This blog entry is loosely based on a story that I had shared with a fellow PCV who insisted that I post it as a blog.

I cannot think of any other way to start this other then saying that, I have a confession to tell. It all starts with a boat trip to Pentecost. Mid-May, a few volunteers and myself made way to South Pentecost by ship to watch the kastom tradition of Land Diving (link to photos is below).

Ships are a relatively common way of traveling between islands in Vanuatu. However, livestock tends to out number passengers on these rides. This can make a 30 hour trip eventful in many ways. I am happy to say that I did not get sick once while crossing the rough swells between Santo and Ambae. I like to think that this is due in large part to my genetic make-up. Somehow I must have inherited my sea legs from my father’s many years at sea. The ship stopped at 2 ports on Ambae and then our long journey from North to South Pentecost was nothing but smooth sailing.

What I did not know was that islands can have many ports for a ship to stop at. Drop off people here, pick up pigs and kava there, drop off a massive crane, pick up more kava and so forth. Well lets just say there is a lot of Kava to pick up on Pentecost for the lovely drinkers in Vila (cheers to you Vila, for I have slept upon the stampa that you drink from). Our first stop in the North took 3 hours to load and unload cargo since low tide prohibited the ship from docking. Waiting in Penn Station for the train to Ronkonkoma is one thing, waiting in the sun for 12 hours is entirely different. Luckily I had a good crew with me to play cards with or to laugh with from delirium.

Well, by the time 7pm came around, we were tired and ready to jump ship. I started to get thoughts that it may be a day or two before I’d ever walk on land again. Sleeping on corrugated deck like a sardine for hours can make one think crazy things. So when dinner time came (thank you crew for the hot meal), I thought it may be just one of my last meals. As in, “Survival of the fittest, feed me anything”. So at 8pm on May 11th, this 12-year vegetarian turned omnivore once more.

I must say that I still stick true to my beliefs about vegetarianism, but if it comes down to survival by way of a hot meal consisting of meat or not eating, I am going to take the hot meal. So Dad and Mom, I know how you feel about my diet and I’m sure that reading this may make you happy, don’t get any ideas- It’s nothing but soy-dogs and tofurkeys when I come back stateside : )

Oh and I ate some chicken the other day. This one is for you dad...

...and when the center is raw, i'm back to being a vegetarian.

R.I.P.

What I did on Christmas Eve

The awesome view of the pacific ocean on my birthday

My adorable neighbor and I at the staff picnic..

Thanksgiving dinner!

The Cocoa patch where I attempt to find service to call all my loved ones : )

My home!!! Don't let the water heater fool you...we have cold showers, nomo..

and the rest of what has been going on…

A typical day in Vanuatu would not be complete without some form of waiting. Do not confuse “waiting” with the type of time you would take to download music from itunes. We are talking, no end in site, waiting. The good thing is, once you get used to it, there are the days when you are suddenly surprised with an on-time bus driver or fast connecting internet. Good stuff…

Due to a increasing amount of chocolates sent to my abode. I am going to have to revise the care package wish list. However, these candies do come in handy when making new friends. Who doesn’t love Chocolate? Not this girl. Some other great things to send…hmm a newspaper, Runners World and Yoga Journal magazines, Charmin On-The-Go toilet paper (its handy and compact for the small house). I think that’s it. I am not used to asking for things, but I figure if someone is curious, why not?

My address has changed yet again. My apologizes, the mail system here is a little weird but hopefully this address will last a bit longer. Please write clearly and large.

Zoe Papalaskaris

Peace Corps Volunteer/ Matevulu

P.O. Box 203

Luganville, Santo Island

Republic of Vanuatu

SW Pacific

Christmas was good here. Not what I thought it would be or as sad as I thought it would be. I spent it at a nice sandy cove that is part of a cattle farm. The shore was full of dead reef and I was careful stepping from

rock to rock, not to step on anything alive, or full of venom, or whatever hurts like hell when you step on it. The following day was Boxing Day, commonly referred to as Family Day. The families of my host parents met at the gorgeous Champagne beach to swim, eat island food, lay back and enjoy the sun. It was a long day and ending with the notorious “waiting” for transport. There was about 50 being transported to the villages from the beach and I was on the last load. This took quite a while but I eventually made it home.

