In the midst of wrapping up my work in Douroum, I started a small project with the remaining funds left from American donations. Below is the outline of the project, as well as some photos.

École Maternelle Project After many years without a nursery school in Douroum, (the nearest one is in Mandama) the village has finally endorsed their own school, located near the Primary School. The school is relatively new; last year, classes were held under a sekko hangar (a shelter of sorts) but this year the school was given its own classroom and 2 teachers. There are approximately 60 students enrolled and their curriculum includes learning the alphabet, basic French, and how to play team sports. The purpose of this project is to provide tables, benches and a new cement floor to the Nursery School in Douroum. Thus far, the Development Committee of Douroum has contributed 100,000 CFA towards the school in order to purchase materials like markers, paper and chalkboards, as well as to fix the doors and windows. The dues paid by each child will go toward the teacher’s salaries but, despite all this, the École Maternelle’s funds aren’t sufficient to cover further repairs.

I held a meeting at the beginning of October with the members of the Bureau, including the Secretary, Treasurer and President, as well as key members of the community in order to troubleshoot this problem. We decided that members of the community will contribute money from their own pockets and that I will meet them the rest of the way, financially. This group also includes the Chef of the village of Douroum, as well as the parents of the École Maternelle students. We also agreed to repair the floor of the classroom as well as construct brand-new tables and benches for the children. They currently sit on plastic mats which are not conducive to a productive learning environment. We chose members of the community of Douroum to do the manual labor and also came up with a price chart so that the community would know how their money was being utilized. We listed the following materials as necessary for the project: Wooden Planks (6m)Machine Labor to cut the woodNailsWood Varnish & Wood Varnish DilutantCementCost of LaborCost of Transport As with previous projects, we chose high quality materials when purchasing, so as to ensure the longevity of the project. This project is also much more sustainable since the classroom is one of a few that are locked and protected once the school day is over. We also over-budgeted each item so that we were able to raise enough money. The estimated grand total of this project was 100,000F.

Immediately after this meeting, on October 14, 2010, myself and the carpenter went to Guider to purchase the project materials and organize their transport back to Douroum. In one day we were able to purchase everything, transport it to Douroum and came in under-budget. The benches and tables were constructed on October 15, 16, and 17, and when school resumed on October 18, 2010, the project was installed.

This project has gone very smoothly, considering how many projects can take months to complete. Furthermore, the students’ classroom routine was not disturbed and, hopefully, they will be able to learn better in their new environment. The community of Douroum was involved in every step of this project and they are incredibly grateful to you, the project donors, for your assistance!

Funds Remaining after Tra Roof Project: 306,823F Total Project Cost-to-Date: 95,000F Total Project Funds Left: 211,823F

As I near my close-of-service conference this month, work is slowing down (though not coming to a halt anytime soon) and the season of Ramadan is upon us. I've decided to fast until my conference, which entails 4am eating/hydrating sessions and a lot of down time on my hands.

As such, I've been reflecting on my service and lessons learned, and, rather than writing another post on small items, I'd like to hear from those of you who read this. Simply put, do you have questions that have gone unanswered during the course of my service? Perhaps I haven't explained my work clearly or the nature of life in Cameroon. Either way, let me know- I'd be happy to give it my best shot :)

As most of you know, I’ve spent the bulk of my service working to promote the nutritional and agricultural benefits of soy to different villages and organized groups in my area. While initially, I had hoped that farmers would cultivate soy and either guard it at home or prepare with daily meals, I also harbored hopes that there would be a market, one day, to sell soy. I was content enough that women were preparing soy, but this past week I found something out: All these months of worrying that I misled people in thinking there was a market for soy in our area were in vain!

Turns out there IS a market for soy that just started up this year due to the fact that so many people planted soy last year, and are now selling in the market in Douroum. Granted, I cannot take any credit at all for putting words of encouragement into action- that goes to the people who are selling soy in the marketplace. They have initiated the idea on their own and their very presence has motivated many other people to cultivate soy this year. Furthermore, it is important to recognize that, although I did assist people in realizing the importance of soy, their current motivation for selling soy is because the market prices for corn, millet and peanuts are incredibly high right now. Soy is the cheapest item in the market for consumers and, while I sympathize that other items are more expensive, I am equally content that soy has found its niche. Now that the economic benefits of selling soy (1 giant tasse is about 700CFA, a little over 1USD) are visible, there are even women in Douroum and the outlying villages that are buying soy and re-selling it for a small profit. Enough soy is being cultivated to make a profit and I hope that in a long-term sense people will continue to cultivate and sell their soy; perhaps, one day, Douroum’s soy will be sold in mass quantities and shipped to larger cities alongside corn, peanuts and millet.

This discovery has made not only my week or month, but has completely validated the entirety of my Peace Corps service. After almost 2 years of talking about soy (seemingly nonstop), people are finally beginning to embrace soy and take it seriously as a product that can provide both economical and nutritional benefits. So, it would seem as if where there's a will, there's a way.

This year the rains have come later than usual. Last year it was around June or so, and this year not until July, and for a while people were panicking. Farming is a person’s livelihood and although the rains are now starting, Douroum seems to be missing the majority of the storms. If we were to win an award for the most windstorms, I suppose we’d be at the front of the pack. In theory, we should be lucky to have rain at all, but the lack of rain this year will have long-term, damaging effects on the local population. Market prices will be driven up, harvests smaller and, with Ramadan right around the corner, cultivation will have to be done under difficult conditions.

About halfway from Guider, Libe (below) is the marking point for where the rains are falling the most, and then up to Ndjarra, but as soon as you leave Vourmouch, the rains seem to head towards Mosgoy or Mayo Oulo.

The local bridge (below) has been in disrepair for several years now, but this year it finally fell apart, including the dirt road that SODECOTON, a local monopoly, constructed in order to bring cotton from the villages to the city.

While I have been updating this blog with project results and photos, there is also another site that houses this information that my family helped me create. Please note that this site has changed from its old address.

The new link is: http://www.princeton.edu/~elweiss/Water4Douroum/Welcome.html

The purpose of this project is to provide secure and stable roofing to the Primary School (EP) of Tra. The school is run by the Parents Association of Tra which means they collect money to do general repairs, pay a certain percentage of the teacher’s salaries and see to the overall well-being of the students. The EP of Tra was built in the year 2000 by the Parents Association and has since fallen into significant disrepair due to a lack of funds. When the school was originally built, the roof was constructed with thick metal sheeting but, due to ten years’ usage and the elements of weather, the sheeting was eventually replaced with cheap aluminum sheeting. After the cheaper sheeting was damaged and unusable, the roof was left open to the elements and most of the wooden beams have rotted. Not only is this a safety hazard for the students, but the gaping spaces in the roofing allow rain, dust and garbage to enter the classroom which affect the health of the staff and students, as well as damage classroom supplies i.e. the school desks and benches, floors, notebooks, etc. While the Ministry of Education of Cameroon provides a Director and the teachers to the EP of Tra, they do not finance the maintenance and upkeep of the school itself. This is the responsibility of the community of Tra.

I was first contacted in the beginning of April 2010 by the President of the Parents Association and we organized a meeting with the community of Tra for April 6, 2010. One of my first questions to the group was: Why have you waited 10 years to finally fix the roof of the EP? Why have you not simply gathered the necessary funds and fixed what was needed? Their response was as follows: Each time that they have applied to the Mayor’s Office in Guider for funding they were told to wait, a process that is normal here in Cameroon. In the end, though, they waited for several years without answer and gave up hope. They attempted to collect funds amongst themselves but were unable to completely fund their project. At that point in time, the roof had fallen into such a state of disrepair that fixing it was no longer a solution: the roof would need to be replaced in its entirety. Furthermore, they contacted the Development Committee of Douroum for financial assistance and were rejected due to political reasons.

So when I was contacted in April to potentially assist the community of Tra, I was surprised to see a large turnout at the meeting- and an enthusiastic and positive one at that. I decided that this was a viable project and one that I believed that those who donated funds for projects in Douroum would be eager to assist with. As noted in my project updates, the funds remaining from the CES and Hospital projects in Douroum total 580,120F. The agenda of the meeting of April 6, 2010 was for me to determine the viability of such a project and, if I decided to do the project, what materials were necessary and at what cost.

We listed the following materials as necessary for the project and I stressed the importance of not only physical sustainability of the project- would this project last and for how many more years?- but also the importance of community involvement. If the Parents Association and other members of the community of Tra were genuinely interested in fixing the EP Roof, then they would not only provide the manual labor and the transport of the project, but they would equally collect their part of the funds. This way, the project is rooted within the community - much more sustainable - and is not funded solely by an outside party (myself).

Materials:

· Wood Beams (6m)

· Larger Wood Beams

· Heavy Duty Roofing Sheets (2m)

· Nails

· Cement

· Cost of Labor

· Cost of Transport

We overpriced each item to insure we raised enough money and the grand total came to around 500,000F. The community of Tra decided to try and raise 120,000F on their own in two weeks as their part of the contribution. This would bring the total cost of the project down to just under 400,000F. I must say I was a bit doubtful at first, not because I didn’t think they had the financial means to do so but more that they may not be able to raise such a large sum in simply two weeks.

On April 24, 2010, two weeks later, we had our second meeting and the community of Tra handed me 120,000F and we narrowed down what materials were necessary, who would do the labor, how the transport would work out, and when to begin construction. It was amazing, to say the least, and I was astounded that in less than a month money had been raised, and a school roof that was in desperate need of repair would be repaired- and so fast! We set dates to buy and transport supplies from Guider to Tra, and also set working dates, so that by May 3, 2010, when school resumed after the weekend, the students would be able to work without interruption and with a decent roof over their heads.

We set April 28th as the supply-buying date in Guider, and transported all materials to Tra on April 30th. The total cost of this project came to 255,300F and came way under our budget. This is particularly great considering we added in a few additional materials for purchase, and all the materials purchased are strong and durable. The community of Tra contributed 120,000F and I contributed 135,300F; in short, Tra gave roughly 89% and I gave 11% of the funds for this project. The work began on May 1st and will be completed by May 3rd, or possibly May 4th, depending on whether or not there is rain.

*****The project cost breakdown can be viewed on the Water Project Website******

**I will be providing more photos of the completed project in one week’s time**

Phase two of the Water Project takes place again in Douroum, and this time focuses upon the hospital. The hospital of Doroum was built in 2009 and features 7 rooms: an office, 3 patient reception rooms, a birthing room, a pharmacy, and a storage room. The community of Douroum financed the construction of the hospital and the government of Cameroon sent 2 doctors, 2 nurses and a pharmacist.

