Allow me to preface this post by saying that it is not my intention to offend anyone or disrespect organized Christianity in any way. I just want to summarize my views on Christianity at this point in my life - perhaps I will be singing a different tune when I'm older. I was born and raised Catholic, I believe in the Holy Mother, the communion of saints, the Father, Son (Jisu...Jesus in Fijian) and Holy Spirit, and even pray from time to time. I think organized religion can be a good thing because it gives people hope and something in which to have faith.

Having said that, there are instances where organized religion makes absolutely zero sense to me. Since coming to Fiji I have observed a culture that has become so overly consumed with organized Christianity that it seems as if people mindlessly follow these ideologies simply because that is what they're supposed to do. No one questions it. The bible is the law for life, words written by God himself and there is no room for interpretation.

I had an experience in a village (which I will refrain from naming) that left me quite perplexed. Fijian villages often organize a "soli" or fundraiser to raise money for various projects - anything from rugby jerseys to septic tanks. On one particular afternoon, this village held a soli for the school where children from five different villages attend. That night, as I sat in a grog circle with the men, I commented on my perceived success of the soli that day. The turaga ni koro (village headman) agreed and said that they were able to raise $500 for the school. When I asked how the money would be used, he said they would purchase books, pencils, notebooks and other school supplies for the kids. In my book, that's a successful soli for a very worthy cause.

The village held another soli the next day, this time to raise funds for the church (as with most villages in Fiji, this one happened to be Methodist). As we did the night before, we discussed the day's soli around the grog circle. I mentioned that I was impressed by the number of people that donated. The turaga ni koro then informed me that they raised $2,500 that day. A bit stunned but also impressed that the village was able to raise such a large sum of money so quickly, I asked how this money would be used. Crickets. There I sat, with the turaga ni koro, chief of the village, and the rest of the village elders, and not one of them could tell me where this money was going or how it would be utilized. Needless to say, my mind was blown that no one had an answer for me. I decided to push a bit harder and try to guess how the money could be used -- a new church? Footpaths? Diesel for the generator? More crickets. Finally I asked, "Well where is the money?" "The talatala handles the money from church solis" replied the turaga ni koro (a "talatala" is like the pastor of the village, and almost every village has one). As soon as he said this, my confusion was gone and the picture slowly came into focus. I never knew why, but as with most talatalas in Fiji, the talatala of this village had the nicest house in the village. Inside the house, he had a tv, dvd player, and stereo system. Outside, he had a truck and a Sky Pacific satellite dish on the roof. All things that 99% of Fijian villagers could never afford to buy. Did the village see this? I didn't understand how they could be unaware of something so obvious. I mean, 2 plus 2 equals 4, right?

I can't help but think about what Fiji would be like if European missionaries never came here. Christianity is so engraved in every aspect of Fijian life that it is impossible to avoid. Every meeting begins with a prayer. Any public function begins and ends with a prayer. The Indo-Fijian Hindus are Hell-bound because they pray to many different gods, and according to the almighty bible, there is only one God. What if those European missionaries never made it to Fiji and injected (poisoned?) this culture with their beliefs of God and church...and giving all your money to this new institution?

As I discussed the role of religion in Fiji with a few other PCVs, I found that my colleagues also had confusing experiences. Another PCV found it strange that, during service, each family was called up to give money to the church. At the end of the service, the talatala read aloud the amount of money given by each family. When asked why people give so much of the little money they have to the church, one villager replied, "We are buying our souls." They actually believe that they are buying their tickets into Heaven.

I do not think the people here are stupid or crazy for embracing Christianity this way. There are people all around the world who blindly give their money to their church because they believe they have to in order to be deemed a "good Christian." What scares me, and continues to leave me flabbergasted, is that many people throughout the world who follow organized Christianity seem to be, for lack of a better word, brainwashed. There are many Christians who actually believe that they have to give 10% of their income to the church or they will go to Hell. I'm sure some of that money goes to worthy causes, but I'm also sure some of that money goes towards a new pipe organ or fancy statues. I feel like Jesus wouldn't mind if people decided to donate to the Red Cross or Save the Children instead of the church. Actually, I feel like he would prefer that.

