Closing Time

This last week was our “Close of Service” Conference. I went into it with little expectations apart from all of my training group and then some (about 60 PCVs) getting together and staying a a hotel; AC good food, a pool. In the beginning it felt like an over exaggerated high school graduation party complete with drinking by the pool and listening to old favorites. By the third day I realized that's what it really was. We were all just over grown adolescence unsure of our futures. The speaker and organizer of the conference started us off just like any speaker should with enthusiasm and random stories. She promised to make sure we knew by the end of the conference how valuable our service really has been not only to Malians but also to our own future. She was going to pump us up and make us even more self center than we could ever imagine, that is of course if we didn't make fun of her ice breaker games... Half way through the conference we started to make some head way on resumes and what to do with our futures and what paper work we have to do before we leave (one of the beauties of working with the US government). I was feeling pretty good about my resume and my future in general, as one of a few that has a solid plan for next year, and then we heard the career panel. The guests on the panel were obviously living abroad in Mali, and as RPCV (return peace corps volunteers) had chosen to work in development, all but one who was an international school teacher. I'm not sure if I want to live abroad or even do development work, but they all, including the school teacher, made it clear that it is near impossible without a graduate degree in something, anything really, and that made me reevaluate my position on furthering my education. Not now of course, but now the “definitely not” has turned into a “maybe”. I still want to have a better idea of what I want to do first.

As the days turned into hours I was in denial about my two best friends, Hunter and Rabayah, leaving. They both chose to leave early for different reasons, Hunter a Peace Corps extension in China starting now and Rabayah grad school. Although I, and most of my other friends, don't leave the country for another two months we were force to realize what the ultimate outcome of the conference was, the end of our time here in Mali. Of course Hunter was busy trying to finish all the last minute paper works and goodbyes, leaving the best for last, so it seemed so abrupt, rushed. The Peace Corps driver came 30 minutes early to take him to the airport, the only time something ever happens early in Mali. Because he was leaving from the hotel of our conference there was a large number of people there to see him off, but only a few of us were actually crying. And before we knew it our big white hunter was gone. Rabayah left not a week later. By then, most people had gone back to their sites so the group was smaller, but still the best of the best. More crying... Like high school graduation or even college, I know that the most important friends that I have made here will keep in touch but it's going to be harder since most of us are internationally minded. I am very excited to see my family and friends back home, and I know I am ready to leave Mali but I guess I wasn't ready to be sad about leaving, and maybe that's good. Maybe that will urge me to return, urge me to make even more of a difference somewhere else.

And now I go back to my site reluctantly. I don't feel refreshed or re energized to finish up my service. I feel more unsure and out of control of my last 2 months. I have seen two other services end and it's only 2 short months until I too will leave and that is a struggle not to dwell on, to not be overwhelmed by. But maybe Mali will surprise me again.

Every new beginning come from some other beginnings end, or at least that's how the song goes.

Paris

So with my busy months head of me, I decided to flee the heat and meet Mindy in Paris. It was a much needed vacation (my last out of the country was September 09) and I took a lot of wonderful pictures. They can be found on facebook with the following link:

http://www.facebook.com/#!/album.php?aid=2057001&id=17700453

Now it's back to the mangoes and hopefully our building will be done soon.

May not be appropriate for the easily worried... mom

Although there are a lot of drawbacks to not having internet or even electricity for that matter, there is one thing that I have come to really enjoy, the BBC on the radio. Every night at 8 they have "News Hour" and I frequently listen to it. Most of the time it's British soccer matches, something about the middle east and something about the EU or UN. Most of these things will not directly affect my daily life, but serve as topics of discussions to make me feel just a little more smart and worldly. Last night, however, was heavily weighted on African happenings. 3 of the 7 countries that border Mali were in the international news for political unrest. Niger, the latest to join West Africa's list of politically unstable countries was taken over by a coupe de taut. They took the president, who recently changed the constitution so he could stay in power longer, hostage and took over the national radio station to announce the take over. The African Union has temporarily suspended Niger's membership. A UN commission has just declared that the coup that over threw the government last year in Guinea committed crimes against humanity. And in the Ivory Coast, police shot people who were protesting/rioting in the capital. Now only 2 of the 7 countries are Peace Corps friendly, 3 politically unstable, 2 that don't give visas to US citizens and volunteers are prohibited from going to 3 of the northern regions of Mali. Don't worry I still feel safe. It would be as if I lived in Reno (a stretch of the imagination I know), and there were riots in Phoenix, crimes against humanity in SF, Oregon is still friendly, but the government in Salt Lake City was over thrown and Wyoming and Montana are controlled by rebel groups that kidnap white westerners for ransom and they are slowly taking over Ely and Eureka, but New Mexico it ok. The geography isn't a perfect comparison, but it's close. But don't worry, the Peace Corps would make all of us leave if anything remotely dangerous happened.

