new whiteman on campus

11 April 2014

I have grown relative accustomed to hearing “WHITEMAN” shouted whenever I walk by a group of kids and drive by in a truck. It’s really not that weird anymore because I know that they’re just shouting out partially in shock and partially in awe. I’m glad to be the new whiteman around and just hope that I can leave them with positive memories of this whiteman. 

I’ve been at site for almost two weeks now and already so much has happened and I feel more comfortable that I ever imagined I would this soon. The first day I arrived I was greeted by the teachers and their families and of course some cake! Here's a crooked photo of me with the teachers, chief cook and chairman of Matanvat Centre School.

My family is very supportive and kind, I live right by the school and the kids seem to be happy that I’m there. Every morning I wake up around 6am, build a fire to boil water for coffee or tea, read a little, go to school and observe/assist in the primary classes (I’ll start co-teaching in a few weeks), work on organizing/cleaning up the library (yes, I have pretty much become a librarian. I bet Mrs. Mott would never have guessed that…crazy lady), work on preparation for my upcoming teaching workshop and talk with some kids. I go home for lunch at 12 and go back to school at 1 to continue work on the library. After school I do some yoga or other exercise, sometimes go for a little swim in the ocean, take a bucket shower and eat dinner with my host family all before going to bed between 8-9pm. Life is just so simple I love it.

Here's my house--bamboo walls, natangura leaves to make the roof and some timber thrown in. You can see the shelves in front to the right? That's where I wash my dishes.

People don’t use watches here, they use a bell loud enough to communicate with the entire community. My community is Seventh Day Adventist which among various dietary restrictions (no pig, shellfish or fish without scales) also means we go to church on Saturdays. On Saturday mornings I wake up, wait for a bell to tell me I should start getting ready for church and then wait for another bell to tell me it’s time to go to church. We get to church at about 9am and it lasts until 12:30pm when we go home for a quick lunch and a small spel (rest) then go back to church around 3:30-6 to close the celebration of Sabbath with lots of songs. Anyone how knows me knows that I know very, very little about any aspect of religion so this has been a lot for me but church is a big part of my host family’s life so I don’t mind at all. 

When I need water I have to walk with two buckets over to the pump which is about a 3 minute walk from my house through my Dadi’s coconut plantation. Along the way I pass a few casual cows grazing on the plantation weeds and sometimes some friendly frogs too. Last Sunday I started the preparation of my garden, clearing a rather large area of weeds with my bush knife and four helpful young boys. This Sunday we will plant some tomatoes, cucumbers, island cabbage, Chinese cabbage, garlic, spring onion, eggplant, basil, snake bean, chili, and peanuts! Hopefully I’ll be able to feed myself within the next few months! 

I now have a dog AND a cat. The dog doesn’t love me as much as the cat though–probably because the dog has lice so I don’t let it come into my house. The cat’s name is Shaki (short for Shakira because she is a fierce, powerfully little lioness of a kitten) and she has become very talented at climbing up the walls of my house and out between the space between my wall and roof. On a related animal note, yesterday I watched a fully grown cat drinking milk from the tit of a dog. 

My computer seems to be on the fritz so unfortunately I don’t have any photos to share. PLEASE everyone if you could keep my computer in your thoughts I and it would appreciate it. I can’t let it die on me already…

I probably won’t come back for internet until the school break in the beginning of May so until then, thanks for tuning in folks. Ale!

and here's a beautiful sunset....