Live from SVG!

Hey all you out there that are not here! ^_^
So I here I am, blogging away from St Vincent. I am tucked away here in a little village--but not allowed to say where exactly. Shortly after arrival on the island--I met up with my host family where I'll be staying for a few weeks. They are helping me learn to get around and shop here, as well as help immerse me in the local dialect. Yeah, English is spoken here, but the dialect is tough to the foreign ear. They are good people and are taking great care of me. They have a couple grandkids that live with them--10 and 5yrs old. So for those that know me, this is going to be interesting. They even went out of their way to get me "vegetarian chunks"--which are some sort of dried soy pieces that rehydrate into tasty morsels. : ) After a few weeks, I get to have my own place--we'll see what sort of new adventures that will bring.

Until then, what have I been up to?

• Watched my host dad play dominoes with his friends--people here REALLY enjoy that game
• Watched a football (soccer) game
• Danced at a make-shift party....mostly reggae music
• Gone through a day of Peace Corps Training--another tomorrow
• Began a mapping project of my village....it is going to be a hard project--wish I could say more on that one.
• Opened a local bank account and wandered the downtown Kingstown area--it isn't very big
• SWEAT PLENTY!!! It's been hot and humid for sure.
• Learned to hand wash my clothes and hang dry.....this is going to be interesting. ^_^
• Went to a local church. No I'm not converting--but it is a good chance to meet the locals.
• Taught the kids I live with how to make paper airplanes and paper 'face' puppets.
• Taken some pics, but will need time to get any uploaded. Probably not until I am on my own (7 weeks?) and can take the time to do it.
• Gotten to see many different foods in the capital market. Saturday is the big outdoor vegetable market--that is going to be awesome! (if I get to go....)
• Rode local buses (more like mini-vans) and they are hella packed! For those that have heard of the jam-packed trains of Toyko at rush hour....imagine that but much hotter. >.<
• Eaten something at my host home called breadfruit. Apparently it is a staple food here--originally brought over by the European rulers in order to feed the slaves. It looks like a giant, green, round sphere that grows on trees. It can be made many ways--cut and roasted then fried it tastes like french fries.
  

Well, I'm sure that I have done more....but I am can't recall at the moment. More will come later for sure. : )

St. Vincent (Vincys) people are really warm and friendly. Also, the Peace Corps is really well known on the island--having been here for many years. In fact, I learned that head staff guy here--really loves his job, partially because he had "interventions" and learned from Peace Corps members twice in his schools while growing up. To his knowledge--those volunteers didn't know what became of our current head of staff, but it shows how time can yield great results from the seeds of assistance that we are planting. There is an American medical school here on the island and tourists come and go....so at times we are mistaken for people with $ ...lol. But once people learn that we are with the Peace Corps, they usually become extra friendly. --Not to say that we will be getting extra breaks, but at least we would be charged local prices.

On transportation.....the roads here would seem treacherous to most people back home. They are close winding roads that wrap around the mountain curves and create a somewhat circular pattern around most of the island. From around the 100k population, perhaps 20k have cars or buses or taxis. People typically drive very fast but stop quick and pass on the roads often. To avoid accidents, they honk all the time to get walking people off the road or to warn others of driving around corners. Catching a bus can be VERY difficult if you are not at the right place at the right time--usually when it leaves its main terminal. Buses also usually run 6-7ish and not on Sundays....so let's hope I don't get stuck out somewhere late. Even official taxis can be REALLY expensive. Oh yeah--they drive on the left.

I have not gone to the beach here yet, but many of them have black sand from the volcano. Yes, it is an active volcano--supposedly the 2nd most studied next to Mount St Helens. Its last eruption was in 1979, so let's not hope for the next Pompeii.

One of the volunteers told us in our gossip time at training about being offered (and accepting) to eat a sea turtle's egg in a Guinness beer. This really threw me off and I put that up there on the things I would not do....like eat monkey (even if not a veg-head)--which happens on St Kitts. I later learned that there are legal times and locations to collect sea turtle eggs. This is just one example of my having to adjust to the local culture and not approach with a bias. Just some things will be harder than others.....much harder.

So look for more later....hope everyone is well. ^_^ Drop a comment to keep me posted on what is going on in your half of the world.

ciao tutti
~your wannabe jedi
~Shawn