COS Conference in Yaounde has come and gone! My COS (Close of Service) date is November 18th...and I will hopefully find out my exact itinerary for flying home, in the next few weeks (Peace Corps is making my reservation).

The few day conference was a bit more anti-climactic than I may have anticipated, but being altogether again (the 29 of us who remain in Cameroon from our original 32), for the last time, was well worth it!

Apathy has taken over me a bit and a mixture of "how is this transition going to be for me?" and "how long will the glory of being 'home' actually last?" and "how do I plan my next steps knowing that I will have a lot of free time and freedom?"

Don't get me wrong, I CANNOT wait to walk around (inside and outside) barefoot for hours on end, relish in the luxury and ease that we call normal life in the United States, eat and drink phenomenal things, and reconnect with all of you! But for any of you who've been/lived abroad for extended periods of time, you can understand why all of that may no longer (for this moment in time) be sending me infinite good vibes and comfort.

These are my POTENTIAL (and I stress that nothing is set in stone and no specific dates have been chosen) PLANS upon returning to the US:

~ Flying to Pittsburgh for about a week

~ Flying with my brother to San Francisco for Thanksgiving

~ Spending some time in California seeing family

~ A cousin's Bat Mitzvah in CT on December 17th which will lead me to the NY/NJ area for the holidays and New Year period

~ JANUARY is unknown/unplanned

~ A cousin's Bat Mitzvah in Northern CA at the beginning of February and then Hawaii for my Mom's 60th birthday

~ Possibly Australia towards the end of February (for a revisit and to help nanny my nephews while my sister attends a conference)

~ From March, I'm thinking of becoming a Peace Corps Recruiter in San Francisco before transferring that job to Chicago and beginning graduate school in the Fall of 2012 for a Masters in Adolescent or Health Psychology.

I'll keep you posted as life plans become more concrete!

Thanks for keeping up with my blog, hope this entry finds you well, especially you East Coasters dealing with Hurricane Irene!

Stef

Just thought I'd give you a brief description of the traditional marriage that I attended this weekend! It was the last traditional event for "my people" that I think I had yet to witness. Some other PCV friends joined me, which made it that much more fun. I had a connection to the marriage since it was the sister of two of my NGO members, Simon's wife Rose and her sister Olga (my good friend)-it was their sister who now lives with her husband in the London environs:

The marriage was a great experience. They are different in every ethnic group (keep in mind there are over 200 in this country)! The funny thing was that it wasn't the actual bride and groom-just stand ins (brother of the groom and sister of the bride)-since the bride and groom are in the UK. They sent money so that the family could celebrate and the community as well.

We carried firewood and then threw it on the ground, as an "offering" to the bride. BIG loaves of fufu were prepared by the bride's family and then later eaten with njama njama (with red palm oil, but without salt-as it was prepared in the old days) by the wedding party. Traditional fabric was chosen and worn, both by the family of those getting married and then separate for the bridal party. The bride was adorned with beads and she and the bridal party were covered in what seemed to be red palm oil powder. There was a comedian/MC whom also conducted the marriage ceremony and had his cell phone go off a few times and yes, he answered it. The stand in groom had to "ease himself" halfway through and there was a sudden eruption of singing to

fill time. There was much food and drink---and lucky for the flow of the afternoon, the eaten and drinking started off the event, instead of after 5+ hours, which is typical at funerals, meetings, and most occasions around here. I had helped prepare the "chewables" as they call snacks/hors d'oeuvres --- chin chin (fried dough), fried peanuts (flour and nutmeg covered) and small doughnuts. And yes, we all were

Jewish grandmothers and figured out ways to take it all home in our purses! :)

I use that title because of the surfing movie (which I've never seen) by that name which was filmed in parts of Dakar that we trampled upon. Now I've got to put it on my list of movies to watch. It's just too bad that it's not a typical one floating around Cameroon PCV hard drives.

Anyways, CA VA? That is a common French greeting, but was ULTRA common throughout Senegal (and of course Lauren got it down pat), meaning the equivalent of "how are things/things are good?" It was so frequently used that before telling a taxi driver where you wanted to go, first you had to greet with ca va?. Can you imagine asking your taxi driver, in the US, how he was doing...all of the time?

Lauren Weinstein and I continued our international travel ensemble, this time to a MUCH different part of the world - Senegal and The Gambia. It had been her first time in "real Africa" and I think was quite eye opening for her, both as an individual who loves seeing new places and understanding other cultures but also as someone who works in development!

For me, there were definite similarities to the life I know in Cameroon and other countries I've visited on this continent, even though Africa is so varied (which I kept reminding Lauren so as not to have her generalize the difficulties and be totally turned off to them for future possible travel on the continent).

Even though we had a wonderful time together, had crazy encounters, saw new terrain and tried to meet locals, I would say that I was not all that impressed with either country. My opinion is probably skewed as a result of being used to things in Cameroon - people and prices, most specifically. There is probably more to see and do in Senegal and The Gambia, but interactions with the locals were quite difficult because everyone seemed to only be concerned with knowing our names, where we came from, and how they can rip us off with the white man tax to the nth degree. Supposedly Senegalese are known for "terranga", meaning hospitality, but unfortunately we never really felt that. Granted, our experiences were in Dakar (a LARGE city) and then for a short time in Cap Skirring, in the Cassamance region (south Senegal, below The Gambia), which is a touristy village, though not TOO built up, except for the Club Med, haha.

