It was a beautiful Saturday here in the West Province of Cameroon. One friend of the French came to visit from Douala. Unlike the rest of us, he enjoys the luxury of an expat life and therefore rolling in town with an Isuzu SUV and a driver. Four French, one …
I don’t know anyone who has running water in my village. Maybe the mansion near my house does, but most do not. During the development meeting last week, the director of the primary school addressed concern with access to drinking water. Currently, there are three great metal barrels in front …
Recently, I’ve came across different projects that require funding. While there are thousands of NGOs and foundations out there waiting to give out money, the process can take forever. Instead, I would like your support. $5 for you is a Starbucks latte, and if 10 people give up one Starbucks …
Time goes by quickly now that I am keeping busy with teaching, spending some time at the bank and continually looking for new work opportunities in the village. Teaching continues to be interesting and challenging. How do I teach these kids to follow the curriculum given to me when they …
Today, I received my first traditional ovation from the villagers. These past two days, I’ve been attending a development meeting in my cartier (neighborhood). My village is made up of 10 separate neighborhoods and the meeting I participated last Friday was the neighborhood in the center of town, separate from …
Before the summer of 2005, I spent 5 years in St. Charles, Missouri. The biggest trips I took were family road trips to Colorado, Chicago and Nashville. Oh, and a week in New York City with the high school choir (we did sing in Carnegie Hall!). The summer of 2005 …
The past few entries have indeed been a crazy mood swing. Thank you for your kind words and thoughts from around the globe. Sometimes, when things get rough, the loneliness is so severe that it prevents me from feeling and remembering the love and thoughts from far away. Things are …
Last night marked one of the worst nights of my Peace Corps service yet. The day started with a group of us going to some lake outside of Bafoussam for picnic. It was the Frenchies, me, Kate and a few Cameroonians. Picnic, sounds idyllic, n’est-ce pas? I thought so, too. …
The events that took place today made my existential crisis of yesterday horribly unnecessary. However, those crises are part of this whole experience. The ability to endure those hard times, having faith the better days will come, is what helps one get through these two years. I met the agro …
What do you do when you are having a bad day? Some go out partying, drink their souls away. Some sits at home with a tub of ice cream and watches sappy movies all day. Me? I came home and watched an hour and 15 minutes of MIT lecture that …