Practice School Starts Monday!

It turns out that teaching English just isn't very tough. I had my first hour long lesson yesterday and it went really well...my trainer told me I have a "great teacher voice." I think it's cause I'm bossy. Anyway, this week I will finally be teaching real students - they are going to be Terminale students, 13th grade, and it should be good practice. I have 2 hours of teaching and 2 hours observing to do a day. Up until this week I hadn't really cared about being a teacher - I was, and still am, happy to be here, but teaching wasn't anything I was really pumped about. That's changing now. I spent a long time with my host sister on Thursday night and we went through her entire notebook from last year's English class. It was incredibly short. She was supposed to have English 2 times a week, but her professor only came once a week and was teaching University English the other day. And there were a million errors in her notes - not her fault. I have met her professor - he just doesn't speak English. It's so sad - these kids are so smart, but really don't have anything. No textbooks, no reading materials, no markers, etc. But they are all so happy and eager to learn, so I'm really glad that I'm here and I can try and do my part.

We have 3 weeks of practice school and then training is essentially over. It seems like it's taken forever and that it's flying by at the same time. Some people don't like training at all, because we are babied and busy and it's a pain, but I'm having a great time. And I know I'm going to sob when I say good-bye to my host family!

A note about my host family: there are 3 teenage girls living with me and they are all in school. That is NOT normal in Guinea. My mom works as a primary school teacher. They are amazing and patron-y. Patrons are rich people in Guinea. Rich is relative here, but they do have a lot compared to other families in Forecariah. This week my mom was in Conakry and she came home with a lot of fabric and a DVD player! I promised them that we would have a Mariah Carey dance party sometime soon, since the DVD player also plays CDs. My sister was in my one hour lesson yesterday and she was so good. I introduced myself as Madame Soumah and as her sister, so the kids seemed to behave really well for me. Hopefully practice school will go as well as Friday's class!

Hmmm, what else about Guinea? I meant to write down some ideas before we got to Conakry today, but didn't get a chance.

A few things:

The chickens are multiplying. There were 5 when I arrived. Now there are at least 25. And a sheep. It's insane! But the Peace Corps just issued us some Tamiflu, so don't worry about my proximity to chickens. :)

Conakry may be a hellhole, but there's nice stuff here. I'm sitting in an internet cafe that is as nice as anything you would find in the US - and I used the bathroom and it was gorgeous! My life here is so silly sometimes, but I was so excited to use a real toilet that flushed and there was already toilet paper there and soap and a sink. Fricking incredible. We also went to a French restaurant called Le Damier and everything there looks like the Grand Central Market - delicious French breads, treats, pastries, chocolates, it was so nice! So maybe I don't hate Conakry after all - I have some Gouda and crackers in my bag just begging to be eaten.

I still think I want to do development work and am having a good time talking to people about the politics, etc. here. You all remember how annoying I could be when I wanted to talk about international development and politics? Well, I've found some kindred spirits - there's even 4 of us who have international studies/poli sci double majors! And we are all English teachers, since we aren't qualified to teach anything else. Ahh, a liberal arts degree.

In good news, my French has dramatically improved. I moved from Intermediate Low to Advanced Low, so now I start Pulaar class! I am pretty proud of myself about that, because it's not that easy to move up 4 levels in 4 weeks! Mr. Peche should be proud, since I obviously retained a lot of information from a long time ago and just had to find it in my brain.

Okay, I don't have much time left and am not sure when I'll be back to a computer, but I hope everyone is doing well. Email me! Or send letters! I'll update again after practice school.

One last thing

I need you all to remember this...

I am safe. I will stay safe. Guinea is safe for me. I am safe here.

The President is sick. If something happens there is a plan. If we need to leave it will happen quickly. If there is a strike again there is a plan.

I know that some of my friends' parents and friends are nervous about them being in Guinea, or Africa in general. I would like to think that my friends and family are much more worldly and understand that Africa is just another place in the world. But we got word today that the President has left the country, which probably means that his health is failing. He was in Switzerland a few months ago. Since I'm headed back to Forecariah tomorrow and won't have internet again for a few weeks, I thought it would be useful to remind everyone not to worry about me. Or maybe that's just wishful thinking on my part - that you are all cozy in America with your cable TV and dollars and Chipotle thinking about me here in Guinea!

Anyway, I'm safe. And will stay that way. One of the perks of being here on the US taxpayer's dime is that the Embassy keeps track of us. It wouldn't be so bad to get evacuated to Mali or Senegal - I'm sure we could have a good time. There's beer in all countries, even the Muslim ones, and we all have dance mixes on our ipods...

