. There's a lot going on here. Please notice the ever-present goats, all the chairs on my front porch where the in-depth conversations take place, the house on the right is where people live, the beautiful mango trees, the green door is the entrance into the courtyard, the door on the left of the picture is the one to my shower:)
3. My monopoly money.

Pictures

2007-01-05T08:17:00.000-06:00

These are pics from back in training, so a little old but better late than never.
1. Me with my favorite dog in this country (I have a story to tell about him. Maybe next time) and the baby goat that always tried to mate with him (also a boy - nobody told him about the birds and the bees I imagine:)
2. Here are the boys we played soccer against - notice his feet...no shoes. These guys are tough!
3. Me with my host mom, sister and dad at a ceremony for them. My host mom ALWAYS dressed nicely like this. I miss her! And how cute is my sister!
Stay tuned...more to come!

Yes doesn't always mean yes

2007-01-05T00:24:00.000-06:00

I have learned when someone nods his head and responds "yes" to the question "do you understand?" that he doesn't always understand. Now that I think about it, I'm pretty sure I was warned about this during training, but I forgot. I'm not sure why they do it. Take, for instance, my (previous) tailor. A couple of weeks ago I went to him and asked him to make me a pair of pants. I provided the material AND a model - I had a pair of pants (my fav) from the states and asked him to make the exact same thing, except a little smaller because the old ones are too big and long (since I don't wear heels anymore:). I said it slowly, multiple times and when I asked if he understood, of course he nodded and said yes he would have them for me at the end of the week. I was so excited to have a pair of pants that were going to fit perfectly, but when I picked them up and tried them on total confusion took over. I am realtively certain he did not even look at the pants I gave him as a model. So I've been back to him a couple of times to "fix" them, but to no real avail, so I'm tailor-hunting now. Another instance was earlier this week. I came into the capital city to get an xray (not broken, no worries:) and had to take a taxi from the bus station to the hostel. First of all, negotiating prices for taxis in the capital city is a NIGHTMARE, 100 times worse than in Bobo. So I explain where I need to go and finally find one who will charge me a reasonable (only 200% of the going rate - heck, after a 5 1/2 hour bus ride, I'll take it). The taxi system here is pretty basic. Essentially, it costs 200CFA in the day time and 300CFA at night to go anywhere within the taxi's "region." (but that is only if you are Burkinabe. Foreigners have to fight for that price and often end up paying 5 times more. I have passed on up to 4 taxis in one day for refusing to give me the going rate. It sucks sometimes!). Sometimes he will take you to the edge of his region, where you have to catch another taxi in the other region. The interesting thing is that the taxi will stop and pick up people along the way (usually people going in the same direction, but not always) until the car is jam packed. In addition, the charge is per person, so if I had 5 people with me all going to the same place, each of us would have to pay the 200 or 300CFA. So I am riding with this taxi guy, who seems pretty nice (I always try to talk to them, mostly they think I'm funny and I even taught one old guy A LOT of english one night on the way home. It makes the ride seem shorter and if they are distracted talking to me, sometimes they forget to pick up more people to sit on my lap:) and he picks up people along the way, and drops them off, and picks more up and drops them off (all while I'm sitting in the front seat right next to him), and after about 25 minutes of driving around he looks at me and asks where I am going. Are you kidding me? Please be reminded that this is after a 5 1/2 bus ride, before which I had a 20 minute bike ride, 20 minute walk and a 15 minute cab ride back in Bobo - I had already had a LONG day. So I explain it to him and he tells me that he now wants me to pay him 3 times more than he originally said (which was the reason I got in his cab in the first place). Clearly I was not a happy camper, but at that point I was so tired and just wanted to get to the hostel and didn't know where I was in the city and if I tried to negotiate with him it would have turned into a negative situation, so I gave in and we were on our way. I did get a tour of the city, without someone on my lap, and I learned (again) that the head nodding and affirmative response doesn't always mean what I used to think it meant.

Mike Hertel - you rock. I miss working with you. Thanks for the words of inspiration and encouragement. That goes for all my friends and family.

Hello 2007

2007-01-03T04:56:00.000-06:00

Happy 2007 to everyone!
New Year’s Eve started off great. I went running early and then helped prepare the food for the day. New Year’s Eve was also shared with the Muslim holiday Tabaski this year. Tabaski involves the killing of a goat in the morning, which is then cut up and cooked and shared for everyone’s enjoyment. My compound neighbors spared me from having to watch the actual killing, but I watched a little of the skinning and cleaning and cooking. Apparently the head is the best part, and I watched with one eye closed and often looking away as the son removed and cooked the head. I got some good pictures, but cannot bring myself to take a bite. Mdm O asked me what I wanted to eat for New Year’s and I told her cake. There is always plenty of goat, salad, rice, but no cake around these parts. This is very unlike my host family back in training, because my host mom made cakes and sold them in her boutique. Oh, the good ol’ days. Anywho, we made cakes together and they were goooood.
I got the crayons out today and all the kids drew pictures for my house. I haven’t noticed any of the kids, at least in my courtyard, having toys here. Not one toy. They play with sticks and run around without shoes on waving knives or whatever they find laying around. Every part of my upbringing makes me want to take the sharp objects from them and tell them they aren’t toys, but here apparently they are. Little 4-yr olds cut up their own fruit and run around with the knife afterwards, and it’s fine. I have yet to see the notorious “accident” that I was always warned would happen if I ran around with sharp objects when I was little, but I’m sure it happens. My point in all this is that the kids here don’t have toys, yet they play just the same and get along fantastically. It’s really a phenomenon to me: Here, there are no toys, yet all the kids play and get along; Back home, there are millions of toys, and I have never seen kids just get along like they do here. Interesting. Even when I got the crayons out, they all colored and shared the different colors around the table of 4 boys and 1 girl. After completion of each masterpiece, each child would run up to me to give me the picture and request a new piece of paper for the next one. We wrote everybody’s names and spelled each one out loud. Maybe next week we’ll work on numbers. Then, one of the boys saw my high-bounce ball and it was over. I was hoping to bring that out on a different day so as not to overwhelm with all the toys at once, but it was discovered, so the games began. We bounced it high and then everyone scrambled to get it. It was so fun watching them crash into each other just as the little ball scrambled in another direction, all the while they were exploding with laughter. This went on until after sunset when it got really hard to see the ball. Everyone in the courtyard had fun with it.
So the other day I was in my house cleaning and cooking and doing stuff. Usually when I’m in my house I lock my screen door mostly to keep it closed so the wind doesn’t blow it open (sometimes it blows that hard!) allowing mosquitoes and insects and chickens to wander in, but also to keep anyone (namely my problem child) from being tempted to enter without permission. Today I forgot to lock it and my little angel was on my front porch hanging around and doing nothing. When I looked up and he was taking his second step into the forbidden territory, and before I could say anything I heard his mother scream at him to stop. He did and she came after him and gave him a harsher beating then was probably deserved just for stepping in my house (which is common here - the punishment doesn't always fit the crime by my american standards). I can’t say I really ever enjoy seeing someone be hurt or cry, but he is a professional at pushing the limit and hopefully won’t venture to no-man’s land anymore.
One thing I love about this culture is that I can ask anyone younger than me to do something for me and they do it! Usually they do it happily. This has come in handy on many occasions. Back with my host family during training my host brother would wash my bicycle, my tennis shoes and my backpack – every week. He actually told me he would be doing this and that weekly I needed to give him these things for cleaning. No problem whatsoever. This hasn’t happened here in Bobo, so needless to say, my bicycle, running shoes and backpack have not been cleaned in a month. But I have sent one of the little 8-yr old girls to get things for me – bread, bananas, sugar, peanut butter. It is such an ordeal even to go to the boutique around the corner for something that I find it easier to just send Massoura, and she’s back in a flash with my correct change. So I give her some candy, and everyone is happy. It’s really a no-brainer. And it’s not me being lazy – it’s a strategic plan to save my sanity. I might work up to sending her to the market for the big stuff. I will of course have to increase her pay, but it’s well worth it to me.
It has been really cold here lately. My thermometer read 72F in my room this morning and I was shivering! After I went running I told Mdm O that I wanted to wash my clothes and she looked at me like I was crazy! (This is a look I get almost daily, so I’m used to it. I get it when I go running in the morning. I get it when I refuse warm water for my showers at night. I get it when I tell them I can wash my own dishes and sweep my own house. I get it all the time. Crazy American.) She told me it was way too cold to be washing clothes. I told her that was ridiculous, that it is snowing where I’m from right now and that would be too cold to wash clothes outside, but this is beautiful weather and I went about my washing. I’m sure they sit around and talk about how crazy I am in their local language. I have caught them doing it a couple of times because they slip up and say toubabou or nasara and then I look up and give them the you-know-I-don’t-like-to-be-referred-to-as-that look. They just smile and look embarrassed because they know I know they are talking about me.
The people I live around don’t drink tea here like my host family did. I miss that. I had to buy some from some guy in the grand market last week because I miss it. It was good, but not like having it every Monday, Thursday and Saturday evening, like clockwork, with all the friends at the house. Maybe I should start the trend here.

Ok last last post in 2006

2006-12-30T03:52:00.000-06:00

Ok, one of the reasons I came here was to focus on my responsibility to love others – not just people like me with my same background and education level and interests, but all others; to sacrifice my comforts for the benefit of others; to share the knowledge given to me so that others may have it a little easier; I’m here for these people. And yet I am finding it hard to go a whole day without being irritated and cynical. That has been my goal for the past couple of weeks and dang it I just can't do it - yet. I really do not want to be negative and I want to lose my cynicism more than anything and I have so much to be thankful for. I was thinking that this was all just coming from being away during the holidays, but I don’t think that’s it. Why am I allowing the name-calling and the constant haggling and the dirt and the inconveniences overshadow my beautiful African experience? I feel bipolar somedays and I'm blaming it on the malaria medication. I can’t figure it out, so in the meantime I will be listing the things I love until that is all I see. Dang it this cup is half-full! More than that, my cup runneth over and that is what I’m focusing on.
So, last night when I got up in the middle of the night to go to the restroom, the moon was so bright that I felt like I was standing (well, squatting) in a spot light. It was amazing. This is cool because on nights when the moon is not out, I have to estimate where the hole is and pray that the creepy-crawlies don’t crawl on my feet or bite my butt until I can get finished and get the heck out of there. (I can’t be bothered to take my flashlight – which would just add another thing to have to hold, in addition to my toilet paper and my pantlegs, that I have to make sure doesn’t fall in the hole, or anywhere else for that matter.)
When I was biking home this afternoon after a full day in the city, the sun was just setting on the horizon and I had just reached the hill (going down – because everyday on my way into the city I have to go up that hill into what I swear has got to be 50 mph winds) by my house, so the trip turned effortless and I imagined my dad looking at the same sun setting later tonight and thinking how lucky I am to have him.
And just today after reading my friends emails about how it has been rainy and dreary and gray at home, I realized that every day here is sunny and beautiful. Everyday, the same beautifully cloudless blue sky. I dreamed for a place like this back in the winters of Indiana and now I have it. It is awesome to have sunny days everyday. I know it won’t continue forever, and that it wouldn’t be a good thing if it did because this place needs the rain, but it’s just nice for now and for that I am thankful.
Tonight my counterpart fixed me a salad, because she knows I love salad but could never eat theirs because it’s dangerous when not properly cleaned – but she washed everything three times and soaked it in bleach, just for me. And it was gooood.
And today I got care packages from my dad and sister that included M&Ms (among many other fantastic items) that I shared with everyone in my compound and that provided smiles that haven’t yet faded.
And today I got approved to take vacation in April, so I’m going see my brother in China and then come home to visit the states.
With all this, what in the world am I grouchy about? Thanks for listening.

