Birthday Edition!!

April 15, 2012


Today was a pretty average day; spent the morning cleaning and doing laundry and then went to help prepare the rice with Kadiatou.  Kadiatou's older sister (Fatim) from Boke has been visiting from Boke, which has been cool because Kadiatou has gotten some time to relax and just hang out, rather than do all the chores and cooking for her brothers and sisters.

This afternoon I was in the cooking hut with Fatim and Sarata, Kadiatou's younder sister (about 8 years old) when all of a sudden Fatim took Sarata out of the hut and started saying that there was something in the hut. I immediately assumed there was a spider (prior to this Fatim kept looking at the roof above me) and ran out of the hut covering my head. Once outside, Fatim said there was a chameleon and then Kadiatou proceeded to tell me that chameleons are extremely dangerous. Now, I know chameleons are not dangerous, so I wasn't concerned but the others were afraid and M'Baye, Kadiatou's younger brother (14 years old) grabbed a spear (yes, a spear, seriously) and started trying to stab the chameleon and get it out of the hut. Finally they knocked it down and M'Baye pierced it, and left it on the ground with the spear still stuck inside.

After all this excitement, we all (the women) returned to the cooking hut to continue making the rice. Now that I saw how honestly afraid everyone was I asked Kadiatou why chameleons are dangerous (well, why she thinks they are, anyway). She then explained to me that they change colors and so you can't see them and that's why they are so bad. I laughed a little and said they aren't dangerous, even though there was no proof I could give to verify this.




April 16, 2012--Birthday!!


In order to spoil myself a bit in honor of my b-day, I went to Kamsar with Steph and Marissa where I was able to skype with a bunch of family and friends. Once in Kamsar I made a quick trip to the market to buy all the ingredients my host family said I would need for my village celebration for "mon anniversaire". Finding all the things was interesting and challenging since some of the words were in Susu and written in a not-so-easy to read way. Not to mention that the market is huge and not really organized in a logical way. After about an hour of frantically searching and asking a bunch of random people where I could find things I had everything on the list, and a massive plastic bag to show for it.

Unfortunately the internet wasn't working for the first hour or so, and I missed a few people who had to go to work. After an awesome lunch (cheeseburger and fries!) we went to the grocery store where I splurged on hummus and ruffle potato chips (the only inexpensive thing to eat hummus with), blue cheese, and a wine cooler type frozen drink.

After we were finished in Kamsar, the three of us found a taxi and made our way back to Boke. Marissa and I spent the night in the PC house where we watched movies (Harry Potter--of course, and Monte Carlo--please don't judge, it was a cute movie) and made dinner. I attempted a buffalo-style eggplant sandwich, which, although was not exactly what I had in mind, was very delicious, and would definitely be worth a second try. Phil (a PC response volunteer) came to the house after his class and he and Marissa made spaghetti and tomato sauce. Together we shared the chips and hummus and also some skittles I brought from a care package. Unfortunately the city power did not come on that night, so the refrigerator wasn't working and my frozen drink stayed liquid and luke warm. I decided to save that for the following trip to Boke.



April 17, 2012


This morning I left Boke with Cisse and the Boke Driver, Conte to head back to village. On the way to Kamsar (Cisse had some business for PC to take care of there) we stopped to look at a potential placement for a new education volunteer. It would be a great site, judging by the brief look I got, it is nearer to me than any other volunteer right now.

I finally made it back to Bintimodia around noon and immediately started cooking lunch/dinner with my family. After the normal rice and sauce we started making the "cake" aka balls of fried dough. My mom was preparing the dough and cut up onions in it. Immediately I was like "umm, onions in cake?!" but my sister assured me it was normal and would be good. Well, she was right, they were delicious (how could anything with sugar fried in oil not be good?) and we ended up with a huge bowl full of "gateau".