Site Visit Week and Mamou

I see that my mom is in the process of adding my letter home to the blog, so I'm not going to write about Forecariah and my homestay. Most of the good stuff is in the letter. Yay Mom!

On Sunday I went from Conakry to Mamou out to another volunteer's site, where we stayed for 3 days. I was really worn out from class and Forecariah and being in a homestay, so I slept a lot. And read 2 books - the Persistance of Memory and Memoirs of a Geisha. She cooked great food for me and I was a happy camper. Which reminds me - mom, can you send Bear Creek Chili Mix? It was delicious.

We waited for the Peace Corps mail run all day Tuesday, thinking that we would hitch a ride with them into Mamou. Well, that didn't exactly work out - we waited all day and finally had made some dinner when the mail run showed up! So we ran around and got our stuff together, threw our pasta into a bag and headed to Mamou. We spent the night at the missionaries' guest house in Mamou. It was so nice. Apparently this man grew up here and when his parents left to go back to the States they left their land to ENOTEF, the forestry school here. Then he grew up, had a family, and 11 years ago they decided to move back. So ENOTEF gave them some land and they have a mini-America there. They let people stay at the guest house for less than 3 dollars a night! And they are really nice and have cute kids - hopefully I'll get to know them since I'll be in Mamou with them for the next 2 years. He took us to the school, where I met my principal and all the important people. I presented them with kola nuts - they are a traditional gift of thanks and respect. It's a little like bringing a bottle of wine to a dinner party in the US...but I prefer wine to kola nuts...

Anyway, I met his whole family and had lunch with them. A lot of family members live in Conakry and are staying with him right now for summer vacation - Mamou is much more relaxed and cooler than Conakry, so I can see why they would want to get out! He has a son at University in Labe, which is a big deal. And all his daughters are still in school or finished, which is rare. He has worked with PCVs in the past and told me he's been trying to get a volunteer in Mamou for 4 years, but apparently the PC had really high housing standards and there was a problem finding a nice enough house. Anyway, he's definitely a wonderful man and I think his family will take good care of me. Their house isn't too far from mine and his wife was really insistent that I was welcome there anytime!

After meeting the mayor, director of etudes, censeur and about a zillion other people, we went to my house. I already wrote a little about it, but it really is nice. I feel super-lucky and look forward to having visitors...I'm happy that I have the extra bedrooms and it seems like people in more remote areas will be grateful to have a place to crash that's not a hut!

Tomorrow I head back to Forecariah with everyone from the Fouta region - there are 13 of us. While it will be nice to see all the non-Fouta people and hear about their sites and also to see my family again, I think I'm going to get anxious for stage to end and the real work to begin. I do need to work on my teaching, French and Pulaar, but now I'm just so excited about my site that I want to get there immediately! We have one week of regular, boring classes and then practice school starts. Both my sisters are participating. For 3 weeks I'll be teaching one 2 hour English class per day and also watching another English volunteer teach. It's supposed to be really stressful and really useful. I think it will be harder for the physics, math and chemistry people because they are teaching in French! At least I can teach in English and explain tricky concepts in French when necessary.

I'm told that there are a bunch of French NGO workers in Mamou and I'm hoping to make friends - it would be interesting to compare US and French NGOs and it would be nice to talk to people who speak the French in France - French here is like English in Kenya - it's not as complex and conjugations just don't happen sometimes. I think it would be funny to show up in France in 2 years - a girl from Wisconsin with an African French accent? What a riot.

I wrote down a few things that I wanted to mention, so here they are in no particular order...

1. Greetings here are really important. I would never go into a store or try and ask someone a question without first asking them how they are doing. And they can go on forever - is there evil? Did you sleep well? How are you? Hilarious. Once I can greet the market ladies in Pulaar they will love me. Plus you get better prices.

2. I love bucket baths. Truly - I felt weird taking a shower the other night. Bathing from a bucket, especially in hot Forecariah, is so nice and refreshing.

3. I cheer every night when the electricity comes on and boo when it goes off. My family has a TV, so we watch the news or bad Spanish soaps dubbed to French when the power is on. My favorite is called Secrets de Famille and I was mad when they switched programs the other night. We also play music and dance - Guineans love to dance and my family loves watching me dance too!

4. The chickens at my house fight sometimes and also run around all the time. We did get a dose of Tamiflu, so mom, don't worry about my getting bird flu and not having the medicine for it! I tried to explain to my family about how we buy chicken breasts, etc. in the US but they couldn't understand. Just like I have a hard time understanding the concept of keeping your chickens and goats in the house and killing them yourself!

