Watch the Walk

This wrap is traditional to Clove Island. It's traditionally worn like a sari, but over a full outfit, adding style and propriety. Like many other things, it can serve multiple purposes. Here are just a few ideas: 1. Tortilla steamer: homemade tortillas need to steam a little after being cooked. The island wrap is perfect for this. 2. Sweat rag: what better use when you're sweating like crazy on a hike and are wearing yards of extra fabric? 2. Blanket: cold on a "winter" night? Time to break in that new island wrap by wrapping up in it! 3. Curtain: hang it up and you've got privacy anywhere! Too bright out? Hang an island wrap and you're "covered." 4. Carrying bag: not enough hands? Tie it up and sling it on your back. 5. Baby sling: an alternate on the carrying bag concept. 6. Beach blanket: packs small and spreads out large. 7. Towel: forgot your towel? Just pick up your "beach blanket" and towel off! 8. Tablecloth: want a "pi...

Picnicking before the month of fasting begins I find it intriguing how an entire society can change to revolve around fasting.  -- Every morning I hear a guy running around at 2AM telling people to eat before the sun rises. -- Some nights the bakery next door will be baking bread at midnight. It's easier to smell fresh baked bread when you're allowed to eat it, rather than when you're fasting. -- Shops stay open later in the afternoon, but then open later in the evening. Instead of being closed 1-5, they're closed 3-8. This way people cooking for their "breaking the fast feast" can shop later in the day rather than first thing in the morning. Shop owners who are going to pray at the last call to prayer reopen their shops after prayer. -- Everyone is thinking about fasting. At the beginning of the month, the question everyone asked me was always "are you fasting? Did you fast today? Are you able to fast?" Now the question is "How many days did yo...

how's that for a huge nose stud? All fixed! On my last trip to Kenya I got my nose pierced. My nose healed nicely and, when a friend gave me a gold stud for my birthday (to match the style most women with pierced noses here have), I pulled out the old one and put in the new one. The new one didn't fit very well, so I pulled it out and adjusted it with a handy pair of pliers, then put it back in. Three weeks later, I rubbed my nose and the nose stud broke! I'm guessing I killed its' structural integrity when I amateur-fixed it. Now, I've been told that nose piercings close up pretty quickly, so I put an earring in to keep the hole open. Unfortunately, I own zero stud-style earrings. My housemate was kind enough to loan me a pearl stud so I could go out of the house without a dangle earring in my nose. I went off to a nearby town to look for either a new nose stud or a jeweler to fix my old stud. The goldsmith at work After a couple re-directions, I ended up waiting o...

Long hikes can get dirty Sometimes things don't go the way you expect them to go. Like the outing I went on recently with some islander friends. We were prepared for a fairly easy walk up a river. They were dressed in nice wraps and even had makeup on. Several hours later we were clinging to rocks to keep from falling in the river and bushwhacking straight up a large hill. In retrospect, it was a fun outing. Just not as expected. This last weekend I went to a conference for English teachers that was organized by colleagues on another island. We had a wonderful plan. There were 4 teachers from my team, plus 6 islanders all signed up for the conference and we were all going to take a boat together on Thursday. The conference started on Saturday, so it seemed like a good day to travel. Waterfall on the hike Wednesday night our team leader's house helper saw on TV that our boat wasn't traveling Thursday, but was delayed until Friday. Well, that's fine. Bonus day on island! ...

If you look closely, you can see the rainbow! The other day I was observing an islander while he taught how to fill out visas forms in English, providing all the information that governments like to know before someone officially enters their country. And suddenly it struck me again—this is all cultural!  Let me give you an example: addresses. Here in the islands, the closest I have to a physical address is telling the neighborhood I live in and the house owner’s name. A person who is looking for me has to come to my neighborhood and ask the neighbors where I live or where that particular house is. It’s like saying “I live at Daniel’s mother’s house, near the golf course.” Try plugging that into a GPS! Running through town singing after a soccer win Or here’s another one: names. In the US, the most confusing it normally gets is when someone either has two middle names or none. Here, the first name is your given name, the second name is your father’s name, and the third name is the...

Smile for the camera! So, as I left the story, the meeting was over and we all went home. But the saga continued... See, I showed up for the first class session to find this student "sitting in wait" for me outside. Student: "Teacher, there's a problem." Me: "Oh? What's the problem?" Student: "The administrator said I could go to class, but I just went in and my name isn't on the list." Me: "Okay, and what should I do?" Student: "Are you okay for me to go to class?" Me: "Are you sure the administrator agreed that you could go to class?" Student: "Yes, he said it's okay." Me: "If he agreed then I have no problem. He's in charge of the class list." So we entered the class. I tried to include the student from the start, so as not to stigmatize him from the rest of the class. During the first group practice time, however, the administrator pulled me aside. "Abby, we have a pro...

Goofing off with a little friend It all started with a solar panel. Because of the power situation on the island and students preferring late afternoon/evening classes, at least half of our classes taught at this particular school are done shrouded in darkness. The administrator has done an excellent job of keeping battery-powered light bars charged and available for class use, but they're nothing compared to an actual light fixture in the classroom. So he suggested investing in a solar panel. The group of administrators also agreed that it was an excellent idea. We're volunteer teachers, so the money wouldn't come from us. What students pay for the class mostly goes towards books, CDs, and the final certificate ceremony, so the leftover funds would be insufficient to buy a solar panel, inverter, and a battery. We were just meeting before classes started to talk details-- an orientation, if you will -- all three levels, together with administrators and teachers. He mentione...