At Least I Still Have Rainwater… For Now

A friend mentioned that I haven’t written anything in a month. I’m aware of this, but as I told my friend, I don’t (well didn’t) have anything new to write about. Well that all changed yesterday evening. I came home after work to find buckets and bowls lined up outside, in an area where rain rolls the strongest off the tin roof. I didn’t think anything of it, other than my host family was using the heavy rainfall as an opportunity to collect rainwater. A few hours later, my host sister informed me that the rain broke the water pipe. These last couple of days the rain has been strong, but I didn’t think it was strong enough to break water pipes… Apparently so. Anyway, my host sister claims that the pipe will be fixed today, which is Saturday here. Let me tell you something about Samoa. No disrespect to the Samoan culture but Fridays in this country are very laid-back and relaxed, almost serving as a stepping stone to the weekend. That’s how the schools are anyway. So I’m not hopeful that the water pipe will be fixed on a Saturday. And Sundays are off limits because that’s the Lord’s Day, reserved for church, eating, sleeping, and more church. So I anticipate Monday being the earliest I’ll have running water.

I’d be lying if I said that I was 100% fine after hearing this news. I wasn’t, in fact it put me in a sour mood. Before anyone gets critical, yes, I’m aware that this is what I signed up for when I joined the Peace Corps. I have it better than I ever imagined and better than a lot of PCVs worldwide. So that was the thing I kept reminding myself as I thought about this mini tragedy. But it’s difficult having running water one moment, and being nearly waterless the next. The thoughts that ran through my head were: “I knew I should’ve washed my hair yesterday,” “It’s going to be a nightmare getting shampoo out of my hair from now on (because my hair is really long and thick),” “I wish I would’ve filled up my water filter,” “Well looks like my laundry will be sacrificed for a while,” and “F*** this sh**.”

When I lived in Savai’i I purposely took bucket baths; they were lovely because I used to boil water. I had my own house, with indoor facilities so this was a simple thing to do. Now I share outdoor facilities, so boiling water for a bucket bath would be too much of a big deal and nearly impossible since our buckets are limited. Anyway, after my workout last night I had a bucket bath. It was around 8 pm, so it was already dark and somewhat cold. I’ve taken a few cold water bucket baths since I’ve been in this country, and this is how they feel every time: like I’m purposely torturing myself because the water is freezing cold. For some reason bucket baths feel 10x worse than standing under a cold water pipe. Perhaps it’s the notion that the best thing to do is just jump into a pool, allowing your body to feel the cold at once, so it can adapt quicker, as opposed to exposing your body to the cold water a little bit at a time, which always makes the water feel colder than it is. My bucket bath lasted just a few minutes; I got out as fast as possible. I think my host family knew that I was upset because they asked me how I was doing. It’s not their fault, and I’m not acting like it is either. It’s just that these last 6 weeks since I’ve been back from America have been a rollercoaster of emotions. It all boils down to the fact that I’m lonely here, which is interesting because people surround me all day. I just really miss my family, friends, America, and I’m ready to get the ball rolling with graduate school and other aspects of my personal life. So the loneliness on top of being without running water is what caused me to think the curse words mentioned above. But like I’ve mentioned in my previous blog post, my Peace Corps service will be over at the end of the year. While it seems like an eternity away, it really isn’t, and I know my time will come to an end faster than I anticipate. So I’m going to suck it up and embrace this experience. Because come on, when else in my life will I ever get to take cold water bucket baths, on a tiny island, located in the South Pacific? Probably never again.

Eventually the rain will stop, which means that the rainwater will come to an end. There’s a river located in the neighboring village, about a 15-minute walk. I guess that’s where the water fetching headquarters will be. Fifteen minutes is very close, but I anticipate it being a struggle when I’m carrying a bucket full of water. I’m not going to think about that now though, and will leave the worry for when the time comes.

I must add, when I was feeling sorry for myself, as described above, I thought back to my Mid-Service Conference, which was held at the end of January. The conference began with each member of my group sharing a little bit about our first year in Samoa. I shared all the hardships I’ve faced, which everyone was aware of, but I acknowledged them anyway because I haven’t been scared away; they’ve made me into a stronger person. If I can survive my first year of service, which was full of a lot of uncertainty, heartbreak, change, and tears, then there’s no reason why I can’t survive anything else thrown my way.