The Last 3 Months

The new group of Peace Corps Volunteers had just had their in service training, which I tried to help as little as possible. Before I knew it, it was the holiday season. I wasn't constantly bombarded by peppermint mochas or Frank Sinatra that usher in Christmas starting after Halloween, so I had to work really hard to get myself into the holiday spirit. I started by taking a long trip to meet up with some of my favorite people in Mali. I took Peace Corps transport from Bamako to Mopti. Other than the ac not found in public transportation, this turned out to be not as convenient as I thought it would. The Peace Corps bus was actually slower than the Malian bus due to the unnecessarily long stops and the frequent detours. But after all of this I arrived at Rabayah's house in time for a late dinner made by Dave and his sister. The next morning we went up to Dogon Country which is completely different than the rest of Mali. After speaking and getting use to knowing the local language in and around my village, it was strange to have to depend on my limited French as the Dogon don't speak Bamabara. Christmas day we had dinner at a small campement with our group of 10 and 2 PCVs from other countries traveling in West Africa. It is amazing how just being fellow volunteers instantly builds comradary. The next few days we spent hiking through the Dogon villages. Even though I had done a hike similar to this before, it was still breathtakingly beautiful. When I imagined living in Africa, this is what I had pictured. Afterwards we made our way back to Bamako for New Years. We opted out of the Lebanese sponsored booze-fest and instead had a nice BBQ at Hunter's. We rang in the new year with Malians, music and meat. After the New Years, work started to pick up and it seems like the last 3 months have flown by. We receive the first wave of funding for the Shea Production Center, but of course it has taken us 2 months to actually start building. Village politics prevented us from building on the land that was previously given to the women from both the mayor and the chief of the village, but after many village meetings and endless waiting, we broke ground! Currently we have foundation rocks and gravel but are waiting on cement. They have dug out the perimeter of the buildings and the surrounding wall and it is all starting to take shape. My homologue is more than excited. As I expected she is being very professional and motivated in all of this. I still trust her more than anyone else in Mali. I do feel like this is more her project than mine, which ultimately is the goal of a Peace Corps Volunteer. While all of this was going on, Hunter and I did our own project. In the mid January we held a “Take Our Daughters to Work” camp. We had 16 girls and 4 chaperons from surrounding villages come to the regional capital. They participated in various team building activities, did a work shadow, went to a technical school and went to the zoo in Bamako. Although it was a huge group effort, I was stressed out the entire week. Even now I am shocked that it all went so well. When all was said and done, I put together a packet to help volunteers in other regions hold their own camp. From that I know of at least 6 other camps being held around Mali.

Hot season is in full swing. I'm taking 2 showers a day, maybe should be 3. I'm now biking to and from my homologue's house instead of walking 15 minutes in the the hot sun. Last week it was up to at least 106 degrees everyday and the chilly morning was down to 77 (thank you grandma for the outside thermometer). My favorite part of the week is when I buy ice at the market and make an iced chai and hide from the kids in my hut. Although hot season seems terrible, it brings good things too. I now sleep outside with my host family which make me feel more apart of the family. Although the grandma wakes us all up at 1 am to go sleep inside. Apparently the "bad things", robbers, spirits, donkeys, are only out between 1 am and the call to prayer from the mosque, 5am. And before I know it, we will be practically swimming in mangoes! I will be able to buy a pile of freshly picked 8 mangoes for the equivalent of 50 cents, and that's considered pricey. I will be making plenty of mango jam and dried mangoes that will hopefully make back to the US this time. But most importantly for us stir crazy volunteers, hot season justifies a trip to the coast. This year, after everything has settled, I will be going to Ghana, Inshallah! March is going to be action packed with the International shea conference and at least 2 other “Bring Our Daughters to Work” camps. Then there's easter, another training, and before I know it, it's my birthday, cinco de mayo, and then the Ghanian beaches and the best sushi in west africa! I just have to make it through 2 months of ever increasing heat...

"Take Our Daughters to Work"

A Dogon Christmas

I know it's the end of February and I am just now posting Christmas pictures, but better late than never right?
For Christmas we went to the Dogon region of Mali . We did a hike to see the villages in the cliffs! Enjoy

Captions to come