the US of A

is incredible. Until you've left it and lived somewhere else, you may or may not fully appreciate it for what it is. I drove a car today to Target. I went to McDonald's, Best Buy, my bank, and I jammed out to pop music on the radio. Seems like a regular kind of day, but it was amazing to me. It's remarkable the things one forgets when she's overseas for 18 months. A few "adventures" of mine on my day out.

At Best Buy I went up to a moderately-attractive employee and made a fool or myself. My english is coming back slowly. The conversation went something like this:
Amy the lunatic: Hi, I'm looking for...oh...um...words...it's a thing that you can buy when you want music. Oh ok! It's like I have an ipod and I want to buy songs for it and i can buy this little card and then use it on the internets...?
The moderately attractive, kind, Best Buy employee: I know just the thing.

This shopping experience was rather embarrassing and I sighed in relief as I buckled my seat belt in my car aka safe place.

At McDonald's, I didn't know whether I got my own drink for a to go order or not. The McDonald's worker didn't give me a cup right away, so I asked "umm, do I get my own drink...?" and she handed it to me with a smile that I took as something to the effect of "how do you not know that? are you an american or what?" I'm sure she wasn't thinking that at all, but that's how I felt inside. Every American knows that at a fast food joint, if there's a drink counter, you get your own soda pop.

Then I went to Hobby Lobby and my sis' best bud was working and she clandestinely gave me 50% off my not-on-sale-at-all purchase and I thought, American's are risk takers and sometimes they don't follow the rules. I like that.

It's only day 3. I love this.

shhhh shhhh shhh shhh shhh shhhh shhhh

That's the sound of 180 students, 8 teachers, and 1 Peace Corps Volunteer brushing their teeth together. It was a wonderful sound.

Colgate-Palmolive donated 100 toothbrushes and 100 tiny tubes of toothpaste to our school and the schools around Fiji for National Toothbrushing Day. (I especially liked the tiny tubes because I love things in miniature.) We did a little tooth brushing skit about all the food that can get stuck in your teeth if you don't brush properly or regularly. We also talked about how this can lead to cavities and your teeth falling out. Then you can't eat kuka anymore! (Kuka are little mud crabs that my area is known for.) It was only a 10 minute presentation, but it was really fun and quite effective.

At 12:29pm and 50 seconds, we did a countdown and then after 1! all the kids kind of looked around like they didn't know what to do. Then the head teacher said, "Brush!" into his loud speaker and everyone giggled and went to brushing. What a success!





I also had some visitors come! One of them was scared my rat might nibble her foot in the night, so the solution was to set up a tent inside my house to act as a mosquito net and rat-proof dwelling. One of the more ridiculous ideas that's happened on this island. After it was set up, we realized there was no way to get to the toilet in the middle of the night so down it came. They all slept like little tots in their sleeping bags on the floor. Luckily, no nibbles.

Up to our ears in voivoi

Voivoi = the plant used for weaving mats

The women in my village spent 3 full days weaving new mats for our village office. It was fun to hang out with them and goof off. Plus I've improved my weaving skills.

Voivoi takes a full week (provided there's no rain) to prepare for weaving. There are many steps, and I forget most of them, but it's a lot of work. Just know that.

I've been kind of a downer lately, so I wanted to post an upbeat blog. In the last photo you can really see the voivoi all over the house. It's hanging, there are strips ready to be used, discarded strips, the actual mat. We ended up weaving 2 mats and they look really nice in the office.

i do the best imitation of myself

"Maybe I'm diggin myself in a hole/wonderin/who i am/when i oughta know"

Really the best thing about this blog will be the title. It's a Ben Folds song and his melodic voice has gotten this bush bunnie through many a struggle. It's actually a cute little ditty and ya'll should download it (legally or illegally, the line is blurred here).

Here's the rub, I miss America. I am ecstatic to be coming back for a visit in 98 days. This thought makes me happy. It's about the only thing making me happy right now. Also, in case there isn't enough entertainment in America with all the movies, magazines, video games, electricity, music, family, friends, booze, mexican food, billiards, bikes, beer pong, nice weather, sex, candy, drugs, and you feel like sitting down and writing a good old fashioned letter... You can send me one at

Amy Hirtzel
PO Box 3352
Nausori, Fiji Islands

I realize this is a shameless plug to get letters and hopefully candy (anything carmel) but maybe it'll work. Typed letters are welcome as well, especially for any of you doctor types. I mean, I'm lonely over here, people! And the best thing about sending something is I'll write back. And what Yankee doesn't love some good ol snail mail? I know you do. So do your part to keep the US Postal Service in business for at least another 7 months and write your pathetic friend a letter.

