The day is almost upon us! After two and a half months of training tomorrow I will be sworn in as an official Peace Corps Volunteer. I must say I am ready. Although I’ve had a great time during training and it was definitely a necessary part of adapting to life here it’s time to strike out on my own. Not to mention that swearing in will be followed by two consecutive days of BBQ and swimming in the pool at the Country Director’s house. Eh Allah.
Wednesday was our last day at the training site. We had a farewell ceremony with our host families. The actually ceremony itself was pretty run of the mill as far as things go here. We started an hour and fifteen minutes late. We sat through a bunch of speeches. There were some certificates handed out. And everyone got warm soda, which the Guineans had to save for later since almost all of them are fasting during the day for Ramadan.
The actual saying goodbye part of the whole affair was pretty sad though. Over the months of training I had some great times with my family and although I’m excited to head out to my site I’m also going to miss them. My little brother actually started crying as they were loading my bags onto the cars. But we all have each other’s numbers and we made some plans to visit. I told them it’s not adieu, it’s just à plus tard.
After the ceremony we boarded the bus and left for Conakry. I must say the relative comfort of the Conakry house is a welcome change of pace. Simple things like AC and reliable Internet can do wonders when you’ve gone without them for so long. It’s also just nice to have all of G-16 (and others!) in the same place for some final R&R before we leave for our sites.
Of course I still have stuff I need to do and getting ready to move to site has a whole slew of headaches that go along with it. Today we spent a good part of the day trekking around in the heat going around to different stores in downtown Conakry trying to get all the supplies we’ll need for installation (Peace Corps jargon for “move into site”). So far I’m doing good, I’ve got most of the important stuff like tuna fish, chocolate powder, oatmeal, and nutella. Saturday we’ll be reserved for the less important items like actual supplies for my house. I mean really, who needs to buy a stove when you can just eat nutella all day long?
Spending the day downtown was a bit of a trip. We don’t stand out quite as much in Conakry because Guineans here are more used to seeing white people from the embassies and such but we still garnered our fair share of attention. Most of it was pretty benign, like people yelling out Barak Obama’s name at us. Or trying to sell us calculators. I don’t know what the obsession is with calculators here but every time I go anywhere in Conakry there’s always a ton of Guineans who follow me around trying to sell them to me. Maybe they just assume white people will buy anything with electronics in it.
While most of the attention that we get here either falls into the category of “Hey look a white person! Weird!” or the category of “Hey look a white person! Let’s try and sell them something!” sometimes we get some attention of another variety all together. Such was the case today when, for some reason, the Guinean police decided to start stopping all the foreigners (a.k.a. white people) they found on the streets and demand to see visas.
Now, Peace Corps’ policy is that we don’t walk around with our passports on us and all we have when we’re en ville are Peace Corps ID cards. So when the police decided to start hassling volunteers for their visas they were none to happy to find they only had PC IDs. After many minutes of arguing about the necessity (or lack thereof) of showing them our visas they took a bunch of people over to the police van (where they were keeping a bunch of Asian people who were frantically talking on their phones, probably trying to get someone to come down and bail them out) and proceeded to have a ten minute long argument over the phone with our doctor, who was the highest ranking Peace Corps staff member anyone could get on the phone. After the argument they finally let everyone go, apparently having been convinced that, indeed, it was not necessary to act as though the entire city was one large boarder crossing. Although the situation eventually did resolve itself it was definitely a reminder that we always have to be on our toes when we’re in the big cities here.
Wow, time certainly flies when you’re using the internet. It’s already way past my bedtime here and I need to get up early tomorrow to head over to the Embassy for the swearing in ceremony. I’m scheduled to give a (possibly nationally broadcast) speech in Melinke which is a local language that I can barely greet people in at this point. Suffice to say I need as much sleep as I can get to be able to muddle my way through the page long oratory me and a language trainer wrote up together. I’ll try and post another update through the barbeque induced stupor that I’ll be enduring for the next few days.