Collecting rain water

My bath. Also, this is the bucket used to wash laundry.

Well, Folks, I’m Back in Samoa

I was in America for a total of 5 weeks, and boy did time fly by! I ate just about every type of food I wanted/craved/dreamt about for over a year. I saw a lot of family (including a cousin I hadn’t seen in years) and a lot of friends. I even saw a friend I had met in Samoa! He was driving through New Mexico, and wrote me on Facebook asking if I was free to meet up. We met in downtown Santa Fe, playing tourist as I showed him around my city. I never thought I’d see him again, or most of the people I’ve met in Samoa. What a small world, indeed!

Going home for the holidays was the right decision. You may be wondering: What was so special about going home? Well, I got to meet my nephew for the first time. Also, I got to have a real conversation with my niece (our first real conversation), who’s my goddaughter. She was 2 years old when I left for Samoa, and was just learning to talk. Now she’s 3 years old and has quite the personality. It warmed my heart when she recognized me, calling out my name when I surprised my sisters and brothers-in-law. Special thanks to my family for not letting her forget about me. While it would’ve been nice to go to New Zealand for Christmas, or really go to Fiji, family is important to me, and I cherish the time I have with them, so anytime I have the means and funds to go home, I will. I have my entire life to travel, but holidays with family are precious and priceless.

How my trip was like:

*I drove for the first time in over a year! Granted I didn’t drive until week 3 at home, but I did it, and it was manual transmission, too! I appreciated having the freedom to come and go as I please… what a beautiful thing!

*I made it a point to take ava to America. I was a little scared it wouldn’t make customs because the packaging looks like drugs. But it made it through! If you don’t know what ava is, it’s made from a root plant, causing the mouth to go numb and other intoxicating effects, depending on how strong the mixture is. Google it (you’ll probably have more luck Googling “kava”). In a future blog post, I’ll write more about it. Anyway, I made the first batch with my best friends. I’ve drunk ava plenty of times in Samoa, but boy did I finally experience the effects it. It was intoxicating, to say the least. My best friend Justin really enjoyed it, calling it “the best dirt water he’s ever drank.” Yes, it really tastes like dirt water. The following night I made a batch for my family. My niece being a curious 3-year old wanted to partake in the ava making, so she helped me mix it. The rest of my family had a couple of drinks each. They didn’t like the taste (who does?) but were troopers regardless. And, they felt the numbness in the mouth almost instantaneously. I guess I’m a good ava-maker, after all!

The looks on my sisters' faces says it all! Haha

Well these are supposed to go on the end, but blogger acting up. Update soon

  

*Unfortunately my MacBook died. If it could’ve died at anytime during my service, it picked the perfect time to call it quits because I was in America and had access to an Apple Store. If it broke while in Samoa, it would be a lost cause. I tried troubleshooting it on my own but had no luck. The wonderful techs at Apple were able to revive it. But there was a cost. There’s always a cost, right? I wasn’t charged a fee, but was hit with a huge loss, a loss that no amount of money could solve. My internal hard drive was wiped out, resulting in 65GB worth of photos (about 20,000. That’s right 20,000) to erase. Yep, that was a huge kick in the gut. This wasn’t the first time a laptop have failed me. One would think I’ve learned my lesson. The funny thing is, “backup MacBook on external hard drive” was written on my “Things to do in America” list. I just never got to it. If you’re not familiar with Mac products, they have an awesome app called Time Machine. If you have an external hard drive, Time Machine creates carbon copies of your operating system. Yes, I have an external hard drive that’s backed up on Time Machine. A few weeks before I left to America, I was cleaning out my external hard drive. I saw how much room Time Machine was taking up, so had the “smart” idea to manually delete backups. Bad idea. If you’re a Time Machine user, NEVER DO THIS! I accidently (I say accidently, but the truth is, I had no idea what I was doing. Whoops!) deleted the main backup, which would’ve been extremely handy and had all my photos when my MacBook died weeks later. The good news is, my MacBook is up and running again. I was told that I needed a new internal hard drive. So I bought one that has quite a bit of memory, and installed it myself, saving me a couple hundred bucks. Thanks, YouTube for the installation tutorial! Before I left home, I backed up my operating system, and backed up my back up on an extra hard drive that’s in America. I think I’ve finally learned my lesson! Oh and I didn’t lose every file. Time Machine was able to revive some files, so it wasn’t a total loss. Plus I have tons of photos on Facebook.

