Today I
turned 31 in Madagascar. This is my second birthday here in country
and although I did not turn over a new decade in my life, like I did with the
last one, it was no less well spent.
There was no party or large group of friends gathering to celebrate as
there was last year, but there was a gathering of a few close friends. Having been in Antananarivo
for the National VAC (Volunteer Advisory Committee) meeting and hearing of the upcoming World Cup
Qualifying game, that Friday, between Madagascar
and Senegal, I
decided to stick around and treat myself to an early birthday present and
attend the game.
VAC Nosy Varika
It is that
time of the year again; time for another VAC (Volunteer Advisory Committee). This was my second VAC to plan and was, out
of the two, the hardest. Since our VAC
meeting had never been in the northern part of our region I decided to have the
VAC in Nosy Varika, a small island in the Pangalanes Canal 100 km north of
Mananjary. What made it the hardest for
me to plan was that it is in the north of the Sud Est, 370 km from my site, and there being no one still
in country having ever been there. The limited
conversations over e-mail, Facebook, and phone calls that I was able to make gave
me but little information on what to expect.
Planning for a more ‘chill’ VAC than normal; I reserved the hotel, a
ferry to get us there, food for our first night, and had everyone meet in
Mananjary the day before leaving to make sure that we would make the
ferry.
New School Year
October 5th
signifies the official beginning, although not the real start, of the new
school year here in Madagascar
and the beginning of my last year of teaching (maybe) here as well. I have gone into this new year looking
forward to the year ahead. The new year
brings in a new set of students and a fresh start; a new beginning. Not that the first year had a bad start; it
was just a bit rocky. I went into it
with little idea of the school culture into which I was entering, the scheduling
(or the lack of abiding by it), or real experience in a Malagasy
classroom. Any one of these alone would
create a learning curve for any teacher, but all of them together are a far
greater challenge. It is not like Peace
Corps did not try to prepare us for all of these because they did; at least to
some extent. They told us about the
school culture during training, but, like all of you following my blog can most
likely attest to, there is only so much one can extrapolate from the words and
stories of another without seeing it
MSC
MSC
(Mid-Service Conference) marks the halfway point of my service here in Madagascar. It is more of a training than a conference
but it is one of three times that all of the volunteers from my stage come
together. It is a great opportunity for
all of us to catch up on what is new in everyone’s life and to learn what has
been happening at their sites. Not to
mention that it is a time for us to enjoy the PCTC (Peace Corps Training Center) and all of the amazing foods that
we get to eat. It is also during this
time that we get our mid-service physical and teeth cleaning.
Nosy Be
Nosy Be,
literally meaning ‘big island,’ is an island off the northwest coast of
Madagascar known for it nice beaches, touristy feel, and the great number of
tourist (mostly French) that frequent there.
Having heard descriptions of Nosy Be given by other Volunteers, I did
not entirely want to go and had all but checked it off the list of places I was
going to visit. Though things being as
they are, I had to cancel my own travel plans, due to time constraints, and
decided to join a group of friends that were going to Nosy Be on their way back
to Tana. In the end, the trip was very
nice and I really
The 'Mbola Gang'
Meet the 'Mbola Gang!' These are my neighborhood kids that hangout in and around my house almost everyday.
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| Mbola |
Varatraza (The Northern Winds)
Diego
Shortly
after lunch I returned to my friend’s house to grab my gear, bike, and say
goodbye to friends that were soon returning to America. I was leaving for Diego to work at the
university and would not be returning for at least a month. Diego is a large town in the north of Madagascar
and takes a minimum of 24 hours by brousse to arrive there. A daunting length of time to ride in a brousse but one I had heard was well worth
it. Diego is a location that all
volunteers want to visit at some point in their service and I was lucky enough
to be going for a full month, with a place to live that was paid for. I was still unsure if I would be living at
the university or in a hotel or exactly what
Playing with Lemurs (Andasibe)
Having a
few days to spend before my national VAC (Volunteer Advisory Committee) meeting I decided to go visit Andasibe, a
small town to the east of Tana that is the home of the Indri, the largest lemur
in Madagascar. So leaving shortly after lunch on Monday I broussed from Tana to Andasibe and then walked
the one kilometer to the hotel I would be staying in. The town itself, like many small Malagasy
towns, does not have much to offer but also does not have that touristy feel
like you would expect with so many tourist coming through it. The town is surrounded by rainforest that is
made up of the national forest and a few smaller NGO protectorates. It was on the edge of the national forest
that my hotel was
They Call Me ‘The Mpanjaka’
This
weekend was my third VAC (Volunteer Advisory Committee) meeting in country, but my very first to fully
plan and lead as my regions new VAC leader.