I've witnessed firsthand the way many Christians blindly follow their faith, especially in recent years when the sex abuse scandals ripped through the Catholic church (and continue to do so). In speaking with devout Catholics about their particular pastor being charged with such abuse, many refuse to believe the charges, claiming the victims are "crazy" or "looking for money." They simply can not bring themselves to acknowledge that the leader of their faith, whom they look to for wisdom and guidance to live a good and meaningful life, could be guilty of sodomizing a young boy. Recently, the Vatican has acknowledged this sexual abuse by clergy around the world. And this is not a "one bad apple in the bunch" type of situation -- according to a study by the John Jay College of Criminal Justice of the City University of New York, there were allegations of abuse against a total of 4,392 priests in the U.S. as of 2002. That is in the United States alone. Once again, my mind is blown that this is still a supported institution and not considered organized crime. What if there was a preschool that hired teachers who were known pedophiles and covered up their crimes? Would people still send their children to that school? Wouldn't the school be shut down?

As I said before, I was born and raised Catholic. I consider myself Catholic only because I believe in the Virgin Mary, the communion of saints, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Yes, I consider myself to be a Catholic. Perhaps Catholic Lite. But am I going to attend mass every Sunday and support a man-made institution that resembles more of a business than a place of worship? Am I going to support an institution that created a safe haven for pedophiles and went as far as to cover up such crimes against children? Absolutely not. I do not believe that God requires me to go to a building every Sunday in order to get my VIP pass to Heaven. I believe that God simply wants us to be good people; help those that need help and be kind and compassionate to others.

I think the Dalai Lama said it best, "This is my simple religion. There is no need for temples; no need for complicated philosophies. My brain and my heart are my temples. My philosophy is kindness."

So I'm a bit embarrassed by my lack of effort in updating this blog...I pledge to do a better job going forward.

A lot has changed since my last posting; I no longer live in the village of Korotasere. Peace Corps decided that my skills would be better-utilized in a city so they transferred me to the town of Labasa where I have been working for the Labasa Town Council as a business advisor since November. It was difficult for me to leave the Korotasere after developing a lot of close relationships within the village. I was worried that they would not understand why I was leaving...I didn't want them to think it was because I was unhappy or didn't like living among them. I did my best to explain that being a business volunteer, my skills would be better applied in a town rather than a village and they were very understanding.

Went to the island of Taveuni to celebrate New Years. Here's a shot of me at one of the beautiful waterfalls we visited...I actually jumped off the top after pissing myself while trying to gather my nerves...

I am still adjusting to living in Labasa and working for the town council. It has been strange going from my bure, made out of bamboo and leaves with no electricity, to living in a house in Labasa with a refrigerator, internet, and stores within walking distance. The town council gave me my own office which is even air-conditioned. It's nice to have these luxuries that I didn't have in the village but this is definitely not how I pictured my Peace Corps service to be. Currently, I'm working on a business plan for the town council so that they can get funding to relocate the current marketplace and bus/taxi stand to a less congested area. The new complex will include new shops, restaurants, community center and double-story market that will dwarf the current one.

Been feeling a bit homesick these days, which I fully-expected. It was particularly difficult to be away from home again during the holidays. Never thought I'd say this but I actually miss winter in Michigan. Lately, it's been 85-95 degrees and the humidity is high...what I wouldn't give to lay down naked in the snow right now. I find myself daydreaming about pizza (Pizzapapolis in Greektown to be specific), cheeseburgers, Taco Bell, Buffalo Wild Wings, and anything grilled on the bbq. I fantasize about going to all my favorite places to eat, thinking about what I want, and even placing my specific order. Gosh, if someone had a piping hot, large VIP deep dish from Pizzapapolis to offer me here, I probably wouldn't think twice about letting them cut off my pinky toe for it...seriously.

