Bits and Pieces of a 5 Popo Week

 It's feeling a lot like home.  The quilt was a gift from a woman in the village I adore. BTW, you're looking at all my furniture except for a green plastic chair.

Did you think you’d really escape another house update?  Insert evil laugh here.  Don’t worry, this one is all good news.  I’ve been in the house for two weeks now and it feels like home.  It’s close to the school, which is very convenient.  It’s close to a beautiful beach, which is amazing.  It gives me space to be alone and a kitchen where I can cook whatever my heart desires.  Well, as long as my heart desires the fairly limited number of ingredients that I can get here.

In retrospect, I think spending time in a small room with no kitchen access and a bathroom shared with up to a dozen people helps me appreciate the place I have now.  I don’t notice the faults, because I’m still thrilled to have a refrigerator and a sink.  I don’t think I needed three months to get that perspective, but water under the bridge.  Bottom line, the house is great and I’m very happy here.  It’s been a five popo week and you’d have to pry me out of here with a crowbar.

On to some things I’ve noticed…

An older man was getting off the bus and I noticed his unusual wristband.  It was a beer coozy with the bottom cut out.  Decorative or functional?  No idea.

Samoans seem to like bright colors and sparkly things.  Two of my school puletasi’s have some type of glitter in the fabric.  A puletasi that was a gift was hand painted with glitter paint.  I’ve never been one for sparkly attire, but kind of like the tiny flecks of glitter left behind on my skin.  Like I’ve been out at a club for the day instead of in school.

Samoans have asked if I’ll wear puletasis after I go home.  When I say “Probably not.” Some seem offended.  One was a woman who lives in New Zealand.  I asked if she wore puletasis there.  “No!” she laughed.  “Can you imagine how people would stare if you wore one to the mall?”  My point exactly.  I will bring my favorites home and will wear them to a few gatherings with friends, just so they can see what my daily attire here is like.

As I type this, I’m listening to a conch horn.  I assume it’s the signal that it’s time to be inside for evening prayer or lotu.  Most of the churches ring a bell or something similar to a bell (like an old oxygen tank) that makes noise.

In the training village when AOG rang the bell, it was as if it was inside my head because it was so close.  It was more annoying than inspiring.  In my current house, it’s just far enough away to be sort of soothing and reassuring.  Except at 5:00 a.m. on Saturday mornings.  That one is still just kind of annoying.

I’d heard that fruit bats were extinct here.  That is not true.  I saw them in the training village.  Big suckers and I’d hate to get dive bombed by one, not that that is likely to happen.  In Savaii, in both my first place and my current house, I hear them at night.  I can hear the wings flapping but mostly I hear what sound like fruit bat fights.  Or maybe it’s fruit bat sex.  I don’t know and don’t really care, but it’s really loud and a bit similar to a cat fight.  Or cat’s having sex.  Except higher pitched and doesn’t usually last as long.  Thank goodness.

Did you know that when pigs are hungry and know that it’s about dinner time they make a lot of noise?  It sounds as if they’re being slaughtered.  Or having sex.  It lasts as long as it takes whoever is preparing the food to start shoveling it out to them.

Speaking of which, the primary food for pigs in Samoa is popo - coconut.  Which means a lot of work.  The coconuts have to be taken down off the trees.  They have to have the husk removed, which is physically challenging.  Then you have to whack the bejeebers out of the coconut with the dull side of a machete.  Then you use the sharp side to score and scrape out chunks of coconut.  I’ve tried from three different families to get a popo per pig ratio of how much they eat.  The response in all three cases was “The right amount.”  Yes, but what is that?  20 popo per pig?  10? 50?  In one case, I was told it was enough to fill two buckets.  That’s the cut up popo.  I’m guessing it takes about 15 popo per pig, twice a day. 

All that popo results in a lot of poop.  I use a flashlight to walk through the yard in the morning to avoid pig, dog, chicken, horse and now bull poop.  I don’t have to walk through a muddy plantation, though, so now my foot issue is the sand I track in, rather than the mud.  So far, I prefer sand.

