Depois – Reflections on Afrikan Adventures which in hindsight didn’t need to be made nervously by PCV Parents

They came and went in less time then it normally takes to get a hiace to go to Tarrafal on a Sunday afternoon. The visit of the Parents was a whirlwind affair of multiple island adventures, slight, SLIGHT, deviations from the proposed plan, and overall a quality introduction to a so called Afrikan nation.

Below, in a style reminiscent of the pre-Jewish populations in the land of Canaan, I have listed several highlighted aspects of the visit:

• Day 1 – Parents arrived exactly on time, as planned. This might have been the first and last thing that went according to plan. After a few photos in the hotel room, the Parents take their first stroll in Cape Verde, and eat pizza. Power went out at night.

• Day 2 – Not spent in Sao Nicolau. A few fun filled hours in the airport however. Man, I really love spending endless hours in the Sal airport. Anywho, we decided against going to Sao Nicolau right away and instead opted to see more of Sal. The Father wanted to buy a new watch and sunglasses so we went to Santa Maria. He ended up not getting anything…except for some t-shirts. Dinner in the dark.

• Day 3 – After tiring of Sal, we head to Sao Nicolau. Calmly and without effort make our way to Tarrafal. Take some hotel photos, and take a walk during the absolute hottest part of the day. Actually thought the Parents were going to melt. Quality time on the terrace. Since we weren’t very hungry after not eating anything, had a nice late dinner. The Mother had a very good soup. I could live on soup. Not sure if the power went out.

• Day 4 – While not officially Tuesday, still called Wild and Wacky Tuesday. Our hired car arrived not only on time, but early. And in our hotel room. What service! Made our way to the farthest reaches of the island to R. Prata, where the little known Nile of the West was still raging after heavy rainfalls. Several dead hippos still lay along the shores due to the voracious appetite of this river. Before I knew it, the Parents were forging their way across, playing with piranhas, and helping old women carry water across on their heads. I think the Father even wrestled a crocodile if I am not mistaken. Still full of energy, made our way to Carberinho to witness the beauty of nature. Did some more terrace-ing. Power went out. The Mother joyfully discovered some of the local fauna on the bathroom towel.

• Day 5 – And back across the island to R. Brava, otherwise known as Vila, otherwise known as Stanxa. A strenuous hike through the European like streets of this old town, we ended up taking in the pleasures of the terrace at our Pensão. Enjoyed conversation with various travelers, all with secret stories that nobody seemed to know. Decided it would be best if everyone wear a card that told their stories. Dinner on the terrace. Went a bit heavy on the malagetta. Think the power went out for a short while.
• 

• Day 6 – This is it; the reason the Parents came to Cape Verde, to see Cachaço. Got an early start as the Father wanted to hike to the peak of Monte Gordo before it got too hot. After peaking in record time, made our way back to my house and conversed for a while with neighbors. Seemed all agreed that the Parents were younger than they had been led to believe. Not sure how old I had made them out to be. After having a salt free lunch, seriously, completely salt free, amazing, the Parents made y neighbor cry a few times and we ended our day in Cachaço and returned to our terrace in Vila. Introduced the Parents to catchupa, grog, and oro (an Afrikan game using stone and a wooden board with six houses on each side). Power went out at some point during the day.

• Day 7 – We arrived at the airport a tad early, a tad earlier than the actual airport staff in fact. Again surprised by TACV, the plane actually arrived early, but TACV redeemed it self by not taking off till it had left late. Ahhh TACV. Anywho, made farewells to the Parents, knowing they had a short trip ahead of them back to the USA. For me, went back to Cachaço and immediately asked if I missed the Parents and if I cried. When I answered negative to both (it had been less then an hour since I said goodbye) I was labeled a bad person. Ahhh, Cachaço.

So that’s it. You can compare the intended plan and the actual plan to judge for yourself how the trip went. A raging river crossed, the hated Mayor, meetings with Senegalese and various family members of Toi, cabbages thrown out hiace windows, bags of rice left behind, and many other things that at first glance may appear chaotic to the intrepid American trampist, but even after a week seems normal and commonplace.

