Last week was our six month anniversary of arriving into country! As part of the Peace Corps timeline, last week, my fellow volunteers from my training class and I met up in Bamenda (the regional capitol of the Northwest region) for a seminar put on by the Peace Corps. During this seminar we were meant to reflect/present on the observations that we have made during our first three months at post. We also recieved much information on project planning and funding opportunities so we can have more direction on where we want our work to go over these next couple of years. I have a thousand ideas running through my head as to where I will want my work to go, but as my program manager told me "unless you focus in on one or two projects that you feel passionate about, your work will not be sustainable". So now the challenge will be returning to post and starting the conversations and work that will help me hone in on those projects and start them rolling. With that said, I can't believe how quickly the past three months in Dir have flown by, and I wanted to share some glances of them with you.
The Adamoua Region is nicknamed the "Land of Milk and Honey", which is incredibly accurate as you can find cows and honey all over the place (even on the side of the street!). Cows are a huge part of the cutlure here, particularly for the Mborro people, whose men inherit cows as part of their birthright (unfortunately, since most young boys have a herd of cattle to tend to they do not attend school---and when the Mborro boys do not attend school neither do girls).
Traveling in this country has taught me a lot, mostly how to find humor in the situation and learning how to be patient. The coasters here will take you almost anywhere, but they do not run on a schedule, so you simply have to wait for the car to fill up before the driver leaves. I have had some voyages go incredibly smoothly, where you arrive exactly at your destination time. And then, I have had some voyages that are extended six hours because the tire popped and we need to wait for the next coaster to show up to fix it! Something I do absolutely love about this country though is that whenever you voyage you really do become a community with the people on the coaster with you (and you kind of have to because you are practically sitting on top of each other--its crazy how many people the driver will load into the car!)
A shot of the medical center in Dir! Behind the health center, there are fields that the doctor owns and that I am hopefully going to start a small soy farm on. With that I hope to integrate nutrition counseling for HIV + patients.
My house-- Cameroonians have about three or four colors that they use for painting here so voila, my house is painted pink! Most people in Dir live in mud brick houses, with straw roofs so I feel incredibly lucky to be living in such a modern/beautiful home (as another plus cemented houses are supposed to keep out scorpions!)
My friend, Olivia, working the fields. This is a shot of the field, after it has been cleared of herbs and burned. Now she is starting to work the earth to prepare it for seeds. Agriculture is a huge part of the culture in Cameroon, and close to 70% of people work the fields/make a living off of the earth. Olivia is one of my true friends in village, and she is always teaching me things that she calls the "True African Experience" = ) You might not be able to see in this picture but note, how she is working barefoot and in a dress!
My neighbors sitting around a eating lunch. In Dir, the main food group is cassava (called manioc), and people eat it (in the form of cous cous) about three times a day! (Unfortunately, it is one of the only Cameroonian dishes I do not like = P ) Food is served on big plates and everyone gathers around to eat the manioc with their hands and dip it in traditional sauces. The diet here is a huge source of malnutrition in the community, as manioc has a lot of calories (and leaves people feeling full) but has almost no nutritional value. One of my favorite things about the culture here, is how generous people are with their food. No matter what, if someone shows up during eating time (and it could be a brother, or it could be a complete stranger) they are offered food as a means of welcoming them and helping them feel at home.
Nurse Eric and I working the vaccination table on market day. I am learning so much from Eric about health care in this country and vaccination days are some of my favorites. The Cameroonian government provides free vaccination for all infants 0-11 months and there is never a lack of women with their infants. Here you can see some of the traditional outfits women wear, and you can also see how comfortable women are with breastfeeding in public here (it is seen as natural so there is no shame in it). Within the past months, I have started accompanying Eric and Papa Iza (the other nurse at the health center who works with vaccinations) into the bush to help with vaccinations. These days have really opened my eyes to the extreme conditions of poverty that these Cameroonian families are living in.
For Christmas this year, a fellow volunteer found me a kitten! If you would have told me seven months ago that I would be in love with a cat I would have told you "No way! I'm a dog person". But life here is full of suprises and sure enough I am head over heels for Pistache. She was tiny when I first got her so I carried her around with me almost everywhere and so now the people of Dir know her very well, and a normal salutation for me is "Amanda, ca va?" "Comment va Pistache?" She is about 3 1/2 months old now, and here is a picture of her with her namesake (pumpkin seeds, which are used here to make sauces).
For Women's day (March 8th) I partook in a traditional dance, from the East region, with a couple of other village girls. Here we are interpreting a dance about fishing at the river. Sylvie (the girl in front) is wearing the traditional outfit (Fortunately she did not have two of them, as even though I'm feeling comfortable in Dir, I'm not quite ready to wear coconut shells in front of the community!)
Interpreting another traditional dance!
Here I am with a group of women, getting ready to march in front of the community for Women's Day. Women's Day is a big event here, and the celebration started 4 days before March 8th. The women participated in sporting events (cross country races, soccer matches against a nearby village, and handball matches), prepared a culinary feast at a local bar, cleaned all the important building in Dir, and presented dances and sketches in front of the community. In the tradition of wearing a "uniform" the Cameroonian government issues a Women's Day tissue every year so that women can look "ensemble" for the big day!
Also, for Women's Day, there was a big dinner and dance party in the evening at the Mayor's house. Here I am with the nurses at the hospital taking a break from dancing = ) (I have grown to absolutely love Cameroonian music and dance moves!)
A picture with Norbert, my community host, his wife Djanabo, and their 4 month old daughter Angeline. Norbert was such a help during my first three months in Dir and he really watches out for me, often calling me his (ELEVENTH!) child. As part of the seminar that the Peace Corps had last week, they have asked us to identify a member of the community, that we feel we will be able to work with succesfully during the next two years. Norbert is the general secretary to the mayor of Dir and has a real sense of what development is. He also has a lot of experience in agriculture and working with HIV + populations, so I was more than happy to make him my counterpart and have him travel with me to Bamenda.