Top 10 Things I Miss (in no particular order)

1. real pizza

2. hot wings

3. ESPN

4. my Harley Davidson V-rod

5. Lions, Tigers, Pistons and Spartans

6. getting a haircut without worrying about getting lice

7. walking down the street without everyone staring at me like I'm from Mars

8. playing basketball (Fijians only play rugby and soccer)

9. spicy beef jerky

10. family and friends

That's all for now. Keep on keepin on, homies.

Love,

P

Written 9-10-2010:

Bula si'a! Yeah, it's not "bula vinaka" here. In fact, there is a whole new dialect that I am still trying to wrap my head around up here in Korotasere. It is completely different than the dialect we learned during PST, so it has been a bit frustrating. Making progress though, slowly but surely.

So I wasn't able to move into my bure until last Monday. After the PCV that I am replacing left, the village decided that they needed to do some maintenance to the house so I had to stay with the turaga ni koro (village mayor) for 2 months before I was finally able to move into my own place. Anyway, I'm all moved in now and it feels great to have a bit of privacy. I finally have a place where I can scratch where it itches and make man noises without offending anyone (not that Fijians are offended by burps and farts in the least). Here are some pics of the new pad and the village...

I've been able to identify two business-related projects since I arrived in the village. My main project will be marketing and selling their yaqona domestically and overseas. This will require me to research markets with demand for the crop along with potential buyers. Currently, they sell their yaqona to a middleman at a ridiculously discounted price and I'm sure he flips it for double, triple, maybe quadruple the amount he pays for it. I want to eliminate this middleman from the equation and find major buyers to sell to directly.

Yaqona, the plant that is used to make grog (also called kava), is the main crop of Korotasere and I've been told that it can sell for up to $100 FD (about $50 USD) per kilogram. Grog is sort of the national drink of Fiji...EVERYONE drinks grog. A grog session is rather ceremonial, with everyone sitting around the tanoa (a huge wodden basin that holds the drink), and the chief sitting directly in front. The eldest or high-ranking men in the village usually flank the chief on both sides. A small bowl made of half a coconut (called a "bilo) is dipped and filed in the tanoa, presented to the chief who claps once, drinks the bilo, then claps three times. Once the chief finishes, everyone laps three times. This is repeated for every man at the grog session until al have had a drink. After four or five minutes, this process is repeated...and repeated...and repeated. I'm told that single grog sessions can last 2 straight days (usually during special occasions). Most grog sessions that I attend last from about 6pm to at least 11pm but can go until 2 or 3am. At first, the grog had no effect on me other than make me feel tired. Everyone told me to wait a couple months and I would definitely feel it -- apparently it has to build up in your system before you feel any of the effects. Well I guess everyone was right because these days, perma-grin usually sets in after about 10 bilos. After 50, I'm stumbling home with my head spinning. But I'm still a light-weight and can't keep up with most of the men at these grog sessions. My record is 9 hours - proud of me ma?!

Here's a shot of the first grog session that I hosted in my house...

Village life is slow. I'm finding it difficult to adjust to this pace of life. The village is pretty much a ghost-town during the day. Everyone is either napping or away in the farms. I actually look forward to drinking grog at night because this is my best opportunity to socialize and integrate into the community. They as me about life in the States, my family, and repeatedly inquire if I have any desire to marry a Fijian girl. I ask them about their culture, religion (mostly devout Methodists), and Fijian life in general. These grog sessions are where I do 9% of my language-learning. Anyway, back to the slow pace of life - yesterday I saw a man raking up all the cut grass around his house. He has a large yard so I grabbed my rake and said I'd like to help. Yes, his yard is big but it should have taken us no more than an hour with both of us working at a reasonable pace. Instead, it took 4 hours as he insisted that we "cegu va'a kisi" (rest a little) every 10 minutes and smoke a cigarette. It seriously took 4 hours. From what I hear, this slow pace of life is not isolated to the villages but prevalent in the towns and cities as well. I often hear stories from PCVs who work in government offices about how a task that would take 10 minutes in an office back home can take a whole day here in Fiji. Coming from the ad agency biz, where I was going 100 mph around the office for 10 hours a day, this has been difficult for me to get used to. It almost feels wrong to be reading or taking a nap on a Wednesday afternoon.

