MozambicanTiff

Tudo bem

2009-01-04T15:02:00.000-08:00

Tudo bem. Minha amiga Joanna, inspirou-me de escrever qualquer coisa aqui, porque ja' passou mais de um ano desde meu ultimo jornal. Tambem, eu sei que Jo podia entender esse "blog" porque ela tem habilidades a cima de media em "Espanol". Ok...novidades...uh, como podes ver meu Portuguese melhorou muito entre estes anos. Neste momento estou nos EUA mas no dia 15 de Janeiro voltarei a Mocambique para mais um ano ali. Meu contracto terminou em Dezembro, mas decedi extender o contracto porque ainda senti que existia muitas coisas e projectos que eu queria fazer e completar. Na minha opinao, dois anos nao e' suficiente, mas eu acho que o Corpo de Paz nao podia implementar um limite minimo de 3 anos porque pessoas nao haviam de entrar. Ok, deixa me clarificar...dois anos e' suficiente mas nao para todos, espcialmente se o voluntario teve a experiencia de mudancas de locale "o sitio" ou outras dificuldades familiares ou medicinais.

Ok, nao tenho nada mais dizer neste momento mas no proximo jornal hei de falar mais dos projectos que faco em Mocambique. Ta bom?

Obrigada!

Tiff

Looking Inward

2007-10-29T05:54:00.000-07:00

Have you ever found yourself thinking, “I really cant stand it when does that!” But then you later come to realize that you do that very thing too!? I think this month has been a month of me being honest with myself and truly thinking about all of the ugly things about myself. I have done this before in the past, but I’d have to say that this was the first time I was completely honest with myself. It was probably one of the hardest things I have done in terms of attempts at personal development. To truly sit down and be 100% honest with yourself. I mean when those feelings or thoughts that bring you shame creep in…not shuting them out but actually listening to them and writing them down. And also taking note that the list is a working list because you probably cannot possibly write it all down in one sitting…thoughts that you’re accustomed to blocking out wont all come flooding in at one time. I go back to the list and write more as the ugly thoughts come. When I sat back for the first time and looked at my list I almost came to the conclusion that I didn’t like myself which is partially true I guess. But I quickly found refuge in the thought that if I was bold enough to be honest with myself as an effort to make myself a better person well then…I can’t be that bad! And the best part of it all is I do truly feel like I can change now that I am aware of it all and am being honest with myself. Of course it won’t be change overnight but consciousness is the first step and the rest will come with time. To anyone reading this…if I have EVER hurt your feelings, made you feel less than, or ever not been there when you felt you needed me then please right now accept my most sincerest apology…but also, please tell me so that I can apologize on a much more personal level and so that we can talk about it! I was seriously probably and am still probably completely clueless to the situation. It’s like Evanessence said, “I’ve been sleeping a thousand years it seems”, but I am awake now…or am awakening rather. So when I say that it is partially true that I don’t like myself…its because there are a lot of things about myself that I don’t like and that must change. I’m not striving to be perfect…that’s impossible, but I do want to be the best person I am capable of being. I really mean that as cliché as it sounds.

In other news, I’ve been really surprised recently how fast time goes by without the use of tv or the internet. I can remember using those modalities as a means of speeding up time, but here in the bush (hehe…every time I say that I still kinda laugh) I have not had a moment of nostalgia when it comes to the tv or the internet. I feel so accomplished at the end of my day when in my spare time I entranced myself into my guitar or a good book or further developed my Portuguese or Changana skills. Its nice. Its nice to feel myself intake more vegetables and enjoy it. I’ve said before that the fruits and vegetables here are much more flavorful, but I also think that my taste buds have changed because of the unavoidable diet change. Its great. I love it.

That’s all I have for now.

October Email

2007-10-23T04:35:00.000-07:00

"The soul would have no rainbow if the eye had no tears." – Native
American Proverb