The other day I was walking to the office on the second floor of the school when I noticed one of the boys waving at me.  Not unusual, except he was looking down at me.  From the flag pole he’d shimmied up.  There’s been a problem with the ropes to hoist the flag and some boys were sent to fix it.  They did. 

I had a chance to be interviewed on camera the other day.  Yup, Monday morning, there I was, looking my sweaty best.  At least I assume I was.  I know I was glowing.  Not sure if I looked my best due to that no mirror thing.  So when a couple of guys showed up with what looked a lot like a TV camera, I hid.  No need to trot out the palagi for an interview.  Unfortunately, they found me.  One of the guys explained it was just to document the research on the use of multi-media in Samoan primary schools and hardly anyone would see it.

I felt better about doing the short interview, right up until the end when he said.  “That’s it for us, Samoa, thanks for watching!”  Please, God, let him be joking and I will not be on national television in Samoa.  Looking like I had just finished a rough session of Hokie Pokie on a really humid day.

I went for a walk last night.  Because I’m in a new neighborhood, I’m getting to interact with folks I haven’t met before.  I’m enjoying my status as a D list celebrity.   Not to brag, but if Kathy Griffin and I strolled down the street together, there would be more people yelling “Nancy!” than “Kathy”.  Granted, most of my fans are under the age of 12 and can’t help me make a living, but still.

As I walked, I could hear the kids alerting kids in the next yard over that I was coming.  The older kids generally tried to play it cool, with just a wave or nod.  Many used the greetings that we’d just practiced, instead of greeting me in Samoan.  Or just asking me for money in Samoan, which is all I got when I first arrived.

The little kids, many of whom have older siblings in school, didn’t hold back.  They lined up on the side of the road.  Some jumping up and down, others squatting, waiting for me to walk by like a 1 person Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.   And the entire walk, kids and some adults, were calling out my name.  It seems to be like a human vocal version of honking when you pass someone you know.

The kids do it at school.  If I walk by a classroom, even if they’re in the middle of a lesson, some of the kids will turn and yell “Nancy!” as I walk by.  They don’t want me to stop.  Just want to let me know they see me.  I wonder if this will last for two years.  If it does, I wonder if I can live without the attention when I leave.

On my walk the other night, I saw one of the Year 6 boys in the ocean with his younger siblings.  His youngest brother was a hoot.  I’m guessing he was about 4.  Wiry and strong, with attitude.  For no particular reason, other than the little kids at school love it, I started yelling “Bear!” then doing a grizzly imitation while chasing him into the water.  He and his sisters loved it.  Their mom and I were laughing out loud as they tripped over each other trying to escape from me.  The boy started playing “Bear” back at me and I acted terrified.  Great fun.

Then he started trying to sing the Bingo song.  At first I didn’t get it because the tune was totally not there, but I heard “NGO” and realized.  I started singing and he and his sisters sang along.  After a couple of times, the little sisters opted to go back in the water.  “Bear Boy”, though, couldn’t seem to get enough.  We’d finish and he’d yell “Toe fai!”  “Again!”  I almost lost my voice but smiled all the way home.

Photos!

Life is going well. The girl with the broken arm was taken to the hospital, eventually and they transferred her to the hospital in Apia. She's home and doing well. The kids are behaving, we had a major rainstorm and my house didn't leak and all right in my world. Hope you enjoy the photos!

A friend admitted she didn't know how bananas grew.  Here's a photo.

Occasionally we have special treats at tea time.  This is vaisalo.  Fabulous stuff, made of just the water from a niu (young coconut), some stuff like tapioca and boiled down until it thickens.  I'll be making this.  Low cal, healthy and delicious.

 The stickers you've sent are very popular.  These are on a math notebook.

 

I haven't seen a doll since I got to Samoa, so thought it was finny to see this tiny doll's arm near the beach fale.

