Hello everybody, I thought since I am slacking so much on blogging I would give an update. I understand that most of my blogs are not very informative, but those of you who want to remain updated tend to write me letters of which I respond. Thank you for all the packages and letters of love, I appreciate them very much.
First bit is the yesterday I took the GRE in Banjul. I am trying to maintain some sense of a life after Peace Corps because eventually it will come. I want to be ready and since it is extremely difficult to get things done quickly while living here I thought one less thing to worry about. I went with several other volunteers and to my surprise there was one Gambian university student who took it as well. He was obviously intelligent with a background in Chemistry, but it still got me thinking about the American education system versus that here in the Gambia.
Granted, my Wolof is not great at all and there are many times everyday when I can not truly express what I want to with my words, or I have to say I feel tired instead of stressed, but overall I am extremely thankful to speak English as my first language. Some of the questions on that test were words I did not know, some I simply did not remember and some I have never heard of before. I am personally thankful to have studied in the American school system where a 4 hour standardized test, although grueling is normal and expected. It is not the first one I have taken. However, for many education systems that rarely take tests and never 4 hours ones I felt a bit of sympathy for. For those Gambians that successfully go to university or graduate school in the U.S. congratulations. It brings with it so many more challenges that I now understand.
In other news on November 6th my group and I will have been in country for 1 year, which means we are almost 1/2 way done with our service. It is crazy to think about. Although on 120 degree days where the heat brings a haze to the air, time tended to drag on and some days seemed like weeks, there were also weeks that seemed like they flew by. Now in retrospect the first year seems to have gone by quickly. Even though it went is almost over I am extremely happy to be in my second year. For several reasons; I feel like now I have a better understanding about how the system works and the culture and little challenges will now become norms to me. I feel that even though my language is not great, I still have a base in which to communicate with people. I am mostly excited about work. I hope to launch into it and now that I know who my motivated counterparts are, I can hopefully compliment the work they are already doing well. This is all very idealistic, but none the less, it is exciting to realize that soon enough I will be counting down months.
Several things I am looking forward to: Tobaski, a huge Islamic holiday falls around my birthday so I hope to do something fun for that in November. In addition, we will have another all-volunteer conference in November where all volunteers get together to discuss work and life here. In December I hope to take a mini-vacation. I would really like to go to Mali so that would be fun to look forward to. I currently work with a Bambara from Mali who is a marabout (traditional healer), he is from Mali and always talks about its beauty.
Mostly I am just excited for the cool season which will be coming in November, cooler nights when I need a blanket and a jacket to keep warm. Nights where people light a fire to keep warm before dinner. Nights when I will see my breath as I try to bathe in the cool evening air.
I know this is not super informative and it seems impossible to give a really detailed description of my life lately. Just know I am thinking of every one of you and appreciate your continued interest in my work and life here. Happy Halloween!
