down to the basics.

I’ve been in Lautoka for about a month now, and it is a much better fit for me than my previous assignment. I’m working with FRIEND (Foundation for Rural Integrated Enterprises ‘N Development) in the programs department mainly focusing on the programs for at risk youth. We’re currently wrapping up training for a peer education theatre group that will now be going out into communities doing a play about relationship between races in Fiji and the history of how it has gotten to where it is. They’ll then engage their audiences in discussion around this topic. We’ll also be doing a youth employment workshop soon that will hopefully provide at risk youth an opportunity to gain self esteem and understand job skills such as resume writing, interviewing, and customer service. The hope is that this type of participatory workshop would empower the youth to pursue jobs they are interested in instead of continuing in victim mode of always needing to rely on others to survive. I’m hoping to implement some informal way for youth to access services at FRIEND since the workshops require a big chunk of time and only allow for a small number of participants at a time. There is another youth volunteer coming to the organization in March, so once she gets here it will be more clear what my longer term role here will be.

I moved into my new home last week, and am waiting for the Australian volunteer to move in with me in March. I also brought my puppy home with me this past weekend, whose name is Maggi. One of the other volunteers saved her for me from a litter under his house, and she and I had an interesting 2 hour trip back up to her new home. I packed the poor furball into my backpack, travelled with her through town, got on a bus, and then arrived to Lautoka which has much more hustle & bustle than her birthplace…she’s still adjusting to the sound of cars & people, as well as not being able to run into the woods whenever she pleases.

I see a lot of the next group of Peace Corps Fiji volunteers have been perusing the current volunteer’s posts. To those of you arriving in May I would say don’t stress too much on your packing. You can get any basic thing like toiletries and clothing here. Of course, bring some of your own…things you just can’t live without while here, but you can find village appropriate wear at the second hand Australian shops around. Think about what it is you really love to do at home…or something you’d like to do while here and use your packing room for that instead. I wish I would have brought more art material, more books, and snorkel gear to begin with (I had it sent from home after I arrived). I was wondering about internet access and phones—contact with people at home before I left. You can rest assured that even those deep into the rural areas have phones they got here, and have access to e-mail fairly regularly (I may stand corrected, but I believe all volunteers can access internet at least once a month…). Have fun in your last three months at home, we look forward to meeting you at Nadi International Airport very soon!

A Day to Celebrate.

"What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility -- a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character than giving our all to a difficult task."-President Barack Obama

Today I awoke at 4:00 am to watch the inauguration of the 44th president of the United States. I was with a couple other volunteers who also sacraficed sleep to celebrate at the same time as evryone back home as Barack Obama took the oath and became the president who will lead our country for the next 4....(8?)....years. It was a beautiful occassion, and regardless of your own political views, I think we can all agree that today was a monumental day in history. Today marks a day of gradual political change as our leadership transitions to someone with fresh ideas, and energy to move our country forward both domestically and worldwide. I'm excited to see the way foreign relations transform, how social welfare programs evolve, and how we begin to attack the huge economic deficit our country is currently in. For those of you who believe that American politics only affect Americans, I can say without a doubt that even many of the locals in this tiny island in the pacific have made the American election personal to them. Many have been asking questions about who the next presidnt will be, and almost everyone I've spoken with has been excited to see President Obama take office.


Today also marks the day I have been given an official assignment. I've been without work or a permanent home for 2 months as the office worked on developing a new assignment for me. I'll be moving to Lautoka on Monday to do youth development & support with an organization that focuses on alleviating poverty and empowering communities to gain the skills they want/need to support themselves and their families. I'm not sure of all the details, but I'll be sure to fill you in once I am.

The Island is Drowning.

As many of you may have seen from the news, Fiji has been experiencing lots of tropical storms and much of the island has flooded. Last I heard, these floods caused about 35 million dollars of damage...not including the damage to private property. There are still plenty of evacuation centers up and running for teh families who had to evacuate and now have no home to go back to due to the floods and landslides. All of the volunteers are safe and most are going back to their homes this weekend.

I'll let you all know when I finally get re-assigend somewhere...but I know some of you were worried and sent e-mails asking what was going on, so I thought I'd let you know. We're all good, but there will be a lot of work to do to reconstruct all that was samaged including homes, businesses, crops, and villages. You can see photos and get news from the link to Fiji Times on the right.

Bahut Dhanbaad for your concern.
I miss you all dearly.
S

Hamaar matajii ke Fiji aayaa rahaa. (My momma came to Fiji)

Now, if these photos don't make you want to drop a grand or two to come visit me...well that's another sure sign that ya'll are living in the middle of a recession.
We spent one night at a nice hotel in Nadi...it was kind of a shock to my system with comfortable beds and air conditioning and water pressure I had forgotten existed, and breakfast buffet with real bacon...I almost felt guilty staying there.

At the Beach House where we stayed the majority of the trip.

Our hike up to the Sigatoka sand dunes...

Just a small tenth of the dunes. And beautiful weather I might add.

"This country doesn't take a bad picture..." even when the sky is full of ominous clouds.

We took the trek to a waterfall that belongs to Steve's village.

Mom had her first taste of a Fijian coconut...she was also awed by our ability to open it so easily...

...a couple whacks with a machete will do the trick.

her village experience...a tame one by our standards--But now she can testify that life in Fiji isn't just a vacation in paradise. It's hard work, I promise.

Sayin' good-bye at the airport. Now it's your turn to visit.

Merry Christmas mai Fiji!