Então a minha alma é uma arca íris de corres brilhantes. So my soul
is a radiant rainbow of colors.
I think I can only describe my experiences in the past few months as
an awakening. There was darkness like there is when you are asleep,
but now I am awake with a new perspective in possibly every aspect of
my life now. I was overwhelmed by a number of things but most
notably, as I mentioned before, the "death and suffering." While some
may be thinking "Well duhhh, that should be expected in a developing
country", they may not understand what I mean when I say "death and
suffering" as I myself did not understand what those words really
meant up until now. I'm not talking about seeing starving people in
the street or losing my neighbor to AIDS…which I am experiencing as
well. But rather when I say I'm overwhelmed by death I'm referring to
that death that approaches like the way the calm and silent waters
drown a man. I mean to say that the speed at which sicknesses seize
people here seems to be more rapid than what's expected. My boss who
passed away in July died from hypoglycemic shock…I know hypoglycemia
is a serious condition, but from what I hear the remedy that could
have saved her was as simple as giving her a piece of candy or a spoon
of sugar! And then with the passing of my host brother…we found out
that he was diagnosed with Cancer and not even 24 hours later he
passed away!!! I know that death does not sound a trumpet, but damn!
And when I talk about suffering, I'm not talking about the mother who
breast feeds her daughter for two years because of lack of food…I'm
talking about that kid that can recite Shakespeare and talk about the
theories of Erik Ericksen from self initiated reading but who may
never have the chance to attend college. I'm talking about those
students who were never taught to critically and creatively think
(this is a skill that we truly take for granted in the states). I'm
talking about that girl who feels she has to sleep with her teacher to
pass the class, and I'm talking about that bright girl who doesn't
sleep with the teacher and fails the class. And yes I am talking
about that mother who doesn't receive "pmtct- prevention of mother to
child transmission" because she's too afraid to be tested for HIV and
ends up passing the virus onto her unborn child. And I'm talking
about those who test positive at our local clinic that has been said
to have a HIV+ rate of 50% and won't have any access to any treatment
until they are officially considered to have AIDS. Did you know that
in the states where we have an HIV rate of <1%, those who are HIV+ can
start treatments to minimize the virus from multiplying? But in
Mozambique (and the majority of Africa) where there is a 20% HIV+ rate
(I really think its higher) there is no treatment for HIV+ people only
treatment for once the virus has advanced into AIDS…that is, once your
body has become so weak that it can no longer fight off its own
infections. AND this treatment for AIDS has only been available in
Africa in the past 4ish years??? Prior to then there was nothing!
But do you know what that means? Think about it! Actually the doctor
who is noted as starting the first ARV (antiretroviral) treatment plan
in Southern Africa is one of the doctors for Peace Corps here.
So, that's what "death and suffering" is to me more or less. But
really these are all constant reminders of why I am here. Sure I'm
not a doctor administering medication, but I'm here doing the best I
can and that is all I can ask of myself. Things definitely are not,
by any stretch of the imagination, "easy" but these constant reminders
are my abundant access to fuel to keep me running. One lady said that
the mere presence of a volunteer in her community changed her home
dynamics. She said, "My father didn't allow any of the girls to leave
the home to continue schooling even in the nearby city. All my
brothers got to go. But when he started seeing these female Peace
Corps volunteers living out here in the bush so far away from their
families he decided that he too could let his girls go a little away
from home for school. Now my younger sisters have no problem being
able to leave home for school." I think that's pretty awesome.
So here I am awakened and renewed with a new perspective. My mentor
Cliff Faulkner once told me, "Find ways to balance a productive
awareness of truth with a commitment to make the world better."
That's my new creed. A productive awareness of truth…that's my fuel.
September 28th marked a year in country for me. They say your first
year in the Peace Corps is really just you learning how to live in
your new country. I still have a lot of personal goals and work goals
to accomplish (my job, by the way, is going great…I will write a lot
more about that next time.) To those still reading my updates…thank
you for continuing to walk by my side on this journey.

To New Perspectives!

Novos Pensamentos.

2007-09-11T01:42:00.000-07:00

Oi,
Agora sento um pouco melhor e acho que posso escrever com menos tristeza esta vez. Stou em Maputo para um curto descanco, mas hoje volto para Chicumbane. Da ali' vou a praia la no Inhambane a Tofo. Queria ficar la por duas semanas. Parece que quando coisas maus acontecem, nao parrem entao estou a lutar este tempo de loucura. No Sabado comprei a minha viola...gosto muito de tocar. A razao principal que eu tinha aprendido foi para tempos assim, tempos de stress, tempos quando nao sei como concentrar, como pensar, como respirar. Quando toco, crio um mundo onde stou sozinha e nao tenho que fazer nada...so toco. Entao, acho que daqui coisas vao melhorar e finalmente hei de comencar viver de nov. Viver no meu novo sitio de Chicumbane a onde eu adoro muito. Vivo sem namorado, sem complicacoes (ok claro que a vida sempre tem complicacoes) mas sinto me como eu estou a reininciar a vida. Acho que o Deus tratou me assim para eu aprender o que significa de verdade de viver. Agora nao posso dizer que "Claro que eu ja sei o que significa para viver" Mas eu posso dizer que eu tenho mais um idea que ue tive antes de este periodo. Tenho que sair agora. Brigada pelo seu tempo.

Death

2007-08-31T10:41:00.000-07:00

Death. Thats all I see right now. My host brother died on Tuesday August 28th at 2am and I am devestated. Thats the third death for me in three weeks. His funeral was yesterday. I didnt do so well at the funeral. And that was the second funeral for me in one week (the first funeral i went to does not include the three deaths Im affected by). Death and suffering...such a constant theme in life. My host brother was my light here in Mozambique. I've never in my life loved a child that wasnt my blood as much as I loved him. His death was the first close death that I have experienced in my entire life. I'm not ok, but I will be ok. I have our happy memories to hold on to and his beautiful pictures. Thats all for now.