Also I'll be there for a whirlwind 3 week visit in December. And I won't be so pathetic. I will be awesome and ready to have fun. So I hope everyone has been practicing their tra-la-la because come December...

It.
Is.
On.

more pics

Fitting right in...well sort of...


Mom and daughter.


Ok, he's not having it in this picture. He's so selective with which white people he likes. Gosh.


This one is sideways, but I'm cooking. Yeah, can you believe it?


Mom at low tide.

pictures because more words would be excessive.

Sitting with my Bu and taking a break during weaving. It really stretches the back and leg muscles. This woman is also my best friend in my village.


Grog-a-holics. Wearing our salusalus on the last night in the village.


The cutest babe in the world. The actual baby I mean, not Stephanie.


Dismissing the kids from school. "Who has the best line?"


Steph drinking a bu (coconut milk) straight no chaser.

pocketses and bumper cables

I cried as I dropped my mom at the airport. She just left Fiji. She had a great visit and even managed to adapt to village life for 3 days and 4 nights. She didn't freak out in the village at all even though she had a cockroach crawl on her back one night! We had a great time talking, cooking, and wandering aimlessly around Suva and the village. Thanks for the visit, ma.

Saturday July 25th was my one year anniversary in the village. This is good news. It means I've completed one full year! It also means I only have one left.

I have mixed feelings about this time epiphany. I am ready to come home to America more than anything. I also want to stay and finish my last year more than anything. Having my mom here was a total (excuse my language) mind fuck. I don't know how else to put it. My mom is one of the oldest feelings of home I have. Obviously, she was my home for my first 9 months of existence and I lived with her for 19 years of my life (outside her body thankfully). So then to have a feeling of home that does not include her at all is messing with me, especially since I didn't notice it until she came to visit.

I have been struggling with these ideas of identity and home for a long time now. I don't fit in anywhere. I'm not American. I'm not Fijian. I am something in the middle. It reminds me of a book I read in college (shout out to Cole Farrell and Debbie Mix), "Borderlands", where a Latina-American woman explains how it feels to be trapped in two identities, never fully feeling American or Latina. Always wrestling with one aspect of her personality or the other. Feeling her cultural duality in every decision she makes and in all social circumstances.

Enter an American in a Fijian village. Having other Americans around forces me to see the differences that I have so brilliantly learned to accept as normal for the past 12 months. No, it's not weird that my grandma comes over every 5 minutes and sits and watches me do whatever I'm doing without talking. No, it's not weird to freeze myself out with every shower I take. No, it's not weird for small children to call my name every 10 seconds even though they don't want anything. No, Fijian food is not weird. No, it's not hot or humid here, the weather is actually quite mild this month. No, grog is not gross. No, I don't mind having spiders in my shower.

But these aspects of life are all different to us as Americans and should be different for me. However, I've been Fijianized. This is how adaptive humans can become. I watched my mother adapt to camping-like conditions in 3 days. I never thought this would happen, but when forced, she did it (with grace and humility I might add). I've had 14 months to become an adapted human being and that's exactly what I've done. I don't love everything about Fijian culture. In fact, all the things I previously mentioned get on my nerves sometimes to the degree that I have small mental breakdowns resulting in chocolate binges and the completing of a 600-page book about Dracula in a day. I am not proud of these moments, but they are inevitable. I have changed. Mostly internally. Everyone who has visited says I'm the same I've always been. So why do I feel so different then?

Will my identity ever be whole? Will I ever feel like I am home? Do I fit in anywhere? Will anyone ever understand me? Am I understandable? Is it possible to have 2 different homes with 2 different identities in 2 different countries? Should I need to split my soul into 2 horcruxes, say a Bell's Oberon bottle and a tanoa (grog bowl)? Does this mean I have a split-personality? Should I see a psychiatrist?

