Today is my birthday. I am now 26 years-old. I can't believe I was 24 when I started my Peace Corps tour. For my birthday, I went diving at Blue Lagoon Resort on Chuuk's capital island. They wouldn't let me dive in the morning because the dive was 150 feet and I'm a beginning diver (I only dove once in St. Thomas since I received my dive certification). I had to wait until 1 p.m. to dive but it was worth it. I went diving with 2 couples who had much more diving experience than I. One of the couples were from Australia and had just arrived in Chuuk from Yap (one of FSM's four states). For those of you who don't know, Chuuk lagoon is known for having the best shipwreck diving in the world because of the many WWII ships that are scattered on the bottom of the sea. My first dive was at the sight of a 500 foot ship. It was quite a site. The surface of the ship was covered with colorful coral and was a home for many ship and other marine life. I mainly followed my dive guide the whole time. I dove in part of the ship but I swam along the outside for the most part. On the side of the ship I saw it's name in English and Japanese which I forgot. Some neat artifacts I saw were some china plates and cups and what appeared to be an old wine or whiskey bottle. My dive guide picked up an object and then put it up to his hear so I knew it was a phone. I dove 80 feet that dive and I blew my nose very hard when I got fairly deep instead of blowing it every 3 feet. Because of that my nose bled a lot. However, that didn't stop me from doing our next dive. Between our first and second dives, we scuba dived above a submarine called Suzuki. Our second dive was only 60 feet at the sight of a sunken plan called Betty Bomber. I was the cockpit and got to swim in and out one of the windows. As I was observing the propeller 20 feet away, the dive guide pointed out 4 dolphins that swam above us. It was amazing. I had seen wild dolphins before but never while I was swimming or diving. It was a first for the other divers and guide as well. That sight will be with me for a long time. I went up a little bit earlier than the others because my guide saw blood in my mask from my nose. I was just glad that I got to see those dolphins. Too bad I didn't have an underwater camera with me. That would have been a great shot.
On to my projects now. I have a plan to write a grant proposal for a water tank next to the Catholic church that is being built in my village. The idea was given to me by the supervisor of the school where I teach. He said not only would it serve the church goers every Sunday, but it could also serve 5 families and visitors to Fefen who don't have access to water buy connecting plastic water pipes from the tank to the dock. I am working with a man who was a former city planner who agreed to sketch the tank design for me. I want to meet with him before I return to school to try to figure out the budget other information needed for the proposal. I hope to get funding through Peace Corps Partnership Program which pairs up American donors with my host country community. My community needs to donate at least 25% of the total project cost but the rest can come from friends, family and individuals and organizations in the private sector. I would like to know how many of you would be willing to donate money to this important project. My if accepted by Peace Corps, it would be published on Peace Corp's website and will allow donors to donate online by submitting online checks. If you think this is a worthy cause and you would like to help me and my community to help make our water tank project a reality, please email me at bbgruver@gmail.com. Please tell anyone you can about this project and the fact that my community is 100% behind it and all donations and tax deductible. Donors can be assured that every cent of their donation will go towards my project. I have to start writing the proposal now so my community can start building the tank at the beginning of the summer.
Well, I think I will do it for me. I appreciate the birthday wishes from some of you and your love and support as I go into my second and final year of service. I know I wouldn't have made it this far if it wasn't for all of your thoughts, prayers, love and encouragement. I have been thankful that I haven't had any serious illnesses or injurious, except for a swollen ankle that I have right now that I got from running. Happy New Year and I hope to see some of you when I come hope for a vacation in August 2010.
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Happy Holidays from Chuuk
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all! I hope you all enjoyed the holidays and that it's not too cold where you are, especially on the East Coast. I know it's been a while since I've updated this blog so that's why I'm doing it now.