Nova Vida em Chicumbane

2007-08-31T10:34:00.000-07:00

Ok, I know my presence on my blog is practically non existent and I apologize. Internet access is a bitch at times to put it lightly. But to catch you up quickly due to a whirlwind of events I have moved to the southern part of Mozambique and am at a new home in the province of Gaza. The village I live in is called Chicumbane. Its soooo lovely and fortunately, I love, love, love my new home. It’s in the bush …a nice contrast to my 3 bedroom flat with 3 balconies that I had in Chimoio. My new house is a house made of sticks, branches, cement and tin. The sticks are very much like bamboo, except they are much thinner. Inside the walls are of cement. This type of house is called a canisu house. Fortunately, I do have electricity inside which is rare for a canisu house. I do not have an indoor bathroom. My bathing facility is a small canisu annex outside of my house. One room is a small drain in the floor where I take my bucket baths. The other room is my latrine another yet larger hole in the floor where I do my business. Let me take a minute to explain what a bucket bath is as I recently learned from my mom that most may have a romanticized idea of what it is. No it is not me sitting in a huge bucket of hot water like you see in the western movies. Its me with a small bucket of water and a cup. I use the cup to scoop up water and pour it over me shower style. Got it? Good. I no longer have a roommate…I live alone, well alone despite frequent visits from very large spiders, centipedes, ants and bats. There are also little geckos that are pretty much my unofficial pets. Fortunately all the creatures are harmless and the humongo spiders are definitely more afraid of me than I am of them. All of this definitely beats the monsterous roach infestation I incurred in Chimoio. Right now in my house I feel like my own extreme makeover home edition team as I am working on painting my whole house. Its actually proving to be a nice stress reliever. The theme is warm and frilly with hues orange, salmon, browns and crèmes. My house is surrounded by lush greenery. At certain angles Chicumbane looks like a jungle, other times a rainforest, and other times it looks like a meadow from a scene in the Lion King. It really depends on where you are standing at any given minute. In my yard I have a mango tree (to someone who eats 7 mangos a day during mango season…this is heaven), an orange tree, lemon tree, and coconut tree. Isnt that cool? Everyday I enjoy the sights of heards of cows passing by my house leaving behind clouds of dust from the sand they kick up. I also enjoy the goats passing and the chickens and roosters running through my yard. I tried feeding the chickens some bread yesterday, but they apparently don’t eat that. There are no paved roads in Chicumbane, only ones made by natures clay colored sand.

My new organization is amazing! Its called ACOSADE (Associacao comunitaria para saude e desenvolvimento “The Health and Development Association”). We are very small and don’t even have an official office yet. We currently work out of an extra room in the house of our president. We have a computer but are working on getting internet access. This organization is very proactive and proud of the projects they have managed to accomplish despite their small frame and small time in existence. We work with orphans, people living with HIV and AIDS and people in the bush of the bush. Because of the type of work we do in the rural communities…I now enjoy the challenge of learning yet another language called “Chanagana” which is the local language of the southern region of Moz. My org is soooo on top of things. The day I arrived they handed me with loads of papers describing the organizational structure, timelines and photographs of their past and present projects, detailed and completed project proposals, and charts showcasing their vision and goals for the future! Wow! What would take months of trying to figure out they gave to me in a matter of minutes. They have soooo many ideas and goals of what I can do. And they really want to me to assist in helping to find them funding as well as teach English in the community…and while I usually grit my teeth to requests such as these…I am more than happy to do it for this organization because I can clearly see the need. This org has done soooooooo much considering the lack of funding that they have. The members do not even receive salaries! They all hold primary jobs, but their passion is primarily with the organization and it is clearly made a priority by all of them. My goal of the moment is to find as many organizations and international partners as possible. If there is anyone interested in giving to this organization please contact me at tiffany.s.Williams@gmail.com and I will be more than happy to provide more information about what we do.

