On things, old and new, and transitioning.

Life in America, even while unemployed, quickly gets away from you.  I'm not sure if that's good or bad, but that is how it is.

One of the biggest and most time-consuming parts of my American life has been the technology.  There's free internet everywhere and it's pretty fast, limited only by my outdated and well-used netbook.  I can actually internet shop and buy things if I want.  Or I can read today's news, every day.  I've learned what the heck pinterest is, and that # is a hashtag.  Nobody calls # a "pound" any more without the risk of getting laughed at, speaking from experience.  When I shut off my computer there's the TV.  Free movies and TV of all types, current types, on a big screen.  And I don't know if you realized, but high definition has come a long way in the last 2 years.  Am I standing in this lawyer's office or just watching it on TV?  Also, call me whenever you want.  Just because you can.  I'm just happy that my phone is dumb, so I don't have to figure out how to use that, too.  No wonder so few people read books.  And oh, the books.  The authors have just kept writing and it's awesome.

I've been awed by how much stuff I feel that I really need to get along in the U.S.  It makes me a little bit uncomfortable.  I no longer have to make special trips into town to hit the ATM (and hope that it's working) and carry around an uncomfortably large stack of cash.  I do have to convince someone to give me a credit card.  Public transportation here is nonexistent to highly inconvenient to laughably expensive, and since I don't think I can mentally or emotionally handle city life that means I had to go car shopping.  Quite possibly the most stressful shopping ever invented.  My closet is full of what I think to be a ridiculous amount of new clothing, but it turns out that there are seasons here, and that I need clean, neat clothing to go out into town, and even nicer items for interviews or weddings, and clothes I can wear for outside work or exercise.

Parts of life in America still haven't ceased being awesome.  Unlimited ice water, hot showers with functional shower heads, and laundry machines are up high on that list.  Grocery shopping is still difficult to do, because I still can't quite conceive of being able to buy more that a few days worth of food or food for more than one person without it going bad before you get around to eating it.   Also, knowing what you want only means you narrowed it down to a minimum of 5 different options.  The options are a killer for me.  One trip to CVS included 15 minutes of standing in front of the hair ties.  If I'm going to spend a whole $3 on hair accessories I now feel like I need to make sure they are exactly the right ones, and why the heck do I have to buy a minimum of 30?

Yes, there are a lot of changes in my life and adjustments to be made.  But above all that, it has been incredible to see and catch up with all the family and friends I missed while I was gone.  It's easy to get tired of talking about where I've been and what I've done, but it will take a long time for me to tire of hearing about what everyone else has done.  Someone asked me: do you miss Madagascar?  Well, there are things I don't miss, but I really do miss the people.  But I count myself lucky because now I am back among all the awesome people that I missed when I was there.

Next year!

I've been lucky enough to find a job for the next year.  Starting in September, I'll be a FoodCorps service member in North Carolina.  I'm very excited to start working in school gardens and to live near some of my family as well.  As always, I will do my best to keep everyone up to date.

Your Burning Questions Answered: Installment 1

Now that I'm in the US and constantly on the internet my ideas for blog posts have substantially dwindled.  Since there isn't really much exciting adventuring going on in my life I'm going to try reworking the blog a little bit.  Here's attempt number one: Your Burning Questions Answered.

What I found out this weekend (other than that all my friends are still cool and still like me, hooray!) is that y'all have a lot of questions for me.  A lot of the same questions.  Perhaps I can answer some of them here and save conversation space for the weirder inquiries or for you to talk about yourself or for us to stare awkwardly at each other, because I'm good at that and sometimes I miss it.  So, without further ado, here goes.

Question: Are you in, like, culture shock.
Answer:  YES.
Further elaboration available in future conversations or potential future posts.


Question:  So what was your job?
Answer:  Those of you who have been following along should already have some ideas about this.  (If you didn't follow, feel free to see the archives from May 2011 to April 2013.)

