03.28.06
Hi! I have been back in Ndu for a week now. It was kind of a hard adjustment after a week at the beach and two weeks with my friends—but I made it. Just after I got back we had a training seminar for health club coordinators so I jumped right in, leading that seminar and teaching six sessions over two days. I opted to spend almost all Sunday inside, listening to the radio, doing WAY too many crossword puzzles and relaxing. It was great. Yesterday we went down to Talla to “meet and greet.” There’s a big celebration this weekend for the Presbyterian church so the whole village is super busy planning—not so busy that they couldn’t share one too many bottles of palm wine with us, but busy all the same. I promised to wear my African outfit and dance on Sunday…I’m hoping they won’t remember but not betting on it! We also bushwhacked around some farms looking for Matt’s nursery and I was sure we’d come across a poisonous spider or get a chigger or something…just paranoia, thankfully! They are so welcoming there and we always get one or two speeches in our honor, which is entertaining…especially when it’s from the men who’ve been at the mimbo house all day. So I am staying busy, I have so many ideas for potential projects that I need to sit down a figure out which ones are realistic for me to accomplish in my time here. That’s the next thing on my ‘to do’ list…after buying bunk beds and a new mattress.

Cameroon is often overlooked on the world-scale. I mean, honestly, did you know where Cameroon was before I came here? I did only after looking it up. But it’s been in the news a lot recently; Goodwill Games athletes running away, bird flu, and Nigerian boat crashes…but I assure you, things here are fine. Just waiting the rains and dealing with a few measles, rabies, and cholera outbreaks (don’t worry, among my 853 vaccinations, I received both of those and I boil and filter my water like a pro). It’s funny to hear about Cameroon on the BBC or VOA or even see it on CNN.

I can’t believe that it’s spring there! I missed winter…it’s a strange feeling. When I came into work today the screen saver on my computer was entitled, “Winter Wonderland. Steamboat Springs, Colorado”…Yeah, I was so excited. I brought all my co-workers in a proudly showed them. Made my day but also made me a little sad that I missed the snow. It has felt like summer since…well since I arrived in October (for those of you who are keeping track—and I am—that’s 6 months ago!!). Aside from a few rainy days and cool nights, it’s felt very much like August since I got here. Mind you, it’s still “very cold” here in Ndu according to all Cameroonians. It’s not uncommon to see my neighbors setting out to work wearing coats and hats and children playing in one-piece ski suits. I just laugh now and may stock pile scarves to give as gifts.

Since rainy season is a bit delayed (after two weeks of “early rain” in February it’s stopped) the sky has been super clear. Each night when I go out the stars amaze me. It’s even more amazing than in Bandjoun since we’re higher in elevation and further from a big city. I heard a BBC special on the “African night sky” and people who set out to see and study it…I can understand why. There are billions and billions of stars and I can only recognize some of the constellations—I think it may be that some of from the Southern Hemisphere and some are just too far away to be seen elsewhere. It’s incredible.

So that’s all for now. Hope all is going well there. Happy spring break for those of you still schooling (“schooling” is some of my special English slipping in, sorry). The rest of you, enjoy the warmer weather not ignoring the chance for a May snowstorm in common Colorado fashion. Keep in touch!
Oh…and thanks for all the emails regarding my mumu.. I appreciate the supportive/sarcastic thoughts. And no…I have not gained that much weight, but thanks for asking!

Picture: There are a few bugs here...this one was killed and stuck to the wall just like that so we were able to document it's size.

20.03.06 I just got back from IST (in-service training) in Kribi…because we’re lucky and our APCD is great we got to have it there, along the coast. It was great. The beach was beautiful and aside from the 8-5 “training” part the week was really fun—just kidding Kim, the training was great too :) It was really weird to be in francophone Cameroon again since I’ve been speaking only “special English” for 3 months. But I survived and realized how badly I need a French tutor. Kribi is great…it’s a tourist spot since it’s along the beach so they’re more used to white people—we still paid too much, got deranged, and stuck out (especially when traveling in a pack of 15). We ate fresh seafood each day, one night we went to a restaurant (a friend of a counterpart) and had shrimp, fish and crab for free…amazing. We also ate at a little rasta restaurant along the beach that was just picnic tables on the rocks-had flowers and shells everywhere, the waves were crashing on the rocks as we ate fish and shrimp that they'd just caught and the owner (I think) played music in the background. I could detail all the wonderful food but I’ll just say that it was some form of fresh fish each day. We had some karaoke-like singing each night at the hotel bar too—it usually involved one or two European tourists having one too many, buying drinks all around and the ‘singer’ (if you will) leading the whole bar in a rousing rendition of “When the Saints.” There were Glamour Shot meets Little Mermaid photo shoots on a rock along the beach, a few jellyfish incidents, waterfalls right into the ocean…a great week. Now I’m back in Yaounde on my way back to Ndu.

Before IST was International Women’s Day (March 8^th) and holiday I was quite unaware of before coming here. But it’s a huge deal…parades, singing, dancing, every woman in town in dresses made from matching material. Intense. I had my Kaba (or mumu) made and I’ll just say that if the camera adds 10 pounds, the Kaba adds 40! It was an interesting experience. The women were very proud, marching up and down the street holding signs and singing—all the authority figures came and watched. And then everyone retires to the bar to celebrate “their day.” I was leaving the next day for Yaounde and had an “ant incident” to take care of, so I didn’t join the women at the bar. I’m a little disappointed, however, because it seems there were a few entertaining events—one including a full out brawl in the street. There’s always next year.

It was great to see my friends from training…many of them I hadn’t seen since we left Bandjoun in December. We were able to tell about our posts and work, talk about possible projects, ideas, etc. I think we’re all planning a few trips to each other’s posts to help with camps or trainings. We also watched a “Globetrekker” movie on Cameroon. It was really interesting and I’m sure is available in America…isn’t everything? I think Globetrekker is a PBS show but the movies are available on the Internet and at libraries I’d think. Anyhow, if you’re interested, it’s pretty cool. That’s all for now. Hopefully I’ll have more soon!

PS-My March Madness bracket sucks…apparently knowing nothing about any of the teams this year + a few upsets, is ruining the whole thing.

PICTURES:
#1. Lindsey and me at the beach. We were all hoping for a great sunset but the haze/clouds didn't allow for that all week...amazing how easy it is to find somthing to complain about :)
#2. Jenny, Stacy, Lindsey, me and Lindsay at the beach in our pagnes.
#3. The waterfalls into the ocean.
#4. Women's Day 2006. Me with a few of my co-workers, Emmaculate, Patience and Rose. Like I said before, the camera adds 10 pounds, the Kaba adds 40! Very unflattering but I felt like I was wearing a tent all day and almost tripped on it once...I plan to wear it often, especially when pounding laundry or something like that.