My Christmas here was very special, mainly because I got to spend it with my real mom who decided to spend the holidays with me here in Chuuk. When she arrived on Christmas Eve, we went straight to my island. We went to Catholic mass on Christmas Eve and Christmas morning. Her favorite part was the children singing Christmas carols in Chuukese. We spent the rest of Christmas day with my host family. My baby sister got real hot during church so my host mom had to go back home early. My mom, being the health professional that she is, was concerned and advised my host mom to take her temperature which was 39.1 C. She massaged the infant's body with coconut oil which cooled her skin. My host mom gave her infant daughter some coconut water to drink and nursed her until she was rehydrated. She was back to normal the next morning.
That wasn't the only thing my mom did to make a difference. She happened to bring many different reading glasses of various strengths. Everyone on my island thought my host grandmother was blind because she's not able to read but she can still see well enough to get around. Anyways, my mom had her try on all the glasses she brought. She tried on one pair (size 2) that she was able to read small print with. The next thing I knew, she was reading the Bible out loud in Chuukese. Wow! All she needed were a pair of reading glasses. What a remarkable discovery. So that solved that problem.
It has been a little over a year since I arrived in Chuuk and a lot has happened. I feel that I have changed for the better. I learned that I have resilience, having bounced back from some tough situations. I have surprised myself by the high level of competency I have in speaking the Chuukese language. I feel that I am fluent and am able to have a decent conversation with just about anyone. I am being able to predict how people will react to certain things I do and say that us Americans easily take for granted. In other words before I didn't know enough of the language and culture in order to predict peoples' reactions to my actions and words. I also learned how well I can adapt to different situations easily and quickly. This journey has not been easy but I am glad that I took it on because I am growing and learning so much about the world around me and about life in general than I ever could in the States. I am so thankful that my mom came here to witness my life here since it will be easier for me to share my experience with her when I return back to the States.
Since I've been here, I've always thought teaching has been one of my biggest challenges. For one, I don't have a required counterpart since my principal from last year went back to school to finish her bachelor's degree. My counterpart from last year is the acting principal this year and has no time to really assist me in the classroom since he is either teaching himself or attending principal workshops/meetings. I find it difficult to stick with the curriculum because I either don't know how to teach the material effectively or because the standards are over the heads of my students. I try to teach them things I think they should know and then move up from there. Discipline is still a struggle and it's hard for me to be consistent, maybe because I sometimes don't follow through on the consequences of my students' behavior. Another thing I need to work on is speaking more English and less Chuukese in my classes. My principal tells me to only speak English but I think it is pretty impossible, especially with my 5th grade. I mix English and Chuukese. I want to find and make more activities that get them excited to speak English in class. If anyone has any suggestions, please email me or comment on the blog.
Well I have to go now because the woman at the front desk of the hotel I'm staying at is leaving. Tomorrow is my birthday and I plan on going diving, I will write another update tomorrow.
My Christmas here was very special, mainly because I got to spend it with my real mom who decided to spend the holidays with me here in Chuuk. When she arrived on Christmas Eve, we went straight to my island. We went to Catholic mass on Christmas Eve and Christmas morning. Her favorite part was the children singing Christmas carols in Chuukese. We spent the rest of Christmas day with my host family. My baby sister got real hot during church so my host mom had to go back home early. My mom, being the health professional that she is, was concerned and advised my host mom to take her temperature which was 39.1 C. She massaged the infant's body with coconut oil which cooled her skin. My host mom gave her infant daughter some coconut water to drink and nursed her until she was rehydrated. She was back to normal the next morning.
That wasn't the only thing my mom did to make a difference. She happened to bring many different reading glasses of various strengths. Everyone on my island thought my host grandmother was blind because she's not able to read but she can still see well enough to get around. Anyways, my mom had her try on all the glasses she brought. She tried on one pair (size 2) that she was able to read small print with. The next thing I knew, she was reading the Bible out loud in Chuukese. Wow! All she needed were a pair of reading glasses. What a remarkable discovery. So that solved that problem.