Technically speaking, I was a Peace Corps volunteer in the environment sector.

Leaving the technicalities aside, the job title doesn't have a whole lot of meaning on its own.  Everyone's "Peace Corps experience" is different (even within one country like Madagascar), and if you're curious about the Peace Corps in general and not just me, you should do some further reading.  I lived in the northeastern part of Madagascar that is famous for its vanilla production.  I didn't really have any NGOs or other or organizations in my village to work with, so I worked directly with community members.  Being the first PCV to live in Ambohimanarina meant I spent a lot of time just explaining Peace Corps and what the heck I was doing there.

The Peace Corps has 3 goals which are basically: (1) train natives in useful skills, (2) share American culture with natives, and (3) share other cultures with Americans.  I don't think you can over-emphasize the culture sharing (goals 2 and 3).  Probably about 90% of my experience was learning about their daily life (how to winnow rice, how to grow it, what a funeral is like, etc) and talking about American daily life.

Outside of sharing culture some of the stuff I worked on was: leading community meetings to discuss local needs, building fuel-saving cookstoves, teaching a weekly English club, working with a women's group on income-generation via the nearby national park, teaching composting, teaching a non-traditional rice farming technique, and discussing work plans with environmentally-minded community members.

But really, what Americans would consider my "job" occupied a very small fraction of my last 2 years.  Just living in Madagascar is in itself a time-consuming thing.  I had my own house which I cleaned (including sweeping and mibrousse-ing the floor aka waxing/buffing it with a coconut husk), and everyday chores become extra long when you remove certain amenities like running water and electricity (fetching water from the taps, doing the laundry by hand, cooking everything from scratch, shopping every day for perishable items).  Then there was fun stuff, like hanging out with friends, reading, learning to sew, and being a dispenser of toys for small children.


Question: How was it?
Answer:  It was indescribable.  Maybe all the cliches fit in here, because it was amazing and life-changing and pretty darn cool, but it was also frustrating and challenging and a bit annoying at times.  Peace Corps is certainly one of those things you need to do to truly understand.  Overall, I'm very glad I did it and I know I gained a lot out of it.  Day-to-day life in Madagascar made that hard to realize at the time.  It's easy to sit here in the US now and reminisce about all the great times I had and the great people I met, but it's also difficult to gloss over the struggles of seeing so much poverty, encountering a lot of apathy to work that I thought was only helpful, or just plain being harrassed because I am a white woman.

All-in-all, I'm still processing the whole Madagascar thing and probably will always be.  So, I'll do my best to answer your questions in the best way possible when I am able.  Keep checking back for further answers.  Right now I'm working on questions I've simply heard in conversation, but if you have any just send me a comment and I'll try to answer them in future installments.

Warm welcome

So it's been just over a week since I got back to USA, and boy, what a week!

Last week I landed in Hawaii to vacation with my mom, sister Meredith, and Meredith's boyfriend Craig.  We went to Kauai, the most un-developed Hawaiian island and it was beautiful.  We spent the week enjoying the sun at the pool and beach, snorkeling, kayaking, taking an awesome helicopter tour of the island.  Pretty darn awesome.  There's a lot to do, so I guess I'm going to add Kauai to my ever-lengthening list of places I want to go (/return to again) in my life.  Any tips on how to make money and travel the world would be much appreciated.

After Hawaii I hopped a plane and headed back to North Carolina.  Hello, continental U.S.  I spent the weekend in the Triangle for a wedding.  I have to admit the prospect was kind of scary to me: lots of white people, including strangers, in a formal setting.  It turned out to be a blast.  I received a really warm welcome by everyone, and got to dance the night away (one of my favorite activities).  I also got to see some of my best friends in the world and celebrate with them, which was pretty exciting.  It went by fast, and I really hope I can get to spend some better one-on-one time catching up with everyone in the coming weeks.

Now it's on to visiting the family, which should be just as rewarding.  I'm on the job hunt, but have already had one interview and another interview is scheduled, so that's pretty encouraging.  If you know of any school gardens out there looking for helpers, let me know!