I would say that part of the difficulties were as a result of limited time to explore both countries, long distances to travel (which is why we decided to fly to the Cassamance Region, instead of spending 26 hours on the road), it being low season and places being closed down no longer in existence, Senegal being a French speaking country and Lauren not being able to communicate (though she damn well tried in a melange of Spanish, French, Portuguese with an Italian accent), and the constant feeling of being ripped off.

Alright, enough reflection, here's what we did!

We lucked out in Dakar and were able to stay at the apartment (on the beach!) of an RPCV (great network to have) who was in the US at the time. That was our home base for our first 3 nights and 2 nights at the end, before spending our last day at Le Meridien Dakar (well worth it, though the hotel was lacking in customer service, as was most of Dakar). Lauren did some surfing with ex-pat youth who were taking lessons, we began to realize how big and spread out Dakar is, and how expensive it is. My biggest comparison: to go the same distance in Dakar as you would in a city in Cameroon, you pay 2000 FCFA (~4 dollars) vs. 200 FCFA (~40 cents), respectively.

We ate good international food (Thai, Italian, Spanish Tapas & Sangria, Magnum Ice Cream Bars), heard some Brazilian music, played with the neighborhood kids, and covered ourselves in Deet, for all of the mosquitoes!

We visited Ile de Goree, a colonial island (off the coast of Dakar), kept as is, from the days of the slave trade. In the Maison des Esclaves (Slave House), we joined a group with UNICEF to hear a bit about the history - definitely didn't know that the local chiefs joined in with the idea of keeping slaves, once the Spanish and Dutch began the trading process! Lauren began her search and practice for a traditional drum called a Djembe, which she finally purchased in The Gambia. We got our hair braided, which lasted until our last day on vacation, and chatted with the women who worked on the island and commuted daily on the ferry from Dakar.

The following morning we flew to Ziguinchor (in the Cassamance Region), again 45 minute flight as compared with 26 hours in a cramped taxi on BAD roads! From there we went to Cap Skirring and settled on an empty hotel on the beach (which we never did learn the name of). We tried to enjoy laying out on the beach and Lauren tried to surf with what looked like a surf board but was actually a HEAVY sign for a restaurant, but we were constantly hassled by people selling things. We participated in some drumming and dancing on the beach and chatted with the hotel workers and other locals.

We ventured into town and met a phenomenal local artisan named YAYA, whom we ended up spending a lot time with. We watched him create his tshirts, make his sand paintings, drank much Cafe Touba, learned the term BEGUE (essentially meaning life is good and continued drumming (well Lauren did and I videoed). A restaurant, which turned out to be just a woman's house, came recommended by one of Lauren's friends and we spent 2 hours playing with her grandchildren while she prepared our private meal! We went on a pirogue (canoe) to various islands in the area to walk through daily life and much inactivity because of low season) and got very ripped off by our taxi driver. Lots of grilled fish for just about all meals but breakfast!

After our time in Cap Skirring, we traveled with public transport (similar to the prison buses I described when I traveled to the North of Cameroon) into the Gambia and settled into the Sandele Resort (the leader in Eco Tourism in the area), another connection Lauren had through a coworker. Just our luck, it was filled to capacity, but we enjoyed Baobab juice (more calcium than cow's milk) and Bisap Juice (high in vitamin C, made from hibiscus flowers). They hooked us up with an abandoned bungalow on the beach; we could see the stars, hear the waves and were camping in comfort!

Our next step in the Gambia was to the Sheraton in the Serrakunda region (thanks to Lauren's Starwood Points). We enjoyed VERY relaxing days of reading by the pool and by the beach (at the same time), swimming, walking to find fish and chips on the beach, avoiding hawkers on the beach, chatting with the hotel employees, and NICE acommodations! We had all intentions to explore a culture forest, watch a meal being prepared after visiting a local farm, going hiking, but none of that seemed to actual exist, at least not during the low season.

We then continued to Banjul, the capital of The Gambia (PS...we never quite figured out why it's THE Gambia, but the best explanation we received was that it makes it more "official" with that article) and enjoyed a day there in the market, drinking fresh squeezed juice that we had searched for throughout the country, and eating falafel sandwiches.

We continued back to Dakar via public transport in a sept-place (7 passenger) station wagon, cramped beyond belief even after buying the 3rd seat in the back. It took us about 9.5 hours, including the ferry and various modes of transport back to Dakar. The highlight of our last bit of time in Dakar was seeing a famous Senegalese artist in concert at the French Cultural Center. Daara J Family is a great performer of Rap, Reggae, and World Sounds. Check him out!

This entry is way too long, I'm tired from writing it, so I understand if you never make it to this point!

All I can say is that 3rd world travel is NOT easy...ask questions if you want to know more details about the whole experience.

Lots of love with 4 months remaining in Cameroon and figuring out what the hell I'm going to do to fill my time.

