My home:
I have a great living situation. Very classy by Peace Corps standards. Some of my fellow volunteers are living in huts with no running water or electricity (the steotype many of us imagined before we came here), but I've got a nice house with water, elecricity, and plenty of space. Very comfy. Great neighbors too! It's good to be surrounded by friendly people.
My work:
I started teaching at the teacher's college this week. Shaping up pretty well so far; the students are here are fairly high achievers, and the staff are friendly. It's a very different experience than I had when internship teaching during training. The subject matter is more advanced (which is a difficult adjustment for me; I'm very comfortable teaching basic English, but the teacher college syllabus calls for fairly advanced grammer and theory. I've just had a taste so far, we'll see how things pan out over time.
Pemba:
I'm quickly finding out about the differences between Zanzibar and the mainland. (Quick technical interjection for those interested: Zanzibar is a semi-autonomous region of Tanzania, made up of two islands, Pemba and Unguja. Sometimes when people say "Zanzibar" they are referring to Unguja only, which is the larger and more famous island.) The islands' population is about 98% Muslim. I arrived at the end of Ramadhan, so I got to see two faces of the culture here: the subdued time during the fast when lots of businesses are closed and the pace of life is slow, and the vibrant celebration at the end of the month.
Eid Mubarak (the four days following the end of Ramadhan) was a great time to be here. It's almost like a combination of Halloween and Thanksgiving. On the first day family's get together and prepare an amazing meal. I was invited to join my schoolmasters family for the feast. Immediately upon arriving home, my neighbors insisted I take part in a similar meal of their own; basically I ended up getting two Thanksgiving sized meals within 2 hours. It was amazing and challenging at the same time. =) I was struck by the hospitality everyone showed me. Each night of the festival everyone in the community hits the streets until about midnight. Everyone wears their best clothes; quite a colorful celebration! The kids pester the adults for candy and loose change which they use to buy toys and candy at shops that stay open most of the night. Lots of fun- I arrived just in time to enjoy it all!
My colleagues:
There are two VSO (Volunteer Services Overseas; similar to Peace Corps but it draws volunteers from all over the world) workers here in my community. Juanito is from the Phillipines and Les is from England. They're both great people and we're becoming friends quickly. It's been good to have some friends who know the community to help get me situated. And I have been repeatedly subjected to Juanito's amazing cooking. It's really tragic. ;) There are also three other Peace Corps Volunteers on the island, which is only about 75 kilomiters from North to South. Quite a volunteer community in a small region. Can't complain!
Last minute addition: Last night a Zanzibar ferry capsized in the Indian Ocean. A lot of people have died; reports are still coming in. Just in case you see this news in the states and are worried: I'm ok! The type of ferry that sank has notorious safety record (but offers cheap tickets), and whenever I travel from the island I'll either be flying or taking the more expensive (and much safer) ferry.
Some pics from the last two weeks:
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| Indian Ocean! |
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| With my new VSO buddies Juanito and Les |
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| Everyone out on the town for Eid Mubarak |
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| Kids crowding the shops to buy toys after Ramadhan |
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| This is the Pemba version of a daladala (small public transit vehicle). On the mainland they use large vans, but here on the island it's trucks with a roof over the bed where they can tie down luggage. I rode one today with 25 people in the back, which is pretty standard. |