5. Guinea is gorgeous. I've said it a million times, but when we travel the countryside there are amazing views and I've loved going for bike rides. It's so lush and green right now.

6. A chimpanzee tried to attack me, but was on a leash. Apparently this chimp doesn't like white girls. My sisters thought it was hilarious, but promised me that they don't eat people. I wasn't totally convinced. Luckily the only chimps in Forecariah are pets and are on leashes. But still! You know you are in Guinea when...

I'm still taking dance lessons with 3 others and am looking forward to finally getting some of the steps down. As my sisters tell me, I'm built like an African, so I might as well learn to dance like one!

Okay, I'm going to sign off, but I have internet again in either next weekend or the weekend after, so please email me updates!

Posh Corps

So remember when I told you all that I would have no internet and no cell phone and no electricity for 2 years? And you all felt bad for me? Well, that was a joke. I saw my house in Mamou yesterday and it's fricking amazing. I have 3 bedrooms, 2 full bathrooms, a kitchen, living room and dining room! Plus I'm in a concession with 2 other houses and the people are really nice. Granted, I'm not going to have running water for now. And the electricity only works at night, and even then it's not guaranteed. But still! It's probably the nicest PC house in country and I feel really lucky. I'll definitely be having a lot of visitors. And I'll let everyone know once I get a cell phone. I'll have regular internet access after September 22nd, which is wonderful.

Okay, I'm almost out of internet time, but will update again tomorrow. Right now I'm on Site Visit week and am in Labe. Yesterday I went to my site and saw my principal, the mayor and a lot of other important people. They are all impressive, especially my principal. He has worked with other PC folks before, but not for 6 years, so he's really happy about my arrival! I'm already getting really excited about making friends, teaching English, helping plan conferences and hopefully starting a girls' club. I'll keep you all posted and will update more tomorrow.

Tonight I'm off to eat pizza. I love Labe.

In Conakry for a night!

Hey everyone - I got to the internet before my mom had a chance to update the blog with my letter info, but hopefully she'll do that soon...*cough* Mom, get on that. I didn't write 8 pages for nothing!

So here's what's going on chez moi, in no particular order.

1. My site for the next 2 years is Mamou, where we spent our first 4 days in country. It's gorgeous there and everyone is jealous. It's truly an amazing location because it (drum roll please) HAS INTERNET! In two places. Which is NOT common. I'm also going to be getting a cell phone, so those of you who were happy to have me fall off the face of the earth can stop partying. It's even in the Lonely Planet Guide.

2. My family is awesome. I am really enjoying my homestay and wrote a lot about it in the letter my mom will post. My French is definitely getting better and I'm actually enjoying myself, which is rare for training. It's tough to live with a family and have class from 8-5 every day, but so far I've been really happy. It will be nice to cook for myself, though...rice and sauce is good, but not that good. :)

3. This week is Site Visit Week, so tonight my whole group is in Conakry and we head to our sites tomorrow. I'll get to meet the principal at my school and see my house. It should be really big because the Peace Corps told the people in Mamou that they had to provide me with a big enough house to have people stay with me. Mamou is the gateway to the rest of the country and there will be a LOT of people coming through.

4. While I love Guinea, I don't want any of you to come visit. It's a great place to live, but I wouldn't want to visit here. We'll meet somewhere if you want to see me and can't wait for my return to the US of A.

5. My friends are amazing. I still miss all of you dearly, but am truly feeling lucky to have such a great group of 30 to have this experience with. And I might be going with a friend to Ghana in November - his mom is going to present at a UN conference and I might tag along...of course I'll keep you posted.

6. If you want to send me something (and I love all of you who have asked what I would like...), here's some ideas:

Chocolate - M&Ms, KitKat, anything
Sauce packets that just need water, guacamole mix (avocados are amazing and 20 cents), the cheese from mac & cheese
Jelly Bellys
Any pictures you have of yourself, me, anything
Magazines, the trashier the better
Tapes
Salted almonds
Tuna pouches
Ricotta and spinach tortellini
Skittles, Starburst, Swedish Fish
Loofahs, toothpaste

But any news from home would be appreciated too!

7. I'm running out of internet time, but please email me and let me know what's going on! I'm really excited to have internet at my site. Just know that I'm happy, healthy (except for a bout with amoebas, but they are gone now) and am really adjusting well.

Hopefully I'll get to update again soon!