It has been a little over a year since I arrived in Chuuk and a lot has happened. I feel that I have changed for the better. I learned that I have resilience, having bounced back from some tough situations. I have surprised myself by the high level of competency I have in speaking the Chuukese language. I feel that I am fluent and am able to have a decent conversation with just about anyone. I am being able to predict how people will react to certain things I do and say that us Americans easily take for granted. In other words before I didn't know enough of the language and culture in order to predict peoples' reactions to my actions and words. I also learned how well I can adapt to different situations easily and quickly. This journey has not been easy but I am glad that I took it on because I am growing and learning so much about the world around me and about life in general than I ever could in the States. I am so thankful that my mom came here to witness my life here since it will be easier for me to share my experience with her when I return back to the States.
Since I've been here, I've always thought teaching has been one of my biggest challenges. For one, I don't have a required counterpart since my principal from last year went back to school to finish her bachelor's degree. My counterpart from last year is the acting principal this year and has no time to really assist me in the classroom since he is either teaching himself or attending principal workshops/meetings. I find it difficult to stick with the curriculum because I either don't know how to teach the material effectively or because the standards are over the heads of my students. I try to teach them things I think they should know and then move up from there. Discipline is still a struggle and it's hard for me to be consistent, maybe because I sometimes don't follow through on the consequences of my students' behavior. Another thing I need to work on is speaking more English and less Chuukese in my classes. My principal tells me to only speak English but I think it is pretty impossible, especially with my 5th grade. I mix English and Chuukese. I want to find and make more activities that get them excited to speak English in class. If anyone has any suggestions, please email me or comment on the blog.
Well I have to go now because the woman at the front desk of the hotel I'm staying at is leaving. Tomorrow is my birthday and I plan on going diving, I will write another update tomorrow.
Friday, August 7, 2009
Mortlocks Trip
So yesterday (Friday Aug. 7) I arrived Weno with 3 other PCVs after a 2 week long trip to Chuuk's Mortlock islands. We took a ship there and back, a different one each time. Being on the ship was quite an experience. It took us 27 hours to get back to Weno. The ship we were on was jammed packed with people. We stayed on the deck at the front of the boat. We were covered by a tarp and mostly women and children slept there on hand woven mats everyone sleeps on here (I tried to buy one in the Mortlocks but it was too expensive). We slept on the spit for 3 days because we arrived 2 days before it left (thought it was going to leave sooner than it did). I didn't sleep very well since I had to change positions every few seconds to dodge body parts on the hard wooden floor of the ship's deck. I spent the time on the ship reading Hiroshima and A Wrinkle in Time and played hearts with a deck of cards a fellow PCV made from notebook paper.
My trip to the Mortlocks was so fun. It probably was the cheapest vacation I've been to. I left Weno for the Mortlocks on Wednesday July 22 with 2 fellow lagoon PCVs and our boss. We arrived there on Thursday July 23. Our main purpose was to visit prospective sites for the incoming PCVs but we also visited our friend who served as a volunteer on Satowan, a Mortlock island. We came just in time because he was preparing to leave that site and transfer to another one on the island of Moch, another Mortlock island. We did three site visits while we were there. We visited prospective host families and counterparts from the schools. One prospective host family made of feast for us, including mangrove crabs and lobster (the food in the Mortlocks was probably the healthiest I've eaten since I've been in the FSM because it's practically all local). We saw all of the current PCVs sites in the Morlocks and stayed with 3 of their families.
Most of the trip we stayed on Satowan with our friend who served there. We slept in his own local house made out of mangrove wood and leaves patched together to form a roof. The people who took care of us were our age and were great. They hung out with us and served us food every meal. The food was great. We eat fish at every meal with plenty of breadfruit, banana, rice and taro. Every morning they made us pancakes from scratch for breakfast. They always had hot water for us so we could make our own instant coffee anytime we wanted. In our free time we played card games such as hearts, monkey and spades. We went swimming and took walks around Satowan. One day we walked to Ta island on the reef from Satowan. It took us 3 hours to get there. We stayed our fellow PCV's house. On our way there, we were invited to attend a post wedding ceremony. The bride was one of Alex's (PCV on Satowan) high school students. We drank coffee and eat a ton of delicious food. We also played duck duck goose with some of the kids there. It was neat playing with them with their parents watching. Everyone enjoyed themselves including me.