As of now, the hospital is functional but lacks electricity and water. This project aims to bring water to the hospital in two forms: rainwater harvesting and drinking water. Currently, the hospital uses water from the nearby river but advises patients to bring their own water. The head doctor is wary of serving river water to already ill patients- and rightfully so.

The project that I have installed is two-fold. Part one is to use the gutters that I installed along the roof of the hospital to collect rainwater and fill 100-L bidons. This water can be treated by filtering with material and then disinfecting with Clorox, and used for patient treatment- whether it be drinking water, water for the trees that will be planted in the next month, or water for general treatment.

Part two will allow the guardian of the hospital to bring water to the hospital in the form of a push cart, with 6 20-L bidons. Water will be brought from a much cleaner source, a water pump- the same pump, in fact, that the CES students use for their project. The guardian is responsible for the work involved and will keep 4 60-L bidons full at all times. The 4 bidons will be placed in the following hospital rooms: birthing room (women come 24-7 to give birth and water is vital); office; 2 patient rooms. Fifty (50) liters of clorox were given to the hospital as a part of this project to encourage clean water practices. The water from the pump is much cleaner, however, it is best to sterilize the containers that water is transported and rests in, as well as encourage people to further filter their water- i.e. waterborne diseases and microbes still exist in pump water unless sterilized or boiled.

Given the fact the water is non-existent at the hospital, this project provides an overall benefit for every member of the community of Douroum in addition to the villagers who live outside of Douroum. While much of my time in March 2010 was spent on the CES project, April 2010 has been devoted to properly installing the hospital project.

A Brief Summary of Funding

The items for this project were all found in Guider this time around. I have learned a lot when it comes to costs, transportation and the availability of resources. After consulting with a few close friends, I realized I could cut down on project costs by finding everything I needed in Guider. Whatever I was not able to find in Guider was easily ordered from Garoua. This aspect has made all the difference. Futhermore, buying the materials in Guider promotes the sustainability of the project- if any repairs are necessary, the hospital staff are able to find the specific merchant in the marketplace of Guider. Guider is also closer location-wise to Douroum than Garoua, and transportation costs are significantly lower. The only items that were brought from Guider were the clorox, the gutters and the gutter-attachment wires and their costs were already calculated and deducted from the overall project funds.

Funds Remaining after installation of CES Project: 700,023FApril 23, 2010 Bank Withdrawal: 125,000FTotal Project Cost-to-Date: 119,900FTotal Project Funds Lef: 580, 123F*****The project cost breakdown can be viewed on the Water Project Website******

**PHOTOS TO BE POSTED ASAP**

Students of 5ieme- everyone tried to smile for the photo being "sent to Americans"

Mr. Abdouraman, Professor of Sports and French

The cart, bidons and cups are kept within the classrooms and locked up at the end of the day.

6ieme Students of the CES

5ieme and 6ieme CES Students

Invitees

Push Carts, Barrels, Bidons, Cups

Lamido of Douroum

Teachers of the CES, with the Lamido and the Director of the CES (2nd to the right) Myself with the CES Staff, Director of the CES and Lamido

Great news! The first phase of the project was completed just this month and the following is a general synopsis of what has been done thus far:

Project Results:

An initial meeting was held in September 2009, in Douroum, to explain the project proposal and receive general feedback from community members. All that were present felt that the project was a great idea and were very supportive and open to the idea. We decided, however, to install the project in two locations, instead of the three that were originally proposed- CES, Health Center and Primary School. It was determined that the barrels would be best used by the CES and the Health Center because the Primary Schools are able to walk to the nearby forage for water breaks, whereas water is non-existent at the other sites. We decided to do two barrels at the CES, one for each classroom, and two barrels at the Health Center, one for drinking water and another to demonstrate rainwater harvesting. Thus, this project is now going to be carried out in two phases, the Health Center and the CES.

Phase One:

This part of the project has already been funded, installed and is in working order. After funds were raised in America and sent to me via my family in December 2009, there was a delay in the time between the funds being sent and the funds being processed into a bank account here in Cameroon. However, in January 2010, things were up and running. The actual amount of money that I received, after transfer fees were calculated, was: 997,548 CFA. ***The project cost breakdown can be viewed on the Water Project Website****

On February 13, 2010 I traveled to Garoua and bought all the project supplies, with the assistance of my landlord. The breakdown is presented in the above chart, including the costs of transportation, up and until the day of the ceremony at the CES where drinks were provided for the invitees. It was during the activity of purchasing supplies, that we decided to modify the project plan one more time.

· We decided to use the barrels at the CES for drinking water purposes, rather than for rainwater harvesting barrels. The reasoning is that there are no students or staff at the CES during the rainy season to benefit from the project.

· As such, the barrels will be used in the classroom, and not outside to collect rainwater. The CES Director was also concerned that someone could come along, empty the large bidons of their water, and simply steal the bidon. The bidons are now installed in the classrooms and the classrooms are locked at the end of each school day.

· The barrels at the Health Center will be used for drinking water, as well, but there will be one larger barrel used to demonstrate rainwater harvesting during the wet season. The reason for this is due to the fact that hospital staff are on duty 24/7, year-round, and will be able to benefit from the easy access to water.

Mid-February 2010 to Beginning of March 2010:

I spent most of this time reporting back to community members on the progress of the project and working with the Lamido of Douroum to fix a date to present the bidons to the community. Things were delayed due to the activities in Douroum leading up to March 8, 2010, which is International Women’s Day.

March 9, 2010:

I went to Guider, printed up invitations to the ceremony at the CES, and had a last-minute meeting with the Lamido to confirm our date of March 11, 2010. The following members of the community were invited: President of the CES, Director of the CES, Teachers of the CES, Director of Primary School Douroum, Lamido of Douroum, Chef de Poste Agricole Ancient, Chef de Poste Agricole New, Surveillant General of the CES, Treasurer of Douroum Water Association, CES Treasurer, and parents of CES students, as well as general members of the community

March 10, 2010:

All the materials were cleaned, organized and assembled at my house. Last-minute plans were made to hand out refreshments to the invitees. Part of the reasoning for this was due to tradition- most Cameroonian ceremonies are followed with drinks and food- and I always wanted to thank people for taking the time to come out and support both my project and the CES of Douroum.

March 11, 2010:

Our ceremony commenced at 9am on March 11, 2010 and was a great success. All the students of the CES, the invitees and community members gathered at the CES, and the CES Director, the Lamido and myself all gave speeches outlining the project, its benefits and the work that went into it. The community was effusive in their thanks to you, the donors, and is writing you a thank-you letter. I shall send a copy of this letter upon receipt of it, as well as post a digital photo of it on the website. Each item was then photographed and I presented them to the CES Director. We took many photos and more are on the way- I will post those in April 2010 when I receive them. Refreshments were served and then classes resumed. All in all it went very well and the students, as well as the invitees, were all very enthusiastic.

This year I have decided to do a dry season garden and, with the experience of my ups and downs during rainy season, feel confident of the outcome. I am fortunate enough to have as much water as I need, since it is delivered to my house twice a week, but with this in mind, I wanted to continue to conserve water and only planted a few items.

I started out with basil, continued from the rainy season, just a different plant. As always, basil is amazing but particularly wonderful in omelettes too.

Cherry tomatos staked against my sekko walls. Working out pretty well and looking forward to them. Three of my four tomato plants from rainy season died from what I feel is heat exhaustion (certainly not a lack of water since I water daily), and the surviving plant produces plum tomatos.

After nearly a year of attempting to produce flowers in this pot, I have successfully produced a watermelon plant- two to be exact. Go figure. The problem with melons here is that you have to protect them against bugs since they are so sweet. I once had a large watermelon and was thrilled to eat it but, alas, upon cutting it open I found it full of maggots and worms. Better luck this time (I hope).

I have been trying to convince people since the start of the harvest season leave their peanut shells on their fields as a form of compost. The peanut shells help fertilize the soil but many people scoff at the idea. I have, thus, started the concept in my yard in the hopes that visitors will inquire as to why on earth do I have peanut shells all over my yard.

As dry season starts up again this year, once again the anacardium trees are in full bloom. Anacardium is the fruit (see below) and the nut hangs from the bottom. In order to get the nut, cashew nut to be precise, you burn off the hard outer shell and roast it in the embers of an outdoor fire. Note: If you don't roast the cashew long enough you may get sick- it's pretty toxic when not fully cooked. Below is a red anacardium tree in my yard- the red produces once a year, for about one month. The difference from the yellow is in the taste- yellow is deemed sweeter while the red is a bit more tart. Along with the heat of dry season, I try to encourage men and women alike to dry their fruit. In a month it will be mango season, and hopefully people will dry out mangos to sell in the market or simply to preserve to have in the off-season. Below is a photo of a drying rack in my yard. It was left by my predecessor and is simply two squares of wood, covered with mosquito netting and nailed into place. It is a double-rack system, where fruit can be placed on the top level or within the two racks, in the middle. The sun is hot, 140 degrees, and dries fruit, including tomatos even, very fast. My house guardian enjoys drying out the anacardium fruits, citing it as even sweeter and as a nice and portable treat.

I want to send an enormous thank you to all of those who contributed to my water project. It will be starting in 2-3 weeks time, at which time I will have photos and live updates for everyone. The gutters will be ordered and hopefully delivered in 3 weeks time, along with the other materials as well, and the community is very excited to begin work. As it is the start of hot season, the students are especially looking forward to having drinking water and the teachers at the CES are prepared to start their sessions on how to treat the water. I am sorry I do not have more to report, but I wanted to make sure that everyone knows what is going on here in Douroum. Thank you again for your generous support and stay tuned!

About 6 months ago, a volunteer posted nearby began experimenting with making soap. After several trials and errors, she perfected her Peanut Oil Soap and began sessions for the rest of us to learn how to make soap at home. We, too, had our ups and downs, but after trying it out at our houses, we have been able to show local womens groups how to make soap.

One of the great things about a formation on soap is that it is quick, simple and low-maintenance. If done correctly, the soap can be sold for a small profit or simply used in the household. Women were pretty excited to try it out in Douroum, Mayo Malao and Mandama. We also tend to discuss hygiene and the importance of washing hands before and after using the toilet and, thus, the role that soap plays in cutting down on diseases spread by hand-mouth transmission. The women also save money on buying soap from the shops or the market, and can turn a profit by selling it themselves. Hopefully, the production of soap will contribute to the overall health of each household with the hand-washing sensitizing.

The following is a brief rundown on how we make soap as PCVs in Cameroon but please please DO NOT take this as an expert manual by any means, nor necessarily the most effective way to make soap. Any ideas or suggestions for improvement are always welcome!

