The Daily Grind

The work day here is from 8:30 till 3:30, mais o menos, as lunch takes a bit of time. Anywho, since I dont have any real defined role as of yet, I come to the office at 8:30, a 3 minute walk from our house, and for the time being, i might go online, or i might read one of the books about the park they have or a report done by the UN, or kinda just sit around. This week we´ll be doing alot more of field work, hiking the trails with the guides to assess the trails, or in my case, how we´ll implement an environmental impact assestment (eia) to new trail work, and slowly develping a waste management and sustainable management plan. Ultimailty, that will be a piece of my work for the park, developing these systems.

Another piece is the Peace Corp piece. As the park is working to develop its eco-tourism, once our language is a bit better, we will go out and interview potentila famalies to either provied meals for tourist or to be homestays for tourists to stay at. This will be really good community development work and very inline with what the Peace Corp likes to say its here for.

So for now, work is wishy washy as we are still learning the park, they are still learning our skills, and as everything just takes long to happen here, but alas.

Once i start doing more defined work, i suppose ill have more to say about it. In the meantime, there is this nifty feature on the blog called comments. I welcome people to use it, and by welcome i mean, USE IT.

Hiking in our backyard

Well, literally our frontyard, but either way, here are some pics from a hike i took this past weekend up the peak of Monte Gordo

This is a view from the peak, Cha do Monte Gordo. Basically, the mountain splits the island, or at least the middle section, into two different climate zones. On the cachaço side, its green and misty and windy, then on the Tarrafal side, its hot and sunny and not misty. Though, this first picture is an exception as it lies on the non misty side, or nisty side as i like to call it. This next picture (which i used the medium format for to add dramatic effect) is, um, where was I? I think this is also from the peak, pretty much looking at the same area.

And laslty, we have a birds eye view of Cachaço

Milho

Corn is everywhere and everything in Cape Verde. The majority of people´s lives is centered around the planting of corn, cultivatiing corn, harvesting corn, and eventually eating corn. The main difficulty is that as a water intensive plant, this is one country that doesnt get much water. This poses a problem. Additionally, corn isnt the most nutrious food, which adds to a lack of proper diet.

Just a quick note on one aspect of life here in Cape Verde. Corn is king, in fact, it´s what makes Cape Verde green when there is enough rain to grow the corn. Basically the entire islands become corn fields.

Ribeira Brava, Sao Nicolau

Ribeira Brava, Sao Nicolau
Originally uploaded by guberman313

The idylic little town i had the honor of staying in for a week waiting for our beds to arrive. This town has a very European feel to it, small winding streets, speeding Hiaces, little bread shops and Hina Lojas everywhere.

So, just a quick how do you do, i plan to go into a bit more detail of what i am doing for Monte Gordo, what life is like in our little community of Cachaço, and why my sheets are always wet. That and more to come in the enxt installement of: Peace Corp Cape Verde. Life in the slow lane

Monte Gordo - Sao Nicolao

So, Ill be working for the National Park on Sao Nicolao, Monte Gordo, kinda helping with eco tourism and will be living in Cachaço, a small little community on the top of the mountain, my view is of the park, my backyard looks down into the valley. They call the weather here fesca, but so far its not that cold. Tons of brufa though, it rolls in and out all day long. Anywho, been living in a Pensao for the last week since our house doesnt have beds, but now we think they do and now we think we will move in tomorrow.

Our swearin in ceremony was all over the television for about a week, people reconize me as i was in the front rwo, so basically everyone in Cape Verde will at least reconize me, and some parts of Afrika. Well, ill have good access to email, as somehow this park has the ebst internet in all of Cape Verde. I also have a new mailing address, so if you want it send me an email

Anywho, once si really start working ill write more, or once i start to get to know my new community. i alreayd had one meeting, in porteguse, about the newsletter for the park, and i was able to understand about 50% of what they said, not bad.