Thanks to everyone who has warmly welcomed me back to USA, I have a phone now so please feel free to call or text because I'd love to catch up.  I'll be bouncing around along the east coast over the next few weeks, so I hope to see you around!

Hello, USA.

Seven planes, three buses, a smattering of subways, skytrains, taxis, boats, and some walking thrown in for good measure and I made it back to America.  (USA, not actually home yet, but it is America.)

Whoa.  People are driving on the right side of the road.  I spent US dollars and boy did they look weird.  Do you know how nice it is to buy something without converting the price in your head?  People have no accent that is noticeably different from mine.  They are speaking English, beautiful English.  I can read the signs.  Things are measured in miles and farenheit.  Whoa.

The night before I left Bangkok felt strangely familiar and completely different.  I spent the night, like so many nights in Madagascar, packing more things into my bag than I ever thought would fit, then watching TV on my computer in a hotel room.  I had that strange feeling that is half “I can’t wait to get home” and “I don’t wanna leave.”  Only this time “home” meant America, it meant flying on a big fancy plane, it meant a totally different life. 

I’m excited to be in America, to see my friends and family.  I’m excited about bagels and apples and salads, washing machines and refrigeration and being able to call you whenever I feel like it.  I’m sad that my travels are over and definitely feel like I need to spend more time exploring both Asia and Africa.  I’ll miss the mangoes and rice and constantly warm weather, having conversations that consist completely of drawn out vowel sounds and checking my email so infrequently that there’s always something interesting in the inbox.

I got to the U.S. and immediately got an email about a job interview—great news but also a scary reality check, I need to figure out the next step.  I need to figure out how to be an American in America again.  I went to a coffee shop and ordered a bagel, and the clerk asked me if I was sure that I wanted it, seeing as they didn’t have a toaster.  Seriously?  Of course I want that bagel.  And what the hell is a toaster?

So thanks again for following along on my Malagasy adventures.  Stay tuned for accounts of my re-adjustment, I’m sure it will be entertaining.

Bangkok

Last stop in Asia: Bangkok.

This city is huge and bustling.  There's about a million bus lines, a billion taxis, a gillion buddhas, and everything is written in Thai so I feel pretty much lost at all times.  Perhaps I should have stopped here earlier when I was more fresh in my travels, but here I am anyhow.

My first couple days in Bangkok have been pretty nice.  There's been wandering in ancient temples and admiring golden buddha after golden buddha, checking out the markets and the malls, eating from the food vendors all over the place, wandering the streets aimlessly...

Bangkok traffic

At Wat Pho

Wat Pho reflection

First food stall meal

Enjoying the view from the rooftop at the first guesthouse

Orchids at Museum of Floral Culture (really cool museum, by the way)

Take out dinner from the food stalls.  Yum!

Malaysia: Part 2

 So it seems that I have a volunteering problem.  Maybe someday I’ll actually get paid to work…

I spent the last week volunteering on the Perhentian Islands with Ecoteer.  I’d definitely recommend the organization, and the vacation spot.  I was on Pulau Perhentian Kecil, living and working in the local Malaysian village.  The week was a much needed retreat from traveling in cities and provided the perfect balance of local life and island relaxation.  I met some beautiful villagers and interesting people from around the world.  I spent the week teaching English, gardening, cleaning up the environment, eating delicious Malay food, and snorkeling some incredibly beautiful beaches with lots of corals and sea life.  Here are some photos to summarize the experience (thanks to other volunteers/interns/staff who also took some of the photos):

Snorkeling

Butterfly-making craft time

Yummy Malay dinner

Game time

Boats on the island

 

Local women's group teaching us to cook Malay food

I’m off to Bangkok for a few days before I finally hit American soil in Hawaii.  I’m excited to see Bangkok but also ready to get back to USA, my friends and family, and not carrying my enormous backpack everywhere.