BUY A SHIRT!!!!! à www.sonadei.com/catalog/CVBO.php ß Look for the recycled version. And after buying a shirt, donate a little bit more. Its tax deductible….I think. And then, since you are already on a roll, take a walk, ride a bike, put yourself back into the cradle of nature that we have left behind when we built our little empire. Pick up one piece of trash; make the world we all share a better place. If we don’t love one another, who will?

Antes – Afrikan Adventures made nervously by PCV Parents

It has been requested perhpas at the highest eschaleons of whateverhood that a blog entry be drafted that records the before and after of the visit of my parents. So, I figured what I would do would be to catalog the intended plans, and then to remark later on what actually occured. So, below you will find a little something I like to call, “The Intended Plans for the Visit of the Parents”

Day 1 (Domingo, Oct 5^th)

¨ Parents arrive as expected at 4pm at Sal International Airport after a lovely and short trip from Lisboa, Portugal. I greet them in the local fashion and we head off into the litter free town of Espargos, Sal where we dine in the basking light of the sunset and sleep in the mosquito-free hotel room

Day 2 (Sequnda, Oct 6^th)

¨ After a wonderful night sleep, we make our way to São Nicolau onboard our TACV aircraft. The plane naturally takes off on time and there are absolutly no problems.

¨ Upon arrival, we make our way to the other end of the island where we will begin our week long island adventure, in Tarrafal and the Pensão Alice.

¨ Lunch at one of the fine eateries along the waterfront

¨ Bask in the warm, but not excessivly hot, sun at the beach

¨ Take dinner which is prepared all salt free

Day 3 (Terca, Oct 7^th)

¨ The adventure really beings as we take our charted excerusion vehicle to the outter reaches of the island to the secluded town of Ribeira Prata. With vibrant greens and flowing waters, explore the town while the locals go about thier humble lives barely lifting an eye to the three white people walking amongst them. Maybe we have a light snack.

¨ Next stop, Carbirinho, the site where a Peace Corps Volunteer (ahem) is working on having the area proected and included into the Protected Areas Network. We will wander around along the coastal area where millions of years of erosion has created an artistic pallet in the rocks.

¨ Return to Tarrafal for lunch and some light relaxation.

¨ Go for a local grogue testing at one of the fine grogue establishemnts.

¨ Pizza night?

Day 4 (Quarta, Oct 8^th)

¨ Goodbye Tarrafal!!! We leave our humble abode of Alice, which has been cool and mosquito free the entire time and make our way into the heart of the island, where the clouds collect, the mists roll in and out, the jungle meets the farms, and this PCV calls home. Thats right, we make our way to Cachaço and Parque Natural Monte Gordo.

¨ A day of exploration in the park, in the town, meeting and greeting.

¨ We lunch at Bia’s house, my neighbor. Again, all food is salt free

¨ After lively conversation in which all people speak fluent crioulo, we make our way to the capital of São Nicolau, Vila de Ribeira Brava and check in at Pensão Jardim

¨ Free afternoon wandering the little streets, maybe do some shopping along the famous Rua de Lojas, or watch local street artist perform their various crafts

Day 5 (Quinta, Oct 9^th)

¨ Whew, after all the adventure, we spend a lazy day in Vila. Wander along the winding roads of this Portuguese-esq like villa. Walk along the gently rolling hills, taking in views of the villa as well as the ribeira leading to Cachaço.

¨ Maybe make our way to Praiainha, the white sand beach full of cows. Yes, I said cows.

¨ OR.... we make our way to Juncilinho to wade in the lagão, hike to the rim of the anceint volcano and enjoy this tranquil town

¨ Break the Yom Kippur fast with a light dinner of locally produced tuna for those of us who eat tuna.

Day 6 (Sexta, Oct 10^th)

¨ Nearing the end of our adventers, we either return to Vila from Juncilnho, or wake up refreshed in Vila.

¨ Perhaps this is our lazy day, or perhaps there was something we missed along the way and we make our way there.

¨ Spend the day reflecting the first, and most likely last, Afrikan Adventure for the Parents.

