Watch the Walk

“That’s not how you make it!”   She laughed at me, but with a shocked look on her face. “Your mouth will burn up that way!” Hmm. That sounds about right. How you really cook it. See, there’s this strange grass-like thing in the market. I see women selling big bags full of it, and I’ve asked them what it is, but knowing the name doesn’t really help unless you already know the plant. Then I realized that it was actually a big leaf that they cut into thin strips to sell. So not grass-like at all. And still a mystery. One day there was a distinct lack of vegetables in the market, so I started asking more questions about this unfamiliar plant. I asked if you could eat it like a salad, and the ladies of the market assured me that it tasted delicious. Chances are, they didn’t understand my question, but just wanted me to buy from them!  So I took the new plant home and added it to a salad. Have you ever tried eating shredded fiberglass? I haven’t either, but that’s the impression I ...

Once upon a time, a group of white(or somewhat white) people went hiking on their little island. I'd say the hike was no fairy tale, but even Little Red Riding Hood got chased (or eaten, depending on the version) by a wolf. So fairy tales are sometimes more dangerous than expected also. Are you enjoying the suspense yet? Well, our hike was full of suspense too! It all started with a friend of our team leader who suggested that we climb the tallest mountain on the island. It's only a little over 5,000 feet high, and we'd be starting at a decent elevation, so it sounded like a fun adventure. Plus, many people said you could see all the surrounding islands from the top of this mountain. Most of the rest of the team though it sounded like fun too, so we started planning. Reports from islanders about the trip were varied and vague. Would it be 3 hours roundtrip? Six hours? We planned for the longer estimate, figuring that at the latest we'd be back mid-afternoon. Would it ra...

This was my first Christmas away from home and I totally expected the worst: miserable homesickness, lame celebrations, loneliness, and maybe some food poisoning thrown in for good measure. I'm now here to say that it was far better than I asked or expected. But for your perusal, here's a bit of what Christmas looked like here: Christmas baking: as a team, we alternated which house with an oven to use for baking each day. I'll have you know that we successfully navigated many substitutions or alterations in the recipes to fit with the food items available here. One example would be peanut cookies-- we started by roasting and peeling the paper off several cups of peanuts! Jess even made lasagna, but she had to start by making ricotta cheese and lasagna noodles. Despite the challenges, we produced a lot of amazing food! Lessons in carols: on Christmas Eve we got together and sang carols, interspersed with Scripture readings. It was a beautiful time of remembering ...

I'm experimenting with a new form of blogging: handwritten. So here it goes:

Hi everyone, It's been awhile since I last updated, so here's a bit of news to start off with: -- homestay went well. I learned a lot of language bits and pieces then, but now have to assimilate it into my general vocabulary. The family I stayed with was super hospitable, and they made sure that I experienced a lot during my time there. We climbed a hill, had a picnic, visited a mineral spring, got water from a fresh water spring, cooked, made flower necklaces, visited a bakery and an aluminum pot making place, and a variety of other things. -- I'm now settled into my home with Jess. It's a second story suite, with rooftop access. We have water issues, which you can read more about on Jess' blog. -- language learning is now my full-time job. I'm working with language helpers to acquire phrases and vocabulary, then practicing in the community. It's a fun challenge, and some people have started greeting me by name. Now let me tell you about our burn barrel. Se...

This is going to be a super short update also. You can read a little about my homestay experience here . I have another couple posts coming shortly.

After a week in the islands, here are a few reflections, notes, and random thoughts : - sweat has become the new normal. It's not a question of whether you sweat, but how much. - the contrast here between beauty and dirty poverty is dramatic. The ocean and palm trees are beautiful, but the garbage along the coast isn't. - islanders are very friendly. Each day as we go on language walks it's amazing to see the happy reactions. May I always be excited to see new people. - with more physical challenges, I recognize anew my need for the father's daily support. - cold showers are no sacrifice - rundown roads serve as decent substitutes for speed limits. - I'm super grateful for my team. The whole "when one is down another picks him up" bit is really neat. This week we'll be living in host homes to better learn the local culture and bond with our new people. I'd appreciate being lifted before the father, as I expect it will be physically and emotionally ...