I got back to Fefen on Saturday August 8. It was good to see my family and friends in my community again. I checked out my garden and it looks like all of my plants are still alive, especially my green beans. I can't wait to eat them. Tomorrow I have to report back to school. School starts in September and I can't wait. I learned a lot about teaching last school year and I am ready to try some new activities and teaching methods with my students. I found out that my principal went to Pohnpei to finish her degree while I was gone so my counterpart will be the acting principal while she is gone. All of my projects are on hold at the moment. I am working to develop a training program for the drop out students in my community with the help of my uncle who is the vocational education specialist for the Chuuk Department of Education. I would like to start an adult English class soon but first I have to make a sign up sheet for it.
I think that's it for now. Take care all and keep in touch.
My trip to the Mortlocks was so fun. It probably was the cheapest vacation I've been to. I left Weno for the Mortlocks on Wednesday July 22 with 2 fellow lagoon PCVs and our boss. We arrived there on Thursday July 23. Our main purpose was to visit prospective sites for the incoming PCVs but we also visited our friend who served as a volunteer on Satowan, a Mortlock island. We came just in time because he was preparing to leave that site and transfer to another one on the island of Moch, another Mortlock island. We did three site visits while we were there. We visited prospective host families and counterparts from the schools. One prospective host family made of feast for us, including mangrove crabs and lobster (the food in the Mortlocks was probably the healthiest I've eaten since I've been in the FSM because it's practically all local). We saw all of the current PCVs sites in the Morlocks and stayed with 3 of their families.
Most of the trip we stayed on Satowan with our friend who served there. We slept in his own local house made out of mangrove wood and leaves patched together to form a roof. The people who took care of us were our age and were great. They hung out with us and served us food every meal. The food was great. We eat fish at every meal with plenty of breadfruit, banana, rice and taro. Every morning they made us pancakes from scratch for breakfast. They always had hot water for us so we could make our own instant coffee anytime we wanted. In our free time we played card games such as hearts, monkey and spades. We went swimming and took walks around Satowan. One day we walked to Ta island on the reef from Satowan. It took us 3 hours to get there. We stayed our fellow PCV's house. On our way there, we were invited to attend a post wedding ceremony. The bride was one of Alex's (PCV on Satowan) high school students. We drank coffee and eat a ton of delicious food. We also played duck duck goose with some of the kids there. It was neat playing with them with their parents watching. Everyone enjoyed themselves including me.
I got back to Fefen on Saturday August 8. It was good to see my family and friends in my community again. I checked out my garden and it looks like all of my plants are still alive, especially my green beans. I can't wait to eat them. Tomorrow I have to report back to school. School starts in September and I can't wait. I learned a lot about teaching last school year and I am ready to try some new activities and teaching methods with my students. I found out that my principal went to Pohnpei to finish her degree while I was gone so my counterpart will be the acting principal while she is gone. All of my projects are on hold at the moment. I am working to develop a training program for the drop out students in my community with the help of my uncle who is the vocational education specialist for the Chuuk Department of Education. I would like to start an adult English class soon but first I have to make a sign up sheet for it.
I think that's it for now. Take care all and keep in touch.
Monday, July 6, 2009
Graduation, summer plans, ect.
Hey Everyone,
I'm so sorry I haven't updated my blog since January but I'll try to update you as much as I can as to what has happened since my last update. I've been on Weno since July 3 for a meeting I attended yesterday. It was a meeting to discuss issues PCVs have with PC policy amongst other things. One representative in the M74 and M75 groups (my group) from each of FSM's 4 states and Palau came to Weno for the meeting. I represented the Chuuk M75s at the meeting and I brought up every issue me and my fellow M75s in Chuuk wanted me to bring up. I just hope most of our concerns get recognized by the PC Micro staff and they make the changes we requested. I was glad to see the M75s from the other islands in the FSM and Palau.
