One Month Mark - 2 Feb 2011

We are approaching our month mark in the Gambia and things are going really well. We are finally starting to feel adapted physically and mentally.  And we are enjoying getting to know our fellow trainees; everybody has great stories, I’ll have to write a post about some of our trainee friends and teachers!  Our training is coming along, we both received ‘novice medium’ on our first language tests so we are happy about that. Our schedule remains full and busy with language and culture classes; we have about 6 weeks left of training before we are officially sworn in as Peace Corps Volunteers! Training is good, but tiresome so we are excited to settle into our site.  Speaking of our site, we finally found out where we’ll be living the next 2 years!! A place where the bush is thick, the fish are plentiful, avocados flow like palm wine, and dolphins can be seen from the bank of the river – I’m talking about a little place called…… Foni, Gambia.

 All of these things we have heard about our site, there are even rumors of electricity – but I’m not holding my breath. The peace corps is its normal elusive self on our actual accommodations. All we know at this time is that we are being housed by a non-government organization (ngo) forestry group. We hope this means our house will be okay when we arrive; I expect….nothing but a good story.  We will find out what this entails on February 27 when we go on a site visit – survivor style. I say survivor style because we will not have had the opportunity to shop for our site yet.  So we will be staying in our site for 4 nights with no bed, no cooking utensils, etc! We are glad we brought sleeping pads and sleeping bags.

Our job descipitons include all of the following opportunities: bee keeping, working with the women's community garden, the NGO's community forest, Eco-tourism (there is an eco-lodge that ben will be working with most likely), soap making, and environmental education.  We probably won't have set, structured hours so that will be nice.  As of now, Ben really wants to pursue beekeeping and eco-tourism, and I would like to work with the womens garden, community forest, and environmental education.

A couple nights ago, all the trainees went to see a famous Gambian musician at a fundraiser a Volunteer held.  While the musician was great, the best part of the night was our fellow volunteer’s west African dance skills. We also experienced a televised football game. It showed us how average Gambians watch Television.  A man buys a generator, then a tv, than satellite. Then he fixes his home with benches made from ply wood and bidongs (bucket like items used for storing oil and water), and charges everyone 5 dalasi to enter and watch the program. It got pretty crowded!  I’m sure that will not be the last time we attend something like that.

Since we’ve been here a month, I thought I would make a list of our current Likes and Dislikes. It should be funny to see how these lists change throughout our time here.

Likes:

Local fruit – currently oranges, lemons, bananas, grapefruit. Yum.

Local food – we watched our host brother kill a chicken last night for supper. It’s hard to get more free-range, all natural than that and it was delicious!

Trees -  they’re plentiful, pretty, and people use them for things.

Freely roaming farm animals: chickens, goats, donkeys, dogs, and sheep are everywhere!

The people are so nice!  

The Weather – right now, its almost perfect.

Mandenglish – example: Mapo, Penno, Post Officeoo. 

Safeway – it has tortilla chips and taco shells and ice cream. Amazing!!

Football

Time (Gambian Maybe Time is alright with me)

Attaya – a special kind of tea, made a special way. Its fun to watch and makes us want to open up an Attaya shop when we come home! People sit and brew it for hours; it is really great – although the taste could use a little work.

Radios

Stars – the stars at night are big and bright

Donkey carts

Living by the seasons

Dislikes:

Lack of variety in meals – also the lack of dairy products and adult beverages

Not having backyard hens – I didn’t realize how much we enjoyed our chicken eggs in Austin; they don’t keep chickens eggs here so they import eggs from Holland and they’re expensive (no, it makes no sense – they let the chickens roam free to eat them but not their eggs). When we get them, they’re boiled and taste old. Ew.  Life without chicken eggs is no fun!

Sickness – adapting to new food, new allergies, and a new climate takes time and has taken its toll on our immune systems.

Feeling privileged to be able to buy things like ice cream.

Snakes – we haven’t seen any, but we know they’re there and that is enough to dislike them!

Language beginners

Frequently comparing our lives to ‘Lord of the Flies’

The fact that I would pay over $100 for each of the following: Torchy’s tacos, Conans Pizza, and a hamburger.

We will be in the city area with access to internet for a whole week next month.... March 5 - March 13 after our training is over. If anyone wants to try to set up a time to skype, email us and let us know! We'd love to talk to ya'll! Thanks so much for the prayers and support!