Be in touch,

Stef

Since descending the mountain yesterday in the early afternoon, this is the first opportunity I have had to sit down and elevate my legs! You should see my legs and feet---SWOLLEN beyond belief. If anyone ever thought I had cankles before, you should see them now! Unfortunately I am still waiting on my USB camera cord in order to upload photos. Have no fear; I will attach photos of this adventure as soon as possible.

Climbing Mount Cameroon was intensely difficult and I am pretty sure that my body is quite angry with what I have put it through over the past three days. When you think of the largest mountain in West Africa or the 3rd largest on the African continent, you cannot imagine how insanely steep and treacherous the trek was, both up and down! I heard stories from other PCVs but could not quite fathom the reality until I was trudging along, right there on the mountain.

Five of us made the trek together, along with six porters and one fantastic guide, Hans. He and I became quite “close” since I was always at the back of our line and he was there to push me along and save my ass from falling down more often.

In just about 15 hours, over the course of three days, we climbed from the base of the mountain (~800 m) to the windy summit (~4000 m) [where we of course popped a bottle of champagne to celebrate] and back down through old lava flow areas, 26 craters from the last eruption in 1999, Ireland-esque rolling green hills, and dense rainforest!

Taking the night bus yesterday was probably the stupidest idea I have ever had, but needless to say, I and my unbendable knees have made it home in one piece. In fact, our group of five had no injuries, some small sunburn and collectively only three small blisters! We had heard of people losing toenails, developing blisters the size of their entire heel, and even turning around after the first resting hut. Not us! Even though it was far from easy, we succeeded with a great pace!

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Better late than never-Sunday will be Passover Seder, Cameroonian style! Hana (my post mate, friend and fellow Jew) and I have coordinated to have a Seder for us and other PCVs in our stage and who live in the Northwest-most of them have no idea what Passover is all about and so we decided to add some culture into their lives! I found a 2 minute Haggadah and an average-length one and we’ll be preparing as much of the Seder plate and traditional foods as are possible!

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Some random tidbits that often come to my mind on long bus rides to Yaoundé or Douala:

~ Taxis in Cameroon (also known as bush taxis or clandos) run on an “I think I can” basis

~ When mango season is approaching, much excitement fills the air (well at least PCV’s air) and it falls towards the end of pear (avocado) season! MANGO SALSA & GUAC! Additionally, it is also the start of plum (French word is prune) season; purple, sphere shaped “food” that tastes like a lemony-artichoke and is high in protein and fat. Delicious when paired with grilled corn or roasted plantains!

~ It is quite rare to find a Cameroonian man who approaches you and will not ultimately (usually in less than a minute of interaction) tell you he loves you and/or wants your number.

~ Cameroonians are very fond of using the statement, “we are managing/ we are trying” in response to “how are you”. Sometimes they are and sometimes they are hoping for a miracle that will make their day to day lives less difficult.

~ It is believed that lager beers = weight gain and stouts = fertility and increased sex drive.

~ Cameroon is a bilingual country, but more Anglophones (2 Regions in Cameroon) know French than Francophones (8 Regions in Cameroon) know Grammar, aka English.

~ In rural schools, the headmaster and teachers prefer that the children come barefoot instead of wearing “slippers” (house shoes-flip flops), since they are for home and not formal enough for school!

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Work Highlights at Post (because isn’t that what I am supposed to be focusing on):

~ Computer Training for the members of my NGO who are taking advantage of it

I’m not doing the teaching, but helped make the arrangements and contributed to make it fiscally possible.

~ Choose A Future

Just 4 sessions this time around for about 30 girls, at the Government Bilingual High School in Fundong, before they head off on “holiday” (summer vacation as we know it)

~ Sex Education Course

Helping to supervise my NGO to conduct another round of this course, at our office, again before the three month holiday break from school

~ Diabetes/Hypertension Manual for Health Care Practitioners and PCVs

This is something that I have wanted to assemble since I attended the local Diabetes clinic, more than a year ago. My postmate (Hana) and I have chosen twelve topics (for the 12 times a year – 1x per month) for which we will create simple lessons that anyone (no matter whether they have a lick of knowledge about Diabetes) can read ahead of time and present to a local clinic or support group. It now seems that PC Cameroon wants to have this available for all PCVs, since Diabetes and Hypertension are seriously beginning to plague this country!

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I only have about 6-7 months left as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Cameroon! Holy Shit! Time sure does fly when you are having fun, being bored, helping others, living in a new world, adjusting and changing daily!

I will know towards the end of August when my official COS (Close of Service) date will be…

Take care; be in touch, and all that jazz!

Love, Stef

I'll begin this posting with a comment from my counterpart, Simon, after a meeting we had with Heifer International yesterday:

"Stef, I want you to have more experiences like this because isn't Peace Corps also a cultural exchange? If you don't have difficult interactions, you won't accurately be able to report on the way things work in Cameroon."

...as if all I do is report that Cameroon is "coming up roses"!

Simon and I had met with the Heifer International Cameroon's Country Director and the Gender Project Specialist (I'll refer to him as GPS) many months ago and got the go ahead to write up a Project Proposal for a continuation of the Plight of Orphans and Widows Workshop that Better Family Foundation conducted in Fundong, last July. We followed through and wrote up the proposal (which would allow us to have the backing of Heifer's name and have them help us find funding from their donors) and have been waiting to have another meeting with the GPS, with the intent of taking the next steps.