This was also the first VAC for our new Health Volunteers that had just
recently installed in their sites. We
also had a special guest in attendance, Brian, the first volunteer in my town,
Vondrozo, who had returned to Madagascar
to do research for his Ph.D. It was
great to have him there to see that all the Sud Est traditions were still being upheld. I scheduled this VAC to coincide with the 4th
of July so that we could all be together for both occasions. Overall the weekend was a great success,
though everything did not work out the way I had planned.
The Brain
What
follows is the story of ‘The Brain’ (a rat) and our endless battle for control
of my house. It was written one night
while in a stupor of sleeplessness, sickness, and delirium of medicine. I read it a few days later and got a laugh
out of it, so I thought I would share it with you.
This story
begins about six months ago when I returned to my house after Christmas. Upon returning to Vondrozo I found that three
rats had taken up occupation of my house and were living in a little hole under
my gas tank. This was first realized on
the first night back when the rats began to get in a fight with each other in
their new home. This waking me up, I got
out of bed with the intent
Everything Seems Normal
I have
become accustomed to all the quirks and differences in the life and culture
here in Madagascar. Not only have I become accustomed but I have
adopted many of them myself. And it
seems everything is normal to me now. I
did not realize this till I was informed of it by a friend. We were in a brusse on our way to Tana when
we crossed a river and there were a few people on the river banks bathing. She asked if I said seen them and when I
answered that I had, but in a very nonchalant manner (a mannerism that has
become indicative of my personality I have been told) she responded,
astonished, ‘How does that not shock you?’
I did not have an answer for this and I am not
A Day in My Shoes
What
follows is an excerpt from my journal, with a few amendments where needed,
about a normal day in my life. It should
be known before reading that almost everyday is different in one way or
another, but this gives a fairly good example of the happenings of them; at
least as pertains to days I teach. Even
these can change if there is an event like an assembly (Monday mornings) or a
meeting. There are days I am constantly
busy with work in both primary and secondary projects and days that I spend
with only my hobbies; days I have company all day, others that I am the company
of
others, and even some where I see not another soul all day; days of work, play, and/or rest. Majotoa! (Enjoy!)
others, and even some where I see not another soul all day; days of work, play, and/or rest. Majotoa! (Enjoy!)
Malagasy Independence Vondrozo Style
Although
this is the second time that I have been in Madagascar for their independence,
this is the first year that I have been able to devote the majority of my
schedule to the celebrations; the first Independence Day being spent during my
initial training here in country. This
ability to observe and partake in the majority of their celebrations was an
amazing, eye opening, and, at times, exhausting experience. Madagascar
received its independence from France
on June 26, 1960, and
Independence Day every year is celebrated, in many respects, like we celebrate
Independence Day in America,
with parades, speeches, and fireworks.
What makes it so much more different than in the States is that the
One Year In
Today marks
one year of me being in Madagascar. It is strange to think how just one year ago
my stagemates and I were stepping off a plane onto a small runway at the
airport in Tana and were walking towards the training that would prepare us for
the lives we would soon lead. Seeing
today, on Facebook, the picture of the newly arrived stage of Education
volunteers outside the airport, it reminded me of the way we looked and thought
when we first arrived. All of us clean
and primp, wide eyed, and childish looking compared to now. Some of us had never been out of the country,
or their state even; some never having been to a developing country; some never
having taught before;
The Long Ride
Having made
a brousse reservation for today to Fara, I made my
way into town at nine o’clock. As I made my walk up into town I was happy in
knowing that I was going to have the front seat; the most coveted seat on my brousse route since it is the only comfortable
seat on this long and bumpy ride. As I
made my way up I ran into a few people that told me that no brousse had arrived the day before, but still I
walked into town. Arriving there I found
out that they were right and was told by the man that ran the ‘brousse station’ that a cameon was on its way and would be there at noon. Hearing
this I decided to get some breakfast, my daily compuse (a dish made by mixing noddles with a bunch of other foods), and then return home to
Religion
Not long
after leaving church, just enough time for me to go home and eat lunch, the
word had spread throughout Vondrozo that I had been to church. Word here in Madagascar
spreads like wildfire and people all over the country will know things faster
than you can believe. For the rest of
the day everyone was stopping to ask me if I had gone and telling me that it
was beautiful and/or that I should come to their church. Which I readily agreed to do, since I am
wanting to observe all aspects of Malagasy culture.