Ok, so I tried to go to my friend's village to visit her yesterday and didn't make it. Here's what happened... So there is no bus station to go to in order to catch a ride to her village. There is just a corner next to the grand mosque where buses accumulate and leave when jam packed. That's really how it works. So I went to this corner and asked where I could find the bus going to Banzon and a lady told me and so I got on the bus. It was a pretty red bus with fake flowers decorating the front window. So I found a seat and waited. After about 20 minutes a guy came up and told us that this bus was not going to the village and that we had to get on another bus. Ok, so he shows us the other bus, which I can only describe as the Griswald's West African Vacation bus. I would have bet a lot of money that this vehicle was not going to make it 2 blocks, let along to the village 2.5 hours away. There were at least 50 bags, 15 bicycles and 2 goats strapped to the top; there were at least 50 people packed inside when there were only 25 seats; there were cases of beer running the length of the bus in the aisle; literally nowhere to step; people were sitting on top of each other and the guy told me to have a seat on some guy's lap. Thanks, but no thanks my friend. I'm pretty sure this is the norm here, but I haven't had to deal with it because I live in the city and never have had to go to a village. The buses that run between the capital city and Bobo are run more like the ones I'm used to where you go buy a ticket at a station and everyone gets a seat and they don't take more than the bus holds. The worst I've had to do is jam 8 people (not including the driver) in a taxi the size of a Geo Metro - I'm not exaggerating. Anywho, needless to say, I opted out of going on the trip. Just couldn't do it. Maybe one day, but not this day. There is no such thing as personal space here - it's the American in me that just can't let that concept go.

Last post for 2006

2006-12-29T05:41:00.000-06:00

So I haven't picked up any of the local language here in Bobo, partly because I haven't tried and partly because I don't want to - put those two together and there is NO learning going on. So for the first month I've been here, unless someone speaks slowly or directly to me in French (which is not the most natural to most people here) I just walk around people talking and have no idea what they are saying. It can be very peaceful, very confusing or very lonely, depending on my mood. So it has taken me almost an entire month to realize that one of the little 4-yr old boys (not the problem child, the other one) stutters. And it is the cutest thing in the world!! He is cute to begin with, so innocent and smiling all the time, but now I sit on my porch or in my house and listen to him stuttering in a language I don't know and it makes me smile everyday. I know this seems somewhat not nice for me to find pleasure in his struggle to communicate, but he doesn't do it really badly and I can't help but find him so adorable!

Judo class is fantastic. I have officially learned 7 moves (4 throws and 3 floor) and started "combat" this week - and do I have the battle wounds to show for it! It is not a hitting sport, only throwing and wrestling essentially, but it is kicking my butt and I'm loving every minute of it! I can sense the urgency my teacher has to teach me as much as possible as quickly as possible, but I make him teach only one move per class (which he has decided means one throw and one floor move - I'm ok with that for now). I don't really like the fight as much as I like the workout, but these guys are training for competition in April and it is full speed ahead.

So the other night after Judo class me and Aisha were biking home and I looked back to see one of the guys from our class running RIGHT behind us. Ok, I've been biking everyday now for 3 months, and these days I could give Lance a run for his money. Granted, it was right after class and my legs were like jello, but I was biking as fast as I could and this kid was right there with us the entire way home - wearing flip-flops and carrying his gym bag to top it all off! It's no wonder these guys are chiseled like statues! I was amazed!

I'm heading to visit one of the other volunteers in a village not too far from here today. She doesn't have electricity, so I am getting excited about the awesome starry sky I will get to watch tonight. Stay tuned for other interesting stories from my trip...

Thank you dad and Steph for the packages you sent. I was getting low on candy for the kids, but the supply has been replenished just in time - not to mention the other goodies! Love you guys and miss you much!

Merry Christmas

2006-12-26T07:26:00.000-06:00

Well Christmas here was not like home at all, but I was able to spend it with a bunch of other volunteers and we made the best of it. We were at dinner at a restaurant together on Christmas Eve when 5 Americans who were also eating at the restaurant came up to our table to introduce themselves and wish us a Merry Christmas. It turned out that they were missionaries, so they invited us to their house for Christmas. It goes without saying that Peace Corps is not in any way affiliated with any religion, so me and one other guy took them up on the offer. We went to their house to read the Christmas story, sing a couple Christmas songs and have some dessert. It was so perfectly timed and exactly what I needed. They were so kind to us. Then last night (Christmas night) all the volunteers cooked and we had dinner together. One volunteer had 3 Christmas songs on her ipod that we played over and over; we had a mini-Christmas tree thanks to somebody's thoughtful mom; and someone hung part of a mango tree in the doorway to act as mistltoe. All in all it wasn't too bad. Now it's back to business as usual. Thanks so much Steph for getting mom and dad calling cards because it was so wonderful to hear their voices on Christmas (and yours too of course). I miss everyone! I hope everyone had a great Christmas!

Miscellaneous in December

2006-12-22T10:28:00.000-06:00

Standfast Burkina

We (Peace Corps Burkina Faso) have been on lockdown (standfast phase) for the last couple of days due to some fighting between the police and the military in the capital city involving gunfire and some casualties (apparently they can tell the difference between each other I actually met the head guy of the police station in my neighborhood last week. His name is Elvis (excellent), he’s super nice, speaks English, expressed his happiness that I am here, gave me his card and told me to call him if I ever have any problems, and took my number because he would like to work on his English while I’m here if that would be ok with me. I think we can work something out). Standfast phase basically just means that volunteers are supposed to stay at their sites, not travel anywhere, pack their emergency bags (to be ready if the situation elevates to consolidation or evacuation phase), and wait for further instruction. The Peace Corps has a really good emergency system in place in the case that anything happens from elections gone awry to war to natural disasters. They don’t take risks, if something’s going down they don’t mess around, and I appreciate that. Rumor has it that this is the first time in 15 years that they have reached this phase in Burkina. Who knows, maybe I will witness history in the making here. They lifted the lockdown phase today, but of course want to be able to account for everyone’s whereabouts for a while until they can rest assured that everything is calm. No worries.

Gremlins or children?

Today I awoke to the sound of 5 little 4-yr old boys chanting my name outside my window. I have no idea how the number grew from 2 to 5 but it did – either they got wet and multiplied, or word got out that I have an endless supply of bonbons and will give them at will to any child who smiles, asks for one nicely and says please and thank you…I’m a sucker, no pun intended:). The kids in this country are PERSISTENT! When they see my coming down the street they don’t just call out nasara or toubabou one time. No sir. They say it over and over until I look and wave or, in the case I choose to ignore them, until I am out of earshot. It never fails. Same with the kids in my courtyard.
Since I have failed at getting any pics up as of yet, I shall paint a picture of my living situation. My house is a small 2-rm house located on the west side of my courtyard. The entrance door to the courtyard is to the north of my house and the latrine and “shower” rooms are to the south – all along the west wall of the courtyard. There is nothing along the entire south wall – that’s where the goats sleep - oh the goats. In the northeast corner of the courtyard is the “big house” as I refer to it. There are at least 3 rooms in there and I have no idea who, if anyone, sleeps there. I’m sure somebody must, otherwise I have no idea where all these people sleep. The big house has some type of “living room” right inside the door (which faces my house) where a television is always on. Next to the big house along the north wall is the cooking area, essentially a little brick shack that houses pots and pans I guess and the ladies cook everything right outside the door. Next to the “kitchen” is a building that stretches the remaining length of the north wall to the entrance door and has 3 separate doors. I have seen everyone come in and out of these doors, so I’m not exactly sure what lies on the other sides. I have a cement porch along the entire length of the front of my house and it has a straw covering on top, referred to here as a hangar. The big house also has a porch, though it’s probably half the size of mine. 17 feet separate my porch from the porch of the big house, so essentially I am living right frickin’ on top of this family of at least 10 (not including the 3 additional 4-yr olds that sprouted today).
So when the kids haven’t yet seen me by around 9am (like today because I slept in after sharing a bottle of fantastic French wine last night downtown with another volunteer after my Judo class), they get restless and feel it their duty to get me up and going – or they just wanted some candy and had probably been waiting around for hours for me to get up and just couldn’t wait any longer. They chant in unison over and over until they see me then they scurry around the corner laughing and wait impatiently for me to say hi, ask them how their morning is and then, of course, offer bonbons. It’s not the worst way to wake up in the morning, and now I hear “sil vous plaits” and “mercis” all over the place.
I am slowly putting an end to the children calling me Nasara and Toubabou and Le Blanc in my neighborhood. When I’m out walking around and someone calls me one of these, I stop and introduce myself and tell them I would rather be called Nanette or Mademoiselle (or Madame since I am clearly at the end of the Mademoiselle phase). So far it’s been going pretty good and a lot of people now say “Bonjour Nanette” when they see me. Yesterday there was a bunch of kids outside the boutique where I was buying bread, so we went through this little introduction and after I walked away they all chanted “Bye Bye Mademoiselle Toubabou.” It’s a work in progress.
I have noticed one thing about this family with 2 wives. I have been told that the first wife has 7 kids and the second has 3. Of these 10 there are 2 4-yr old boys, 2 8-yr old girls, a 16-yr old boy and girl and then Aisha (my 20-yr old Judo girl) and then there must be 3 that live somewhere else. In another situation one might assume that this family had 3 sets of twins, but here it might be explained as some form of family planning?

Insects, etc.

Before I came to Africa I spent a notable amount of time worrying about the insect/bug/rodent situation here. Fear of the unknown coupled with truly amazing returned Peace Corps volunteers’ stories kept me awake a few nights. This topic comes up now because I just saw a rather long-legged spider making its way down my wall. (Sometimes I write my blogs at my house on my laptop and save them to my thumb drive which I take to the internet café and upload my blog from. It’s faster and cheaper and I can use my American keyboard!) Obviously the insect/bug/etc situation changes with the climate, and I am quite sure that I have only seen the very nicest time of year so far. My house has screens on every opening, yet it’s not sealed and those suckers get through. I swear I have felt things crawl on me in the night (which is why I sleep in scrub pants and a long sleeved shirt every night), and I wonder if it’s my imagination or if I am sharing my bed with multi-legged creepy crawlies. Either explanation could be valid. I have been in my house officially 3 weeks today. During that time I have killed (with my shoe) about 6 roaches, at least as many crickets, 4 spiders and a slew of ants. I could tell when I first got here that they had sprayed some type of insecticide around my house. After a week or so I noticed more regular occurrences of my fast moving friends, so I went to the boutique and bought some insect spray of my own. There were 2 choose from, so I chose the one with a bug in the middle of a big red target on the front. I sprayed every inch of my house with this as well as the screens from the outside. This was a week ago and since then I have been finding dead things all over, but very few alive. All of the precautions on the can are in French, and most of those words haven’t made it into my vocabulary yet. I’m thinking I might want to get the dictionary out and do some translating if I intend to make regular use of this product. I’m actually in a good situation because other volunteers around these parts have told me about the mice and bats that live in their houses. Just as I was not ready to live without electricity, I am also not ready to set up house with bats and mice. Good luck to those that have to deal with that!

Just me

Things are different here no doubt. Where there used to be lotion, there is now sunscreen and bug repellent. Where there used to be business suits and heels, there is not capris and flip-flops. Where there used to makeup and jewelry and blow-dried hair, there is just me, me, me.

Here's a care package idea: home-baked cookies! Some of the other volunteers got Christmas care packages complete with home-baked cookies (which they shared) and they were HEAVENLY! Throw them in a ziplock bag and then into a padded envelope and they will be as good as right from the oven:)

Merry Christmas everyone!