 

This is for the Orlando firefighter whose wedding I'll miss.  These guys are the firefighters in Savaii.  Playing volleyball and chillin'.

 

Samoans are great at flower arranging, most with no training.  Arrangements like these are made by church members every week.  This lady sells hers in the market in Apia.  It would cost about $30 USD.

 

Hotel where I stayed one night in Apia.  About $50 USD.  No mattress, just box springs.  One sheet and mattress cover.  Sheets are sold here individually and I've never stayed in a home where I was given more than a bottom sheet. This is the hotel where I had to press the button to keep the water on while I showered.

 

Rare luxury to have an oven here, so people are creative.  They sell these deep fried cinnamon buns at school for about 20 cents US.  Delicious!  I try to avoid them.

  We (the kids) decorated because a meeting was being held at our school.  Nice, eh?

 

View from "my" beach.  5 minute walk from my new, wonderful house.

 

The "snack" that was served at morning tea at a teacher's meeting I attended.  coconut, papaya, avocado, a banana, 2 hard boiled eggs, crackers, sausages and fish sandwiches.

 

The lunch that was served 1 1/2 hours later.  Clockwise, from the whole fish in the right corner: lobster, octopus, limu, egg fu yung, fried checken, sausage, taro and half an orange.

 

My new kitchen and Anna, the woman whose family owns the home.

 

View from the back corner to the front door.  They laid new "carpet".

 

The new bathroom they added for me.

 

More photos to come!

 

 

Shopping Details

I went to the market in Salelologa this morning. Saturday and Sunday mornings are best for fish shopping. I’m broke, since I had to front the money for my refrigerator and it will take a month or so for PC to reimburse me, so I was just window shopping.

There were lots of fe’e – octopus and several pusi – eels. A ton of reef fish of varying sizes and colors. Two items impressed me most. One was a huge yellow fin tuna that was going for $180. That’s about $75 USD for enough freshly caught tuna to feed a small army. Fresh enough for sushi, or in Samoa, oka, which is the raw tuna, onion, lemon juice and coconut cream concoction I love. The other was the lobster. I pointed at the largest one, about a 2-3 pounder, and was told $50. That's about $20 USD Then she explained that was for all of them, about 10. The big guy alone was $20 or about $8 USD. I’ll be back next week after we get our monthly stipend.

I always buy something from one woman. She appears to be elderly, but could be fifty. Hard to tell. She’s the grandmother (or mother?) of one of the boys in my school. She always greets me with a huge smile. We’ve now graduated to a hug/kiss on the cheek that is traditional here. I asked to buy a bunch of small ripe bananas for $3. She tossed in a second bunch (a total of about 2 dozen bananas) and five oranges. Which are bright green, but ripe. They just came into season and I’m looking forward to trying them.

I also bought a head of cabbage for $5, which was a steal. It’s been really expensive, as in $20 for a small head. I scored a bag of carrots for $5, a ready-to-eat serving of palusami (baked taro leaves and coconut cream) and some pankeke balls. I feel like they’re healthier when I think of them as pankeke instead of the donuts they actually are.

I bought chicken last night at my family’s faleoloa. $2.20 for three large chicken leg/thighs. Chicken is the biggest bargain and I don’t understand it. On the bus today a guy got on with two cases of the frozen chicken legs. Tyson. From the USA. How can they import chicken so cheaply but tp is really pricey?

Anyway, now you know what I’ll be dining on for the week. I’ll share the bananas with my family and the teachers.

Random Stuff

Good news. I found a work-around for my hardware issue and solved the software problem so I'll be uploading photos next week. Few words, lots of pix.

This is just a series of random thoughts and observations. I expect things to settle down soon, which will give me more time to be a bit more organized with posts. Also, I’m hoping to get a landline and internet in my new casa sometime in the next month. Here we go:

I told you in yesterday’s post about the girl with a broken arm. I forget to mention the young boy whose eye is swollen completely shut. I noticed it the other day and it seems to be getting worse. He says he scratched it with his finger in his sleep. It looks like his eye has been replaced by a tennis ball. He does not complain about it.

