Tuesday, April 8, 2008
photos posted !
after a long, long time, i was finally able to get some pictures up. i wish i could post all of them but that would take way too long. and i already hogged the computers in the bureau long enough to get these up. anyway, now you can all see things i have only talked about so far. hurray.
a small request
i was told to forward this on to people in email form but i decided to post it instead. thank you so much in advance to those who decided to contribute.
Dear Family and Friends,
The Girls Bike Tourney began in 2006 with the main objective of raising awareness on the importance of sending girls to school. Each region of Togo, of which there are five, chooses ten girls to participate in a two-day training and a five-day bicycle tourney. The girls are trained on various subjects (HIV/AIDS, teenage pregnancy, forced marriage, child trafficking), they are trained on how to speak in public, how to ride a bicycle (a novelty for most), and how to create and perform educational skits. Armed with knowledge, a bike, and lots of energy, ten girls along with two Togolese homologues and two Peace Corps Volunteers spend the next five days biking and performing at schools, markets and village squares.
The transformation that the girls undergo is quite miraculous. Girls come in barely able to say their name to a group of their peers and leave having presented skits and question and answer sessions in front of hundreds of people. They gain a deeper understanding of major social problems and how to overcome them, self-confidence, and an overall greater desire to succeed. After the five day tourney, the girls return to their respective villages with their new bicycles and are expected to continue training and working with people in their communities.
Peace Corps Partnership enables friends and family of Peace Corps Volunteers to donate to projects that volunteers are trying to complete during their service. Volunteers first submit a grant application to Peace Corps Washington who then puts the project description on the Peace Corps website where interested parties are just a click away from donating.
As a Peace Corps Togo Volunteer, I ask those who are interested in donating to visit: https://www.peacecorps.gov/resources/donors/contribute/projdetail.cfm?projdesc=693-303®ion=africa
Dear Family and Friends,
The Girls Bike Tourney began in 2006 with the main objective of raising awareness on the importance of sending girls to school. Each region of Togo, of which there are five, chooses ten girls to participate in a two-day training and a five-day bicycle tourney. The girls are trained on various subjects (HIV/AIDS, teenage pregnancy, forced marriage, child trafficking), they are trained on how to speak in public, how to ride a bicycle (a novelty for most), and how to create and perform educational skits. Armed with knowledge, a bike, and lots of energy, ten girls along with two Togolese homologues and two Peace Corps Volunteers spend the next five days biking and performing at schools, markets and village squares.
The transformation that the girls undergo is quite miraculous. Girls come in barely able to say their name to a group of their peers and leave having presented skits and question and answer sessions in front of hundreds of people. They gain a deeper understanding of major social problems and how to overcome them, self-confidence, and an overall greater desire to succeed. After the five day tourney, the girls return to their respective villages with their new bicycles and are expected to continue training and working with people in their communities.
Peace Corps Partnership enables friends and family of Peace Corps Volunteers to donate to projects that volunteers are trying to complete during their service. Volunteers first submit a grant application to Peace Corps Washington who then puts the project description on the Peace Corps website where interested parties are just a click away from donating.
As a Peace Corps Togo Volunteer, I ask those who are interested in donating to visit: https://www.peacecorps.gov/resources/donors/contribute/projdetail.cfm?projdesc=693-303®ion=africa
Saturday, April 5, 2008
madame rose et mammy come to the pote
Last Thursday morning Rose, my APCD, and Brownie Lee (called mammy by many people—a generic, respectful name for older people), the national director for Peace Corps in Togo, came chez moi for a post visit. I helped my homologue organize a village gathering the past two weeks to welcome them. Here’s how it went.
Rose and Brownie drove up just past 9 and came to my house where we waited until a group of women came to greet and escort us to the primary school with music and dancing. We sat in our designated seats and Koffi, my homologue, started out by welcoming them and talking about what work Nate had done the previous two years and the kind of work I’ll be continuing. He then gave me the floor, which kind of threw me off because I had thought I was going to give my little speech after the students did their skit. I improvised a little and it worked. Here is the original version of what I was going to say:
Bonjour. D’abord, je veux remercier Madame Rose et Mammy pour nous avoir rendues visite aujourd’hui et pour tout le travail que vous faites au Togo. Soyez les bienvenues à M’Poti. Je veux aussi remercier les élèves pour avoir bien fait le sketch et merci à toute l’assistance pour son attention. Le grand thême du sketch c’était l’équité genre. C’est à dire qu’aujourd’hui on veut parler de l’importance de la promotion de la fille comme le garçon. Selon le sketch, les filles, comme les garçons, ont le pouvoir de réussir à n’import quel travail si la communauté les permet et les supporte. En faisant ça, on va voir le devéloppement de la communauté. Ce devéloppement n’est pas le travail d’une seule personne mais de tout la communauté toute entière. Vous, les gens de M’Poti, sont devenus ma famille et j’espère pouvoir bien travailler avec vous pour l’evolution de notre cité. Ce que je veux demander de vous c’est de me poser des questions, de me donner vos idées, votre bon volunté, enthousiasme, et motivation. Merci beaucoup.