What I'm doing

2006-12-20T09:54:00.000-06:00

The Peace Corps has three goals:
1. To help the people of interested countries in meeting their needs for trained men and women;
2. To help promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of the people served;
3. To help promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of all Americans.
I am in the Small Enterprise Development sector whose defined goal is “ improve the standard of living of the population by transferring skills essential to sustainable economic growth.” I am essentially here to help people develop the capacity to improve their own lives by empowering them to be their own decision-makers and develop the skills to carry out those decisions. It is much different from a lot of NGOs who walk in and build buildings and donate machines and hand out money. I’m not saying that those are not important and great, they have just created an expectation of outsiders that I have to undue before I can be successful here. That’s what I’ve been spending my time doing lately. I sit down with the ladies and ask them to talk to me about the difficutlties they face and the goals they want to achieve and they just say, "We don't have money. If we did all of our problems would be solved." I think P Diddy might argue with that theory (mo' money, mo' problems).
One of our manuals says that people often live up to the expectations of the outsider coming in to assist them. That gives me hope. So far I’ve met the Governor of my region, the head of the police, the head of the fire station in my neighborhood, the director of the local school, directors of a bunch of different organizations that my association has/will partner with. Yesterday I toured the local hospital and school for the handicapped. Today I met… I love meeting these people because I get to tell them about Peace Corps and what I’m trying to do here and they always smile and welcome me and thank me for being here – the Governor did a lot. And then if they know someone who has served in the Peace Corps, someone who knew someone who served in the Peace Corps, someone who knew someone who traveled to the U.S., etc. they tell me about them. It is interesting;)

Monday night was my first night at my new site where I felt calm. I have felt like a boulder stuck in the middle of a rushing river. I don’t know why and I don’t know why it stopped. Maybe it’s just part of the adjustment (that I didn’t experience during the first 2 months in country), but now it’s like I’m floating along in the river and it’s so much nicer.

Judo classes are coming along nicely. My Judo teacher is the nicest guy in the world. He’s a little guy with a big smile. He is patient, repeats things multiple times (in French and Japanese), and lets me throw him around (because that’s what you do in Judo) and then tells me what a great job I’m doing – yeah right.

I have to keep reminding myself that it's Christmas time, because other than the man walking down the street today trying to sell me a blow-up Santa, there is no sign of December or Christmas or Holiday as I know it. This will be a very interesting holiday season for me not doubt. There is no snow (or cold), no hustle and bustle at the mall, no eggnog (not that I would have any if there were), no visiting family, no holiday parties. I do miss it! I want to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas! Hug and kiss your friends and family and be thankful for your blessings during this time of year!

Love you and miss you all!

Judo in Burkina Faso anyone?

2006-12-15T07:44:00.000-06:00

Ok, I'm done being negative. After I posted that blog I got ridiculously sick and spent the ENTIRE night puking. I woke up at midnight in terrible pain and spent the next 6 hours watching the 3 episodes of The Office and the 4 episodes of Grey's Anatomy (because that's all I have, thank you so much Norm) over and over between running to the "restroom" to get sick. There's gotta be some connection there, so we are back to positive thinking. I started Judo classes last night - that's really positive (although my body is not thinking so right now). The 20 yr old daughter of the first wife in my courtyard (now that's an interesting start to a sentence) goes to Judo classes Tues, Thurs and Sat evenings 6-8pm. She asked me if I wanted to go and see if I was interested and of course I told her I was. So we biked together Tuesday night and I just watched the class. There are about 8-12 students (2 girls and the rest guys in their 20s I'm guessing) that practice in this very regular-looking studio with Judo pictures painted on the walls and good mats and everything. So after the class her teacher asked me if I wanted to learn and I said of course I did, but that I didn't know the first thing about Judo and I don't want to be a burden. So my first class was last night. The students in the class are really good and I of course know nothing about Judo, so the teacher took me aside and started me from the very beginning - half in French, half in Japanese. Oh the cultural experiences I am getting here! He was so very patient with me and seems excited that I want to learn - which makes me very happy because it has to be a pain in the you-know-what to have this American who can barely speak French and knows nothing about Judo fumbling around wasting his time. It is really fun and exactly what I needed.

So I am absolutely not getting the puppy. I inquired about what the people in my courtyard would think about me having a puppy and it sounds like they would rather eat it than look at it - thank you very much.

If you have ever seen the movie "Problem Child" with John Ritter then you have some idea of what the 4 yr old of the first wife in my courtyard is like. I am sure I am exaggerating, but there is just something about this kid that is different from all the others. He is cute, but he's ALWAYS got an eye on me with a sly grin that screams "when you are not looking I'm going to do something really bad to you!" I love kids to no end, but there is just something about him. I really don't think he is evil, I actually think he is really cute, but I give him a bonbon (candy) every chance I get...just in case;)

Thank you to everyone who has called and emailed words of encouragement and support. I apologize for being negative and for losing patience. It comes with the adjustment I guess and I am happy to know I have so many people in this world who really care.

Frickin' Africa

2006-12-12T06:20:00.000-06:00

Ok, the honeymoon is officially over. I've had a rough few days and I really don't want to go into the details. It's time to see what Nanette is made of. I have learned that when all else fails it's safe to turn to humor. It is hard to explain to anyone who has not spent any amount of time in a foreign country where a foreign language is spoken the pressure and stress that is ever-present on a day-to-day basis. I'm not always aware of it, but it is there nonetheless and sometimes it builds to a point where a release of the pressure is necessary. It is frickin' hard day in and day out to wake up to a rooster crowing and people speaking a foreign language (it's Jula here in Bobo), to take bucket baths, to constantly be stared at like a circus clown, to be yelled at and called le blanc or nasara or toubabou (that's the new one in Jula, has less of an appealing ring to it than nasara), to use the restroom in a hole in the ground, to eat food that makes you sick every other day, to have to bike anywhere you want to go (I actually enjoy it mostly, but to have to is sometimes a pain), to be harrassed everywhere to buy something because you're white and so must have plenty of money, to be proposed to daily. Just for the record, it's hard. And I knew it would be when I signed up for this gig, but sometimes it builds up. So I have found that daily, on average, something sends me over the edge and I have to shake my head and say, "frickin' Africa." It just makes me feel better - not sure why. Yesterday it was the lady taking her finger out of her nose long enough to greet me and shake my hand (because it is common and not rude to pick your nose anytime anywhere, they just do it). This is the first habit I plan on not picking (no pun intended) up while I'm here. I have also gone through 5 bottles of hand sanitizer in part because of this. This morning it was Mdm O belchng mid-sentence while talking to me (also not considered rude here, and actually considered complimentary to the chef). Not exactly sure if she noticed the look of shock on my face - pretty sure she didn't. The second habit I plan on not picking up here. Frickin' Africa. Come on, work with me people!
Bobo is ok. The kids aren't quite as cute, the people aren't quite as nice and my host family doesn't live here - but Bobo is ok. I have a lot to be thankful for here and do not want to focus on the negative. So I will just say "frickin' Africa" for now. I love you all and miss you terribly. I hope everyone is great.

Getting married...

2006-12-12T06:15:00.000-06:00

Monday December 4, 2006

So tonight after dinner the ladies and I sat around the mango tree talking. Of course the subject of me and marriage came back up. An unmarried 30 year old woman in this country is just hard for them to digest I guess. This is a summary of how the conversation went:
Ladies: After we find you a husband how many kids would you like to have with him?
Me: Thank you. I don’t need you to find me a husband. But thank you.
Ladies: (Laughter) Ok, but how many kids are you going to have?
Me: I’m not sure that I will have any.
Ladies: (Gasping) What? You must! Why not?
Me: Maybe I will adopt.
Ladies: (Gasping) That’s ridiculous! You have to have your own! Why would you adopt?
Me: Well, are there orphanages here?
Ladies: Yes.
Me: Are there a lot of children in the orphanages?
Ladies: Yes, very many!
Me: And where are those children’s parents?
Ladies: Many are dead.
Me: And where are their families?
Ladies: I don’t know.
Me: Do you know that there are very many people in Africa with AIDS and they have children and then die and then those children grow up with no family.
Ladies: Yes, it’s very sad.
Me: Well, maybe I will give a family to one or some of those kids.
Ladies: But you have to have your own! That’s the point of marriage.
Me: Not the only point. Marriage is also good for living your life with someone you love and respect and helping other people. You know, if I were already married and had children I couldn’t be here helping you. It will depend on my husband. I will talk with him and if he wants to have children I will have them, and if he likes the idea of adopting, we will adopt. We will talk and negotiate.
Ladies: (Speechless)

This is how many of the conversations go – in French of course. Just another day in Burkina.