Malaysia: Part 1

Well, I’m in Malaysia.  I hadn’t really thought about visiting Malaysia, but as it lays smack in the middle of Singapore and Bangkok, my cities of arrival and departure, here I am.  So far I’m having a good time here, though I am definitely realizing that I’m not that great at being a normal tourist.  I don’t want to go shopping or stop for a photo-op every 5 seconds, cities and large masses of people are rather intimidating to me.  I’m missing the quietness of the village a little bit.

My first stop in Malaysia was Melaka (sometimes spelled Malacca).  It’s a small-ish town on the west coast.  Melaka has some pretty interesting history; it was an important port for the spice trade and has been ruled at various times by the Chinese, British, and the Dutch.  So there’s a mix of everything from old churches to temples.  Some parts of Melaka are quaint and would make any guidebook writers describe the town as “sleepy”—there’s brick sidewalks by the river and murals painted on the walls.  There’s old antique shops and stores making homemade pineapple cookies (yum!). 

Unfortunately, they also mix in a healthy dose of tourist trap in Melaka.  The town was recently named a world heritage city and they seem to be capitalizing on that as much as possible.  I discovered that while there are some decent museums, there are scores of “museums” in town and a lot of them are just stores trying to lure you in, or are still in construction.  Plus, due to its proximity to Kuala Lumpur, busloads of tourists are wandering around the center of town all day long. 

In Melaka, I enjoyed wandering the streets, visiting the historic sites on the hilltop, and looking in the antique shops.   It was a little funny to see charcoal powered irons and tin plates in the antique shops when my neighbors (and sometimes myself) were using those exact things just 2 weeks ago.  I had to laugh at the pimped-out trishaws pedaled by smiling old men, but it didn’t take long before the masses of photo-snapping tour groups and junk gift shops drove me slightly insane.

My next stop was Kuala Lumpur.  I didn’t really know what to expect here and it felt pretty much like a generic city—lots of people, traffic, and shopping malls.  I don’t really know what it is with Asia and their huge, air-conditioned shopping malls, but man are there a lot of them!  Shopping can be fun and necessary, but not really what I’m looking to do on my vacation. 

Navigating the public transport in KL was one of the most frustrating experiences I’ve had on this trip.  I feel like I can say I have some good experience with public transport having used it in various cities, but this was by far the most confusing system I have ever seen.  Traveling by subway required buying a new token every time you had to change lines, which was often, and stations that were “connected” had unmarked pathways between them that were incredibly poorly labeled.  By the end of the trip I adopted a strategy of avoidance for the subway.

To me, Kuala Lumpur was the opposite of Melaka: on first glance it seemed like a tourist haven but after further exploration I did find a lot of cool things to do in KL.  I visited Merdeka Square, where they first raised the flag of independent Malaysia, browsed the textile museum (Malaysia is famous for really beautiful batik and woven cloth, among other textiles), went to the Batu caves (caves just outside town where they’ve built in a bunch of temples), visited a craft center where I got to paint my own batik, and even saw the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra.

My next stop is the beach in northeastern Malaysia.  I really need to get out of the city and relax for a while.  I’ll check in after that, hopefully much more relaxed!

Murals along the river in Melaka

Pineapple cookies

Pimp my trishaw

This is what hanging out in a tourist town makes me feel like.
Also why I shouldn't be aloud to be my own photographer.

Merdeka Square, Kuala Lumpur.

Batu Caves entrance

Inside the caves

Temple in the caves

Eating my Way Through Singapore

From what I can tell, Singapore is basically one huge shopping mall/food court.  Okay, there are a lot of neat temples and mosques around, and I did hit up the pretty spectacular Singapore Botanic Gardens (then again, if it’s a garden I’ll probably enjoy it).  But really, if you want to shop and eat, come to Singapore.  I’m not so good at the first but tried to make up for it with the second, though next time I’m in Singapore I’m bringing a friend to share the food/allow me to try more things.

