TravelStream™ news feed for member pcmonkey on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/pcmonkey en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Tue, 19 Apr 2005 21:45:32 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/pcmonkey/east_timor/1113958680/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/pcmonkey/east_timor/1113958680/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/pcmonkey/east_timor/1113958680/tpod.html Tue, 19 Apr 2005 21:45:32 -0400 Peace Corps East Timor, 2 years (hopefully) on the other side of the world

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Viqueque/Baccau, Timor-Leste

A few weeks ago a friend and I took a mini-vacation to the central part of the country. We spent a few days at the beach in Baccau and then travelled south through the mountains visiting a few PCV friends along the way. It was really nice to get out and see other parts of the country, especially the beach! Baccau has a beautiful private lagoon beach. We were the only ones on the beach and spent the day swimming in the crystal clear water and watching dolphins off in the distance. The city of Baccau is built up on the mountain and so it is a five minute car ride down the mountain to the beach, and since no one really lives down near the beach it is often difficult to find a car. The city is amazing, definitely one of the nicest cities I have seen in Timor so far. The market sells an amazing variety of vegetables, I was shocked by the selection, just as good as what you find in Dili. Plus there is a nice hotel with swimming pool that we could not afford to stay in but enjoyed walking around and dreaming. After Baccau we went further into the mountains to a little town called Ossu. It was so completely different from little mountain town. The mountains in the center of the island are more spread out and rolly than then mountains of Ermera. In Ossu you can see great distances and also there is such a diversity of trees and plant life. Ossu is what I think of when I think of tropical mountains, whereas Ermera is more like jagged mountains with dense coffee forests and tall shade trees. When you come to a clearing in Ermera all you can see is mountains in every direction, but in Ossu you see the valleys filled with rice fields and horses grazing. Another thing that struck me was the amount of water everywhere, it seemed every bend in the road had another spring or waterfall. After Ossu we went to Viqueque to district capitol. It was flat and hot. Just your typical mid-size city in Timor. It was interesting how the people changed with the geography. The people in the central region were much more Asian looking than the people in my region who have more Indonesian characteristics.

That was pretty much the extent of our little vacation. Not much is really going on in my site. I haven't found any projects yet. Most days I spend the morning in the clinic and the afternoon visiting with my family or neighbors. I don't actually do anything in the clinic besides talk on the radio with other clinics in Timor. I have faith that one day people will think of a use for me and until then I just plan to continue developing relationships with the members of my community. I now live by myself and that definitely makes it easier to make friends. Before people wouldn't just come by my families house to hang out with me because my family is so important. Another good thing about living by myself is that the people in my community see that I am not like the other foreigners in Timor. They see that I don't have fancy furniture or American food. I eat the same things they eat and if anything they have nicer things in their house than I do. Meaning often times they feel sorry for me and bring me food and things because they worry that I don't have enough, especially my family who thinks that I am just barely scraping by. So people don't look at me like an outsider or a cash-cow, just as some poor American come to learn about life in Timor. It is almost coffee season, June is when the coffee really starts coming. Right now the trees are starting to ripen and everyone promises me that once it comes time to pick beans Fatubessi will be a lot more fun. The teenagers and young adults come back from the capitol and the money starts rolling in and there are parties all the time. It is hard to imagine my village being more than the quiet sleepy town I have see thus far and I can't wait to see what fun looks like in Timor.

A few people have been asking about sending packages and letters and how they can help with any projects in my community. Since I have no projects going on I have no suggestions on things people back home can contribute. But if you want to send things anyway this is how...

***VIA DARWIN AUSTRALIA**** (it is important to write this really big and bold and if the post office asks where you want the package sent you can tell them Darwin and it will come here. If they don't see the Via Darwin packages and letters tend to get lost in Indonesia or sent back to the states)

Anne Castelvecchi
Corpo de Paz
Caixa Postal 310
Dili, East Timor

Okay so I will keep up the hard work and thanks to everyone who responds, I really enjoy the feedback and news from home.

-Anne
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/pcmonkey/east_timor/1104113220/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/pcmonkey/east_timor/1104113220/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/pcmonkey/east_timor/1104113220/tpod.html Sun, 26 Dec 2004 22:01:57 -0500 Peace Corps East Timor, 2 years (hopefully) on the other side of the world

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Fatubessi, Timor-Leste

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR!! I know a lot of people are concerned about me with the earthquakes and tsunamis, but I actually didn't feel a thing. I have felt three minor earthquakes in the last three months but nothing to even be concerned about, each time I thought that I was just feeling things. So now that everyone knows I am okay...

