Monday: Still recovering from a terrible sunburn, I started school. I got there at 8:30 and was told to think of song and rhymes for the kids (there are only 30 students in total). I sat for a few minutes, thinking, and realized that my principal wouldn't be back for a while. So...for 2 hours, I played with the kids, and my principal told me that she wanted me to teach all 30 kids (ages 5-11)every day for 2 hours while she and the other teacher found rides to this village. Umm... Anyway, we were done by about 11 because it was the first day. My principal gave me lunch-- fish, hopa, and potatoes. Enough for about 3 meals. After school, two of my students took me to a beautiful lookout called Matamahina Hopo. I can't wait to go back to take pictures. I was afraid these beautiful scenes would start getting mundane to me in this island life, but not so. I couldn't stop staring, mouth gaping open, brain lapsing into silence. We were so high that the birds were hundreds of yards below us. What a place it is, when you're on ground, but the birds seem as far away as the forest canopy.
Tuesday: You know that whole teaching-all-30-kids-at-once thing? Yeah. Disaster. After my overwhelmed self talked to my principal, we decided to change things around. Now (as far as I know...some things can be lost in translation), I will teach Class 4-6 (age 8-11) in the morning for about 45 mins, then I'll teach PE to all the kids in the afternoon, which is great since we have a huge field to play in. I also made 2 batches of siamu lesu (papaya jam), mashed potatoes for lunch (it was soooooo good), and baked brownies for my Tongan BFF who is now, sadly, in Tongatapu to finish school. I'm sad :( BUT I rode the bus for the first time in 'Eua! It was $1.60 for both ways, which seems silly because the island is so small, but gas is super expensive here. Plus it was nicer than I expected. I'll pay $5 if I don't have to hike a total of 2 hours for groceries! Plus, I got boisenberry ice cream at the market. It tasted like strawberry. I've never been so content in my life.
Wednesday (today): Class was TONS better. The kids had a blast working on verbs (thank goodness for Simon Says), putting sentences together with post-it notes, working on introductions, and practicing pronoun use. In Tongan, you don't have to worry about gender pronouns... it's easy, but it makes learning gender-specific pronouns hard. I made one more batch of siamu lesi, and now have 5 guavas sitting on my table. I also tripped on my concrete steps after school was finished and, of course, knocked a chunk out of the toe that may possibly have an ingrown toenail. It hurts like a mother. For real. I cleaned it with peroxide and antiseptic and it is wrapped with a bandaid and tape. I don't think it needs stitches because it's just a really deep concretey scrape, but it's sure bleeding a lot. The hits just keep on comin'! I attempted to talk to my parents and, later, my sister today by phone, but my phone is a P.O.S. I am so frustrated with the phone and the network! Next month, for my own birthday present, I'm buying a phone from the other phone company here, b/c that network is cheaper for calling home. Hopefully the service will be better. Maybe this island just has bad service. :/
Tomorrow: Teaching again... I need to make banana bread before my bananas go bad! It's still hard for me to eat a banana...
Friday: Teaching, go to town in hopes of scoring some potatoes! I want to make a faux-hashbrown casserole for our Palangi feast on Saturday. That means I get to ride the bus again! Woohoo!
Saturday: Palangi Feast! The theme this time is "Childhood Favorites." Hopefully I'll make hashbrown casserole, biscuits with my siamu lesi, and chocolate-covered peanut butter and crackers, with crunched-up toffee (thanks to my awesome stock of Werther's!...go Uncle Ted and Aunt Debbie!) on top. Yummo!
Sunday: Church, eat, sleep, church, eat, sleep. I tend to like Sundays. Except for the sitting-under-a-yelling-preacher-that-I-can't-understand part. Maybe I"ll go back to the Jehova Witness church. It's air conditioned, plus a Palangi goes there, plus everyone seems happy to be there. I read a booklet about what they believe. Interesting stuff.
Life so far... good. Annoying with all the injuries. I think my speaking abilities are improving, and my comprehension is definitely better. Once everything heals I'd like to start running regularly... that will make things better, I think. I often feel vegetable deprived... the market here has veggies most days, but it's in town, so it's far, and plus the quality isn't always the best. Yesterday I saw an eggplant that was as mushy as melted ice cream. It was gross. And the tomatoes are rarely ripe. Usually, they're green.
School so far...adjusting will have to happen, but the kids are adorable. I love names like "Luvi" and "Monalisa" (I know, right?!)Kulisi (Chris) and "Line" (Lee-nay)... I still get Ana, Malia, and Anamalia mixed up...they look very similar and they're all the same age, so it's very difficult. Plus my memory is awful, so it's always a fun game to guess everyone's name. The kids think it's hilarious.
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