After the cake we started making "bonbons glacees". These are normally like popsicles in that they are fruity, sugary, frozen treats; however, since I do not have electricity, they were not frozen, or even cold, but still sugary and delicious. These snacks come in a bunch of flavors, most commonly ginger (djin-djan), hibiscus (beesap), moki (a fruity fruit, can't describe it any other way), and mango/banana. I like all of them, but chose to make beesap for my b-day celebration, mostly because I found the dried hibiscus flowers in the market and couldn't find anything to make the others. After mixing the hibiscus flowers with boiling water and straining, we added a ton of sugar and a little vanilla sugar. After the mixture cooled, we added more water and then spooned the syrup into small plastic baggies. The bonbons are eaten by biting a corner of the bag and chewing/sucking the juice out that way (it sounds way more strange than it is).

Once everything was prepared, and of course after eating a ton of rice (they gave me twice as much as normal since it was a "special day") my sister, Namina, and I went around the village distributing the bonbons and dough balls. Everyone wished me a "bonne anniversaire" and were surprised when I said I was 24 years old. I don't know if they expected me to be older or younger, but nonetheless, everyone was surprised.

All-in-all, my first African birthday was amazing. It was awesome talking with my American family and friends, but spending the time with my host family was truly priceless. They are all so kind and thoughtful, and took a lot of time to make sure my day was perfect. This was by far one of the best birthdays I have had and one I will always cherish.

Photos! Finally!

baby goat playing : )

Kadiatou

"Cake" balls (aka fried dough) and Beesap Bonbons (hibiscus popsicle, but not frozen)
made these with my family for my b-day...brought them around the village to celebrate

Birthday dinner...massive pile of rice with my favorite sauce and noodles!! 

Sarata, Kadiatou's younger sister, washing dishes

Kadiatou, again

I braided Kadiatou's hair!

Garden

garden

garden

The plot of land I share with Lamar and Kadiatou

Lamar watering plants

Lamar's sister working in the garden

some kids in the garden

April Book List

Nostradamus
    Knut Boeser

Girl, Interrupted
    Susanna Kaysen

The Winter of Our Discontent
     John Steinbeck

The Mosquito Coast
     Paul Theroux

Congo
     Michael Crichton

Welcome to the Great Mysterious
     Lorna Landvik

Babel Tower
     A. S. Byatt

Wait, this is a Guinean wedding?: Week 10

WEEK 10

April 10, 2012

I spent the weekend in Boke with Marissa and Stephanie and a bunch of education volunteers who are on spring break. It was a lot of fun and we made some awesome meals. The first night was just the three of us so we made garlic bread and mozzarella sticks again. The next day, before the education volunteers arrived (they were all coming from a vacation on the beach) we made brownies with caramel and mango jam. For dinner that night we had sag paneer (an Indian style dish made with spinach and cheese) with homemade cheese and flat bread. It was delicious and the ed volunteers were very grateful because they hadn’t planned anything for dinner.

Yesterday we made pancakes that we ate with mango jam and bananas. That afternoon we lounged and watched movies and just talked. It was a really relaxing day and it was great spending time with the other volunteers, getting to know them better. For dinner that night we made pasta salad, deviled eggs, and garlic bread and Cisse (regional coordinator) brought us half a watermelon.

Today the ed volunteers all went to Kamsar and Steph went back to site, so Marissa and I organized the library, alphabetizing and dusting the shelves. Later the two of us ventured into the market where I bought two new fabrics for clothes (one is white, blue, and red with umbrellas and the other is maroon with white parasols) and Marissa bought screens for her windows/door. On our way out I saw a kitten in a gutter of the market and we brought it back to the PC house to clean and feed it. After de-fleeing it and whatnot, the kitten was very lively and Marissa decided to name it Maakiti (ma-KEE-tee), which is Susu for market. Marissa took Maakiti back to site with her, as I plan to get a cat from one of the PC APCD’s at our next training session in May.

