"How I met your mother marathon today!"--PCV at training
So I just completed my Early Service Training here in Suriname. I have been a PCV for almost three months now, been away from home for a bit over five months now. I want to just give a quick run down of what has happened and what has been happening at my site recently. When I come back to the city, hopefully for Thanksgiving time, I hope to get more into the emotional aspects of staying at site, isolated from the city for a month or longer at a time. It has been tough but I want to be fair and give it another month.
So, basically right now in the village they have asked for a soccer field, a community center and English lessons. I am going to be giving English lessons twice a week for the time being and I have offered to help the lady in the gift shop with inventory, both services which the last volunteer helped with. I also plan to start computer lessons soon. At the moment, I am really focusing on training people, sharing my skills and hoping to get some of their skills in return through other avenues--crafts, fishing, etc.
The project I am most proud to be working on is a joint project with the two volunteers in the neighboring village. It is an HIV/AIDs education program that will culminate on December 1st. The project will focus on educating the 6th graders in the local village on HIV/AIDs and promoting testing in the villages. We are hoping this will be the first of many events and classes for HIV/AIDs education and prevention.
So, that's what's basically going down at the moment. When I come back in the city next--either Thanksgiving or Christmas, I'll go more in-depth on village life and the projects. Peace.
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Workin with giardia
"Peter: I'm looking for some toilet training books.
Salesman: We have the popular 'everybody poops", or the less popular 'nobody poops but you'.
Peter: Well, you see, we're catholic...
Salesman: Ah, then you'll want 'you're a naughty, naughty boy, and that's concentrated evil coming out the back of you'."--Family Guy
Yeah, I had a lot of concentrated evil coming out of my backside this week. On Monday morning, I woke up with what may have been a case of giardia or something very similar to it. Basically, I woke up with diarrhea and couldn't even tell you how many bowel movements I had that day because I went so many damn times. It was terrible. I am not exactly sure what happened but the main suspect is bad water from one of the villagers, but the villager did say he boiled it so it's a bit of a mystery. So after a day of many-a trips to the pour-flush toilet I finally called the doc and got on some medication. I'm still feeling a little iffy but overall things are solid.
Anyways, I am in the city this week for a Peace Corps training. Once the training is done, I head back to the interior and I have a few different projects that will begin. I am working with two other volunteers on an HIV/AIDs awareness project that will culminate on World AIDs Day, December 1. I also will begin an English class and am working with a woman who runs the local gift shop, helping her with inventory and ideas for selling more products. There are a few other bigger projects that are on the table at the moment but they are in the preliminary stages.
Salesman: We have the popular 'everybody poops", or the less popular 'nobody poops but you'.
Peter: Well, you see, we're catholic...
Salesman: Ah, then you'll want 'you're a naughty, naughty boy, and that's concentrated evil coming out the back of you'."--Family Guy
Yeah, I had a lot of concentrated evil coming out of my backside this week. On Monday morning, I woke up with what may have been a case of giardia or something very similar to it. Basically, I woke up with diarrhea and couldn't even tell you how many bowel movements I had that day because I went so many damn times. It was terrible. I am not exactly sure what happened but the main suspect is bad water from one of the villagers, but the villager did say he boiled it so it's a bit of a mystery. So after a day of many-a trips to the pour-flush toilet I finally called the doc and got on some medication. I'm still feeling a little iffy but overall things are solid.
Anyways, I am in the city this week for a Peace Corps training. Once the training is done, I head back to the interior and I have a few different projects that will begin. I am working with two other volunteers on an HIV/AIDs awareness project that will culminate on World AIDs Day, December 1. I also will begin an English class and am working with a woman who runs the local gift shop, helping her with inventory and ideas for selling more products. There are a few other bigger projects that are on the table at the moment but they are in the preliminary stages.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Snake!
“Snakes make people run into trees...Snake! POW!” –Richard Prior
So, I had my first encounter with a snake at my house. On a cool Suriname night that was again perfect hammock lying weather, I heard something fall near the front window. I thought it was another nail since a few were loose but when I opened up the window and looked down there was a little snake about a foot long, curled up by my shoes. So the only question was what to do with the snake. Naturally, I grabbed my machete. Although I decided to play it safe and ask some of the local teenagers for help and to see what kind of snake it was. According to the teens, it was a poisonous snake. In this case, my choice of machete was ‘hogi poi’—very bad choice. So the teens took a big piece of wood from a nearby construction pile and swung it at the snake. They wounded the snake with the first hit and it struggled to slither away. That’s when I took a bigger piece of wood and finished off the snake. Kaba, the end for the sindeki—snake.