*I created priceless memories. Yes I did. Like I wrote above, going home was the right decision. I made it home in time to celebrate my dad’s and aunt’s birthdays (they’re twins), and I got to spend the holidays with my family, which was great because last holiday season was around the time I moved to Samoa and I was quite depressed to be so far from family during that time. This holiday season I got to participate in my family’s awesome Christmas tradition of opening up our gifts on Christmas Eve, which is technically Christmas morning (we don’t give Santa Claus a chance to drop off gifts. Sorry, Santa!). I loved this moment, and seeing the excitement on my niece’s face was priceless!

Santa Fe has an awesome Christmas Eve tradition called the Farolito Walk. Farolitio is a Spanish word for “paper latern.” Every Christmas Eve farolitos line up Canyon Road, a famous art gallery street in downtown Santa Fe. My family and I participated in the farolito walk while I was home. This definitely put me in the Christmas spirit, but boy was it FREEZING! I also spent some time seeing my aunts and cousins, eating delicious food and watching Spurs basketball and the NFL Playoffs (some of my favorite things).

If I wasn’t with my family, then I was out with my friends. I spent a lot of time with my two best friends Justin and Andrea. It was so good to be reunited with them. Our time consisted of eating, dancing, and laughing. Also, we had a great New Year’s Eve together. It’s comforting to know that I have a great group of friends I can rely on.

New Year's Eve

Final dinner and night with them.

I got to see a close friend Jimmy. I hadn’t seen him since March 2012, which was right before he got deployed to Afghanistan. Jimmy and I have the kind of friendship that picks up right where it left off. It definitely didn’t feel like two years had passed since we last hung out.

So excited to see Jimmy!

All good things must come to an end. I’d be lying if I said that I was exited to come back to Samoa. The truth is I wanted to stay in America a little longer. I wanted more time with my family, eating my mother’s delicious food. I wanted to hear one more life-lesson lecture from my father. I wanted another chatting and laughing session with my sisters, while listening to music non-stop. I wanted to teach my niece one more “bad” thing that would get her mother upset with me. I wanted to see my nephew smile one last time. I wanted one more night out with friends, resulting in a late night food run, buying way too much food, and leaving a mess in the car. I wanted one more night on my amazingly comfortable bed and pillows. I wanted one more day of privacy. I wanted more time to just feel normal. The 5 weeks I was home passed like a blink of an eye.

It took about 19 hours to get to Samoa. As the plane was landing, I started feeling nauseous; anxiety definitely got the best of me. The moment I stepped out of the plane, I was hit with a wall of humidity. The smell brought me back to the first hotel I stayed at in Samoa during my group’s training. That memory made me feel worse because it brought back the way I was feeling during my first few days in Samoa, which is indescribable.

I’m fortunate to be surround by a great group of friends in Samoa. They spent the weekend with me, keeping me company. By the time the weekend was over, my spirits were lifted and I felt a lot better. So if any of you are reading this, THANK YOU! You guys mean the world to me. Staying in Apia the weekend I arrived was the right decision. If I would’ve gone back to my village right away, I think I would’ve been depressed and sad. Apia was a good stepping-stone back into the Samoan culture.

I arrived in the village and I got the feel like I never left. This is a good thing because it verifies that Samoa has become my second home. Samoa is where I’m meant to be right now. Yes, I was sad to come back here, but who wouldn’t be? I just came back from a long trip at home, seeing the people most important to me. But just because I wasn’t happy to be back in Samoa, didn’t mean that I wanted to leave Samoa/end my Peace Corps service early. Quitting was/is never option for me. If I left Samoa early, it would be quitting at the finish line. The finish line because I finish my Peace Corps service this year, either in November or December. I see the light at the end of the tunnel, people! So while I miss my family, friends, and America so much, I’m going to enjoy my time in Samoa (and all the sweating I’m doing. Damn you, humidity!) because it’s limited and will be over before I knew it. Then I can go back to my American life and freedom that I love so much.