After living in Madagascar for two years, somehow any portion of rice is not enough.  Seriously, I’m in Asia looking at every bowl of rice and thinking, “really, that’s it?”  Also, what’s this with the forks and knives?  Just give me a spoon to shovel it all in.  And don’t even get me started on chopsticks.

But, I digress.  The food in Singapore was pretty darn good.  And diverse.  One of the things to do in Singapore is go eat at a hawker center.  It’s pretty much a stand-alone food court with different stalls specializing in different foods.  You can get tea, juices, rice, noodles, fried things…  I had chicken rice, a curry puff, several types of delicious juices, a fried green onion pancake... it’s all part of the experience, right? 

Hawker center.

Chicken rice.
This self-timer gem is dedicated to you, Meredith.

Juice!

The cool thing about eating (and travelling) in south east Asia so far is the variety.  The cultures of the region are all mixed up with Indian and Chinese influences.  There’s Hindu and Buddhist temples next to mosques next to churches.  I can eat an Indian “murtabak” (savory pancake) then turn the corner and have a Chinese dumpling.  Yes, please.  It’s a nice change after Madagascar, where you’re pretty much Malagasy or “vazaha” with nothing in between.

The one thing I am missing is fresh vegetables.  So when I come visit you in America, please serve me a nice green salad.  I will be sure to give you a souvenir in exchange.

Chicken murtabak and iced milk tea.

Beer!  And it's not THB!

Chopstick sale in Chinatown.

Words of wisdom, brought to you at the Singapore Botanic Gardens.

More milk tea and dumplings.

Random Musings on the World

I’ve been told re-entering America is going to be hard.  I’ve discussed it with other travellers and with other PCVs.  So far being outside of Madagascar has been a different experience.  I’ll share a few of the observations/comments that I’ve gathered so far.

First off, the world is really developed.  I mean, paved roads with lines in them, sidewalks and traffic lines?  WOW.  Somehow I thought being in Africa and even Asia would be like Madagascar.  Yeah, they paved the roads, but that’s about all the traffic control you’re likely to see.  Nope, I have to give it to South Africa and Asia, they really have their stuff together in the infrastructure department.

Bathrooms.  Clean, with running water and toilet paper.  Also really spectacular.

Technology.  Geez.  Could you put down your phone a second?  Part of me is scared of this cell phone craze.  I’m sitting on the subway watching 5-year-olds play with their parents’ phones and shriveled old men texting.  I am SO far behind.  The rest of me is annoyed by all the phones.  Can’t you talk to the person you’re with?  Also, could you quit snapping photos and actually look at the thing you’ve come around the world to see?

It’s interesting to gather opinions on America.  One man in Chinatown asked me who is the best, “Bush, W. Bush, Clinton, Obama, or John Kerry?”  That’s quite the question (and could someone explain why he put John Kerry in that list?).  A Malaysian taxi-driver told me that he thinks America is “too free.  You can’t tell who’s who.”  Maybe it’s just the born-and-bred American in me thinking that’s why America is great.  Then there’s the Kiwi woman in the hostel who’s shocked when a European is speaking English with an American accent, almost like it’s a bad thing.  Or the lady who poses for an “American-style” photo giving the thumbs-up sign.  Is that our peace sign in photos?  Or do we Americans just take ridiculous photos all the time?  (If that’s the case, I am truly American.)  Or the French girl who loved Atlanta for the shopping.  Atlanta?  On vacation?

Courtesy and good customer service.  This is something that I feel like America does pretty well (though I haven’t been there in a long time).  Travelling in various countries there have been airline representatives who completely ignored my questions, waiters who don’t even acknowledge that I sat down, bus drivers who can’t even say hi as I go to pay the fare.  I’m trying really hard to be nice, say please and thank you, is it too much to return the courtesy?

