I have been so busy everyday, it's hard to write on this thing regularly. Here are some of the things I've been doing in no particular order...
Last week I went to visit a maternal clinic for "at-risk" pregnancies. I was able to sit in on a patient-nurse consultation and it was very interesting. The mother to be had recently had malaria and because the medicine could harm the baby, she wasn't able to get treatment. She seemed like she was doing well and after the consultation the nurse determined that the baby would be fine and so would the mother. It was great to be in an actual clinic and get a taste of what I could be doing. After the interview, we were able to watch the doctors examine the patients and ask questions. All of this reminded me of why I came here and made me very excited to get to my site and actually start working!
On the same day I went to the clinic, I came home and it started to rain! I got so excited I made my host family run outside and dance in it with me. They think I am very peculiar but seemed to enjoy the dancing. Especially my host mother Gewndalyn. That women can cut a rug!
On Saturday we learned how to grow some local vegetables and take care of chickens! I'm definitely planning on having a garden of my own complete with hens and plenty of fresh eggs. After the gardening lesson, I convinced some of the other trainees to play some ultimate with me. It was such a release to play. I needed it!! Everyone seemed to enjoy it and they want to play again on Wednesday. Woot Woot!
I taught my host family how to play UNO yesterday and they loved it (thanks Dana!). Tonight they are going to teach me some Guyanese games and we might even play Monopoly (fingers crossed).
Tomorrow is Mashrmani (AKA Mash), Guyana's independence day. My host family is taking me to Anna Regina (pronunced like vagina but with an r... cracks me up every time!)to watch the parade and celebrate like a true Guyanese. I am very excited to see all of the costumes and take part in the celebration!
So life here in Guyana is going great. I still miss home every day, but take so much comfort in the support I'm receiving from everyone. I'm having burrito and Sierra Nevada withdrawls so those of you in Chico should hit up Pepe or 8th and Pine and wash it down with a delicious brew of your choice! Thinking of you all everday:)
Monday, February 22, 2010
Friday, February 12, 2010
Settelin' In... but me na speak no creolese mon
I'm slowly feeling more and more comfortable here. I have bonded with some of the other volunteers and am feeling quite at home with my host family.
Training has been interesting. Today we learned about all sorts of different creatures that can bite us at night and cause some serious vector-bourne illnesses, worms and infections (yum!). Thank goodness for mosquito nets (and anti-malarials). We also learned about the goals the Peace Corps and other non profit organizations have set for improvin the health of the Guyanese people. It is inspiring and exciting to see the ambitious goals they have set and know that I can somehow be a part of it, even if it is in a small way.
I've realized that they Guyanese people are very in to American pop-culture. I watch Oprah with my host family everyday after training and am constantly hearing hip-hop blaring out of the cars that pass by. On the drive in today, my driver was rocking out to some sweet 80's tunes, singing at the top of his lungs. I couldn't stop laughing. The people here are so full of life, and are constantly smiling and greeting me. It's good to know they want me to be here and welcome me into their community.
I found out today that the way people dispose of their garbage is by throwing it into the ocean. Full bags of garbage just dumped in with no thought of where it is going or the problems it could be causing the ecosystem. I just keep picturing that island of plastic bags growing. I'm hoping once I get to my actual site to have my secondary focus be on reducing waste and increasing compost and re-using containers they normally throw into the water and am hoping to set up a community garden. There are so many things here that need improvement, I think I'll be plenty busy.
It's finally the weekend, and I look forward to playing cricket tomorrow with some of the local boys. I might even bring my discs out and have teach them how to play ultimate.
I'm still missing home alot, but am feeling more and more established everyday. Please keep commenting and e-mailing. It's great to hear people's imput on my new life! I should be updating this pretty regularly because I found an internet cafe a block away from my house.
I hope you are all happy and healthy! Love and miss you all:)
Training has been interesting. Today we learned about all sorts of different creatures that can bite us at night and cause some serious vector-bourne illnesses, worms and infections (yum!). Thank goodness for mosquito nets (and anti-malarials). We also learned about the goals the Peace Corps and other non profit organizations have set for improvin the health of the Guyanese people. It is inspiring and exciting to see the ambitious goals they have set and know that I can somehow be a part of it, even if it is in a small way.
I've realized that they Guyanese people are very in to American pop-culture. I watch Oprah with my host family everyday after training and am constantly hearing hip-hop blaring out of the cars that pass by. On the drive in today, my driver was rocking out to some sweet 80's tunes, singing at the top of his lungs. I couldn't stop laughing. The people here are so full of life, and are constantly smiling and greeting me. It's good to know they want me to be here and welcome me into their community.