Swearing in and the move

2006-12-12T06:05:00.000-06:00

Saturday, December 2, 2006

I am currently sitting in my new house for my second night in Bobo. I have a really good 2-room house in the courtyard of the president of the association with which I will be working.
I guess I should first rewind and explain the completion of training and swearing in and getting to my site. Training came to a crashing, disorganized end for a variety of reasons (welcome to working for the U.S. government), but was successful nonetheless. My family had a small goodbye party for me with chicken and wine and cake – what more could I ask for? I love that family and will miss them dearly. I think I mentioned that there were 2 dogs at the house. Well the female had 4 puppies the day before I left. They were ridiculously cute and I was promised the only male of the litter. I do want a dog, but I need to evaluate the situation here before taking him. I met my counterpart a couple of days before swearing-in. She (yes “she,” and I am so happy that it’s a “she” and not a “he.” There were only 3 female counterparts out of the 38 new volunteers. Not to say a “he” wouldn’t be fine, but I saw some of the other volunteers’ counterparts and let’s just say they – the volunteers - have their hands full. Sometimes it is difficult for women to work with male counterparts because sometimes they are not respected like they would be if they were male. And sometimes the counterparts end up trying to be more than a counterpart to the volunteer and that can turn out to be a stressful situation. I am lucky to not have to worry about either.) She is a beautiful woman probably in her mid-fifties (this is strictly a guess based on the fact that she has 5 children between the ages of 26 and 36), and from now on will be referred to as Mdm D. The first day we met she barely would speak French to me and we ended up using a translator for a decent amount of the discussions, during which she spoke Jula. Of course I was freaked out at first because I just spent the last 2 months learning French and now the woman I will be working beside for the next 2 years doesn’t speak French. She commented multiple times about how I would soon be speaking Jula. I wanted to say, “Hey lady, I got here 2 months ago without being able to say anything in French and now that I can get my point across (however elementary and grammatically incorrect) you can’t wait for me to learn ANOTHER language?” She actually does speak French (and speaks it well), but is most confident speaking Jula. This is very common amongst the people here, especially the women. They might know how to speak a language but are very shy to speak it for fear of making mistakes. The first time I learned this was at my host-family’s house and I was shocked. I asked them if they even remotely noticed how I had been butchering French day in and day out?? Of course they had! But that’s how you learn! Now that I know people here are shy to speak a language they may know but aren’t comfortable with, I get less freaked out and just patiently try little by little. Every day is a struggle to communicate, but I must say it gets easier everyday and people here are not shy to say how far I’ve come. “Petit a petit” (little by little) is the motto by which I live here.
The swearing-in ceremony was really nice. I had a traditional outfit made for it and it turned out really nice. I also got my hair braided so I wouldn’t have to deal with it for a month or two, so I totally looked the part The American Ambassador spoke, as well as the Peace Corps Country Director for Burkina, the Governor of the province we lived in and the Mayor of Ouahigouya. There were a slew of other dignitaries present, like the head of the police, the head of the military (still getting those 2 confused), the Chief of the province, etc. and it was televised. My host family came, as did my priest (I have talked about him before, his name is Armand) and Mdm D. After the ceremony I took a nap and then we (the 38 new Peace Corps volunteers in Burkina Faso!) had a swear-in party for our last night together, complete with drinks and A LOT of dancing! It was super fun!
Then came the travel day. That was yesterday. It was one of the longest days of my life. I, along with Mdm D and 5 other volunteers in my area and their counterparts, boarded a bus at 6:45am for the 2 ½ hour ride to the capital, where we got off one bus and immediately got on a bigger bus with significantly more people and significantly less individual room for the 5 ½ hour ride to Bobo. I must say I am proud of myself for enduring the torturous ride. I am being so selfish too because this was the end for me, while others had another 5 or more hours before they reached their sites to which they took a significantly smaller bush taxi with significantly less room and probably a couple of goats and chickens to boot. I am lucky. So I traveled all the way here with Mdm D and when we arrived, the President of the Association (which is also the person’s courtyard in which I will live for the next 2 years) met us at the bus station. The look on her face was enough for me to know I am definitely wanted here. She kissed me on each cheek twice, held my hand tightly as she looked me up and down with big eyes and a bigger smile and kept calling me beautiful (in English and French).
Before arriving at my house I stopped at the market to buy a bed and some other household things I would need for the first couple of days. Shopping in this country is EXHAUSTING. There is never a set price for anything it seems (other than food I think). You have to negotiate for everything, and being white makes the process that much harder. I had Mdm D with me, as well as a taxi man that she knew well, to help with the negotiations, but even with them the vendor knows I’m the one making the purchase and still jacks the price higher than he would if I were Burkinabe, even though I’m not a tourist and don’t have the money I would if I were. Regardless, I made it out with the things I needed and headed for my new house. Like I said at the beginning of this post, I have a 2-room house in the courtyard of the President. The courtyard is much smaller than I anticipated. There are at least 3-7 children around at all times ranging in age from 4-20, though I’m not sure where they live – maybe here. I was anticipating having more space (though I’m not sure why because that is not something people here generally have much of), but what I have lost in privacy I feel I have gained in security and that is ok with me.
My job assignment is exciting. I will be working with a women’s association of 374 members (it was 373 until today, but now I’m a member too). These women operate a Moulin (which is a mill that grinds up flour or corn or millet), operate a public water pump (where many households without running water in their courtyards buy their water and wheel it in big barrels to their houses), make soap, hold literacy classes and run a daycare center. For the next 3 months I will meet a huge number of people from the mayor of Bobo to the heads of various organizations with whom I might collaborate to the
Chief of the province to the head of the police and military (hopefully I will be able to distinguish between the 2 one day) and observe and talk with the members to assess and evaluate the various needs and prioritize and plan what I will be doing for the next 2 years. After the 3 months I will reunite with the other volunteers to discuss what we have observed and our plans of action. It is really wise to do this 3 month evaluation in order to follow proper protocol and meet the appropriate people and really gain an understanding from the association and the community of what they need before jumping in and potentially messing things up. It also gives me some time to get better with French and learn some of the local language in order to communicate more effectively. The association has a really big campus that houses the offices and classrooms and daycare center – the Moulin and the water pump are at the edge of the property. It’s a pretty impressive organization and I’m excited to be working with them.
I live right next to a school where there is a really big track and soccer field and basketball goals. I told Mdm D that I wanted to workout and she took me to the track and introduced me to the guardian who lives on the premises. He is a very nice old man who told me to come there anytime morning or night to run or play. I have already talked to some women about getting a basketball tournament started. They are willing, which is surprising to me. It’s going to be really fun! I also live within walking distance of a boutique which has essentials (soap, bleach, powdered milk, bottled water), and within biking distance of a Protestant and Catholic Church and the small market where I can buy fruits and vegetables. Not a bad location I think.
The President of the Association and the lady’s courtyard in which I live, I will from now on refer to as Mdm O. She is a beautiful woman much younger than Mdm D. I learned today that she is 33 and has 3 children – 16 and 8 year old daughters, and a 5 year old son. She lives in the other house in the courtyard with her husband and his other wife and some of their kids. The first wife of the husband has 7 kids and some of them live in the capital city. I think it goes without saying that this is hard for me to digest, but it is how things are done here, so that’s life. They are Muslim, but I have not yet heard any calls to prayer which means one of my prayers has been answered because I must not live very close to a mosque!
Mdm O is not a skinny woman, though I would not say she is obese – just sturdy. I guess I haven’t eaten much since I have been here, partly because I haven’t been overly hungry and partly because I am trying to be very careful with what I eat so as to not get sick. I have a glass of tea and a glass of milk for breakfast and usually have some sort of rice with sauce for lunch and then oranges and bananas and watermelon for the rest of the day because those are safe. Being sick here really sucks, so I do what I can to prevent it. Mdm O has commented on how little I eat and told me that it’s good here for women to be big so I should eat more. This, I told her, was not so good in the U.S. and that I had no intention of letting her fatten me up. While I was living with my host family I had less control over what I ate, and felt obliged to eat at least some of what they offered me. We had bread for breakfast everyday and I am happy to say that I won’t be doing that any more (although the bread here is magnificent – one of the only 2 positive remnants of French colonization, the other being fantastic cheap French wine). After my luggage arrives with my running shoes, I will be off to the track every morning. I’m convinced that if I am healthy, my stay here will be that much better. Healthy in body and healthy in soul, which is also in good condition thanks to Brian’s (Peace Corps Uganda) suggested reading material “Blue Like Jazz.” This is an excellent book about nonreligious thoughts on Christian spirituality that I hope everyone I know will read – Christian or not.
I have been in this country over 2 months now and have observed a lot. Throughout the 2 months I have been trying to figure out exactly what I can do to help this place. As far as I have been concerned so far, Burkinabe have a lot more to teach the world than I have to teach them. Unlike a lot of other African countries, Burkina is packed with different ethnic groups and religions living in harmony with each other. I watched 2 men on mopeds get into an accident. The one who got hit helped the other put his flip-flop back on and they each continued along his way. There was no shouting or fighting or blaming. Accidents happen and then you go on. There are very few homeless people or starving children (malnourished maybe, but not starving). People here take care of each other. And I have been trying to figure out what the heck I’m doing here. This country is like a little oasis of humans living like we were made to live. Granted they are poor, but I’m starting to wonder if that is as bad as everyone seems to think. (I don’t mean to say being poor isn’t difficult, but when you don’t have all the money and possessions and greed in the way, it seems like it’s easier to be decent to one another. I have been struggling with my purpose here. Am I here to help to “develop” this country? Into what? Something more like the U.S.? Why? So they can run around without time for each other and place such an enormous amount of importance on gaining material things for themselves that they devalue their families and personal relationships like we have? I don’t want to be responsible for taking away any of what makes this country so fantastic in my mind. What does “developed” mean anyway and who set those standards? They might not have oil and diamonds here, (which I think is one of the reasons they live harmoniously together – there’s not a lot here to fight over, so I don’t think the Europeans were so concerned with exploiting Burkina), but they have basic human values and I’ll take that over gold any day. However, my views changed tonight…
Tonight Mdm O and Mdm D and 3-4 other ladies (including the other Mdm O – Mr O’s first wife) and Mr O were sitting around one of the trees in the courtyard (that’s right, a MANGO tree and I love it!) asking me questions about the U.S. They would explain something about life here and ask how it compared to life in the U.S. The U.S., to many people here, is like a fantasy land. It is only what they have seen on TV and heard about through the grapevine and no matter what it must be the best place in the world. I tried to explain to them that there are a lot of problems in the U.S.; it’s not all peaches and crème. As usual, the topic of why I’m not married came up. We were comparing ages and when Mdm O found out that I was only 3 years younger than her yet not married, she needed to know why. I explained that I haven’t found the man I want to spend the rest of my life with yet. I explained that there are a lot of divorces in the U.S., and everyone agreed that that was not a good thing. I told them I was looking for someone intelligent and who was passionate about helping people. They told me that I should find my husband here, which beautifully led us to reason #1 why I won’t find my husband here – polygamy. I explained that it was against the law in the U.S. Mdm O told me that she knew a guy with 7 wives and like 40 kids and I told her that he must be rich, but she said he wasn’t. Why, then, does he have so many wives? Because they were arranged marriages, which is evidently still alive and kicking here. From the look on her face, I think hers was an arranged marriage – but I’m not sure. Next came reason #2 why I won’t find my husband here – domestic violence. It is not against the law here to beat your wife (or wives) and is actually very common and accepted. They told me about black eyes and knocked-out teeth and bloody lips and they laughed about it (which is probably what you have to do when it’s your reality) and I literally almost started crying. Literally. They were laughing and joking and I was in shock. I managed to compose myself and in the most respectful tone possible, (because please keep in mind Mr O was sitting right in front of me throughout the conversation – not that a man who beats his wife deserves any respect, especially mine, but I do live in his courtyard and don’t want to make life harder here than necessary by making an enemy of the man of this compound) I told them that was also against the law in the U.S. and that it is not ok and that there are men in jail today for hitting their wives. The looks on the faces of these women basically gave me reason enough for being here. I think they were shocked that such a place exists where women do not get beat by their husbands. (I am not saying that domestic violence does not happen in the U.S., but it is against the law and there are ways to stop it and get out of that situation, but here there are not.) Mdm O told me that the association even holds sensibilisations about domestic violence and how it is not good. So I assumed out loud that it didn’t happen in her house, here in this courtyard and she just lowered her head (as did the first wife) and I looked at their husband who also lowered his head because I’m sure he saw flames where my eyes once were because my blood was boiling and I wanted to reach out and choke him. I’m sorry but I did. Apparently I was in the most unusual household in this country during training, unless I just didn’t see a lot of what was really happening, because I never saw any sign of anything but respect between Mr and Mdm B back in Ouahigouya. If it happens in the houses of the president and vice-president and secretary of an association of 373 women, I’m guessing it happens in a few others too. The women told me that I must talk to men here because if I talk people will listen – even men. Dear God if I can help one woman to not be beaten by her husband it will be worth it. I explained that it is essential for everyone to have respect for each other. When a woman and man respect each other, there is never a need for one to hit the other. Why can’t the men in this frickin’ country just respect these women? They bust their butts from 4am until 11pm every day working and washing and cleaning and taking care of the children and the men work a little and watch tv and take naps and drink tea and beer with their friends. (I am making huge sweeping generalizations right now that are not fair to many men in this country and it’s wrong and I’m sorry. I have met a lot of really great Burkinabe men.) But why is it so hard to respect each other? Just talk and respect each other – that’s all you need, right? I hope so. For these women I hope so. I went to my room that night and cried. I cried for these women. Because I did grow up in a fantasy land where I was taught that you don’t hit women (or anyone for that matter) and you say thank you and please and you are respectful to your wife and your husband and your parents and your children. I cried because this is the life they were given and they are not free, they are trapped in a life of poverty and domestic violence. There is no take it or leave it. There is just take it. They just have to take it day in and day out. I cried because they are strong and beautiful and generous and loving and they don’t deserve this.
I do not know exactly what I will be doing for the next 2 years. I’m not under the delusion that I will be able to eradicate domestic violence in this country. I'm supposed to be in business development. But I think these women see in me possibilities that maybe weren’t there before, and I pray that I have the ability to somehow make their lives and the lives of their daughters a little easier, a little more pleasant, a little less hopeless. I have been blessed my entire life and I have had the opportunity to choose to do what I want to do and go where I want to go and for that I am so very thankful. Many women here do what they do because they have to, not because they chose to. Maybe I’m here to help open the possibility of choice.