The GPS called us in for a meeting - I'm not sure what I was expecting, but I imagine some substantial direction or assistance in carrying out the next step. When we arrived, he acted quite aloof; he told us that now we had to write up a full spectrum proposal to be submitted to donors, but it couldn't be the format of Heifer International...

When I asked him for some guidance as to what to include and many other details, he instead was chatting online and texting on his phone. When I asked again he acted as if I was stupid and didn't understand that we couldn't copy their format and I began developing a "professional" attitude at his evasiveness, "I understand, but can you at the very least show us some samples?" He did once he finished sending some personal emails.

When I asked what Heifer's role would be after we write up the project, he stated that they will send it out to potential donors. When I asked if there's a chance that a donor would not be interested in the project, he wouldn't answer the question and just kept repeating the next step. Again, I got a bit of attitude and said, "Is there a chance that the project will not get funded?", he said, "well yes, it's 50/50 but I didn't want to give a negative response to you." ARE YOU KIDDING ME? I said, "well it's important to be realistic...in life and not avoid telling people what to expect."

I think you guys are getting the point of this "productive [okay, in the end it was a bit helpful, though initially I felt like he could've saved us a trip and just sent us this basic information over email] meeting"---though the frustration continued. We were reviewing a chart template for reporting our objectives and activities and risks involved, etc. When I asked if he could give us an example of certain column entries he said, "well that's impossible without an objective". COME ON DUDE...and he ended up being able to explain further, without an objective...even though I did offer one. GRR!

After the meeting I apologized to Simon for my "bitchiness" [which he said wasn't evident...wow!] and explained what he has heard about Heifer and other NGOs project planning under them. Supposedly in Cameroon (this shouldn't come as a shock, knowing the corruption that encircles this "world") there are Heifer employees who are not honest people and who take ideas in order to establish their own credibility! NAUSEATING...both that a world renowned organization allows this and keeps these people as employees!

Deep breath...

Gabon with my Mom and Harry was a wonderful experience over New Years! Their visit was fantastic---a whirlwind in Fundong (once they finally arrived, without all of their luggage---remember that horrible winter in the US and Europe---oh wait, it continues), Xmas in a very small village in the SW Region with my neighbors, Peter & Carine, everything that is Cameroon [corruption, bad roads, new and different foods--not their favorites], and then onto Gabon.

In summary, Gabon and Cameroon are like NIGHT AND DAY! One would never imagine that they share a border. In general, the Gabonese hold themselves and go about life as if they have a PURPOSE---completely the opposite of most Cameroonians! There is infrastructure, development, lines defining parking spaces in parking lots, a flow and rhythm to how to get things accomplished!

It's definitely a country I would recommend visiting; there is definitely a tourism industry---on the rise! They do still have work to do in that regard, and probably need to get English speaking natives working in the industry, but it's a beautiful country---on the coast, 75% of land set aside for national parks, wildlife [we watched monkeys and mandrills grub on bananas just meters away from us and turtles laying eggs on the beach], friendly people, and wood fired pizza!

After my Midservice (medical and dental checkups) conference in Yaounde [Can we believe that I have just about 10 months left??????], I traveled with some friends up to the Grand North of Cameroon - Adamawa, North, Extreme North regions! I now have been to all 10 regions of this country, 90% more than what most Cameroonians have ever seen. It's a whole other world up there; it is dry [riverbeds that must be dug for meters before water is found], little vegetation, and peaceful. We mainly stayed with other PCVs and tried to see as much as we could in our short time up there. We enjoyed the snacks [chai tea, tofu, dates, sesame seed balls, dried meat encrusted with pepe and peanuts], observing the polygamous Fulani (Muslim) culture, and not being bothered as much as Francophones and even some Anglophones do...because we're white!

I'm back at post, quasi preparing for the GRE next weekend and jumping back into "work". My goal with Better Family Foundation (in as much as they want to be helped and guided) is to get them standing on their own two feet before I leave, equipping them with the knowledge, skills and attitudes necessary to function without the constant help of a PCV...I'll keep you posted...

Happy 2011, wishing you less snow and ice over time (if you're in those parts of the country), hoping that you're rooting for the Steelers tomorrow, and more!

Until next time!

Stef

As you've all set back your clocks and our ground is drying up for the next few months, I figure it's time to give you a bit of an update.

I've been reluctant to blog within the past couple of months because my life has been so hectic, but more so relating to my work with Peace Corps Cameroon Admin "things."

I'm finally back in Fundong (and staying put) for [only] a week and a half, before the various Turkey Day activities begin. Then, with other things here and there at the start of December, before I know know it my Mom and Harry will be visiting! We're going to do a whirlwind tour of Fundong, spend Xmas in the Southwest region with my neighbor Peter and his family, see the beaches of Limbe, and then spend a little under a week in GABON!

Instead of writing paragraph upon paragraph in this entry, I'll just list things I've been doing, been wanting to do, and been thinking about recently. If you want more details/information, don't hesitate to ask me.