~Jesse
September 25, 2008
September 17, 2008
Usually it makes hot, but now it makes cold
Just a quick update.
Right now everyone in training is on a 3 day trip to a town in the middle of Guinea. We're staying ensemble in a forrestry school in the mountains. We just got here but it's looking like the cool mountain air will be a nice little break from the hot humid weather that we get at the training site. The school itself is really secluded and overlooks the town from the top of a mountain, it's very monastaryesque.
Training is fast drawing to a close for me, which is exciting. PST (Pre Service Training) has been a great introduction to life in Guinea but I'm definitly ready to begin my service already. We leave for Conakry on the 24th for our swearing in ceremony at the U.S. Embassy and then I'll officially become a volunteer (as opposed to a trainee).
Hopefully I'll find some time in Conakry to jump on a computer and write a more substantial update but it might be a little tough, we're definitly going to be pressed for time when we get there. In addition to preparing for swearing in (I have to give a speech in Malinke at the ceremony) I also have to work out my banking situation and run around to various markets around the city buying supplies for my site.
I hope everyone's doing good and enjoying the onset of fall in New England. I've decided that although I miss everyone back home, and the food, and the cheese... Having different seasons (especially fall) is going to be one of the big things I'm going to miss during my time here. Oh well, enjoy it double for me. Next time you goto Raos pour out a coffee in my memory.
~Jesse
Right now everyone in training is on a 3 day trip to a town in the middle of Guinea. We're staying ensemble in a forrestry school in the mountains. We just got here but it's looking like the cool mountain air will be a nice little break from the hot humid weather that we get at the training site. The school itself is really secluded and overlooks the town from the top of a mountain, it's very monastaryesque.
Training is fast drawing to a close for me, which is exciting. PST (Pre Service Training) has been a great introduction to life in Guinea but I'm definitly ready to begin my service already. We leave for Conakry on the 24th for our swearing in ceremony at the U.S. Embassy and then I'll officially become a volunteer (as opposed to a trainee).
Hopefully I'll find some time in Conakry to jump on a computer and write a more substantial update but it might be a little tough, we're definitly going to be pressed for time when we get there. In addition to preparing for swearing in (I have to give a speech in Malinke at the ceremony) I also have to work out my banking situation and run around to various markets around the city buying supplies for my site.
I hope everyone's doing good and enjoying the onset of fall in New England. I've decided that although I miss everyone back home, and the food, and the cheese... Having different seasons (especially fall) is going to be one of the big things I'm going to miss during my time here. Oh well, enjoy it double for me. Next time you goto Raos pour out a coffee in my memory.
~Jesse
August 15, 2008
Hi From Haute
Bonjour tout le monde!
It’s time for a long overdue update. So I’ve been in Guinea for just about a month and now that my life in training is pretty well established I figure I’ll give you guys an overview of how I spend my time here.
Monday through Friday I have to be at training site by 8:00am which means I’m up by 7:00. Before I leave for the day my mom gives me breakfast which is always bread and tea. At the training site we have 4 different courses each day with small breaks in between. There’s always at least one language course and the rest are a mix of technical training, culture, health, safety and security, and more lang.
Our trainers are mostly Guinean and they’re an awesome group of people. All of them are completely over qualified for their jobs (there are two former Fulbright scholars on staff) and the fact that they’ve decided to work with Peace Corps instead of taking a higher paying job elsewhere really says a lot about their dedication to their country’s well being.
At midday we get a break for lunch. Tuesdays and Thursdays they feed us at the facility and we usually get some combination of rice, sauce, salad, and various other deliciousness. Bureau lunch (as it’s called) is always a cause for celebration.
Monday, Wednesday, Friday we’re on our own for lunch and I usually go to the market and get food there. Choices in the market are pretty limited and I usually get rice and sauce, an egg sandwich, or meat on a stick.
Rice and sauce is by far the most popular meal here. I’d say the Guineans I know eat it for at least two meals a day. Every day. Always. There are three different kinds of sauce, leaf sauce, soup sauce, and peanut sauce. It’s all pretty good but it can get a little monotonous at times. And there are rocks in the food because everyone dries their rice by spreading it out on the street.