Really I've done a bunch of babbling about myself and said nothing. I guess I just want to say that I am counting down the days until my trip home in December, when I will be on a plane home. Instead of watching my loved ones leave, I will be coming home to them. As for now, I will continue to wrestle with the idea of home, and remain in my state of suspended homelessness for awhile longer. Maybe time will reveal these answers to me. Yes, only time will tell.

it's been a long, long time, gotta get this message to you boy

I have been working away in my village. And my working I mean mostly community integrating, which is a fancy way of saying I've been weaving, eating, talking, grogging, dancing, singing, walking, and most importantly laughing with my villagers.

We've been pretty busy for the past 6 months, so the village (including myself) is on hiatus right now. It's like taking a really long nap. So far this year we've built a dam, fixed all the pipes/taps in the village, built a new pipeline, had a massive clean-up project, hosted 2 workshops, planted more mangroves, and grown fruit trees. I'm sure I've forgotten some things in that list. For my village, this is a lot of work! I've been content working a couple days a week, but mostly lounging around and making up riddles (in Fijian, toot toot) with my favorite kids.

Stephanie, one of my besties from BSU, just left a short week ago. I couldn't believe how much fun we had together. She grogged every night, was inducted into a family by being 'knighted' with her own fish (What's up, tui?), ate fish off the bone, visited almost every classroom at the primary school, helped with a reproductive health session at the secondary school (sex!), saw women breastfeed, learned to weave, scraped coconuts, woke up every morning to the sound of chickens and the drums, and by the end of the week didn't even whimper at the sight of a cockroach. She's pretty much Fijian now. Needless to say it was great to have her here. My house felt pretty empty and quiet afterwards. I have since readjusted and anticipate a reunion tour SB 2010.

Other than that, I have been doing lots of reproductive health talks. Sex, sex, sex, sex, sex. Already this year, 2 secondary students have gotten pregnant, so it's a major concern (salute major concern). It's also extremely tabu for Fijians to talk to their kids about sex, so they leave it to the teachers. The teachers aren't comfortable talking about it either. So basically students only get about 90 minutes worth of health/sex education a year from people who are uncomfortable talking about it with them. This is bad. I'm helping to change it. I feel good about this. Plus, sex is fun to talk about and can be quite entertaining. Imagine the jokes.

I met the new group of PCV's today, and they seem eager to get out in the field and get to work. We are getting 3 new volunteers close to me and we finally have a boy over on our side of the island! There's also some newbies up a couple hours from me, so I'm planning on getting to know them as well in the next year. It's going to be a good time.

This next year will bring new challenges, but I am much more confident in my abilities to conduct meaningful projects/programs in my area. Not only that, but I want to conduct meaningful projects/programs in my area. I feel very connected here, not only to the people but to the land as well. I think I'm turning Fijian. :)

I'll leave you all with our favorite riddle. The first 2 lines are nonsense, but each riddle is presented with this back and forth banter, then the riddler says the riddle and waits for the answers to come pouring ito entice me to play. It usually works -- I'm a sucker for a good time.

Riddler: Qima
Guesser: Qama
Riddler: Tuktuku sa lamata. (I have news brought up from the depths.)
Guesser: Na cava? (Oh yeah, what?)
Riddler: Na bubu ci, rogoca e na vuravura. (A grandma farted, and it was heard around the world.)

And now, it's time for you to guess.

Rockstar by Nickelback

I have to admit, unfortunately, that the catalyst for this blog entry was this terrible song by a band I really don't enjoy. However, I was riding a minibus and thus subjected to the driver's taste in music, which is usually sub par and proved to be once again.

I was actually listening to the words though and I realized why I like it here and also what frustrates me about the US. On a daily basis. my villagers are barely influenced from the outside world, which means they live simple, wonderful lives. If we never went to town, we would never even know the news as there are no televisions, 2 radios that only play fijian music, no newspapers, no advertisements, no junk food, and no other outside influences other than myself. This means lacks of outside entertainment as well. Imagine a family that hangs out together, sits around and talks, eats every meal together, goes on outings to the beach together, makes their own fun because there are no shiny objects to watch instead. It seems almost impossible to imagine this happening in America the way it happens here.

