Since I arrived in Mali I’ve come to realize that most things here are completely different from the life I know back home. People here emphasize community and family while back home we tend to emphasize individuality and small families … Continue reading →
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I have less than a week left of my service here in Mali and thought I would offer 5 reflections on my time here. 1. Peace Corps will change my perspective on life forever. From the moment I met people … Continue reading →
These past two years have been amazing and will probably define who I am the rest of my life. Everything that happens now will be relative to my experience in Mali. A part of me is sad to go because … Continue reading →
Why do we fight? Whether it is with internal or external forces it is our desire to fight that pushes humanity forward. I’ve been pondering the question if humans are inherently bad or good and come to the conclusion that … Continue reading →
A child-like man is not a man whose development has been arrested; on the contrary, he is a man who has given himself a chance of continuing to develop long after most adults have muffled themselves in the cocoon of … Continue reading →
One of my friends came to visit from The States recently and during her visit there is one instance that sticks in my mind. We were riding the bus from Bamako to Sevare when unsurprisingly our bus broke down in … Continue reading →
It’s strange being a Peace Corps volunteer. It’s such a rich and crazy experience that there are very few people who can truly understand what it means to be a volunteer. The volunteers who were here in Mali when they started sending volunteers here 40 years have completely different experiences from those of us who [...]
The world we live in today revolves around the collection and use of information. Whether it’s checking our e-mail, surfing the internet, or buying things online we live continually connected lives. One of the most prominent and exciting companies out there is facebook which boasts over 500 million users around the world, or roughly 1 [...]
In 1961 JFK created The Peace Corps with three goals in mind: Helping the people of interested countries in meeting their need for trained men and women. Helping promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of the peoples served. Helping promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans. So [...]
Si Nafa means “the benefits of Shea.” The women’s cooperative was started over twenty years ago and although headquartered in Kita consists of over 15 villages in and around Kita. When I first arrived their primary activity was to produce Shea butter and produce “Bogolan” fabric. Through my time here I have worked with them [...]
In 2008 The Doing Business Report rated Mali 162 on a scale with 1 being the easiest to do business. There are many reasons why it’s so difficult to do business in Mali. One of the reasons it’s so difficult is there are no rules or regulations. For example if I came up with an [...]
The question isn’t whether or not it’s difficult to do business in Mali, most would agree that it is difficult with a resounding yes. The question is WHY is it so difficult to do business. If I ever figure out how to upload pics to WordPress I’ll try and go through the cast of characters [...]
I remember when I first came to Mali just how hot it was. The days were scorching hot and my nights were spent sweating any and all liquid I had consumed throughout the day. It’s funny to think back to that time because I would carry a fan around with me everywhere I went. I [...]
Arrived in Bamako Thursday night and after not getting any sleep hitched a ride with Vieux back to Kita Friday morning. Incontrovertibly jetlagged I then spent the rest of the day knocked out. I then proceeded to spend today more or less asleep as well. Hopefully I’ll be up and running by tomorrow. How does [...]
It’s the start of a new year and once again we get to cast off the shackles of a year of missed opportunities and broken promises to make them anew, a time for rebirth and a time to rethink how we perceive ourselves and those around us. I look ahead to what’s to come and [...]
I’m back in Mali and it’s been a while since I last updated and for that I apologize, it’s been mostly due to spotty internet connection. I’ve spent the past few weeks back here in Mali and mostly hanging out at site aside from meeting up with some other volunteers for a Thanksgiving get together. [...]
After being on medical hold in Bamako Peace Corps decided to medically evacuate me to The States and that is where I find myself at present. How did I get here you might ask? My doctor told me originally that I wouldn’t be medically evacuated but after talking with her some more Washington had decided
About a week ago I was at the Peace Corps house in Kita hanging out as usual when it happened. I was walking through the hallway when my leg started shaking involuntarily. At that moment I knew that I was going to have a seizure and just barely made it to the couch before I
Just a quick update to everything that’s been going on. A few weeks ago I had malaria (which may or may not have been the second time, I started taking medicine before I was tested the first time), and currently I am fighting off bronchitis. It’s been tough staying healthy here during rainy season. Last
I came in to Bamako to put on a session for food security and the plan was to come in, do the sesh, go back home for a few days, and then come in for swearin before the new stage gets installed. Easy peasy, or so I thought…… I took the night bus going from
My friend Jaemin came and visited me from the States a week ago. To get him I took the night bus from Kita to Bamako, took a cab to the airport, picked him up at 5 am, then cabbed it back to the bus station and then bussed it back to Kita all in the
Through my time here I have seen many things that make me think that Mali will never change and the chances of “development” working are but a distant reality. I’ve seen girls who are barely teenagers walk around with their kids, people not wanting to shake my hand with their left because they use that
A year ago I traveled to Mali, was shuttled through the night to Tubaniso (Peace Corps Mali training facility) where I was told from now on I would be pooping into a hole in the ground. I spent several months after that struggling to learn a new language, getting used to African culture, acclimating to
