au village no more
August 16, 2010
I’m currently on the road of my East Coast whirlwind tour and found a little time to update the progress of my reverse culture shock. I find that it didn’t take me long to ease right back into the modern life, though there are still moments that take me back to Cameroon. I returned straight to Saint Louis where my…
Read More780 Days of Service
August 2, 2010
I've been home only just a little over a week, and already, that life in Cameroon seems like a very long dream. It's surreal. The reverse culture shock has been interesting, but I am adapting quickly into the American way of life, albeit for a short period before I jet off to London for graduate school.
Read More
Reverse Culture Shock: America, the Land of Plenty
July 27, 2010
It’s hard to fathom that only 4 days ago, I was still in Cameroon. Despite how much I am trying to hold onto it, that life is quickly fading away into a surreal dream. I’m saddened and scared by that. Over the two years, that life in village has became my comfort zone, and for some reason, leaving that behind…
Read MoreOut of Africa: Initial Reverse Cultural Shock
July 24, 2010
Sitting at Philadelphia International airport waiting for my connecting flight to St. Louis and having a hard time believing that I am finally back in the USA, after 26 months. The layover in Brussels went smoothly. I parted ways with Laura who traveled with me from Yaoundé. We grabbed a Caramel Macchiato at Starbucks before boarding our respective flights. It…
Read More
Peace Corps Loves
July 23, 2010
In less than 3 hours, I'll be on my way to the airport and begin the long journey back to the U.S.A.! This is the moment that I've waited for for two years, and as strange and sureal as it is, I am ready to begin the next chapter of my life!
Read More
Last Day au village
July 13, 2010
I woke up after a restful sleep around 8am, without an alarm, of course, and put on my running shoes for one last jog down my favorite path. The crisp air made for a comfortable jog. I took noticed of each house that I ran by and took in each rolling hill that I passed. I will unlikely to have a regular running path this beautiful for years to come. I waved at villagers along the way that I often see; likely the last time I would see those faces again.
Read More
Passing On the Torch
July 12, 2010
Tomorrow is my last full day in the village. I am nervous and am not sure that I am ready to leave. Though I am realizing that perhaps one is never ready to leave a situation as this. I just simply gotta “pull the band-aid off” so to speak. So many emotions. It has been a wild ride. Try as…
Read MoreSounds of Cameroon
July 12, 2010
The great thing about having to uproot your life every few years is that you take things for granted less, and the departure always make you take notice on insignificant details of daily life. The other day, my fellow PCVs were discussing how we wish we can record the sounds of this country. Here are some of mine: • the…
Read More
Send Off
July 12, 2010
Few weeks ago, Antoine, a driver for the Peace Corps who happens to be the chief of my neighborhood threw me a going-away party at his house. True to Cameroonian form, I was unaware of the time and whether I was suppose to invite people myself until the day before the event. I was running all around town on that…
Read More
Cameroon: The Extreme North
July 12, 2010
I’m in the process of making a slide show with pictures from my two years in Cameroon. I realized I had never written about my trip to the Extreme North. While looking at these pictures, I was amazed at how surreal that trip now feels. It was nearly a year and a half ago, and the vast differences between the…
Read More