I found out today that the way people dispose of their garbage is by throwing it into the ocean. Full bags of garbage just dumped in with no thought of where it is going or the problems it could be causing the ecosystem. I just keep picturing that island of plastic bags growing. I'm hoping once I get to my actual site to have my secondary focus be on reducing waste and increasing compost and re-using containers they normally throw into the water and am hoping to set up a community garden. There are so many things here that need improvement, I think I'll be plenty busy.
It's finally the weekend, and I look forward to playing cricket tomorrow with some of the local boys. I might even bring my discs out and have teach them how to play ultimate.
I'm still missing home alot, but am feeling more and more established everyday. Please keep commenting and e-mailing. It's great to hear people's imput on my new life! I should be updating this pretty regularly because I found an internet cafe a block away from my house.
I hope you are all happy and healthy! Love and miss you all:)
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Finally Here and Able to Write!
I'm here! In Guyana and it is BEAUTIFUL and hot as a mother:) So far we have been very busy with training which is good because it's keeping me from being too homesick. We flew into Georgetown on Sunday morning and were staying at a resort up until yesterday. Then we took a bus and a boat to get up to the Esquibo Coast (North West of Georgetown)where we met our host families. My family consists of Gwendalyn, Wanda and Rashanda. A mother and two daughters, one 22 and one 15. They live about 15 minutes away from our training sight in Queenstown. It is great to be here and experience some real Guyanese culture from a local family. Last night they taught me how to make roti, a flakey tortilla that they use to eat curries such... no untensils for me, just roti! There are goats, cows, horses and dogs wandering around the streets and keeping me up until the wee hours of the morning. As well as "cock-crows" with their morning wake up calls. So far, the mosquitos haven't been too bad and I haven't ecountered bed bugs or spiders of any sort (whew!). Being with my host family last night made me miss home quite a bit. But I'm staying positive and focusing on getting through one day at a time. Any e-mails with words of encouragement and support would be greatly appreciated during my "downs" of the emotional roller coaster ride I'm on. I miss you all so much and will keep you updated as regularly as possible:) Tell the US I say hello and have a slice o' pizza for dear old Annie.
Monday, February 1, 2010
Almost gone...
I left Chico today. It was very strange saying bye to some of the most influential people I met. Here I am sitting in Tahoe, and my mind is running wild. I've been distracting myself from the thought of leaving for the past month and now it's finally time for me to sit down and think about this huge commitment I have decided to make. And why not put all of my crazy thoughts in a blog for all of these influential people to read!?!
I have wanted to join the Peace Corps for as long as I can remember. The reasoning for it was simple: I want to experience a new culture and help those in need. But it's become much more than that. I'm doing to this to learn more about myself than I ever thought possible, to challenge myself beyond my capacity, to develop relationships with people and learn from them, and to get out of the U.S. and experience the "real world". When I really think about it, I'm doing this to help myself much more than other people.
My brother told me the other day that doing things that are scary, are the things that are worth doing. Which is good because I am TERRIFIED. The thought of leaving everything and everyone I know behind to do this seems crazy to me right now. But when I take a step back and think about the real reasons I'm doing this my doubts fade. I know this is what I should be doing and that brings me peace of mind. And thinking about how amazing it's going to be to come back in 2 years (which will fly by) and see all of the wonderful things my loved ones are doing is so exciting.
So there it is... my first blog. I promise it will get more exciting and I will try to keep you all updated as regularly as possible on this thing with all of my tales of adventure!
Love you all,
Annie Banannie
I have wanted to join the Peace Corps for as long as I can remember. The reasoning for it was simple: I want to experience a new culture and help those in need. But it's become much more than that. I'm doing to this to learn more about myself than I ever thought possible, to challenge myself beyond my capacity, to develop relationships with people and learn from them, and to get out of the U.S. and experience the "real world". When I really think about it, I'm doing this to help myself much more than other people.
My brother told me the other day that doing things that are scary, are the things that are worth doing. Which is good because I am TERRIFIED. The thought of leaving everything and everyone I know behind to do this seems crazy to me right now. But when I take a step back and think about the real reasons I'm doing this my doubts fade. I know this is what I should be doing and that brings me peace of mind. And thinking about how amazing it's going to be to come back in 2 years (which will fly by) and see all of the wonderful things my loved ones are doing is so exciting.
So there it is... my first blog. I promise it will get more exciting and I will try to keep you all updated as regularly as possible on this thing with all of my tales of adventure!
Love you all,
Annie Banannie
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