All in all, I'm doing fine. I never thought I'd say this but I actually do get lonely at times. It's tough not having anyone around with whom you can have a conversation of much depth. Hopefully this changes as my language improves.

That's all I got for now. Go Lions...playoffs or bust baby! Keep it real homies.

Love,

P

We were officially sworn in as Peace Corps volunteers by the US ambassador on July 8. The ceremony lasted a couple of hours and there were great speeches by both the ambassador and our PC Country Director. Each trainee was supposed to only invite two people from their host family to attend the swearing in ceremony but it seemed like all of Nabua (my host village for the 7 weeks of training) came to see us take our oath. It was the last time we’ll get to see all of our friends from Nabua for a long time, so it was a bittersweet day. I’m really going to miss Nabua and all of the friends I made. Seven weeks doesn’t seem like very long but all 5 of us trainees who were privileged to be placed in Nabua became quite attached to the village and we will really miss them.

Bubba, me, Lauren and Marie at swearing-in ceremony.

Some of the guys in our group had a mustache contest. Mine is there...just get a magnifying glass.

So Fiji One, the main news station here in Fiji, did a half hour special on the Peace Corps a few weeks ago. The program is called “Close-up” and it’s similar to Dateline or 60 Minutes. Our Country Director told the crew to come to my host village for the segment about PC trainees, so all 5 of us were interviewed about how life is different in Fiji, our reasons for joining PC, and our overall training experience. I was a bit nervous about being interviewed on camera, especially when they told us that the piece would be aired on national television. After the interview, I felt like I spoke way too fast and babbled on like a drunkard to no end. Have you ever been in the middle of a story and realized that there’s really no point to what you’re saying and no ending in site? Yeah, that was me except I wasn’t talking to my friends at a bar…I was doing it in front of a renown news anchor and his camera crew for a soon-to-be nationally televised program on the most watched channel in Fiji. Good stuff. The piece aired a couple weeks later and guess who’s face pops up within the first minute? Oh yes, none other than the drunkard from Michigan in all his babbling glory. And for some reason, they used my footage for a ridiculously long period of time. Some other trainees called and said they really enjoyed the “Palden Show” on Fiji One that evening. I was pretty embarrassed. Later that week as I walked through the streets of Suva, five or six people stopped and pointed at me saying, “Peace Corps! Fiji One, Close-up!” Yup, I’m a famous celebrity now…sex tape coming soon.

View from my back porch during training.

After swearing in, we were all sent to our permanent sites. I was assigned to a village called Korotasere on the big northern island of Vanua Levu. I’m replacing an environment volunteer who has been here for a year and a half. The Country Director said she was hoping I could kick-start some income-generating ventures and help improve business in and around the village. I’ve been here for about 10 days and everything is fine. I’m living with the turaga ni koro (sort of like the mayor of the village) and his wife until my bure is no longer occupied. Once the current volunteer leaves this Sunday, I’ll finally (FINALLY) have a place to call my own and unpack all my shit. It’s going to be so amazing to sleep and wake up whenever I want and eat whatever I want, whenever I want it. I may even walk around the place naked the whole first week. Sorry neighbors, but this is happening. Never thought I’d say this, but I can’t wait to cook for myself. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind the Fijian food at all but I can only eat so much dalo, cassava, and stuff cooked in coconut milk. Dalo and cassava are eaten with pretty much every meal, sometimes they are the main course. Both are root crops with zero nutrition, just empty carbs and starch…great for survival, but that’s about it.

The boys from the village whipped up this little tent in about 5 minutes for our day at the beach.

