Swearing-In as a Peace Corps Volunteer

 
 




My Host family- Du, Me, Cedwon, Bobby, Lydie-holding Angel and Ngie, Dudu and Samson



 



After coming back from site visit, it was really hard to go back to sitting through hours of training- all of us were ready to hit the road and move into our houses and work with the community rather than sit through lectures... but.. we made it! The last few weeks of training, although they were a bit rough to get through, were really amazing because all of us opened up alot to eachother and became really close. We ended up having a great Thanksgiving dinner together, and awesome field trip to the West region to visit a soy and tofu project, a great bike ride and of course many nights of dancing. It is crazy to think that I have just met these people only 3 months ago- we have all been through alot together! Its nice to know that know I have a good 23 friends living all over the country that I can go visit while I'm here. It was also really sad to say goodbye to Bokito and my host family- I started to make alot of friends in that town- Friends who taught me how to dance like a Cameroonian and who I taught how to dance salsa. I will also miss my host brothers- especially Samson- my host mother said that after I left he stayed in his room and cried for 2 hours- but, I will pay them a visit again soon.



Buying the Chickens to prepare for Thanksgiving



One of the Dance-Off competitions in Bokito



The Country Director of Cameroon congratulating us



As we finished training we had to pack our bags and get ready for the big day- December 8th- the day we all sworn in as official Peace Corps Volunteers (because before we were still Peace Corps Trainees). The celebration was a huge event- the US Ambassador came and our Country Director came and gave a speech- it was a well deserved day after all the work we went through. Each department (Health, Agroforestry, and Youth Development) all were dressed in matching pagne (patterned material) and after the ceremony we had lunch with our host families and said our goodbyes then spent the night dancing away before we had to pack our bags on the bus the next morning. I'm going to miss being around this group of people alot!



My host mother and me after Swear-In with the US Ambasador



Walking to the Swear-In ceremony



We all split up that next morning- some went north, some headed west and a few of us headed south to Yaounde to stay in the Peace Corps case (volunteer hotel).  A few of us ended up spending a few days there enjoying our freedom as volunteers, meeting other volunteers and seeing the city- We got to go to a soccer tournament, shop in the large open air markets, and stop by the roof-top lounge of the Hilton. It was a great few days! After that we all split up and lugged all our belonging to our posts. Arriving in Messamena again was great- I was so surprised that all my luggage fit on one motorcycle- it was incredible! Moving was not easy- My personal and mental strength were both tested.. haha. 



Yaounde- seen from a rooftop



Soccer match in yaounde



Now, I am living in my house in Messamena- there in nothing inside and I will spend the next week or so setting up shop. I'm planning on making all my furniture- luckily, my dad's a carpenter and taught me some tricks of the trade when I was growing up- it will definitely come in useful now! I'm planning on starting a garden and putting together a chicken coup. Its so crazy to have a whole house to myself- the past 8 years I've lived in very small quarters with very little space- now I'm proud to say I own my first full sized bed for the first time ever- haha yep, I'm 26.

Rockin' my awesome pants in village

 My first day in the village was great- there was a celebration going on that I was invited to and we spent the day eating monkey, sharing palm wine and dancing to Cameroonian music. It was a little shocking/embarassing when one of the kids in the village screamed and cried of fright when they saw me because they have never seen someone with light skin before- so then the village thought it was hilarious and kept trying to hand me the child- I can only image how frightening that must have been for that child. When I came home that night my neighbor came up and gave me a plate of couscous de riz and an amazing fish jumbo- when I returned the plate the next day she strongly advised me on the importance of me marrying her 20 year old daughter... oh geez.  I also was approached by a man who was a member of a pygmie tribe out in the jungle- he invited me to come hike to his tribe 6 km out into the jungle...He said to me, "Hello, I am a man of the village"- and I thought to myself.. we are in the village- if he thinks he is in the city right now, I can only imagine how small his community is- I can not wait to explore that opportunity! It's going to be a crazy two years... I am really excited to see what I am going to learn and take from this experience, and most importantly what I can share with others.



My job for the next three months with the Peace Corps is to integrate- we are not really supposed to start any project until after we have been at post for three months so we can have a better idea of the local resources, understand the local language, understanding the schedule of the community (seasonal farming, migration, etc), seeing the needs and figuring out a sustainable way of approaching them and making friends. I like this idea the Peace Corps has set up for community integration- I think many development projects fail because of lack of time outsiders spend in the area they are working and not understanding the true target needs. So, now I will be hanging out with my neighbors, cooking with them making new friends (for mental health and as my security guards in village) visiting the health care centers and shadowing the nurses there, conducting community mapping projects and exploring the jungle that surrounds me! Now, I have to hire a tutor and start learning Bikele- the local language in Messamena. Everyone can speak French in village but they speak Bikele to each other and I need to be able to participate in conversation. The next few months in Cameroon are marked by many holidays and every holiday is a parade.. so, there is a lot to look forward to in the next few months!