I figured after this snake I had reached some kind of yearly quota for animals at my house in the first two months here at site, but as fate would have it another snake came to my house less than a week later. It squeezed under my door and began slithering through the house while I was writing a letter to send back home to St. John’s School, my World Wise School, and totally unaware that anything had entered the house. For those of you who are not aware I have nightly visits from bats who crap in my house, frequent visits from rats, I have had an abnormally enormous termite nest in my house, ants, one lizard that took me by surprise and chased me out of my house and now snakes. The villagers will probably start a pool to guess what animal will come into my house next.
And all these snake encounters have reminded me that I needed to clarify one very important event from high school cross country: there was a snake on the fire trail, Schieffer!
So, I had my first encounter with a snake at my house. On a cool Suriname night that was again perfect hammock lying weather, I heard something fall near the front window. I thought it was another nail since a few were loose but when I opened up the window and looked down there was a little snake about a foot long, curled up by my shoes. So the only question was what to do with the snake. Naturally, I grabbed my machete. Although I decided to play it safe and ask some of the local teenagers for help and to see what kind of snake it was. According to the teens, it was a poisonous snake. In this case, my choice of machete was ‘hogi poi’—very bad choice. So the teens took a big piece of wood from a nearby construction pile and swung it at the snake. They wounded the snake with the first hit and it struggled to slither away. That’s when I took a bigger piece of wood and finished off the snake. Kaba, the end for the sindeki—snake.
I figured after this snake I had reached some kind of yearly quota for animals at my house in the first two months here at site, but as fate would have it another snake came to my house less than a week later. It squeezed under my door and began slithering through the house while I was writing a letter to send back home to St. John’s School, my World Wise School, and totally unaware that anything had entered the house. For those of you who are not aware I have nightly visits from bats who crap in my house, frequent visits from rats, I have had an abnormally enormous termite nest in my house, ants, one lizard that took me by surprise and chased me out of my house and now snakes. The villagers will probably start a pool to guess what animal will come into my house next.
And all these snake encounters have reminded me that I needed to clarify one very important event from high school cross country: there was a snake on the fire trail, Schieffer!
Ground Hog’s Day
“Peace Corps is a lot like that Ground Hog’s Day movie.” –PCV Suriname
The quote says it all about the Peace Corps here in Suriname. We live a simple, predictable life. On a typical day, I have slept in and wake up to hot weather again, make myself a bowl of Corn Flakes or instant oatmeal if I’m feeling adventurous, wash myself and dishes in the river where one of the men who carries a little bird cage around with him likes to bust my balls and tell me he’s off to do men’s work in his boat, implying my washing of dishes is woman’s work. At first I took it personal but now I just laugh it off and think it’s ironic that this guy is off to do men’s work with his bird cage—talk about differences in cultural opinions. And then I go back to my beloved hammock until I feel like “working”. And to think my folks said I’d never get paid to sleep in and be unproductive. (note sarcasm here plz)
Once I hit the village paths to greet the villagers they will ask me what I cooked and ate. When I tell them, they are usually perplexed that I have not eaten rice before noon. At this time, I am usually perplexed because some folks are on their second helping of rice for the day. So, if I didn’t eat rice, I must have gone fishing, right? Nope. At this point I am almost the worst villager ever. But then, things go from bad to worse. After I am asked about my meals and lack of fishing the villagers want to know why I don’t have a woman. “Do you want a Sarramaccan woman? No!? Why not? I know a perfectly fit one for you, Basiapai, take her back to America. Well if you won’t take her, at least bring me back another one from America!” (Insert awkward silence) “So.” And then I flee back to my hammock for sweet refuge.
