The soir comes soon after noon here
in Cameroon. (And the
morning persists all day) - July 15, 2010
It's been a while, no?
A lot has happened since we have last spoke. I
am still with my host family. I will be with them for a little over a
month still. I am really enjoying it here, but Im also looking forward
to being at my post. August 18th is the date of our "swearing in". This
is when I will actually become a true volunteer (right now im just a
trainee). I will be posted in Bafoussam. It's a pretty large city (im
very excited).--- Ryan
The next evening my host father made koki (I
really have no idea how to spell that). It's made by washing beans
(which I would like to call black-eyed peas, but am sure), then grinding
them, adding some palm oil, then pouring it into a leaf pouch, and then
cooking it. That evening the power was cut, so he crushed by hand all of
the beans; it was a ton of work. And also very good.
About two weeks ago, I got to visit my post,
Bafoussam. It was super fun! I got to see the school at which I will be
teaching for the next two years.
Here is a class room of my future school.
My School
My Computer
Lab:
Here's a little restaurant where we (the
principal, his driver, son, and myself) ate a couple times.
The Kitchen:
A live pig on a
Moto
While in Bafoussam I went to visit a current
volunteer who lives near by (Batie). I took a car which when "full" had
8 or 9 people in it, of course it was make for 4 or five. Oh and a
monkey in the trunk.
Wendy is the volunteer in Batie and the one on
the right (our left).
Wendy pays neighbor children to wash her dishes.
These were new kids, but with her "regulars" she has them save it at her
house. A lot of volunteers pay neighboring child to wash their laundry,
which sounds excellent, because I HATE washing my laundry. Im planning
to save my money and buy a washing machine. Im starting now, but it's
slow going since we dont get a ton of money right now.
While in Bafoussam I was able to go to a funeral
and a wedding. Both were incredible. Below is the funeral. There were
TON and TON of people there, hundreds. My host dad told me that the
funerals usually take place serval years after the person dies.
I believe these are the sons of the man who
died.
I believe this is the "belle famille", the
in-laws.
I think these are the granddaughters.
Some dignitaries who were at the funeral who
really wanted me to "film" them, ok.
And of course some people selling beer at the
funeral, along with a bunch of other stuff.
I didnt take pictures at the wedding, but it was
amazing. The wedding was that of the daughter of the Secretary of
Transport for Cameroon (or something like that). The place was
completely unbelievable, white table cloths on all of tables, live
music, free drinks, buffet. The house was huge and one of the biggest
most beautiful houses that I have ever seen anywhere. The event would
have be unbelievable in the US, but here in Cameroon, it was even more
so. It was a truly astonishing juxtaposition.
My host sister Joli recently had a birthday. My
other host sister Vinni baked a cake.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Merci mes fidèles, je connais bien que quand on
attend une message, le temps passe lentement. Mais quand on est la
personne qui écrit, le temps passe vite. Je vous remercie pour votre
patience. Ici, au Cameroun, je trouve beaucoup de français drôle. Ici,
s'il est après 13h, on peut dire "Bon soir". J'ai posé à quelque
volontaires si on dit aussi "Bon soir" en France l'apures midi. "Non"
était la réponse. Je trouve aussi que je peut entendre "Good Morning"
n'importe quand. J'attende nos volontaires d'améliorer cette problème.
(Thank
you my friends, I know that when a message is expected, time passes
slowly.
But when you're the person who writes, time passes quickly.
Thank you for your patience.
Here in Cameroon, I found a lot of French fun.
Here it is after 13h, we can say "Good evening".
I asked some volunteers if they also say "Good evening" in France
cleared the afternoon.
"No" was the reply.
I also find that I can hear "Good Morning" at any time.
I'm waiting for our volunteers to improve this problem.)