Religion plays a significant role
in the lives of the Malagasy people.
Whether it is
Second Proclamation
I have already wrote about what happens during the Proclamation in a separate post located here. So I will not rewrite it again, but what follows are some pictures of my second proclamation (more to come at a latter date when I have better internet connection).
Going to Church
I woke up this morning and went to
meet Donald at the Lutheran Church,
which I had promised to do the night before.
I had planned to meet him there at 8:30
am, but not thinking about gasy time I arrived there at 8 and waited
till he showed up shortly before 9. As I
stood outside the church during the interim time, I greeted the people I knew
that were also showing up to the church early.
The church itself is of a relatively large size; standing at
approximately 30’X 60’. The building is
a grey cinder block building with a corrugated metal roof; mostly rectangular
in shape except for an outcrop of 5’ on each side of the rear of the
building. Each of these outcrops has
doors leading into small rooms which each have doors leading onto the stage at
the rear of the building.
Mauritius
I recently
posted pictures up of my trip to Mauritius and had planned on leaving it at
that, but I was recently asked to also write up a post as to what it was that I
did while I was there and a little about the country itself. First I should give a little background
information about the country itself. Mauritius
is a small island country to the east of Madagascar. The country, before it gained its
independence, was once a part of the British Empire and is
where Britain
first tried out its “Great Experiment,” in which it abolished slavery and
imported indentured servants as a labor force.
Most
Zandry to Zoky in No Time Flat
The way
that Peace Corps Madagascar is set up, the new Agriculture/Health volunteers
install into their new sites in the Sud Est at the end of April and the new
Education volunteers in the beginning of September. So being an Education volunteer, I have the
longest time of being the zandry (younger sibling). As of today, the new Health volunteers showed
up in the Sud Est and I am officially not the youngest stage anymore. This is a weird feeling. As zoky (older sibling) we are expected to be
knowledgeable and to show the newbies the ropes, but I am not wholly sure I
want all of that responsibility. It also
brings me closer to that half way mark in my service; something that is
Filling That Empty Time
No one ever
tells you when you are filling out the application for Peace Corps, or at any
time between the thought popping up in your head and the time you get to
country, just how much free time you will really have during your service. They do however mention it during your
training, but this is easily over looked as something that will not be a
problem for you. ‘I never get bored.’ ‘I can sit forever doing nothing and be ok.’ ‘I have all these hobbies I can work on.’ ‘I am going to read all these books or do all
this writing.’ ‘I will always be working
on some new project.’ Although these may
take some of your time and are all noble efforts at passing the time, you will
still find yourself
Oh How I Loath You
I have
never really thought about animals that I disliked, hated even, till I came to Madagascar. During my time here though, a list of animals
has formed that I have grown to hate.
Below is a list of those animals, in order as they made the list.
- Geese (My host families geese used to guard the kabone every time I wanted to use it, but they are also just mean, loud, sassy, annoying creatures in general.)
- Pigeons (I have a family of them that live above my ceiling and make a lot of noise at all hours.)
- Flies (Flies in Madagascar are the most relentless animals I have ever seen and they will never
Student Week
Wednesday, 1/18/15
– Saturday, 1/21/15
Every year the schools in Madagascar
have a week off to celebrate the students. This week was that week. Although there was an assembly and then
scheduled classes afterwards on Monday, most students and teachers did not
actually have class. Tuesday was also
spent with no classes in preparation for the festivities the rest of the
week. Wednesday morning is when the
actual Student Week started. All the
students from all three levels of the public school (EPP, CEG, and Lycee) and
from all four of the private schools (Success, Light
School, Lutheran
School, and Catholic
School) meet at the Lycee, outside
my house, to begin their march through town to the CEG. Each school took its turn, with all the
students wearing their uniforms and carrying their school sign, in the
Vac #2
This
weekend my region had its second VAC meeting and the first one for me to
lead. The VAC itself was in Amporoforo,
a small village in the Sud Est and the site of one of our PCV’s. Different from the previous VAC, it was decided
to couple the VAC meeting with work and host a girl’s club/opening of the new
basketball court that Banaz had built at her CEG (the equivalent of a middle/intermediate
school in the States). The first night
of VAC we had our meeting which was started with the election of a new VAC
representative and warden. I was elected
VAC Rep and Julissa was elected Warden.