Although I am missing everything about life in Rio de Janeiro, I'm really grateful for this experience- I am happy to be here and comfortable trying to fit into village life here after being so used to living in mega cities for the last few years. I would have never imagined I would be living in Cameroon at some point in my life. I reached the 3 month mark.. I have 2 years left- I am going to try and make the most of it here!





A village welcome party in Messamena

Peace Corps site announcement!

Hiking through the forest nearby my house

Last Wednesday morning we all received the notice of where we would be working for the next two years- although I originally wanted to be placed close to the ocean… I was given a small village in the Eastern region of Cameroon. At first I was a little upset, but then I realized I can always visit the beach- no problem.. and I’ve had my fair share of luck with living by the ocean the past few years so I’m switching it up and heading to the jungle! I am opening up a new post so no volunteer (or any foreigner) has been there before. I am proud that my program manager gave me such a tough post- it shows that she has a lot of confidence in me!

By post is in Messamena, the East Region of Cameroon, 90 km away from the next town off a unpaved dirt path. In the rainy season it is almost impossible to travel through. There is no electricity or running water- it is considered one of the poorest regions of the country. I have to fetch water from a nearby well and if I want to use electricity, I will need to use a generator. I am 50 km from the Dja national reserve- home to Africa largest and best protect rainforest-90% untouch with over 107 mamals- Including gorillas, elephants, chimpanzees and others.( http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/407 ) I will be living among a few tribal groups- the pygmies, the Bikeles, and the Bioudouroas.

Here is a map of Africa that shows where Cameroon is on the continent

This is a map of Cameroon- My town, Messamena, is not on the map because it is so small but it is in the East region (Est) near the town Abong Mbong if you can find it!

On Thursday we met our Community host Counterpart and had a 2 day workshop on Peace Corps expectations and plans of action- since Cameroon is a bilingual (officially, with over 230 other local languages), the workshop was both in English and French. My community host is Jean Bick, he is the Chief of a small nearby village of the Bikele tribe. He is awesome! He is a traditional healer and told me he wants to teach my about what the forest has to offer medicinally- I can’t wait! On Saturday morning we all left to visit our sites and travel with our community hosts. It was so beautiful driving across Cameroon- the East region is all dense rainforest It was intense to arrive in Messamena- knowing that this is where I will be living the next 2 years!

My community host and counterpart, Jean Bick and his sister in their village

I spent three days in my village introducing myself to the Sous-Prefet (head of the town), the Mayor, the Head of Police, the Principals, the Doctor and staff I will be working with and as many people as I could meet in the town. It was so hard trying to explain why I was there in French (and nerve-wracking… think about it- being overseas from anything you are familiar with- in a new culture, a language you’ve only been learning for a month, and having to met all the head officials of the place you with will be living and working!) But- it was awesome! It was a lot to take in at first but the third day I really fell in love with my new village. Everyone was so nice and after meeting them, people would always say, “D’accord, nous sommes ensemble” –ok, we are together! So far 3 women have proposed to me and the officials of the town are telling me they are going to set me up with their daughters. Awkward.

So it’s hard to describe exactly what I will be doing- because I will be making my own schedule, but my position is to work closely with the Doctor Djeumbam (one of 2 doctors for over 30,000 people in the district) and the nurses to observe the Cameroonian health care system and create a system to establish emphasis on preventative care with all the 12 local health care centers to do community health programs with the locals. I will get to travel around the area a lot for the work- it will be really exciting- but hard to do emotionally. This area has alarming rates of HIV/AIDS, cholera, malaria and other water-borne illnesses. It will definitely be a reality of the severity of these issues.

The hospital where I will be working with the doctor and nurses

Right now I am in the Regional capital of the East Region, Bertoua. I will have to come here once a month for banking to receive my Peace Corps stipend. There is a Peace Corps office here where all the volunteers can come and meet and stay for a few days (with electricity and crazy fast internet connection- hence this update with pictures!) Visiting Messamena has totally boosted my spirits about the Peace Corps- I went from going with the flow and liking it… to loving it- I really think I am going to get a lot out of the experience!