After lunch there’s more training until 5:00. At which point I usually head home and hang out with my family. My family here is really amazing and my parents are two of the kindest people I’ve met in my life. They’re always willing to help me with my French and they never lose their patience with me no matter how inept I prove at figuring out life here. They don’t have any direct children but the family unit in Guinea is really fluid and right now I have two cousins living with us.
I usually eat around 7:30 or so and dinner is always plain spaghetti with meat, avocado salad, or french fries. That is, of course, my dinner. My family eats rice and sauce. For some reason my mom doesn’t believe that I can eat rice and sauce everyday with them and she insists on making me a separate dinner during the week. On the weekends I get rice and sauce with them and it’s awesome because my mom’s a great cook.
After dinner it’s dark and that means not a lot goes on. The town I’m in gets a few hours of electricity at night every few days. So days with power mean the whole family watches poorly dubbed B movies from the states or static on the TV (which is the only thing my family’s antenna picks up).
Nights without power usually consist of sitting in the dark living room with my family listening to French radio. None of which I understand. Sometimes I’ll listen to the BBC in English in my room or read a book with my headlamp. After a few hours of that I go to bed so I can start all over the next day.
Those are the weekdays however, weekends are a whole nother ball of wax. And by that I mean the time I would be at training turns into me sitting around with my family some more. Highlights of the weekend include hand washing my clothes (which takes forever), playing soccer, and rice and sauce.
There’s also usually at least one opportunity to hang out with the other trainees and go to one of two bars here. I use bar in the loosest sense of the word since almost everyone here is Muslim and doesn’t drink so we’re usually the only people there. I honestly have no idea how they stay in business but I don’t ask questions. It’s the only place in town to get a cold beer and if you’re willing to wait the hour they take to make you can get french fries too. They even have Ketchup!
So that’s pretty much my life here for the time being. We all found out last week where our sites are going to be and now we’re on a week long trip to visit our sites. My site’s in the north eastern corner of the country and I’m about 20km away from Mali, which means that anyone who wants to come visit can fly into Bamako and we’ll be relatively close to my site (maybe 8 hours or so).
My region is the hottest in Guinea and supposedly temperatures during the dry season can reach 125 degrees. Yay! Right now I’m in the regional capital, KanKan. Hence the internet access. We just got in last night but so far the city seems really cool. It’s the second largest city in the country after Conakry so there’s a lot going on. The market is supposedly gigantic and there are a lot of really cool artisans here from Guinea and Mali. Tomorrow I get to go visit my site and I’ll finally get to see my home for the next two years. I can’t wait. I’ll try and post an update when I get back if I can make time. For now though I’ve got to go since my time at the internet café is almost up. I hope everyone is doing well back home. Peace.
~Jesse
It’s time for a long overdue update. So I’ve been in Guinea for just about a month and now that my life in training is pretty well established I figure I’ll give you guys an overview of how I spend my time here.
Monday through Friday I have to be at training site by 8:00am which means I’m up by 7:00. Before I leave for the day my mom gives me breakfast which is always bread and tea. At the training site we have 4 different courses each day with small breaks in between. There’s always at least one language course and the rest are a mix of technical training, culture, health, safety and security, and more lang.
Our trainers are mostly Guinean and they’re an awesome group of people. All of them are completely over qualified for their jobs (there are two former Fulbright scholars on staff) and the fact that they’ve decided to work with Peace Corps instead of taking a higher paying job elsewhere really says a lot about their dedication to their country’s well being.
At midday we get a break for lunch. Tuesdays and Thursdays they feed us at the facility and we usually get some combination of rice, sauce, salad, and various other deliciousness. Bureau lunch (as it’s called) is always a cause for celebration.
Monday, Wednesday, Friday we’re on our own for lunch and I usually go to the market and get food there. Choices in the market are pretty limited and I usually get rice and sauce, an egg sandwich, or meat on a stick.