Once the elections were over I lead the meeting by reading the National
Lycee Had A Special Visitor
Today my
Lycee (high school) had a special guest visitor, the Director of Education for
my region. There had been a big party
planned outside in the school courtyard but do to heavy rain we were forced to
move the whole thing into one of the classrooms. So after the room had been prepped everyone
piled in and the room soon was filed with teachers, soon to be teachers, and
officials of all levels. Not wanting to
be jammed in with so many people my sitemate and me hung around outside until
we were asked to come in and sit in the front row; a row completely empty
except for us. This we knew would inevitably happen since it happens at every
event we attend or happen to
Weathering the Storm
This past
week I experienced my first big storm in Madagascar
as tropical storm Chedza passed across the island. A storm formed in the Mozambique
Channel and crossed the island, exiting in the SudEst. The storm caused fourteen deaths, displaced
tens of thousands, and caused countless damage in Madagascar. Many parts of the SudEst, mainly the coastal
areas, were flooded up to the roofs of the houses. I myself, living in Vondrozo, did not have to
worry about flooding as much since my area is very hilly and most of the water
simply flows down. This flow of water
does cause one major problem, which was the cause of most of the deaths, and
that is mudslides. There was only one
major mudslide in Vondrozo and although it did not injure anyone it blocked the
road into town. The
Tratry ny Taona!
Tratry ny taona (Happy New Years)!
This week I brought in my first New Years in Madagascar. I spent a few days with some of my friends in
Loharano, a resort 30 miles north of Manakara.
It is located on the shore of a lagoon on one side, with the ocean only
a minute walk on the opposite side. The
water level in the lagoon, we were told was not normal, was very low; it only
came up to our knees when we were in it, which was great. We were able to take advantage of the water
level being so low by playing a few games of ultimate Frisbee in the
water. The ocean, on the other hand, was
a different story. It has to be the
strongest ocean I have ever been in. The
water level
A Tropical Christmas
I have been
asked to write what I did for Christmas in Madagascar,
but since I did not do much this post will be short. Having spent the week previous to Christmas
in Tana on a business trip, I spent the day before Christmas Eve and most of
Christmas Eve itself in a hellish attempt to try and make it back to Vondrozo
for Christmas. There were no brusses
going from Tana to the Sud Est, which is unusual, so I caught what would be the
last brusse out to Fianar. Arriving in
Fianar the following morning, Christmas Eve, I found out that there were no
more spots on the brusses going to Farafangana, but was able to find one seat
going to Manakara. So calling ahead to
Manakara, where
The Proclamation!
Today the
Lycee had our first proclamation of the year.
The proclamation is where the students receive their report cards for
the previous trimester. Here in Madagascar
this is done a bit different than what you would experience in the States. For starters the proclamation happened on a
slightly rainy Saturday morning in the open court yard in the middle of the
Lycee compound. All students must attend
the proclamation to receive their report card otherwise they have to pay a fee
at a later date. The students and
teachers are not the only ones to attend the proclamations either. This
The Hardest ride in Madagascar!!!
I have,
since finding out that I was going to be living in Vondrozo, wanted to bike the
44 miles from Vondrozo (where I live) to Farafangana (my banking town). Today, wanting to save money and get in some miles
on my bike, I finally decided to do it.
Having packed my saddlebags the night before I had planned on leaving at
5 am, but upon waking up and finding
that it was raining outside I had to wait and debate if I really wanted to make
the trip by bike at all. I knew the road
would be a mess after a rain like that and it would make an already hard ride
even harder. I knew that the worst part
of the ride was the first part, with its steep and rocky climbs and downhills
and its
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