Feb e-mails Part 2

I think adjusting to life in the village will be just as interesting as adjusting to life in Guinea has been. There is just no way to know what to expect next but everything always seems to work out. That is one thing I have learned from Guineans. They are so used to things going wrong they just don't worry about it when it does and in the end everyone is ok (except when their not but there's nothing you can do about that). If you manage to find a taxi that doesn't break down in route you have just had a great day. When I left Mondiana (The village next to mine where I can get a Taxi) to go to Kankan (my regional capital) the taxi broke down about fifty feet from the garage. The cabby got out, took off the carburetor with a screwdriver, taped it on the side of the car, blew on it a couple of times, and put it back on. IT WORKED! The car made it. It struggled like hell the whole way and we had to stop to give it a break every now and again, but it made it. I couldn't believe it. The stores are never stocked with what you need so you learn that you don't need it and you stop worrying about it. Guinean spoon, right hand, Guinean toilet, paper left hand. No need to buy anything. But don't get the two mixed up or you will spend a whole lot of time using your left hand. The people here are so kind and generous. They are always willing to help out a stranger. They all understand struggle and know that one day they will need help to. Something else I have learned here; there is no shame in needing a little help. Most of them actually jump at the chance to help out a stranger and feel very proud they were able to do it; you can see it on their face. All the Volunteers that have been in country a while are amazing. They have done everything we asked them to do. Navigating Guinea without them would have been impossible. They take us into the city to get the things we want. Tell us which restaurants will probably not get us sick and has food that we will like. Any time we all want to buy something they just tell us how much it costs, collect the money, and go get it. It’s not like you can just go to Target and find what you’re looking for. You have to know who has what you want and then talk to that person for a half hour or more on how much that thing should cost. On the bigger items it is amazing that they are willing to just do it for us. They have spent the last two days helping us get stuff for site and it’s not over yet. I can't wait for the next group to come in so I can be the one to show people around and help out. When we say thanks they just say, "do it for the next group, someone did it for us". Plus I don't like asking for help. I know there's no shame in it, I still don't like it. Well not yet anyway. Whoever said people can't change, never did anything challenging. I don't remember what I have told people about my new village so I will just say it again now. I am moving to Faralako on the 14th. It is a very small village. They don't even have a weekly market. My market is in Mondiana. That is about three/five K and it is a really pretty walk/bike ride. The best part about my village being so small is that there is no trash everywhere. There is nothing much to buy, and whatever waste they do have they just burn.

My village name is Binta Djackieta.
They like giving us African names because it is easier for them to pronounce and remember. I was against this practice in the beginning; my village name during training was Bountoo Camera. I thought it was stupid. But when I went to visit Faralaco and met the Mayor, a toothless man without shoes eating with his hands outside his hut, he asked me what my village name was. I said I didn't have one in hopes they would just let me keep my name. He looked disappointed tried and failed again to pronounce Alison and then asked why I don't have one. He was the last of a long list of people I had met that day, I was tiered, so I just shrugged my shoulders and said it wouldn't be right for me to name myself. His eyes and smile widened, he sate up straight (well straighter) and cleared his throat. Obviously the task of naming me was now his and he couldn't be happier about the responsibility. I was accompanied by my work counterpart and the man that will be my brother in the village. He is about 40 something and as a teacher one of the few French speakers in the village. The mayor said in a very declarative voice “Binta Jolo.” At this my "brother" started yelling. From what I understood of the Monikaka conversation, my name could not be Jolo because I was to be cared for by the Djackieta family and why would he say Jolo. The Mayor explained that the last volunteer would was a Jolo so I should be as well. They argued for another five minutes and then the Mayor turned to me, smiling, wide eyes, straight back, and declared Binta Djackieta. I found the argument funny so I took the name without argument. For the rest of my visit everyone had retold the story to me. As I was introduced to people they would tell me my name and say not Jolo Djackieta and laugh hysterically. So I like the name thing because it helped me break the ice with everyone in my village. And as they all knew my name before I had ever seen them it must have made it easier for them to remember.

