Well! Hello, again! Adventures without number since last we spoke and so I will do my best to break them up into fun vignettes as much as possible. At some point here, I will also get better at calling the outside world, but I find that it is a fairly busy day for me here. One of the core expectations of the Peace Corps is that you are representing America 24x7 and so in many ways you are working every hour of every day. Because living really is work here, sometimes rewarding but always tiring (and sweaty!), especially when you are doing it under the eyes of evvvverybody nearby! So, anyway, when I’m at work it’s tough for me to make personal calls – just the way I was raised. But I’m establishing a routine and mapping out space for myself in that day, so that should change soon.
I guess I’m a bit out of order, so I’ll just run with it. I’ve been in my village for a week and a day now. I’m moved in, relatively settled, and starting to come up with a routine as I mentioned. My only job right now is to wander around in order to meet people, learn things, and integrate – which is kinda crazy. As implied above, it makes you feel like you are cheating if you sit at home too long. So it’s work, but it’s also hard because I’m not accomplishing anything measurable. I keep telling people, “Yeah I’ll help you learn English!” and then I want to set up a meeting with the school to start organizing classes and come up with a way to create a curriculum. But patience. Not yet. First I need to go shadow the teachers for a day, or at least attend some of the classes! Same with the Polyclinic, etc.
This week I’ve focused on informal stuff – so not those above. I’ve just been meeting people, asking them what they are doing, and trying to help if they want me to. I spent almost a whole day making Cassava bread which was really fun – grandmothers are grandmothers and so I ate very well that day! She made me cake, gave me about 8 coconuts (I love coconuts here) and of course cassava bread! You make it by grinding the cassava into a powder and then frying it over an open fire on a flat metal sheet. If you watched that episode of Bizarre Foods, then you saw! It’s a smokey taste and not exactly delicious on it’s own (except when it’s warm and fresh), but it’s good dipped in sweet tea which is the preferred method around here.
http://www.travelchannel.com/TV_Shows/Bizarre_Foods/Episodes_Travel_Guides/Suriname
The other days, I’ve either been working on my house or working with other folks. I’ll talk about a solid adventure there in a moment, but for now I’ll talk about my daily living. I get up between 6 and 7 (kinda just when I do) and do some pushups, situps, and stretch. I learned a good running path last week and have done it once – my plan is to do that a couple of times a week and do tkd-ish stuff a couple of times a week. I haven’t figured out how TKD will work, but I know a lot of kids are interesting in learning so I’ll think I’ll just kinda start doing it at a set place in time and see who joins in, to start with anyway.
After that, I wash yesterday’s clothes and dishes, as well as myself, at the river. I am way overpacked for clothes. Those shorts I bought? Nice, fine, good – silly. My dry fit shirts? Good, but I spend, unsurprisingly, as much time as possible shirtless and I bought a couple of wife beaters for $2SRD ($0.60) and so those are taking over a bit. Wish I’d brought more running/exercise style shorts. I wear my swim suit at least a third of the day. Really, the shorts where my only decent mistake – didn’t really need to buy them and should have brought more random cheap/exercise – and that isn’t bad.
I’m also adjusting to cooking without refrigeration. I’ve started a food journal (I spent a boatload of money on food because I have no idea how much I will eat in 3 months) in order to figure out how quickly I go through food and also keep track of good meals and stuff. So far, I tend to drastically overcook – both the food and the amount. How am I so bad at cooking rice? Ah well. I’m learning!
After I wash and clean up my house a bit, I generally go looking for people to meet and things to do. Sometimes that’s just walking around and talking to as many people as possible, other times I get sucked into a task pretty quickly. I’ve helped beat rice (they carry the cut plants back here to separate the grains from the stalks, using a giant mortar and pestle set up), crack maipa sei (nuts that they make into cooking oil), and generally sat and talked with a lot of people. As I mentioned above, it’s is hard work that doesn’t always feel like work, so it can be tough.
If I’m back home in mid day, I generally go back out around 1PM. It’s when school lets out so hanging out at home is a good way to get mobbed. Sometimes that is fun, but it’s also a good time to walk around with kids and see what is happening. Once the heat of the afternoon passes (around 5pm) it’s time to start getting ready to play soccer or start chasing kids away so I can close my door and talk to the internet/read/whatever. If I’m going to close my door, I try to wash at the river and cook dinner before dark. If I’m playing soccer, that will go until dark and so I’ll usually end up washing in my washhouse and making a small quick meal afterwards. Then sleep. It’s a full day and that is fun. It already feels like a long time – both in front of me and behind me) – but there’s so much I need to learn and need to do. It’s a big challenge. It’s nice to have that – I’ve missed the feeling.
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