Garden Building – 22 Jan 2011

We built a garden for our training group this week, and I thought the process was humorous and quite different from starting a garden in Austin. So I will list the steps we took to create our garden:

1.       Find an old fishing net with a myriad of holes through it and tie it around decaying wooden posts for a fence (a fence is a necessity here to keep the goats, sheep, chickens, and donkeys out)

2.       Find dried palm leaves to weave through the holes in the net

3.       Dig new fence posts with machete

4.       Cut down entire tree (probably 8 – 10 inches in diameter) with machete

5.       Have the random 10 kids watching, help pick up the branches and haul back to the garden area

6.       Secure the fence with the tree branches

7.       Make a door with the sticks, nails, and flour/rice sacs.

8.       Watch as the goats eat the branches, and the chickens find a way inside the fence.

9.       Listen to a Gambian women tell you she could’ve built the fence in 30 minutes.

Eyooo eyoo (okay okay)! Also, recently we had a naming ceremony for all the volunteers in our village. Bens new name is Sana Camara and my new name is Kaddy Gitteh!! So now, on our walks through the village we hear: Kaddy Gitteh! Sanna Camera!!! And most of the time, followed by questions we can’t understand.  Domanding Domanding (slowly slowly).

I Saamma (Good morning)!!

Well, we’ve been in country about a month now and although we haven’t had internet access during this time we were able to charge our laptop so I was able to journal about our training thus far. I’ll post them in separate blogs so it’s easier to read. We hope ya’ll are doing well and LOVE hearing from you.  Thanks for the comments and emails!! If ya’ll have any questions for us, feel free to post a comment or shoot us some emails.  For the next month we still won't have internet access but after our swear in March 12 we will actually have free time again. We are all so ready!

09 Jan 2011

We have been in our training villages about a week and a half now and things are going well. We are still very busy with training so we don’t have much free time. We have learned so much in the last week that our heads are spinning but I will try to give a good summary of our time so far.

Daily routine: We wake up at 7:30  to open our door and greet our host family – greeting is extremely important to Gambians and it normally consists of several questions: Salaamalamalkeum (peace be with you) Malekumsalam (Peace be with you, Kori sinnota (did you sleep in peace) Ha, I sinnota (yes, I slept in peace), etc. Then I try to sweep our hut as is custom, but I can’t say I do that every morning.  Then we get to our trainers house at 8 and have language sessions until lunch at 2. After lunch we will continue language class or work on our ‘technical directed activities’ – which includes anything from gardening, composting, answering cultural questions, or reading cultural books.  We normally arrive back at our home by 6, hang out with our family, take a bucket bath, study, read, and eat dinner at 8:30.  Normally by 9:30 we call it a day and announce – n Ka ta laa lee (I am going to bed).

Host family: As expected, families in the Gambia are different from ours in America. Our host family consists of: Faa (father) Musa, his two wives: Kaddy Gitteh and My Camera, and an assortment of children that we’re not entirely sure who belongs to who. There are about 7 of them, and they are very fun but can be a bit overwhelming at times.  Last night, we tried to hang out with our family and about 20 kids ran over to play with the ‘toubabs’ (white people).  Our family is very sweet, and we like them very much.  

House:  We live in a large house and occupy one room of the house, while our family occupies the other 2 rooms.  Our ‘room’ is divided by a wall, and is about 150 sq feet. We also have an outdoor bathing/pit latrine area. What is a pit latrine, you ask? J Well, it is a 20 foot hole in the ground covered by cement. Rumors have circulated that on more than one occasion a volunteer’s cement broke and they fell into the latrine – one was naked! (think Slum dog millionaire) Yikes. I am going to attempt to have a compost toilet at our permanent site – If anyone would want to send us some information on how to build one, that would be much appreciated! We have screens on all the windows and doors and the house looks to be made out of a mixture of cement and mud with a tin roof.  We will post pictures when we have time – so that may not be until March when we are winding down our training. Sorry!  In our house we have one table, a double bed, two chairs, and two trunks. We have no electricity or running water, but it’s not bad.  We have some great headlamps and a lantern that they sell here. There are several pumps around the village. We collect water about every 1-2 days. Children are very eager to help you collect water so that is nice.