2010 is here! There are many goals that have been set and I am looking forward to motivate everyone at the school for a prosperous new year. New Years/My 25th birthday was great. Whitni and I played hostesses to some of our favorite friends and the New Year was rang in with nothing but style. By style I am referring to blow horns, confetti poppers and a diverse collection of hats (sombreros, wigs and tiaras). It was fun!

The 2010 school year was scheduled to begin end of January but has now moved to mid-February, and some have said may eventually become mid-March. It can be a daunting thing to think of considering my job can be very difficult to do if there is no school in session. I am not giving up hope and am keeping my fingers crossed for February 15th. To keep myself busy, I am going to begin the framework for my girls running group (so exciting!), work in the Library (as in taking every book from the shelf and re-organize from scratch), and maybe start a garden.

I am currently in the Capital for my ESC (Early Service Conference) and am looking forward to returning to site so I can start these projects. It has been great seeing all of the other teacher trainers from my group and I believe that it has really motivated us for the new school year. One of the greatest things that has come from being reunited are the “storians” that happen before, between or after our training sessions. If I have learned one thing from coming to Vanuatu, it has been learning the power of storying with Ni-vans, counterparts and other PCVs. There is a lot to be learned from sharing stories and struggles, and in return can help someone else in their work.

To leave you all, I would like to share some new discoveries in my journey…

- Giardia. Lovely ameobas that find their way into your digestive tract and cause massive destruction…google it.

- Laundry is hand wash only. During the wet session, one must be very strategic when choosing the time and day for washing. If there is no sun for days, it may take up to 2 days for your clothing to dry. Not cool.

- The waiting that I mentioned earlier.

- Being barefoot is AWESOME. It is completely acceptable in all public places and if your flip flop breaks, just take off your shoes and go “drae leg”.

This blog stuff sure is delightful.

From late November until the end of January, all schools close for the holiday/summer break. Great time to go to site as a teacher trainer, eh? All sarcastic remarks aside, it’s a good time to get adjusted to our new home but a little hard to observe a classroom. This season is also known as “Taem blo Spel”, time to rest, mostly because of the holidays and the weather. It’s humid, hot, balmy, it takes 3 days for your clothes to dry, and somehow you can never stop sweating. I’m a natural sweater so that just means I must constantly be drinking water otherwise I’ll sweat out my body weight faster then you can say perspiration.

During this time of rest, most of the staff heads home to their family’s villages whether that be on Santo or many of the surrounding Islands. So you can guess it is pretty quiet here. My host family along with Whitni’s with be staying on Campus as well as a few other families. To keep busy, my host Papa is trying to arrange a few sightseeing excursions for us as well as cultural events to give us a better insight to Santo’s roots. One trip I am looking forward to is a hike up Santo’s second largest peak, Mt. Kotamtam (1747 m). I don’t understand why we can’t just do the highest (competitive Zoe), but I will gladly do the second as practice for the week long hike it takes to do Mt. Tabwemasana, 1879 m (< ---asana!). I believe that this hike will take 3 fun-filled days of sweat, dirt, no showering, and maybe even some blood, and I’m so excited!!! What I’ve seen so far of Santo at sea-level has been nothing but gorgeous so I have no doubts that this trek will be anything but breathtakingly beautiful. A special thing about Vanuatu that I’ve observed so far is that it is naturally raw in beauty. As you approach any given shore, they are free from high rise resorts and condominiums. Just swaying coconut palms for miles and miles, and I hope it stays like that forever….