It's so much easier to watch television than to talk. It's easier to go to a movie than spend countless hours sitting and staring at one another while illumated for hours only by a kerosene lamp. But this is what I do here and so one must come up with one's own fun--making shadow puppets with accompanying stories, for example.

What does this mean for me when I go back home? My behaviors have changed a lot. I sit on the floors instead of furniture, I make due with less than I ever could in America (shoes, clothing, food, resources, office supplies, etc), I'm more resourceful, I can laugh at the same joke for months, I enjoy talking for hours about nothing. Well I guess that last one hasn't changed. I will always love talking for hours about nothing. There are other ways as well, but they are hard to conjure up at this moment.

I guess for the first time, I'm nervous about returning home. It's a year away, but some of my values have changed and they aren't in line with American values. What does this mean for my future? How will I keep the values I like about Fiji while living in a different culture? I suppose I kept some American values while I came here, and I'll just have to reverse the process when I go home.

Isa Na Una

My host mom from Lomainasau passed away on Sunday. I found out the day of the funeral and gathered some grog and bread (for tea time) and boarded the bus.

It was strange to go back to my host village. I haven't seen those people in 10 months and I was really nervous. I was ready (I thought) for all the questions about my new home, but was not prepared for the barrage of people I would have to greet.

I enjoyed my time though. Told some stories in Fijian and everyone was impressed that I could actually express myself. That is to be expected though since last time they spoke to me I could barely eke out a "my name is amy" without stuttering. Now I'm telling ridiculous stories about fishing and jumping off bridges.

I tried to sleep in my old room but couldn't manage it after a full night of grogging. I eventually went out to the living room to sleep on the floor with all the old ladies after a rat bit my foot then scurried across my legs. I hopped to my feet, and ran to the living room, blanket and pillow in tow. I did a little white person scream too. I still can't get over things crawling on me. Crawl all over the floor, the cupboards, the ceiling, but my body is tabu!

In 100 nights, I will return again to drink more grog, eat more bread and be a major lazy person (salute major lazy person) for a couple days. All in all, it was a good visit, I'm just bummed it was under such somber conditions.

Noqu ika (my fish)

Everyone in Fiji has a family and every family in Fiji has a mascot. I have a family and thus I have a mascot. Over the hundreds of years of Fijian life, these mascots have become symbols of one's sexuality, genitals, libido, etc. These English words don't exist in Fijian so there's only one word to express my mascot, "Busa". This is actually a taboo word and never to be spoken aloud by me or any member of my family who happens to be a B***. I am also forbidden to eat b*** which is a kind of funky looking fish. I am a fish, but others are trees, fruits (like coconuts) or flowers (like a hibiscus).

The big joke is to ask another family how their mascot is. They ask me "Amy, how's your b***?" And I reply with "How's your tui (a different fish)?" The humor doesn't translate into English, but let me assure you it's hours of fun for us. It's a way to flirt really so I would typically ask a male and he would ask me. One guy in my village is a large stone (vatu)! That's probably my favorite mascot. "How's your stone?" That's sexual in any language. It's fun to say my b*** is hot or tired or hungry. Things of that nature. Since I am a member of the chiefly family, and a white person, everyone in my district knows my fish and likes to ask me about it.

So I am visiting a different village. Doing some screen printing workshops which I organized, gloat gloat. This village is coastal and notorious for serving fish for lunch. Awesome. It's nearing time to eat and the women say "Amy you're having b*** for lunch!" I reply "No, it's taboo!" And they all laugh. But then I sit down to lunch and there I am, my fish laid out for the whole world to see, my fish placed right in front of me! So this is obviously a joke, but still I can't eat it. They all laugh and bring me a different plate of fish and 'apologize for their error' even though they knew exactly what they were doing.

Basically, this is one of my favorite jokes. At this time, I have a very unfortunate boil on the inside of my right thigh. The new joke around the village is that my b*** likes to eat boils for dinner. Probably the grossest thing I've ever heard, but oh so funny in Fijian.

It's my party and I'll cry if I want to!

For the record, I did not cry on my birthday. At all. I was much too busy drinking, dancing, and having a general good time (salute general good time)(for those of you who do not get that reference watch "how I met your mother" for the love of Jisu).