Just a thought

2006-11-24T11:57:00.000-06:00

As I write this, the warm African sun is setting on the beautiful horizon outside my window silhouetting the trees and I can hear children laughing and amazing African music playing and women pounding what will become tonight's dinner and I am too aware how I am perpetually living in 2 worlds at the same time - there is always what I live every day here and what I live in my heart with my family and friends a million miles away. And when I was at home it was the same - the life I lived everyday with my family and friends and the life I was yearning to live out there somewhere. I miss you and I love you and I'm with you in heart and mind, and I love it here too and I love these people too and I will also miss them one day for sure:)

Uncle Mike - you can leave a comment after any post, but you can also email me at nanettemkelley@gmail.com if you like. I love you and miss you!

Steph and Dad - thank you thank you thank you for calling me. It is so wonderful to hear your voices!

Miscellaneous in November

2006-11-21T10:27:00.000-06:00

First I would like to send out belated birthday wishes to Steph and Amber! Please know I was with you in spirit and thought!
Happy upcoming birthday to you dad!!! I'm sorry to miss the big 60, but you know I love you and will be thinking of you.
Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! Have some turkey and stuffing for me and know that I am thankful for all of you!!

So I have 4 days left with my host family and 8 days left until I move to my new site on the other side of the country. It is chilly here in the mornings and evenings and I am loving it (my room temp read 73F this morning and I had goosebumps!). My host family thinks I'm nuts because I'm still leaving in the mornings wearing tank tops, while they stand there in awe wearing big winter coats and hats. It is too funny. It averages 85F during the day right now. I venture to guess that will always be hot to me.

I took my host sister swimming (at the only pool in the city which is at a hotel here) this past Sunday and that was super fun. She had never been in a pool before but was brave enough to try it out with the crazy American (and in the winter no less!). She did an excellent job and I got some great pics to leave with her. That night the priest brought over the movie Troy (with Brad Pitt) and that was a pleasant break from African and French tv. I watched all my episodes of the Office and Grey's Anatomy in one day. It's an addiction that I cannot control!! That was overload because, of course, I am now dying to know what happens next and it makes me really miss being home. I'm a glutton for punishment:)
The care package goodies are turning out to be priceless tools for bartering with the other volunteers (especially the M&Ms and Chips Ahoys!). You would think these people haven't had chocolate in 2 months!! :)

My training group started with 39 trainees when we left the U.S. - 22 business and 17 health volunteers, and if all goes according to plan it looks like 38 will swear-in as Peace Corps volunteers next Thursday. That is an excellent success rate! I think the going rate of quitting during training is 10%. I must say that the training here in Burkina is very well thought-out and put-together thanks to the staff and volunteers in country. It has been a great experience so far.

I haven't been sleeping well for various reasons, resulting in interesting daytime hallucinations (I'm kidding, I'm just tired:). I have a lot going on mentally so I have vivid dreams and wake up frequently during the night. If this were the only thing going on I might be ok, but I live in Burkina Faso. This means 2 things right now. First, there is the ever-present rooster that failed in rooster school and starts cockadoodling around 2-3am (aren't these guys supposed to let us know when the sun is rising??). He is, however, very good at sounding every hour on the hour. The second is the fact that I live near a mosque. I think I have mentioned that a decent percent of the population here is Muslim and there is a mosque located approximately 6 blocks from my house. It is Muslim custom to pray 5 times per day at certain designated times (one of which is 4am). When it is time for prayer there is a "call to prayer" which consists of someone at the mosque (I am assuming) singing or chanting or humming (I'm really not sure what I describe it as) to call them to pray - for the entire hour. Some mornings the call is more pleasant than others ranging from a nice melody to what can only be described as a donkey being slaughtered. It seems that each morning the mosque moves closer and closer to my house to the point that I am pretty certain the guy was right outside my bedroom window this morning. I am not complaining, only using this space describe what life here is like for me and to pray that I live quite a distance from a mosque (and roosters) at my new site. The mosque buildings are beautiful, but the calls come early and loudly and always on time.

I would like to dedicate a portion of this post to my host mom. The Peace Corps has been pretty specific about asking us to not disclose the names and places of other volunteers and I have decided to do the same with my host family. I will call her Madame B. She is one of the strongest women I have ever met. I think she might sleep somewhere between the hours of midnight and 4am (when the call starts:). She is Catholic and goes to mass every morning at 6am. She defines the word "multi-tasker." I have watched her sell a dress, hold a conversation with another lady, wave hi to someone else passing by all while she is running to get a chair for me to sit in and offer me some cake with a smile. This lady is phenomenal. She owns a boutique where she sells womens shoes and dresses and nail polish, and drinks and cakes (that she prepares every night). She also makes sandwiches for the professors at the high school and for the doctors at the hospital. She is also learning to drive a car right now and she runs a tight ship at home. She is very well-known in this community and is friends with many of the other female entrepreneurs here. I like to call them the big-ballers of Ouahigouya. She is caring and generous and is always making sure I am comfortable and have what I need. If I mention that I would like to buy something in the market, it appears at the house that evening. And if I mention that I want to try something or learn something she jumps right to it. I will be learning how to make to and sauce osaille (I think) which has become my new favorite Burkinabe dish. She tells me that her family is my family and that she will be very sad when I leave. In the research I did before I came to Burkina and in the trainings I have had for the past 2 months here, I have been reading and discussing the woman's role in Burkina. I have been warned that women are not equal to men here. Oftentimes they do not eat with the men of the family, many are not literate, many play a subordinate role to their husbands. This is true all over this country, but this woman does not fit that mold. She wears pants in this family (in addition to her husband) and she laughs frequently and dances when she feels the urge and smiles often and juggles a million things at once. My host mom and dad have a unique and beautiful relationship and home life and I love it. I am fortunate to have been paired with this family.

That's all for now. More to come soon! Happy Thanksgiving!!

The criminal...

2006-11-18T07:55:00.000-06:00

I had my first (and hopefully only) run-in with the police (or military, I get them confused) this week and it was very interesting. I feel like I have to preface this story...There are laws here, traffic and others, that are not always followed - for whatever reason. I like to think of it (at least the traffic) as organised chaos. There are stop signs at some intersections and not at others - for whatever reason. It is the law that you stop (the truck, car, bike, motorcycle, donkey cart) and put your foot on the ground (at least for the bikes and motos - I can't speak for the donkeys) and then proceed. I can count the number of times I have seen people actually stop and put their foot on the ground. So I was on my way to class a couple of days ago when I approached a street, slowed, and proceeded to turn left onto the paved road. At the next side road a man in uniform whistled (with a whistle) for me to "pull over." So I did and he explained that since I didn't stop at the stop sign and put my foot on the ground I had to leave my bike with him until I paid the fee. The fee was the equivalent of 6 days pay for me and I didn't have it in my pocket at the time (not that I would have paid it if I had it). One of the language teachers saw me on the side of the road and came to the rescue. She called our director and they came to pick me up and take me to class and in the meantime worked out the situation. I essentially got out of having to pay for it, but I'm glad it happened here and now. It wasn't a bad situation, just a good lesson to learn early on. I feel bad for the other people who were stopped (it was clearly a traffic sting) because the fee is high and I know a lot of people weren't able to pay it. I saw them pull over a lady with a baby on her back and a bunch of bags (looks like she just went shopping), and a really really old man who looked like he was on his way to church. Just another day in the life:)

The Motherload!

2006-11-18T07:27:00.000-06:00

When it rains it pours! I received 5 packages yesterday (which I'm pretty sure is a record for our training group)! It has been a very busy week (good, but BUSY because we are nearing the end of training and it feels like everything must be squeezed in before it's over) and I was in my language class yesterday afternoon when I got a text on my cell phone that said I had packages at the office. Yeah I did!!! Wooohoooo!! Thank you thank you thank you to my loved ones for looking out for me and sending me goodies!
Dad - you are the best, my motivation, I love you! Steph and Brent - you are so thoughtful (the fruit juice nuggets were a genius idea)!!!! Bub and Jenny - thank you so much for thinking of me even when you were going crazy preparing to move to China!! Norm - thank you for going above and beyond the call of duty to include not only Grey's Anatomy, but also THE OFFICE AND the program to be able to watch movies on my laptop!!! Mom, Jenny, April and Andre - thank you for the cards and letters. It means the world to get stories and words of encouragement from you! I love everything!!!
I must say that I will NOT be needing anymore granola/nutragrain bars, gum, wet ones (how funny), crackers and cheese, lifesavers, or peanuts (especially because they are grown here:) for a LONG LONG time! Holy canoli!! They got here at just the right time too, because when I first get to my site it might take a little time to get everything I need to function on my own! A million thanks to everyone!

Other ideas for future items - NOT requests, just the response to those who are asking:

-rechargeable AA batteries
-package of men's Hanes M v-neck t-shirts and tank tops (wifebeaters, but I hate that word!)
-tank tops (any)
-toothpaste
-2-in-1 shampoo
-conditioner (any)
-deoderant (any)
-magazines or books (any and it doesn't matter how old)
-anything smell good
-nail polish (any color)
-any sauce mix
-lip stuff (chapstick, lip gloss, anything!)
-anything or nothing!!

Some blogs from other girls in my training group for anyone who is interested...
Ericainafrica.blogspot.com
Grits2bf.blogpost.com
Disclaimer: I am not responsible for nor do I necessarily support anything that anyone else has written or will write. Just another place to possibly find more info and pictures. I have not read these, so read at your own risk!

New address

2006-11-09T09:40:00.000-06:00

My new address is...
Nanette Kelley, PCV
Corps de la Paix Americain
BP 1065
Bobo-Dioulasso
Burkina Faso (West Africa)

My phone number is the same...
011 226 76185075

I will work on getting these onto my blog site permanently soon.

Things are fantastic with me! The end of training is quickly approaching and it is bittersweet. I am excited to get to my site and get settled and get started with my new job, but I am really really sad to only have 21 days left with my host family. They are truly wonderful and giving and caring and I am so fortunate to have been paird up with them. I promise I am the luckiest person here!

We (the PC trainees and staff) have a soccer team and we play against different groups of people. It started off as only 10-12 year old girls, but has now grown to boys and men (last night there were 5 men on their team). And we have another match on Saturday in a nearby village against teenage boys. I am fully planning to get whipped. Soccer here is not played on nice, soft grass, but on slippery red dirt/rock terrain with random patches of coarse weeds and the occasional pile of animal deposits here and there. I think it is safe to say that everyone in this country is good at soccer. This just means that I will get that much better:)

Last week we went in groups of 7 to record a sensibilisation (some type of training) at the local radio station and it was played on the radio today! It was fantastic! My group did malnutrition and it was, of course, in French.

Time is running out. I will update more soon! Love you all!!

Things I love...

2006-11-09T09:26:00.000-06:00

I love love love the little super cute children who see me coming (biking) down the street and drop everything they are doing to run to me (or by me or behind me) and wave their tiny hands (to the point I think they are going to fall off!) and yell "Bonjuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!" (I know it's spelled wrong but that is exactly how it sounds.) And when I greet them back their faces light up and they smile and laugh and cheer. I love love love them.

I love greeting the older people I pass on the streets in their local language (which not only consists of saying hello, but also asking how the family and the work are doing and then also having to respond to the same questions) and watching a huge smile appear on their faces:)

I love going for a run after a jam packed day just as the sun is setting (you know I couldn't get up at 5am everyday and run - come on).

I love playing soccer against 10-12 year old girls who are kicking my butt without even wearing shoes.

I love having yoga classes in French while 20 kids stare in through the "windows."