In a couple of hours I’ll be headed to the village of Lalomanu for a Mid-Service Conference. It will be an informative week, at a beautiful beach resort. Peace Corps Samoa is such a spoiled post. Also, I begin my second year of teaching next week. Update soon!

Below you’ll find photos from the rest of my time home, and photos from my first weekend back in Samoa. Enjoy!

Family:

Farolito Walk on Canyon Road, Santa Fe, NM, USA

Um, yeah, I was freezing!

My family and I created these Christmas tree ornaments for our ornament exchange

This photo brings me so much happiness! My niece was so excited opening up her gifts.

I went to my niece's dance class

At my sister's first game. Go Bek!

I love this photo. My nephew is the happiest baby!

At the airport. I love my niece and nephew so much!

Goodbye to my family :(

Watching Spurs basketball, while watching the NFL Playoffs. God Bless, America!

 

I’m in America for the Holidays, Surprise!

I purchased my flight to America in August, which was the day I found out I get to stay in Samoa. Since October I’ve been writing a continuous blog post, leading up to my big trip home. I told everyone that I was going to Fiji for Christmas, so the blog post talks about my surprise. It’s quite long, so as soon as I edit it, I’ll post it on here.

I left Samoa on Friday December 13th, at 5:25 pm. I was going through a personal matter, so the timing of the trip couldn't have been better; I was ready to leave the country for a while. My friend Dan and I shared a cab to the airport, meeting up with Kiri and Michelle (two PCVs in my group) who were on the same flight. Being at the airport was so surreal. On several occasions I imagined that moment, but when I was finally living it, it felt like a dream.

Off to America we go!

Fa soifua, Samoa! 

Because of the International Date Line, we arrived in Honolulu the night of Thursday December 12th. This meant that we experienced (and survived) TWO Friday the 13ths, in just a 48-hour time span. I don’t think many people can say that. It’s a good thing I’m not a superstitious person, otherwise I would’ve been nervous flying on these days.

After 14 months, I'm on American soil!

Kiri has a cousin named Aaron who’s in the Navy and is stationed in Hawaii. He was kind enough to pick the four of us up from the airport and take us to the hotel he booked for us. I was happy that we arrived in Honolulu around 11 pm because the roads were empty, so it was a good way to get used to being on a highway, in a large and I mean LARGE city. Kiri, Aaron, and I left together, to take Aaron to the Naval base. On the way back to the hotel, Kiri drove, while I navigated the GPS on her iPhone. When I lived in America, I owned an iPhone, but the last time I had my hands on one was 14 months ago, and it felt brand new to me. After about 20 minutes of feeling electronically-challenged, I got the hang of using the Maps app. During this time we got the idea that we wanted to go to Taco Bell. If you’re not familiar with Taco Bell, it’s a fast food chain, serving delicious Mexican dishes. I love Taco Bell. Frequently readers of this blog may recall me mentioning that I occasionally dream about food. Well, Taco Bell has made an appearance in my dreams. We drove around for over an hour, looking for an open Taco Bell at 1 am. They were all closed, so we settled for Jack in the Box instead. I ordered tacos and a vanilla milkshake. I can honestly say that at that moment, I experienced genuine happiness. Yes, it’s the little things in life.

Dan had an early flight the next morning, so he didn’t get to roam around Honolulu with Kiri, Michelle, and me. The three of us started our morning at Starbucks. I didn’t order anything, instead was thrilled that I was back in America, the land of free WiFi. I took advantage, using up my time sending messages to a couple of people. I limited my Facebook usage because I didn't want my location (Honolulu, HI, United States) to accidentally pop up in a message, ruining my surprise. 

Santa Claus in front of Starbucks! America!

Our first proper meal in America: MEXICAN FOOD!

Then we met up with a friend of Kiri’s who lives in Honolulu. The four of us ate lunch at a Mexican restaurant. I ordered my favorite Mexican dish: cheese enchiladas and we all drank margaritas. Our next stop was at the Naval base to pick up Aaron. He took us to a shopping mall, and let me tell you, I definitely experienced reverse culture shock there. I never thought it would be a problem for me, but it was. Boy, it was. The mall on the base is huge, with so many colors and options. My eyes didn’t know where to look. So I focused my attention on my phone, taking advantage of the free WiFi.