¨ Last dinner, watch the Afrikan sunset with gazelles and giraffes in the distance

Day 7 (Sabado, Oct 11^th)

¨ Wake up, enjoy breakfast, and head on to the São Nicolau Airport, recently awarded the 2007 Award for Excellence and On Timeness

¨ Say goodbyes as the TACV flight takes off perfeclty on time and all the luggage gets on the plane.

¨ Wave as the Parents head off towards Sal, whence this all begin and they go to thier connecting (a short while later) flight back to the good old US of A

So, there you basically have it. While adventurous, it is humble in scale and scope and easily executable. Will it pan out as planned? If not, where did the hitch come into play? Was there a lone mosquito this plan didn’t take into account? Did the unthinkable occur and TACV arrived late? All these quesitons and more will be answered in the next blog entry entitled, “Depois – Reflections on Afrikan Adventures which in hindsight didn’t need to be made nervously by PCV Parents”

I am so G R A T

Now, I might not be a worldly scholar on the topic of religion, or theology, or whatever the kids call it these days, but I do consider myself an expert with a PHD and as such can spout my opinion and justifiably diminish what others say as wrong or inferior. With this in mind, let us continue…

I recently read a few books where some aspect of religion played a part. Regardless often of this particular aspect, one constant was the dismissal of the religion by other characters or members of the fictional society. Why is it that the beliefs of people who have a belief in a religion, in things unseen and improvable are often ridiculed yet we, at least western society, have this unshakable and unquestionable faith in science? If scientist actually talked about science in actual terms, in the fact that at the base of all these theories lies faith, that they have to accept that the things they cant see or prove are there, then what’s the difference between science and religion? There isn’t any, its all faith in something.

Our lives are dictated and operated upon faith at all levels, from the level that when you go to sleep you will wake up the next day to faith in invisible forces working to keep an airplane afloat to faith in an invisible being that created a world. Without faith, our lives would be a mess. If at every moment you questioned absolutely everything, you wouldn’t get much done. However, it is built into our systems that we have an underlying faith in the workings of nature and life.

But then its mocked when it disagrees with accepted beliefs, or with whatever the masses are told is true to keep them in line like sheep at pasture, because what could be more disruptive to a system that requires unquestioning workers then free thinking people. Imagine a world where absolutely everything is basically empty space and assumptions and you have the basis for what science tells us our world and universe is constructed of. Perhaps its true, but either way you have to believe in it, you have to accept it on faith and move on otherwise their whole system crumbles like a cookie crumbles when you take a bite and little pieces break off and fall onto the table, like that.

What’s my point? Anything and everything is possible. It’s our faith that makes our lives and our dreams possible.

Rumor has it that the new first year volunteers will come sometime near the end of September, but Peace Corps isn’t talking much so I don’t really know. The Park is ticking along, tough the Phase1 part of the project ends in December, which really means that the millions of dollars of financing being provided by the UNPD ends, and in theory the Cape Verde government starts picking up the tab, but none really knows what’ll happen in the Phase 2 part. But, I am working hard for marketing what we got here, with the local handicrafts to the wonders of Monte Gordo, we are making a pamphlet and gonna put it in airports and other places, hopefully drumming up some more tourists for the island.

The rains are still coming, since they started in August its been wet and green here. Places that haven’t seen rain or green for years are sprouting. The corn is growing, and the sweet water festival in R. Prata is a month earlier this year thanks to all the rain we’ve gotten so far. Is this an end to the dry years, or is this a fluke year? Who knows?

Well, I don’t really have anything else to say. Except buy a t-shirt to support the bike project!!! Recycled shirts are available, I think at the same price. Or better yet, buy a shirt and donate $20. Or even better, buy a shirt, donate money and then tell a friend or write about the project or if you have a blog or web site put a link about it.

Shirt Update

Hey all you shirt buyers out there!!!!

Sonadei now offeres the same awesome Cape Verde bicycle shirt in a recycled format. They use industrial textelie strips and recycle them inot shirts. Sweet

http://www.sonadei.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=32&products_id=89


So now you should buy one of these too. So far we have rasied about 13% of the needed funding for helmets. Please help me help others by buying a shirt or donating money. Or both. And tell your non shirt buying friends too.