I love cold watermelon that my family serves to me at EVERY meal I eat at the house (breakfast and dinner Mon-Sat and all 3 on Sunday)!!

I love waking up every morning in Africa knowing I have the support and prayers of my family and friends and knowing that what I do each day here is really making a difference (however small) in this world.

Jimmy Carter and Chinese tea

2006-11-06T03:42:00.000-06:00

Every Monday and Thursday evening (without exception), and other evenings as they require an exception, my host family "has tea." The tea is Chinese and served hot in a teacup fit for a smurf (about the size of a shot glass), and preparing it is a process. It is a ritual practised throughout this country by old and young, muslim and catholic usually sitting in a circle with friends. There are always 3 rounds of tea. The first round is the most potent, and the tea gets weaker with each subsequent round. The process is as follows: The tea is measured and poured into a small teapot. One glass of water is added. The teapot is placed on a little apparatus just big enough for the small teapot with hot coals which my host father fans occasionally to make the tea boil. After a while sugar is measured and poured into a second tiny teapot and the tea is poured back and forth between the two pots for mixing. The interesting part is that the tea must be poured from a distance in order to maximize the foam that gathers at the top when the tea is poured. So it is poured back and forth, back and forth over and over. Then placed back on the coals to boil again and then poured back and forth until is it "parfait." At perfection it is poured into the tiny teacups to be distributed to the party (max 6 due to tiny teacup availability). We sip the tea and then starts round 2. "Having tea" usually takes about an hour and I have grown to really look forward to it. So last night (Sunday night) was one of the exceptions because a friend of my host mom's was in town from the capital city. My host father gave me my first cup and offered some peanuts to go with. I wasn't in the mood for peanuts so I declined, which prompted a relatively lengthy discussion that I just HAD to write home about, the summary of which went a little something like..."Jimmy Carter was a peanut farmer and was also the president of the states and I am american so I should like peanuts with my Chinese tea." Just another day in the life in Burkina and I am loving it:) Always entertaining. Today is Monday, aka "tea night." Stay tuned for more interesting discussion summaries;)

Assignment!!

2006-11-03T06:53:00.000-06:00

Okay! I got the news yesterday that my assigment will be in the 2nd biggest city! The name is Bobo-Dioulasso and it is in the Southwest region of the country. Look it up! What this means:
-Electricity
-Internet access
-Green! (trees, plants, etc.)
-Fruits and vegetables all year (whatever is in season of course)
-A great group of close volunteers
-Safer than the capital city
This was my first choice, so I am really really happy. I will have to explain what I will be doing at a later time.
We are going to SIAO (panAfrican art festival!!) now so I will have to update more later! Love you all, miss you all!

p.s. thank you so much for the comments! I read them all and it's so great to know you guys are following along! Even though I'm on the other side of the world and often feel like I am all alone and so far from everyone and everything familiar and normal for me, it feels so good to know I have you "with" me! I have such a great group of friends and family! I really appreciate the support and well-wishes! It means A LOT!

Tour du Burkina

2006-10-28T10:31:00.000-05:00

Tour du Burkina is a bike race around this country. Today they came through our city and I was front row! I got some great pics! It was fantastic and now I am heading to the celebration ceremony! Not sure which countries are here, but who cares?
This has been a great week...
I started yoga classes week! That really does a body good after my crazy hectic days. The director of our technical sessions is an instructor and has classes on Tues and Thur evenings. He does it in Franglish - a little bit of english and a little bit of french) but we get what he is saying. I definitely know the word for "relax" in French:) It is wonderful - hot of course so it is like doing yoga in a sauna - but wonderful nonetheless! I am just now comletely adjusted (to the climate, the food, the parasites...just kidding) and will start running this week. It is actually really nice at 5:30 in the morning (only about 86°) before the sun starts blazing. Biking is going really great too. I am whipping all around this city everyday!
Last night the host family of one of the volunteers threw him an ENORMOUS bday party - tons of food, drinks, dancing. There were like 70 people there! It was really fun. The people here are so nice.
I took my language proficiency test today. I think it went ok. I obviously started at the novice level when I got here and have to be at least intermediate-mid before Nov 30. I find out my current level on Monday.
We head to the capital city on Thursday for the pan-African art festival! There will be art from all over the continent!
And on Thursday we find out where our sites will be. Keeping those fingers crossed:)
I miss everyone! Hope all is well!

Back in action

2006-10-24T13:20:00.000-05:00

Bonjour everyone! I have been back at training for a few days and am on fire with the french! Actually it has been difficult but it is coming along petit a petit (little by little). My host father asked me to decide on a topic each night to practice various french words and phrases. He really wants to help me get better. My host mom is always saying bravo Nanette! Your french is fantastic! (all in french of course).
Yesterday was Ramadan, a national holiday here. It was so interesting! I have mentioned before that my host dad is Muslim and the mom is Catholic, but everyone just takes a day of celebration and they do it all together. My host mom fixed a bunch of food and many people stopped by to eat and have drinks ( soda for the muslims, beer for the catholics, etc) and dance and visit. And the little kids get dressed in their nice dresses and little suits and walk from house to house for money! It is like trick-or-treating but in really nice clothes and for money! Everyone had a great day - christians, muslims, african traditionalists.

For those of you interested in calling - check out the comment from my friend Robbie under the "Lots of news" post a few back. There is an internet way to get a number to call me - should you so desire.

We have interviews tomorrow to help determine where we will be placed for the next 2 years and then we find out next week.

My host mom informed me that this weekend I will help her make yogurt! woohooo! I will let you know how all this goes. Love you all and thanks for the comments and emails!

Country music

2006-10-19T09:17:00.000-05:00

Earlier this week I finally got my ipod out for the first time since leaving the states. Naturally, my host brother was in love at first sight. But since I have a pretty diverse taste in music there was something for everyone. My host brother got to listen to it first (this lasted about a day) - he loved the hip hop, r&b and reggae - which I have the most of. I was somewhat surprised to find out how many artists he knew pretty well, but then why would I be surprised - he has satellite tv. My host dad came home the next night to let me know that he had listened to it after I went to sleep the night before, and that after jazz music (which is the best according to him) country music is his favorite. What?? Of course I had a hard time picking myself up off the floor after at least 5 minutes of uncontrollable laughter. He couldn't figure out what I found so funny - country music is fantastic. Oh brother. I'm not the biggest fan of country music, but I do have some Kenny Rogers and Dixie Chicks and he was quite happy with that. The next night I asked my host mom what kind of music she liked, and she told me she liked church music. So I put the headphones on her and she jammed to the soundtrack of Sister Act II all night. I love this family.

All clear!

2006-10-18T12:31:00.000-05:00

I just got back from the eye dr and he gave me the thumbs up! The eye is healed and I am to go forth and prosper! wooohoooo!

Ok, I got the scoop on the Afican calling cards for those of you in Indy. This is from a guy from the Ivory Coast who was getting his MBA at Butler when I was. There is a liquor store on the NW corner of 79th and Michigan. Next to the liquor store is a tropical foods store that also sells Africa calling cards. Tell the woman you want to call Burkina Faso and she should be able to advice you on which card you need. Ok, we'll see how this works. Sometimes you will buy a card that says you can talk for an hour and you get 10 minutes, sometimes you get an hour. We'll see. But it's definitely cheaper than just calling. Fantastic!

Ok, for anyone sending a package: rumor has it that the cheapest way to send anything is in those flat envelopes with the bubble plastic stuff on the inside. They sell them at wal-mart or at the post office. Make sure to write "West Africa" next to Burkina Faso so it's easier for them to know where in the world it's going. I guess Burkina is not on the top 5 countries known all over the world. Lastly, if you do send a package and have to fill out one of those customs forms, just put that the box contains used clothes or old magazines so it won't tempt anyone to open it and so it gets through customs. It is best to take it to a United States Postal Office and not UPS or FedEx. That's all I have for now. I love you and miss you all!!

Lots of news

2006-10-18T01:54:00.000-05:00

I'm back in the capital for my follow-up eye appt. Somehow I have just not been able to get on the internet in my training city. The reasons for this are a few - like I noted in my last post, my new goal is mastering the French language. This has taken a decent amount of time. I am being tutored by the director of the language program here in Burkina. He is an amazing teacher. I have an hour session with him every morning at 7 and each night I have homework. So that has been keeping me busy. Reason 2 is the fact that just about everything (except restaurants) close between noon and 3. Why, you might ask? Because it's freaking HOT, and everyone takes this time to nap because it's ridiculous to try to do anything. Everyone, that is, except the Peace Corps people who move right along according to the plan. The third reason is I love my host family, so I want to spend as much time with them as possible. The fourth reason is the internet is not open on the weekends. All this has left me without the chance to make it to the cyber cafe. But now I'm back in the air-conditioned Peace Corps office and can update you on all the good stuff that has been going on:)

SICK - As soon as I got back to my training site last week I got really sick. I went from here (the capital city) straight back to class in the training city. I started getting sick around noon and spent the rest of the afternoon vomitting, so PC drove me home. By the time I got there I was really tired and had a decent fever. My host family hadn't seen me for 5 days and all I could do was literally pass out on my bed - no mosquito net (which we are required to sleep under at night to prevent mosquito bites), didn't bathe or change clothes or even turn my light off. I was incapable of moving. The temp in my room read 100F and I couldn't even get up to turn the fan on. I slept until about 9:30 the next day (classes start at 8) when the PC staff showed up at my house to find out what was wrong. This made me happy that I can't be "missing" for more than an hour and a half before someone comes to find me. I bathed and got dressed and they drove me to school and I started feeling much better. My whole host family was there to see me off - no one had gone to school or work, I'm thinking because they probably thought the Amercian living at their house was dead. Since then I have been much much better. I feel blessed because my sickness only lasted not even 24 hours. A couple of people in our group have had bacteria and amoeabas (sp?) and have had to be on antibiotics. Not me not yet - keep those prayers coming:) I think this might be in part because I really try to not eat anywhere except school and at my host family's house. My host family is excellent with cleanliness in general and especially when it comes to food preparation. And the food is fantastic (see "Food" below). And I ONLY drink my filtered water. This limits my potential to come in contact with the array of things that could get into my body and make me sick.

CELL PHONE - I now have a cell phone! wooohoooo! It's not like having a cell phone in the states where I have a monthly payment plan with so many minutes and unlimited texting. I can receive calls and texts, but I have to buy these little cards with minutes on them in order to make calls or send texts. Essentially, it's like a prepaid phone. So, from the states one would call 011 226 76185075. The 011 is the country code for Burkina. I'm guessing the 226 is like the area code or something. And the last 8 digits are my phone number. According to currently serving volunteers, one of the best ways for someone from the states to call me is to buy a calling card specific to Africa (one might find these in an area of the city where African people would be found). Maybe one of my friends in Indy could research this a little bit and let me know so I can forward that info to my fam. It is very expensive to just pick up the phone and call me. I will research other options and update with those later.

FRENCH - As I mentioned earlier, my french has improved tremendously due to my tutoring sessions. This has allowed much more communication with my host family and I have found out a few other pieces of information. My host dad is 50 and was a track star when he was younger. He competed in Asia, Belgium, and other European countries. He used to run the 800 in 1:48. That sounds ridiculously fast to me considering I am good to get around the track once in 2 minutes:) My host mom is 41 and is very Catholic. In 2003 a car hit here and she broke 5 areas of her body. Both legs and other parts that didn't seem clear to me. However, you would never know it because she is such a hard worker, never complains - even though I know she must be in pain. Reminds me of Dad.

