Quicky!

Happy Holidays!!! Merry Christmas & Happy New Year to yu all.  I was a little sad, missing family and friends during the holidays but I sill enjoyed it for the most part.  With each holiday all the volunteers get together and try to make everyone feel like home even though we are thoudands of miles away.  We all got together and enjoyed a Christmas brunch and dinner filled with carroling and singing plus movies into the night.  All in all I enjoyed my holiday away from with other vounteers and Peace Corps Staff.  In 5 days I will be moving to my new site.  I am very excited about the move and looking forward meeting the poeple in my village and working in the hospital.   I just wanted to quickly put up a holiday post and some pics that I promised.  Till next year....sa anjima!

It's Almost Time!!!

It’s been awhile since my last update and so much has happened that I can’t type it all.  I am two weeks away from swear in and the end of training.  By January 1^st of the New Year I will placed in my new village which will be my home for the next 24 months.  I am nervous and excited all at the same time but looking forward to the change.  Well before I talk about the future let me update you on the past several weeks.

First, Happy late Thanksgiving & Happy Holidays ;-) Although Niger does not celebrate Thanksgiving, all the Peace Corp trainees got together and enjoyed a lovely feast American style.  We had a Thanksgiving committee that put together a lovely menu as well as prepared most of the food.  From sweet potatoes  to stuffing , to Nigerian style salad and sweet butter cake, all 40 trainees plus a couple of special guest sat outside under the star lit sky and enjoyed the company, food and tradition of Thanksgiving.  All this made me think of my family at home and all my favorite foods I missed but I know it will all be waiting for me when I get back.  After all the festivities of Thanksgiving calmed down it was back to business as usual and training continued. After a couple of weeks of luxury at the training site it was time for us to get our first taste of life in the bush!

For two weeks I stayed in a small village with 5 other trainees and 2 language trainers outside of the state, Maradi .  The village was a 3 hour walk to the closest main road and the only access to the market or the road was by an ox cart, donkey, horse motorbike, or camel.  During these two weeks I focused on building my language skills through intensive classes as well as talking with residents of the village who were all very welcoming and receptive to our visit.  I also had the opportunity to attend 2 naming ceremonies, which is like a baptism, where everyone in the village comes to the newborn’s home and showers the family with gifts and blessings.   The religious leader of the village names the child and then the ceremony is concluded with the killing of a sheep, which is then prepared and cooked by the women.  I also visited the well which is like going to the water cooler at work; it’s where all the action is ;-)  In most rural villages since there is no running water the main water source is either a well, pump, or foot pump.  This village had a well which was 25m deep and provided water for all residents of the village.  Women will usually wake up as early as 5am to get water from the well to provide for their daily activities which includes cooking, cleaning, and water for bathing. This is by no means a small job and women in rural villages work very hard each day carrying gallons of water, gathering firewood, cooking lunch and dinner and taking care of the children.  

Although the village was small and remote village it was one of the few which had a school for grades 2, 4, and 6.  The school was a small 2 room building used to teach over 150 children; needless to say it was overcrowded and in need of many supplies.  The school was surrounded by 2 rows of beautiful itace trees which provided shade and was also where my language classes were held.  During my free time I would sit under the trees and read  a book while watching the animals graze through the field, women carrying water on their head and children playing simple games in the sand.  My two weeks was a great experience and an opportunity to see what my future life in ville will be.   

As time narrows down and my training comes to an end the next chapter of life will begin…follow me until then ;-)

P.S. I will put up some more pics in the next few days so be sure to check back.