This past week I attended a financial literacy workshop hosted by PC and learned that budgeting doesn't mean I have to give up my "it's shiny, I like it, I bought it" shopping. It just means I need to have a section for it in my budget and maybe limit it to $5 a week or so. Budgetting can be fun!

Each night, I hung out with other PCVs in Suva. Some people that I don't get to hang out with very often. Let's just say I laughed so much that my 6-pack is cut and I'm ready for a Sports Illustrated swimsuit cover.

On my Fijian birthday (I had the longest birthday ever this year, about 40 hours or so), I went to Natadola beach and played in the waves and even skinny-dipped a bit with some other volunteers! It's not a nude beach but we made it into one. Scandalous. Then we went out to a club in Lautoka. Cozz brought princess crowns for me and Swaz (her birthday was the 24th) and birthday hats for everyone else. We decorated our table with balloons and streamers and even had a blueberry cake for dessert. Cozz planned the whole thing and it went off without a hitch. Great party, good food, fun friends. That's what birthdays are all about.

Thank you to everyone who sent cards, facebook messages, made phone calls or just plain thought of me on my birthday. I was having a great time. Don't you worry. A major good time (salute major good time).


P.S. This is what 24 looks like.

Suva City

Those are a few pictures of Suva Harbour. It was an overcast day, but I love the greyness of it all sometimes. (Maybe I should move to Seattle when I get home?) Stormy seas can be just as beautiful as clear, sunny days.

I've been in Suva for over a week. The hustle and bustle is much like an American city. People rushing all around, buying groceries, checking their email at the coffee shop over a tall hazelnut latte (my personal favorite), rushing around the market looking for the freshest produce, hailing cabs and hopping on buses to take them to myriad destinations, all with their 3 bags and 2 small children in tow. You can spot all sorts of attire from traditional sulu jabas worn by the women and pocket sulus worn by the men to board shorts with tank tops to sundresses with big sunglasses to black pants with blouses and stiletto pumps. Surprisingly, the bars even have dress codes -- no flip flops ever and no shorts for men. For a country where few rules apply, it's interesting that the bouncer's enforce this rule so strictly.

One can find almost any food found in America in Suva with the one exception of Mexican food. It doesn't exist here so stop imagining a smorgasboard of enchiladas and chimichangas covered in cheese sauce and a margarita on the side. Won't happen. However, there are tons of fantastic Indian cuisine restaurants, Chinese restaurants, Japanese, Fijian, Italian, etc. I had terrific sushi for lunch yesterday. Mostly everything you want is here if you're willing to pay for it.

I'm a bit bored with Suva. It's hard to make friends and most of them have jobs anyway which leaves me alone all day. I much prefer life in the village where there's always someone to talk to and I know all my neighbors. The city nights are scary with all the dogs and cars and people, but I feel extremely safe in my village knowing my neighbors are within earshot. Basically, I like Suva but I want to go back to the bush.

bush bunnies

I wish I had pictures of this weekend. I went to my buddy Siti's village to hang out with him since I'm stuck in Suva and am beginning to see the city as a curse rather than the blessing that city life usually affords me.

So I skipped town and went 'bush' for the weekend. Drank wine on Friday night, hungover Saturday morning, but after one of those I-just-puked-up-my-dinner-from-two-nights-ago kind of releases, I rallied and was reeling to go. Armed with machetes and an old flour sack, Siti and I hiked out into the woods.

We hiked all day, gathering food along the way. If I had to choose one PCV to be stranded with in the jungle, I'd pick Siti. 2 reasons:
1. He's got a beard. (It just fits the part.)
2. He's completely competent in the jungle.

He could spot the fresh-water fern (ota) from 10 paces away. He hacked a bamboo pole into submission to reach a breadfruit high in the trees. He found guava trees, cocoa trees, and orange trees and even caught a fish with his bare hands! (ok I made up that part about the fish, but he did everything else.) I forgot I was with an American and just assumed Siti had been raised in the bush and had never been to town due to his ease of movement and knowledge.

I am quite an awkward person, especially when it comes to forging rivers and bush-whacking. I made a ridiculously pathetic side-kick, and Siti and I laughed about how terrible I am at spotting curly green ferns amongst the green background of the jungle.