Ok, thats it.

Inspriron

Seems like I’m chock full of anniversaries. As of September 1^st, I will have been on São Nicolau for one year. That’s one year at site, working at the park, living in my community in Cachaço, etc etc etc. What’s it all mean huh, what has a year serving in the Peace Corps meant, etc etc etc

Well, I, like all other PCV’s, certainty have my thoughts on the Peace Corps as a whole and also on my local level in Cape Verde. In general, I believe that PC is trying to get older people to join, which I think is definitely the right move. After 40 years of grass roots development, the majority of places that PC has been now need a higher level of development beyond digging wells. This means more people trained in small business development, older people with skills in forming organizations, marketing, production, etc etc etc. It’s good that it seems PC is leaning more towards this now. Lo, PC is and always will be a governmental organization, which is very apparent in the way it is run and how it interacts with volunteers.

After one year here at site, my close neighbors feel very much like family, and I believe they very much view me as family as well. They provide for you if you need anything, they help take care of you if you are sick, they teach you things you need to know. Perhaps the best aspect of my service so far has simply been the people I have gotten to know here. One year at the Park and, well, lets just say I await to see what this next year will bring. There have been several good things that have come so far from my work at the park, like a health workshops, helping develop several local families to provide food for tourists, working with the guides and monitors, and my continuing work on creation of a new protected area. Did a few trash clean ups as well.

Outside of the Park, I have had community English classes. That was three months of work, and if and when I do it again, I hope to take my lessons learned into consideration. But everyone loved them and ask when there will be more classes. Working on the bike project has been a slow processes. I now have my proposals done in English and Portuguese, and will now go to the local organizations to get their full support and hopefully some money from them too. (Buy a t-shirt!!!!! Or donate!!!!!! Or both!!!!!). I imagine that over the next year a few other small projects will pop up, but I realize that while being a PCV is certainly about the work you do, its equally about the relationships you make and the exchange with the people.

Come the end of September new 1^st year volunteers will be shipped out to the islands. For now PC is keeping volunteers in the dark about the new trainees. I am hoping we get a small business volunteer though. A news report yesterday said São Nicolau is the poorest island of Cape Verde, so we need to help create development for the people here.

PCV’s from the mainland have comments about the Cape Verde post as an easy place for volunteers. While it is certainly not difficult living in Cape Verde (not using a latrine, I typically always have electricity, etc etc etc) the difficulties arise in other ways. Such as it is harder here to at first see the need for a PCV, or where and how you can make a difference. The challenges PCV’s face in Cape Verde are very different than those on the mainland, but I think make being a volunteer equally as hard.

Anywho, some Cape Verdean music artist that people should check out are:

Ildo Lobo

Tito Paris

Tcheka

Bau

Bana

Etc etc etc

My favorite of the moment is Tcheka, really good music as it’s a combination of Cape Verde and a slight hint of west Afrikan music.

Alright, that’s it. Stay tuned for more exciting blogs about my adventures in Cape Verde, about the bike project (BUY A SHIRT!!!!! DONATE!!!!! TELL OTHER PEOPLE!!!!!!) and other things, etc etc etc

And remember, will money pay for all the days you lived awake but half asleep?

BUY THIS SHIRT!!!!!

http://sonadei.com/catalog/CVBO.php

Holy Moly!!!! Just when you thought there wasnt a way to spend your hard earned money on me, i have helped solved the problem. Together with Sonadei, we have developed a Cape Verde bicycle tshirt whose proceeds will go to help fund a bicycle project that is in the works, as been mentioend in previous blogs. Check out the link, buy at least 1,000,000,000,000,000,000 shirts and then donate even more. Also, shoot me an email if you buy a shirt or help spread the word so i know and give you a thanks.

Spread this link around, write it on paper and leave in coffee shops, engrave it on your kitchen table, whatever you have to do to help seel these shirts!!!!!

http://www.sonadei.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=86

i think this is the direct link to buy the shirt.

So buy buy buy!!!!!