I am looking foreword to getting to know the people of my village. They appear to be such a warm and loving people. They were always smiling and joking and seemed very care free. I can't wait to work with them and I hope I can find a way to make their lives easier. I will be working with three women’s gardening groups.

Project potentials
1) Mud stoves, the Guinean cooking method is very simple. Three rocks hold up a large pot and a wood fire burns underneath. With the Mud stove they use half the work and can cook in half the time. The open fire method also causes long term long and eye problems that can lead to blindness and death.

2) Live fences. They would have to spend time cutting done trees and grasses or mending the fences if i find the right bush.
3) Fire break. Brush fire is a huge problem in Guinea and the current solution is to just start the brush fire early in the season while the grasses are still wet so they don't get out of control and burn down the village. Unfortunately they sometimes still get out of control and that technique ruins the earth for planting. But planting certain trees can actually stop the brush fires so I hope to try a project like that but it is a hard one to get started. It takes a long time to establish and they are more worried about putting food on the table then that type of environmental issue.

4)Maringa. “The tree of life.” It is not native to Guinea so they don't know a lot about it. But it grows easily hear, you can literally chop of a branch and stick it in the ground in a few weeks you will have new growth. It has been called the tree of life. It has more Vitamin C then oranges, more iron then spinach, and so on through all the vitamins and minerals. It is used around the world to cure most any disease you can get. It is great and I have been talking to the Health volunteer in Mondiana about getting the docs to prescribe it as a prenatal vitamin. My ladies get something that will sell and everyone else gets healthy. Win, win


02/26/2008
Well I have been at site for just over a week and we came into Kankan to greet the US ambassador who is making his first rounds of the country. I have been very excited to see the other PCVs while here, it is amazing how close you can get to people in such a short period of time. I am looking foreword to going back to my village though. The village has put on a soccer tournament, some of which I am missing now. Before each game I shake the hands of all the kids playing say a word or two and then kick out the first ball. It’s all very cute. The last game is March third and there will be traditional drums and dancing afterword. I have made some friends in my village but most people there speak no French at all so it is slow going. I'm sure it will get easer soon when I pick up the local lang. better. The woman that is my village mom is incredibly nice. I love her. We have almost no common words between us but we still manage to spend a lot of time together and know what the other one is talking about. She stops by twice most days to see if I need anything and we take tours around the village to meet people. She tells me I am a chicken because when they eat they share a bole so they eat quickly in order to get enough. They don't have any water until the end of the meal, and at no other point during the day, again they share a cup so they down the whole cup in one gulp in order to pass it on quickly to the next person. They also tend to eat a large amount at one time rather than a few smaller meals during the day, cooking is a pain so they just assume do it once. I, on the other hand take small sips and small bite all day long. Eating mostly grains and veggies she just laughs and calls me chicken. My name continues to cause controversy but I am sticking with the one I've got. While most of the people in my family have a different last name, causing some confusion, I found out that woman don't change their last name when they marry and my moms last name is Djackieta to I just say I am her kid and no one else. She's the only one I consider family anyway. Getting used to village life has been hard. We were finally getting used to things at training and it all changed again. But as I get to know people it gets easier. Doni Doni (little by little) whenever I have a bad day, or a bad hour as there are a lot of ups and downs during the day, I say that to make myself feel better. When others see me struggling and give me a look of how can I help. I smile and say that to them, it is one of the few monikaka things I know, and it always makes them laugh and we all relax a little bit. Although this has been a very intense experience I can feel myself easing, if not slowly, into life here and am looking foreword to having work to do during the day. As spring hits and your temperatures start to turn pleasant just think of me over here next month is supposed to be the hottest of the year. There hasn't been rain since November so everything is dust and we won’t see a drop of it until May. But I have always wanted to experience this kind of life and am looking foreword to it, if not a bit apprehensive. Just get a hair dryer set on high pointed at your face throw in some dust and you can pretend you are here with me. All my love and sweating a lot