Pictures!

Lots of new pictures, finally.

Christmas in Tonga

So I have experienced my first Christmas away from home. Actually wasn't too bad. I will say that the Christmas season did bring on some homesick feelings that I thus far haven't experienced too strongly. I'm not sure what it is about Christmas songs that make them sound so lonely if you aren't home. Maybe lyrics like, "I'll be home for Christmas," or "I'm dreaming of a white Christmas." Anyway, I do kind of miss the chill in the air (or the knock-you-out cold) that accompanies Christmas in the States. The mood is certainly different, almost romantic. I miss all the traditions with the family as well. But, Christmas here was kind of great (maybe cuz it involved lots of beach, ice cream and pina coladas)!

Christmas eve I spent part of the afternoon at the beach with the son of the elderly couple that live right by me, his son and another Tongan. The son is from New Zealand where his wife lives and his son has grown up. They are just here for a visit. His son is named Pita Faiva and is an adorable 3 year old with shaggy hair. He loves water and sand castles and messy mangos and that all makes him great to go to the beach with! That evening, I was really happy to be able to go to a Christmas mass. Myself and one of the other volunteers have found a church where the services are in English. It's kind of far for us to walk so the priest picked us up that night and gave us a ride. The service was really nice with the Christmas songs I know and love. Outside the window during the service I could see fireworks being set off and hear people excited in the street. I was so happy to be able to have that familiar experience of celebrating Christmas Eve mass in such a beautiful setting. Afterwards, the priest brought us out for ice cream before bringing us home. Very nice! This guy likes to translate the Bible from English to Tongan as a hobby (when he's not golfing), so he's rather cool. I spent most of Christmas Day at the beach again with 6 kids this time (including Mr. Pita Faiva and another adorable 3-year-old) and a Tongan couple. The couple barbecued up on the beach and sort of left me with the kids, which was fine as most of them were mature enough to swim on their own and I didn't mind watching the 3-year-olds (which I've decided is my new favorite age group). The BBQ was rather delicious (made more so by the fact we were on a beach) and we stayed to see the sunset. Had to take a moment floating in the ocean, watching the palm trees in the sunset and overall acknowledging the creation of God on His Son's day.

On the day after Christmas, Boxing Day (jury's still out on what that day actually means) all of the Peace Corps volunteers got together and celebrated. The highlight of the day (aside from watching some of them try to climb the coconut tree) was the "pina coladas." I'm not the biggest fan of pinapple milk (it's ok...can be refreashing but not amazing) and don't like rum too much. However, together, it's a most wonderful delicious combination! You can hardly taste the rum and it somehow offsets any negative taste effects of the coconut milk. Dangerous! Had some traditional Tongan kava after the alcohol ran out. Anyway, it was a fun afternoon/evening/night with the other volunteers. Love this crew!!!

See, Christmas in Tonga can be pretty great.

This is Peace Corps?

Now that I'm settled in (more or less) at my site, I guess it's time to update. I've moved into my house and started my job. My house is a modest 2-bedroom with a living room and kitchen separated by a curtain and a bathroom and shower attached. It's actually kind of cute and more than large enough for my needs. It's not as nice as some of the PC houses but it's probably nicer and larger than others. I was supplied with money to purchase a little refrigerator/freezer, a dual burner, gas tank, and some kitchen supplies. A lot of my stuff is still laying around the floor in piles and bags and suitcases, but I have all next week off work so I'll worry about it then. The initial problem was cockroaches but a combination of spraying and roach traps sent from home seems to have limited them. I've heard something in the ceiling the last few nights (mice or rats?), so I guess that will be my next critter to try to get rid of. I have a little kitten but he's too small to be of use in that manner right now. His purpose seems to be to keep me company, sometimes to the point of annoyance. He's always underfoot and gets more than a few bare-footed kicks as a result. Don't worry, he's not abused and is a very happy cat who seems rather taken with me (perhaps because I feed him...).

I also started my job this week. When I got here on Monday I was told that there wasn't much to do since it's the week before Christmas. We have the next week and a half off. So, basically this week I've just been switching between reading up on reports and surveys dealing with employment in Tonga and doing my own stuff on-line. It looks like my main task here will be to create, conduct, and analyze a workforce study. I might be working with an Australian volunteer to get this done. The people here are very nice and enjoyable to talk to. The Christmas party is tonight and I'm thinking it should be pretty fun.

Right now I'm still trying to process my "situation." It really doesn't feel like what you would expect a "Peace Corps experience" to be. I have running water and electricity in my house (and a refrigerator!), inside bathroom facilities, a 9-5ish job, and I live in a city. I'm able to go to a bar, go dancing, go to a restaurant, have easy access to internet, and most people speak at least some English. I established a while ago that the real challenges here (aside from the critters), will likely be the cultural differences, but it's still difficult to adjust to what seems to me to be "city life #2." I should be living in a mud hut eating bugs and speaking no English!

Last week of training

It's finishing up! I took my interview today to see how well I can speak the Tongan language. I have a bet going with another trainee that I will do better, so I was a little nervous. I think I'm becoming more comfortable speaking the language but also maybe too lenient. If I think the person I'm talking to understands what I'm saying, I don't pay too much attention to grammar. That could be bad for me on the test... I've done a lot of trash talking with the guy I'm betting against, so I really need to pull through...

We get officially swore in tomorrow! I will then be a volunteer (right now just a lowly trainee). Exciting!

More soon...