Materials:

One wooden spoonLye (powder form)1-2 Litres of Peanut, Vegetable, Palm Oil- pick one or two, peanut was used to make body soapAn 8x8 piece of cloth- we use the local fabric, pagnePlastic bowl or tupperware dishRubber band or stringTwo cooking potsFirewood - or a gas range stove Measuring cup of any size you wantGlovesWaterVinegar one part lye, 4 parts water, 8 parts oilProcess:Put on the gloves and keep the bottle of vinegar near you. The purpose of the vinegar is to treat any burns caused by the lye. Lye is very strong and will burn you if it touches any part of your skin; thus, the gloves. NOTE: Keep small children away- though easier said than done, a lye burn can cause serious damage to a child. Take your measuring cup (1/2, 3/4, 1) and measure out one serving of lye, depositing it carefully into a plastic bowl or tupperware container. Add to the same bowl, 4 servings of water. NOTE: If you use a one-cup measuring device for the lye, you will use the same size i.e. one cup for the lye. If you use 1/2 cup for the lye, its using 1/2 cup measuring cup 4 times for the 4 servings of water. Stir the water and lye together until fully dissolved- stir carefully, a splash will burn you as well.Feel the bottom or sides of the container and you will notice that the chemical reaction of the lye with the water causes the mixture to heat up- in fact, it can get very hot. After having dissolved the water and lye, take the same measuring cup (i.e. one cup or 1/2 cup) and measure out 8 servings of oil into a pot over either a) a fire or b) a gas stove. **For peanut soap, use 6 servings of peanut oil and 2 servings of either palm, cotton or vegetable oil. The peanut oil is used because it is not harsh on your skin. Heat the oil until the temperature is the same as the temperature of the lye and water mixture. Continue to test the oil heat against the lye/water heat and when they are the same temperature, pour the oil slowly into the lye mixture. Immediately, but slowly, start stirring the entire mixture with the wooden spoon. Stir until the mixture is slightly yellow- a creamier yellow- and then stop. NOTE: Do not overstir because the mixture will separate but equally do not understir because you do not want the soap to set with lumps. Next, cover the mixture with your piece of cloth, securing it with a rubber band or piece of string, and set it aside for 3 full days in a cool and guarded place. After 3 days, remove the cloth and cut the soap into as many pieces as you want, in various shapes if you want. The mixture should have solidified. If the mixture DID NOT solidify, you did not get the temperature of the liquids correct before mixing, your lye powder may have damp - thus diminishing the effectiveness of the chemical reaction- or there may have been too much stirring. Take the soap out of the container and leave it out in a cool and guarded place for the next 3 weeks. After three weeks you can use the soap. Throw out or thoroughly clean and disinfect the gloves.This peanut oil soap is meant to be used as a body soap but women have told me they used it to wash dishes, clothing and children with perfect results. FURTHER NOTES:Storage of your lye in ziploc bags or airtight containers prevents moisture from enteringVinegar can be used to clean your wooden spoon and containers so that you dont wipe lye all over your sponge and also your houseWomen tend to get frustrated that they have to wait three weeks, but reassuring them of the long-term benefits can sometimes helpThe ratio is: 1 part lye :: 4 parts water:: 8 parts oilLye is purchased in Cameroon at construction shops. Most often it is sold in 20 kilo sacks for 17,000 cfa and is not sold in smaller amounts. I am hoping that different women's groups will cotese money to buy x amount of kilos to try out the soap. Like I said earlier, this is a work in process, and we are still working to perfect soap-making on a local level. The next step I am going to take is to experiment with wood ash: easily available, economically efficient- much more so than lye- and safer to use, wood ash has been used to make soap in the past- no reason why we shouldn't try that technique here in Cameroon.

This past year was the first (and hopefully not the last) celebration of World AIDS Day in Douroum and Mandama. Both villages have AIDS associations and receive government assistance which, unfortunately, never makes it to the people who need it the most. Nonetheless, neither village had fully recognized the International AIDS Day, 1 december, and my postmate and I decided to hold some events and sessions within our communities to generate interest.

We decided to organize a soccer game (one event that never fails to generate interest and attract large crowds in cameroonian society). Indeed, we even took it a step further and involved both of our Girls Clubs- lycee and ces- the equivalent of high school and middle school. One thing to mention is the large rivalry between our respective villages in all aspects of life, sports included. Thus, I began training my girls in September and Kauleen worked with hers in late November, but the clincher was that we planned on mixing the two teams so that the rivalry wouldn't be full-blown. We wanted to encourage a friendly atmosphere and for the two villages to work together towards a common and just cause: HIV/AIDS education and sensitizing communities.

The day of the match rolled around and despite many last minute issues- including my lamido's refusal to support AIDS Day citing it as "not an important issue" and "not something he would support" - the teams were mixed, the game was played and the girls all participated in sessions where they learned about the 4 fluids of transmission, AIDS prevention and statistics. I am hoping that next year both communities will continue to recognize AIDS as an important and life-threatening issue and hold events for 1 December.

As of October 2009, a new women's group was formed in Tra, a nearby village about 5-7 km from Douroum. I had done a soy formation in Tra earlier in my service and told them to contact me if they wanted me to return and work there. My system was, and has been, to wait for a message from a village or group of people who want to work with me. That way, I know that the community has initiated interest and put forth the effort to send me a message and convene for a meeting- all of which are small, but important, steps. Up until now, I had heard nothing from Tra and, not wanting to force myself upon a community if they didn't want or need me there, I waited and worked in other nearby villages. About a few months ago, I received a note from Tra asking me to come and help a new group of women.

The primary ethnic group of Tra is Dabba, with some Fulbe and Guidar, and is predominantly Christian and Animist, with very few Muslims. The first meeting I went to blew me away. I had set up a meeting time of 2pm and not only did the women show up on time, they had (and have since) perfect attendance. Most of my meetings in Douroum are guaranteed to start about an hour or two after the fixed time; thus, I was thoroughly impressed from the start. The women are well organized and really only need me as a sounding board for their ideas and work plans. There are about 20-25 women, ages 17-28, mostly of Dabba origin. One woman, Asta, speaks French and the rest speak Dabba and a small amount of Fulfulde. Almost all of the women have 3-4 children each and most have toddlers.

Our first meeting was to outline the purpose of the group and various technicalities of meeting time/place, weekly or monthly dues, or cotesing as we call it here. The women had already decided they wanted to cultivate peanuts and peanuts alone. They were slightly open to the idea of companion planting with soy, but their sole desire was for peanuts. When asked why, they simply responded that they have always had successful peanut crops and were already able to make a living off of the production and sale of peanuts. One sack alone, about 50 kilos, can be sold in the market for 30,000 FCFA- roughly 65USD. The average person cultivates about 1-2 carrs worth of land and a woman who has 2 carrs worth of peanuts generates about 6-7 sacks- an excellent source of income. Furthermore, the women decided to use the profits for pharmaceuticals. In essence, what they would be doing is cultivating peanuts, selling them for a profit and then guarding their money to use in case someone's child falls sick or needs medical treatment. Eventually, they want to open a pharmacy with their money, but for the time-being they are content to use their earnings to tend to the health of their families.

Successive meetings have established a bureau, i.e. a President, Secretary, Treasurer, etc, and have established a cotesation system. Cotesing is a term for pooling money together or the equivalent of member dues. Groups can decide to do this on a weekly or monthly basis, establishing a specific amount. The money is then guarded by the Treasurer, recorded by the Secretary and utilized for various purposes. Perhaps the group needs to buy seeds for planting, or they would like to throw a party for some holiday - the key is that each member is involved in the decision-making process of how the group will use their money.

This group has decided to start cotesing in January 2010. Meetings will be held weekly on Thursday mornings at 9am and each woman shall contribute 100 cfa. In the coming months the women will learn accounting techniques and how to organize their group ledgers; agroforestry techniques to improve soil fertility; health sessions on maternal health and nutrition. I am excited for the formation of this group, especially since they are very well-organized and are self-sufficient; they hold meetings whether or not I am able to make it; and they are overall proactive and wonderful to work with.

I have finally gotten enough time (not to mention ambition) to sit down and update. My apologies for the lack of communication. Things have been on fast-forward lately and so I shall backtrack to October where I had several new mini projects crop up.

I decided to pair up with the Paul D. Coverdell Worldwise Schools Progam/Peace Corps after hearing positive feedback from other volunteers. The program is meant to foster communication and cross-cultural exchange between an American classroom and a Peace Corps Volunteer, but I decided to forgo my place in the exchange and, instead, use Cameroonian students. As of right now, there are 12 elementary school children in Douroum communicating with approximately 20 American third-graders, and the exchange is great. Students on both sides are excited and both teachers are enthusiastic and motivated. I held an essay competition for the students of the Environmental Education Club at the elementary school and chose 12 students to draw photos and write mini essays about their lives here in Cameroon. I also took their photographs to send to America. Technology is limited on my end, with my digital camera and simple video function, not to mention the slowness of the postal system, but I think that this is a great way to demonstrate to American students the gross differences in lifestyles. We have just completed Unit One which was a personal/autobiographical unit introducing the children to each other. Unit Two will address communities and Unit Three will be comprised of environmental issues. All in all, things are going smoothly and I am glad I decided to undertake this project.

The second venture was a collaboration between myself and a nearby health volunteer on HIV/AIDS education. We held a session on the transmission and prevention of HIV/AIDS with the students at the CES and then afterwards held a soccer match, with mixed-gender teams. The information session was more successful than forming mixed-gender teams. We also held a couple of maternal health sessions in Douroum and also in Tra for women and men alike.

I just found out this past week that Unicef works in my village. They work mostly in the Primary School but I thought I'd leave this link to their program in Cameroon for those of you who are interested: http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/cameroon.html

I have been working on a few different project proposals and with the help of my family, have a new link to my project page! Hopefully everything will be finalized and ready to go (i.e. accepting donations) in about one month's time. In the meantime, take a minute to check it out: http://www.princeton.edu/~elweiss/Site/Welcome.html

I would like some feedback from viewers of this blog, if possible:

What would you like to know?Are there terms or references that I have made that are unknown or confusingWhat photos would you like to see?Thanks for reading and providing feedback :)

As we all know, soy is very healthy for you and provides essential nutrients and vitamins to both adults and children alike. I try to stress the importance of soy by talking about and visualizing the following:

one kilo of soy is the equivalent of:60 eggs *eggs are expensive and one egg could buy you oil, sugar, some flour and a tomatoe sauce packet OR 3 kilos of meat *meat is expensive and when purchased, it normally is greasy and fattyOR40 kilos of manioc (cassava) *manioc has very little nutritional value despite the fact that there is always a large supply of it sold in the marketsIt is always important to stress the use of just a small amount of soy in whatever it is that you prepare- if you do not follow this advice, you will consume too much soy and may become ill.

