Site Announcement (and Christmas!!)

SITE
Well, I have finally found out where I will be spending my two years as a volunteer (after training). In February I will be moving to a village named Bintimodia near the city Boke (pronounced Bo-kay) in the region known as Basse Cote, or Lower Guinea. and approximately 150 miles from the capital city of Conakry. Boke lies on the Atlantic coast of Guinea and is one of the most important bauxite-producing
areas in Guinea. I will be working with the chief of the health center in my village to help implement my programs, specifically in educating the people living there in malaria and diarrhea prevention, among
other health related topics. In the surrounding area, there are two Agroforestry volunteers, another Public Health volunteer, two Education volunteers, and one Community Economic Development volunteer. I am really excited to be so many other volunteers and hope to have an opportunity to work with some others on joint projects.

In a few weeks, I will be meeting my counterpart on a weeklong visit to my new village. During this time, I will have the opportunity to meet some of the community members and begin learning about what
Bintimodia has to offer. I also have a chance to check out my house and such so I can begin planning what items I will need/want to buy for it. This is one of the highlights of PST and everyone is greatly looking forward to it.

CHRISTMAS
Ok, so we are in Conakry, at the volunteer house, to celebrate Christmas. Last night we had a gift exchange which was very entertaining and fun for everyone, even those who did not participate. Some of the most desired gifts were: ketchup, cheese (laughing cow), beer, and cookies. As my swap, I gave capri suns (also suprisingly desired), and received: lolipops, bar of locally made soap, laundry detergent, a candy bar, and a chocolate cookie. I am very happy for my gift, both because it is practical, but tastes good too (thanks to
whoever put it together!).

Besides the gift swap, our big celebration will consist of lunch. We  were able to go to a Western grocery store to buy "American" food. Many people are making different traditional Christmas foods and we are all super excited to eat something besides the rice and fish sauce we all get each night.

So, the menu for lunch is as follows:
Stuffed Goat-thanks to one of the trainers here
Fried Chicken
Corn Bread
Macaroni and Cheese
Mashed Potatos
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Brownies
Homemade Eggnog

Unfortunately, I don't have any other exciting news right now, but hopefully after the counterpart workshop and site visit I can offer you all something fun to read. For now, you have that post to look forward to. Hope you are all doing well in America.
Miss you tons <3 Brittany

PICTURES (sorry for the random ordering)

                                                        Volunteer House in Conakry

                                                                       Cascades

                                                            Murials at the Volunteer House

                                                           View from Volunteer House

                                                           Other view from volunteer house

                                          Local Artwork--this was made with Nescafe (instant coffee)!!

                                                   More Peace Corps Property in Conakry

    

                                                               Soccer (Football) Game

                                                         Gourd string instrument and drum

                                             List of Services and Prices from the Hospital in Dubreka

                                                      Items used in local religious practices                                     

Wo Nu Wali!! (Hello, Everyone!)