To be fair though, he grew up in the woods and even admitted to mushroom hunting as a wee lad. The only thing I've ever hunted was cute boys at the mall. And I dare say, I'd kick his butt any day at that competition.

After a long day of hiking, gathering, and swimming in the cool pools of the river, we headed back to feast on our food that we had found on the land. It was incredible to have 2 meals, free of charge, that we gathered and cooked ourselves. Very empowering. I have vowed to do more bush-related activities when I go back to my village. Maybe even try to grow a beard.

displaced person

Peace Corps came and pulled me out of my village (temporarily) last Thursday. Take a deep breath. Here comes the explanation.

I was living in a "temporary" house. Like I should've been in a higher house with hurricane mesh on the windows and all that about 7 months ago. No big deal to me. I like my house. However we've had some heavy rain lately and my house is always the first to flood. No good considering rain happens at night too. Very scary to think I could be swept away in my bed. So the safety and security officers came for a visit and my turaga ni koro (mayor of the village) decided not to meet with us. Then we couldn't talk to the chief because he had pnuemonia, basically on his death bed. (I got teary-eyed when I saw him laying on his mat, ailing. Thankfully, he has since recovered.)

So the security people talk to our country director and together they make a decision to pull me out of my village. They plan to pick me up the very next day, Friday, and steal me away forever. Simultaneously my program manager calls and I tell her that we, me and my villagers, have found a solution to the house problem and will start building a new toilet and shower room in an already-existing house next Monday. She says great, they have 2 weeks. However this new plan didn't get back to the people picking me up.

They show up like the Child Welfare services picking up an abused child and try to take me and all my stuff away, back to Suva. I fought them and said I'd already talked to my programing manager and we have 2 weeks to build the new house. But I still had to pack all my stuff up with my family members watching, silent tears streaming down their cheeks.

None of the youth were in the village because we are finishing our dam. They got back to the village and were upset that the elders didn't try to stop PC from taking me. They have already bought the materials and have salvaged extra cement and wood from the dam work so everything will be ready to start work on my new house on Monday morning.

My tubuqu, grandpa and chief, was trying to reassure me. "Amy don't cry. You'll be back in 2 weeks. No worries." But my bubu, grandma, was crying and I couldn't stay stoic as I kissed her goodbye. Waving goodbye to the women of my village as they stood there with babies on their hips was too much. I broke down, knowing I would be leaving for good if the house isn't finished soon.

I have full faith that my villagers can do this. Everyone at PC is skeptical, as they should be, but I think my villagers will fight for me. I hope they do. I don't want to leave Dawasamu.

i know it's early but...

I'm definitely going home for Christmas.

I found out my best friend, Smash, is pregnant! I'm so excited and I can't wait to meet my new niece or nephew at Christmas. I was kind of thinking "maybe I shouldn't go home for Christmas." Well this changes everything. I must go home. To meet the newest member of my extended family.

Also Mike let it slip that he's saving up to buy me a new bike when I get home!!!!! So I have to go home to get measured.

And I need to meet with some professors at University of Missouri--St. Louis because I think I want to study history and museum studies there.

I can hardly wait until December!

lutu na gaunisala (fallen the road)

Yeah last Saturday it rained. Rained like Noah had finished his ark and the lord was trying to destroy the earth kind of rain. I did not approve. High tide started to come in. The water kept rising and rising, coming closer to my house. Around 930pm I rolled up the 12 or so mats I have, put everything up on my table and bunk bed and went to sleep at the chief's house that happens to be on stilts.

The real problem is that the road collapsed into the river during high tide thus blocking off my whole district. We have no bus that can get up to us from Suva and no bus from the north can come down to get to Suva. So basically we are stuck in our district until the road is fixed which could take who knows how long. The bus goes all the way from Suva to a village about a 45 minute walk from my house. Apparently this is unacceptable for PC.

Friday I am going back to my village with some of the Peace Corps staff to talk to my chief and my turaga ni koro (village man). Hopefully we can figure out a solution to this situation. My house is a problem and so is the road. There really aren't any other housing options in the village other building a new one and nothing can be done about the road either, so I'm not sure how much improvement can come from this meeting Friday. We'll see.