My school's graduation was on June 26. My PCV friend John came and our PC Program Assistant Imauo came was well. I was very proud of my students, especially the ones who delivered speeches including the one I wrote. I did a little activity called B1 that the students learned from a movie. It involves clapping and chanting. Both the audience and the students loved it.
This summer I will teach a summer school class to the 7th graders starting tomorrow (I haven't made the lesson plans yet). They will be learning math and English only since those are the subjects they struggle the most in. I'll be working with another teacher during the English class and will do fun reading, writing and speaking activities, hopefully outside if I can. The class runs only two weeks and I've missed 2 days so far, since I've been on Weno. I'm leaving soon to go back to Fefan, my island, so I can prepare for tomorrow. Other summer plans I have involve possibly teaching an English class to adluts and drop out students and asssiting my 7th graders with building book cabinets for all the books I've gotten from some of you (thanks so much). I also would like to go scuba diving in the Chuuk Lagoon and make a trip out to the Mortlocks (outer islands) with another lagoon PCV to visit Alex, who serves on the island of Satawan.
I am doing well and staying healthy. I feel like I am integrating more and more into my community with each passing day. I enjoy walking around my community and talking to people. They like to joke around with me but also have serious conversations with me as well. I feel that people in my community are comfortable with me and I am comfortable with them.
Sorry to cut this short but I've got to make my way to the dock to meet my "uncle" so I can go back with him to Fefen. I promise to write another post real soon since I've be comming into Weno more often now that it's summer.
Take care,
Ben
I'm so sorry I haven't updated my blog since January but I'll try to update you as much as I can as to what has happened since my last update. I've been on Weno since July 3 for a meeting I attended yesterday. It was a meeting to discuss issues PCVs have with PC policy amongst other things. One representative in the M74 and M75 groups (my group) from each of FSM's 4 states and Palau came to Weno for the meeting. I represented the Chuuk M75s at the meeting and I brought up every issue me and my fellow M75s in Chuuk wanted me to bring up. I just hope most of our concerns get recognized by the PC Micro staff and they make the changes we requested. I was glad to see the M75s from the other islands in the FSM and Palau.
My school's graduation was on June 26. My PCV friend John came and our PC Program Assistant Imauo came was well. I was very proud of my students, especially the ones who delivered speeches including the one I wrote. I did a little activity called B1 that the students learned from a movie. It involves clapping and chanting. Both the audience and the students loved it.
This summer I will teach a summer school class to the 7th graders starting tomorrow (I haven't made the lesson plans yet). They will be learning math and English only since those are the subjects they struggle the most in. I'll be working with another teacher during the English class and will do fun reading, writing and speaking activities, hopefully outside if I can. The class runs only two weeks and I've missed 2 days so far, since I've been on Weno. I'm leaving soon to go back to Fefan, my island, so I can prepare for tomorrow. Other summer plans I have involve possibly teaching an English class to adluts and drop out students and asssiting my 7th graders with building book cabinets for all the books I've gotten from some of you (thanks so much). I also would like to go scuba diving in the Chuuk Lagoon and make a trip out to the Mortlocks (outer islands) with another lagoon PCV to visit Alex, who serves on the island of Satawan.
I am doing well and staying healthy. I feel like I am integrating more and more into my community with each passing day. I enjoy walking around my community and talking to people. They like to joke around with me but also have serious conversations with me as well. I feel that people in my community are comfortable with me and I am comfortable with them.
Sorry to cut this short but I've got to make my way to the dock to meet my "uncle" so I can go back with him to Fefen. I promise to write another post real soon since I've be comming into Weno more often now that it's summer.