Made it to the one month mark!

Friday was our one month mark of leaving for staging! We made it through the hardest month of the 27, so 26 more to go! It has been crazy adjusting to the culture, going to trainings, trying to figure out how everything works… seems like it has been way longer than just a month!
Training is going really well- we are all getting along great, throwing parties on the weekends, making pizza from scratch- dough..sauce.. cheese- the works, I moved up from in my French class from beginner to passing the placement requirements in one month and we are learning a lot abou. I am getting really comfortable here in the village- learning some new skills of cooking all our meals over a fire… cleaning fish/chicken for dinner and how to make fufu and couscous.
The most exciting thing is that we find out our post on Wednesday! Its crazy to think that we will know where we will be working for the next 2 years so soon!!! Then our counterpart who we will be working with comes on Thursday and we go and visit our new city this upcoming weekend for a week. I have no idea what to expect… Cameroon is such a vast country so I could end up in any type of climate! I look forward to moving into my own place and setting things up!
On Saturday I was in a break-dancing dance-off competition and I made it to the third round! It was hilarious- my host brother asked me to come with him so I went and only wanted to hang out and watch but I was the only foreigner there so I was called up first. It was awesomely embarrassing moment… then the next round was again ridiculous..and the last round was kind of just a roast where everyone made fun of each contestant before the had to dance and we battled it off with the host/dj. If the whole town didn’t already know me before this night, the all do now… haha

Le blanc, le blanc!

In a strange way, I am starting to feel very settled here in the small town of Bokito! The other day at the market I ran into a few people from the community that I have previously met and it made me feel really comfortable to start to really get into the daily life here! Bokito is a relatively small village with limited access to electricity and consistent running water. I’m normally in bed by 9pm and up by 5am! Life is different here in the village- last weekend my host brothers and I took a motorcycle (all 4 of us on one) to their native village far out in the forest. All the houses were made of bamboo and mud and there was no electricity anywhere. The village was amidst a large orange, mandarins and cocoa. I was so impressed with how much knowledge the young kids had on the agriculture here! Its been great living with my host family- the 2 year old say hello and goodbye to me everyday and “Bon Appetite” every time I sit down to eat- its been a great experience.
Peace Corps training has been busy but manageable and we have all started to get to know each other pretty well over the past 3 weeks. Everyday is packed with training sessions on development practices, Cameroonian culture and language. My French skills have definitely improved but I do have a ways to go! Usually after our sessions are done for the day we all go and unwind for a bit in the village before going back to our host families.
Our trainings on the Cameroonian health care system has been intense and we’ve learned a lot and even toured the local hospital here in town…. It was really sad to see the current condition of that hospital and even worse, to hear how little doctors make when the ratio of doctor to patient is 1 to 10,000! Doctors here in Cameroon make about $350 a month and nurses about $200. The conditions are rough and the work is never ending.
In two weeks they will be announcing our post where we will all be working for the next two years of service! I am so excited to find out which region of Cameron I will be working. There are 10 regions in Cameroon that range from jungle to forest to desert to mountains to plains and are anywhere from hot and humid to…. hot and dry haha . I’m hoping to be close to the ocean in the jungle but will be happy anywhere- each region is spectacular in its own way! 2 of the 10 regions are Anglophone and the rest are Francophone. I will most likely be put in a Francophone region so I am doing my best to study the language everyday. I will be paired with a clinic and a counterpart to work alongside. I told my program manager that I want to gain technical skills in the health field so I am curious to see what that will equate to for my post! No matter where I am placed I know that I will be doing a lot of public health trainings involving HIV/AIDS and water and sanitation. I know that much of the work I did in India with Haath Mein Sehat will be incorporated.
Friday marks our 1st month of service completed! At first the whole 27 month idea really made my mind go crazy- but as I talk to other PC volunteers, I get the sense that the time really goes by quick with everything going on.