OHS ONSFT WDRE or THE NORTH FACE

Show of hands. Who here has heard of "The North Face"? You can check it out there if you're not familiar. Wonderful products, nice quality, nice style, functional, yet sometimes costly. But you're paying for quality, right?

Imagine you are on a bus and see a kid with a nice backpack. The logo looks familiar but the words next to it are all wrong. Now imagine how this product is completely unfit for American consumption because the words aren't correct. Where is this scramble-worded bag sent? A place where consumers don't care what the label says as long as the bag is practical and costs less than $20 in their currency...

You answer Fiji. Good call. Or maybe Zambia, as I recall the myriad shirts that read Nile instead of Nike. Or shoes where the NB for New Balance was embroidered backwards.

These are the same products sold in America. So why are they so much cheaper here? It's the same bag, same shoe, same shirt, same sweatshop maker, same quality. Makes me consider our consumerism in America and how label oriented we are. Also manufacturers are completely ripping us off and we still buy into the mania that is a popular brand.

the more you know...

Here are some photos of the February Village Health Worker workshops. Each village in my district has a village health worker (nasi ni koro = nurse of the village). The first Tuesday of every month we are meeting in a different village to do basic first aid training and to give them guidance on creating an action plan to improve the health of their villages. Some villages need to focus on environmental health and trash disposal. Some villages need to focus on clean, safe water. Each village has unique needs and different resources so each action plan will be different.

It's crucial that the nasinikoro have a support network in me and Lo, but also between each other. They work alone in their villages and often feel the work is stressful or they aren't capable of making good decisions about what to do in what situation. Lo and I hope to change that.

In Feb, we explained the role of the nasinikoro and how important it is. These women were chosen by their communities to be the first person on the scene in any case of injury or sickness in the village. We have one nurse for the whole district and she's a half an hour bus ride away for some of the villages. If they come on the 6 or 7 am morning buses, they can't return home until the evening buses at around 530 or 630 pm. Plus bus fare is a problem. For this reason, it is so important for the nasinikoro to be educated on how to tend to wounds and minor ailments.

So we taught (and learned) about burns, cuts (deep and shallow), fevers (adult and infant), head injuries, nose bleeds, etc. The women learned how to use a thermometer, count respirations, and take the pulse of their 'patient'. They also practiced cleaning and dressing wounds. To close wounds, we use a butterfly dressing, which you can see one of the women cutting the medical tape into the right pattern to stretch over a wound to close it.

Next month we will probably focus on non-communicable diseases (NCD's like diabetes, cancer, heart disease) and diseases like dengue and typhoid. Lo, my counterpart and co-facilitator and the nurse of the district, and I have not discussed what the topics will be, but we'll be working on that either this week or next and preparing the activities and such. We'd also like to start making the action plans for each village or at least identify more specifically the problems in each village so that we can make more informed action plans. So that by the end of March, the villagers will have started on health improvement programs in each village.

tick tick...boom

I have a nervous tic that pulses in my lower right eye lid. Only when I'm stressed though so that's like never...

Also my little sis performed "Therapy" from the show tick tick..boom at a cabaret and apparently it was phenomenal. I believe it. I'm so proud of that cherub and bummed I missed it.

FRE-7s

I know I just posted, but I'm totally excited about the new volunteers. They come in May! That's so soon. In fact, less than 100 days. I remember what I was like around this time last year. I was freaking out inside and reading blogs and stalking volunteers on facebook about what to pack. I was so concerned about WHAT I packed that I didn't really prepare myself emotionally for the PC experience. But looking back, there's really no way to prepare yourself for this. "You know exactly what you're getting into until you get here," says Dave. So true.

Here's what I wish I would have done differently. I should've brought more underwear and at least 3 pairs of durable shoes (Keen's are great, Chacos are favorites of PCV's and some Birkenstocks because I love them). I wish I would've forgotten about the packing list and packed what I would've for any other vacation, including some long skirts and t-shirts since that's all I wear in my village. I stressed too much about packing and didn't believe that you can get all the basics here in Fiji. I wish I would've brought some of my scrapbooking tools and paper, so I could get started on a rockin scrapbook while still in Fiji. Some watercolors since I've always wanted to learn to paint.

The absolute best thing I brought: music.