Women’s rights.  I was riding the bus back to my hostel in the evening and watched the bus loading.  There was about one woman for every 20 or 30 men.  In the restaurants there were no lone women or groups of women without at least one man present—usually the groups were 50/50 or majority men.  Where do all the women go at night?  Obviously the customs are different and I am not very familiar with the culture here that is heavily influenced by Islam and Buddhism.  I don’t feel unsafe as a woman, but I will say I am happy that I am going back to a place where it is not at all out of the ordinary for a woman to be out and about on her own, day or night.

One thing that seems ubiquitous is cheap tourist crap.  Every city has the same t-shirts, crappy clothing, key-chains, magnets, jewelry in some sort of kitchy stalls somewhere.  I heart (name your current city).

Well, hope you enjoyed those ramblings.  You can start looking forward to more when I come to a city near you!  Also, a big thank you to everyone who has made my journey safe and enjoyable thus far.

South Africa

Stop one on my trip home: South Africa.

I took the short flight from Tana to Johannesburg with my friend and fellow COS-ing PCV, Katherine.  The taxi breaking down multiple times on the way to the airport and the driver having to bribe some policemen somehow seemed appropriate.  And the rude check-in clerk at the airport plus the inexplicable baggage fees somehow managed to make leaving Madagascar a bit easier.  I really am going to miss the people (Malagasy, American, and otherwise), but that kind of annoying disfunctionality is not going to be something I miss.

I decided to spring for a safari while I was in South Africa.  As one of the other PCVs put it so well, it was time to go to Africa to see "all those animals I thought would be in Madagascar."  The safari was awesome.  I was pretty excited just to see the big comfy bed in my room and have a nice, hot shower, regardless of the animals.  But the safari didn't disappoint.  The only one of the "big 5" I didn't see was lions, but I saw a leopard, a rhino, a bunch of elephants (including babies!) and cape buffalo.  There were a ton of other animals too: various antelopes-kudu, impala, nyala, spring boc, water buck; hippos, crocodiles, birds: crested franklins, lilac breasted rollers (beautiful with 27 different colors to their plumage!), and more; giraffe, zebra, gnu (aka wildebeest), black-backed jackals, wild dogs (really lucky--only 400 left in the world!), hyena, leopard tortoise, baboons...  I also met some other travellers on the safari which was nice.  It was nice to relate to those who had been travelling and I also got a chance to practice how I'll respond to all the questions people will be asking once I get back to the U.S.  "So, did you get a chance to see the countryside?"  Um...

I also had one day to spend in Johannesburg, so I took a train in, saw the Apartheid Museum, and took an open bus tour.  Jo-burg has a lot of history I didn't know about, so it was interesting to learn some.  The Apartheid Museum was powerful and disturbing.

All in all, South Africa has been an excellent vacation but I think it's also been an excellent first-step towards my re-entry to American life.  Roads with painted lanes, stop lights, new cars, clean running water, diverse people... all things that have been amazing and awesome to experience again.

I'm in the Abu Dhabi airport making my way onward; next stop Singapore.  I'll catch up with all of you later.

Here's the photographic proof I was there.

This giraffe was having lunch right behind the lodge.

Blyde River Canyon.  Stunning.

Nyalas joining us for breakfast.

Rhino

Lilac Breasted Roller.
Made me wish I had a nicer camera to do its beauty justice.

Samitsara!

It's official, I'm an RPCV (returned PCV, though not quite returned to the USA just yet).  That's right, I survived two years in rural Madagascar.  I'm not really ready to sum it all up for you, not sure if I'll really ever be able to.  Over the past two years I feel like I've felt every possible emotion as strongly as it could be felt.  Overjoyed, terrified, annoyed, ecstatic, frustrated, apathetic, afraid, excited, disconnected, overstimulated...  At our close-of-service conference, PC handed back our "aspiration statements" that we wrote just before coming to Madagascar.  What I got out of my PC experience wasn't at all what I anticipated going in.  But even without a lot of time to reflect on the experience, I know that I have gotten so much out of my PC service.  So to all of you out there who have had some part in my service, whether you wrote, followed the blog, visited, worked with me, sent good vibes, or whatever, thanks so much for making it great!

