The Weekend

Every morning I wake up I still feel like im in my bed and then I look around at our 2x2 room and remember where I am. Don’t be thrown off by the description of my room because all I have to do is walk 10 second away from my room and see the most beautiful view ever!!! Each day gets more exciting and I am reassured that this was the best decision I have ever made.

So to get you caught up in my weekend events….

Friday was another long day of presentations and group discussions, that are always so delightful J. We had a whole session just on diarrhea….enough said. We also talked about our observations and assumptions of the culture here in Samoa. That will be a whole other post….

Once we were finally released on Friday we had plans for a Peace Corps Samoa tradition of boys and girls night. The girls would be going to PCV Blakey’s house, and the boys went to a male PCV house. We were able to talk to the volunteers and ask them any remaining questions that we had that maybe were too embarrassing to ask in front of staff. It was very comforting to talk to people that have been in our shoes and to see where we will eventually be. The night included food and drinks and then we met up with the boys at a place called Zodiac. The atmosphere was awesome, outside seating and a live band. A good time was had by all!

Saturday I woke up pretty early, 6:30 AM. I walked into the main part of town with my roommate Natalie. We went to the food market and the flea market. I also went into the McDonalds and was very tempted to get a egg McMuffin. The food market was full of produce I have never seen before and of familiar things as well. I bought some cucumbers and the young girl gave me a free papaya in return. Such nice people here! I made my first big mistake by buying another sim card for my phone, I was under the impression that to add more money to your phone you had to buy a new card each time. By buying a new card I was given a new number which was no good because everyone including staff already had my first one. No worries though I got help from a current volunteer to switch it back and everyone in group 83 was able to learn from my mistake!

We only spent a couple hours at the market because Blakey invited us to go to the beach!!! Something I have been waiting for all week. I was nervous because the weather was cloudy and rainy but as soon as we got to the other side of the island it was the most perfect day. The beach was everything I expected; gorgeous and just a picture for a postcard. I posted some pictures…mainly the one picture all my friends are dying to see…me in the one piece!!! It wasn’t horrible guys. The day was so relaxing and fun, it was just what we needed. Some of the boys were proving themselves to us girls by cracking open coconuts. Danny attempted to climb the tree but sadly failed. Some of us took naps in the Fale’s when we were tired from the sun. We all did a little kayaking and around 5pm the taxis were ready to take us home! After a little rest and some showers a group of us went to a local Italian place for pizza. It was delicious! We walked back to the hotel and to drop some people off and pick others up who wanted to go to a local bar for some beers. There is only one kind of beer here, and its not the best and at times you can get a skunky one. So far I have had pretty good luck. It was a early night for everyone and we were home by eleven and soundly asleep by 11:30.

Sunday was white Sunday, a day for the children. We were invited by a PC staff member, Tavita, to attend his church. He goes to a Anglican church and lets just say it was a little different from what I am used to. The first hour it was the children performing different songs, skits, and lots of interpretive dancing. I regret not bringing my camera. The children were all dressed in white and ranged from about 3 to 20. The first thing I noticed is that they teach children to sing and harmonize at a very young age. It was amazing to hear all these young children singing so perfectly together. There were other performances that were interesting. There was an interpretive dance to the popular American song, Just the way you are. There was also one child who ran through everyone’s performances hitting a balloon around and then throwing what we would call a temper tantrum in the middle of the floor. It was the day of the children, so there was no reprimand for her actions, they just turned up the music louder. After the show was done there was a quick ceremony, about 15 minutes and church was over. We were invited to tea after where there was lots of food and even ice cream! We all felt welcomed and enjoyed every minute we were there.

Once we got home there was a lot of laying around and computer time. I was able to Skype with my family and some friends. It was wonderful to see their faces J. A small group of us went next store for fish and chips and then watched a movie in one of the rooms. Well I attempted to watch but fell asleep after an hour. Tevi commented that it felt like we were in college again, and our rooms do have a dorm feel to them. I got up and walked down to my room to get ready for bed. Natalie and I watched the first episode of true blood and were fast to sleep after that.

Today we are going out on a boat for our water and safety class.  I hope to get in the water and do some snorkeling. The day is beautiful so we should run into any problems.

I have posted some pictures below and I hope to have a link to albums soon!!!