THE PRIEST - My host mom has a huge number of friends. People know her everywhere we go. There are always people stopping by to visit. She is one of the most social people I have ever met. And these friends of hers also belong to a higher class than most here. They dress beautifully and arrive on mopeds. One of her friends stopped by my host mom's boutique in her Mercedes (more on this later). But my favorite of her friends is the Priest. His name is Armand and he is one of my favorite people in this country. If I had to guess his age, I would put him at about 40. I first met him during my first week with the family. He is fluent in 9 languages! 3 local Burkinabe languages, French, Italian (he studied in Rome for 3 years), German, Latin, Greek, and ENGLISH! He is VERY fluent in English, so when he comes over I get to have such in-depth conversations like I can't with anyone else here except the other Americans. And he is FUNNY! So funny. He loves to laugh and he really gets my humor. He is so intersted in me and what I did before I came and what I will be doing here. And I can actually explain things to him that I can't yet in French to my host family. And, like any priest, he loves to drink red wine. So we have a great time when he comes over. He has such an interesting perspective - he has born and raised in Burkina, has traveled the world, and now lives here again. I have so much to learn from him. Our last conversations revolved around the AIDS situation here in Burkina. He doesn't have a parish here (doesn't conduct mass at the big Catholic churches). He has been put in charge of a new project with the CRS (Catholic Relief Services) to teach and provide nutrition to people living with HIV/AIDS. Apparently the Priest comes over regularly, but most times after I have gone to sleep. The people in my family stay up so very late (because they napped while I was going strong with my PC training sessions), so I miss a lot of what goes on at night. My host mom always tells me that the Priest asked about me, and whenever he calls on the phone she puts me on to talk with him. It's fantastic!

NASAARA - This is the Moore (local language) word for "white person" or "stranger." It's not derrogatory. Every morning and every evening I bike about 20 minutes to and from school. I have learned different routes (see "Directionally challenged" below), but regardless of the route I take, there are small children in the "streets" running out to cheer "Nasaara, Nasaara!" Once the first child starts, it's like a "call to all to come see the white girl biking down the street wearing a helmet," (at least that's what I'm thinking it means) and it causes a chain reaction usually for the length of the street. It makes me laugh every time. Sometimes they run along and they always wave and smile, and when I wave back it makes them so happy. There are a couple of little girls who remind me of cheerleading captains. When they see me coming, they start jumping and clapping and SCREAMING "Nasaara! Nasaara!" like they are responsible for getting the cheer started. It's so funny. The children (and adults) who know more French chant "Le Blanc," which literally translates to "the white," but also indicates stranger. It has become the norm to me here, but I was thinking what someone at home might think if I video taped this one day and sent it back, so I wanted to share.

DIRECTIONALLY CHALLENGED - Those of you who know me, know that I am generally extremely good with directions, knowing where I am and how to get places, regardless of the city I am in. I am usually very quick to figure out and understand new places - but this is usually because I only have to look at a map once or twice to understand directions and important locations. This has not been the case thus far in my training city. For 2 weeks, I have been biking around town virtually clueless of where I was at any given time or how to get anywhere. This is because of 3 reasons - I have yet to see a map of this place, the roads don't always continue straight, and many of my points of reference are mobile (the ox that was on this corner this morning is no longer here). I learned one way to school from my host family house and had to base everywhere else I traveled on that - sometimes having to go all the way to my house in order to go back to the cyber cafe or a certain restaurant. It has been extremely frustrating to me. The first week at my host family's house I went out with some other volunteers. On our way home, I could not figure out where I lived and made them ride around for an hour in the dark before my host dad zipped by on his moped and took me home. Last week I started tutoring sessions in the evenings and on my way home, passed my street. A little 8-year old boy came after me yelling, "Le blanc, le blanc, ici, ici!" This means, "stranger, stranger, here, here." I asked him if he knew where I lived and he told me he did, and accompanied me there. Oh, thank God for this country of friendly people who know everything about each other. But last week it clicked and suddenly I understood the town and where everything was and how to get everywhere. The light bulb instantly came on and now I'm having a great time taking different routes to get places (and getting there so much faster) and seeing a bunch of new places! wooohoooo!

PROFESSIONAL BIKE MECHANIC - When I was reading the various requirements for becoming a PC volunteer, I must have completely missed the one that said, "you must know how to disassemble, reassemble, and fix every potential broken part of a 21 speed mountain bike in no less than 105F heat." I must have just missed that. The PC issues volunteers a mountain bike. These are good bikes, but they are used, are used in extremely rough environments (extremely highly dusty/dirty, unpaved, enormous pothole roads), and end up being mangled on public transportation. It's no wonder why these bikes break a lot. The main problem with this is the fact that these bikes are our #1 mode of transportation and I have never had to do more than ride on one. I am now on my third bike. This is unusual, since the PC basically wants us to figure it out so we can maintain our own bikes. My first bike had serious issues with the gears. The second bike had a perpetually flat tire, which is fixable, but when I was sick the logistics guy felt sorry for me and just gave me another one. This last bike has proven itself as dependable so far, but it's a few sizes too small for me. At the end of the day I will take a bike that will work every time over a bike that fits. Perhaps I will get my flat tire bike back, but for now I'm fine, and I know I can get a job as a professional bike mechanic when I'm finished here:)

CHURCH - Sunday morning I went to Catholic mass with my host mother. The church is one block from her boutique. It is a very large church (about the size of St. Rock) and was filled to capacity. The 7am service is in Moore (the local language), however I was able to at least understand the different parts even though I couldn't understand the words - there was standing and sitting and kneeling at all the places I remembered there should be. The priest looked like Don Cheadle (movie actor in Crash, Hotel Rwanda, etc), which made it almost seem like I was in a movie. And the music was awesome. There was a drummer at the front who kept the service more lively than one might find in Indy. The songs were beautiful. The service lasted an hour and a half (which would throw some Americans into a frenzy) which gave me a good chunk of time to pray and reflect and give thanks for all my blessings. I told my host mom that I would go with her all the weeks I lived with her and that made her quite happy. I am just happy to be in an environment where I can attend church.

FOOD - After church on Sunday my host mom and I went to the market to buy food for the week. What an experience that was! She picked out the live chicken she wanted to have killed and defeathered and delivered to our house, she picked out the slab of beef from the hanging carcass in the butcher area of the market (which had various legs of animals lying on the ground under the butcher tables), she asked me what I wanted to eat this week and went around and picked up everything I said I liked - watermelon (straight from the freezer which I eat at breakfast and dinner EVERYDAY) pineapple, oranges, limes, cucumbers, tomatoes, and then I saw the spinach leaves! Fresh spinach!! So I asked her if I could make spinach that night. Of course she said yes, so we got that too. So, I helped her cook lunch when we got home and the priest came over to eat and drink red wine with me:) I showed my host mom how sometimes we put a slice of cucumber in our water and she has been doing that ever since. We hung out that afternoon, then I took a 3-hour nap. When I woke up she asked me to make the spinach. I told her I made it with garlic and olive oil (I'm pretty sure my host family doesn't use olive oil for anything). So my host brother leaves and returns within 10 minutes with a bottle of olive oil that had a price on it of 7,500CFAs! This was more than my host mother had paid for EVERYTHING at the market that day. I felt horrible. I tried to give them the money for it, but they explained to me that the priest gave it to them and they would not take my money:) Gotta love the priest! So, I showed my host mom and the other helper girls how I made spinach and they had a hard time understanding what I mixed with it. Nothing in the country is eaten alone - something (rice or to or couscous) is mixed with some kind of sauce or soup. They kept asking me what I was going to add to the "sauce." So I showed them how a typical plate of food would look where I come from - spinach separate from the couscous separate from the chicken. Of course it was foreign and strange to them, but they did love the cooked spinach. I think it was a good learning experience.

PEOPLE OF BURKINA - I think the world has a lot to learn from the people of Burkina. Never have I been in a place so friendly, accepting, helpful, peaceful, thankful, non-judgmental. The people of this country are happy. They are so poor by my standards and they know they don't have money to do many things that people in this world do, but that doesn't consume their thoughts. They help each other out. They are not so concerned about themselves that they forget simple human decencies such as helping someone with a flat tire (whether they know them or not, whether they are Burkinabe or American, whether they have someplace they need to be or not), or giving someone half of the very little food they are eating, or scooting down so that they are uncomfortably crowded on a bench but so you don't have to stand, or practicing whatever religion they practice and being happy for you to practice yours and still loving each other and living side by side in harmony. I am a Christian and I believe God has 2 main requirements of me - love Him and love others. One of the main reasons for me coming here was to make those 2 requirements my 2 main priorities in life. This country makes it so easy to love others. For that, and for so many other blessings, I am thankful.

Eye is better

2006-10-10T11:47:00.000-05:00

Do you like my broken english? Ok, that was cheesy, but my eye is getting better AND I is better:) I just saw the eye Dr and he said it's better but not finished. So the drops continue for another week, then I will be back to see him. That's a relief. I leave to rejoin my other trainees tomorrow at 8am. This works out great because I'm catching a ride in the Peace Corps car rather than having to take public transportation. This is fantastic in many ways. Peace Corps car has just me and the driver and air conditioning and some interesting music selection like Dolly Parton or Phil Collins. Public transport, on the other hand, has 5 people per 4 person seat, goats and chickens loaded on top, crying babies, some sort of Indian music (do not ask me), and it's hot hot hot. So wooohoooo to the nice trip that awaits me in the am.
I have obviously fallen behind on the schedule (though I can't really complain - the pool was super great on this super hot day!), so I've decided to get a french tutor to get better faster. I've been hanging out with volunteers who have been here for a year. They travel around by themselves, bebop over to the American Embassy and to the market, bargain with the taxi drivers and vendors everywhere, and I simply cannot do that yet. My success here hinges on my ability to communicate en francais. I made it here and know I can handle the culture, so french is my #1 focus for the next couple of weeks.
I appreciate all of your well wishes and prayers! Keep 'em coming!! Miss you all.
Nette

Burkina Faso tidbits

2006-10-08T07:38:00.000-05:00

I've been putting the drops in my eye and hopefully it's getting better. Still painful and red and very sensitive to light (which is not convenient in a country where the sun shines all the time). I can see out of it, which is good:)
I'm going swimming today with some volunteers who are currently in the capital for mid-service physicals, then we will watch a movie, then I think we will have pizza:) wooohoooo! I know I've only been here for 11 days and I act like I haven't had American food for 1,000 years, but 11 straight days of rice with vegetables feels like a lot longer. I don't just eat rice, there is also to (pronounced "toe") - which I can take or leave, or couscous or pasta to go wtih the vegetables or leaf sauce or peanut sauce (my fav). And I have bananas and watermelon and grapefruit for breakfast or dessert. And my host mom prepares a salad made up of tomatoes and cucumbers with my own special oil and vinegar - the rest of my fam eats dressing made with mayo, but I'm avoiding mayo for now. And I have baguettes with honey and milk (powdered mixed with boiled water) with sugar to drink for breakfast sometimes too. My host mom has given me chicken and goat, neither of which I'm loving, but that may change after some time. So, food has been good so far, in large part because of my very sweet and generous host family.

So the rest of this post is dedicated to some descriptions of some things that are common here:
1. Dirt - everything is dirty, by my old standards. If someone from home came to visit me, they would think it's really dirty here. I don't see it as bad, just common here.
2. Dirt roads - paved roads are a luxury and not common in most of this country. And the dirt here (at least in the capital and between the capital and my training city) is reddish, not so brown.
3. Bicycles and mopeds - the vast majority of transportation here is by bike and moped. They are everywhere. Cars are not driven by most.
4. Animals - animals are everywhere. Goats, chickens, dogs (and they are all the same kind of dog - a pretty average-looking mutt with short reddish-brown hair...the same color as the dirt:), cows, ox (big ones live down the street from me - on the street), and donkeys. I see these animals all over the place. I have yet to see anything exciting like monkeys or giraffes or elephants.
5. Women carrying babies wrapped to their backs - the babies are so beautiful.