Basic summary in English:
Hey. First of all, I want to say thanks to Rose and Brownie for all the work y’all do in this country. Welcome to the pote. I also want to say muchas gracias to the students for doing a super job on the skit and to everyone else for not falling asleep. So basically the skit is about girl power. Let’s get with the program and support our girls. In the skit, we see that girls can do anything boys can do if you just let them. And if we do this, the community is going to move forward. This work isn’t going to get done by just one person. We gotta work together. Y’all have become my homies and I hope we can work together to make this a better place. All I ask I from you is to ask me questions, give me your ideas, your enthusiasm, and motivation. Holler.
After my standing ovation, the students did an amazing job with the skit and the parole was passed on to Rose. She spoke for about 10 minutes in ewé so I didn’t follow, except for the handful of words I can pick out. She basically reiterated what i'm there for and the importance of encouraging girls to go to school. Then Brownie gave a quick word and we ended with dancing and drinking some tchouktou. We eventually made our way to my house to have lunch and chit chat. They left around 1.
Things had gone so well and I was feeling really good even though I was kinda tired. To keep my momentum going I cleaned my house until my homologue and the students who did the skit showed up to have a congratulations-on-a-job-well-done drink. I got some other things done and by dinner time, a lady I work with from time to time invited me over to eat fufu with her and her kids. I came back home right as it started to rain, got my things all packed up for this week and went to sleep. It was a really good day and a great note to leave village on because I’m looking forward to coming back.
I’m going to try my best to get pictures uploaded while I’m in Lomé the next few days. Stay tuned.
Rose and Brownie drove up just past 9 and came to my house where we waited until a group of women came to greet and escort us to the primary school with music and dancing. We sat in our designated seats and Koffi, my homologue, started out by welcoming them and talking about what work Nate had done the previous two years and the kind of work I’ll be continuing. He then gave me the floor, which kind of threw me off because I had thought I was going to give my little speech after the students did their skit. I improvised a little and it worked. Here is the original version of what I was going to say:
Bonjour. D’abord, je veux remercier Madame Rose et Mammy pour nous avoir rendues visite aujourd’hui et pour tout le travail que vous faites au Togo. Soyez les bienvenues à M’Poti. Je veux aussi remercier les élèves pour avoir bien fait le sketch et merci à toute l’assistance pour son attention. Le grand thême du sketch c’était l’équité genre. C’est à dire qu’aujourd’hui on veut parler de l’importance de la promotion de la fille comme le garçon. Selon le sketch, les filles, comme les garçons, ont le pouvoir de réussir à n’import quel travail si la communauté les permet et les supporte. En faisant ça, on va voir le devéloppement de la communauté. Ce devéloppement n’est pas le travail d’une seule personne mais de tout la communauté toute entière. Vous, les gens de M’Poti, sont devenus ma famille et j’espère pouvoir bien travailler avec vous pour l’evolution de notre cité. Ce que je veux demander de vous c’est de me poser des questions, de me donner vos idées, votre bon volunté, enthousiasme, et motivation. Merci beaucoup.
Basic summary in English:
Hey. First of all, I want to say thanks to Rose and Brownie for all the work y’all do in this country. Welcome to the pote. I also want to say muchas gracias to the students for doing a super job on the skit and to everyone else for not falling asleep. So basically the skit is about girl power. Let’s get with the program and support our girls. In the skit, we see that girls can do anything boys can do if you just let them. And if we do this, the community is going to move forward. This work isn’t going to get done by just one person. We gotta work together. Y’all have become my homies and I hope we can work together to make this a better place. All I ask I from you is to ask me questions, give me your ideas, your enthusiasm, and motivation. Holler.
After my standing ovation, the students did an amazing job with the skit and the parole was passed on to Rose. She spoke for about 10 minutes in ewé so I didn’t follow, except for the handful of words I can pick out. She basically reiterated what i'm there for and the importance of encouraging girls to go to school. Then Brownie gave a quick word and we ended with dancing and drinking some tchouktou. We eventually made our way to my house to have lunch and chit chat. They left around 1.