But my organization has really received me with warm arms. They actually recently lost their first volunteer who unfortunately had to “early terminate” her service. Well, it was a blessing in disguise because without her absence I couldn’t be here. They have already taken me out to the more rural areas where we do our work. And I mean bush. There were monkeys running around and the houses were all made of mud or canisu with thatched roofs. No one in these areas speak Portuguese…its all Changana out there. By my fourth day at site I had attended the funeral of a local leader out in one of the areas we serve. He was what they call the Regu. The man who performs a ceremony which allows people access into the Sacred Forest of Chirindzene. I know this because I will have to partake in this ceremony once the new Regu is named because Acosade does projects in the sacred forest. One of our projects is a honey production income generation project. So the Regu was in charge of performing this ceremony which involved the killing of two chickens without the use of knives (they are beaten to death) and after the chickens are cooked those wishing to enter the forest must eat of the chickens. If you’re a vegetarian…well, too bad I guess. The Regu who passed away was a polygamous man who had 5 wives, 24 children, and close to 60 grandchildren. When I approached the house where the funeral would take place I realized that despite my efforts I was not completely dressed appropriately as all the women had on capulana skirts and their heads were covered. As for me…I had the capulana down, but didn’t know I had to cover my head. My colleague also forgot so fortunately I was not alone. All the women sat on the floor, and the men sat in chairs. My colleague and I were the only females in chairs, but apparently it was ok since we were visitors. We were greeted (men first and then the women). I soon realized that we arrived with the priest, because our party was escorted to the front and the guy that was sitting in the front of the car I arrived in began leading the ceremony. There was a lot of scripture reading and singing. Then a casket was brought from inside the house. A tattered Mozambican flag was drapped over the casket. More singing and scripture. Then the casket was opened. And the wailing began. The cry of these women was so piercing that it evoked tears out of me…I felt foolish crying at the funeral of a man I never even met so I covered my eyes with my sunglasses. After the last viewing of the body, the casket was closed and they began to carry it away…then the funeral party followed. We walked down a dirt road and began to enter the sacred forest of chirindzene. Uh oh? Was I allowed in? My collegue assured me that I was entering an area where it was ok for me to enter without undergoing the ceremony. As soon as we entered the forest I began seeing species of plants and insects I had never seen before. Vines draped the forest in every direction. I felt like I had realized my dream of seeing a rainforest from inside. We reached an area where a grave had been dug out. There was more scripture and song. Then at the very moment where it was apparently time to lift the casket into the grave we were greeted by a huge gust of wind (on a non windy day). As soon as the casket entered the grave that’s when the real wailing began. One woman even passed out. Then two bundles of the Regus clothes wrapped in sheets were brought out and placed down in the grave on top of the casket. They ripped open the sheets. Then an esteira (a sitting mat) was cut into two pieces and also placed into the grave. Then a brand new blanket was ripped in the center and draped over the casket and the belongings. Then the priest over scripture took a handful of dirt and threw it on top. The congregation followed throwing handfuls of dirt. Then song was sung until the grave was completely covered and a mound of dirt was formed over it. Then various plants and flowers were planted on the dirt mound and 20 liters or water was brought out

I´m doing mais ou menos

2007-05-12T08:57:00.000-07:00

Hey folks. Just wanted to say that I know its been a while since I´ve written. I actually wrote a nice lil´post a while back specifically for my blog but I guess it never saved. dont know why. I was kinda mad when it didnt post. And since then the internet has been so slow and never lets me log in. I´m thrilled i by chance got to log in now...but the cafe is closing in 3 minutes so....

abriged update:
I´m good.
Work is ok.
Working with a lot of youth...they seem to think I´m this point person for coordinating youth groups and so I´ve been having lots of random teens show up at my doorstep asking for me to be the coordinator of their groups or to help them for clubs...flattering but random!
I got a puppy and hes adorable!

Nutshell. Sorry. I promise I will write more. I swear! Be well. Bejos!

Quero falar em Portuguese agora.

2007-02-11T08:29:00.000-08:00

Eu sei que o melhor gente que pode ler este blog, nao vai conseguir de ler isso, mas por um razao, gostaria de escrever em portuguese. Tambem, sei que meu Portuguese ainda e mau, mas nao e importa. Hoje, eu sinto um pouco doente. E doi em meu "throat". Esqueci como dizer "throat". Anyway, nao tenho muito tempo para practicar de escrever em Portuguese entao estou a escrever agora. Durante a semana atrais ate agora, sinto um pouco triste. Nao sei se e por causa da saudades para a minha familia ou so porque nao estou contente em meu servico ou o que. Meu servico e bom, mas e um trabalho de escritorio...e para mim isso e deficil. Nao gosto de trabalhos de escritorios. Ai, mas acho que vou conseguir. Realmente, em minha opinao...acho que meu sentimento e por causa dos assuntos dos os primeros mezes do servico dos voluntarios (whoa, that was really bad portuguese). Bem Bem. Mas, porque tenho tempo de descancar aqui em Maputo, e dar me tempo para pensar mais de Chimoio e minha situacao la. Devo sentir saudades, mas estou frustrada com a minha casa. E ainda tem muitas barrattas e deficil de viver assim! Nao estou contente com este situacao. Espero que as barrattas vao deseparecir. Anyway, in other news...estou a perdir de peso! A minha mae disse me isso ontem quando estava a vistar a minha familia. Isso e a primera vez que uma mocambicana diz me uma coisa boa sobre meu peso...aceito. Bem Bem...nao vou escrever mais, porque todo gente que poder ler bem o Portuguese esta a rir do meu Portuegues. Hehehe. Sim. E tudo! Ate a proxima! Fica bem. Bejos!