Haha, OK, it’s not that bad, it is a bit exaggerated but sometimes that is how it feels. There is definitely monotony and repetition from day to day life here some days. At home stay I was waking up every morning at 6 am and working out but when I came to site I began having visitors in the night—rats, bats, etc. Due to the constant disruptions during the night, it caused me to begin waking up after 9 am, sometimes 10 am. Although, now I am regularly waking up before 8 in the morning. It is hot, every, single, day! Sometimes the heat is relentless, especially in the middle of the afternoon. Sometimes the smartest thing to do is go and lay down in the hammock in the middle of the afternoon. I have tried to keep meals interesting but when I am feeling unmotivated to cook I usually end up eating a lot of rice cakes or spooning peanut butter. I can not make those special Top Ramen noodle tuna casserole everyday, right? And, I do take crap for washing dishes on occasion. And at first, before I considered some of these guys my friends, it pissed me off. Now I can laugh about it.
As for the conversations, they are structured pretty much exactly like I said. Although, first you greet a person and ask if they’re doing good, then you ask what they cooked or ate. I thought asking some what they ate was a bit intrusive at first, what I put in my mouth is my own business (that’s what she said). I asked an older woman in the village why people in the village always asked what you had to eat, she said it was just good manners—understanding cultural differences, accomplished! And then, I am constantly asked if I have a woman and if I’d be willing to take a local woman. I don’t think this will ever stop over the next two years. And even if I had a woman they would want me to make like 5 babies in 2 years probably. Not going to happen.
Finally, the “work”. The whole concept of work for my Peace Corps assignment, and in the village, is different than the concept of work by American standards. By American standards, I’d probably be considered a bum. These first two months at site my work has mostly consisted of talking with people, trying to improve my language, understand the culture and other intricacies of living here. Just a short, 20 minute conversation can feel like a lot of work. It is very frustrating to stumble with a foreign language and not understand everything you are being told. Although I speak the language fairly well sometimes I feel like a complete idiot when I do not understand. I may go around the village for an hour or so at a time, talking with people, before I have to call it quits and go back to my house to clear my head and get myself refreshed for the next rounds of conversations. By village standards, I would assume I am considered smart but sometimes lazy. I read a lot and know how to work computers which makes me smart but that is not traditional work. Work here does not revolve around money so much as it does around traditionally working hard, or as they call it “wooko taanga” (working strong), which is hunting, fishing or building boats or houses if you are a man. Basically, I can’t build nothin’, I am not allowed to hunt and I’d rather sit in a boat and drink a Parbo than pay attention to the fish. Although, not all is bad, I have gotten some respect from the village for planting grounds and making an enormous fire to burn my trash, they were especially pleased that I managed not to burn down the village while I burnt my trash because it was a pretty big heap of trash and brush and shot up pretty high and fast. One lady told me she saw it from the other side of the village. A few people have also been very complementary about my language progression which is always a nice boost for the confidence. As far as Peace Corps standards for doing work, I’d say I am right on par. I have not delved too heavily into the project work which has allowed me to observe the community more clearly and look at the various options I will have available for work. Although, I am beginning to take charge over one project that the last volunteer here left me which involves a lot of computer work and networking with people in the city. I feel it’s a good thing to start now because it does not require mastery of the local language and gives me something to do every now and again. Other projects, though, I have had to put on hold until I speak the language better.
Otherwise, in these first two months on the job, I have tried to put a big premium on sharing my stories with you, my friends, my audience. Having this blog, writing letters to my World Wise School, St. John’s San Lorenzo, posting videos and posting pictures so that friends, family or just the casual internet vagabond can look and enjoy my story and then getting positive feedback has helped to keep me busy and been a huge boost for my morale. Thank you and I hope you will continue to enjoy the sights and stories of my journey.
--Chris Rodriguez, “Basiapai”
The quote says it all about the Peace Corps here in Suriname. We live a simple, predictable life. On a typical day, I have slept in and wake up to hot weather again, make myself a bowl of Corn Flakes or instant oatmeal if I’m feeling adventurous, wash myself and dishes in the river where one of the men who carries a little bird cage around with him likes to bust my balls and tell me he’s off to do men’s work in his boat, implying my washing of dishes is woman’s work. At first I took it personal but now I just laugh it off and think it’s ironic that this guy is off to do men’s work with his bird cage—talk about differences in cultural opinions. And then I go back to my beloved hammock until I feel like “working”. And to think my folks said I’d never get paid to sleep in and be unproductive. (note sarcasm here plz)
Once I hit the village paths to greet the villagers they will ask me what I cooked and ate. When I tell them, they are usually perplexed that I have not eaten rice before noon. At this time, I am usually perplexed because some folks are on their second helping of rice for the day. So, if I didn’t eat rice, I must have gone fishing, right? Nope. At this point I am almost the worst villager ever. But then, things go from bad to worse. After I am asked about my meals and lack of fishing the villagers want to know why I don’t have a woman. “Do you want a Sarramaccan woman? No!? Why not? I know a perfectly fit one for you, Basiapai, take her back to America. Well if you won’t take her, at least bring me back another one from America!” (Insert awkward silence) “So.” And then I flee back to my hammock for sweet refuge.