I originally started off my soy campaign with cooking demonstrations, or formations, for soy products like beignets, brouille, caramel soy treats, mini dessert-like beignets called gateaux, and milk. I would buy all the ingredients, send a message to the chef of the village I would be doing the demonstration in and instruct him to invite all men (if interested), women and children. The village hosting the demo would be responsible for providing cooking utensils, water, wood and pots/cups/plates/etc.

It was not until the end of my touring this summer, that I had a moment of clarity. I decided that while it was wonderful to show women how to prepare all the above items, aside from beignets, they were not necessarily items that could be made on a daily basis. Sugar, flour, rice all cost quite a bit for the women to buy (or ask their husbands to buy) and were not the best option, though it would be wonderful if they were able to make one or two items from time to time. Instead, what I started to tell women was that if you used a small amount of soy flour in preparing your daily sauces (most people eat couscous and sauce for lunch and dinner every day) you would receive your daily dose of vitamins in one fell swoop. The same goes for soy couscous, soy bread, etc- the possibilities are endless. Once women realized that they didn't have to buy additional items like flour and sugar, they were much more receptive to using soy as well as to planting soy in their fields. Indeed, one of my close friends in village began to cook her couscous with a bit of soy flour each day and her children's distended bellies, due to malnutrition, began to diminish over the course of just one and half weeks.

Recipes:

*The ratio is usually three cups of white flour to one cup soy flour.

*One tasse of soybeans in the marketplace is usually equal to one kilo of soy. With each recipe we prepared, we used one tasse of soybeans because the audience was large. For one household, depending on how many people will consume the end product, you can use less soy- it is not necessary to always use a kilo of soy per recipe, it simply worked better for the presentations so that each person present got a chance to taste at the end.

*Soybeans are ground into flour at the local mill in villages- sometimes they are run by a generator, which is grinds the soy better, and other times a handmill is used.

Soy Beignets: Made on a daily basis, beignets are a staple of most people's breakfasts and on market day there are an abundance of beignets- made with corn flour, peanut oil, soy flour, or white bean flour, etc. All you have to do is add the soy flour and you have soy beignets- it's incredibly simple. Beignets are made with flour, a bit of sugar and salt, water and yeast. For the presentations we did not use yeast, but it is mostly optional.

Soy Brouille: Composed of water, rice, sugar, peanut butter and tamarind, brouille is very simple to make and is often fed to children as they are weaned from breastfeeding. Soak the tamarind for about 30 minutes to an hour in water; in the meantime mix peanut butter with water - working it with your fingers is the best way - and when it is dissolved add it to the water and rice. Cook rice, water and peanut butter together- bring to a boil and then simmer. Strain water from the tamarinds and add this to the mixture simmering on the stove. Mix sugar in to taste at the end. The rice should be fully cooked, slightly tender, and the mixture a bit thick. Let it cool and then serve in cups or bowls. *you can also use red millet which many women do - you crush up the millet and throw it into the mixture.

Caramel: Take soy beans, sugar, salt and mix together in a pan over medium heat. The sugar will start to congeal and you should stir the mixture until it is firm- think of how you might make candied peanuts- it is very quick and simple and a nice treat.

Milk: Soy milk is the best thing for women to give their children. It is high in vitamins and excellent for adults and kids alike. Soak soybeans in water for approximately 12 hours. Drain water and remove shells by hand if possible. Grind the soy (in the US a blender is good; here you go to the mill) about an hour before preparing the milk. Once ground, mix the soy with water until it is diluted. Bring to a boil and add sugar to taste at the end. The soy milk will thicken and then allow it to cool off- it probably takes about an hour to cook it well. One of the minor problems you may run into with soy milk is if the soy and the water begin to separate, it means you either have not ground the soy well enough or soaked it long enough.

Like I mentioned earlier, using a bit of soy flour in their dishes each day is a simpler way to cook with soy; it is easy to grow and, once harvested, can be safeguarded to seed the following year or sold in the market or simply used in food preparation.

After many months of campaigning for people to plant soy, how to prepare soy in everyday dishes, and the nutritional benefits, as well as the agricultural benefits, I finally handed out soy in small increments to individuals in Douroum, as well as in Tra and Mayo Malao. Residents of Douroum planted soy in their fields located in outlying villages such as Djafkat, Bana, Windeyolla and Boko. I thought I would include the same information that I gave in presentations, here in my blog- enjoy!

Soy: Soja (Eng: Fr)

Varieties: There are many different kinds of quality when it comes to soy; I handed out soy that I bought at the market in Guider for 500 FCFA / tasse. This is a decent quality, though not the best, and is what I have planted in my yard as well. Additionally, I purchased 50 kilos of soy in Mandama from a man who grew, harvested and currently sells soy from last year's planting season. This soy was mostly used in cooking demonstrations and handed out as well.

Planting Season: Plant soy during the rainy season, generally speaking. This falls within the time frame of May - October. The trick to planting soy is that you want it to have a decent soaking of rain in the ground before you plant; with rainy season, you do not know when the season has exactly started, so it can be difficult to decide: if you plant too early, your soy will not grow well due to a lack of water; if you plant it too late, the ground is overly-saturated and you will find that it rots quickly. The great aspect about explaining this to farmers, is that they have been farming in Cameroon for centuries and understand weather patterns much better than I do- thus, they are much more capable of judging when to plant. They need to plant their other crops as well, so it is not like noting the weather patterns for planting soy takes away from their overall planting plans. I usually encourage people to plant soy before August, because, generally speaking, the rains are more frequent in August and it is best to have all your fields planted and weeded before the heavy rains fall.

How to Plant Soy: I generally use the example of red millet, corn or peanuts as a ways to explain how to plant soy- all these crops are planted in the same manner; the exception is in the spacing of your seeds. Take 2 or 3 seeds of soy, plant them about 12 inches apart so that you can thin them later, and that's about it. Corn is spaced wider apart, as is red millet, and peanuts are a bit closer to each other. While I advise you plant soy roughly 12 inches apart, I also advise people to use their best judgement- the soy will grow either way. The great part about the spacing of soy is that it enables you to plant a large amount of soy in a small area (i.e. in your fields or in your household concession even).

Planting soy with other crops is also possible, and I encourage it. You can plant it in your fields in between the crops of corn, peanuts and cotton. It is especially good for the ground, as it is a nitrogen-fixing plant and restores nutrients to the soil that are depleted each year. Unless people want to plant solely soy in their fields, this is an excellent way to present planting soy to people- mix your crops, improve your soil quality, and it can be done all in the same plot of land.

Soy with Okra in my home garden

Maintenance: Soy is low-maintenance and as long as you weed it in its initial stages of growth, soy will grow quite well.

Pesticides: It is NOT necessary to use pesticides for soy, though if you do choose to use these, I give out information on what is the best and safest pesticide in the markets. Alot of people work for SODECOTON and try to use the same pesticides for cotton/corn/peanuts on their soy fields and this has not proven to be effective- why? Answer: It kills the soy. My women's group in Douroum intercropped soy and corn in Douroum Do, as well as soy and cotton in Boko, all of which was killed before the plants could grow much because the pesticides they used in the fields for cotton and corn killed off the soy seeds. More recently my women's group in Mayo Malao asked about using pesticides to accelerate the growth of soy; unfortunately, to the best of my knowledge that is, there is nothing of this sort in the local markets. There is, though, a type of chemical that can be placed in a field before you plant the soy and it will kill off all the weeds that are present, which allows for the soy to grow faster and healthier. This should be applied to the ground 2-3 days before planting the soy.

Women's Group Field in Mayo Malao

Harvesting Soy: Soy is harvested when the pods have fully formed. I have yet to do presentations on how to harvest soy, because I wanted to focus first on how to plant soy and how to use it in dishes. I will be doing these sessions in about a month or two to prep people on how to tell when you should harvest your soy.

I have commenced work on my garden in the past few months. Trials and errors have abounded but in the end I have learned a lot of different lessons.

Flowers that were transplanted from Guider

Anacardium fruit (cashew nuts) from my yellow anacardium tree; there is a red fruit tree of the same variety in my yard but it does not produce until December or January.

Lalao Plant- leaves commonly used for sauces

Citron Tree- will produce more citron as the rainy season continues, hopefully

I had cow manure placed all over my yard starting in February, allowing it to sink in over time and for the first rains to soak it down into the earth. This has proven to be a good tactic- it can be repeated with most forms of animal dung.

Corn and Soy planted together- i.e. intercropping

I built walls for the garden itself, though they have since fallen down with heavy rains; it does not hinder the growth of the garden- it was more for aesthetic pleasure.

Part of the Federbia family, this tree is used for live fencing and its spiky, sharp thorns

To the left, red millet that grew on its own without me seeding it; to the right of the millet, is a lalao plant, in addition to soy.

Seeds from the US included: radishes, cucumbers, tomatos, flowers, okra, salad (lettuce), basil, zucchini, yellow and acorn squash, cantelope and a few others.

Cucumbers

TomatoesSeeds from Cameroon included: corn (not to be confused with American sweet corn: this type is what we use in the US for cattle feed; here it is grown and eaten grilled or ground up into corn flour and baked with or used in couscous); white beans, okra, watermelon, guava, soy, and others.

Soy!

A watermelon plant that grew on its own, after eating it on Easter Sunday and throwing it in my yard due to a lack of energy to dispose of it in the compost; as such, it has grown and is very hardy- I hope to get some melons out of the plant itself.

Flowers from the US are only now growing, after 3 or 4 attempts ranging from protective straw from the sun in February, to potted plants, to my current tactic of dried cow manure mixed with sand and 'regular dirt'- protected by my hangar in front of the veranda.

As with many of the seeds I brought with me, flowers mostly but also with tomatos and radishes, the "plenty of sunshine" phrase on seed packets is not necessarily applicable to Cameroon. The sun is too strong here and will kill your plants without proper protection; you need to water by hand with a watering can on a daily basis. As with a tree nursery, once or twice a day in the early morning and/or evening hours is the best time to water. Since the sun is so hot, it helps to construct a hangar for initial growth and as the plants grow, you can remove the cover little by little.

Kona, or Gilliganja in the Extreme North Province, is used for sauces- the seeds are often used, ground-up, to purify water. This is also known as Moringa (french term) and there has been a movement within the PC Agro program to plant more of these trees. The leaves have many vitamins, it's easy to grow, and as mentioned before, the seeds can be used to purify water.

