Another PC milestone...

I’m in Sambava to welcome two new environment volunteers to my corner of Madagascar.  Having more Americans in the area is exciting.  Ultimately, it means that I’ve been a PCV for a year now.  Thursday will officially mark my one year anniversary in Ambohimanarina.

What does one year of Peace Corps service mean?  It means halfway to the end.  It means 12 months of living in the midst of a foreign culture.  Hundreds of cups of rice and dozens of new foods.A new language.Many new friends and family members.

I also now can enter my second year with some sense of what to expect.  I already know the name of that strange fruit in the market.  On vingt-six I’ll be ready with my new outfit and Malagasy flag hanging in front of my house.  I’ve gotten used to shopping in the market.  The kids have gotten used to visiting to play with my HotWheels.

My life here is one where a neighbor girl runs down the hill with a grapefruit peel hat, a sight as absurd as it is hilarious.  I stop on my walk to take a video of a chameleon slowly crossing the deserted road.  It’s normal to have a conversation about the chicken standing nearby—how it’s beg enough to eat, how you would cook it.  Somehow I don’t think I’ll every quite know what’s coming next.

Fety Be

As a PCV, I’m finding out that there are a lot of holidays out there that I’ve never celebrated before.  A while ago I heard on VOA that I missed out on peanut butter and jelly sandwich day.  Sad, because I’d probably appreciate the holiday more than many of you out there, but not a tragedy since I probably would have needed to bake the bread myself.  The plethora of new holidays is a product of living in a new culture with different traditions and with a habit of extending most holidays well beyond their typical American length (think New Years in March).  I’m also sure my altered lifestyle opens to door to formerly irrelevant holidays.  “Remember how clean you used to be?  International Take a Shower Day is next Friday.”  “Don’t forget Monday is Hug a Subsistence Farmer Day.”  “Celebrate your low latitude on Tropical Fruit Tuesday!”

All jokes aside, I looked back at my calendar for April and it seems like the month was one long holiday.  We started off with a celebration of International Women’s Day.  The regional and commune-level celebrations came first, so in true Malagasy style the village women came together about a month after the real holiday on March 8.  The women took the opportunity to parade through the village in new matching outfits, sing, dance, and of course eat lots of rice and pork.

Next came Easter and Piknik, the Monday after Easter where people head out to the countryside to picnic.  Unlike most holidays where the village fills with people who are generally living and working in the forest, this oneleft the town eerily quiet.

The Sunday after Easter was the local FJKM church’s “fetynybatisse”—aka the one day a year to get your baby baptized.  I unknowingly headed to the service to watch over 100 baptisms and pray for 6 hours.  I’m pretty sure I’ve had enough religion for the rest of my PC service.

I followed up the next Sunday with a celebration I planned for Earth Day.  We discussed the holiday Earth Day, since it’s not one they usually honor here.  Then I taught cookstove building, we ate rice, and watched some environmental films in Malagasy.  A good way to wrap up the month of endless partying.

Me with my adopted women's group.

Our parade through the rain.

Teaching cookstove building on Earth Day.

Completed cookstove!  Big credit to all the villagers who participated without concern of dirtying their fancy outfits.

World Malaria Day

April 25 is World Malaria Day.

Malaria is the number one killer in Africa.

I haven't figured out what I'll be doing this month to raise awareness of malaria, but I'll keep you all updated.

Thanks Mom!

Special thanks to my mom and her friends for sending Hot Wheels. You can only imagine the reaction to toys in a village where almost half the population is 10 years old or younger and they think the best toys come from my trash pit (no lies). So, the gifts are much appreciated and my house has become even more popular with the kids.