1) I really enjoyed helping out with the training of the new health/agro group - felt like an experienced volunteer and a therapist all at the same time

2) Having a year under your belt (as a PCV) feels very positive, especially seeing and hearing the anxiety of those just starting out

3) I love my community (here in Fundong) and miss them when I'm away too long. I enjoy continuing to learn the local dialect, Kom, and know that the locals appreciate it as well. As for Pidgin English, it's sort of like my inability to drive a stick shift, just not able to pick it up as easily!

4) I've caught up on the first 5 episodes of Glee, Season 2 --- not as great as Season 1.

5) I've decided to take the GRE in February, here in Yaounde. Hoping that the 2nd time around I perform better, this will help me figure out "what's next", after Peace Corps.

6) I recently acquired whole wheat flour (!) and made whole wheat tortillas this morning --- I can just feel the fiber having a hay day in my body, after so long!

7) My work as a PCV has taken a hiatus over these past few months and I feel is only going to continue that way until March (?). Don't get me wrong, it's not as if I've been sitting on my butt doing nothing. I've been continuing capacity building efforts with my NGO, Better Family Foundation, as much as is possible since I haven't consistently been around. I feel that a lot of my efforts have been towards preparing and executing training sessions for the new health/agro trainees. In addition to that, traveling within this country is an event in and of itself and takes time to accomplish and from which to recuperate!

8) I'm craving the ability to implement secondary projects (such as monthly Diabetes Awareness/Prevention sessions and more Choose A Future type activities) but lacking the consistency of being here to follow through.

9) I think I've decided that I prefer rainy season to dry season--a little mud is nothing compared with a lot of dust!

10) I have plans to travel, in mid-January, with a few friends from my training group to the East and Grand North regions of Cameroon! It's supposed to be a very different world around those parts.

11) I'm pleased to say that a small handful of Cameroonians (in and around Fundong) are thinking about making chocolate chip cookies for Xmas, instead of the traditional Chin-Chin (fried dough) - cross-cultural exchange is a success!

12) Pictures have been lacking from my more recent blog updates and I'm hoping that will change once my Mom arrives and bring the USB that I forgot while home in the States.

13) A Pencil for Pikins update is in the works, keep waiting patiently and I'll let you know when the new link is up! Thanks again for your personal interest in this project and to those connected to you who participated.

That's all for now.

Waka Fine Yah (You Be Well)!

Stef

The title of this post is the last thing that my dad said to me as he left me at SFO with my 75 lb duffel filled with school supplies. I think nothing more perfect and timely could’ve been appropriate as his parting words. The reason I say this is because during my three week (incredible) whirlwind back in the US, I did a lot of reflecting on my Peace Corps experience, thus far. A lot of this was due to the questions I received about my experience, from genuinely interested people. Basically, I often question the impact of Peace Corps (at least in Cameroon), even though I know I’m not going to change the country, let alone an entire community. Also, I’m unsure how fulfilling the experience truly is, and I may not fully realize this until long after I have finished my service. I don’t at all regret becoming a Peace Corps Volunteer and truly feel this is where I belong right now, it just was difficult to leave my Cameroonian bubble and have a QUICK taste of the other reality that is my life in the United States. So…I’m planning to make the most of it, for the remaining 14 or so months of my service!

Before I go with my neighbors, Peter and Carine, to deliver the abundance of school supplies that so many of you (and your coworkers, friends and family) donated, I just wanted to personally thank you for your support and commitment to helping those less fortunate! As I said above, the school supplies donated were MANY and I began accepting monetary donations towards the end, knowing that I wouldn’t be able to carry more. Those donations ended up going towards the cost of shlepping the duffel from Pittsburgh to San Francisco and then from San Francisco to Douala, Cameroon – so thank you, they came in handy! After I come back from GHS Aduk, I will be sure to give you all an update, with pictures included.

Ever since returning from the States at the end of August, I’ve been quite busy away from Fundong. I almost immediately turned around and headed to Yaounde because I, and four others from my training group, was accepted to help out with the design of the upcoming training for the Community Health Volunteers who will be arriving this week! (I can’t believe I’ve just about been in this country for one entire year) I spent close to two weeks there both designing the training and determining which sessions I would be co-facilitating throughout their training. Here they are:

• Role as a Facilitator/Training of Trainers Approaches

• NGO Development/Capacity Building

• Action Planning

• Nutrition & Nutrition Applications for both Health & Agroforestry Trainees

• Cameroonian Education System

I’ll also be one of the representatives presenting on the Peer Support Network (one of the committees I was selected for in April) and also a new session on Resiliency Training. As a result of this, I’m busy brainstorming and preparing these sessions and will be going to Bafia, the location of the new training site, a couple of times in the upcoming months. I’m very excited about this; it just means that my ability to get work done at post will not be as easy.

As I get a grasp on my other work in Fundong, I’ll be sure to update you.

I’m hoping that this blog update is finding all of you happy, healthy and successful!

Take care, be in touch!

Until next time,

Stef

As I begin packing for my three weeks in the States, I figured I would check in with all of you (as I'm shortly going to be doing for a ton of flights).

