Top Ten Signs I'm in the Peace Corps

10. I don't remember what real milk tastes like. When I'm feeling lavish and extravagant, I have a glass of cold powdered milk for dessert.

9. Sometimes I find bugs in my pasta. I consider them for a moment, then decide its bonus protein and eat the pasta anyway.

8. For the first time in my life, I willingly wake up early and I'm exhausted by 9 p.m.

7. I have maningue trouble speaking pure English without the odd Portuguese word sneakily creeping into my sentences.

6. I regularly sit on my bamboo mat, wearing my handmade friendship bracelets, eating soy-based foods and playing my acoustic guitar. What a hippie.

5. Most of my friends are ninth graders.

4. Anything under 80 degrees is cool (hoodie weather). Under 70 is downright cold. (Hoodie, sweats, scarf and blanket.)

3. I show up for 8 o'clock meetings at 9:30 (and am still the first one there.)

2. On the rare occasion I have the opportunity to shower, I forget what order to do things in because I'm too distracted by the magical water falling from the ceiling.

1. When I wake up in the morning, I can't wait to see what's going to happen. I look forward to going to work every single day.

Photos of Home and School

Way back when I first moved in, I posted photographs of my new house. Well, it's been almost 5 months since then, and a lot has changed. I figured it's about time for an update! Plus, you've never seen my school. Let's start there.
 

This is my school. It's relatively new and, like most of the concrete buildings in my town, was built by the local Catholic church. You can't tell from this picture, but the school is basically a big U shape.

 

The quad. Isn't my school pretty? The students all take turns coming in in the mornings or after school to weed or water plants, clean cobwebs, and sweep classrooms. All together, they keep the school looking presentable and clean.

(1.) The hallway with the Director's office and 8th grade classrooms. (2.) Our official sign and flag. (3.) The covered walkway that connects the two prongs of the U-shape -- this is where professors hang out in between classes.

An average classroom. This was taken after school, which is why all the chairs are gone, but usually, yes, they have chairs. Almost every student has their own desk, too, which is unusual for rural schools like this one.

Future site of my Giant World Map. I'll be working with the Geography and Art teachers, as well as a bunch of students, to paint a HUGE world map on this wall. It faces the road, so the whole community can see it too. It's surprising how many kids (and adults) can't even point to Africa on a map.

My walk home. I step out of this dark hallway (left) onto a path (right) and you can see my house from the school.

Our living area. Notice all the beautiful new furniture since my last photos -- the shelves, sofa, coffee table, extra mattress... it's like people actually LIVE here now!

(1.) Decor in my bedroom. (2.) My bed. (3.) My guitar and my favorite tote bag. I explained to my students what "So many books, so little time" meant and they said "Teacher, that is most definitely your bag."

The Catholic church, and social hub of the town.

My neighbor, Páscoa. Also, probably my closest friend in Mavudzi-Ponte. Pictured here with her baby, Gelsia, who cries every time I walk into the room. Páscoa is going to work with me on Books for Africa, a program to stimulate early grade reading. She's an elementary school teacher.

My neighbors/students/friends -- Norai and Filomena. They both live in the same complex as me. When I went to go take photographs, they said "Teacher, take one of us, too!" They love photos. These two tend to sleep in my class, which is annoying, but I'm fond of them anyway. They're slowly trying to teach me Nyungwe.

There you have it. This is where I live and work!

I'll leave you with this gorgeous photo of the landscape in my town.

Pretty mountains!

Dia dos Trabalhadores (May Day)

Mozambique is one of the many countries of the world to celebrate International Workers' Day on May 1st-- not surprising, given Mozambique's history with communism. Work and school were both canceled for the day and the whole town set about preparing for a big celebration. Chickens were slaughtered, dirt was swept, and children were taught new songs.

The whole town gathers at the start of the day.

Cultural groups and dignitaries from our neighboring town, Kaunda, were invited as well. I was particularly happy about this because it meant I got to spend the day with Szasha. We had matching Dia do Trabalhador capulanas to wear. There's always a capulana for public holidays, and as a teacher I'm expected to have one.

Szasha and I match!

The schedule was set to start at 8 a.m., but this being Mozambique we started around 10:30. There were lots of speeches, cultural exhibitions, and student groups.

(1.) Human pyramid from Kaunda's gymnastics club. (2.) My students hold banners. (3.) Giant cow costume. More on that later.

It was a really enjoyable day. Having spent most of yesterday sequestered in my room, feeling down, it was nice to get out of the house and cheer up. Particularly fun was getting to hang out with my students outside the classroom -- they were all thrilled that I had my camera, and begged me to take lots of pictures of them.

(1.) Two of my neighbors -- they'll be in my class next year. (2.) Our student Vice President. (3.) Some of my ninth graders and a random grumpy lady behind them.

By far, though, the most interesting part of the day was the traditional dancers that came from Szasha's town. Although our towns are separated by only 20 km, they are populated by slightly different ethnic groups -- so seeing Nyau, a traditional dance of the Chewa/Nyanja people that live in Szasha's town, was a real treat.

Nyau is a secret male society. When they run around town, women and children are supposed to run from them in fear. The dancers wear large, elaborate masks and costumes made of wood and feathers and dance a very high-energy, spastic sort of dance that throws up clouds of dust from their fast-moving feet. Traditional Nyau dance is an ancient piece of African cultural heritage meant to communicate with the deceased and is recognized as one of the world's Masterpieces of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.

Nyau dancing.

Once the Nyau dancers disappeared back into the bush that they had magically appeared from, the first part of the celebration was over. We took a break to eat lunch -- delicious grilled chicken, french fries, and salad, prepared by my wonderful roommate, Redi, with delicious doce de coco prepared by the nuns for dessert. I definitely ate too much, and my stomach was feeling very Post-Thanksgiving. Worth it.

After a short break, it was time for the football game. I use the term football here to mean the game that the whole world calls football but Americans for some reason insist on calling soccer. Weirdos.

A team bussed in from Tete City to play Mavudzi-Ponte, and everyone gathered at the football field to watch. We were a little too worn-out to cheer, but we sat and watched our team lose nonetheless.

(1.) Spectators cheer on the Mavudzi-Ponte team. (2.) A little girl plays on the sidelines. (3.) My team, the ones in red, get their butts kicked.

I was having a great time, but I was so worn out by the end of the day that I snuck off home before the game ended. I still had some lesson planning to do, and wanted to wash the dishes before Redi got home. Nevertheless, it was a super fun day, and I can't wait until the next public holiday. By the end of the day, I probably looked as tired as this super cute baby:

Time for beddie-bye, as Rachel says.