Latest Copy from Email: "Beauty is only skin deep, yea yea yea"

2007-02-10T11:24:00.000-08:00

So my friend John was not lying when he said that you must go into Peace Corps already knowing yourself. Each and everyday I find myself understanding that more and more. As it relates to self esteem, I believe that at least speaking for Mozambique, you must have a relatively positive self image or you could potentially be emotionally crushed. Here, people do not hesitate to express their feelings about your bodily image…if you are not skinny they will tell you. For instance with me, I've never been more aware of my moustache, pimples, and apparently pregnant looking stomach. It is as common to hear that you are "fat" as it is that the weather is nice today. I somehow had this misconception that there was an appreciation for "healthy" women in Africa…and this is true to some extent, because its not completely bad when they say it…but its not exactly a compliment either. People always assume that I am older in age because of my weight. They say that here, young women are generally thin…which is true. But at the same time being thin is a delicate issue here because of the stigma associated with AIDS. If you are too skinny or lose weight too fast you are assumed to be "doente"…"sick". But on the contrary to all that has been said to me regarding my physical appearance, I have to say that I´ve surprisingly never felt more beautiful in my life. Just as quick as they are to nonchalantly throw you an unintentional insult, they are just as quick to caress you with compliments. So one second I may hear…"Wow, you don't dance like a girl who carries a lot of weight!" and then I´ll hear "Tu es muito Linda!" (You are so beautiful). In fact there seems to be an interest in my teeth which is way new to me. Apparently a gap between the front teeth is a sign of beauty. I have been asked how I got my gap and that people here will artificially create one. When I mentioned how I thought about closing my gap people gasped like I was crazy! And although my acne is often commented on and even uninvitedly touched I am told my skin color is so pretty. About a month ago at this conference, a few Mozambicans approached me to tell me that I looked just like women from the Ilha of Mozambique. I continued to hear this for the proceeding three days of the conference thinking that this was their way of trying to insinuate that I did not look "American". But, after being in country for some time now I have constantly heard of the women in Ilha as being the most beautiful women in the country. Legend has it that they are so beautiful that if a man goes there to visit he may never return if he is desired by a woman there. So when they were saying I looked like the women of Ilha…it was a compliment and not what I thought it was! But enough of that…on to why I´m here right. Well…work is slow as everyone is pretty much still on vacation. So I spend the majority of my time hanging out and getting to know the locals. It is during these times that I can slip in a little bit of HIV related information. In one of my first conversations I was surprised at how open my friend was in discussing his sex life in regards to using protection or not. I had asked him straight out, but of course prefaced my question with "May I ask you a personal question?" After he answered my question he then replied with, "Tiffany, that's not a personal question. Here, it is a place heavily affected by disease; we cannot afford for issues like that to be personal. You are like…an activist for health. We appreciate that…so it wasn't a personal question." I was just so surprised to hear that. Another friend of mine and I got deep into a conversation on health practices and how that relates to the traditional and spiritual rituals here. From that conversation he decided that he is going to take me to a neighboring rural area to see what he calls the "roots of Africa". I´m way excited for that! I´ll keep you posted. This is the same friend that is actually teaching me how to paint! He´s a local artist and last weekend we had our first session. I painted my first oil on canvas…the process was an amazing experience. Now I have a piece of original art…from me! My name is signed at the bottom and everything! Speaking of art…I am getting involved in another art form as well…dance. I just joined a traditional dance team named Kwaedza. They are crazy amazing and have even already toured in Italy. I already learned my first dance! It's a dance called Manomba, a dance you do during funerals or doing the rains. So…yes, I keep myself busy here. This month is when work will really pick up and I´ll be able to start doing more concrete projects related to my purpose for being here. Just gotta master this language first…which by the way comes and goes. Right now it feels like its goin! Anyway, I am doing great, I feel very happy and at ease. Oh and I am finally starting to lose that weight I gained from my host mothers cake baking. Speaking of baking...I've learned how to make a mean homemade banana nut bread. I make them all the time...the locals call my bread "bolo da banana" = banana cake. Hehehe. Hope everything is good on your side. Please keep in touch.

Estamos Juntos! ("We´re all together")

Tiffany

ps. FYI, I was not affected by the floods Mozambique recently had. That was more in the northern region...I'm in the central region. My region is going through a crazy lil' heat wave right now and yes I am very much affected by that.

Goat for din din and a hike up the old head!

2006-12-31T02:33:00.000-08:00

So since I last posted the two most significant things that have happened to me are my first hike up a mountain and my first try with goat meat. So, a group of PCV´s and I went hiking up a mountain called ´Cabeça de Velho´which means Old mans head...cause the mountain looks like an old mans profile. And then for Christmas I saw a goat that had woke me up that morning with its baaing get slaughtered and fried for dinner. It was good...but i couldnt eat more than a bite. Now its New Years...I could only imagine what new experience I´m going to encounter...I´m up for it though. But all in all I´m well and happy...I´m suffering in this heat though...like its really tearin me up...but maybe i´ll sweat off some weight. Anyway, hope all is well. Happy New Years Everyone!

I´m officially a PCV (Peace Corps Volunteer)

2006-12-08T04:54:00.000-08:00

(copy of my recent email)
**Warning** my english is slowly getting worse as my portuguese is getting better...so please bear with me. Also, the keyboards are different here...so I apologize in advance for bad grammar and weird keyboard characters.