April 13, 2012

Today I went to a marriage for someone in my extended family. This was the first actual ceremony I’ve seen here (besides that weird thing for the funeral) and it was very strange. I don’t quite know how to describe what happened; it was extremely awkward and unexpectedly informal. For the wedding, woven mats were placed in a square on the ground and the Sage all sat around the square. Two white plastic chairs were placed facing the square for the bride and groom. All the people attending the wedding sat in plastic chairs in a circle surrounding the couple and the Sage. The bride came out first; she was very young, no older than 16. She walked into the circle from her house with a woman (I’m assuming her mother) and the woman placed in a chair and arranged her veil so it covered her hair. I felt bad for this girl; she looked terrified, and not just pre-wedding jitter, more like she would burst into tears any moment. I asked Kadiatou if this girl wanted to get married and she said of course, and it was normal for her to be scared (but it was not normal, I can assure you). Then the groom (probably about 24 years old, maybe older) entered the circle from the other side where he had been standing with friends; he sat in the chair next to the bride and the mother of the bride placed a white sheet over both of their heads. Then the chief Sage started speaking in Susu with another Sage echoing him, like at the funeral.

This continued for a while and then all of a sudden people started running up to the bride and groom throwing money at them and at the Sage. I was taken aback by this interruption of the ceremony, but no one else seemed surprised. Once everyone returned to his or her seats the Sage resumed his speech, but only to be interrupted a short while later by more money tossing. This happened three or four times by the time the ceremony was over. After every time money was thrown at the couple, women, like bridesmaids I guess, took the money away and gave it to the family of the bride.

In the middle of the wedding, a random woman (maybe related to the bride?) pulled a chair up next to the groom, sat down, and placed a white cloth over her head and his. Everyone thought this was hilarious (except the bride), but I didn’t understand what she was doing.  When I asked Kadiatou what was happening she said the woman was just joking, but it was very strange. She remained sitting there for a while, almost the rest of the ceremony, before the Sage told her to leave. During the whole service, the bride sat mannequin-like; she didn’t move at all, and I don’t think she ever smiled. Even when it was over and people were getting ready to head to the fête (generic word for any kind of celebration, in this case it was the wedding reception) she looked scared and unhappy.

After the wedding, I was walking home with Kadiatou when she pulled me into the village taxi along with 4 other people and the driver. I thought we were just getting a ride back to our houses but it turned out we were in a parade of sorts, comprised of motorcycles, cars, pick-up trucks, and children running and screaming alongside the vehicles. The “parade” ended at the house of the groom, where the reception took place. Once here, everyone began dancing and taking pictures of the newlyweds, who were placed on a couch in the middle of the yard. All in all, this was a rather interesting, and a little disturbing afternoon, and I look forward to attending more weddings to see if this one was, in fact, typical.

Well, I quit my PC Job...My New African Life: Weeks 7, 8, and 9

WEEK 7

March 21, 2012

Yesterday Fadiga (PC person responsible for all Public Health stuff) came for a visit with the new regional coordinator (RC) for Boke, Cisse. Cisse was the homestay coordinator for training and I know him to be helpful and kind. I am glad he was chosen as our RC because this is someone I report to with problems at site and whatnot and I know Cisse will be easy to work with.

After Fadiga and Cisse left, I had my second English revision. There were seven students there, plus a bunch of younger kids from the primary school. I taught them verb conjugation for “to have,” “to go,” and “to be,” and vocabulary for daily activities. We also went over questions and expressions for wants and needs. I think it went very well, although I gave a lot of new words so in the next few weeks I have to make sure to reinforce it.

March 25, 2012

Today Finda (a stagaire), Bintou (the Mama of the hospital) and I went out into the village to give polio vaccines as part of the UNICEF program that takes place a few times each year in an effort to eradicate polio. We vaccinated about 60 kids and the other stagaires and doctors reached about the same number, totally about 250 kids just today. Over the next few days we will continue to work in neighboring villages to reach as many kids as possible.

