Updates From Staging!

A bit late butttt internet here is rough and far betweeen. I typed up a few posts without getting the chance to actually post. Soooo here Go!

October 11, 2011

9:41pm

Hopped up out of bed, turned my swag on, took a look in the mirror and said whatsup.   That pretty much describes how waking up this morning went.  Everything is rather surreal and I cannot help but to smile at the thought of just what exactly is going on.

Brittany stayed at a friend’s place but we did get the chance to do breakfast and walk around Philly for a bit.  It was all too sad to have too finally say goodbye.  I was truly thankful that she got the chance to come up with me so that we could spend some final moments together.  Truly something special.  After making last minute preparations, we finally said our tearful goodbyes and went our separate ways.  Hard to think that it’s going to be at least a year from now when we meet again…

Meeting up with the other 24 volunteers, we got our luggage together and made moves towards the charter bus taking us to JFK, New York.  What a SURREAL FEELING! Every leg of this trip has been met with disbelief and a dream-like state of mind.  Is this really happening?

Arriving at JFK, it took us about an hour and a half to make it through baggage check because of course we have a transfer in Brussels. The airline didn’t want to direct transfer our luggage, which meant that we would have to leave the gate in Brussels, claim our bags, re-check our bags, and then redo security in Brussels.  Entirely unrealistic and time consuming! We would pretty much be guaranteed to miss our next flight or, at the very least, lose our bags.  The travel agency that made the reservations was of course closed since it was Columbus day.  WOMP WOMP! After several minutes of arguing and frantically trying to figure things out, we got everything figured out. A very angry travel agent had to call in from home in order to get everything figured out, but I mean… It’s their, the travel agencies, fault. 

After making it through security we spent the majority of the afternoon at a NY sports bar where I of course ahd to order a BACON CHEESEBRUGER! Just the thought of it makes me sad. WHERE AM I GOING TO GET BACON FROM!?!?!?

Well, we’re in Brussels now and I just had a chocolate croissant? Who knew? But now, we are actually sitting at a workstation charging too many electronic devices as I try to explain, in Frenglish to an African gentleman, how to connect to the internet here. I am slowly realizing that my subpar French is going to be EXTREMELY subpar with the locals.  Strangely enough, this experience and failing French has made me 100% more excited about getting to Burkina and jumping into the culture and language.

LEGGO

Oct 12, 2011

Woke up in the morning feelin like P’Diddy….

Well kind of! I woke up this morning feeling all sorts of jetlagged and exhausted. The full 19 hours of travel really exhausted me more than I had initially though.  Some of the other PCTs and I also spent a sizable amount of time speaking with the PCVs helping us out with training. Sizable amount of time= all night.  One health volunteer mentioned how he has to keep anti-venom nearby in case of a snake bite(Snakes are pretty common in his region). I made a silent prayer to not be placed in his region, the south west. He also mentioned how the anti-venom is too expensive for the local people to afford so he actually has to watch people suffer from the snake bite knowing that he has the anti-venom, and that there is not enough to go around.  If he were to help out some of the locals, there would be none for him in the future.   Tough decisions! To choose your own life over that of a neighbor.

Another volunteer scared the hell out of me by talking about something called a “scorpion carrier”. It is pretty much exactly what it sounds like, kind of.  A scorpion carrier is a fast insect, resembling a big spider, that is large enough to carry scorpions on its back.  The carrier is tough to kill and fast as hell. Ultimately harmless though. The scorpions, not the carrier, get people. :Note to All: Scorpion stings are poisonous and hurt a ton while scorpion carriers are almost impossible to catch/kill. Dangerous 1-2 punch.

Needless to say, I laid in bed thinking about everything that could potentially be outside my door or under my bed.  Not so sweet dreams

 And then for breakfast, Bread with a side of orange marmalade. Not bad, but I would have preferred an omelet perhaps? Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day and is usually something sizable. Not just bread.  Moving on, we proceeded to class, for lack of better word, where we met the PC staff in country. 3 Americans and a team of approximately 20 Burkinabé. Meeting the staff and learning a little bit about everyone was a blast and really colored in my picture of BF. The Burkinabé are a lovable people who never stop smiling. I found myself grinning from ear to ear as the explained their jobs, family, and village.  Priceless.

From here the other PCTs and I exchanged our currency(approx. 500CFA to $1.00), interviewed with our assistant directors, and got the chance to explore Ouaga. Overall a pretty good day, although my interview with my French instructor could have gone better (it was all appropriately in french). From the sounds of other PCT complaining, I perhaps did the? Meh.  The city of ouaga is pretty dirty. Not because the people are particularly dirty, but because there are no trashcans. No real land fill, and the rich people burn their trash.  With nowhere to get rid of the trash, the sides of the roads and backstreets become pretty gross. Luckily there are any number of domestic/wild animals to eat and dispose of the trash. Including but not limited to chickens, cows, donkeys, geckos, pigeons, etc. It’s a good time. 

Dinner was served at our country director’s residence…. Slash mansion. Four bedrooms with a bathroom for each.  Very nice. Our CD has worked all over the world and had a number artifacts from all over.  A FREKKIN BLADE Collection. So sick.  Well ending now, battery dying. Deuces.

Ps. Was able to call home. Feel free to text/call me anytime at 22677494392. Make sure you dial 011 to make international first. :-D

Merci et Bon nuit!