Visiting my host family's relatives

Eating lunch in the village

House outside the orange plaintain

A few pictures of Yaounde, Bafia and Bokito

View from our Training Site in Yaounde

Walking to school with my host brothers... who are carrying machetes

My host families house

The road I walk to get to class in Bokito

Made it to Cameroon! The beginning of my Peace Corps journey

It has been such a crazy week of new experiences, to think about my life one week ago to now is a complete opposite- so quick how things can change!
After saying a lot of hard goodbyes and trying to figure out what to pack for 27 months, I arrived in Philadelphia for the “staging event” or brief introduction to the Peace Corps. When I got off the plane there were two other girls from Cleveland joining too and turns out 5 of us are from the Cleveland area! There are 54 of us in our group that are split into 3 sectors; Agroforestry, Youth Development and Community Health- I will be in the Community Health sector. Everyone is really nice and come from a lot of different backgrounds.
The next day we all took a bus from Philadelphia to New York then a plane to Brussels then finally Yaounde, the capital of Cameroon. Arriving in Africa was so exciting- I really couldn’t believe that this was all happening! We all got onto a bus and drove to the hotel as the sun was setting and took in the views of the jungle that we landed into. Cameroon is so beautiful!
The first 5 days we were in the capitol at a hotel and were given many orientations to the culture and background of Peace Corps in Cameroon. We’ve had to do countless introductions to different officials and have had the opportunity to go to a cultural dance show, have dinner with the US Ambassador and be on a national television show!
On Tuesday we left the capital and headed 2 hours north to where we will begin our trainings and move in with a home stay family. It has been such a change going from the large capital to the small village of Bokito where I am living now. My host family consists of a grandmother, a mom and dad, and 5 boys aged 17, 12, 11, 2 and 1. The house I live in is a 25 minute walk through dirt paths to get to the training site- we are really in the jungle/forest! Everyday we have trainings from 8am to about 5 or 6pm. The days are long then we come home to the host families to practice speaking French (which for me is still pretty much a mix of Portuguese) and integrate ourselves into the family and culture.
I am really excited about being here and really impressed with the way the Peace Corps has set up the trainings and how they have such a strong presence here in Cameroon.. We are all being trained on medical procedures to keep ourselves safe and healthy- I am really surprised with how many materials the PC has provided us. We are definitely well taken care of and watched over if anything goes wrong.
I have so much more to share but it will have to wait for another post. Right now I only have access to Internet 2 days a week and it is pretty slow. I think that will change soon but for now if you contact me and it takes awhile to respond, bear with me! You can call me… I am most available on Sundays- 011 237 740 58 032!

One week countdown

My blog for Brazil never really took off- I could never get myself to write about life there without it sounding like some kind of "othering" process that I was studying at Berkeley. My time in Brazil was absolutely amazing and I plan to move back to Rio someday.

For now, my next trip is to Cameroon with the Peace Corps for the next 27 months! I will do my best to write straight-forward about my experiences without feeling like I am objectfying anyone or thing.

I received my invitation to join the Peace Corps one day when I returned to my apartment in Rio- the night guard told me a package had come for me and I knew exactly what it was..... I rushed upstairs to open the envelope that read, "Congratulations- Your Assignment: Community Health Educator Country: Cameroon Start Date= Sept 15, 2011 End Date Dec 3, 2013". It was so intense and I had 10 days to decide if I should try and stay in Brazil or accept the position. It was not an easy decision but I decided to go ahead with the Peace Corps. 27 months is a hard commitment to actualize and I am not sure if it has even sunk in yet.

I leave on Wednesday, September 21st from Cleveland to Philadelphia for a one-day staging event where I will meet the other volunteers. We will spend one day there then the next day we will be taking a bus to New York City to fly to Yaounde, Cameroon. There we will stay a few days in the capital for orientations and by Monday I will be moving in with my host family for my 3-month language and technical training in a city 2 hours north of Yaounde.

I will be studying French and learning different community based techniques for health interventions for the first three months. In November I will be assessed for my placement of where I will be living for the next two years.


One week left to say all my goodbyes, pack and try to prepare mentally for what is coming my way!

Getting settled

One week in Rio and I am starting to feel settled- I love it!

Looking for an apartment was harder than I expected... I guess I didn't quite take into account that it is the peak of summer and Carnaval is right around the corner so it is almost impossible to find a place. I was searching in newspapers and online rental ads for a place. Doing this forced me to learn many new works in Portuguese that I didn't know... haha I had to learn all the terms for renting, rooms, bathrooms, kitchens, monthly bills, total costs, shared spaces.... everything. Luckily my friend Gustavo helped to call many of the places ahead of time to explain my situation in Portuguese.

It was a challenge- some days I got really down asking myself what I was even doing here... especially after I went and visited one apartment. It was in an area that was hard to get to by public transportation and on the way I got a little lost. When I finally arrived I ended up in this run down part of town at a run down house. The maid opened the door to show me around the house. It was dirty, had broken windows, old pipes, next to no ventilation and the room she showed me was an addition to the house in which you had to climb a rusty staircase to enter. When she showed me the room I asked her if this was a safe place to live. She responded, “ Safe? Ha! I live in a favela and I would not even live here!” So that being said, I walked out of there.


