Momentum
So I've been at my post for over a month now, and it's already surprising me how quickly the time has gone by. I've confirmed that in Peace Corps the days go slowly and the weeks fly by. I've already met with the all of the chiefs in the village (there is one for each quartier), and with those in the surrounding villages, to set up a date for a meeting with all of the people in their area. And I've already started to have meetings with people presenting to them the importance of trees, how they might be used on farms, and the benefits that can come from them. It's really exciting that I've already started spreading the word, and I'm still gaining momentum. And with goals and milestones being set and acomplished, I can tell how life is going to keep speeding by.
In the meantime, I've been having a TON of fun in village anyway. Usually in the morning I head out to the main drag on the street, and find some breakfast. It's usually a bowl of bouille, which is basically like a warm rice pudding, but more liquidy and with peanut butter mixed in. But you can't taste the peanuts. Nevertheless I love it, and a bowl of it is 50 francs... or 10 cents. And sometimes I buy little fried doughnut things that are good, but could use some sugar.
Then I set out on my task for the day, which this week has been giving presentations to introduce myself, Peace Corps, and trees to a group of farmers. I do so with the help of my counterpart (like my main contact in village for work stuff), who helps to translate into Fufulde for me. But I'm coming along really well with Fufulde, and I'm pretty sure I'll be fluent in a few months. It's really cool that I can already chat with these old ladies, who previously were not within the realm of communication. The funny thing is that in my mind, I'm subconsciously beginning to think that now I can talk to anyone who I couldn't talk to before... like dogs and goats. Unfortunately it's not true... yet.
Otherwise I usually find a snack on the street for lunch, or drink tea at this omelette guy's little restaurant thing. It's not really tea, but more hot sugar-water with tea flavoring. They really have quite the sweet tooth here. I chill out for the afternoon, for dinner I usually cook something at home, and at night I head out to the street and just watch the people go by. And if I'm really craving it, I get another bowl of the rice pudding stuff.
And it's fun because more and more people are recognizing me, calling me out by name, and wanting to hang out. So now really all I need to do is head out to the street and there will be someone hanging out that wants to chat. So in the end, I'm pretty much the same overly-social person that I am at home, but just with a few more cultural barriers to cover. But even those discussions/discoveries usually turn out to be pretty fun and interesting. And all of these fun little sessions keep me pretty busy on the whole... I'm hardly ever at my house!
So yeah, overall life seems to be coming together pretty well. The next couple posts I'm going to try to give little snippets of what other parts of daily life is like, so keep reading. I miss everyone, so thanks for all the support. A bientot.
In the meantime, I've been having a TON of fun in village anyway. Usually in the morning I head out to the main drag on the street, and find some breakfast. It's usually a bowl of bouille, which is basically like a warm rice pudding, but more liquidy and with peanut butter mixed in. But you can't taste the peanuts. Nevertheless I love it, and a bowl of it is 50 francs... or 10 cents. And sometimes I buy little fried doughnut things that are good, but could use some sugar.
Then I set out on my task for the day, which this week has been giving presentations to introduce myself, Peace Corps, and trees to a group of farmers. I do so with the help of my counterpart (like my main contact in village for work stuff), who helps to translate into Fufulde for me. But I'm coming along really well with Fufulde, and I'm pretty sure I'll be fluent in a few months. It's really cool that I can already chat with these old ladies, who previously were not within the realm of communication. The funny thing is that in my mind, I'm subconsciously beginning to think that now I can talk to anyone who I couldn't talk to before... like dogs and goats. Unfortunately it's not true... yet.
Otherwise I usually find a snack on the street for lunch, or drink tea at this omelette guy's little restaurant thing. It's not really tea, but more hot sugar-water with tea flavoring. They really have quite the sweet tooth here. I chill out for the afternoon, for dinner I usually cook something at home, and at night I head out to the street and just watch the people go by. And if I'm really craving it, I get another bowl of the rice pudding stuff.
And it's fun because more and more people are recognizing me, calling me out by name, and wanting to hang out. So now really all I need to do is head out to the street and there will be someone hanging out that wants to chat. So in the end, I'm pretty much the same overly-social person that I am at home, but just with a few more cultural barriers to cover. But even those discussions/discoveries usually turn out to be pretty fun and interesting. And all of these fun little sessions keep me pretty busy on the whole... I'm hardly ever at my house!
So yeah, overall life seems to be coming together pretty well. The next couple posts I'm going to try to give little snippets of what other parts of daily life is like, so keep reading. I miss everyone, so thanks for all the support. A bientot.
posted by Ryan @ 5:10 AM
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