Rice and sauce is by far the most popular meal here. I’d say the Guineans I know eat it for at least two meals a day. Every day. Always. There are three different kinds of sauce, leaf sauce, soup sauce, and peanut sauce. It’s all pretty good but it can get a little monotonous at times. And there are rocks in the food because everyone dries their rice by spreading it out on the street.
After lunch there’s more training until 5:00. At which point I usually head home and hang out with my family. My family here is really amazing and my parents are two of the kindest people I’ve met in my life. They’re always willing to help me with my French and they never lose their patience with me no matter how inept I prove at figuring out life here. They don’t have any direct children but the family unit in Guinea is really fluid and right now I have two cousins living with us.
I usually eat around 7:30 or so and dinner is always plain spaghetti with meat, avocado salad, or french fries. That is, of course, my dinner. My family eats rice and sauce. For some reason my mom doesn’t believe that I can eat rice and sauce everyday with them and she insists on making me a separate dinner during the week. On the weekends I get rice and sauce with them and it’s awesome because my mom’s a great cook.
After dinner it’s dark and that means not a lot goes on. The town I’m in gets a few hours of electricity at night every few days. So days with power mean the whole family watches poorly dubbed B movies from the states or static on the TV (which is the only thing my family’s antenna picks up).
Nights without power usually consist of sitting in the dark living room with my family listening to French radio. None of which I understand. Sometimes I’ll listen to the BBC in English in my room or read a book with my headlamp. After a few hours of that I go to bed so I can start all over the next day.
Those are the weekdays however, weekends are a whole nother ball of wax. And by that I mean the time I would be at training turns into me sitting around with my family some more. Highlights of the weekend include hand washing my clothes (which takes forever), playing soccer, and rice and sauce.
There’s also usually at least one opportunity to hang out with the other trainees and go to one of two bars here. I use bar in the loosest sense of the word since almost everyone here is Muslim and doesn’t drink so we’re usually the only people there. I honestly have no idea how they stay in business but I don’t ask questions. It’s the only place in town to get a cold beer and if you’re willing to wait the hour they take to make you can get french fries too. They even have Ketchup!
So that’s pretty much my life here for the time being. We all found out last week where our sites are going to be and now we’re on a week long trip to visit our sites. My site’s in the north eastern corner of the country and I’m about 20km away from Mali, which means that anyone who wants to come visit can fly into Bamako and we’ll be relatively close to my site (maybe 8 hours or so).
My region is the hottest in Guinea and supposedly temperatures during the dry season can reach 125 degrees. Yay! Right now I’m in the regional capital, KanKan. Hence the internet access. We just got in last night but so far the city seems really cool. It’s the second largest city in the country after Conakry so there’s a lot going on. The market is supposedly gigantic and there are a lot of really cool artisans here from Guinea and Mali. Tomorrow I get to go visit my site and I’ll finally get to see my home for the next two years. I can’t wait. I’ll try and post an update when I get back if I can make time. For now though I’ve got to go since my time at the internet café is almost up. I hope everyone is doing well back home. Peace.
~Jesse
July 11, 2008
First Impressions
Hello everybody!
So I made it to Guinea in one piece. We arrived in Conakry yesterday around 9:00am after about 20 hours of travel. Our journey from the states was long and very tiring. It began with a bus from Philly up to JFK, then a plane to Dakar, Senegal, and finally another plane from Dakar to Conakry.
Arriving in Conakry was quite an experience. Peace Corps met us at the luggage pick up and I'm sure we made quite a scene with everyone walking around introducing themselves. Meeting a lot of the staff who would be training us and helping us during service was really exciting. There's a group of volunteers who delayed returning to the states at the end of their service so they could welcome and help train us. All the volunteers I've met here have been really awesome and have immediately made us feel right at home. They've been an unbelievable resource for trying to figure out life here in Guinea. I feel like I could pepper them with questions for days and still not run out of things to ask. Fortunately they don't seem to mind.