Some other things to keep busy with are plans for next school year. I am under the impression that the work load will be very heavy. I will be helping in the Design Technology Department which has been previously mentioned. This department consists of two teachers, one for home economics and the other for design technology. The DT teacher is resigning and heading back to her home of Samoa. In the short time I’ve been here, I can tell she will be greatly missed and I have some big shoes to fill. I feel confident that I will succeed here but am in mixed emotions with all the fun things to teach and if I can help the next teacher teach it well. Lucky for me I have enough contacts state-side (you know who you all are, and I will be contacting you as often as I can make it to an internet connection : - ) to help me with little advice so I stay afloat. I’m pumped.

The department is low in resources so that will be a major hurdle to deal with. There are two electric machines (broken) and five manual (I’ll be incorporating arm stretches for sewing demos), one roll of pattern paper and (I think) some rulers. Anyone who knows design knows that it is 100% resources. So I will have to be as crafty as possible.

Vanuatu does not have a textile or fashion industry. Most clothing and all textiles are imported, there are seamstresses here and there but there is no core to it all. Considering how much of the fashion industry is in the surrounding pacific region, it would be nice to teach students about the industry so they can be a part of it. Maybe even bring some of it here someday. Should that day come, at least there might be a few Ni-vans with the knowledge to make it their own industry. One also really cool thing about teaching here is that all classes must be taught English only. Shooting two birds with one stone, how do you like that.

So that’s where my brain is at. I’m happy and excited for the challenge. In January I’ll be heading to Vila for a week or so for Early Service Conference. It will sure be nice to see some familiar faces. Even though I live with Whit, isolation does exist and I miss the other PCV’s. It’s daunting to know that it takes a plane or even a boat and a few days to see your other friends. Don’t get me started on family and friends in the states. No worries, it is part of the experience and is making me stronger.

Well that is that for now kiddies. Hope the holiday season is treating you all well and the new year is more splendid then the last.

xo

“Butaflae”

Yes. I know. It has been almost three months since I moved to Vanuatu and I am now starting my very overdue, first blog entry. I never not wanted to start my blog, it’s just that during the first 2 months of training it was not possible and I’ve been kinda busy getting settled during my first month at site. Better late then never and I’m happy to say that I have finally found the time to write about my experience. I wanted to write this blog to keep friends and family updated with my day to day life in the Peace Corps and to help future volunteers have an idea of what service would be like. In true Peace Corps fashion, every country, site, project is different and mine has not been an exception. If it gives future volunteer a small view into life while serving, then I feel like I've helped, like reading the blogs of other volunteers helped me. So past/current volunteers, thank you! Also, to future volunteers, cheers to the most amazing adventure you could ever start : )!

So I’ll try to give a detailed idea of what the first two months were like in the biggest nutshell I can find. Group 22 arrived in Port Vila, the Capital of Vanuatu on the island of Efate, on Sunday, September 13th. We were tired and worn out due to jet lag and our 20 or so hour flight from Los Angeles. Group 22 first met during our one-day orientation in Los Angeles. It was really exciting and overwhelming to meet people I wouldn’t have ever met if I hadn’t joined the Peace Corps. I believe that “wherever you are, is exactly where you should be” in life, and I am happy to say that I made the right choice. We were originally a group of 42, the largest to ever come through the PC Vanuatu program.

The first person I met was the first and only person who I talked with before I left for Los Angeles. It’s ironic because we were randomly chosen to be roommates for our two years of service. I can still remember the exact moment we met in LA…”Hi I’m Whitni, I’m a hugger”…and the rest is history. Well not really. We’ll get to training in a few…

After initially arriving in Vanuatu, clearing through immigration (as a new Resident!) and picking up our luggage, we were met with salusalus (flower necklaces, think leis in Hawaii), lavalavas (bright, colorful wraps) and cold coconut refreshments by current volunteers and staff. It was a really memorable and enjoyable moment. Everything became so real then. Not when I left Charlotte, or on the plane to New Zealand, or even the plane to Vanuatu, but when we got off the plane into the bright sun and became part of a really cool new family. That’s how it was for me at least. We took a short (very short) bus tour through the Capital and then headed off to Blue Water Resort, about a 45 minute (bumpy bumpy, the first of many) drive away.