Red Folere (not to be confused with white folere); grows like a weed; leaves can be used in a beverage.

I have discovered that though you may have a compost pit to dispose of cooking waste in, you may have random tomato plants and watermelon plants sprouting up either in the compost itself, or in your front yard where you wash your cutting board and other dishes. I have transplanted these to better locations and these plants have done really well. The irony is having things growing where you hadn't planned on, and then your carefully planned garden space grows only weeds.

Guava Tree that was planted before I arrived in December 2008

Daily weeding, especially after the rains become regular- it's always tricky to not pull up your baby radish plants, especially when you have never grown them before; thus, you have no clue what they look like nor the internet or reading resources with a picture to identify with.

Salad was recently planted next to my canaries and it is doing very well since that is also where I keep my water, and it takes a lot of water- and little effort on my part. Basil is a lesson in patience and perseverance. I started basil in pots as directed by gardening resources, however, only one plant grew. I chalk it up to perhaps weeds or bad seeds; however, I have since replanted with my remaining seeds and have seen great results. I replanted in a primarily sandy area and less cow dung-soaked area of my yard and now have several plants growing at a rapid (almost alarmingly so) pace. Melons and cucumbers take lots of space- learned my lesson there- but are well worth the space and time it takes to grow

It has been a while since I have updated my blog and I apologize for my negligence. School ended in May, I went on vacation in June and upon my return planting season was in full force. The rainy season was slow to start, raining for a few days at a time and then drought-like conditions for a week or two, until the rains started more regularly in August. The landscape has changed dramatically from when it was hot season and I have included some photos.

Rain clouds from the East- usually comes from Chad

Fattening up the livestock to be sold in November or December- a common elevage project, one that my GIC in Douroum is working on. We currently have 6 goats and hope to sell them to buy more for the upcoming year.

Fields in Tra

Mountains in my back yard that were previously barren.

After the rains

The rivers are finally full and shisto becomes more of a concern, as well as standing water in general given the high rate of malaria.

Broken bridge in Vourmouch- since I took this photo it has practically disintegrated into the river at one end; pretty soon cars will not be able to make it to the Douroum market this route. Hopefully it will be fixed the upcoming dry season if there are funds from the government.

Plowing fields with cattle and a hand-held plowing device attached behind the cattle- many people use donkeys as well. For those with either, it can be a good income-generating device as well: hiring out cattle to plow one carr (1/4 of a hectare), one time alone, goes for 3,500 FCFA approximately $8-$9 USD. Most people plow several times before the rains set in on a regular basis. The alternative is weed your fields by hand, a very common practice.

Most land is cultivated; it is rare to see an open field. Land ownership changes every year for each person. The land that your house is on is yours, unless the lamido says otherwise; however, the land you cultivate can and most likely will change almost each planting season: Perhaps your fields will be near the mayo this year, and next year far from water; They may have been given to the lamido's friend this year even though you were promised the same land a few months before Cotton may have been planted on the same fields you were given five years in a row beforehand and now the land is depleted of nutrients and your crop yield will be significantly less.This year you may have 2 carrs worth of land, next year could be 5 or less, the following year could be half a carr of land. The average person's livelihood is dependent upon agriculture in the area and the amount of land you are given, the healthiness of the soil, your proximity to water, and the overall food provisions for your family until the next planting season are dependent upon land.

Barack Obama is:My brother

My President

The brother, uncle, son, nephew of all Cameroonians (and peoples of Africa in general)

I am often asked:

When will you see him again?

Why does he have only daughters and no sons?

Does he have another wife that we do not know about (I live in a polygamous area, thus, this question comes up frequently)?

Tell him I said hello

When will he come visit?

Will I buy the pagne (Cameroonian material) when it comes out? *It's already in Zimbabwe I believe!

Most people believe I talk to him on a regular basis and thus pass a variety of other inquiries on to him via myselfCan I marry his daughters (from my students, 12-24 year old boys)? I told them to write a letter in English and I will send it off to the fan mail address of the White House in Washington, DC.Will Americans stop going to war and be a peaceful nation now that he is President?It is also widely believed that if you own a Barack Obama t-shirt, you are the coolest person ever and before he even became President, his image was all over bank calendars, stickers in boutiques and t-shirts in the marketplace :)

Some guesses by Cameroonians as to my true ethnicity- "you have skin like ours" means that I couldn't possibly be American, could it?  Thus far guesses range from:Cameroonian:  Convinced I was from Ngaoundere, where people speak both French and Fulfulde, one man shook his head in disbelief in the car to Garoua that a "white" woman could actually speak both languages and not be a fellow citizen.toKenyan:  This reference only started after Barack Obama became President.  The logic behind it all?  If Barack is from Kenya, and we are all brothers and sisters from the same family, then we all have a bit of Kenya in our ancestry, right?  In addition to this logic, I have been told that I look Kenyan, though to be quite honest I am not sure that most people who live en brousse in Cameroon have actually been to Kenya...toFulbe:  The tribe that invaded Cameroon and conquered the peoples in the North and who are bitterly resented to this day for imposing their language and culture upon the smaller tribes, like the Dabba.  Aside from their history, my Fulbe host family from Nassarao told me I had the same physical features, in my face only (go figure, I suppose the rest of me was American, they never quite said), as the people of their race.  I believe it was meant to be a compliment though I never quite knew. toIndian:  This tends to baffle people- sometimes I feel like they love to guess and then never know how to continue the conversation if they are correct, which is fairly amusing on my part.  How could I be Indian and American but not a Native American?  Am I like Pocohantas? Have I been to India?  But how do I speak English and Fulfulde so well?  Where is India? Do I hate China?  I kid you not, these are true questions, but I suppose I'm fulfilling some of the goals of Peace Corps by attempting to explain the complex ethnic backgrounds of Americans.  It reminds me of when I went to India, and a man who sold my sister and I a telephone charger said, "You have an Indian face," which led me to believe that if only my face was Indian what the hell was the rest of me?toEthiopian:  In the States, it's not exactly a compliment to be called Ethiopian- the lame joke of, "I didn't know they had food in Ethiopia," pretty much sums up the public perception that the whole nation is starving to death. To be called Ethiopian is an insult, but in Cameroon it is meant as a genuine compliment.  Ethiopians are considered to be very pretty, thin, and friendly people-- all of which took me very much by surprise.  

Items I use to replace the lack of modern amenities:

A bucket of water, my hands, a block of soap (if I plan ahead, perhaps dry powder detergent - ooh), and the African sun to dry items within 10-20 minutes - awesomeA house guardian who brings water to my house in plastic jugs called bidons, twice a week; water source = a forage/pump near my house.  Other options are the mayo (pronounced my-o), otherwise called a marigot in bad french/fulfulde, or river in english-- and the well of course.  Both options are terrible for your health, but I have the good luck of having a clean water source- delivered to my house saves me a lot of work.A wise investment in a solar charger (thanks Erica & Micky) has allowed me to charge my camera, ipod and cell phone at my house; my computer is in another location with electricity for my usage (and other volunteers) when I go into the city area.  Kerosene lamps and candles are my source of light when it is dark, though I am up at 4:30am usually before the sun rises, and I sleep at 8pm, after the sun has set. A headlamp as well, which I held out on for 3 months because it looked dorky... until I realized nobody but my pets would see me with it on, and the threat from other volunteers to "borrow" it if I wasn't going to put it to good use. Internet connection is spastic at best in my local city and, thus, why most of you never hear from me for extended periods of time.  The unreliability of the connection has increased with the onset of rainy season and power outages. Just another perk of not having any of these amenities - decreased dependency :)I love not having t.v. I never really watched much stateside unless utterly bored.  You read a lot and play card games/puzzles/visit friends in village/etc when it's not an option.  In fact, as I write this, CNN is on the t.v. and I can't tell you how irritating it is- if given the option to watch t.v. with other volunteers I turn down the offer and do something else.DVDs are awesome, sure, but I don't watch that many- I guess when visiting other PCVs with electricity at their post, you use DVDs to pass the time but it's semi-boring to sit in front of a screen.  I will say that Slumdog Millionaire is a pretty good new flick though.No fans = better hydration tactics and what many would call suffering through hot nights. Luckily the north has dry heat, which I prefer over humidity; thus, not too bad and I find that fans provide temporary relief in addition to spreading germs and dust, giving you a nasty cold every now and then.Hot water is a nice luxury... but when it's already 120 degrees outside, why the hell even bother wishing for it? Cold bucket baths are pleasant here and the only times I miss hot running water is to wash my hair.Fridges ... sigh.. I can't lie, I am torn about not having one.  Part of me would like to have one, to have a larger variety of foods I can buy at the market and preserve for longer in the heat; however, the other half of me doesn't want the electricity aspect.  Hard to explain, but I'm afraid electricity will make me want modern amenities- or will at least open up the door to those options, and I'm doing fine without.Thank god I don't have a debit card. Cash is easy to blow but helps you budget and exercise self-control.Like I said, a shower would be nice to wash hair, though I enjoy bucket bathing.Flush toilets... hmm... I currently have a pit latrine, a hole in the ground. Until recently, only lizards lived in it, I'm not sure what creature it is now... I'm leaning towards a form of snake which is creepy as hell, because you really don't want to look down and see a snake-like head staring at you as you are trying to pee. Nasty man. Not to mention freaky. Flush toilets suck here though from what I've heard from other volunteers:  racks up your water bill, clogs frequently, and the water goes out often.Since I left America, I have not conditioned my hair once. I know many of you will be horrified, but hey, it takes extra water, extra work and I'm pretty lazy when it comes to that. I'm lucky if I brush my hair more than three times a week- gets too knotty with the heat, much easier to leave it be.  It's not like I've gone bald though or anywhere near it without conditioning; thus, I figure I am in the clear and not missing too much of an American luxury.Thrilled to NOT have a microwave.  Prepare your food fresh each day, smaller portions since I don't have a way to preserve leftovers (other than the dog), and eat as healthy as possible. Coffee pots are a symbol of my past at this point.  I switched to tea the summer before Peace Corps and have only had instant (bad I tell you) coffee three times since being in Cameroon.  Even when I have the opportunity to have real ground coffee, I find it makes me sick- literally.  Too bad I can't do anything if I am lying half-dead on the road or have just been bitten by a poisonous snake... Medical told us "just don't get bitten" by any poisonous creature pretty much.  Chances are, even if 411 or 911 were an option, there wouldn't be any phone reception, considering I live en brousse. The good thing is that I don't have to worry about accidentally dialing these numbers and pissing off 911 with my excuse about how I meant to call 411.No real reception... except for my neighbor's field behind the wall of my house.  Being that he recently planted corn there, he tends to flip out at me if I walk back to check reso because he thinks I'm going to kill his corn or something.  If he really gets on my nerves, I leave the door open and let his chickens into the field and then pretend I never knew how they got there. He also, in planting corn, removed a dead bush which I used as my marker to find reception, so now I wander aimlessly in a field of corn trying to get reso - add it to the list of peculiarities re: moi that my neighbors have probably conjured up.  I count myself lucky though that I do not have to bike to phone network and that I even have reso.I use a marmeet- a large metal pot with a lid, filled partially with sand and tuna cans, turned upside down, placed on a burner and voila, an oven.  Works pretty well, baked bread, pies, quiche, etc in it and all have turned out nicely.Ironing was never my forte in America and I find I have no desire to have one here either. I suppose I only ever had one in college for those what-if scenarios.  I'm still somewhat afraid to use an iron, believing I will probably burn whatever it is I am trying to iron. Nice and wrinkly here in Africa, nobody cares much about your appearance, wrinkle-wise that is.AC makes me sick, literally ill with a cold (notice my aversion to getting a cold, much less sick), and I don't like the smell of it. Funny but I've always felt that there's a certain clinical smell associated with AC, not to mention the dispersion of germs and dust into the air.  I'm sure AC cannot be good for your health when used for an extended period of time.  As for a pool, certainly really nice every now and then, but not having one growing up also helps decrease my desire for a pool.  I have considered having someone send me an inflatable pool to hang out in at my house; but that's a waste of water and then I'd never leave my house :)