Things had gone so well and I was feeling really good even though I was kinda tired. To keep my momentum going I cleaned my house until my homologue and the students who did the skit showed up to have a congratulations-on-a-job-well-done drink. I got some other things done and by dinner time, a lady I work with from time to time invited me over to eat fufu with her and her kids. I came back home right as it started to rain, got my things all packed up for this week and went to sleep. It was a really good day and a great note to leave village on because I’m looking forward to coming back.
I’m going to try my best to get pictures uploaded while I’m in Lomé the next few days. Stay tuned.
a (non) presidential experience
About a month ago, there was talk about the president of Togo, Faure, coming to Tchifama but it never ended up happening. Then about two weeks ago, people started saying that he was going to come the following week. On Monday of that week, no one was sure whether he was going to come Thursday or Wednesday but they were saying that he was for sure going to come. Tuesday, people still said he was coming but didn’t know when yet. That night, someone went around the village announcing that the president was going to be in Tchifama the next day. So when I woke up on Wednesday, school had been cancelled and people were getting ready to head over to Tchifama in their Sunday’s best. I wasn’t particularly interested in being part of all the hubbub but since I had been planning on going to Alicia’s anyway, I grabbed a car with Tanti and headed over.
When we arrived, there were already a good number of people setting up and just hanging out near the primary school. I was a little overwhelmed when I got to Alicia’s because since she happens to be in the same compound as the chief, I had to walk through people dancing and then a row of other village chiefs all decked out and looking very chief-like. I did my best to respectfully greet them and quickly made my way into Alicia’s house. She was looking schnazy with a new, fabulous full pagne outfit. I felt a little underdressed for the event in my plain white skirt and blue shirt. I was just glad I had decided against riding my bike over and wearing pants and a tshirt that day. Since we didn’t want to stand out in the sun too long, we decided to wait at her house until the president actually got there.
Alas, noon-time came around and one of the chief’s sons informed us that the president wasn’t going to make it after all but that the chiefs had left for Blitta (the prefecture capital) and see him there. He didn’t end up showing up there either. From what I understood, the reason for his absence was due to visitors from Europe having tied him up. I don’t have a strong opinion on the president and political talk aside, I will say I was frustrated with how the whole thing turned out because I 1.) had heard we were going to get cell phone reception with the visit and 2.) there had been a lot of work put in the preparation by a lot of people. In the end, it worked out alright because we ended up getting cell phone reception last week and they had a party at the chief’s house that evening anyway. I ate amazing fufu and had fun with the kids. Good times.
When we arrived, there were already a good number of people setting up and just hanging out near the primary school. I was a little overwhelmed when I got to Alicia’s because since she happens to be in the same compound as the chief, I had to walk through people dancing and then a row of other village chiefs all decked out and looking very chief-like. I did my best to respectfully greet them and quickly made my way into Alicia’s house. She was looking schnazy with a new, fabulous full pagne outfit. I felt a little underdressed for the event in my plain white skirt and blue shirt. I was just glad I had decided against riding my bike over and wearing pants and a tshirt that day. Since we didn’t want to stand out in the sun too long, we decided to wait at her house until the president actually got there.
Alas, noon-time came around and one of the chief’s sons informed us that the president wasn’t going to make it after all but that the chiefs had left for Blitta (the prefecture capital) and see him there. He didn’t end up showing up there either. From what I understood, the reason for his absence was due to visitors from Europe having tied him up. I don’t have a strong opinion on the president and political talk aside, I will say I was frustrated with how the whole thing turned out because I 1.) had heard we were going to get cell phone reception with the visit and 2.) there had been a lot of work put in the preparation by a lot of people. In the end, it worked out alright because we ended up getting cell phone reception last week and they had a party at the chief’s house that evening anyway. I ate amazing fufu and had fun with the kids. Good times.
some material blessings
I have acquired some things the past few months that have made me feel more at home and that I really appreciate having: a couch, a desk lamp, and speakers.
Before, my only sitting options were my desk chair or the floor. My couch is not only a more comfortable third option, but it also gives me a place to offer guests when I have them. It also makes the room look more homey, which is nice.
My desk lamp has been an amazing lighting source. I use it when I read or knit in the evening since candlelight isn’t the best to do those by. The only thing is that it goes through batteries kinda quick so I need to limit how much I actually use it. I'm crossing my fingers that M'poti will get electricity soon. Prayers on the matter would be much appreciated.