It was great exploring the village and talking to people, although some of the children were a bit obnoxious. The vaccine is oral, and I think tastes a bit sweet, so there really should be no fuss about giving it. In fact, most kids didn’t even know what was going on and barely made a sound, let alone resistance. However, a few of the children were terrified of me, because I’m the first white person they’ve seen. They would scream and run away from me, even though I wasn’t even the one giving the vaccine. It was pretty funny, although now the children will probably always associate white people with unpleasant things, like being chased and having their mouths forced open like that.

WEEK 8

March 26, 2012

Today I thought I would be going out to give more vaccinations, but Lamah said it was too hot for me, so I had to stay at the hospital with him. I don’t mind the sun or the heat and the exercise is good so I would have preferred walking around the village again. But, the chef insisted, saying the sun isn’t good for me and maybe I can go tomorrow. I hate being treated like some fragile thing instead of a normal person. Maybe because they have a lot of albinos here who actually cannot tolerate sunlight and so they assume the same is true for all white people.

March 27, 2012

Well, I didn’t get to go out vaccinating again today. I guess it’s just as well since today’s consultations were a bit exciting/gross. We gave a bunch of routine immunizations and this one family with a newborn baby came to have the birth documented and to get the kid vaccinated against tuberculosis and polio. The mother of the infant had an abscess in one of her breasts that was dripping puss. It was really swollen and she was clearly in a great deal of pain. After vaccinating the baby and other children waiting, Lamah started draining the abscess by squeezing out all the pus. I couldn’t believe how much fluid came out of her. There was at least of cup of pus by the time Lamah was finished. About halfway through the ordeal, her husband had to come in and hold her down on the exam table because she refused to let Lamah continue, the pain was so intense. Keep in mind we don’t have any painkillers (besides aspirin) and no local anesthetics either, so her pain was raw, nothing to take the edge off.

Later in the day I had another English revision. This week I taught members of family and had everyone draw and label a picture of their families as well as write a simple sentence explaining what each member of their family does for work or whatnot.  Everyone seemed to understand the assignment and went to task. When I looked over their pictures, I realized they all drew my family (which I drew on the chalk board as an example). I explained again I wanted to see their families, not mine and finally they got it. When it came time to write the sentences, however, there was another issue. Each person wrote a sentence about his or her family members, but each sentence said the same thing, just with the name or family relation changed. I had to repeatedly ask them to be more specific about where someone worked or went to school, or what they cooked, etc. This problem has little to do with the level of English I was demanding of them, and more to do with the fact that students here are never asked to do anything creative. I gave examples of what kinds of sentences I was looking for and those are the exact sentences I got. There is no “in your own words” type assignments here; the teachers give information and students regurgitate it verbatim on exams.  Hopefully with practice they will get used to the exercises I give them and will learn to use their imaginations a little more.

A little girl, about 5 years old, has been coming to the health center every day for the past week to have an abscess above her ankle treated. Everyday her leg looks a little better, with a decrease in the swelling and she is able to walk on in a little bit now. It is clearly very painful, especially for a child, and treating it must be torturous for her because of all the prodding to get the pus out. Yesterday and today the girl’s brother, rather than parents, brought her to be rebandaged and so I helped hold the girl down so the doctor could work. The girl was scared and hurting but was receptive to my being there and was comforted to have someone holding her during the process. I like helping out with this patient because she comes everyday and I get to actually see the good we are doing for her, instead of just giving someone some meds and sending them on their way, probably not seeing them again at all.

March 31, 2012

So, today was my last day of work at the hospital. This is a very good thing since Joe and I had a disagreement. During a consultation he wrote in the doctor’s record book that one patient was two. He listed half the symptoms along with a diagnosis under one name and then made up a new name and wrote the rest of the symptoms along with a different diagnosis. In addition, he made up information regarding weight, blood pressure, and where the person lived to go along with the fictional name. He knows I saw him do this, but he didn’t explain why, even though I have repeatedly asked why they do things like this. For the next patient, he did the same thing, again with no explanation. Soon after I got a phone call and stepped outside the consultation room. I remained outside after my call to talk to the chef about what happened and to let him know that I won’t be present at consultations if falsifying information continues, unless they can give me a reason why it’s necessary.