Ola!!! Tudo Bem? Everything is great with me. Actually as of today I am an official volunteer! We had our swear in ceremony earlier this morning at the embassadors house. Tomorrow, I fly out to my new home for the next two years which will be in the Province of Manica. It´s a surprise for me to be working in the city because I specificially requested a more rural site...Iºm thinking more canisu style (house of bamboo like sticks), but the organization that best fit with me happens to be in the city.I am working for an organization that works with women. It´s focus is to help domestically abused women, girls and orphans. This organization is so progressive in the fact that it is an organization for women by women, even to the extent that women physically built the structure of the building. I will be working doing organizational development, grant proposal writing, monitoring and evaluation, mainstreaming HIV and AIDS activities and information and I´ll be developing programs and activities for the orphans among other needed tasks. The organization specifically requested a strong woman and thats why my director chose me...isn´t that sweet? Aside from that, so much has happened since the last time I wrote and I hope I have sufficient time within my allotted hour of the internet to summarize. Since I last wrote I have met a traditonal healer, gone on a few homebased care visits involving orphaned children and persons living with AIDS, and formed a childrens theatre group. Let me talk for a minute about my theatre group, because that has truly been the highlight of my experience thus far. So, about half way through training we had to identify a target group of people in the community and do an "intervention" which is basically applying the skills that we had been learing in training thus far. I decided that I wanted to do a play with kids in the "window of hope". The "window of hope" is an expression in reference to children under the age of 15 who have not yet had their sexual debut. It is thought that if these children can be reached before sexual debut then we can deminish the spread of HIV and AIDS through education of proper behavioral practices. There´s also a theory about beliefs formed in young children stick more the majority of their life (I know this theory is attributed to a specific psychological theorist and if anyone knows it please let me know). Anyway, so I wanted to work with this age group and do a play. So I did. With the help of the 9 kids from ages 6-13 I wrote and directed a childrens play in Portuguese! Its a play about HIV and AIDs and stigma reduction. We performed it for the first time for the Peace Corps Health Group and they absolutely loved it and were moved to tears. I was moved as well because the children were just soooo good and truly amazed me. It was one of the best days of my life because of the energy of the kids and the hard work and dedication they put in and to see it come full circle...it was just incredible. I can´t describe the joy I felt. We later got a request to perform it for World AIDS day...and we did in front of a crowd of at least 200 community persons!!! WAIT, it doesn´t stop there. Word kept spreading about my kids and the following week we performed the play on NATIONAL MOÇAMBICAN TELEVISION!!! We performed it on a weekend childrens program called "Primpimpim". You guys...I wrote and directed a childrens play (in Portuguese) that was produced on TV...I´m still not quite over that yet. And I am so sad to have to leave my theatre group!!!!!! But the supervisor says there is a group of orphaned girls in Manica that would love theatre...so yup yup that´s definitely in my plan once I get to Manica. Anyway, yea Moçambique...its a great place. Yes, yes there are definitely the frustrations too...but they are truly so minimal that I don´t feel the need to mention them. I will however mention the record of persons in the Chapa. I think I explained last time that Chapas are 15 passenger vans that are the main source of transportation here. Only Chapas never only have 15 people in them...they usually crowd about an average of 25 people in the van. Well...each experience in a chapa is...well, an experience and one of my last rides in the chapa (actually transporting the kids to the television station) carried an astounding 45 persons!!!! 45 persons in a 15 passenger vehicle!!! And by person I define that as babies, children and adults. Isn´t that wild??? For the mothers out there...dont freak out, I know some of you are thinking about how unsafe it is and yadda yadda, but thats how we do it in Moçambique...I was more just amazed at how 45 people fit in the car...it was truly a clown car moment. Anyway, day by day I´m enjoying my experience more and more in this country of Moçambique, a place where "the people are attuned to the rhythm of the sun and the seasons passing over the fields". A note about the rhythm of the sun...when the sun goes down...it is pitch black...darkness like you´ve never seen before because there are no street lights...the most amazing thing about this is when it rains and there is lightening...the lightning illuminates everything...its wonderful!!!! That´s all for now...I will give my new address soon. Until then I guess I wont be receiving anything for Christmas as anything that hasnt been sent to me already wont make it to me...*sigh*. Oh well...please send an email to me on christmas or around christmas. Thanks!

Ate a proxima! Until next time!!!!

Tiffany

A Month in Review

2006-11-04T01:16:00.000-08:00

First of all, I just want to say thank you to everyone who has left me a comment on this blog, or email, or text message or anything that is some form of communication with me, because let me tell you...it feels great to connect to those who you love and know as true friends. Its only been a little over a month for me, and maybe this is my period of dealing with internet withdrawls, but I really really appreciate hearing from people. It feels GREAT because I actually KNOW you guys...like know you guys know you guys...you aren´t just a bunch of strangers that I dont know from a hole in the ground...so yes, thank you.

