Never a Dull Moment

We have successfully completed 5 weeks of conversational English!  These are some of my students.  They are holding up their "certificates of participation."  It was a great learning experience and it opened the door for lots of new friendships!

I happened to grab my camera fast enough to snap a picture of a lemur doing gymnastics on our power lines!

Corinna and I attended a wedding dance with our friend, Ritta.  We got all dressed up in the island style and danced from side to side for over two hours.  I tried to throw in a few western moves, but one of the grandma's gave me "the look" and came over and taught me how to dance correctly...haha!

Meet Sally and her daughter, Rebecca...yes, I now have a child named after me...:) 

Congratulations to us!  Our banana tree "gave birth" as the locals say once the banana flower appears and then they congratulate us...haha!

Here are me and Corinna's cats.  The orange one is Ginger, he is a boy so I call him Gingerbread Man.  The white one is Zorro, he is quite rambunctious and lives up to his name.  They keep each other warm in their little cardboard box.

These are some of my friends during a village celebration.  My friend Ryan is carrying a pot of goat pieces on her head...:)

Here is a closer look at the goat...in case you were wondering :)

Not Just Another Day

English classes have begun!  I have never heard the ABC's sung so enthusiastically...by adults! :)  It is so fun and still slightly odd to hear people throughout the village greeting each other with a "Hello Good Morning!  How are you?" 

A game of cat and rat...what an experience...what a story!  So, I live in a mud walled house and apparently this little rat had built some passageways in the walls...he no longer travels those passageways...he got a shoe to the head and became the cat's dinner...

I love this picture!  We have lots of kids in and out of the house...little Dwy left her footprint on our welcome mat :)

I have lots of little friends in the village and they all love to get their picture taken.  Meet Ruthie :)  She is a little stinker :)  Think of Ruthie and the other village kids when you encounter the little stinkers in your lives

An open-air kitchen is actually really nice, especially when there is a slight breeze.  Lots of good conversations take place in the kitchens of the village mostly because that is where the majority of women spend their time.  This is one of my friend's kitchens...it comes complete with chickens :)  Think of the women here as you cook in your kitchens.

The staples of life here:  A jeri can, which is good for hauling water, storing water, and it functions as an extra seat another staple is the homemade basket full of green cooking bananas

The ingredients I use to make my morning mocha...it's not Starbucks, but it gives a great illusion...haha!

Our one banana tree has raised up shoots and has become encircled by several other banana trees...kind of creates a cool picture of our purpose complete with the "sun" shining through :)

Never has my wardrobe been so colorful :)

Replaying Memories

Thanks for the new headphones Mom and Dad!  They are amazing and they are purple!  :) They make my 2 hour chore of doing laundry so much more enticing :) 

Loved the pictures of Abby's baby shower and the pictures of the kiddos and our last day together in Omaha...they made me cry.  The package came on a day when our Father knew I needed something from home :)  I loved everything else as well :)  Thanks Mom and Dad! 

Beth!  Thank you!  Corinna has already beaten me several times at Monopoly Deal, but one of these days I will prevail...especially since we've been playing it every night since it came :)  I love the movie!  And the can opener made my day!  We can now open cans! Whoohoo! :)

Corinna made a cake in this weird looking bunt cake pan that you can use while cooking over a kerosene stove!  So exciting!  We cooked a cake in our backyard over a fire :)

I had the opportunity to travel to a neighboring island...they had ice cream there!  So, we ate a lot of it!  P.S. Magnum bars are quite possibly the best ice cream bars in the world :) 

This is a bracelet that Ashley Stone made me and gave me prior to leaving the states.  The bracelet was made of three different colors and it was Ashley and Abby Taylors reminder to me that they were praying for me.  It's still mostly intact after 6 months...however, Stoner, you're going to have to send me a replacement soon :)  Thanks for your prayers!

Meet the Wildlife :)

Meet the snail...these are everywhere, but they especially love liquid...they don't really do anything and the only time they become a problem is when you squish/crush one at night :)

Next we have the hedgehog.  This little bundle of energy is about to become dinner :)  They consider it a delicacy...see an earlier post to view what he looks like after he's been cooked :)

Oh, the spiders...sometimes I feel like the insects here where the inspiration for Star Troopers...I think that was the name of the movie with massive insects.  Anyway, this one is in my room...he didn't stay long :)

Here is a praying mantice (I don't know if I spelled that right)   They seem harmless, but they are huge.

This is the live-in gecko that Corinna named Gimpy :)  Because  of his bugged out eye... :)

This is a family of chickens who live next door.  They camp out in the kitchen most of the day begging food...their begging makes up for the lack of dogs :)

Last, but certainly not least, we have the fruit bat.  These lovely creatures are fascinating to watch, but they make the worse screeching sound in the breadfruit tree branches above our house.  The fascination has turned to irritation :)

Island Cuisine

I thought it was time to show you some of the local cuisine...some is strictly original, but some has been brought over from the home country :)  Bon a-petite!

Before I partook of this fried fish, I thought I'd have a conversation with him first...only because he was staring at me awkwardly... :)

MAC&CHEESE!!!  Yes, it is possible!  I had to tweak my homemade mac&cheese recipe, but it works and it's pretty good if I do say so myself :)  It comes with a side of toasted, buttered french bread

Say "Hello" to fried friapa, aka breadfruit.  This fried actually does taste like french fries and somedays it tastes even better...who knew?!  You can also roast this in the fire or boil it.  Add a little of the local hot sauce and it is not bad :)

This is mohogo...it is actually the root of the mataba plant.  If you close your eyes real tight and take a bite of one of these fried and smothered in ketchup, you may be able to fool yourself into thinking it's a french fry...it only works somedays :)

This is mataba...think pounded spinach leaves cooked in coconut milk...it comes with a side of rice and some Nescafe coffee :)  For the record, I actually love mataba especially when someone else makes it for me....it's a long, long process

Life, as I now know it :)

Ocean view

The rainy season is here...Corinna is putting her umbrella to use in an attempt not to get wet while washing her hands :)

Me and Dwy, our little neighbor girl...she is learning to talk a lot more and most recently she comes over early in the morning and sits on our bench and sings...she is adorable!

My room...fan and mosquito net included :)

This is the sitting room...I'd call it a livingroom, but we have a hard enough time sitting many people in it let alone letting people live in here :)

This is my kitchen...it is nicely ventilated :)

These are some of my neighbors :)  They like to come over and sit on the bench and visit :)

Oh Africa

So here hedgehog is a delicacy...this lovely leg was brought to me...I graciously told my friend she could have it under the condition I could take a picture of it...she readily agreed! :)

This is my neighbor/landlord/friend's kitchen :)  They were cooking for cultural celebration.  They make a ton of food and everyone gets together to share the meal.  I thought this picture adequately captured the fact that there are always animals in the kitchen...especially near the food :)  The cat  on the far right is mine...his name is Zorro...haha!

Corinna, my housemate, with two of our neighbor friends