Once all the patients had been seen, Lamah asked Joe and me into his office to talk about what happened. I repeated what I said earlier about Joe writing false information in the book and said it’s fine if there is a good reason, but if not then I don’t want anything to do with it. Well, Joe got wicked defensive and started yelling at me, at which point I calmly said it wasn’t necessary for him to yell since this is just a conversation, but he continued yelling so I left the chef’s office, having absolutely no desire to be around adults acting like children.

After this I was really angry and confused about what to do, so I called Fadiga. He told me to forget about the hospital, that’s not really supposed to be my job anyway; I’m just supposed to get to know the people in my community and improve my Susu. This suits me just fine for now since this is exactly what I want to spend my days doing, not sitting in boring consultations where everyone is diagnosed with malaria. Fadiga also reminded me that I should be doing only what I want to do, and if I don’t want to do something I don’t have to; I wish my whole life could follow that philosophy : )

WEEK 9

April 1, 2012

Today was my first day of having no work. I explained to my family what happened and why I no longer need to go to the hospital. They are angry with Joe, who they already don't like. Actually, I think my mom even went down to the hospital to talk to him about it.

During the day I cleaned my house and then helped make and rice and sauce with my mom. They also made me eat about six mangos during the two hours we were cooking, so by the time the food was ready I was full of fruit. In the afternoon I got my hair tressed with my sister Namina and hung out with her friends. After our hair was finished it was time for a "petite repose" so I wrote a couple of letters (you should be getting them soon!) and did a little reading.

After dinner Namina and I met one of the professors and we went for a walk to a neighboring village so I could meet some more people and get better acquainted with the area. By the time we got home it was dark (we had to stop and talk to every person and rest every few houses) so we all headed to our houses.

April 2, 2012

During the night my aunt died. I guess she was oldish and had been sick so it wasn't a huge surprise. All day I sat around and ate. That's what you do for funerals/any sort of ceremony. The women of the family started cooking at 8 am and around noon huge bowls of rice and sauce were brought to out to groups of people and to neighbors houses for everyone to feast on. All through the morning I sat with Namina and some friends just talking and "snacking" (bean sandwiches, popsicle-type bonbons). After lunch was more of the same lounging. People from all over the village came to give their condolences and the whole extended family came from all over Guinea to stay the week. 

April 3, 2012

Today I went to Kolabui (nearby village, about 45 min away in a taxi) to visit my friend Liz, an education volunteer. Her girl's soccer team had a game against Boke so she invited all the nearby volunteers. Marissa and I were the only ones able to attend, but we had a great time and Liz's team won 2 to 1! I was originally planning on leaving right after the game so I could get a taxi (one from Kolabui to Kamsar, and then another from Kamsar to Bintimodia), but it was already getting dark (the game didn't start on time, of course) so I decided to stay the night with Liz and Marissa, just in case there wasn't a taxi leaving Kamsar that night. After we found some dinner in the market (Kolabui is a huge village so there's a huge market at the taxi stand every day/night, unlike my village which has absolutely nothing) it was time for a dance to celebrate the girls' victory.