This year I decided, against my better judgment, to spend Christmas with my host family in the mountains. All the other volunteers either went to Bali, which I couldn't do, or they wanted to experience Timorese Christmas. Which in my town was just a traditional Catholic Christmas. We went to a night service on Christmas Eve and they told the story of Jesus. It was both beautiful and silly. For example, when they rang the bells and lit the candles and sang praise to Jesus they also has a bullhorn with a siren that they used, because they think it sounds pretty. And the language is very simple, so when a group of hundreds of people are saying the equivalent of "I am stupid and Jesus is smart. He was very sick for me..." They just don't have a big enough vocabulary so everyone always sounds like five year olds and the fact they are excited by simple things, like bullhorns and balloons. Christmas day we went back to church in the morning and then afterwards had a big feast. All of my host dad's children came in from school and he was so happy to have all 9 of his children under one roof. He actually kept saying he was happy to have all 10, because he counts me. I am 4 months younger than the oldest daughter and he always talks about how proud he is of her. He likes me living there because I remind him of her. SO all the immediate family was there, the girls prepared a big feast, we killed 2 pigs and 4 chickens (and some vegetables and eggs for me) then my dads brothers and sisters and cousins came over and we had ate together and talked about being thankful for family and such. It was pretty much like Christmas at home. Except the food was different, the people were different, and we had rain instead of snow, (the rain always makes people think of Christmas here). SO my Christmas was nothing exciting and it was so close to Christmas at home that it made me homesick. Which is why next year I am going to spend it with Americans.

I did enjoy hanging out with the older kids that came home for the holidays. Mom was so excited that the kids were coming because they can help around the house, and when they arrived that is all they did. The girls spent all day in the kitchen, washing clothes, watching children, etc. While the boys got to goof around. Girls in this country have it pretty rough. The brothers spend all day goofing around and when they come home they just plop down on the porch and shout, "bring me some coffee" and the girls drop what they are doing to get it for him. If they want water and it is out of reach they shout out for there sisters to bring it to them. And since most of them live in Dili they are used to cooking with gas and having electricity and when they get here they have to cook over the fire all day and haul water and such. I tried to help them out as much as I could but they don't like me doing anything like that because I will get dirty or tired. All of my sisters are going to school to get real jobs so that they will not have to get married because they don't want to be a Timorese wife. The oldest is in the military, one is becoming a nun, and another a police officer. It seems strange to me that people would dedicate their life to Jesus to avoid marriage or for the men just to guarantee work. The sister that is becoming a sister, actually doesn't even like to go to church and she really likes boys and being girly and pretty. But because she doesn't want to be a slave to a man she joined the convent. Another big thing that happened is that dad gave the oldest daughter (23) permission to date boys. Last year he found out she had a boyfriend and beat her, not too bad I am sure. They asked me lots of questions about America and are amazed that my dad lets me have boyfriends, that my oldest brother is married and has no children yet, that men cook and clean too, that my mom tells my dad what to do as much as the other way around, etc. I wish that I could do something to end the oppression. But my house is considered pretty liberal because the women eat in the same room as the men, so they have a pretty long way to go. The women are ready, but understandably the men are reluctant to give up their slaves.

I will be spending New Years camping on the beach and snorkeling with the other volunteers. I am sure that it will be a great time, but whenever I am gone for more than a few days I really miss my family in Fatubessi and my house and Timorese friends. It is quickly becoming my home. Hope everyone at home is well and enjoying the holidays.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/pcmonkey/east_timor/1101353520/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/pcmonkey/east_timor/1101353520/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/pcmonkey/east_timor/1101353520/tpod.html Wed, 24 Nov 2004 22:45:42 -0500 Peace Corps East Timor, 2 years (hopefully) on the other side of the world

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Fatubessi, Timor-Leste

After a few minor problems Peace Corps decided to move my site from Soloi to Fatubessi. So I have been living the last month in a town called Fatubessi, it is a lot like my old site... equally beautiful, cold, in the mountains etc. The great thing about my new town is that it combines all my favorite things.. trees, coffee, monkeys, and mountains. I have yet to actually see a monkey but I have heard stories of people going on monkey hunts. The last few weeks I have just been hanging out and getting to know the community. It is very small and spread out over a large area, so you never see more than 5-6 people in one area. The houses are clumped in groups of three or four with about a ten minute walk through the coffee forests to get another clump. So that makes it difficult to organize any large meetings in town, so I will be doing a lot more one on one work with people. After one month I have no idea what my contribution to the community is going to be, when I ask people what they want from me and why they asked for a volunteer they tell me, "We like to be friends with Americans." really right now they are just excited to have a foriegner living like them. The town has no electricty, no running water, and the roads wash out in the rainy season. But they do have plenty of springs so nobody goes to far for water and everybody has a home garden so from my understanding there is no shortage of vegetables. Right now I am in Dili for Thanksgiving at the country directors house. I just wanted to let everyone know that I am doing well relaxing in the mountains. Happy Thanksgiving.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/pcmonkey/east_timor/1096707480/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/pcmonkey/east_timor/1096707480/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/pcmonkey/east_timor/1096707480/tpod.html Sat, 02 Oct 2004 05:22:50 -0400 Peace Corps East Timor, 2 years (hopefully) on the other side of the world