I'm very excited for this "vacation" since I've been quite busy with work and could use a breather...say, in another country, on an entirely different continent!

I am looking forward to seeing as many of you as is humanly possible, given timing and location and all of those other logistics.

I will begin my travels on Thursday from Fundong to Bamenda and then to Douala, arriving Friday EARLY morning. I will, luckily, get to hang out with another volunteer returning from the US that evening, before I head off on my flight sequence from Douala to Paris to Amsterdam to NEWARK, arriving on Saturday late afternoon (around 4:30 pm).

I will not have my old cell phone number, or any cell phone of my own actually.

Below are "contact numbers" if you are wanting to reach me.

Sat, July 31 - Sun, Aug 1

732-310-1638 (Angela)

Sun, Aug 1 - Fri, Aug 6

973-687-3501 (Stef - the beautiful bride TO BE)

Sat, Aug 7 - Fri, Aug 13

412-681-6685 (Mom Home) or 412-779-9732 (Mom Cell)

Fri, Aug 13 - Fri, Aug 20 (I leave SF in the late morning)

202-669-5196 (Dad Cell) or 415-725-2497 (Jolie Cell)

Try not to abuse the numbers (for the sake of the owners), but I look forward to talking to whomever would like to be in touch!

Au Revoir Cameroon!

Bonjour Etats Unis!

Bonjour!

Since I'm in Yaounde for a meeting, I figured I should greet you in French. It's been great over the past few days to be praciticing my French, full on.

I hope the 4th of July was great for all of you. Here in Yaounde we were invited to the US Embassy for an afternoon of "Americanness." The Embassy is equipped with a nice-sized pool (only for Embassy employees) and there's a golf course for the neighborhood, directly behind---a surreal neighborhood of WEALTH, only minutes away from the typical, somewhat downtrodden surroundings of this country. We sang the national anthem (interestingly a bit of nostalgia washed over me) and ate cheeseburgers, Doritos, and Oreos, OH MY!

Slowly but surely I'm trying to introduce you to my life in Fundong. You have seen pictures of people I live/work with, my house, and now some sights in Fundong town:

This is the center of town, hence the grandstand (painted in Cameroon's colors) on the left. On the right is the sculpture dedicated to the recent celebration of 50 years of independence.

Just wanted to add this in to show you the keen sense of income generation: many women selling the EXACT same items, side by side. Competition much?

Some more sights and stores in Fundong. I think I took this picture to help give a sense of the beautiful scenery that surrounds me on a daily basis.

The MC2 on the right is the Micro Credit Institution, but in the far distance is the Fundong District Hospital and this is the direction heading out of Fundong, towards Bamenda.

This is a crossroads in the center of Fundong. Up this road is my NGO and another village called Fujua. If you were to continue up this road and then turn right, you'd begin heading to my house.

Our Bread Store that doesn't really sell that nice of a variety of bread products. Baguette (mmm) is nonexistent in Fundong, it's only square white bread that's nothing to call home about.

"The Road" on Market Day. In my division, market days are every 8 days. Luckily though, in Fundong there is a nice variety of food stuffs everyday - market days just make for larger quantities of the same items and MASS CHAOS!

More of "the road". Slightly beyond here is called "the end of tar" - meaning that the paved road ends. Paved roads make for MUCH easier travel in this country.

Right behind the "benskin" (the local word for moto) is Simon's wife's blanket store. Usually she has many of them hanging out front on display, but since it was raining, she had previously brought them inside.

This is the road to Ngwainkuma, Simon's village. Three steep hills later, you arrive at his house.

I'm heading back to post tomorrow, after my meeting, and will be as productive as possible before LEAVING FOR THE UNITED STATES on July 30th!

Hope all is well with you and you're enjoying these summer months!

Until next time,

Stef

I haven't decided if I'm going to just continue with the picture fest that I began last blog update or whether I will also culture you a bit...

For starters, welcome to my home in Teacher's Quarter within Chaikain's compound. The first two photos are a sampling of the intensity of the rains during rainy season, a view from the front door and a view from the back door.

The next series of photos are the interior of my house!

The last two photos are my section of house from the driveway and then the entire structure with my Francophone neighbors' digs on the right.

Is it what you thought? It's no mud hut in the middle of nowhere, I'll tell you that, and you've seen for yourself. There is electricity (locally known as "current") and running water 95% of the time. It's more than I deem necessary for this experience, but am at least glad that I had more of a "village experience" during my training. Although I'm loving having internet and being able to watch tv shows or movies at night, I think I'd prefer running water to electricity. Then again, not having running water really allows for water conservation more than anything. I've learned, now that's it is rainy season, to use the rain water to clean my floors, my clothes, and occasionally my dishes and have been a conservationist when it comes to taking my showers. I only allow the water to run to wet my hair and my body and then to wash the soap off.