Life is much different without these amenities, sure, but I prefer a lifestyle like this. You deplete Earth's resources much less and learn to live a more energy-efficient lifestyle- or in the case of a lack of energy, your creativity comes in handy. 

Things I have not had access to for the past 9 months:Washing Machine / DryerRunning Water*Electricity*Internet*TelevisionDVD Player (minus my computer which requires electricity, thus doesn't count for much)FansRunning Hot Water (left in a bucket in 100 degree weather isn't the same vs. already prepared by a hot water heater)Refrigerator

Credit/Debit CardShowerFlush ToiletConditionerMicrowaveCoffee PotThe option to call either 411 or 911Network Phone CoverageA conventional ovenIronAir Conditioning / Pool

What I am fine without:All of the above  * = available in my local city, thus I am not necessarily deprived, however it is not readily available to me upon request.

Today is National Unity Day, a sort of equivalent to the American July 4th. Essentially it celebrates the unity of the country, from north to south and west to east; unity between ethnic groups, languages and much more.

Being in the capital seemed like the perfect opportunity to watch the parade live, however, I was advised to watch it via television since it gets hectic downtown. Not one to miss a Cameroon parade and the opportunity to fete, I watched hours of people marching downtown and in front of Paul Biya and his wife, Chantal, and was thoroughly fascinated...by Chantal's hair.

Have you seen it?? ...No?! Let me have the honor of posting a few photos (courtesy of Google):

The entire time I watched the parade, I kept watching for glimpses of her- perhaps because a) television is a non-existent aspect of my life in the north so it's exciting to have access to such media, b) she's married to Paul Biya, more than twenty years her senior, c) and her sense of fashion is well...quite frankly, it's perplexing, though Cameroonians seem to love her.The hair is obviously a wig, and I have been told minus that plus the pounds of makeup she wears, she's actually quite pretty. She's a former prostitute as well and has 2 children with Paul Biya, and 2 children from a former marriage (this is exciting news I know)--I'm unsure of why she went for the 80's motif but it just goes to show that everyone has a different taste in fashion, and also that everyone has their own perception of beauty: one can choose between Chantal Biya or ...perhaps Paris Hilton (and no, I kid you not, this photo really happened):I suppose it's just surprising, which must be the effect she's going for, because she's the wife of a political figure but if this is the most scandalous Cameroonian tidbit I can come up with, I will certainly take that over any ounce of American gossip.

Remember the old film "Milo & Otis"? The two sleep together, eat together and play together on their adventures through life- same goes for these two hooligans, though as they have grown up and continue to do so, they are realizing that they are not the same animal nor does the same behavior apply to each. Welcome to my world of pets, soon to be increased by a donkey, possibly ducks and perhaps a rabbit or two:

Milo: Continuously mauled by Otis on a daily basis though she has recently learned she is indeed a cat, and not a dog (she stopped attempting to nurse on Otis thankfully- only took four months). She talks up a storm but is very friendly towards people and not afraid to maul the dog herself now (along with lizards and spiders).

They grow up fast- first week I got her:

Four months in:

Otis: At four months, Otis has learned many a trick, continuing to derange me and yet has maintained the puppyish behavior to the point that I cannot be mad at her long. She's learned to sit and not really stay, how to walk on a leash around my village (i'm officially psycho), practically kill (more like thoroughly pluck) my neighbor's chickens and is also a total lovebug- loves people, chewing on the cat, chewing on my sekko and stealing the cat food. They grow up fast- first week I got her:

And now look at her:

My postmate's soy formations:: Helping diminish malnutrition one smiling human being at a time

No I do not live in a mud hut, though there are plenty of those in the area; rather, I live in a small yet cozy abode (see below):

Veranda and Hangar

My water canaries that people have asked about...

http://www.plant-trees.org/projects/cameroon.htm

A local group in Cameroon, their site has some interesting facts agro-related.

http://www.echonet.org/

Another interesting group from Florida that will provide seeds for different projects.

**I'm looking for information on solar ovens and rainwater harvesting; if you see any interesting articles or links, please email them to me since my time online is limited- thanks!

This is my yeppande, my aunt, in village.  Her name is Houwa Kalifa and she's pretty awesome.  Houwa never married, to my best knowledge at least, and she's one of the few unmarried, childless, older women in my community.  Thus, she's much more liberal than the other women and lives alone with her cats, goats and stray kids that she takes in.  She was my predecessor's "aunt" as well, and loves to jabber away to me in Fulfulde, which consists of much laughter because half the time I can understand her but am unable to reply in coherent sentences.  

She also sells konu at the market, a cool drink made out of rice and pump water, perhaps some vinegar, and like all things Cameroonian with lots of sugar.  I went with her one day to sell in the market, though I had no idea what I was getting into.  With my broken Fulfulde, I could have sworn we agreed upon having breakfast together at her house and then walking around the market together.  When I showed up the next morning, she had no clue what breakfast I was talking about and then I helped her cart stuff to the marketplace, instead.  It was lots of fun though and she took the prepared liquid and dumped it into a large canary, mixing it with a large wooden spoon, along with sugar and lots of pump water.  It turned out well, even though you aren't really supposed to drink untreated water or by-products.  

So I sat by her and mumbled away in Fulfulde and for the first time ever in Cameroon, I was allowed to sell something in the market, instead of always being a consumer.  Pretty hard work, considering the heat, the harassment from the men to get free konu, and fending off the marriage proposals.  All joking aside though, it was incredible to me that she sold such large bowls for less than 10 cents, when you know that she most likely spent a couple of days preparing all of that, in the heat, on top of laundry, meals, cleaning, etc.  This is relatively normal though, and the same thing goes for the women who sell beignets in the market on a daily basis, essentially you're losing money.

She's very feisty though, and very independent, with a huge grin and a strong handshake.  She's also a sneaky little woman, telling some large Nigerian Grand in the market that I might marry him- although then she also told me that if I got into the same car as him ever, he would drive away and take me to Nigeria and then she would never see me again.  I've always wanted to see Nigeria but not necessarily in that context- can't have everything in life, maybe the next time around.

National Youth Day in Cameroon is relatively self-explanatory but it also allows the kids, depending if you live en ville or en brousse, to practice marching for 3 weeks around the schoolyard instead of doing courses. After about 5 minutes of watching them march during the fete, you are pretty much done but you still about another 2 hours and 55 minutes to go. Subsequently, since the kids don't go to school for 2-3 weeks, in Douroum at least, the adults do not do much work and different groups practice the defile, the march, as well.    Not to be left out of these exciting events was the GIC that I work with, Kaouten-Kouen, and members proudly walked across the schoolgrounds with trees in their arms and waving their sign.  I had a GIC shirt which I wore as I sat under the hangar, in the shade, with the lamido and his entourage. Needless to say, after the parades, everyone in the entourage was invited to eat at the Chefferie (lamido's palace- sounds exotic, but not really, we just think we rock in Douroum because we have a lamido).  GIC members were not invited, though, so outside of ecole primaire there was an atmosphere of a carnival, as cold drinks were sold, alongside freshly slaughtered meat, billibill, beer, street food and tomatoes.  It was like market day except a bit smaller, size-wise.  

Our GIC decided we wanted to have our own party.  Keep in mind that, as seen in the attached photo, none of our members are young, but that didn't quite stop us.  After being vetoed on our desire for french fries and beef, instead of chicken or goat, Esther and Caroline and myself (teachers from the South, i.e. progressive, educated feminists) resigned ourselves to goat.  I have since determined that I really am not a fan of goat, fat or no fat, and might even prefer mutton to goat.  However, we slaughtered a goat from our GIC, one that we were supposed to sell for profit, but that concept was not quite understood when I explained it, and had a merry time. 

These are the EP, ecole primaire, teachers of Douroum, all of whom I made smile because Cameroonians usually don't smile in theirs and look way too serious for us Americans, who are conditioned to smile from a very early age.  Esther has the reddish braids, Caroline, and the male teachers, all of whom are great.  The women are my good friends in village and it's nice to be able to talk about modern topics with educated people- they're also big feminists and are very pro-involvement of the girls in the same activities as boys, which is great. 

I had a GIC meeting about a month ago wherein we discussed hangars.  For those of you who don't what they are, it is essentially an area for shade, constructed with straw sekko walls and huge logs.  They're used pretty frequently considering the climate and one usually reposes in the afternoon heat underneath one.  My GIC is a group of people who work with pepinieres, or tree nurseries, so we have our own pepiniere wherein we grow fruit trees and sell them for our profit. Thus, my curiosity was piqued when I overheard a heated discussion at the meeting about hangars and donkeys- everything is in fulfulde as well, so i tend to zone out at times, not being able to understand the language quite yet.

The discussion started off mildly:  let's build a hangar for the donkeys with our money from the group.  Great!  It gradually became more and more heated as prices were discussed and location was debated (a field yonder or the meeting area in front of my house or perhaps in an imaginary location yet to be determined)- at the end of the discussion people stomped off to get water and cool off.  As the discussion was occurring, all I could think of was WHY on earth would we want to use our tree nursery money to build a hangar for the donkeys??? Do we even own donkeys and if so why on earth do we care so greatly about them?? People don't hate them here but a donkey is used solely to cart water, they don't eat them (yeah, i got horrified looks when I asked that) and they certainly dont like their presence in their fields.  So after all of this pondering, I ventured the question, sooo are we building a hangar?  and all i got were blank looks.  yea, i felt like an ass, no pun intended. 