Haha, OK, it’s not that bad, it is a bit exaggerated but sometimes that is how it feels. There is definitely monotony and repetition from day to day life here some days. At home stay I was waking up every morning at 6 am and working out but when I came to site I began having visitors in the night—rats, bats, etc. Due to the constant disruptions during the night, it caused me to begin waking up after 9 am, sometimes 10 am. Although, now I am regularly waking up before 8 in the morning. It is hot, every, single, day! Sometimes the heat is relentless, especially in the middle of the afternoon. Sometimes the smartest thing to do is go and lay down in the hammock in the middle of the afternoon. I have tried to keep meals interesting but when I am feeling unmotivated to cook I usually end up eating a lot of rice cakes or spooning peanut butter. I can not make those special Top Ramen noodle tuna casserole everyday, right? And, I do take crap for washing dishes on occasion. And at first, before I considered some of these guys my friends, it pissed me off. Now I can laugh about it.
As for the conversations, they are structured pretty much exactly like I said. Although, first you greet a person and ask if they’re doing good, then you ask what they cooked or ate. I thought asking some what they ate was a bit intrusive at first, what I put in my mouth is my own business (that’s what she said). I asked an older woman in the village why people in the village always asked what you had to eat, she said it was just good manners—understanding cultural differences, accomplished! And then, I am constantly asked if I have a woman and if I’d be willing to take a local woman. I don’t think this will ever stop over the next two years. And even if I had a woman they would want me to make like 5 babies in 2 years probably. Not going to happen.
Finally, the “work”. The whole concept of work for my Peace Corps assignment, and in the village, is different than the concept of work by American standards. By American standards, I’d probably be considered a bum. These first two months at site my work has mostly consisted of talking with people, trying to improve my language, understand the culture and other intricacies of living here. Just a short, 20 minute conversation can feel like a lot of work. It is very frustrating to stumble with a foreign language and not understand everything you are being told. Although I speak the language fairly well sometimes I feel like a complete idiot when I do not understand. I may go around the village for an hour or so at a time, talking with people, before I have to call it quits and go back to my house to clear my head and get myself refreshed for the next rounds of conversations. By village standards, I would assume I am considered smart but sometimes lazy. I read a lot and know how to work computers which makes me smart but that is not traditional work. Work here does not revolve around money so much as it does around traditionally working hard, or as they call it “wooko taanga” (working strong), which is hunting, fishing or building boats or houses if you are a man. Basically, I can’t build nothin’, I am not allowed to hunt and I’d rather sit in a boat and drink a Parbo than pay attention to the fish. Although, not all is bad, I have gotten some respect from the village for planting grounds and making an enormous fire to burn my trash, they were especially pleased that I managed not to burn down the village while I burnt my trash because it was a pretty big heap of trash and brush and shot up pretty high and fast. One lady told me she saw it from the other side of the village. A few people have also been very complementary about my language progression which is always a nice boost for the confidence. As far as Peace Corps standards for doing work, I’d say I am right on par. I have not delved too heavily into the project work which has allowed me to observe the community more clearly and look at the various options I will have available for work. Although, I am beginning to take charge over one project that the last volunteer here left me which involves a lot of computer work and networking with people in the city. I feel it’s a good thing to start now because it does not require mastery of the local language and gives me something to do every now and again. Other projects, though, I have had to put on hold until I speak the language better.
Otherwise, in these first two months on the job, I have tried to put a big premium on sharing my stories with you, my friends, my audience. Having this blog, writing letters to my World Wise School, St. John’s San Lorenzo, posting videos and posting pictures so that friends, family or just the casual internet vagabond can look and enjoy my story and then getting positive feedback has helped to keep me busy and been a huge boost for my morale. Thank you and I hope you will continue to enjoy the sights and stories of my journey.
--Chris Rodriguez, “Basiapai”
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