We had a professional development session this week. We observed traditional meeting protocol, which means that the presenter talks while everyone else continues chatting, texting and talking on cell phones. At first I tried to concentrate on the speaker, who speaks very softly, which is the custom here. Hard for me to hear and harder still to mentally translate. With the distraction of the other conversations, which were louder than the presenter, it was difficult and frustrating. I gave up and wrote ideas for this entry instead.

Corporal punishment is traditional here and although it’s been outlawed in the schools, it still happens. Thankfully, not so much in my school, although one teacher is known as a hitter. She led the assembly yesterday and called one boy over and sent him running into a classroom. He came back with a 3 foot stick, about 2 inches thick. She used it to hit him and a couple of other boys on the behind, hard. Seems they were fighting after school yesterday.

Have I mentioned I don’t have a mirror? They’re expensive and I found one that was “only” $25 tala, but it wasn’t actually a mirror, just a reflective surface and smudges couldn’t be wiped off. So, no mirror. I haven’t seen a full-length mirror since I got to Samoa. I just shower, dry my hair, get dressed and go. I feel beautiful, so I’m going with the theory that that’s how I look.
I wear lipstick, by the way. One of the teacher’s likes the color, so she frequently uses it. We share a lot here.

I think my friend Donna is having an affair with the guy in the post office in her town. Why else would she send me packages so often? She’s been wonderful about sending stuff I ask for along with some cool stuff she thinks I might enjoy.
Like the small packages of salami, pepperoni and jerky. I’d never even thought about it, but what a treat! Plus, small and packable. She remembered that I love peanut butter and salami sandwiches with grape jelly. Have I mentioned I have a weight issue? I also love peanut butter and avocado sandwiches. I introduced my former family to those, since avocados are cheap and plentiful in season here. Sadly, the season is about over.

Donna sent me a package of Tic Tacs. I offered some to one of the teachers. Shook a couple out into her hand and she looked at them. Then she looked at me. Then she looked at them. I popped mine in my mouth, so she did too. She was very surprised at the taste. I had the same experience with other teachers and one of the kids. The boy was clearly leery about putting them in his mouth but thrilled when he tasted it. Candy! I wonder what the reaction would be if I gave them Altoids?

I’m having shoe issues again. Two pairs I brought from the States have given up the ghost. Now a third pair is getting ready to die. Very sad, but I have found a couple of places in Samoa where I can get cheap sandals (not thongs) that I can wear. Just frustrating, but says something about how much I walk.

I was doing dishes last night and gazing out the window over the sink. Have I mentioned what a luxury it is to have an indoor kitchen after five months of not having one? I’m used to seeing the couple of big pigs and flock of chickens rooting around under the trees, so didn’t think anything of it when I noticed a pig. Wait, that’s a HUGE pig. No, it’s too big for a pig. It was a bull. I saw my “brother” moving it to a new place to graze this morning, so I guess we own a bull. I also discovered a horse tethered in the front yard.

I really like the people I work with. We chat before school, during recess and after school while they wait for the bus. Mostly they speak to me in Samoan and I answer in English. Sometimes they switch to English when we get stuck. I use as much Samoan as I know. I’m getting better but still light years away from fluent. Mostly we talk about sex. Specifically, we talk about my sex life. It is actually non-existent, but if you heard the conversations, you’d think I’m the village slut. They find it wildly amusing so every morning when they ask who I slept with the night before I make up wild stories. We laugh a lot. When I told them I thought I might be pregnant with the principal’s baby, I thought they’d hurt themselves laughing.

I sing hymns, on demand. Yesterday I sang Amazing Grace to 200+ kids in an effort to teach them. They’re good singers and learn quickly. We’ll be singing it again in assembly on Monday. I was given 5 minutes notice, by the way, that I’d be teaching an English hymn.

Flexibility. That’s the key to life in the Peace Corps.

What a Week!