Take care,
Ben
Friday, January 16, 2009
Life in the Lagoon
Hello Eveyone. I'm so sorry that I haven't been able to update this blog until now. My island doesn't have electricity and I haven't had many oppotunities to come to Weno. Thanks to those of you who have written me. I am always happy anytime I hear from family and friends.
I have been on Fefen, my assigned island, for a little over two months now and a lot has happened. I am teaching 5th through 8th grade English at UFO Elementary School. UFO stands for the three villages that make up the community I live in (Ununo, Foggen and Onogoch). I live and work in Ununo. Fefen is the 4th largest island in Chuuk and is located in the Chuuk Lagoon (which is composed of several islands inside a huge reef). Outside of the lagoon are the outer islands. Fefen is a little bit more primitive than Weno, the capital. Fefan doesn't have any cars, restaurants, hotels or anything you would find in a city. I has one road and people walk everywhere they go. Fefen is an agriculture island so most people grow their own food (such as breadfruit, taro (a local root vegetable), pinapple, cucumber, banana, coconut and more. My host father is a fisherman and a farmer. Neither he or my host mother earns money so I buy everything that me and my family needs.
The women here wear local skirts and t-shirts and dresses to work and to church. Men wear shorts and t-shirts at home and pants and a short sleeve colared shirt to work. Their are several customs here. My favorite custom is sharing. People share everything here. Everywhere I walk, people invite me into their homes to eat with them and drink coffee. Usually we don't see that in the States. Everyone in UFO is Catholic and attends the catholic church in UFO every Sunday.
So far, I can say that I've been bitten by a dog (dogs are not pets here), eaten dog, gone spear fishing and line fishing, climbed a coconut tree, danced the cha-cha on New Years Eve and eaten turtle and turkey tail.
I'll try to give you all an idea about what I do on a typical day. At 6 a.m. I wake up and take a bucket shower. I eat breakfast (usually rice) at 7:00 a.m. and go to school between 7:30 and 8 a.m. School starts at 8:15 a.m. with my 5th grade homeroom class. I teach until 12:15 p.m., eat lunch and co-teach a special class to the 8th graders at 1 p.m. After that, I write my lesson plans for the next day and grade papers. After work, I like to take a walk through the village and play with the kids on the road. Around 5 p.m. I like to walk to the dock to watch the sunset. I am involved with the youth here and I attend their meetings every Sunday. I've helped them raise money for their activities and have provided them with advice. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, I have Chuukese tutoring at 4 p.m. with a man who teaches English and math at the local high school. He's tutored PCVs before and he's been very helpful.
My house is great. It's concrete and is on a hill overlooking the road and school. I have two rooms (one to sleep in and one to store my stuff in). In my free time, I read, practice my Chuukese, go swimming, fishing, playing with the kids and taking pictures (by the way, I sent my real dad my disks from the digital camera so I hope he will send those to you soon).
Well, I have to go meet my host dad at the market so we can go back to Fefen. I hope this entry has give you more of idea about my life here. Despite the many challenges, I am glad that I am here and serving in the Peace Corps. I know I will learn and grow more than I can imagine during the two years I am here. Take care everyone and let me know how the presidential inaguration went.
I have been on Fefen, my assigned island, for a little over two months now and a lot has happened. I am teaching 5th through 8th grade English at UFO Elementary School. UFO stands for the three villages that make up the community I live in (Ununo, Foggen and Onogoch). I live and work in Ununo. Fefen is the 4th largest island in Chuuk and is located in the Chuuk Lagoon (which is composed of several islands inside a huge reef). Outside of the lagoon are the outer islands. Fefen is a little bit more primitive than Weno, the capital. Fefan doesn't have any cars, restaurants, hotels or anything you would find in a city. I has one road and people walk everywhere they go. Fefen is an agriculture island so most people grow their own food (such as breadfruit, taro (a local root vegetable), pinapple, cucumber, banana, coconut and more. My host father is a fisherman and a farmer. Neither he or my host mother earns money so I buy everything that me and my family needs.
