Monday, August 4, 2008
Learning is Hard
I'm in training now. I eat enough carbs to be training for a marathon (rice, potatoes, bread, and more rice). But I'm in training to make a sentence. One day it will happen. I live with a great family. Luckily they speak some English. It usually takes a mix of French, Bambara and by the end English for me to get a thought out. These people are saints! The new game show for Peace Corps trainees; 'Are You Smarter Than a 2 Yr Old?' I lose at this game pretty much everyday. La is one of the little girls in the family and has to correct me on what time of day it is pretty often. She is also teaching me the parts of the face. Eating with my hands also adds to me feeling like a kid. Yes, the 3 year old is better at this than I am. I'm blaming it partly on the fact that I have to be right handed. The left hand is for hmm, let's say the other end. Enough of that. Training is mostly language classes. We did get to make concrete cinder blocks in our technical training. Later that day the functioning US ambassador came to talk to us. (Mali is between ambassadors right now, the second in command has taken over.) So I made cinder blocks in a linen dress; love it!
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8 comments:
Tell us something in french! Sus, I'm so proud of you for doing exactly what you want! I can't wait to visit.
Are you to be building houses with the cinder blocks? Right on, in a dress, you're my hero, Susan. BBQ'ing at Lee's tonight. Will enjoy a beer for you. Miss you much.
What area of conversation has been the easiest for you? I found that talking about what I wanted was usually easiest. I sound a whole lot like a petulant child, but at least people knew what I needed.
I also found food to be a pretty easy area of "conversation". I guess it's not really conversation when you rattle off a grocery list, but at least it was something!
Is there a chance that we might get some beautiful Malian pictures? We'd love to see your host family, the PC offices, or really anything African. Take care!
oh, we should have loaned you ellie's toy that says: "la vache dit moooo" "le chien dit ouf ouf ouf"
that's the only practice my 10 year old rusty french gets!
btw ellie loves her little softie stuffties you sent her. she pushes them all over the place in her doll stroller.
keep the posts coming!
Hey Susan, Just got back from Nova Scotia, sent you a postcard, hope it gets there promptly. Sounds like you are off to a great start. We need a pic of you in the dress though. Have fun.
Hi Susan!
I am so happy that you are doing this! It will be great to keep up with you and know all that you are experiencing! I bet it was a shock at first... it was for us in Thailand and it's nothing like Africa.
Good luck to you!!
Lea Ann Byrne
Susan you'll be fine just remember that choucroutte is sourkraut and you should be good....they have a lot of sourkraut in Mali right? We miss you here and hope all is as good as it sounds. I'll put together a package for you soon so that you can get it before you come back in 2 years. If you need anything let us know I'm sure we can find someone to send you something.
Ian
See there was a profoud reason for practicing your ambidexterity all these years--you don't want to be confusing right from left now!
I can't believe the other training you received was making cinder blocks! Is that serendipitous or what?!
That's awesome your sister's name is La! You should thank her for making at least her name easy :)
Whooohooo! Can't wait to hear more!
We'll send noncarbs to you. Maybe some jerky will fare well crossing the big pond.
Je t'aime!
Elasha
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