This was me in Honolulu!

We took Michelle to the airport, and then headed back to the Naval base. Kiri, Aaron, and I talked, listened to music, and watched music videos. Then we went to the bar, and met up with one of Aaron’s friends for a few hours. That night I got my Taco Bell! Hallelujah! Some people have asked me if I went to any beaches in Hawaii. The answer is no. I was in Honolulu for 23 hours, which is plenty of time to catch some sun, but the truth is, I live in paradise. Samoa is absolutely breathtaking, so going to a beach in Hawaii wasn’t appealing to me. I wanted to see a little bit of the big city, and that’s what I did. I realize that I sound so spoiled living in Samoa. And indeed, I am.

Our "welcome to civilization" drinks

The time came to go to the airport. My original flight to Phoenix was at 11:50 pm. I was able to get an earlier flight, leaving Honolulu at 11 pm. The moment I sat on my seat, I was sound asleep. I didn’t even make it past take off. Six hours later, I was in the mainland. I needed to catch another flight to Albuquerque, so I quickly lined up on the aisle, waiting to depart the plane. This is when I met a lady named Terri. Turns out she’s from Albuquerque and had the same connecting flight as me. I told her how I’m a PCV and am surprising my family and friends for the holidays. She asked me how I’m getting from Albuquerque to Santa Fe. I told her that I was using public transportation. After our meeting, I went into the bathroom to change into jeans and other “warm” clothes I had with me, which wasn’t much because I live in a tropical climate, so winter clothes are not necessary. I must add, when I got to Albuquerque, I put on my bright orange water shoes to keep my feet warm because I didn't take proper shoes to Samoa. Talk about a Beach Corps problem! 

About an hour later, I was in my home state. Seeing the New Mexico flag displayed in the airport was such an exciting feeling, and was another surreal moment for me. As I was waiting for my luggage, I ran into Terri. She told me how she had been thinking about me, and about the way I was going from Albuquerque to Santa Fe, and because of this, she felt it necessary to give me a ride to Santa Fe. She said that she called her husband Dave who was picking her up from the airport, and he agreed to drive me. This was such a blessing because like I’ve mentioned, Terri and Dave live in Albuquerque, so they were going out of their way to take me to my parent’s house, which is about a 50-minute highway drive, one-way.

I'm home!

During the ride, the three of us chatted about our lives and I told them a little bit about my time as a PCV in Samoa. I was really happy that I came across such great people. If my flight to Phoenix never changed, it’s likely that I wouldn’t have met Terri. It’s funny how life works out. Before we arrived at my parent’s house, we exchanged contact info. I’ll definitely be in touch with them in the future.

So now it’s time to talk about my big surprise! I arrived in front of my parent’s house at around 12:30 pm on Saturday December 14th. Dave had my video camera in hand, recording the encounter. Terri rang the doorbell, as I hid behind the gate. My father answered the door. Terri asked if my mother was home and told my father that she had a surprise for the two of them. My mother was busy arranging the living room area because I had set up a Skype date with my entire family for later that evening (It was my excuse to make sure they would all be home). I had told my mother that I wanted to be on Skype as I watched them decorate the Christmas tree. So she was preparing for that. A couple of minutes later, my father and mother came out, and Terri told them how she had a present for them. This is when I came into their view. It was a very happy, exciting, and emotional moment!

Moments after I surprised my parents!

The lovely couple who gave me a ride from Albuquerque to Santa Fe

The way I surprised my sisters, brother-in-laws, niece, and nephew was different. They arrived at my parent’s house at 5 pm. I was hiding in my parent’s bedroom closest, Skyping with them as originally planned. They thought I was in Samoa. It was awesome. I told them that I had arranged for their Christmas gift to be delivered at 5:15 pm, during our Skype date, so I could see them open it up. Then I told them, “Hold on one-second, I need to get my phone.” I left my computer, and that’s when I came into their view saying, "The Christmas gift is me!" Their reactions were priceless! 

Moments after I surprised the rest of my family!

