TIKO

OK so I am starting to get situated at least a little. I have moved into my house which is in a compound with other neighbors so it will be very safe. I have a 3 bedroom place with electricity and running water most of the time. Much better than most volunteers homes. So I am happy. I still am trying to figure out how to eat here. I
do not cook well as most of you know. In Cameroon most people eat at home there are very few restaurants. I have been eating at the owner of the schools house almost every night so far. They cook some good food. I have got my breakfast down, I buy eggs and fruit and bread and it is very pleasant. I eat lunch usually near my school which has fish mamas who sell fish with this long brownish thing that actually tastes pretty good called Miando. I always forget the name of it and am not sure if it is a vegetable or fruit. They have this hot sauce called Pepe that is excellent.

As far as my work goes it is about a 25 minutes walk to work from my home. I can take a taxi but I have actually started to enjoy the walk. My work here has been an extreme challenge. I have 4 working computers, 3 of which are Pentium 1 and the other a 486 machine (Do you remember those?) It brought back memories when I saw it. Trying to run a downgraded win 98 OS is painfully slow. But it works. I am supposed to be receiving more computers soon. But from what I have seen I should expect them later more than sooner.

I have around three hundred kids who desperately want to learn computers. I am still trying to figure out a system to teach the kids. It has been more chaos than anything so far. They all want to stay after school and during breaks on the computer. I am amazed at how much time students will stand and watch another student use the windows paint program for hours at a time. Many students do not even know the difference between a mouse and keyboard while some have there own email accounts. So it has been very difficult to teach material.

They have not complained once about the lack of computers which surprises me. The students are very respectful and always call me sir, usually. The education system here is completely different. The first week of school is just manual labor. The principal had some students clean my yard in front of my house. There is a fixed time schedule but it is really flex. I still haven’t figured out the timing of the whole thing. I am also very free to teach and do what I want. We have had no administration meetings. So I am just trying to figure a plan out that works. I am used to Corporate America where we over plan and sit in way to many meetings so this is the EXTREME opposite.

On another note…. I joined a Country Club in Tiko. Of course it is not American Standards, but it has a huge pool, bar restaurant, satellite television and tennis courts with lights! I was shocked when I found it. I found out it is very expensive… 10 dollar initiation fee plus 2 dollars each month for membership. But it is so worth it. Now the goal is to try to find a tennis racquet and then tennis players to play. Over time it will work out.

On another note, I was riding in a taxi cramped between a bunch of other people heading somewhere and was sweating profusely because of the heat, there was a screaming pig in the hatchback of the taxi that someone had bought for food and I was very uncomfortable and then the driver puts in a Bob Marley tape into the stereo and then all of a sudden I was laughing at my situation. It is funny how little things like that can make you feel better.

There have been three volunteers in my training group that have quit since our initiation. I am not sure the exact reason but I assume they just simply were not happy here.

I am working on putting together a website for my school, mainly due to the fact that we would like to find funding to help the technology level of this school. If you know of any organization or person who would like to help. Let me know. Thanks.

Nice to hear from all of you, keep in touch and thanks in advance to those who send me packages, I always heard from people that getting packages is so great, now I understand completely.