Food: For breakfast, we are normally given tea and 2 french baguettes each from our host family. Sometimes we will get boiled eggs and potatoes, and on occasion we have received cokes and fanta J. We get breakfast at about 8, but I think most Gambians eat breakfast around 9 or 9:30. For lunch, we eat with our peace corps group (ben and me, Lina, Sharon, and our trainer Ibramaba) a meal that Lina’s host mom prepared. It is normally rice, meat, and vegetables. We eat out of a big bowl together – as is Gambia standard. However, we eat with spoons, while Gambians eat with their hands.  We did eat with our hands the first time as training, but ben and I prefer to use spoons. Eating rice with your hands is not easy! Lunch is served around 2 and is the biggest meal Gambians eat. For dinner, we have received a variety of things including: cooked spam, rice porridge, corn mush, and potatoes/eggs/bread.  Luckily, we are so full from lunch we don’t eat much for dinner ever. I will admit I struggle with meals sometimes, and find it funny when Ben can so readily put back some corn mush. I am extremely ready to have a gas stove to cook things on! We are served in our room alone so we don’t eat with our family.

Cross cultural:  Gambia is 85% muslim and our village is big so it can afford to have prayer call blasted on speakers 5 times a day. We live far away from the missiroo so we don’t hear it, but other volunteers are woken up at 6 am daily. Men drink a tea called Attaya, which is boiled in a very specific way and is made up of mostly sugar. It is good but I can’t drink it after 5 or I wouldn’t be able to sleep. It is really great to watch them make it though, the process can take hours and men like to hang out and boil it throughout the day. The best thing I have seen so far in Gambia has been the womens’ garden. It is huge, and it is beautiful. It has to be 10-20 acres filled with greens called sorrel right now, and African women with colorful skirts and ticos (head wraps) working away together.  I will take a picture before we leave, but I know it won’t do it justice! I went, one evening, with a neighbor girl to help water her plot. The old ladies working their fields had me come help till; they laughed so hard at my attempt!! I didn’t care, I loved it anyway.

Salamalekum (Peace be with you)

That is a Mandinka greeting that is required when you pass by a host national.

We have arrived safe and sound in The Gambia.  Our flight in Brussels was delayed 6 hours turning our 16 hour trip into a 22 hour trip. So because of that, Ben caught a cold and I got double ear infections from the long flights. As you can imagine, our first days in country were tiresome and overwhelming but we got some medicine and are recovering slowly, slowly.

We have been extremely busy since arriving in country. On our first day we received more vaccinations, and introductions to the Peace Corps Gambia. Our second day we started training, and yesterday we did more training and took a field trip to a Reptile Farm – which is owned by an interesting Frenchman.  Our training has consisted of: basic language, basic ecology, geography, survival in the village, Gambian norms and values vs American norms and values, ethnic groups, ceremonies and religions, gardening, and bike maintenance.  We wake up at 7 and aren’t done with activities usually until 9!  Tomorrow we go to our training villages and will find out what languages we will be learning so we are excited and a little nervous. Going from the eco-lodge to the village will be a big change.  We will be in groups of 4-6 with a ‘Language and Culture Facilitator’ living in the village with us for 2 months. Our days will be very busy, and we will not have internet so we probably will not have time to update the blog.

Besides our illness, we are having a good time learning about the culture and the country as well as talking to other volunteers from different parts of the country.  Apparently, in other parts of the country they don’t have the amount of snow cone stands as we do in Texas and people were fascinating by how many stands and flavors we have. I thought that was funny because I know that when it gets really hot here, I will be craving snow cones. The weather is very nice right now, it is the dry season. In the morning and at night it is cool, probably high 60s, and during the day it feels like it heats up to the lower 80s. And the humidity feels low too.  In the shade during the day it still feels very nice, I would compare it to Austin in October.  The hottest months here are supposed to be May and April, but October is said to be the worst because it is extremely humid and still hot.

Our food at the eco-lodge consisted of bread, jam, fried eggs, tea, and a delicious purple drink that I have no idea what the name of it is. For lunch, we eat rice with meat and vegetables and fruit, and for dinner, we always start with soup and bread followed with salad, meat, potatoes, and rice.  We receive cokes in glass bottles for lunch and dinner too.  It is good food, and so far has been easy on our digestive systems. We may not have the same luck at the village.

So tomorrow, we are off for our intensive training and will not be available via internet. However, I have placed our cell phone numbers on the contact information to the side. I believe it is cheap for you to text, and you can use skype for cheap as well. We would love to hear from you!

Goodbye America

We arrived safely in Chicago for staging a day early so we could spend the day with our friends Matt and Christie who were nice enough to show us around the city.  Chicago seems like a great place – maybe a bit cold in January though. It had me ready for the 80 degree weather in the Gambia!