Below you’ll find a video I put together of the surprise. I apologize for the video quality with my second surprise reveal. I didn’t realize my camera was out of focus, but the audio is still good, so you get the idea.

I surprised the rest of my family and friends on social media sites. On Facebook I posted:

"I’m going going, back back, to Santa Fe Santa Fe. Actually… I’M ALREADY HERE!!! Until January 16… Surprise, family and friends!

P.S., like my song reference? And—I must apologize to those I lied to. I wanted to keep this trip a surprise and needed to keep all my lies straight; Fiji seemed like a great place to pretend I was traveling to for the holidays."

On Instagram I posted a photo of my family and me, with this caption:

"Round trip airfare from Apia, Upolu, Samoa to Albuquerque, NM, USA: A pretty penny. Total travel time: 38 hours. Traveling halfway around the world to surprise family and friends for the holidays: priceless! I'll be in America until January 16. Hope to see you guys! #family #surprise #christmas #iloveamerica"

So now you know how I surprised the people most important to me.

I’m in America for a total of five weeks. You may be wondering how I’m spending my time. Over the past week, I’ve seen a lot of my best and close friends, and some family. I made it home in time to celebrate my dad and aunt's birthday! I’ll see more family on Christmas day. If you guessed eating is another way I’m passing time, then you’re absolutely right. I’ve indulged in New Mexican dishes, covered in green chile, along with other food that I don’t have access to in Samoa.

Yes, this is 100% true!

Going from 85-90 degrees F (29 to 32 C), with high humidity, to 15-35 degrees F (-9 to 1 C) is a bit of a shock, so if I’m not out with friends, then I’m almost guaranteed to be indoors, keeping warm while spending time with my family. I’ve been spending a ridiculous amount of time on the Internet. Having unlimited access to Internet is a beautiful thing. And of course, I’ve been spending time on Netflix. Did I mention eating? I feel bad about eating so much, while being so inactive, so as soon as I upload this post, my P90X workout sessions will continue, for the rest of the time I’m home. I’ve yet to go to another shopping mall or grocery store. My one experience in Honolulu was enough for me. Plus, all my Christmas shopping is done, so it’s pointless to partake in the last minute shopping madness. Maybe I’ll face the retail world in a couple of weeks. Maybe not.

Manuia Kirisimasi ma le Tausaga Fou! (Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!)

Below you’ll find photos with some of my friends from home. Enjoy!

My first drink in the mainland!

I have a great group of friends!

Ugly Christmas Sweater Party 2013

Village Life Update

It has been a while since I’ve updated on my life. Right now I’m in Apia, at a hotel room. Yes, I’m bored so I figure it’s the perfect time to catch you all up.

Halloween: A lot of people have asked me if Halloween is celebrated in Samoa. People in their 20s and 30s celebrate the holiday, by dressing in costume. Children don’t trick-or-treat here. Halloween in Samoa was celebrated on actual Halloween. It’s different than in America, where Halloween is celebrated two weekends in October (if Halloween doesn’t fall on a Fri-Sun). My group and I celebrated Halloween on November 2. We were the only ones dressed in costume, which made it that much better!

I'm not Batwoman. I'm Batman's Island Assistant... there's a difference!

I’m sick: Again! It seems like these last couple of months, I’ve been in and out of Apia to see the Peace Corps nurse and local doctors. What’s wrong this time? I’m recovering from fish poisoning. In an email sent from Peace Corps staff in September, we were given information on this. I’ll copy a portion of the email below.

Ciguatera alert - There have been a number of recent cases of Ciguatera (fish poisoning) in Samoa lately.

About Ciguatera (from Medscape): Ciguatera poisoning is caused by consumption of reef fish contaminated with ciguatoxin, This toxin increases at certain times of the year and contaminate certain algae associated with coral reef systems. This accumulates up the food chain from small herbivorous fish to larger carnivorous fish, such as barracuda and grouper. Contaminated fish have no specific odor, color, or taste, making identification of potential contamination extremely difficult.

Avoid eating the small red reef fish (snapper), which seem to be the main sources of ciguatera poisoning in Samoa.