Today I flew to South Africa to begin my journey home.  I'll be here looking for the mainland Africa stuff that Madagascar's missing (lions and tigers and bears, oh my!), then headed off to Singapore/Thailand area for around 3 weeks.  If you have any tips on places I should stop in Asia, please let me know!  I'll try to keep you all updated and hope to see some of you back in the USA.

So for now, Samitsara Madagasikara, andro hafa koa!

Madagascar, the cliff notes version.

Well I am in Tana this week to finish up my job as a Peace Corps volunteer.  I'm running around doing business-like things such as closing my bank account and typing up documents to talk about my work as a PCV--in other words the type of errands/work that I pretty much haven't done in the last two years.  It's strange, but I guess it's just step one in returning to my life in America.

I know it's been a while since I had a chance to post anything substantial on here.  The past few months I have felt a little like a crazy person running around the village trying to finish up work, say good-bye, and prepare Ambohimanarina for what's to come.  I found out at the last minute that I am being replaced by a new PCV, so I'm excited for all of them to have the opportunity to continue working with PC to learn new things and improve life in the village.

Finishing up I've had a rush of people trying to build cookstoves before I left (ironic to me since they learned to build the stoves while working beside me and thus should be fully capable of building them without me).  The women's artisans association I work with had a small party where we made a huge tub of pasta and they finally got their act together to start selling items at the Marojejy kiosk.  I really hope that they will be able to create a functional business out of the operation.  I noticed huge gains in the English-speaking skills of my two most dedicated students; it was definitely nice to see results even from one of my least favorite activities I've done here.

My work with my counterpart, Ratsirison, has been as somewhat of an advisor.  I found out that Ratsirison's nickname in town is raha be plan, basically he's the guy with all the plans.  Ratsirison has about 20 good ideas that he wants to carry out and just not enough time or focus to finish one of them.  I've tried to encourage him to focus on just one or two projects and bring them to completion; hopefully he'll take that advice to heart in the future.  Ratsirison and I went to Anjialava, a town in the forest "near" Ambohimanarina.  It took us a 1 hour bike/3 hour hike up some really steep mountains to get there.  On the way I saw some really depressing examples of tetiky or slash and burn agriculture.  Most of the stuff you see from the road is slash and burn of secondary forest, but this was the destruction of primary forest.  The town of Anjialava was very nice but we really didn't have time to hang around long before we headed home.  I got to see the primary forest that Ratsirison hopes to get permission to protect in the future which was interesting and there is the potential for a lot of environmental work to be done in Anjialava, unfortunately I didn't have the time to do it.  Mostly the trip was incredibly tiring and gave me a massive amount of scrapes on my arms and legs, but in the end it was a sight that I am glad to have seen before leaving Madagascar.

Saying good-bye to the villagers was very sad.  Ambohimanarina will always have a special place in my heart and I know that I have a second family waiting to host me there whenever I can return to visit.  I also said good-bye to many other PCVs.  It's been really incredible getting to know everyone--Malagasy, American, and otherwise--so if you are out there following along please keep in touch!

And now, for the highlights of my PC experience in photo form...

Day 1 in Ambohimanarina

Christmas Cuties

Earth Day 2012, Cookstove Demonstration

Rice Harvest

Drying Rice

Litchi Picking

Michael and Encoo

Little Visitors

Looking at Books

Focused Staring

Hair Braiding

Market Day

Home Sweet Home

Sewing Association

Sewing Association Party

Learning to Sew with Angeline

Vanilla Flowers

Sunset over Ambohimanarina and Marojejy

Drying Vanilla

Valencia and Only

Lokoho River

Slash and Burn

Mom and Meredith Brave Madagascar

Inside Marojejy National Park

Stormy Avenue of the Baobobs

Adventures with other PCVs in Sambava

John becomes Santa