I only packed one suitcase and a small backpack and I've been fine here. (Especially because I had amazing friends and family that send me ridiculous care packages. So if you don't have these, well that sucks for you, but also you might want to pack more. haha)

I guess my advice to the newbies is have a great time in the States before you leave and eat your favorite foods and see your favorite people and get ready for a topsy-turvy adventure. Do all that and you'll be set.

Leaky pipes and books galore

Wow so much has happened. We started the water project! Finally. It was originally scheduled for December 9 and we just did it Feb 10-12. Two months late and exactly right on schedule for Fiji time. Aside from the tardiness, the workshops went very well and we identified some major water problems in our village.

Before the spring/dam/pipes we use now we installed the villagers used 4 wells for water. When the wells dried up in the 1970s, the government came in a built a dam from a spring about 2 km up a mountain from my village. The fact that the wells dried up should be a clue that our spring is a natural resource and could dry up as well. That's why it's so important we use it wisely. However, we have many leaky or broken pipes that gush water on a consistent basis. They never turn off. The amount of water wasted is devastating to consider so I try to forget about it.

Next week, we start construction on the new dam. This one will protect and cover the spring and dam. As of now, our dam is uncovered and during heavy rains, our water is muddy due to mini landslides. Then we will have enough money to fix the broken spouts in the village and even some of the underground pipes that leak. This makes me extremely happy. I'm excited to get started on the construction. It should take 2-3 weeks for everything to be completed and for our new water tank to be installed. It's 10,000 liters and a puke green color but it will help conserve water and filter it for us too! Awesome.






I've started working on a library for both the primary and secondary schools. They have maybe 200 books between the 2 schools making it virtually impossible for the secondary students to do research and the primary students to have any library visits. I've already received some books from the Rotary Club in Suva and am anticipating that my contact will donate more in the future. I'm looking for overseas donors too. Anything would be better than what we have.

At the secondary we have one small set of science encyclopedias, a guinness world book of records, a thesaurus, an outdated australian encyclopedia set, and about 50 fiction books. At the primary, the books are missing pages, dirty, and scarce. Their most recent encyclopedias are from 1975 and the fiction at the primary are books like "Brave New World" and "Cat's Cradle" by Vonnegut. So I'll be doing some necessary rearranging between the schools.

Since English is their second language, the kids love easy books with pictures. Comic books are great too. I'm just trying to locate everything I can for them. The teacher/part-time librarian for the secondary is really excited about filling her already-existing shelves and I'm excited to help her do this. I'm also looking forward to doing story time with the kids at the library once we have some more resources. As of now, these projects are keeping me super busy, but I'm glad to be back and working hard.

Oi lei tamaqu OR oh, shit

My village is under water.

Let me explain my new year so far. Right after Mike left I came to Suva to have some medical tests run. I had an ultrasound to make sure my digestive system was working properly even though it's not working properly. All my organs are healthy and "functioning". I had a dermatologist's appt. to check out some sketchy moles. No melanoma yet. And an optometric visit which I came out of with a diagnosis of "eye infection in both eyes, use this ointment in both eyes every night right before bed for 2 weeks." Mild concerns by PC standards. Luckily I was here in Suva while the Tropical Depression hit because otherwise I would be stuck in my village.

There is major flooding all over Fiji. The 2 main highways are submerged and have no traffic, some bridges have collapsed, towns are flooded as high as the parking meters, and most big cities have declared curfews for the residences.

My village lies at the mouth of a river and is so low that the tides sometimes affect the bus routes. When high tide comes after a big rain, the road floods. Heavy rains = no good for my area. Concerning my house...My host mom called to tell me reluctantly that "Emi, oh.....Emi......ah.....Na koro sa luvu" translation "the village drowned" and with the village went my house. So, in what I imagine to be a ridiculous caper, my family members broke my windows to unlock the door in a rescue attempt. They managed to rescue my possessions before the floor of the house was submerged in the rising waters. My clothes and books were consolidated to the top bunk of the bunk beds and my food was taken to the chief's house. (Please save some little debbie snack cakes for me!) Today the family's plan was to "clean out the mud" in the house. Unfortunately, their efforts may be in vain because Fiji anticipates another big storm on the 14th.

I'm worried about the other houses in the village and what everyone is doing during this crisis. I have no real information now, but hopefully I will have good news for you all soon.