The speakers I found in Atakpamé randomly and was able to buy them for only 3,000 CFA—just over 6 dollars. They’re not the best speakers ever, but since my house is so small, they get the job done. Having music has helped brighten my mood many times, especially since the music helps me feel a little more connected to home in the States. Six dollars well spent, if you ask me.
Before, my only sitting options were my desk chair or the floor. My couch is not only a more comfortable third option, but it also gives me a place to offer guests when I have them. It also makes the room look more homey, which is nice.
My desk lamp has been an amazing lighting source. I use it when I read or knit in the evening since candlelight isn’t the best to do those by. The only thing is that it goes through batteries kinda quick so I need to limit how much I actually use it. I'm crossing my fingers that M'poti will get electricity soon. Prayers on the matter would be much appreciated.
The speakers I found in Atakpamé randomly and was able to buy them for only 3,000 CFA—just over 6 dollars. They’re not the best speakers ever, but since my house is so small, they get the job done. Having music has helped brighten my mood many times, especially since the music helps me feel a little more connected to home in the States. Six dollars well spent, if you ask me.
all vol and pdm
These events took place at a Peace Corps camp site in Pagala. I didn’t have far to travel but being around so many PCVs at once made me feel far removed from everyday life.
ALL VOL is a two day (optional) gathering of all Togo PCVs with the purpose of talking about PC policy issues, voting in/choosing people into new positions in committees and such, and having a grand ‘ol time while raising money for a scholarship fund for girls. Issues were talked about (how should volunteers be held accountable for spending time at their sites?) people were chosen (I’m on the diversity training committee… meaning I get to hang out with incoming volunteers and talk about diversity related things. My cup of tea.), fun times were had (entertaining, talent filled talent show, music, dancing, and catching up with friends), and money was raised (silent and live auctions, at which I bought: a knitting set, dog treats, a basket full of Christmas things, and a guitar!). I spent more money than I had anticipated spending but everything I bought was worth what I paid of it, plus the money went to the scholarship fund so it was OK.
PDM is a training event to inform us on how to go about doing a funded project in our communities. It was a good opportunity to talk about possible projects and hear from volunteers who have been here longer about projects that have worked or not worked. I got a lot of ideas-- i just need to get out in the community and see what people are actually interested in doing. It was also great to spend the week with volunteers that I love. It was tiring, though, and by the end of the week, I was ready to go back to M’Poti. Especially since I probably got about 15 bug bites while at the camp. I don't get bit very often elsewhere so it was an uncomfortable situation. I ended up back at home after spending a night in Tcharabaou chez Nori and one more night in Pagala chez Toni.
ALL VOL is a two day (optional) gathering of all Togo PCVs with the purpose of talking about PC policy issues, voting in/choosing people into new positions in committees and such, and having a grand ‘ol time while raising money for a scholarship fund for girls. Issues were talked about (how should volunteers be held accountable for spending time at their sites?) people were chosen (I’m on the diversity training committee… meaning I get to hang out with incoming volunteers and talk about diversity related things. My cup of tea.), fun times were had (entertaining, talent filled talent show, music, dancing, and catching up with friends), and money was raised (silent and live auctions, at which I bought: a knitting set, dog treats, a basket full of Christmas things, and a guitar!). I spent more money than I had anticipated spending but everything I bought was worth what I paid of it, plus the money went to the scholarship fund so it was OK.
PDM is a training event to inform us on how to go about doing a funded project in our communities. It was a good opportunity to talk about possible projects and hear from volunteers who have been here longer about projects that have worked or not worked. I got a lot of ideas-- i just need to get out in the community and see what people are actually interested in doing. It was also great to spend the week with volunteers that I love. It was tiring, though, and by the end of the week, I was ready to go back to M’Poti. Especially since I probably got about 15 bug bites while at the camp. I don't get bit very often elsewhere so it was an uncomfortable situation. I ended up back at home after spending a night in Tcharabaou chez Nori and one more night in Pagala chez Toni.
so this is life
Now that I’m into my seventh month into Togo, with four months at post under my belt, you’d think I’d have established some kind of schedule or daily routine. Not exactly. Most days I wake up with a general idea of what I’m going to do but for the most part I take each day hour by hour. This lack of consistency has actually worked pretty well so far—it keeps me on my toes and I’m never actually bored. Sometimes lazy but never bored.