April 4, 2012

Today was the third day after my aunt's death so there was a sacrifice and another feast. I missed the food since I didn't get back from Kolabui til the afternoon. However, I was able to attend the ceremony in which the Sage (religious elders/old Muslim men) spoke in Susu about the deceased and all the family plus friends and neighbors came. I don't know really what was said, but some parts were funny and there was a lot of exclaiming an "amen" type refrain. After this, I went walking around the village with Namina and Mr. Corsa again, again returning after dark : )

March Book List

The Jungle Book
       Rudyard Kipling

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
       J. K. Rowling

Lipstick Jungle
       Candace Bushnell

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
       Robert Louis Stevenson

The Labyrinth
        Kenneth McDonald

East of Eden
        John Steinbeck

The Perfect Storm
        Sebastian Junger

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
        Steig Larson

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
        J. K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
        J. K. Rowling

I Know This Much is True
        Wally Lamb

Mirror, Mirror
          Gregory Maguire

CSI: Body of Evidence
          Max Allen Collins

One Month Down: Weeks 5 and 6

WEEK 5

 

March 7, 2012

 

I can't believe I've already been at site for a month. Time is flying by and I can only imagine how quickly it'll continue to pass when I actually start working.

 

Monday I had my first Susu lesson with Mr. Soumah, the history teacher here. He has tutored all of the other PCVs from Bintimodia and so I feel confident that he will actually be able to help me. He seems very accommodating and is pleased with my effort so far.

 

Yesterday I met with the English teacher to discuss a revision class for students interested to learning English. We worked it out so I will be teaching revision once a week for two hours for any student or adult from the village. I am very happy with this because it won't be too time consuming, but it should be very beneficial to those who attend. The students in the college (7^th-10^th grade) are being taught incorrect English by their Guinean teacher and have incredible difficulty pronouncing words, since the teacher can't even pronounce them properly. Hopefully I will be able to correct mistakes of the teacher and help them practice real English.

 

The same cat that broke into my house a few weeks ago was hanging around the hospital this morning looking for food. I called it over and it was being very sweet with me so I was petting it and trying to encourage it to like me. It was purring super intensely and did that "I can't get enough love" biting thing Bomber does. It was really nice, and I'm considering adopting it, especially since I know it belonged to the previous PCV. I still plan to get a kitten, but for now I might see how this cat works out.

 

Conte was really excited this morning. He told me to start sitting in on consultations with the stagiares. I am very happy about this, because now I actually feel like I'm doing something instead of just being a secretary for the hospital.

 

March 8, 2012

 

Another morning of consultations! I actually enjoy "working" at the hospital, instead of sitting helplessly outside. There is a specific procedure to each consultation; the "doctor" questions the patient about symptoms and whatnot then takes blood pressure, temperature, and weight. Sometime during this process, a diagnosis is made (usually Malaria) and the patient receives medication (usually aspirin and antimalarials, even if that was not the diagnosis).  Our health center is not equipped with a lab so we can't run tests for malaria or anything else; therefore, all diagnoses are presumptive.  After the patient gets the medications, or is written a prescription to have filled in Kamsar, they pay an arbitrary amount of money (but not much) and head home.

 

Today I sat in on another American history lecture with Mr. Soumah. The lecture was on the stock market crash and Great Depression in the 1930s. It was a great overview of why/how it happened and the effect it had on international economics. However, he didn't really discuss what happened after. He mentioned FDR and the "New Deal" saying it helped rebuild America, but didn't go into the actual importance of these programs in shaping the face of America today. When Mr. Soumah asked if I had anything to add to the class, I wanted to talk about these things, but refrained; I figured it might be for a future class and I wasn't confident in my ability to discuss the issue and answer questions about it.

 

Immediately after the history lecture I had a Susu class with Mr. Soumah. I love learning the language, even though it is a little challenging. A lot of the words are from English or French, so picking up a lot of the vocab shouldn't be too difficult. Also, Mr. Soumah thinks I'm the best student ever, but really it's just because he is teaching me things I kind of already know and Susu overall is an easy language to learn, so I'm picking it up quickly.

 

Mr. Soumah is also helping me with some things outside of academics. I mentioned I want to paint my house and so he is looking in the market for interior wall paint for me. He is supposed to get it this weekend and the man will come to paint my house Sunday!

 

WEEK 6

 

March 12, 2012

 

Well, the man did not come to paint my house yesterday. I'm a little bummed about this, but I have Susu this afternoon so I can ask Mr. Soumah about it and see if he was able to buy the paint.