In closing, work has been a bit frustrating lately, the first time over the past almost 6 months at post. I was trying to secure the following "projects" until leaving for the US (some of them continuing once I return, as well):

~ Monthly Diabetes Clinic (slowly I am working with the involved parties to help it run more efficiently)

~ Assisting BFF with various projects that they want to carry out in the community, surrounding family planning and orphans' and widows' rights

~ A 1 week camp (in mid-June) with the other Northwest volunteers at an orphanage, touching upon health topics, sports, dance, arts & crafts, computer science, and agroforestry/farming topics

~ Weekly nutrition office hours (10 am - 2pm on Tuesdays) at the Fundong District Hospital which has not caught on so well and feels like a waste of my time (but I keep telling myself...patience, patience and how else can I go about making this better)

~ Choose A Future course for adolescent girls aged 12-20 years, which will be both leadership and empowerment focused, that I am hoping to begin this Thursday, for each Monday and Thursday until I leave for the US. Unfortunately though, the principals of whom I've asked to select the students and write them recommendations have failed to budge and I'm frustrated as to how to proceed...

I'm hoping this is only a fleeting period of feeling frustrated and that things fall into place.

Hoping all is well with you! Keep in touch, give me an update, and take care!

Until next time,

Stef

Happy May Day, well actually Labor Day here in Cameroon - seemingly a much grander celebration than our Labor Day in the U.S.

This blog update is going to be more pictures and less words - a big change as compared with all of my past postings (sorry they're so wordy).

Firstly, I wanted to let you know that I have booked my trip home to the U.S. this summer and my itinerary is as follows:

July 30th - Leave Douala, Cameroon

July 31st - Arrive in Newark, New Jersey

August 7th - Drive to Pittsburgh

August 13th - Fly to San Francisco

August 20th - Fly back to Douala, Cameroon

I will be a part of two weddings, one in New Jersey and one in Pittsburgh :) and am looking forward to spending time with as many people as possible in my three destinations!

Secondly, I have created a website (thanks to my cousin Mitch) to announce the collection of school supplies for a high school in my area. I hope you will check it out and decide to participate! Please spread the word to your friends and family as well, the more people who can help, the better! After my trip to the US, I will be bringing the collected items back with me to Cameroon to be distributed at the beginning of the 2010-2011 school year.

http://www.pencilsforpikins.com

Okay, onto the pictures so that you can more easily picture my life here!

Meet some of my neighbors, within the compound in which I live:

Niya and Petra were dancing to Christina Aguilera in my parlor. They're good hip shakers!

Joyce and Nine are busy making Chin Chin (fried semi-sweet dough), a process that I often help them with. The Chin Chin is sold all throughout Fundong-it's delicious!

My Fulani neighbors, Sadatu, Bassi, Mikailu, and Amena eating sugarcane as all the locals do so well!

My francophone neighbors who I share a common wall with: Francois and Peggy and their children Cabrille ("Cabi" - about the same age as Chasin) and Joeskin ("Joe")

My wonderful neighbors, Carine (French teacher at GHS Aduk) and Peter (Principal of GHS Aduk) on our 17 km trek to Aduk!

Simon (my counterpart), me, and Rose (Simon's wife) at Lake Nyos, on a weekend trip to Wum.

My dad's visit to Fundong was wonderful, even though there were not enough meals in a day with which to welcome him. These are the members of Better Family Foundation after a welcome dinner for my dad, at my house.

On another note, for your understanding with regards to work and projects here in the Peace Corps, when we replace volunteers it is our decision as to whether or not to continue the work they had been doing. I believe it is very important for volunteers to be working on sustainability of projects towards the end of their service since often times the next volunteer has other interests and does not end up continuing their efforts. I have included this side note because I have received questions from some of you about this notion and I wanted to (hopefully) clarify "how things work" in Peace Corps.

And lastly, I will leave you with this disturbing remark made by a Fundong community member. Recently I have been helping the members of Better Family Foundation (http://wwww.betterfamilyfoundation.org) to seek funding from elites, local community members and local organizations within Boyo Division. One of the individuals who was approached for support in cash or in kind retorted, "organizations like BFF are supposed to help the community and thus members of the community should not help these organizations." That was difficult to hear but then I found out what he was also pointing out was that a "white man" (since all "white people" are rich) was already helping BFF's cause so why would anyone locally see a reason to assist. Clearly he was showing his ignorance towards my reason for being here as well as towards helping out his own community! At the same time, I found out that Tangui water bottles are referred to as the "White Man's Drink," meaning that "we" are too weak to drink local water and can only be served bottled water. Interesting perspectives...

I will leave you with the following sunset when I was in training in Bamena.

The next post will have pictures of my house, inside and out as well as scenes around Fundong!

Take care until next time!

Stef

Fundong District Hospital

Laboratory on Monday (4 hours)

o While I felt that my exposure to the lab at the hospital was an eye opening experience (comparing what I know of the efficiency and technology of labs in the US), I felt that I was passing the time waiting for the Chief Medical Doctor to arrive, and he only did as I was leaving for the day. I was happy to be of assistance to Eunice (BFF member) who was handling a large case load all alone on a Monday morning, but it made it clear to me that the need for her to have an assistant is VITAL! Testing hemoglobin levels, retrieving blood from patients and then preparing slides to look for malaria parasites and white blood cell counts under a microscope, and recording all of the information in their patient handbooks (among other tasks) takes a lot of time and thus slows down the process of diagnosis and determining the level of care necessary, by the doctor. As a result of the lack of updated technology and sufficient number of staff in the lab, the process of coming to the hospital here for a consultation can take all day and this really affects the efficiency of the various triage areas of the hospital as well as the patient’s ability to go to school or work that day.