Hard to give this week a popo rating. Guess it averages out to a 3. Highlights are the new house. I'm feeling very comfortable there and it makes such a difference.

I went snorkeling after school yesterday. Not a bad way to relax after a hot day of teaching.

The downside was this morning at school. A year 5 girl came in and one of the teachers and the former principal were talking to/about her. I glanced over and realized her arm was broken. A compound fracture of the forearm. She wasn't crying. They were questioning how she broke it and why she was playing rugby with the year 8 boys. I was thinking that the kid had to be in incredible pain.

I thought I understood them say they'd send her home (walking) so her mom could massage the arm. That's the most common treatment for bone breaks here. I asked if they were taking her to the hospital. They seemed to consider that and the teacher took her away.

I walked out to see what was happening and was told they were taking her to her mother, who would do the massage. They did suggest the hospital to her. I asked if it was lack of money that kept her from going to the hospital. Yes, along with the belief that massage is a great alternative.

When I was in the training village, I saw a man of about 20. Handsome and strong with a pronounced limp, caused by a broken bone that wasn't correctly set. The result of massage instead of a cast.

On a different note, I can still tell who voted in the election a few weeks ago. They all look like they got their right thumb caught in a car door. Black at the base of the nail. Seems it is the indelible ink used when they voted. Apparently a lot of people voted.

I'm glad it's Friday and looking forward to some lesson planning/preparation and snorkeling this weekend.

Differences in Samoa

It’s been almost a week in the new house now and it’s starting to feel like home.  I hung curtains.  Well, I stapled pieces of fabric, which is similar in a low budget kind of way.

One of the huge differences here is how open everything is.  Although palagi (western style) houses are becoming more popular, most folks still live in open fales, which means no walls.  If you’re taking a nap in the middle of the day and you live on the main road, everybody driving by will see you.

Whatever you own is on display.  Whatever you’re doing is right out there.  Completely different and hard to adjust to for me.  I grew up with my own room.  For the last umpteen years I’ve lived in my own house.  The house I’ve lived in for the last sixteen years or so not only has walls, it has a wall around the yard in back so even my pool is completely private.

My Florida house is close to my neighbors but because we have walls and window coverings and a culture that’s big on privacy, I don’t see my neighbors that often.  They were friendly and we’d wave and say hello as we saw each other pulling in and out of our garages.  We’d chat during morning or evening walks but we didn’t know the daily routines of each other’s lives.

That is very different here.  I now live on a compound that is composed of several houses.  I’m still not sure how many or who lives here.  Sound odd?  It’s because houses aren’t set in a row like a sub-division.  They’re sort of scattered, in fairly close proximity.  There’s a house at the front of our property, closest to the road.  I believe it is abandoned, but am not sure.

Behind that is a faleoloa (store) which is hugely popular with the school kids, since the school is next door.  The back of the faleoloa has living quarters but I’m not sure if anyone actually lives there or if they just hang out during business hours and use it as a TV room.

Next to the faleoloa, in front of my house, is a faleo’o, the traditional open fale with thatched roof.  I was told only one 17 year old sleeps there, but I’ve seen several family members napping there during the day and hanging out there until late into the evening.

Next to my house is the “big house”, which is more western, but windows on all sides and just one very large room on the inside.  I was told that “everyone” sleeps there, except the 18 year old.  That would be mom, dad, a first grader, and a brother who’ll be going back to the university next term.  There are two other brothers who live in Apia while attending University.

Behind the “big house” is the kuka or kitchen.  It’s a roof over an area where they make the cook fire, which is how they make food for each meal.  Next to the kuka is the toilet and next to that is the shower.  The shower is about 2 steps away from my back door.  It is not covered and given the proximity I can tell you every time someone takes a shower.

As far as I know, the only people using the kuka, toilet and shower are my immediate family. 