My friend who used to live here gave me a contact of a guy who was opening up a language school for lower-income students in Rio. I contacted him and set up an interview for working together. We met and talked for a few hours- He is a really great guy. He introduced me to his mother who rents rooms in her house as part of a homestay option for foreigners. Because I will be working with her son, she gave me an extremely good deal on the room- it is way less than the crappy apartment I just wrote about and she cooks me breakfast everyday- and even gave me the first month free! The house is on the 15^th floor of a secure building 3 blocks from the ocean in one of the richest neighborhoods of Rio. It has large windows that are always open to let in the ocean air- unreal!

I will be helping her son open the language school- I am excited to see what I can bring to the school and the organization of the classes. He told me he would be able to get me a work visa- my current tourist visa only allows me to stay 6 months out of the year but the work visa could change that.... will I stay longer? Time will tell. I came here to feel things out and see what I can make of myself- it great opportunities decide to come my way, I will take them!


All my plans for Rio literally fell into place..... Nothing was for certain and I definitely went out on a limb to make this all work out. There were some really rough moments of doubting my decision to return to Brazil... but now things are starting to work out as I wanted them to play out. Anyone who knew all the details of this process know that I never gave up- I was overly stubborn to make this work and now that it is I am feeling so alive and good about life! Thank you to everyone who encouraged me and kept my spirits high during this process! I am glad things worked out the way they did because through the countless hours of research and headache I put into this, I learned alot about how NGOs function and work and how to set up independent projects outside of the country to hopefully use for myself one day.

Vamos!

Eu cheguei ao Rio!

I made it back to Rio!

I arrived yesterday morning and it was about 95 degrees at the airport- It is the middle of summer here south of the equator. My friend Gustavo picked me up from the airport and it was almost like I have never left Brazil. I remembered all the places I have already been to and how to navigate the city. It feels so good to be back here! 

I stopped by the language school I will be studying at for the next 3 months and was blown away- everyone was so nice and after I left I walked 2 and a half blocks and ended up on Ipanema Beach. I think I am going to like the next couple of months. A lot.

Now, I am looking for an apartment- and it is not all that easy. I was quickly reminded of my first week in Thailand and constantly being shut down to find a place. Something will work out soon.

I am happy to be back and practicing Portuguese again, although the way of speaking in Rio is way different than the Portuguese in Salvador. I am trying to learn the adjustment.

Class starts on Monday- I am excited to meet more people here and see what I just got myself into for the next few months.

Ate logo- I am off to a samba club in Lapa tonight with some people I just met on the beach. I love this place!

On my way back to Brasil

Yep, on my way back. I know I did not even post one blog the entire time I was in Brazil last time, but it was because for the first time ever I wanted to stop comparing and contrasting my culture to Brazil. I spent my time picking up Portuguese, meeting new people and learning to slow down after 2 crazy years at UC Berkeley where I was the king of multi-tasking.

When I got to Brazil in August I fell in love within the first week- the vibrancy of people's attitudes, music (or some kind of beat)  lingering from every corner, tropical plants and beautiful ocean... and the acai. The study abroad program I took part in helped me to learn the language by taking classes and staying with a host family where we sat and ate meals 3 times a day together trying to communicate with each other. The culture class I took allowed me to view Brazil from a completely different lens then the image I had romanticized in my mind. I began to view racism/sexism/class-ism through a whole new way. I loved the way brazil had a hold on me and I wasn't ready to let that grasp go just yet.  I put the my Peace Corps application on hold for a year and decided to set up an independent study abroad program in Rio de Janeiro.

I am on my way back, carrying a 10-year visa. I arrive in Rio tomorrow morning and start Portuguese class on Monday. I will be taking 3 months of classes at Casa do Caminho in Ipanema, 3 blocks from the beach! It took me a long time to set up this program and find a language school I felt like sponsoring, but Casa do Caminho, www.casadocaminho-languagecentre.org/, is an organization run by volunteers and all the money for the classes goes to support an orphanage outside of Rio. I tried to get an internship with them but they were full at this time. While I will study there I will be looking for another internship opportunities to take on for the next few months.


I am so excited to return to Rio. The first time I went there in October of last year my jaw literally dropped- it really is 'cidade maravilhousa' a marvelous city! I will be here for approximately 5 months... I am keeping that door open a little to see what kind of opportunities come my way. Until then I will be learning Portuguese, witnessing 'Carnaval' in a month, and exploring what the city has to offer.


Brasil, ate amanha!


Abracos!