That's all for now. Anyone sending a care package soon can include AA batteries and individual packets of powerade and nutella if you want. I don't need them today, but if I get it one day that would make me happy!! Love you all!
Nette

Infirmary

2006-10-07T11:19:00.000-05:00

Well it didn't take long to land here at the infirmary. In Africa for 10 days and here I am - but fear not, I'm ok (I think). Yesterday I got something in my eye and it got more painful throughout the night. So the Medical Officer had me come to the capital city where I saw an eye Dr this morning (that was a wonderful 2 1/2 hour bus ride). My eye is scratched, so he gave me some drops and wants to see me Tues or Wed. What all of this means is... cheeseburgers and pizza and air conditioning and french fries and movies (American ones in English!) and air conditioning and free internet on an English keyboard and seeing all the other PC volunteers who come through the capital city and did I mention air conditioning?? There is a really good restaurant at the international school here that serves American food (the school also has a beautiful swimming pool!). There is also a good restaurant at the embassy that I will try to make it to before this little sick trip ends. Looks like I will be getting "sick" more often than I planned:) I'm kidding, but there are some perks to being here in the PC infirmary. One guy came in, as I was heading to the eye Dr, who had malaria. He looks amazingly good for someone who has malaria (like I know what someone who has malaria looks like) - though he probably doesn't feel great.
The rest of my group went to visit another current volunteer at her site to see a real "day in the life" of a PC volunteer. It's a good idea to show us what we'll really be doing so people have a reference as we go through training. Hopefully I will get to visit someone later since I had to miss this one.
I have had the chance to hang out with some current volunteers who are halfway done with service and it's interesting to see their perspective after having been here a year already. Makes me wonder where I will be in a year.
I miss everyone and hope you are great! I'll be on the internet for the next 4 days, so more to come...

"Africa hot"

2006-10-05T14:32:00.000-05:00

I am pretty sure I now know the meaning of "Africa hot." My digital thermometer on my alarm clock in my room read 88F this morning when I woke up at 6am. I refuse to look at it during the day. I don't even want to know.
I am doing AWESOME, no doubt due to the prayers of my loved ones back home! My host family is absolutely wonderful. The mother is the business owner and seems to have some status in the community since other women curtsy to her. She is beautiful and caring and generous and patient with me. She comes home from her boutique in the evenings to make sure my meal is being prepared properly according to PC standards(by the girls who live in my compound who I think are the nieces of the father)so I don't get sick, and then goes back to her boutique to close up shop. She (as well as the rest of the family) are always up when I wake in the morning and when I go to sleep at night. The father is an administrator for the athletic association in this city (I'm pretty sure). He is also very nice and caring. I think my accent is too much for him beause he understands less of what I try to say than anyone else, though he continues to try until my 20th "Je ne comprend pas," when he breaks it down in english for me:) He is great. Their son is 16 and my favorite of the family. He is always helping me and his sister and his mom and dad. He is learning english as I am learning french so we compare notes. You teach me and I teach you. He plays soccer (although I'm not sure when) so my goal is to get out there and play with him soon. The daughter is 7 and oh is she 7. She is sweet and always somewhere close to me watching every move and helping me practice pronunciation of the easy stuff - counting to 100 (which my host father would not let me quit when I got to 80), days of the week, months of the year, etc. The father is Muslim and everyone else is Catholic. I have recently befriended the very fluent english speaking Priest who comes to dinner sometimes. The family dynamics are so wonderful (and so different from the families a lot of volunteers have). The 4 of them interact so nicely. I love it.
The compound I live in is interesting. There is the building I live in which contains 3 seperate really small apartments - me and the mom and dad in 1, the kids in another, and not sure what's in the other. There is another identical building which houses some members of the father's extended family. The "shower" and "toilet" areas are at the far corner of the compound. I am required to bathe twice per day - before breakfast and dinner - which I have no probleme with (see Africa hot at top of post). Bathing under the stars is something else. Also in our compound are 2 goats (1 baby), 2 dogs, and 5 chickens. So yes mom, I finally live on the farm you always wanted me to - though I don't do any related work:)
So a day in the life...wake at 6am (to the sound of that darn rooster for the 4th hour) and bathe. Then I have breakfast with my host sister and brother. Discuss the night's plans with the host mom and dad and say good-bye. Bike to school where I have 4 2-hr training sessions varying between french, safety and security, culture, and health (Thursdays are shots days - today I got 2). Bike home, study, bathe, eat dinner, "talk" (fumble through french) with the fam about the days activities, go to bed. I stay really busy, but I am learning a lot and getting to know some really great people.
That's all for now. I'll be gone until Tuesday, so I'll try to catch up then. Thanks so much for all the well-wishes. Love you all!!

Host Family

2006-10-02T08:16:00.000-05:00

Ok, I apologize for the lack of communication. We have been really busy! I am now in my training site about 2 hours n/nw of the capital. It is a nice city, cleaner than the capital but with the same amenities. It is hotter here so I have been nice and drenched the entire time. You get used to it. We stayed for 2 nights at the really nice facilities at the training building 4 to a room - like a big slumber party. My co-trainees are really great, as are the PC staff. Then I got my host family last night and stayed at their house in my own room. This was my first rough time here due to a lack of ability to really communicate and some mis expectations, but we worked it out (with the help of the PC staff)à and all is great now. They are really patient with my lack of french skills and I think will be able to teach me a lot about their culture and the language. My french is getting better by the minute and I have already learned some of the local language (which is much easier than french). My family has satellite tv (how funny is that) so they turn on cnn for a little bit for me:) The facilities will take some getting used to, but that comes with the new culture. Nobody said change was easy.

Any care packages are great - if you want to include some things I can always use:

small kleenex packages (this is my travel toilet paper), cheese and crackers, granola/nutrigrain bars, bar soap, soduko book, chocolate (m&ms); GUM - sugar free.

I miss everyone. I will try to update as often as possible. Dad, I will call soon too. Love you!!

I'm in Africa!!!

2006-09-28T11:14:00.000-05:00

It took 15 minutes to get to this site and I only bought 30 and I'm on a french keyboard so this is gonna be short. The trip to get here was long but safe so I'm super thankful for that!! We are in the capital city and it is amazing. It's beautiful and the people are really super nice. I'm experiencing sensory and information overload. 3 shots so far, more tomorrow and every week for the next month - better than getting yellow fever I guess:) We go to our training site tomorrow and I'll be able to get more time. Love you all!!!

Info

2006-09-24T19:45:00.000-05:00

Ok, so the in-person good-byes are over. Today was rough. I'm in Philly now - 1st day of training is done. I've met some awesome people today that are going to my country with me - half in the business sector and the other half are in the health sector. The emotions are all over the place.
Here is my itinerary for the next week -
Monday Sep 25 we have training all day in Philly.
Tuesday Sep 26 we go to the clinic in the morning for vaccinations, then we take a bus to JFK and take off for Paris at 11pm. This will be the last time I'll be making phone calls from my cell.
Wednesday Sept 27 - after a 4-hour layover in Paris, we arrive in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso (the capital city) at 8pm BF time (which is 2pm Indpls time).
Thursday Sep 28 we spend in the capital city having info sessions. THIS IS THE FIRST TIME I WILL BE ABLE TO CALL - probably around afternoon Indy time.
Friday Sep 29 we also spend in the capital city with more info sessions. Friday afternoon we travel to Ouahigouya (80 km north of the capital city). This is where we will have pre-service training. That evening they have a welcome ceremony for us.
Saturday Sep 30 is more training and info sessions.
Sunday Oct 1 we have our adoption ceremony and meet our host families. I will live with this family for the next 11 weeks. There will be at least 5 other volunteers in this community at other host families.
It looks like I will have phone and internet access in the capital city and in the training city - so I will communicate as often as possible.
Obviously I am and will be experiencing information overload. I miss everyone so much already. Take care and I will post asap!

Yo Ref! Time out!

2006-09-21T21:54:00.000-05:00

I was driving home after a great evening of watching the season premiere of Grey's, and I got this overwhelming urge to call a time out. You know when you're playing basketball and you need a minute to catch your breath and make sure everyone's on-board with the play, so you yell, "yo ref! time out!" That's what I felt tonight. But no sir, not in this game. There are no time outs. Sure, you can step to the sidelines and watch the game go on for a while, but the game clock of life stops for no one. That quarter flew by! Now it's time to get in there and play.

Thank you

2006-09-19T11:10:00.000-05:00

My going-away/30th birthday party on Sunday was AWESOME!! The weather was perfect, so many people came, we had great food and drinks and CAKE, the Colts won, who could ask for anything more? Thank you to everyone who took the time to come wish me luck and congratulations. I had a few breakdown moments as I said my last (well, last in-person) good-byes to family and friends.
It's now crunch time...The car is off to auction - keep your fingers crossed that somebody wants to pay me what it's worth...Gotta get those last few items and pack my bags - also keep those fingers crossed that everything fits in the bags and that the bags don't weigh too much:)...I'm at the end of my "getting rid of everything" phase and I still have so much. The last will go to Goodwill this week.
I'm in the process of doing all my "lasts." I had one last reggae night at the Casba. One last "drinks after work with the managers" is tonight. One last lunch with my old Blue co-workers is tomorrow. One last Grey's Anatomy session with Norm is Thursday. One last night with the girls is Saturday. And then this chapter closes and my Africa chapter begins. Life and time - phenomenal concepts.

Getting ready

2006-09-11T14:52:00.000-05:00

Ok, I thought I better start on this since I have 12 days left before I leave. Here are some of the main things going on right now:
The garage sale last weekend went great, but I still have a ton of stuff left. The rest is going to have to be donations. It's a liberating feeling to be able to say everything I own fits into 2 suitcases (which cannot weigh more than 80lbs total and can't measure more than 107 inches - w+l+h for both). But it's more than a lot of people in this world have. I'm disgusted with myself to see how much "stuff" I have. I'm a glutton when it comes to clothes - bottom line.
My car still hasn't sold. If anyone wants to buy my 2001 Acura TL with 66,500 miles for $14,000, please let me know. It really is an awesome car.
I have 9 more days of work at the hospital. My co-workers have been pretty awesome.
My going-away party is this weekend. It looks like a lot of people are going to make it, so I hope the weather is nice.
I'm pretty sure I have purchased everything I need (or at least everything I'm going to take) for this trip. I call it a trip, but I should call it a move. Who goes on a 2-year trip?
This past week was difficult. I think I've been reading too many blogs and I had information overload, which prevented me from sleeping and gave me some pretty intense dreams. I'm calmer now, which is good considering the next 12 days are going to be full. I have officially determined that saying good-bye is going to suck. My life is great and my friends and family rock.
I have one correction for my first post - I'm flying to Philadelphia for "staging," not D.C.
Obviously, there is plenty more to come. Check back in a week.

Peace Corps

2006-07-25T09:38:00.000-05:00

It's official! Last week I accepted an invitation to serve in the Peace Corps in Burkina Faso as a small business advisor. I will be in Washington, D.C. September 25-26, 2006, then I fly to Africa where I'll be in training in Burkina Faso September 27-December 15, 2006. After training I will be assigned to a community where I'll serve 2 years (December 15, 2006 - December 15, 2008). I will be packing, wrapping up my personal affairs and spending time with family and friends for the next 8 1/2 weeks. Hopefully I will be able to update this site regularly so my family and friends can share in my journey over the next 2+ years, so check back when you can to follow along.