Maternity Ward on Tuesday and part of Wednesday (3 hours over 2 days)

o I was hoping to spend my time in maternity with Beatrice (another BFF member who is the RN in charge of the ward) but she was out because of a burial. I did get to spend a short time with her when she came back to work and found out about her daily routine at work. She has much responsibility taking care of the patients (hands-on), carrying out prenatal exams/consultations & deliveries, and discharging them (and all the paperwork that comes along with that process). There are antenatal and child welfare clinics (for new moms) each week and she, along with her assistant, Madame Achu have a list of about 15 topics that they cover over the course of a few months-very organized it seems. I was unable to observe a clinic at this site but hopefully will be able to in the future. I spent most of my time with Madame Achu, asking her questions, waiting for patients to arrive for prenatal consultations, and reading my own book during down times. No specific appointments are made and so the ability to plan the day accordingly does not seem to occur. Not only that but after doing a consultation, the patient has to go to the lab and get various blood tests done, wait for the results and then come back for a discussion with the results-again too long of a process and too much waiting for both parties. Through observation of a couple of prenatal consultations it was clear that family planning is a theme that the staff has to impart on patients as well as my realization of the need for discussion and a take home handout surrounding iron rich and calcium rich foods for their pregnancy eating plan. This is something I plan to create after truly grasping foods that are easily available and affordable.

Discussion with Chief Medical Doctor & Tour of Hospital Grounds on Tuesday (2 hours)

o Overall, I have to say that Dr Ntongsi is a very motivated Chief Medical Doctor and seems to have the hospital’s best interest in mind, at all times. He himself is a dental surgeon, trained in Russia, but came into this position three years ago, while also maintaining a private dental practice in Bamenda. He discussed with me the various ideas that he proposed to the Cameroonian Government upon taking this position and observing the then current state of the hospital. He had a separate building constructed for the laboratory; he extended the maternity ward, added running water faucets within each room/ward of the hospital, and currently wants to construct toilets and showers for more hygienic practices than the horrific pit latrines that are currently in existence and use. One of the ten additions that he proposed was a demonstration kitchen on the hospital grounds, that which was not given funding or approval. We spent a lot of time talking about this matter after introducing myself and telling him that I am a dietitian (I say nutritionist because it is a more well known term here) in the US. See below for my main project idea where I would like to focus my efforts during my Peace Corps service.

Diabetes Clinic on Thursday (3 hours)

o The first Thursday of each month, Eunice holds a Diabetes clinic which consists of some education, weighing, and the taking of blood pressure and fasting blood sugar. I was very impressed by the turnout, all Type 2 Diabetics ranging in age from late 30s to 70s (side note: average life span for men is 60 and women is 70 in Cameroon). My first observation was that the structure of the clinic could benefit from a slight change. Since I assume these patients have been awake for a few hours prior to coming to the clinic at 8 am and some of them have had to trek a bit of a distance to arrive, the blood sugar and other measurements should be taken prior to education so as to allow them to eat before the end of the clinic, around 10:30 am. Not only will this be healthier for stabilizing their blood sugar levels, but it will also allow for better concentration and retention during the education portion of the clinic. Through some basic counseling with a few men who’s blood sugars were well above normal, even for a diabetic (

Before I join Simon to meet the Fon/Chef/King of the Kom people, I just had to tell you about my experience yesterday night trying to make cookies for my neighbors and friends in the Fundong area.

Firstly, I find working in my kitchen to be difficult because there is VERY little "counter space" but nonetheless I made the dough, with a little tweaking from the recipe provided in the Peace Corps cookbook. I wanted to make Chocolate Chip Cookies but being that there are no chips, I put a piece of Mambo Bar (the Hershey Bar of Cameroon-haha) on each ball of dough, similar to Peanut Butter Thumbprint cookies. I was hoping to use my neighbor's stove, and then thought I would put them in a pot on top of my gas stove, but then my neighbor, Odette, told me I should do it over their fire. I thought that meant, directly placing my "cookie sheet" (tin roof piece borrowed from another neighbor-so resourceful these Cameroonians) on the hot fire. Any smart person would know THAT WOULDN'T WORK! Then we made a type of convection oven by putting sand inside a pot and I placed the cookies around in two bundt pans stacked one on top of the other and covered it with a lid. It worked, but took much longer than 9-11 minutes! I shared the first batch with those in the fire pit and then was attempting to take all of my belongings (my four dinner plates, spatula, cookies, butter container-too much for me to handle, but I insisted) to my house and decided to offer Stephen, our night watchman, a cookie and it all came crashing down to the ground! I lost cookies, 3 of my 4 plates broke, and everyone came rushing out to see what happened and offered me an "Ashia" (meaning: sorry, good luck, courage, and the like)!

Oh well, they enjoyed what they had. Hopefully today with Carine, the making of Snickerdoodles (am introducing cinnamon to Cameroonians!) in her oven and possibly another batch of "chocolate chip" will be more of a success!

I'm off, but not before again wishing you a happy new year with much prosperity and happiness!