So a few days later, I'm out with my counterpart and I see a donkey and say, hey why are you guys wanting to build hangars for these animals?  My counterpart looks all around him at everything but the donkey and gives me a blank look- yep, i'm used to these by now, its a part of my daily routine--and then realizes I'm pointing to the animal.  He was like, oh those are called womnde in fulfulde, and so i explain the hangars and donkey discussion and my confusion concerning this topic and all of a sudden he understands me (after 15 mins).  Turns out donkey is the term for hangar in fulfulfe.  Thus, hangar is the french term, and donkey is the fulfulde term and no the GIC did not want to build a hangar or anything of any worth for the womnde... 

Indeed, the GIC can't stand donkeys, would eat them if they saw fit and had absolutely no other food to eat, and enjoy loading them down with bidons of water- those useless animals!  I subsequently felt like even more of an idiot, even as i attempted to explain that donkey is an english word for the animal we had been staring at and debating over for the last 25 minutes.  ai yaiyai... the joys of being lost in translation- who would have ever known that donkey, hangar and womnde would ever be so confusing.

If we don't change, we don't grow. If we don't grow, we are not really living. Growth demands a temporary surrender of security. It may mean a giving up of familiar but limiting patterns, safe but unrewarding work, values no longer believed in, relationships that have lost their meaning.

My sisters writing out their homework in the yard, ages 8 and 10

After going on site visit, returning to homestay has been interesting especially since the kids all know I'm leaving soon. The girls, Aissatou and Estabaca, were always especially affectionate beforehand and continue to be even more so in the past week or so. They tittered and squealed when they saw I wanted to take this picture of them but went back to work relatively soon after. Aissatou is on the left, Estabaca is on the right. They spend their days at school until about noon- there aren't enough teachers and its too hot to teach elementary school children in the p.m., so it lets out early every day- and then they return to their daily routines of laundry, housework, cooking and homework. They have fun too like most kids just in a different sense of fun. Most women do the harvesting and are held responsible for taking care of the family; mine happens to be wealthy enough to not have to go to the fields and do the heavy labor, though I would say that between general housework and simply surviving in the heat here in Cameroon all the women deserve equal credit.

I'm interested to see how things are different in Douroum, or perhaps rather similar. Most women I saw on site visit were working in the fields and probably will be until January when the harvest is over and people begin their dry season gardens in their compounds. I brought seeds with me and am looking forward to having my own garden- setting up house in general I suppose. It will be the first time I will have my own house and a place call home for longer than a year or a semester at a time...Thanksgiving is right around the corner, how time flies.

Post: Douroum

Mailing Address: See updated contact information

Location: North Province, very close to border of Extreme North; nearest city is Guider (one hour by either moto or bushtaxi) which is located between Maroua and Garoua, the provincial capitals.

Population: 3,000

Languages: French and primarily Fulfulde

Religions: Predominantly Muslim, some pagan as well

Ethnicities: Fulbe and Daba

Features: High peaks of mountains over my compound wall, no electricity, no cell phone reso, no running water

Volunteer Assignment: Agroforestry, second agro volunteer of the post, third volunteer overall.

Boasts: Huge market on Sundays

Lacking: High school, large health center, Catholic Mission; teachers and water are high on the list as well.

Transportation: motos, bush taxis, biking

Future Projects (to start/continue): women's groups, GICs, live fencing, solar energy, soy projects, encouraging composting and soil fertility, etc.

Site Visit: Awesome, pretty excited to start work and am happy with my village placement- very villageois.

Go to the people

Live among them

Learn from them

Plan with them

Work with them

Start with what they know

Build on what they have

Teach by showing, learn by doing

Not a showcase but a pattern

Not odds and ends but a system

Not piecemeal but integrated approach

Not to conform but to transform

Not relief but release

(as per the Agroforestry Technical Information Kit #6, November 1992)

Mountains in Bokle

The view from the top of the mountain

Agro Crew

Woodlots

Soil Layers and Erosion

Random Donkey

Caves

The Blue Lagoon... a small resort resembling a slice of paradise here in Cameroon...

Biking into the sunrise....

Some photos from different field trips-

Bame, Lagdo, Bokle - all of which incorporated various elements of agroforestry.

My tree nursery...complemented via frogs...nasty little pesks!

Lagdo

Pepinieres

Live Fencing

Beans Corn

Heading into week five and stage is halfway over. We find out our posts in 2 weeks and visit our sites in 3 so its pretty exciting. Been on a few field trips so far and since I am on a photo posting kick I thought I would put some up. Starting my own personal tree nursery tomorrow and we have been planting trees around school as well. Hoping to be sent way up North for posting so that I can work with water resource mnagement projects and other NGOs but we will see what happens. Also have been working with other Agros in a community development project with a local GIC who grows corn millet rice and sorghum. Its been pretty interesting thus far- we have entered the mini hot season now too so less sweat and humidity and more heat. Going to the Cameroonian football match today as well between Garoua and Pitoa an adventure I am sure considering how football crazed this country is.

Pepiniére

Polypots of our trees

le lac de Garoua

en brousse

The days blur together and, if it were not for the schedule set up by Peace Corps, I would have no semblance of a routine, much less know the date and time each day. Training is great, and although it can feel restrictive and demanding for some, it does not feel that way for me.

The other day we met the U.S. Ambassador to Cameroon, who came to Pitoa to meet with us trainees- something that is a huge deal for the locals especially, since it is rare to get an ambassador out to rural areas of a country. We also met the Prefet of Garoua, a high ranking government official who is in charge of security in Garoua I believe.

We finally got our mountain bikes which is awesome because it signals a sense of freedom and the ability to escape to the market, Garoua or wherever you might want to go- no holds barred. I love to bike and seeing as it is our main mode of transport, other than mototaxis, it certainly is a perk of PC. Plus, after all the starches, I could use the exercise since ultimate Frisbee and soccer aren’t doing it for me- I’m terrible at both, go figure. That and who really wants to bushtaxi it when you can hop on a moto or your bike instead of cramming 8-10 people in a vehicle which was not manufactured for such purposes.

I believe I must rethink my project ideas since our most recent technical training sessions have focused on what sort of issues face this region of the country in particular and though sources of firewood is a smaller subset of the larger issues, cane rats do not factor in for this area. Cane rats are an issue for the south or northwest whereas water resource management, the grafting of various fruit and herbal trees, and soil nutrition are the larger issues that PCVs usually tackle. I had my first interview with my APCD and it went really well- we discussed my goals and objectives for service, where I might want to be posted, various strengths/weaknesses, work experience, etc. Overall, it was productive and I feel pretty confident. I would like to open a post, if possible, rather than replacing another volunteer- I like the idea of mapping out a new village (both literally and figuratively), of breaking new ground and working at the grassroots level in a community, reaching out to various groups and providing the necessary foundation for the next volunteer in two years from now. I am starting to fully comprehend the scarcity of water in this region and I have a feeling that dry season, which is around March until June or July, will be challenging. The temperatures get so high that people do not work during the day, crops languish if they are able to survive at all, dust storms from the Sahara are prevalent, and most general forms of activity come to a standstill.

We had the Grand Fete for Ramadan which consisted of eating bubble gum, drinking soda (all of which are a luxury here), doing henna on our hands and feet, and finally eating that pesky rooster. I was allowed to assist in the making of French fries over the fireplace, which was fun since I am not usually allowed to help in the kitchen. Dinner turned out well and it was nice to meet the rest of my extended family who had traveled from Garoua for the festivities including several uncles who wanted to marry me and thought I was Ethiopian. I was told that in the city of Garoua one can go see the horse races but perhaps next year I will go.

For the festivities I had bought pagne, a very heavy but ornate fabric, and had it made up into an outfit which was lovely but when it’s 98 degrees outside and you are living in a desert region it is the last thing you would want to wear for hours straight. I have yet to shave my head, something which may or may not happen at post in a few months, because it is not considered appropriate for a woman to shave her head in my community. Only men do that and little boys; women are supposed to have hair I have been told and it is not too hot quite yet. Once it goes over 100 degrees in March, I believe I will shave it then but not until I am at post- my host family already gave me the rundown of social consequences, none of which coincide with integration/cultural assimilation.

Getting my host family to eat with me in the evening was a struggle at first because it is Ramadan now and because of the fast, they usually do not eat until it is rather late at night, after I have gone to bed. But recently I have made progress and now the women and children come to my porch each evening with my dinner on a tray and theirs as well and we eat as a family. My host father is usually at the mosque and eats after prayer but I love that they eat with me now. Previously, I was left to eat alone on my mat outside of my room (perhaps they figured I wanted to retain my American sense of privacy), as they gathered around to watch me eat- something which is culturally appropriate here but rather unnerving for an outsider.

Every evening is a small fete and I have taught my host brother, Amadou (12 years old), how to use my digital camera and he loves to take pictures.

Most nights we eat dinner and sit around and talk in French about many things- the educational system, agriculture, American pop culture, marriage in Cameroon and gender roles, religion, etc. Dinner itself is either some form of pasta, either macaroni or spaghetti, or rice with gumbo/sauce/chicken.

The other night I had plantains in thick gravy which was delicious. My lunches are usually held at someone’s house in the village and are eaten communal-style; a big bowl of rice or pasta with various sauces, and the occasional piece of fruit to top it off. I like the food but it is a lot of starches, no vegetables, little protein if any, and rather high in fat content- they cook with lots of oil here and eat a ton of meat which is the complete opposite of what I have been used to eating prior to Cameroon. And, mais bien sur, what would Cameroon be without yams.

I have begun to learn Fulfulde, the local dialect, with my younger brother who is 12 and my aunt who is 17 years old. Sometimes the smaller kids come over and repeat phrases, especially Mustafa, who is 4 years old and is in the toddler stage of repetition- starting at 6am until 8pm, he never quite stops babbling phrases. Almost everyone in the North speaks Fulfulde and very few people actually speak French, despite the fact that the government operates in the French language and composes documents in French. I will be learning it formally nearer to the end of my training here in Nassarao and though my entire family speaks French, they are all fluent in Fulfulde. It also just really helps to know it for your post, since a translator is usually a hassle. I have learned only the basic phrases so far but because I can speak French, I talk with my brothers and sisters and they give me the translation in Fulfulde, I write it down, and they check it and quiz me. It really is true that children are the best teachers when it comes to languages- especially when you live in a household with ages ranging from 10 months to 12 years. Everyone is excited, myself included, that I am learning Fulfulde at home, and though it is nice to greet people in French and be able to converse, it’s equally nice to know I will soon be able to communicate with a wider range of people.