The bure I’ll be living in is awesome. The roof is thatched with palm leaves and everyone tells me that it stays very cool during the hot season. Speaking of the hot season, this concerns me. Right now is the “cool/dry season” and I sweat my ass off every day. I don’t know the exact temperature but I’d guess it easily reaches 85 these days. So god only knows what it’s going to be like come December and January when it’s apparently hot as balls. Anyway, the bure is great and I’ll post pictures on my next update. The people of Korotasere are really friendly. Everyone has been very welcoming and eager to get to know me. They seem to get excited when I tell them that I’m a business volunteer. I’ve asked a few people what types of projects they would like me to work on and I get the same vague answer in different forms; to bring money into the village. My fear is that I’m expected to wave a magic wand and $100 notes will replace the coconuts on the trees. It’s still early, and I’m supposed to spend the next 3 months getting to know people, learning the language, and just integrating into the community, so I’ll try to dig a little deeper with regard to business opportunities in Korotasere.

What the hell did you just call me?? It's not a skirt, it's a sulu!

Well, the babbling drunkard from Michigan is at it again, so I’ll cut it short here. Mad love to my boy Boutit and the other guy or girl that commented on my last update…pretty sure you two are the only ones who read this. Just know that your comments make my day. Yes, sometimes things like that were the high point of my day while I was in pre-service training (doesn’t take much to excite me anymore). Miss you all!

Love,

P

Bula vinaka! Sorry for my lack of effort in updating this blog but I figured I’d keep both of you who actually read this in suspense. We arrived here in Fiji on May 20th after staging in LA. There are 36 of us Peace Corps Trainees altogether and we’re known as the FRE-8s (Fiji Re-Entry group 8). Peace Corps came back to Fiji after several years of hiatus due to the military coup and we are the 8th group since PC came back to the country.

After spending a few days together in the dorms of a Christian school, PC sent us out to live with host families in our assigned villages for the duration of PST (pre-service training). I am living in the village of Nabua (naam-boo-uh), which has a population of about 150 people. We are situated along a river that runs to the ocean (about a 30 minute boat ride) and we have to take a water taxi to get here from town. The river runs through my backyard and it’s really nice to sit out there and watch the sun go down. I live with my Ta (father) who is a retired teacher and his son, Felipe, who lives in the house behind us on the same lot. Felipe is 28 years old and I have a lot of fun joking around with him.

There are also 4 other trainees assigned to this village and they’re all great people – a married couple from Alaska and two other girls, one from California and the other a fellow Michigander. The rest of the trainees come from all walks of life…we range from people coming straight out of college to others that simply got bored with retirement.

PST has been pretty intense. We have language training in our host villages every day except for Thursdays when the whole group of 35 meets in town for seminars that consist of safety, cross-cultural, technical, health, business, and environment presentations. The language is coming along slowly but surely. I need to make more of an effort to study on my own but we don’t get very much down time. If we’re not in language training or other seminars, we are usually tied up with village activities. Every Tuesday is cultural day and all of the trainees meet in one of the villages for lunch, a cultural presentation put on by the trainees living there, and you guess it…more seminars. Last Tuesday PC staff informed my group that Nabua’s cultural day is next so we have been busy practicing our meke (cultural dance) and songs which we will perform for the whole group during cultural day next week. Bubba (the guy from Alaska) and I will be performing a traditional Fijian warrior meke. I guess the village men have big plans for us because I heard we’ll be all decked out in nothing but banana leaves and war paint…I’ll post pictures if Bubba and I don’t look too obscene. The girls will be doing their own little song and dance as well. Marie (the girl from Michigan) and I are going to teach the village kids the Cupid Shuffle because part of Peace Corps is sharing American culture with our host country…and there is absolutely no way I am going to pollute the Fijian culture with the Macarena, so Cupid Shuffle it is. DOWN DOWN DO YA DANCE, DO YA DANCE…

One of the young men from the village took Bubba and me fishing last Saturday and it was fun. We stopped and caught small prawns with our bare hands in the mangrove mud for bait. Now I’m used to fishing with a pole, but they’re old-school here in Fiji. We used only fishing line with a hook and weight at the end. To cast the line, you have to swing it over your head like a cowboy with a lasso and just let ‘er rip. The guy that came with us was throwing his line out about 40 feet while mine never made it past 10 feet. After about 3 hours, Bubba had caught one, the young man from the village had caught one, and I was still sitting there holding my line like a jackass with not so much as a nibble…never enjoyed fishing anyway. We’re going mongoose hunting next so hopefully I can redeem myself.