Well, much has happened since my last post: I finally made it to
Guinea, learned a little French and Susu (the local language of the
village we are staying in), and moved in with my host family. My
Guinean family is extremely kind and very helpful; they always try
teaching me new words, both French and Susu, and help me with daily
activities.
DAILY LIFE
Getting acquainted with Guinean life has been challenging, especially
because of the language barrier. So far, I have been able to get
drinking water (with the assistance of my host brother), wash all my
clothes (with my host mom and some other woman that lives in my
house…), hang my mosquito net (it took the WHOLE family for that), and
watch the women make food (they haven't let me help them yet). Life
here is pretty good and overall I'm content living here for the next
three months, but am looking forward to learning more about where I
will actually be completing my service.
LANGUAGE
It is very difficult communicating with people who do not speak your
language. Although I have been able to communicate all my needs/wants
there have been some funny incidents along the way. First of all, I
never know what anyone is saying, even though I have been taught the
words/phrases they are using, because they speak too fast. I blankly
stare at people, trying to figure out what they are saying or asking
me. This is very comical, I'm sure, because greetings here are
extremely important to the people. It is considered rude not to talk
to everyone you meet when walking down the street, so it is very
important for me to talk to everyone, or at least try to say hello,
even if they don't understand me. One memorable language issue was
when I was trying to talk about my cat (yes, of course it's important
for my African family to know about bomber). Animals here are not kept
as pets so to have a cat that lives in my house, sleeps on my bed,
plays with me, eats food I provide, and has a name is totally
abstract. Besides this, I do not know the French word or equivalent
for Bomber and Shadow. For Bomber, I settled on them understanding
that she had a name and is mine. For Shadow, however, I decided to
point out a shadow on the ground and hope they understood. Well, they
didn't understand. They thought I was talking about the ground or dirt
or dark. Finally I think they understand after I repeated grabbed
objects and put them in the light to cast a shadow. Another funny
thing happened when I was explaining different types of shoes we have.
I was understood when I was talking about flip flops and sandals but
trying to explain sneakers was difficult. I tried saying "courer",
which is "to run" in French but they had no idea what I was saying.
Then I tried telling them that they were shoes used for futbol (aka
soccer) but that didn't work either. Finally I got up and started
running around our yard and then I think finally I got through to
them.
FOOD
Overall, I am happy with the food here. Everyone is well spiced and
fresh. However they use oil like Gram uses butter. They cook
everything with oil and use wayyyy more than is necessary. My meals at
home mostly consist of potatoes, rice, and fish. This morning I had an
awesome breakfast of what I can only describe as potato salad. It had
boiled potatoes, tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, and hard-boiled egg,
seasoned with black pepper and some other spices, and mixed with just
the right amount of mayonnaise. It was the best meal I've had at my
house so far. Oh, and every meal comes with an entire French baguette.
Well, I should have internet every Thursday for the next few months so
check back for more updates soon! <3 Brittany

Finally an Update! Staging!

After leaving Cape Cod at 6:30 am (only after chasing Bomber through the house for 30 min) and departing PVD at 9:30, I finally made it to PC Staging in Philadelphia. Upon my arrival and hauling my bags off the luggage carousel, I quickly realized that I am unable to carry all my stuff (50 lb hiking backpack, 45 lb duffel, stuffed llbean backpack, pillow, and shoulder tote). I struggled for a little bit to get it all on and soon as I thought I had it all under control, something would fall out of my tote and onto the floor...unreachable with all the bags on me. This was extremely frustrating, not to mention a little embarrassing, and so I decided to just pay the $4 for a cart to wheel all my stuff outside. Once I was mobile, I scurried out to catch the shuttle to my hotel. On the drive to the hotel, I overheard two girls in front of me talking about Peace Corps and blogs they read, knowing they were part of my group I introduced myself and soon we were so wrapped up in out conversation we forgot all about the six other people sitting silently next to us (yes, we were "those girls"). Soon enough we were at the hotel, all our luggage loaded onto carts and waiting to be wheeled up to our rooms. After checking in to our rooms I was surprised to find that my roommate, Carolina, was one of the girls I met on the airport shuttle.

After dropping our things off in our room, Carolina and I joined the rest of the group in the conference room and our orientation began. As my first official day as a Peace Corps Trainee (PCT) I was not excited to spend it filling out paperwork, little did I know how much fun this orientation would be...First, we did hand in some paperwork, but then after a few ice breakers and learning just a bit more about what we will actually be doing in Guinea, me and my fellow PCTs got to have a good time to getting to know one another and getting better acquainted with PC in general. 

Once the staging meeting ended, Carolina and I ventured out into the city in search of food. On our walk we passed by City Hall and got to witness the Occupy movement...it was very cool seeing it live after hearing so much about it in the media. I was surprised at the turnout and that a bunch of them even had tents set up nearby; it was strange that I really felt like I was part of history happening just while walking by the protesters. After consuming a giant/amazing philly cheesesteak (wizz wit...aka cheese wiz with peppers, onions, mushrooms) we returned to the room. Although it was quite a long day, it was great finally getting to meet everyone that I have been chatting with on Facebook over the past few months. I still don't believe I am really leaving the country tomorrow...and still unsure what exactly I am getting myself into! Hope all is well at home, will be in touch soon  <3 Brittany

Coming Soon!!

I will be leaving for Peace Corps Guinea in late November. Check back for updates on my departure status and other exciting PC news!