My day normally begins between 6:30 and 7. If I sleep past 7 it’s because I put earplugs in or I went to sleep much later than usual or for some reason someone hasn’t come by to say good morning or any combination of the three. Although I (still) don’t consider myself a morning person, I’m usually in a pretty decent mood when the time comes to rise and shine. I sometimes make breakfast (scrambled eggs or pancakes, when flour and eggs are at hand), sometimes I eat leftovers from the night before, sometimes Tanti brings over food, or sometimes I get right to cleaning. On light cleaning days I at least sweep both rooms and wash any dishes that need to be washed and tidy around. Two to three times a week I do laundry and sweep extra meticulously and tidy certain areas I tend to neglect. If it’s Monday or Wednesday, my cleaning is broken up by my going to school for French tutoring (tues, wed) and/or teaching class (mon, wed). I’m normally done with all that by noon or 1 and from then on a variety of possible activities ensue:
reading (I’ve read more books the past tree months than I have then past three years), fetching water with Tanti (although now that the rain has started this doesn’t happen as often), cooking (my favorite dish I’ve made so far: a killer peanut sauce I half followed a recipe for, half made up), going to say hi to people around village (should do this more often), enjoying a nice bucket shower, writing to people, helping the neighbors make gari (ground up manioc that’s made grainy by cooking it over fire… it has absolutely no nutritional value but I love adding it to a lot of different dishes), having a dance party, hanging out with kids, going to the marché if it’s Tuesday, and recently, I’ve started to knit again and try to learn to play the guitar—both thanks to purchases I made at a recent PCV event.
Every other week or so I’ve tried to visit Alicia in Tchifama (about 7K away) on Wednesdays (her marché day) and usually end up staying the night. We have a good time together and her company has probably helped my sanity level more normal than it might have otherwise been at times. Not to mention I absolutely love her family in Tchifama. She lives with the chief and two of his four wives and 19 kids. Love them all. I haven’t spent very many full weekends in M’Poti – I’ll either go to Pagala (25K) or Atakpamé (about 100K) to pick up mail, buy things I can’t get in M’Poti (pretty much anything other than tomatoes, onions, and garlic), check email, and spend some quality time with my much loved clustermates and other fabulous PCVs.
This regularly inconsistent schedule was interrupted a few weeks ago by the ending of the schools’ second trimester, a week of Peace Corps events, a visit by my APCD and National Director, and now a week of voyaging. This break came at a good time has given me a different outlook on village life. Things are looking up!
My day normally begins between 6:30 and 7. If I sleep past 7 it’s because I put earplugs in or I went to sleep much later than usual or for some reason someone hasn’t come by to say good morning or any combination of the three. Although I (still) don’t consider myself a morning person, I’m usually in a pretty decent mood when the time comes to rise and shine. I sometimes make breakfast (scrambled eggs or pancakes, when flour and eggs are at hand), sometimes I eat leftovers from the night before, sometimes Tanti brings over food, or sometimes I get right to cleaning. On light cleaning days I at least sweep both rooms and wash any dishes that need to be washed and tidy around. Two to three times a week I do laundry and sweep extra meticulously and tidy certain areas I tend to neglect. If it’s Monday or Wednesday, my cleaning is broken up by my going to school for French tutoring (tues, wed) and/or teaching class (mon, wed). I’m normally done with all that by noon or 1 and from then on a variety of possible activities ensue:
reading (I’ve read more books the past tree months than I have then past three years), fetching water with Tanti (although now that the rain has started this doesn’t happen as often), cooking (my favorite dish I’ve made so far: a killer peanut sauce I half followed a recipe for, half made up), going to say hi to people around village (should do this more often), enjoying a nice bucket shower, writing to people, helping the neighbors make gari (ground up manioc that’s made grainy by cooking it over fire… it has absolutely no nutritional value but I love adding it to a lot of different dishes), having a dance party, hanging out with kids, going to the marché if it’s Tuesday, and recently, I’ve started to knit again and try to learn to play the guitar—both thanks to purchases I made at a recent PCV event.
Every other week or so I’ve tried to visit Alicia in Tchifama (about 7K away) on Wednesdays (her marché day) and usually end up staying the night. We have a good time together and her company has probably helped my sanity level more normal than it might have otherwise been at times. Not to mention I absolutely love her family in Tchifama. She lives with the chief and two of his four wives and 19 kids. Love them all. I haven’t spent very many full weekends in M’Poti – I’ll either go to Pagala (25K) or Atakpamé (about 100K) to pick up mail, buy things I can’t get in M’Poti (pretty much anything other than tomatoes, onions, and garlic), check email, and spend some quality time with my much loved clustermates and other fabulous PCVs.
This regularly inconsistent schedule was interrupted a few weeks ago by the ending of the schools’ second trimester, a week of Peace Corps events, a visit by my APCD and National Director, and now a week of voyaging. This break came at a good time has given me a different outlook on village life. Things are looking up!
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