The first week of orientation at Blue Water feels like a blur now. Not in a non-remembering way, but in a information overload, this doesn’t feel like service-way. All the volunteers were still all relatively strangers and anyone who knows me, knows it takes some time for me to get people (however, that is becoming history ;-)). Leaving Blue Water was bittersweet, another moment in which some skin was shed. Our then group of 41 left and split into our training villages: Saama, Emua and Paonangisu, all on the North Coast of Efate. I was placed into Saama with other teacher trainees like myself as well as Community Health and Business Development trainees. Saama was a great village to learn “evri wan sumting” for Service. We were eleven total in Saama and of course this is bias, but we really were the best : )

For 6 long, and sometimes exhausting, but usually always fun weeks, we would meet daily for language sessions, twice a week we would be off for project related sessions and usually afternoons were filled with medical or safety sessions. It was a lot of information that not only had to be learned, but was tested too. All on top of getting to know a whole new culture, I lived in a tin house with a family of seven. Who all made sure to not speak any English to me which I laugh at now since I struggled with my bislama in the beginning. I happily learned to hand wash all my clothes (including a terry cloth towel that I’m surprised has made it this long, which yes I did steal from Blue Water, because no I did not remember to pack one, because apparently when you join the Peace Corps the last thing you think of is bathing), eat aelan kakae (island food…manioc laplap, yummay) and acquire a sick flip flop tan line (that will never leave my feet, at least for 2 more years). My host family was awesome and was for certain that it couldn’t get any better (but it did, which is why I never expect anything! For then I am not disappointed…thank you Angela for teaching me that). I was given two adorable host sisters and finally learned what it means to be an older sibling (wink).

I learned a lot about myself in those first few weeks. I remember the first few meals with my new family were ones with teary eyes. Saying that you want to join the Peace Corps is a hard decision and sometimes when you arrive, it looks a lot different then you thought, aka Culture Shock. I would think to myself “Can I really do this? Is this what I wanted?”. I was surprised with myself since I was not a stranger to traveling and had been doing so such since a young age. I’m happy to say that I stuck it out and didn’t let my worries get the better of me. Leaving Saama shocked me as well. I didn’t think I’d get so emotional but some people touch your life for a short period (sometimes too short), and it’s difficult to grasp that you’ll never get that time back. I think one of the greatest things I learned in training was to live in the moment. I have heard it many times before by people who I am not sure believed it themselves, but since coming to Vanuatu, I have cherished all times, good and sad, and ringed the juice in every moment in training. “faea blo mi I no ded”…

There was a week between training and departing for site in Port Vila. For most volunteers, that was time spent shopping for site. Whitni and I are close to Luganville, the second largest provincial center in Vanuatu, so we didn’t really need to shop for too many supplies. Which brings me to the next chapter, site announcement…

The last Friday in training, all groups met in Emua for site announcements. By this time you could say that we were more then ready to find out where our new homes would be for the next two years. It honestly was the closest thing to being 5 years old on Christmas morning. Anticipation was high! Normally you are alone at site but Whitni and I became one of two non-married couples to share a site. I was really excited and still am happy about it (talk to me in 2011, he he just kidding Whit). It’s not your average Peace Corps experience, but that’s what it is all about, diverse experiences. So Whitni and I are just two more to add to that truth.