After a 16 hour train ride and 5 hour bush taxi, I finally arrived in Pitoa only to be crammed into another bush taxi with my host family siblings and colleagues and schlepped off to Nassarao, my training site. The geography of the country is as varied as all the literature says and while on the train we passed from urban sprawls through the jungle and the savannah to the North of Cameroon, a very dry and desert-like climate.

I love the idea of home stays and my host family is wonderful. Mine is not a polygamous family, so I have only one host mother, aunt, father, uncle, two babies under the age of 2, approximately 2 host brothers though it fluctuates at times, as well as 2-3 host sisters, not counting my half-sister who lives with another family but has adopted me as her sister. At any given time, there are usually 8-10 people in my yard or on my steps waiting for me to come out of my room in the morning and depending on the activities of the day, the number will increase. My father is a merchant at the market in the closest city, Garoua, 6 days a week and on the seventh day, Sunday, he goes to the market in Pitoa to sell his wares- he sells plastics, i.e. cups, bowls, buckets. Usually he works 7 days a week and is gone from 8am until 6pm, and though they do not live with us, he has 15 brothers and 14 sisters in his family. My host mother is a housewife, and has only one sister, along with my aunt. Prayers at the mosque are 5 times a day and Ramadan will be over tomorrow night- the exact date is determined by a person in Saudi Arabia- and the moment that the whole area seems to have been waiting for will be here: La Grand Fete (the big party/celebration). This will signify the end of the fasting (Eid) and the beginning of a few days worth of dancing, feasting and music. I have been told that this is just a way of life, the African way of life and I believe I am quite used to being on “African time” already versus that of a New Yorker. The communities here in the villages are close-knit and in my village, Nassarao, everyone shares the same ancestor from many years ago and, as such, everyone is treated like family. The gate to my front yard is always open for visitors at any hour of the day or night and what is one person’s belongings is also another person’s belongings as well.

I’ve adapted to a routine here which consists of the following: I wake up at 5:30 am every morning, if not earlier due to the rooster which I believe takes perverse pleasure in standing on my porch and crowing, and eat breakfast on my porch which is attached to another part of the house. There are two rooms which lead out to the porch, mine being on of them, another bedroom is the other; to the right of my door, past the bedroom, is the kitchen, and another house which holds more bedrooms. Continuing to the right, one passes through a courtyard, into a large parcel of land which contains some crops and also the main house where my father sleeps with the rest of the family. To the left of my room is the “bathroom,” a simple pit latrine surrounded by an aluminum fence- add a bucket of water and voila, it is a shower as well.

I eat an omelet and bread with tea each morning, which my host aunt cooks for me and serves on my porch on a mat, and head to L’école de la Corps de la Paix which is a five minute walk from my house for the day. I’ve been placed into intermediate mid-level French, with only one more level to complete for proficiency, and have classes 3-4 times per week. The rest of the day is filled with technical training for agro forestry as well as being shuttled to Pitoa, the training village for the Health Volunteers, for classes on protocol, home stay discussions, cultural immersion and adaptation, etc. We break for lunch for two hours, usually eating at someone’s house in the village and then we finish our days around 4:30 or 5:00. I have little time for myself which has impacted my blog and personal time, with no access to internet unless I go into Garoua, running water and electricity- and yet it is a lot more than most people so I do not mind. Being internet-less is not the end of my world and I have a cell phone- what more could I need. After sitting all day, we usually head out to the soccer field pour jouer le foot or Frisbee tournaments, running/jogging, or simply go home and learn how to cook/wash clothing/etc. We have taught the kids in the village how to play Frisbee and now when I walk down the street, they all know me by name- every now and then you can hear “Anitaaaa” in the distance which is amusing. Our curfew is at 7pm and though it seems early, it really is not because it is dark here around 6:30 – 7:00pm, and does not get light in the morning until around 5:30 – 6:00am. Plus, in a family of many children, it is a relief when they finally go to bed at dark and you have time to write entries such as these. My internet schedule will hopefully be once a week, perhaps once every two weeks if I am too busy to come into the city, but the best way to reach me is via text message or my cell phone in general.

During our first session today we reviewed the Cameroon Agroforestry and Permanenet Farming Systems Project Plan, the idea for which was originally conceived in 1991 by Peace Corps Cameroon. Our leaders, Dr. Njiti (APCD) and Tiki (Agro Trainer), were so enthusiastic and passionate about their work which, in turn, will become our work. We will be posted in the sahelian region and our main goals are to facilitate the following processes: 1) Local farmers adopting farming systems based on agroforestry and 2) Farm leaders (both men and women) and NGOs providing leadership and training in permanent farm systems to other farmers. These goals will hopefully encourage farmers to improve their agroforestry techniques, provide leadership, and act as motivation in the continuation and sustainability of projects.

Interestingly enough, the plan is separated into four phases, with the first volunteer at a post doing the preliminary grassroots work and assessment of community needs. After their service is up, then the replacement volunteer is expected to continue their predecessors work, and the cycle continues- in my class’s case, seven of us will be opening a new post in 11 weeks and the rest will act as the replacement volunteer for a post that has already been opened. Essentially we are catalysts- we work to create a reaction via training, immersion/adaptation, and then we leave our posts at the close of our service, leaving it up to the next volunteer to continue the work of the plan.

I can’t decide what I would like to work on yet but my interest centers around the issue of gas stoves versus open fires and the application of cost-benefit analysis. While open fires are commonplace, they also use up plenty of firewood, contributing to deforestation, which in turn leads to a loss of natural habitats for animals. If a transition were made to gas stoves, the overall benefit to society and the environment would far outweigh the initial start-up costs; however, it takes a phenomenal amount of effort on the part of both the volunteer and the local community to implement such a project, as well as to ensure its continuance after the volunteer’s departure. I’m also interested in the breeding of cane rats which serve several purposes including alternative sources of bush meat (high in protein and also combating deforestation / the protection of other bush meat i.e. gorillas, monkeys), and a source of income diversity for families in the sahelian region. This might be a decent side project to think further upon.

Interesting facts from the Project Plan:

Agriculture in Cameroon is the driving force behind the economy and employs roughly 70% of the general population. With population on the rise, urbanization, roads and other infrastructure have been expanded, protected areas have become more and more limited, arable land is diminishing and deforestation, soil erosion, and the lack of tree cover in the sahelian region has increased wind erosion and desertification. All of these elements combined with the rapidly increasing rate of HIV/AIDS in Cameroon, which decrease the labor force for agricultural production, pose a serious threat to the sustainability of Cameroon’s self-sufficiency status. Whereas in undergrad I was able to write a thesis on China’s infrastructure and offer recommendations as to how to alleviate rural poverty from a post-industrial perspective, here I am able to participate and be a contributor within an agrarian society.

This trip has gone very smoothly thus far. We managed to survive staging in Philadelphia, received the yellow fever vaccine, and hopped on a plane to Brussels, and then to Douala where I am currently writing from. The flight went surprisingly well and it was wonderfully hot and humid when we arrived in Cameroon. Just got done having dinner and airing out my room which contains a bed, desk, tv, faulty toilet and faulty air conditioner. I’m not complaining though, I prefer the simplicity of a hotel room- Philadelphia was nice but I believe we were all a bit too spoiled there. It’s great to finally meet the Cameroon staff after hearing so much about them. James Ham is our country director and there are numerous other people who have all made this possible for both us volunteers and for the people of Cameroon. Dinner was amazing after eating plane food for what seemed like an eternity: whole fish with a side of rice, plantains, guava and pear juice, hot sauce, and fresh fruit for dessert. My evening is complete with live music wafting into my room from the rooftop of the hotel as I sit here typing; every now and then the hall light turns off to conserve electricity. I don’t quite mind not having air conditioning and we are only here for the evening.

Tomorrow we leave for Yaoundé for a few days of vaccinations (including rabies, tb, cholera etc), paperwork and testing into language classes. We are required to take French and will be learning Pidgin English as well as Fulfulde which is a commonly used local dialect in the North. I believe several of my colleagues and I will be buzzing our heads before leaving the capital; it’s certainly a viable option, especially considering it gets up to 100 degrees, if not higher (think 120 degrees), in the North.

Overall, I’m perfectly content. My fellow trainees are diverse, ambitious, and intelligent- I am looking forward to delving into our fieldwork--in a few days time I will update this with my cell phone number etc before I head to my site.

Please be aware of the following information:

1. Mail should be sent the address listed on the right-hand side of this page. You are encouraged to write Sister Anitha Weiss or put religious symbols all over the package in red print-the more the better, including phrases like God Saves, Jesus Loves etc.

2. Both Volunteers and family/friends should number letters sent so that the receiver can determine whether any letters do not arrive.

3. Packages should be sent via air, not surface mail (surface mail has been known to take longer than two years to arrive.) FLAT RATE INTERNATIONAL is the best bet and insuring the package is a good idea.

4. Sending packages to your Volunteer in Cameroon is a risky proposition. Theft of packages is not only a problem in the Cameroonian postal system, it also occurs on the U.S. side. Although occasionally a package arrives quickly and without problem, it may take months or it may get"lost" along the way. Therefore, it is not advisable to send valuables this way.

5. If you do send packages, bubble envelopes seem to work better than large boxes. They are less tempting to would-be thieves. The sender should clearly and honestly mark the contents on the outside of the package, but a general description of the contents is sufficient: "clothing and candy" rather than "Nike high top sneakers and 2 lbs. Godiva chocolate."

6. Express mail is an expensive option that may take just as long to get to Cameroon. Perhaps a more secure option than regular airmail for documents, checks, etc., it is subject to more scrutiny by Cameroonian customs than regular mail. For items other than documents, PeaceCorps staff has to submit import licenses to customs, and clearance can take up to 10 days.Thus, you may not necessarily save any time by using Express mail. DHL and UPS operate in Cameroon for those important documents. Note that current prices for these services run around $100.00 for one pound or less.

7. There is a tax which Volunteers will have to pay on all packages received before they can retrieve them from the post office. This tax varies according to the size of the package. It might be a nice gesture from friends or family to send a six-pack of Mountain Dew, but it may cost a Volunteer up to $10.00 to get it out of the post office.

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Packages are certainly welcome after training -- once I am out at my site I will have a better idea of what I may or may not need. I do have a fondness for snail mail, though, and would love to hear from whoever is able to write during the course of my service :)