Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Broken Dreams
So my African dream has been crushed and I'm totally ok with it. Training is almost over and soon I will hopefully be a real true Peace Corps Volunteer. I know where I will be living and sort of what I will be doing. I told everyone when I left to come visit me in my mud hut in Mali, hopefully I was going to have chickens and maybe even goats. Well, sadly, no not sadly that is not to be. My site is a city of about 100,000 people. I have a second story apartment with 6, yes, 6 rooms, and the best part, I have a shower and a toliet, that flushes! After only 7 weeks of pooping down a hole and taking bucket baths in the open air. I am excited about having a bathroom. I am close to dogon country, in fact my host family is dogon. The boat trips to Timbuktu leave from here, there is climbing about 5 hours away, a very famous mosque 2 hours away. This city, which is remaining nameless at the recomendation of the Peace Corps blog watchers, is a tourist destination, and all Mali has to offer is close. So start planning those trips now! As a side note, it is a 10-12 hours bus ride from Bamako, but not bad really. And some people might be bothered by the grand mosque that is a block away and the call to prayer at 5 in the morning, but I sleep right thru it. The ceiling fan, yes I have 2 ceiling fans drown out all other noise. So while my fellow volunteers have their walls disolve in the night during a rain storm; have a spitting cobra in the rafters; or have to endure 56° C. (all those are true by the way) I will be either in the shower or sitting in my livingroom under a fan. I will actually work too, well hopefully my French won't prevent me from getting something done. I am working with the city on trash disposal and sewer improvements. There are a lot of aid agencies in town so maybe I can work my way into some side projects and get to meet a lot of people in the process. I've never been so happy to be disappointed!
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7 comments:
Yeah, I can tell your taking it hard. While I can see how living out in the country would have been quite an adventure, I personally would not have wanted to do it for 2 years, two weeks maybe, but not 2 years. Hope it's not TOO big a disappointment. That's what you get for being one of them there inginears, civil or otherwise. I'm sure you will make great contributions there. Fun talking to you today. Hope the phone bill isn't too bad. I will email more often. Love ya, Rich
Might be a good thing? I, personally, would have a nervous breakdown around spitting cobras and am not cut out for melting mud walls times two years. (Kind of sounds like the Fisher Towers, but you live in them?) Glad trainings wrapping up and you can start offering all that goodness in you!
Miss you much-
Heather
It was so good to talk to you on Saturday, Sus!
I can't wait to come and visit you in that un-named city that you may or may not be living in. Anne and I looked at tickets. They're a bit spendy, but we should be able to manage it in the summer.
We couldn't find any direct flights there though. Do you have any suggestions for airlines that fly direct to your town?
It's good to read your posts. You are one tough girl, you know. Glad to hear that you don't have to fight cobras at night, that should give you more energy for your project. Best of luck.
Agie
Hey Lady - sounds like everything turned out - i'm sure you will do great in the learning process - sometime you have to start over and it feel like your a child again while in the learning process - LUCKY YOU!!! I'm sure many people will benefit from you being out there. Stay in touch.
Love and miss you bunches
Dannelle
Glad to hear about the absence of spitting cobras, toilet holes, and melting mud walls. Guess your education is paying off, huh? ;)
The Dirty Girls are running a marathon all together in two weeks. We really miss you and wish you could come (after all, you are one of the original three founding members - it doesn't seem quite right without you!) Maybe I'll Sharpie tattoo you on my arm for the race. :) --Ruth
I am with you about the disappointment, I am loving Koutiala. My house concession is like living in a park and to have a flushed toilet and wanted a garden, chickens etc.
Maridee
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