We are now going into our second month at site and I couldn’t be any happier. Our house is a modern home (a previous employer is probably so disappointed that my blog is not titled "tales from the hut", I ain't got no hut!) on the campus of a secondary boarding school, the 2nd largest in Vanuatu (with a great facility for students). Now rewind small. Most people know that prior to the PC I had been working in the Fashion Industry and graduated with a degree in Fabric Styling from FIT. I was placed into the Teacher Training program because of my tutoring history in Charlotte. Up until the moment we arrived at campus I was under full assumption that I was a teacher trainer of English and that’s it, fashion just did not exist in Vanuatu. So you could be equally as surprised as I was to know that I’d be helping in the “Design Technology” department of the school. Design Technology? Really? I definitely blacked out from sheer shock when the teacher of the department came to me with this news. I thought from time to time that during my service I’d host a sewing class at most, but I never thought I’d be helping to better train teachers in the world of patternmaking, textiles, design…the list goes on. It’s just truly awesome and I am so excited for the next school year to start so I can put my skills to use!

Our school also has a rather large library that needs some help in organization that we will be helping with as well as the PE department. Unfortunately the physical education department has slipped through the cracks and I am so excited to get the students back in shape. Whitni plans on helping with basketball and soccer teams and I am looking forward to starting a running group : ) A few of the teachers also have approached me about learning how to do yoga which anyone who knows me knows that I love me some yoga!

So, that is all for now which I think is more then enough for a nutshell. Future blogs will definitely not be as long but I felt that I had some much needed catching up to do. The most important thing is that I am really happy with my site and location. I hope to have some visitors in 2010! Oh, a few have asked me of things that I might want sent from the states aka care packages, and most things I am not without. Luganville has most of the essentials (yoga mats are essential!). But should you feel from the kindness in your heart to entertain two sometimes slightly bored girls, I will let you know what we love:

- Magazines! Used, ripped, any topic. We love ‘em. News, sports, FASHION, home

décor…keep it coming!

- Candy…dark chocolate…reeses, its all so good, just keep make sure it’s sealed. That’s not to say that if you forget and I receive magazines covered in chocolate, I’m not going to lick it off of the pages…because I will! It would just be nice if I had a little bit of dignity at the end of each day : p

- Opti-free saline solution for contacts…its like $40 a bottle in town…sheesh

-letters!!! I miss you guys!!!

Also, just send everything, clearly/largely labeled to:

Matevulu College

Zoe Papalaskaris/ Peace Corps Volunteer

PMB 01

Luganville

Santo Island

Republic of Vanuatu

At first I went back and forth regarding mailing, but this I’ve heard is the easiest, fastest way to get packages. I’ll keep everyone posted if it changes.

Thank you to all who have sent letters/packages so far. There is nothing, NOTHING, better then to receive news from the people I love. It really boosts the spirit. In return I’ll try to stay in touch as possible. I go to town for supplies once in a while to check email/mail so I’ll be “around”.

Much love to all of you and your families for the Holidays, I promise future blogs

will not be as long….

XO

Added note:

Hello everyone! Just wanted to say thanks to everyone for sharing Zoe with me these next two years, she has been the best of roommates so far. . .

Except for at five in the morning when she did not sleep well the night before and hasn’t had her coffee yet ha ha. So send her some Starbucks or something. I bet everyone reading this has some great morning stories about her. . . No just kidding but really most mornings we wake up singing things like “Ryan started the fire,” from The Office, season 2 . We have had some fun times so far and I thought you might want to hear a little about the shenanigans (spelling?) that have come along thus far. This morning for example. . . so for some reason we woke up around oh 5 and sang some sing-along-songs to bother 2 other volunteers (also another fabulous thing that you could send Zoe, a CD with Queens “Bicycle” song. Yes well we were having fun with this, however they were not and left and went into the other room. We kept singing, when genius idea! Grab your mattresses, and storm the room! Oh and ask Zoe about Kava. That is fun. AND centipedes!!!! We will put up pictures about that one. Anywho, she is probably going to delete this because it is a bit ridiculous, but yeah. Great times on Santo! Looking forward to meeting all her friends and family, she sure does talk about how great everyone is.

Until next time,

Whitni

from Oregon ha ha