 

This weekend was really awesome. Friday I sat in on consultations throughout the morning and hung out with Kadiatou for lunch. There was a sacrifice of a goat at her house for something to do with her aunt. I eat meat rarely so it was a great treat to eat the grilled goat. In the afternoon, Lamar and I worked in the garden and he showed me other plots we are starting for rice. I really enjoy being there and want to try spending more time working there.

 

I spent Saturday in Kamsar and tried a new place for lunch. I got a hotdog that turned out to be two hotdogs on half of a French baguette with mozzarella cheese, onion, tomato, mustard, and ketchup. It was delicious and inexpensive, especially considering how large it was. I talked a little with the owner, and he told me about the WiFi there, and to my understanding it's free, which is awesome. I will definitely check that out next time I'm in Kamsar, since the internet café isn't the greatest.

 

Saturday night I went to the video club run by my brother/cousin. The music is pretty good, except for the really traditional stuff. However, I really do no like the skits. They are very strange and are in Susu so I can't even really follow what's happening. Also, they are cheaply made, which is not usually a problem, but the volume is up sooooo loud that when the dialogue or music happens the sound is blasting out and it's too loud to even hear. It's really annoying and I cannot handle it.

 

Sunday was a relaxing day as usual; washed some clothes, painted my nails, got water from the pump. It was made special, because I got packages form home delivered. Getting packages is like Christmas; I have no idea what's inside for the most part, but I know it's going to be awesome. I got a bunch of food/candy in addition to games and other fun things to share with the PCVs in Boke next weekend. There was one small mishap with one of the packages, though. A mouse got into the corner of one box and chewed into a packet of noodle soup. Well, this, in turn, invited tiny red ants to take over and the box was completely filled with them. Somehow the ants even managed to get into a Tupperware container. Luckily, they didn't ruin anything and I was able to get them all out of the box and off of the various items!

 

March 13, 2012

 

Just had my first English revision. It went really well and I feel great about it. I was worried at first, because it was just Kadiatou and I. Fortunately two boys showed up right as I was beginning so it wasn't too bad. Throughout the lesson, more students trickled in, and by the end I had nine students!

 

I taught them greetings and how to introduce them. There was a simple dialogue to reinforce introductions, learn some vocabulary, and listen to how a real conversation might sound. As a final exercise, I had them answer questions about themselves: name, age, where they live, what they do, and how many siblings they have. I think it was basic enough for everyone to fully understand, but still challenging enough for people to need a little help or a few corrections for their answers. Next week, I think I will have them read aloud their mini bios for practice and to reinforce the lesson before teaching how to express wants and needs in daily life.

 

March 18, 2012

 

I love going to Boke and spending the weekend with other volunteers. It is really great to get out of village for a little while and just have some "American" time. Friday Steph and Marissa bought mozzarella sticks at the super market. We fried them up and also garlic bread, spaghetti, and homemade tomato sauce and had a feast dinner. They were soooooo good and we are definitely planning on buying them again in the future, especially since they were half the price we thought they were going to be. Also, on Friday Marissa gave me a haircut. My long locks have become a chin length bob and it is really nice not to have to "do" my hair. Saturday we started the day watching Lion King and then went to market to buy things for lunch/dinner and look for fabric. We spent almost two hours there but luckily all three of us got some beautiful cloth to make some new clothes. For lunch we made macaroni and cheese with velveeta from my care package and had a delicious salad. The afternoon was spent playing scrabble and watching Rio. For dinner we made tortilla soup and Phil bought beers since it's St. Patrick's day. We even splurged and bought ice to put in the filter so we could have cold water! After dinner we made peanut butter and banana cookies/brownies and watched another movie (Big Trouble). All in all, it was a great weekend, and not too much money spent. Today I am off to Kamsar to try the restaurant WiFi and maybe buy another hotdog sandwich  : )