Our last few weeks in Texas were filled with packing, eating, shopping, and saying goodbye to family and friends. We had such a great time those few weeks and we will miss everyone dearly.  Thanks to those of you who gave us your support, came out to see us off, and gave us departure gifts.  We really appreciate it and it makes us feel very blessed to have such wonderful people in our lives. We will miss ya’ll and cannot wait for those that are planning to come visit!

We know our decision isn't easy on everyone, but we are so thankful for your love and support.

Our first day at staging went well. We arrived at our fancy Double Tree hotel on the ‘Magnificent Mile’ around noon.  Our day consisted of filling out more paperwork, doing some ice breaker activities, and talking about logistics and what to expect in training and service.  There are about 30 volunteers in our class split equally between health/community volunteers and environmental volunteers.  The average ages seem to be in the mid-twenties, but there are two women that look to be in their sixties. One of the two ladies just finished a service in Samoa!

We are the only married couple in our group and also the only people from Texas! Everyone is very nice and interesting; we all went out for pizza last night after orientation.  This morning we checked out of our hotel at 8 and took a bus to the clinic for yellow fever vaccinations.  After our vaccinations we were driven to the airport and our flight leaves at 5 pm! We should arrive in the Gambia on January 6.  Upon arrival, we will be met by the Peace Corps staff and bussed to an Eco-Lodge where we will be staying for the week together.  We should have internet in the lodge, but after that we will be separated into small groups of 4-5 and sent to our training villages where we will live with a host family and start our language and cultural training.  Ben and I will be living with the same family in the same village. We are leaving in one hour and are very excited; our next post will be from The Gambia!

Reasons and Reactions

Over the past few days at work, time has come to a standstill for me.  So, primarily to entertain myself but also to answer questions, I am giving a few reasons as to why we are joining the Peace Corps. And I am also relaying some of our 'peoples' reactions to our upcoming departure.

A few reasons why we decided to join the Peace Corps:

• Unique Experience - We wanted to do something a little different in our lives before we  settle down.  The Peace Corps gives us an experience like no other. We looked into other options such as volunteering internationally with non-profits, but from a cost-effective, safe, and career aspect, the Peace Corps offers an experience that is above and beyond any other organization we found.

• Mission - no, we don't expect to change the world or even our community, but taking time out of our lives to aid a community less fortunate than our own will benefit everyone in some way - right?

• Adventure - As PCV's we will have ample opportunities for adventure - not sure this one needs any explanation!

• Perspective - Living in a small rural community in West Africa is sure to change our perspective on food, needs, business, community, international development, and...life.

• Language - Relating to someone in a different language is supposed to be a wonderful experience. And, who doesn't want to be fluent in an obscure African dialect?

We also received quite a variety of reactions with our decision to move to The Gambia. Here is a good sample of them:

• Zambia? No, Gambia. Oh, okay, is that still in Africa?  

• Oh Gambia...wait, what's A Gambia?

• You know those people only listen to one thing right? Guns.

• OK, a guy at our table has been to the Gambia. We have confirmation that it exists!

• I thought you believed in capitalism not digging ditches in Africa.

• The Gambia? Oh that's fabulous; they'll have a great time!

• NO, you're moving?! To AFRICA?! Oh my lord, ya'll are crazy.

• Thank you for your service to our country; it is a very noble cause.

(And the reaction that caused the blog title....)

• Wait..Africa?! I thought you were joking!

Getting Excited and Ready....

Well, we have about 5 weeks until we depart for The Gambia. These past few weeks we've gotten a fair amount accomplished including finding a renter for our house and resigning from our current positions!  Both tasks went extremely well and we've shifted gears to start packing, both for the move out of Austin, and for our time in The Gambia.

Our future address will be:

Ben/Kate Turner, PCT (after March 2011, we will no longer be trainees, so it will be PCV)
C/O Peace Corps/The Gambia
P.O. Box 582
Banjul, The Gambia
West Africa

Feel free to write or send care packages! We will go through a 10 week training period in country where we will receive intense language and cultural training, and afterwards we will be sent out to a village to start implementing our own projects. This address will be our mailing address the entire time we are in the Gambia. And please feel free to visit us while we are in Gambia, it is a diverse country with a lot to offer including national parks and beautiful beaches!

Ben's last day at work is December 15, and my last day is December 10 so for the next month our time will be spent in Austin, Dallas, and Houston. 

Here's a little itinerary for our holiday schedule:

Austin: now until Dec 16 (and possibly back for the birth of baby Archer)

Dallas: Dec 19 – 25, back on Dec 31 until we leave Jan 4

Houston: Dec 17 – 19, Dec 25 – 31

And if you are reading this...We'd love to see you before we leave :)