Since I’ve received this email, I’ve avoided eating red reef fish. During Friday’s lunch at school we were given fish, taro, and i'a pe’epe’e (fish coconut cream). It wasn’t until I was nearly finished eating the i'a pe’epe’e that I saw the kind of fish that was in it: red reef fish. My first thought was “Oh no,” but figured I’d be fine. A few hours later, I wasn’t fine, experiencing flu-like/food poisoning symptoms. My body is not holding anything down, including water. After 48 hours of feeling miserable, I called the Peace Corps nurse. She advised me to go into Apia today. Being that it’s Sunday, there are no buses on this island, so I took a cab into town. The nurse met with me, giving me anti-biotics, anti-nausea meds, and rehydration salts. I’m seeing a slight improvement in my health. I’m not sure how long I’ll be in Apia. The nurse said that she’d give me a call tomorrow. I may go back to my village tomorrow or the following day.

I must add: I’m back in what I refer to as “my old house.” The hotel staff put me in the same room I lived in for a month. What are the chances? This room is so familiar to me... Too familiar; it feels like I’ve never left it.

Group 85: Group 85 arrived in Samoa last month. I met them the first week they were in country. There are 8 females and 7 males. They’re all really nice. The volunteer who will be living next to my village will be visiting me on Wednesday-Friday. I’ll come into Apia on Wednesday morning to meet her. Early that afternoon we’ll take a bus back to my village. She’ll eat dinner with my family and me. The next day is supposed to be observations at my primary school. Being that my school will be taking final examinations, there won’t be any teaching, which defeats the whole purpose of her visiting my school. I’ve talked with a Peace Corps staff about this, and we’ve came up with the solution that I’ll take her to the primary school she’ll be teaching at. This will be a great opportunity for her to meet the principal, teachers, and students. I’m really excited for the site visit. I wish my group was able to do this last year.

At the end of the month everyone from Groups 83-85 will meet in Apia for a few days for Group 85's training sessions, Thanksgiving, and Group 85’s swearing-in ceremony. I’m looking forward to this, especially Thanksgiving! There will be turkeys, by the way!

And then there were 12: Eight days ago, someone in my group ET (early terminated) their service. I was hopeful that the 13 of us would finish our service together. I’m not sure why she left Samoa, but it’s sad to think that she’s no longer here. I’m sure she made the right decision for herself, and that’s most important. I wish her all the best in life.

Christmas program: I’ve been teaching my students Christmas carols that will be performed for the village, at the end of the school term. I decided to work with the entire student body. My school is really small, so working with five extra grade levels isn’t much of a difference. The songs they’ll be singing are:

We Wish You a Merry Christmas (Years 1 & 2)

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (Years 3 & 4)

Jingle Bells (Years 5 & 6)

The Chipmunk Song—Christmas Don’t Be Late (a few students from Years 5 & 6)

Silent Night (Years 7 & 8)

I may pick a different song for Years 3 & 4 because some are having difficulty learning it. In addition to the Christmas carols, Christmas poems will be recited. My principal said that I’m the “conductor” of the Christmas program, which is nice that I am able to do as I please.

If you know me personally, then you know that I LOVE Christmas carols! Hearing my students sing the songs listed above brings the biggest smile to my face and warms my heart. During dinner the other night, I could hear some of my students signing the songs I’ve taught them. It was a happy moment.

GLOW: Peace Corps Volunteers in Savai’i and Upolu, in partnership with the Ministry of Women, Community and Social Development are hosting the 2nd annual Girls Leading Our World Conference in Apia. The goal of this conference is to empower girls in Samoa to expand their horizons and encourage positive lifestyle choices, as the girls prepare for their transitions into secondary school, as well as teach the girls the skills they need to be positive leaders to their peers. GLOW will happen in early December, for 2.5 days. The conference will be a great experience for the girls and the nighttime will be a giant slumber party! Yes, this excites me!

Fiji: There are just four weeks left in the school term, ending mid-December. After that, I’ll be on school break for 7 weeks! How am I spending my break? I’m going to Fiji. I’m quite excited by this!

Well that’s all for now, folks. Dinnertime. Hopefully it stays down!

Until next time…  

One Year Down Video

In my Term 3 Break post, I mentioned that two members in my group, Allyson and Josh, created a video documenting our first year of service. The video is now on YouTube. If any of you want to see it (it's awesome, by the way), you'll find it below. Enjoy!