Anyway, I have met the halfway mark in our Peace Corps training and all is well. The intensity of this training never ceases. Since my last email I have had the opportunity to meet a traditional healer who shared with us the general beliefs of spirituality and medicine from a traditional perspective. Like for example...it is believed by the traditional healers that there is a vaccine for AIDS\HIV in the northern region of Moçambique. That´s only a small dose of the information that this "curandero" (thats "traditional healer" in local portuguese) shared with us. I don´t believe that I have fully had the opportunity to process everything that I learned about curanderos and their beliefs yet. I did however get to see the physical scars on my host mother and little sister from their past visits to curanderos. I also met two persons living with HIV and AIDS and listened to their stories. This past weekend I traveled up to the neighboring Province called "Gaza" and visited four current volunteers for 5 days. In those five days I got to experience the real life of a volunteer as well as visit their work sites. One of the volunteers works with a PLWHA Organization (People living with HIV and AIDS) and during my visit to her organization we got to go out in the field and do 3 homebased care visits. One of our homebased care visits was to a small house, a "canisu" which is like a house made of bamboo-like material. In this small house lived 7 orphans whose parents died a few months back to AIDS. The eldest of the orphans is 16 however at the time of our visit she was in the hospital with an undisclosed sickness. The youngest child was 3 years old. Again, I still have not been able to process this experience fully. I feel like I haven´t been able to develop any kind of insight of any significant depth because I am still trying to process what I am experiencing on a day to day basis. But as of right now I´m not having to directly confront the health of PLWHA´s everyday, but it may very well be a reality of mine within the next month or so...depending on which organization I end up working with. Right now I´m tackling smaller issues, like seeing many starving stray dogs and watching the kids throw rocks at them. As a dog lover...this really does hurt my heart. The other day I leaned down to pet a dog only to be greeted with a growl...then I remembered that dogs here take leaning down as a threat because when this is done it is usually when someone is bending down to grab a rock to throw at it. There are a few people who do own dogs as pets, but it is not the norm. Here, dogs are like the spawn of the devil...the polar opposite to the title as "man´s best friend" in the states. I´m also still trying to get used to the many "Meu coraçao e fraco. Meu boca quer um biejo" Please excuse my rough Portugues but this translates loosely to ..."my heart is weak and my mouth wants a kiss from you". Yes oh yes I hear beautiful poetry such as this pretty regularly (clears throat). I received a few marriage proposals and one of my colleages had a few children offered to her during a chapa ride. That´s the daily life that I´m taking in stride. On the whole, I´d have to say that my month thus far has been nothing short of amazing. I will do my absolute best to keep updating. Thanks for reading!

Copy of My first mass email!

2006-11-04T01:12:00.000-08:00

For those of you who are not on my mass email list...here is a cut and paste (two weeks late) from my first email. Sorry, but with limited internet access I didn´t have the time to cut and paste the last time. Here it is:

Wow, internet...very nice. First of all I would really like to express how thankful I am to have this efficient means of communication called the internet. Such a great invention. Secondly, I would like to let you know that I am doing very well and am very happy. After that...I really don't know where to start. I can't believe that its only been 2 - 3 weeks in Africa for me. I truly feel like I've experienced more in these two weeks than I have in the past two years. That's not to discount my last two years, because they were very monumental for me...but here...I feel like so much goes on that I just cant seem to keep up with it. I spend so much time trying to write in my journal...but really, its just too much to keep up with and my fingers begin to hurt from writing too much. The experience is so vast that I find myself taking notes throughout the day, because you would think that if something moves you enough to want to write about it that you'll remember it...but the problem is when every other moment is an experience like that how can you keep up with it? Well, I guess that's not really much of a "problem" though. So here in Mozambique, I live in the province of Maputo (for the remaining 8 weeks). I live with a family of 4 (minha mae "mom", meu pai "dad", minha irma "sister", and meu irmao "brother"). I am actually really blessed to be living with this particular family because I lucked up and got the good cooks. Other volunteers weren't so lucky. My family is also very progressive and more forward thinking than other families in the surrounding community...and I like that. Not that I don't like traditional Mozambican culture...but when the norm is toward a male dominated society...where women aren't even permitted to eat at the dinner table (and yes some volunteers are having to deal with that) I'd have to say that I can't complain. The norms of my family don't deviate much from the average American family except that we take bucket baths and don't have a flushing toilet which actually isn't that bad. As of yet, I actually enjoy bucket baths...they're quicker and you don't waste nearly as much water...but the curent Peace Corps staff says that we're in whats called "The Honeymoon Period" and that 6 months from now our views may change...we'll see. Oh, I also eat 5 times a day here...and at first thought you would think that would speed up my metabolism...but when two of those meals are three slices of homemade cake (yes, minha mae bakes everyday) that begins to add up...but I'm all for the ride because it tastes good and I'll only have it like this for 10 weeks. Anyway, my training is super intense. 8am-5pm...which doesn't sound that different from an average school day or work day in the states, but only difference for me is when I come home I feel like I'm still in language class. My Portuguese, by the way is going really good by the way "Esta bem"! I know many of you are wondering about the wildlife and the bugs out here and how I\'m dealing with that...because you know me. Ok...so the bug thing...not so bad. I haven\'t seen any crazy tarantulas or out of this world insects...the ants are substantially larger and they fly...and there are a lot of spiders but I think they are more afraid of me than I am of them. I get bitten by mosquitos all day long though, but luckily we take malaria profalaxis (sp?) every week. Oh but the bees and wasps here are really pretty colors and there are a lot of really pretty metalic flying beetles here too...(think of that bug in the first scene of Aladdin ). So of course there is the heavy part of this experience as well. Yesterday we visisted two hospitals and GATV\'s (which are HIV/AIDS testing centers) and it was intense you know. The medical situation in Mozambique is rough you guys. Let me put in perspective for you...really quickly...Mozambique is the size of two Californias geographically and the population is 19 million ok. Of these 19 million...there are only 600 doctors in the entire country...only 5 cardiologists in the entire country and only half of the babies born here are born in medical facilities and close to 20% of the country are infected with HIV or AIDS. The unfortunate thing is that many people here still believe that AIDS is a myth or that they can be cured by a traditional healer. Actually, the majority here still don\'t really see AIDS as a big risk. There\'s a lot of work to be done here folks. But despite the fact that Mozambique suffers from this AIDS crisis and is recently recovering from a war (MOZ got their independence from Portugal June 25, 1975 and had a political war that ended in 1992) it is a beautiful place filled with smiling faces to greet you with a "Bom Dia!". Oh and one other thing that I was absolutely ecstatic to hear is that Mozambicans LOOOOOVE Theatre and are really into it and the health education projects utilize theatre a lot to communicate and spread awareness...feels like my place to be. I know many of you are wondering about the wildlife and the bugs out here and how I'm dealing with that...because you know me. Ok...so the bug thing...not so bad. I haven't seen any crazy tarantulas or out of this world insects...the ants are substantially larger and they fly...and there are a lot of spiders but I think they are more afraid of me than I am of them. I get bitten by mosquitos all day long though, but luckily we take malaria profalaxis (sp?) every week. Oh but the bees and wasps here are really pretty colors and there are a lot of really pretty metalic flying beetles here too...(think of that bug in the first scene of Aladdin ). So of course there is the heavy part of this experience as well. Yesterday we visisted two hospitals and GATV's (which are HIV/AIDS testing centers) and it was intense you know. The medical situation in Mozambique is rough you guys. Let me put in perspective for you...really quickly...Mozambique is the size of two Californias geographically and the population is 19 million ok. Of these 19 million...there are only 600 doctors in the entire country...only 5 cardiologists in the entire country and only half of the babies born here are born in medical facilities and close to 20% of the country are infected with HIV or AIDS. The unfortunate thing is that many people here still believe that AIDS is a myth or that they can be cured by a traditional healer. Actually, the majority here still don't really see AIDS as a big risk. There's a lot of work to be done here folks. But despite the fact that Mozambique suffers from this AIDS crisis and is recently recovering from a war (MOZ got their independence from Portugal June 25, 1975 and had a political war that ended in 1992) it is a beautiful place filled with smiling faces to greet you with a "Bom Dia!". Oh and one other thing that I was absolutely ecstatic to hear is that Mozambicans LOOOOOVE Theatre and are really into it and the health education projects utilize theatre a lot to communicate and spread awareness...feels like my place to be. I\'ve truly experienced so much in these few weeks I can only imagine what these two years will be like. I really cant believe it hasn\'t been a month yet...it feels like so long that I\'ve been here. I\'m so happy to take you on this experience with me because it is as much your guys\' experience as it is mine. You are in my thoughts. I will try to write again soon. >Love you guys

Como se diz em portuguese??

2006-09-30T11:05:00.000-07:00

How do you say that in Portuguese? That´s mostly what I´ve been finding myself saying lately. I have arrived in Mozambique and have been here for the past three days kinda retreating and relaxing as we prepare to move in with our homestay families tomorrow. There is a flood of information being thrown at us but its all good though. Everything here is so...interesting. Constant learning and discoveries. I dont have time for a detailed update at the moment...but that will come with time. Until then...

I bid thee adieus!

2006-09-22T11:39:00.000-07:00

Hey Everyone,
Tomorrow I leave for the start of my Peace Corps Journey. It's a quick stop in Philly for orientation and then off to Mozambique. Yikes! Ahhhhhhhhhh! (that's excitement) Wow...it's here. The time is actually here. Wild! Anyway, here is my official farewell as I do not know the exact date of when I will be able to update this next...may be sooner than later or later than sooner...nevertheless, it will happen. I'm really excited to take everyone on this journey with me. I truly do feel like this is as much your experience as it is mine. I will do my best to keep you well informed and up to date. Thank you all so much for your continued and endless love and support. I will be thinking of you when I'm abroad.

Adieus!
Tiffany :)

Preparation

2006-09-11T10:22:00.000-07:00

Hi Everyone...this is my new blog. This blog is completely for the use of documenting my experience in Mozambique to share with my family and friends. Please check back regularly. As of today we are on the countdown. I have 12 days before my departure. I'm trying to maximize as much of this time as possible through visitation with the loved ones. My next post will be my official goodbye before flying off to Philly for my orientation on the 23rd.

Love ya!