As I head back to village, I just want to share the experience I had going to the post office this morning. It took eight stamps to mail a card (125 CFA each, rather than one 1000 cfa stamp) and they barely fit on the envelope. I mailed lots of cards so hopefully they all make it aux Etats-Unis.
The cab ride back was delayed by a herd of goats in the road.
A bientot tout le monde!
Monday, September 25, 2006
Saturday, September 23, 2006
Cool Weather
It's only been a week since I was here, so not much has happened that needs to be reported. If all goes according to plan, a slightly-used refridgerator, mattress, and fan are on their way to Bafia and will be delivered to my neighbor's house tomorrow by my proviseur. Sweet! And I should open the mailroom on Monday morning to find my laptop waiting for me! :-) De plus, the trip here was free, since I crowded into the back seat of my proviseur's toyota.
I have also inherited a locker at the case--complete with toothpaste and laundry detergent. I miss Daniel already! I visited the Artinisat today and bought a necklace, but for the most part its kitschy stereotypical African "handicrafts" made in China.
That's all for now.
I have also inherited a locker at the case--complete with toothpaste and laundry detergent. I miss Daniel already! I visited the Artinisat today and bought a necklace, but for the most part its kitschy stereotypical African "handicrafts" made in China.
That's all for now.
Monday, September 18, 2006
Woo Pig Sooie!
I am in fact alive. There is no internet cafe in tiny Bokito, so this is my first opportunity to write in 2 weeks. And when I arrived in Yaounde yesterday the power was out, so no free internet here, either.
Sheesh.
What an exciting, bizarre, hot, lazy, empty but busy 2 weeks. My first diary entry after arriving starts, "Oh my God. My kitchen is infested with cockroaches. THere are tons. I must buy huge canisters of Moon Tiger." I've done that and they seem to have retreated to the kitchen. I survived the first night, and the first two weeks. We'll see about the next two years. The last education volunteer lasted only 3-4 months.
My house is huge and for the most part empty. I have a bed (for which I finally got sheets and pillows), a desk and chairs (on loan from the school). I have been eating well. All I can get here is fruit and veggies. Looking at the meat makes me kinda sick, so I only eat it when other people prepare it. I have running water (a week before I arrived, a woman who couldn't drive wrecked her car into my water meter, so I had to buy a new one for 23,000 CFA ($46)) and electricity (no meter installed yet, after 3 trips to Bafia and roughly 30,000 CFA ($60) in expenses). But whatever. That's Cameroon.
I've been to the weekly market twice now. No cucumbers or eggplants sadly, but I can get green beans, carrots, and okra. Lots of people come by to give me food and fruit. It's nice. I've met all sorts of people. The inhabitants of Bokito are very friendly and welcoming. Most of them have been very nice, if a bit persistent. My colleagues are also friendly. I think I will be happy there. My house is on a main thoroughfare, a bit too public for my taste, but close to lots of things and I can watch people go by. I figure it helps them get used to me and also passes the time.
As for my official 9 to 5 job, it's going. "La rentree scolaire" is always very slow in the villages and there are still teachers missing. FOr their part, students and teachers are skeptical about "Informatique" taught by a young white woman who doesn't speak French and has no computers. I feel the same way, especially since I'm teaching 5 hours of it a week and have yet to receive the government-produced syllabus or a textbook. I teach the youngest class, and an older class that will take a national exam at the end of the year--one section of which is on IT. Thursday afternoon I had 47 absent students (just to give you an idea how big the classes are).
In closing, I will relate the story of my arrival in Yaounde. I left Bokito with an Anglophone colleage, Caroline, at 8 am. We got into a standard 4-door (like a camry), joining the driver, 2 parents plus child in the front seat, an adult male, and another female & child in the back seat. Total occupants: 9. We stopped to pick up a woman and her load of cassavas. Total occupants: 10 + cartload of cassavas. When we arrived in Bafia, we bought tickets for the van to the capitol. Our trip was delayed by a pig. The biggest pig I've ever seen. Except the luggage handlers at the agence are mostly Muslim and refused to touch it. So, 8-10 male passengers hoisted a screaming pig onto the roof and strapped him down. After arriving, the pig was unceremoniously rolled from the roof to the ground, kickin\g and squealing.
I'm sure it made a tasty centerpiece at someone's traditional wedding. Go Hogs!
Sheesh.
What an exciting, bizarre, hot, lazy, empty but busy 2 weeks. My first diary entry after arriving starts, "Oh my God. My kitchen is infested with cockroaches. THere are tons. I must buy huge canisters of Moon Tiger." I've done that and they seem to have retreated to the kitchen. I survived the first night, and the first two weeks. We'll see about the next two years. The last education volunteer lasted only 3-4 months.
My house is huge and for the most part empty. I have a bed (for which I finally got sheets and pillows), a desk and chairs (on loan from the school). I have been eating well. All I can get here is fruit and veggies. Looking at the meat makes me kinda sick, so I only eat it when other people prepare it. I have running water (a week before I arrived, a woman who couldn't drive wrecked her car into my water meter, so I had to buy a new one for 23,000 CFA ($46)) and electricity (no meter installed yet, after 3 trips to Bafia and roughly 30,000 CFA ($60) in expenses). But whatever. That's Cameroon.
I've been to the weekly market twice now. No cucumbers or eggplants sadly, but I can get green beans, carrots, and okra. Lots of people come by to give me food and fruit. It's nice. I've met all sorts of people. The inhabitants of Bokito are very friendly and welcoming. Most of them have been very nice, if a bit persistent. My colleagues are also friendly. I think I will be happy there. My house is on a main thoroughfare, a bit too public for my taste, but close to lots of things and I can watch people go by. I figure it helps them get used to me and also passes the time.
As for my official 9 to 5 job, it's going. "La rentree scolaire" is always very slow in the villages and there are still teachers missing. FOr their part, students and teachers are skeptical about "Informatique" taught by a young white woman who doesn't speak French and has no computers. I feel the same way, especially since I'm teaching 5 hours of it a week and have yet to receive the government-produced syllabus or a textbook. I teach the youngest class, and an older class that will take a national exam at the end of the year--one section of which is on IT. Thursday afternoon I had 47 absent students (just to give you an idea how big the classes are).
In closing, I will relate the story of my arrival in Yaounde. I left Bokito with an Anglophone colleage, Caroline, at 8 am. We got into a standard 4-door (like a camry), joining the driver, 2 parents plus child in the front seat, an adult male, and another female & child in the back seat. Total occupants: 9. We stopped to pick up a woman and her load of cassavas. Total occupants: 10 + cartload of cassavas. When we arrived in Bafia, we bought tickets for the van to the capitol. Our trip was delayed by a pig. The biggest pig I've ever seen. Except the luggage handlers at the agence are mostly Muslim and refused to touch it. So, 8-10 male passengers hoisted a screaming pig onto the roof and strapped him down. After arriving, the pig was unceremoniously rolled from the roof to the ground, kickin\g and squealing.
I'm sure it made a tasty centerpiece at someone's traditional wedding. Go Hogs!
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