Out of the night that covers me, Black as the Pit from pole to pole, I thank whatever gods may be For my unconquerable soul. In the fell clutch of circumstance I have not winced nor cried aloud. Under the bludgeonings of chance My head is bloody, but unbowed. Beyond this place of wrath and
Here’s a picture of one of the kids I play with on a daily basis. His name is Abdoulaye and he’s the son of one of the girls in the women’s cooperative at Si Nafa. He routinely pees/poops on me and eats dirt. He also cries all the time but he’s just a baby so
The mobile bank I was supposed to work with went through a reorganization and they elected a new president. Her name is Lamoudin Diallo. As a Diakite, Diallos are my joking cousins so upon her finding out I was a Diakite she was like “Eh, you’re my slave!” In The States that might seem controversial
I’ve looked back on the past year of blog posts and it’s hard to read some times because the person who I was when writing those crazy delirious blog posts isn’t necessarily the person I am now. Nevertheless I press on. I’m in a strange funk right now. I’ve started the restaurant and from what
Almost a year in and I suppose it’s time to take stock of my progress so far. So far things have pretty much gone as planned. I looked back at my aspiration statement I filled out before I really knew anything and I’m pretty much doing what I set out to do. Sometimes I wonder
I had a great time in Europe. For a while there I wasn’t sure whether or not I would be able to go because of the volcanic ash cloud that has been disrupting flights all over Europe for the past month. One of my friends had tried flying out a few days earlier to go
One thing this trip has shown me is it’s just not worth it to stress out about things you can’t control. Twice now this stupid volcano has threatened my travel plans but so far so good. I head back to Mali on Saturday so hopefully nothing happens again. If I can wax poetic for a
Some of the things I’ve enjoyed since landing here in Barcelona: - being able to wear real shoes - feeling cold - taking as many hot baths as i want - being able to sleep through the night - sangria - seafood - family
A few days ago I was at my womens’ cooperative when my contractor asked me to come check out the inside of the restaurant so I followed him. Unfortunately I didn’t see the plank in front of me because my visibility was limited by my hat and ended up smashing my nose into it. After [...]
I finally get it. After being here I kept on wondering why Mali is so poor, for that matter all of Africa, and HOW it got so poor. To avoid getting into trouble I’ll describe the process by which I got internet for the stage house in Kita.
When I first arrived in Kita I was [...]
[tags pea, pov]
As I write this I spent most of my night fending off one of our drunk neighbors who kept on wandering into our concession asking for some chewing gum from my host sister. What a strange night. So there’s been lots of change lately. I recently moved into a new house. Between having [...]
I was at the new office looking around when I came across a book, Individuality and Innovation in African Development, which I found to be pretty interesting. I had not only found a book on development work in Africa but it was specifically about Mali and had used research from several villages around the country [...]
I know it’s been a while since I last updated so here’s what’s been going on for the past few weeks.
I’ve been working on a proposal for a restaurant in Kita. Basically I would get the funds to build my women’s cooperative a building in their concession. They would do the rest in terms of [...]
Yesterday I was supposed to have a language lesson when my tutor canceled on me. His sister had just passed away and he was on his way to Bamako. Today I came back to my house and in my sink I had let a pot soak in some water only to find a dead lizard [...]
So it’s been a while since I last updated my blog. Overall things have pretty much gone back to normal. I spend my days going to hang out with the women of Si Nafa and then the guys at my blacksmith/president of the mobile bank. After that I usually grab a sandwich and then either [...]
No one expects us to save the world (or at least I hope not) but what we can do is help a little bit here and there.
It’s pretty hard to believe but I’ve been in Mali for nearly six months now. I remember talking to my country director about it and the way he put it was right. Life here in Mali is like a time warp where each day seems like it lasts forever while the months just fly by. [...]
The difference between a paved street in Mopti and an unpaved street is like night and day….
I think that a lot of the problems I see in Africa development-wise is not for lack of funds per se but perhaps it’s because the organizational structure in Mali is shaped like an hourglass. There are many government officials and obviously they carry a lot of clout. It seems like the rest [...]
This has been a crazy year. So much has happened it’s hard to just recap everything in one convenient blog post. I guess all I can say is that life is a strange and wondrous thing. We should all live our lives to the fullest because if not, then what are we [...]
So much of what we do here is trial and error perhaps the greatest ingredient for success is a willingness to fail.
America, to me, still represents all that’s possible. America is still a place where anyone can go and be incredibly successful (in life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness).
[tags america, economy, greed]
So I’ve been reading up on how the economy is doing and it doesn’t seem like it’s doing too great. Unemployment is in double digits, the government is spending way above average, and even though many say that the economy is stabilizing it is fragile at best. It got to me wondering [...]
Today I had my first radio broadcast. One of my sitemates, Jess, had been pushing me to start doing a radio show. So after pushing it off for seemingly as long as I could I went with Jess to the radio station with my homologue El-Haji last week and we were told that Peace Corps [...]
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