My view on training has been similar: it`s intense, especially with one day off per week. Most everything, including simple things, such as using the latrine and doing laundry, has required some form of adjustment here. Happily, we are making those adjustments and what once was new seems more normal now.
I live in Ouahigouya (why-he-goy-ah), the 4th largest city in Burkina. My host family is wonderful. My host father, Harouna, is the director of a primary school in Ouahigouya. My host mother, Beebata, maintains the house and sells water, bissap, zoom koom, and other refreshments at their streetfront window. She spends a lot of time taking care of Alim, my 11 month old host brother. My host sister Aguiratou is about 20 and spends the most time working at the window, selling refreshments. Alimata (12) and Romatta (9) are my other two host sisters, and Mohammed (14) is my other host brother. The three of them are in school, and they each do Karate (Jessi and I went to one of Romatta`s sessions last week, which was fun!) Romatta and Mohammed are my professors in French, Mooré, and Burkinabé life, and they are incredibly patient with me. When I first met Alim he was curious about me, while at the same time terrified of me, but now he will reach out for me to hold him when I am around. I like to hold him and play cell phone ring tones, which he dances to by turning his head right and left. Its hilarious, and I need a video of it before we leave.
My family has an outdoor courtyard area that is surrounded by bedrooms, a kitchen building, a living room, and the refreshment storefront. My family has electricity, and to my amazement, satellite TV. I usually start and end each day watching France 24`s news programs, so I can stay up to date.
I also sleep outside frequently to escape the heat. However, today it rained and the world is full of red/orange mud, so I will probably bunk inside at Jessi's tonight when I visit. The rain storms here are truly a sight to see. You see dark black clouds with a green tint approaching, and then the clouds turn brown. Intense winds picking up sand and leaves and everything else hurdle towards you, and last about 5 minutes. Then, in the midst of the dust storm the rain comes, and it is practically raining mud. Sometimes the rain cancels the wind out, and other times the wind continues to howl. This morning I got caught in the dust storm portion of the storm on my way to the training center. It is difficult to bike in the storms, and my mouth was filled with dirt by the time I made it in. When the rain came the winds didnt subside, and it seriously looked like hurrican footage with the intense rain and wind. Then, a couple hours after the rain the land looks dry like it has't rained in weeks. It rains 3-4 times a week during this season, and while it is not fun to get caught in the storm, they are fun to watch.
Sitting here and typing makes me realiwe how fast time is flying. Next week we will find out where our site placement is already, and the week after we will visit.
We hope you are all doing well, and thoroughly enjoy receiving mail and emails from people. Take care! We'll post our site announcements next week when we receive them! Salut!
Tyler
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
PST & More!
Okay, so we readily admit that finding the time to blog has proved to be much more difficult than we originally planned. How to catch you all up on two plus weeks?!
Last we reported, we were eating mangoes and it was hot. Since then, we continue to eat mangoes, and yes... it is hot! PST, or Pre-service training, however, is much more than that.
As many of you already know, Tyler and I live with seperate host families. Tyler lives in the city of Ouahigouya where our main training center is located. I live in a small village called Bogoya F - about 7 km from the city (about a 35-40 min bike ride one way). I live with a very nice family called the Kindos. My host-father, Oussman, has already re-named me with the Mooré name Zallisa. Whenever I sleep outside to escape the insulated heat of my house, Oussman is sleeping close by to make sure I feel safe. My host-mother Salimata, takes good care to make sure I am fed, have a clean hangar (i.e. porch), have hot water for my morning bucket baths, and anything else to make me comfortable. My host sister Mariam is always smiling and laughing with me when I try to make her little boy Issouf smile. She is so bright and has a way of making me feel quite welcomed (as do they all). And then there is Adama, my 17-yr old host-brother. He is my cultural guide, French & Mooré teacher, my meal buddy, and friend. I do not know what I would do without him!
When I am not with my family in village, playing Mancala or frisbee with the neighborhood kids, or watching the Burkina Faso vs Coté d`Ivoire fùtbol match on one of the only TVs in the village, then it is all about PST. As a GEE (Girl's empowerement and education) trainee, I switch off between three different villages and the city for language and technical training. French is going better than expected, but I am still far from where I need to be before training ends (I will be required to have an intermediate low comprehension to be sworn in as a volunteer in August). Technical training is diverse and includes topics such as the Burkinabé education system, social issues concerning Burkinabé women and girls, how to start and maintain girl's clubs, and more.
Training with solely GEE trainees occurs about 4 days a week in our villages. For 2 days a week, myself and the other GEE gang join the SE (Secondary Education) trainees, including Tyler, in the city for group training on topics of health, security, culture, and other relevant subjects to help us navigate Burkinabé society. PST is very very helpful, but intense and often times exaughsting. Sundays we have the day off and are able to spend our time as we choose. When I go to the city for group training, I am able to stay with Tyler and his family (who are amazing - though I'll let him tell you about them).
Well, there are a zillion other things I could say, but my lunch break is over and I need to head back to PST. We miss you all tremendoulsy and hope to write more soon!
- Jessi
Last we reported, we were eating mangoes and it was hot. Since then, we continue to eat mangoes, and yes... it is hot! PST, or Pre-service training, however, is much more than that.
As many of you already know, Tyler and I live with seperate host families. Tyler lives in the city of Ouahigouya where our main training center is located. I live in a small village called Bogoya F - about 7 km from the city (about a 35-40 min bike ride one way). I live with a very nice family called the Kindos. My host-father, Oussman, has already re-named me with the Mooré name Zallisa. Whenever I sleep outside to escape the insulated heat of my house, Oussman is sleeping close by to make sure I feel safe. My host-mother Salimata, takes good care to make sure I am fed, have a clean hangar (i.e. porch), have hot water for my morning bucket baths, and anything else to make me comfortable. My host sister Mariam is always smiling and laughing with me when I try to make her little boy Issouf smile. She is so bright and has a way of making me feel quite welcomed (as do they all). And then there is Adama, my 17-yr old host-brother. He is my cultural guide, French & Mooré teacher, my meal buddy, and friend. I do not know what I would do without him!
When I am not with my family in village, playing Mancala or frisbee with the neighborhood kids, or watching the Burkina Faso vs Coté d`Ivoire fùtbol match on one of the only TVs in the village, then it is all about PST. As a GEE (Girl's empowerement and education) trainee, I switch off between three different villages and the city for language and technical training. French is going better than expected, but I am still far from where I need to be before training ends (I will be required to have an intermediate low comprehension to be sworn in as a volunteer in August). Technical training is diverse and includes topics such as the Burkinabé education system, social issues concerning Burkinabé women and girls, how to start and maintain girl's clubs, and more.
Training with solely GEE trainees occurs about 4 days a week in our villages. For 2 days a week, myself and the other GEE gang join the SE (Secondary Education) trainees, including Tyler, in the city for group training on topics of health, security, culture, and other relevant subjects to help us navigate Burkinabé society. PST is very very helpful, but intense and often times exaughsting. Sundays we have the day off and are able to spend our time as we choose. When I go to the city for group training, I am able to stay with Tyler and his family (who are amazing - though I'll let him tell you about them).
Well, there are a zillion other things I could say, but my lunch break is over and I need to head back to PST. We miss you all tremendoulsy and hope to write more soon!
- Jessi
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