We had one-on-one interviews with our Program Managers a few days ago and mine went well. They wanted to get more of an in-depth look at our experience and background in order to more effectively place us in our permanent sites at the end of PST, which will be in about 5 weeks. Contrary to what I thought before I left, I get the feeling that I’ll be placed in a village for my 2 years of service rather than a more urban area. It sounds like PC is trying to focus this group’s business advisors on developing business and identifying income-generating opportunities in the villages. I used to think that I would prefer to be in an urban area because that would ensure access to electricity, running water, internet, and other luxuries that we take for granted back in the States. But the more I think about it, the more I actually want to be placed way out in the middle of nowhere. Being assigned to a village will mean that I will be completely immersed in a community - and I think it will be much easier to develop close relationships with key members, which will hopefully lead to more opportunity to produce on my end. On the flip side, I would have no problem with an urban site either. If they want to put me in one of the government offices with a 9-5er, that’s fine too. You learn very quickly to be flexible in the Peace Corps!

I'm only going to post this one pic because I have to pay for data usage. I snapped this one yesterday morning at sunrise from my back porch. No, I haven't edited this in any way...sunsets and sunrises in Fiji are ridiculously beautiful.

That’s all I got for now homies. Not even sure if any friends or family are reading this, but if you are, know that I’m safe and having a great experience so far. Love and miss you all.

Love,

P

My name is Palden and I recently accepted an offer from the Peace Corps to serve as a business advising volunteer in Fiji. I will be leaving on May 18, 2010. Peace Corps is a 27 month commitment and I hope to update this blog somewhat consistently throughout my service.

I didn't think that I would ever have a blog. Why would anyone want to read about the "adventures" of an account manager at some ad agency in the suburbs of Detroit? But considering that I will be away from my friends and family for the next 2+ years, this may be a good way for some of them to stay up to date on what I'm doing. Also, the third and final goal of Peace Corps is "to help promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans." So hopefully this blog can help me out with that.

If you're reading this blog, I assume you already know what the Peace Corps does but here is a brief overview -

In 1961, President Kennedy established the Peace Corps to promote world peace and friendship. The Peace Corps' mission has three simple goals:Helping the people of interested countries in meeting their need for trained men and women. Helping promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of peoples served. Helping promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans. There are a lot of people who don't understand why I'm joining the Peace Corps. It's tough to explain to someone that you're quitting your job in a struggling economy to volunteer overseas for no pay. I get a lot of "what the hell" looks. Honestly, there isn't one single reason that I decided to do this. For one, I was getting bored with my career in advertising. I remember seeing a re-run of the pilot episode of The Office where Jim is trying to explain what he does; "My job is to...speak to clients...um, on the phone...about, uh...quantities and uh...type of copier paper, you know...uh, whether we can supply it to them, whether they can uh...pay for it...and um, I'm...I'm boring myself just talking about this." I feel ya, Jim Halpert. The fact that I was beginning to despise my 9 to 5 job (more like 9 to 7, 8, 9, or midnight if you're familiar with the ad biz), a desire to do something more rewarding with a better sense of purpose, an itch for adventure that needed to be scratched, and Obama's call to service were all factors in the decision to flip my life upside down.

As a Business Advisor in Fiji, I am told that my duties may include:Assist the Ministry and/or other government offices with strategies for small business development, particularly eco-tourism. Assist the Ministries, NGOs or other agencies to manage small grants. Assist with the training of small business managers in the basic management, accounting skills, and other tourism management functions. Assist entrepreneurs with marketing strategies, product pricing and promotion. Help strengthen links between partner agencies like Small Micro Enterprise Council and other business NGOs. Should be fun. That's all for now homies.

Love,

Palden