Here is a news snipet from Sonadei

http://www.sonadei.com/catalog/news.php

2-1=1

So we’ve all heard the one about Math walking into a bar and the bartender says “Hey, Math, if you’re so smart, what’s 2-1?” At this, Math sits down, drinks a beer and says “1”. The bartender says “No stupid!!!!” After Math drinks a second beer the bartender returns and says “ Wait a second…. 1. You’re right” Ha ha ha ha ha ha. Hysterics aside, in the above mentioned equation the numbers represent years, so Two years less One Year = One Year. That’s right. I no longer have the miserable title ‘First Year Volunteer’; instead I have the honorable, distinctive, sweet smelling title ‘Second Year Volunteer’. With this promotion comes many perks and benefits including:

A new coffee mug

A free ice cream cone at Artica

Collection of my stool samples

A trip to Disneyworld

Another year in Cape Verde

And so, one year down and one year to go. What’s it all been about, where is it all going? I don’t know really. I do know that I more fully understand why the Peace Corp service is two years. Getting things, anything, done takes a long, long, long time. Hence, sometimes a project may take the entire service to actually get off the ground. With this prelude, here are some of my current, future, and made up projects I am working on

Movie night in Cachaço!!!!! That’s right kids, on the first Wednesday of each month, on the roof of the loja, using equipment from Parque Natural Monte Gordo, volunteers do Corpo da Paz, Os Amigos Unidos e Assoc. Monte Cintinha will show movies for children, youth and generally anyone who shows up and pays. The goal is to give kids a fun activity to do, and to make some money to help aid development of Cachaço.

Protected Areas status for Carberinho. Here’s one of those examples of a project taking a long time. I have written a proposal which me and another volunteer have shown and gotten signatures from the local community, I have now written a full length report about the area, and hopefully this coming month will do some field studies of the area. This is a long process to have the area protected, but it’s worth it as anyone who comes to visit will see.

Cape Verdeans in Space!!!!! Move over MIR residents, and make some room for a boiling pot of catxupa, cause coming this fall the first flight of the CVX1 Shuttle will occur. The space station and control center, all located here in the heart of São Nicolau in Cachaço will be manned and operated by local community members trained by Peace Corp volunteers, aka, Me. Scheduled for the first flight are three males, two females, and a donkey in case they need to fetch some water. All are excited about this new prospect of development for the island and for Cape Verde itself, and to quote Camara President Meca, “It is long past time for Cape Verdeans to enter the Space Race. For years now the world has been asking when we would send up our first astronauts, and today I am happy to announce that the wait is finally over.”

Bike Safety (…perhaps, depending on your stance towards helmets) A project that has already been long in the works and will be even longer in the works is a project I like to title, “Bicycle Safety and Awareness Event”, or BSAE. The BSAE is a project on my behalf here with the Camara Municpals and the Centro do Juventudes along with the support of Sonadei (www.sonadei.com), a great clothing company in America who focuses on clothing for bicyclists and bicycle advocacy. Well, they are going to be selling bicycle t-shirts to help raise funds for the BSAE, and the shirts will also be made from recycled materials with non-toxic dyes. The funds will go to purchase bicycle helmets from American Safety/ASHP (www.buyashp.com), an awesome organization helping distribute quality helmets at low cost, for bike riders here, and for bicycle repair workshops. I am still working on getting support from other bicycle organizations around the states, to help supply things like bicycle tools, bicycle tubes and patch kits. More on this as details emerge.

So there you somewhat have it. During my work for the Park, there are always little projects getting proposed, some implemented and a few done, like a health workshop for drivers and cooks on the island, or more English classes, or building tables and benches in the park. But, if I give it all away now I won’t have much to say next time.

Keep those dry nuts and dry fruit coming (meaning start sending dry nuts and dry fruit)

Ta ta

PS. If you want to help support a project I am doing, send me an email about what you are pondering, or if you have an idea in mind about something that you want to help do in Cape Verde with my or other Peace Corp assistance, again, send me an email. Also, if you happen to buy a surplus of Clif bars and can’t eat them all, feel free to send them to me,