I haven't had an opportunity to see much of Conakry yet since the only time I've been out of the Peace Corps compound has been on the ride from the airport and on two short trips to the closest market. The little I have seen though has been really eye opening. The poverty here is unbelievable. The streets are lined with little run down shacks and are covered in trash. And I literally mean covered, when I'm walking I have to make a conscious effort to avoid stepping in it.
Despite the poverty the Guineans I've met have seemed genuinely happy and most of them have been extremely friendly to me. When walking down the street many people will greet you and ask you how you are doing. White people are quite a novelty in Guinea and we get a lot of stares as well as people (mostly small children) shouting "Foté" at us (which is Susu for white person). The shouting isn't malicious though, it's almost a game that the kids here play, it's really more of a chant than a shout.
Even though the city is dirty I still really like it here. The climate is really beautiful (although stiflingly hot) and the trash, stares, and shouts lend the city flavor.
The Peace Corps compound itself is really nice. It's walled in and has guards posted 24/7 at the gates. There are two main building which consist of the volunteer house and the administrative building. The living quarters are really nice and another trainee was talking about how it's almost like we're on the set of "Real World Conakry". We even have AC, which is a luxury I won't have once we leave here on Monday for our training. So I'm enjoying it while it lasts.
I'll leave you guys with a picture I took from the compound roof to give you an idea of what it looks like here.
So I made it to Guinea in one piece. We arrived in Conakry yesterday around 9:00am after about 20 hours of travel. Our journey from the states was long and very tiring. It began with a bus from Philly up to JFK, then a plane to Dakar, Senegal, and finally another plane from Dakar to Conakry.
Arriving in Conakry was quite an experience. Peace Corps met us at the luggage pick up and I'm sure we made quite a scene with everyone walking around introducing themselves. Meeting a lot of the staff who would be training us and helping us during service was really exciting. There's a group of volunteers who delayed returning to the states at the end of their service so they could welcome and help train us. All the volunteers I've met here have been really awesome and have immediately made us feel right at home. They've been an unbelievable resource for trying to figure out life here in Guinea. I feel like I could pepper them with questions for days and still not run out of things to ask. Fortunately they don't seem to mind.
I haven't had an opportunity to see much of Conakry yet since the only time I've been out of the Peace Corps compound has been on the ride from the airport and on two short trips to the closest market. The little I have seen though has been really eye opening. The poverty here is unbelievable. The streets are lined with little run down shacks and are covered in trash. And I literally mean covered, when I'm walking I have to make a conscious effort to avoid stepping in it.
Despite the poverty the Guineans I've met have seemed genuinely happy and most of them have been extremely friendly to me. When walking down the street many people will greet you and ask you how you are doing. White people are quite a novelty in Guinea and we get a lot of stares as well as people (mostly small children) shouting "Foté" at us (which is Susu for white person). The shouting isn't malicious though, it's almost a game that the kids here play, it's really more of a chant than a shout.
Even though the city is dirty I still really like it here. The climate is really beautiful (although stiflingly hot) and the trash, stares, and shouts lend the city flavor.
The Peace Corps compound itself is really nice. It's walled in and has guards posted 24/7 at the gates. There are two main building which consist of the volunteer house and the administrative building. The living quarters are really nice and another trainee was talking about how it's almost like we're on the set of "Real World Conakry". We even have AC, which is a luxury I won't have once we leave here on Monday for our training. So I'm enjoying it while it lasts.
I'll leave you guys with a picture I took from the compound roof to give you an idea of what it looks like here.
Btw here's my address for people who want to send me mail.
Jesse Reffsin
Corps De La Paix Americain
B.P. 1927
Conakry, Guinée (West Africa)
If anyone decides to send a package send it via the post office and not DHL. You have to pay to receive packages in Guinea and a package via post costs me about $1 to receive whereas a package via DHL can cost upwards of $100.
Ok well I have to go because I'm using one of the only computers here and I don't want to tie it up for too long. I'll probably be pretty cut off from the internet for a while but I'll try my best to keep the blog updated. Until then, au revoir.
~Jesse
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