Sounds fairly simple, right?  Well, here’s where I get confused.  On the other side of me, just a few steps from my house, is another faleo’o.  I believe this one is only used for hanging out, much like we’d use a porch.  There’s a house next to that, along with bathroom and kuka, but I couldn’t tell you who lives there, other than one of my Year 7 boys.  He’s a cousin of my current family. 

In front of that house is a large western style house that I believe an uncle from New Zealand lives in, when he’s on the island.  I’m basing that on the fact that his truck is parked there.

The confusing part is that because Samoans are social and have large families, it seems to be very common to hang out or sleep wherever.  At both houses where I lived previously, I’d either come home or awakened to someone I’d never seen before sleeping on the floor.  No introductions were ever made.  When I asked, the explanation was usually along the lines of “Oh, family, you know.  Visiting.”  Some visits lasted a few days, others weeks.  Sometimes they spoke to me, sometimes not.

About speaking to me.  One of the challenges here that several of us have encountered is the reluctance of men of any age to interact with a palagi woman.  There seem to be 3 categories of men. 

First, and most common, are those who will literally run if they think you’re about to speak to them (remember the bus driver who didn’t pick me up because he was afraid I’d speak to him in English?)  As I was settling in last Sunday, I was offered to’ona’i…the big Sunday meal.  It’s a time for serious chow and socializing.  I was given the option (I thought) of either joining the family or having them bring me food so I could eat on my own.

I was hot, sweaty and tired from moving all my junk but wanted to be social.  I said I’d love to join them, right after I washed my face.  The young man who made the invitation looked nervous.  I asked if it was best if I came or not.  He hastened to assure me that of course I’d be welcome.  But he said he should probably double check. 

He came back a minute later saying he was really sorry but that “the boys” were uncomfortable with the thought of eating with me.  I get it.  Language differences, the feeling that you have to be on your best behavior with the stranger, walking on egg shells because you might step on a cultural no-no.  I really do get it.  Ditto from my side of the fence.  They sent a lovely tray of food to me.

The second category is men who may or may not speak much English, but figure they know enough to ask if you want to fool around.  Or, get married.  As I’ve written, they may be 15 or 75, age and marital status don’t seem to be part of the criteria.

The third category are what I think of as Westernized Samoan men.  Many who have lived or studied abroad, usually in New Zealand, sometimes in Australia and a few in the U.S.  They are more comfortable interacting with palagis because they’ve had experience.  They aren’t ashamed of their English and seem happy to talk about their country and their life here and overseas.  Some have also used their language skills to take the Romeo route.  It’s been made very clear here that snagging a palagi wife or girlfriend is a coup.  We’re “beautiful”, because we look different, but mostly, we’re rich and don’t have our own huge families to support.

More on stuff I’ve noticed later.

Last Housing Update, I Swear

I'm happy to report that I got a call from my new family on Sunday morning, telling me they'd worked all night and my house was ready to move into.  I was a bit leery, but checked out of the hotel and took my bags with me.  Cab was courtesy of a very nice woman from American Samoa.  We'd been chatting and since she was a teacher, too, wanted to pay my taxi to the new house.  Very generous!

When I arrived, the house looked great.  There were a few minor issues the first couple of days, but they've continued to work and things are wonderful.

I woke up at 5:30 a.m this morning and stepped out of bed.  Not off the floor, out of bed.  I went to the bathroom, without walking outside.  The bathroom is new and sparkling clean.

Last night I used my new kitchen to make a huge batch of pasta salad with tuna for the teachers I worked with.  They've asked me to cook everyday.  I can't afford either the time or money for that, but plan to provide lunch every couple of weeks or so.

Rather than bore you with details of the house, I'll work on getting photos uploaded.  Just know that I was not as calm and pleasant as my blog indicates.  I think hissy fit is the phrase I'm looking for.  Having privacy and close proximity will make life so much easier. 

Thanks for all your positive thoughts and comments.  Now I can start telling you about more interesting things.  Like, did you know that the gauges on busses here don't work?  At least not on any I've ridden in.  Not the gas gauge, speedometer, nothing.  

More to come soon, along with photos!