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Soloi, Timor-Leste

I just spent the last week visiting the village that I will be calling home for the next two years. It is located in the district of Aileau (pronounced Eye-lay-oh) about 2 hours by public truck from Dili. My village is called Soloi and it is absolutely amazingly beautiful. My town is built around valley that looks like an oasis. People have built their houses on the side of the mountain and in the valley they grow rice using the lake to irrigate the fields. My house is on a flat space shared by only one other house and the view is amazing. It is about 100 ft up the mountain and I spent many hours everyday just drinking coffee and looking down at the valley. They way they build the patties is by creating low rock walls around the various plots, which creates a patchwork quilt look for the valley. And right now they are getting ready to plant which means they are letting the water buffalos, horses, and goats roam the rice fields in order to break up the earth. On the day before they plant they flood the fields and the gather all the water buffalo and run them through the various plots to really break up the earth. I hope that I am back in time to see that. As for the community they are pretty wonderful, if not a bit over protective. They are so worried that something will happen to me. I am perfectly capable of getting on a truck by myself but my family insists on going with me and writing down the number of the truck in case something happens to me so that they can report it. It is comforting to know that they care but at the same time I get irritated when I have to wait around for them. I am sure when they are a little more confident in my abilities to get around they will give me more independence. I guess I should say a little more about the area that is my home... it is only a 45 minute walking to the closest "big" city (Aileau city) and two volunteers live there so it is nice to know that I always have a place to go if I need contact with other Americans. The entire area is green and lush, even now in the dry season. Plus I am in horse country so I am hoping to invest in a horse and ride it everywhere. The horses here are mostly short and scrawny but I have seen a few beefy looking ones that could carry me around. As for the work that I hope to be doing it will mainly be with the education system, I think. The community has repeatedly mentioned that they want me to teach English in the schools, but I tell them I would rather teach the teachers English so that the kids can continue to learn while I am gone. And if they want me to work with students it will be as a science teacher or math or creative writing. The people here have no concept of thinking for yourself or of the world around. They ask me really strange questions like, "did you drive here from America?" "are you going back to America this weekend?" "do you have stars in America?" "Is there a moon in America?" and if you ask them a question that is not yes or no or you ask them to tell you something about their day they just look at you like you are crazy. In school they just repeat the same phrases over and over again and they spend all their time learning languages, Bahasa (Indonesian), Portugese, and English.
I am also hoping to work with some womens groups and maybe some youths. We will see how it goes when I move in for good the first week in November. Right now I am back in Hera finishing up training, which is good because I just found out that everyone in my town speaks Maumbi and I speak Tetun. I have a lot of learning to do.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/pcmonkey/east_timor/1093836840/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/pcmonkey/east_timor/1093836840/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/pcmonkey/east_timor/1093836840/tpod.html Sun, 29 Aug 2004 23:52:10 -0400 Peace Corps East Timor, 2 years (hopefully) on the other side of the world

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Dili, Timor-Leste

I arrived in Dili two weeks ago and after 4 days in the city moved to a suburb called Hera to live with a host family. Dili is a lot different than Port-au-Prince. It is surprisingly clean and not very crowded. Everywhere you go you see evidence of the recent struggle for independence. About a third of the population was murdered by the inodnesians (200,000 people roughly), which explains the lack of people in the capitol city. Every other car that drives by is UN or some other NGO working here to rebuild. Every third building is just a burnt shell. If the building isn't burnt it is shiny and new as are the roads because everything here has been rebuilt since 1999. It is a really interesting time to be here in this country. The people here are very friendly, they don't harass you or beg for money. There are lots of good places to eat (thanks to all the foreigner!) and also you can find many of the things you can at home. DVDs and CDs are sold all over the place as are cameras and American/asain food! So that is all very comforting. However, once you leave Dili and head into the suburbs and especially in the countryside all the conveniences are lost.

I am currently living with a family of nine (I think, it is hard to tell who is family and who is just sleeping there) in the town of Hera. My house is made completely of palm and located right on the beach. It stays amazingly cool. It has dirt floors, no running water, a latrine outside, and electricity, tv, and DVD. The modern and the primitive merge in my house. We spend most of our free time playing soccer on the beach with the kids or sitting on the porch drinking coffee. On occassion we will watch Indian music videos or Van damme. The food here is very delicious. Mainly rice and a vegetable dish but you can defintely taste the asian influence. Oh my family gives me tofu and tempeh on a very regular basis!

I spend about 6 hours a day 6 days a week in class learning the local language (tetun) and also agriculture and sustainable development techniques. Most of it is a repeat of what I learned in Peace Corps Haiti, with the exception of the language and elements of the culture. They do however grow the same crops in similar conditions and suffer many of the same problems. The biggest difference is population size. Because the country isn't overpopulated and the people just recently won their indepence it is easy to believe that there is a better chance for change here. I guess I will see with time!!

From the other side of the world,

Anne
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