Hello again friends!
It’s been awhile since I’ve written you anything substantial…sorry about that! The past month has been a flurry of rearranging and moving around. I’m now on the second half of my vacation…my mom finally arrived! I can’t explain how wonderful it is to have someone who knows me so well be here face to face. It’s been over seven months now since I left the land of familiarity for where I am today…and while I’ve made great friends here, some of whom I am counting on having in my life after these two years are over…it’s a breath of fresh air to have someone from home here in this new home of mine.
The last couple of weeks have made me realize how easy it is to get comfortable someplace…and to lose the sense of awe and wonder we have when we’re experiencing something for the very first time. I had forgotten to really breathe in the beauty of the place that I currently live for a while there. It was really refreshing to visit friends on Vanua Levu—the big north island. I spent a few nights with friends at Hannah’s site. She lives in the interior of Vanua Levu…and has an absolutely amazing view of the coast from her house on a hill. We tried to capture it in photos…but these only give you a 1/100th of feeling you get when you’re up on that hill a short walk through “the bush” to the ocean.




The first night there was spent around the tanoa bowl (kava bowl) in a local village. We talanoed (told stories) with some of the young ladies and guys there…and Christa finally got a Fijian name…Teresa…we have yet to figure out where that sprung from. The next day was spent exploring the ocean after a walk through the forest.

After Hannah’s village we were on our way to Savusavu. This is one of the two towns in Vanua Levu. We spent a ton of time snorkeling in a coral reef right off of the coast. Friends, I am now in love with the ocean…I may never be able to live far from it again. It’s a whole new world down there…I don’t know what Ariel was complaining about because it would be awesome to live in a castle under the sea. One of my new favorite animals is the cuddle fish…they look like squid and change colors and travel in big schools...they’re just fantastic. Amongst the other sea creatures I was awed by were huge multi-colored clams, a bright pink sea cucumber, and of course all of the brightly colored coral. As if I don’t have it good enough living on a tropical island with amazing views of the land pretty much daily, I have now discovered a view even more awesome. Christa has some photos on an underwater camera…I’ll try to kereakere (borrow…forever…) some of them for your enjoyment once she gets them put onto a disk.

This Christmas was definitely different than the snow covered ones I’m used to back home…but it was refreshing. Of course, I missed my friends and family…and the traditions I’ve taken part in for as long as I can remember like baking Christmas cookies, ice skating in Chicago, walking down Michigan Avenue when the little white lights line the streets, and singing Silent Night on Christmas Eve at church, but this Christmas was free of the materialism and chaos of malls and shopping and consumers running around like chickens with their head cut off trying to get whatever new gadget is out on the market that their kid just can’t possibly live without. Instead, I had a simple Christmas with good friends and awe-inspiring exploration. Christa, Leslie, Hannah and I went to mass at a beautiful stone catholic church right on the coast. It was the first Fijian service I’ve gone to where the pastor’s tone was joyful instead of threatening…and their singing of familiar songs in an unfamiliar language was beautiful. After church we headed to Becky & Dana’s (volunteers that live in town) who graciously shared lovo (traditional Fijian food cooked in an underground oven) given to them by their neighbors. We listened to an audio version of the Grinch and then we headed to the beach where we partook in said snorkeling. We ended the night with a good meal and hit the sack early exhausted from the sun. Yes, this Christmas will be one to remember, not because of anything I got from a store, but because of the memories created with good friends and the renewed sense of awe in the simple complexities created under the sea.

Merry Christmas everyone…and may your New Year be a celebration of whatever adventure life took you on in 2008…and a renewed sense of awe and wonder for 2009.


And now…a tribute to the two ladies that we missed a ton because they were in the snow with ya’ll at home…Alisi and Kendalicious…I hope both of you had fantastic Christmas’s with family…but know that you are especially missed & I wish you were here snorkeling with us!

isa.

2 months of vaca.

I've been away from Navua for a little over three weeks now...and finally the peace corps has decided there are no houses that meet the correct safety criteria there, so I will be removed from site and reassigned. Now this is great because I wasn't doing work there that really fit with any of my passions or aligned with my skills. However, they also told me it may be a while before they find a new spot for me so I should hang tight over the holidays and wait for programming staff to aid in developing a new site for me. After my official vacation ends in January, I'll most likely still be without a home or community, so perhaps I'll visit other volunteers at their sites & complete some work exchange.

Tomorrow I will go to one of my favorite lewa's (Amy's) village to take part in some composting and sweet mangrove planting....and then pretty much I get to hang out with her in her village for about a week.

After the village expedition I'm off to the north island for some fun in the sun. I'll be travelling with Christa & Leslie to a small island off of Labasa...and then down to celebrate Christmas in Savusavu. New Years will be celebrated with my mom :) on the coral coast near Sigatoka.

For now I'm just enjoying what will be about 2 months of down time, and exploring the hidden crevices of this beautiful island. Pictures are sure to follow the next few weeks, so stay posted!

displaced.

After an unfortunately eventful weekend in Navua, I am currently displaced. Some local guys tried to break in to my house and so Peace Corps has decided it's an unsafe house for a volunteer, and have sent me to stay with Christa until they find me another.
I am incredibly frustrated, and disheartened right now...but hopefully everything will work out.

Also,
I'm not big on this blogging trend...I'd much rather snail mail you all...but seeing as this is free & empowers you--the reader to decide whether you want to read about my life in the Feej...I've transitioned from mass e-mails to posting on here...