The women here wear local skirts and t-shirts and dresses to work and to church. Men wear shorts and t-shirts at home and pants and a short sleeve colared shirt to work. Their are several customs here. My favorite custom is sharing. People share everything here. Everywhere I walk, people invite me into their homes to eat with them and drink coffee. Usually we don't see that in the States. Everyone in UFO is Catholic and attends the catholic church in UFO every Sunday.
So far, I can say that I've been bitten by a dog (dogs are not pets here), eaten dog, gone spear fishing and line fishing, climbed a coconut tree, danced the cha-cha on New Years Eve and eaten turtle and turkey tail.
I'll try to give you all an idea about what I do on a typical day. At 6 a.m. I wake up and take a bucket shower. I eat breakfast (usually rice) at 7:00 a.m. and go to school between 7:30 and 8 a.m. School starts at 8:15 a.m. with my 5th grade homeroom class. I teach until 12:15 p.m., eat lunch and co-teach a special class to the 8th graders at 1 p.m. After that, I write my lesson plans for the next day and grade papers. After work, I like to take a walk through the village and play with the kids on the road. Around 5 p.m. I like to walk to the dock to watch the sunset. I am involved with the youth here and I attend their meetings every Sunday. I've helped them raise money for their activities and have provided them with advice. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, I have Chuukese tutoring at 4 p.m. with a man who teaches English and math at the local high school. He's tutored PCVs before and he's been very helpful.
My house is great. It's concrete and is on a hill overlooking the road and school. I have two rooms (one to sleep in and one to store my stuff in). In my free time, I read, practice my Chuukese, go swimming, fishing, playing with the kids and taking pictures (by the way, I sent my real dad my disks from the digital camera so I hope he will send those to you soon).
Well, I have to go meet my host dad at the market so we can go back to Fefen. I hope this entry has give you more of idea about my life here. Despite the many challenges, I am glad that I am here and serving in the Peace Corps. I know I will learn and grow more than I can imagine during the two years I am here. Take care everyone and let me know how the presidential inaguration went.
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Officially a PCV
Yesterday I was worn in as a Peace Corps Volunteer along with my fellow trainees. The Governor of Chuuk was supposed to come, but he sent someone from his administration instead. I gave a speech in Chuukese, but I was originally supposed to give it in English. Despite the many mispronunciations, I pulled it off. The PC training officer sworn us in (all gov't. workers are required to say an oath). I got to meet my new principal and host father. They both seem like friendly people. I decided to stay in Weno for one for day so I could buy some things and pack. Last night my and the other newly appointed PCVs and old PCVs celebrated in the presidential suite of the hotel which served as our training site. It was a lot of fun. The principal is coming to Weno today to take me to Fefan. I am very excited and nervous about going. I'm hoping I know enough Chuukese to communicate with my host family and community members. The next couple years will be quite an experience. I won't have Internet access on my island but since I'm close to Weno I can come in for a day to use the computer at the PC office. I am required to be at my site for the first 3 months so don't bother checking this blog for awhile. Please write me letters at my Weno address:
Ben Gruver, PCT
PO Box 39
Weno, Chuuk FM
96942
That's it for now. I hope everyone is well.
Ben Gruver, PCT
PO Box 39
Weno, Chuuk FM
96942
That's it for now. I hope everyone is well.
Sunday, October 12, 2008
PST II in Chuuk
Ron Anim!
I am in Chuuk and have just finished the first day of my second week of Pre-Service Training II. PST II has been good. We've been having intense Chuukese language and cultural training. I'm learning the language with a fellow trainee who's going to be serving in the lagoon with me but on a different island. The other trainee in our group is learning Mortlockeese since he'll be in the Mortlocks on an outer island. My host family here in Weno has been great. My host father is a police chief and my host mother also works for the police department so I fell very protected. I have a 10 year-old brother, a 15 year-old sister and an 18-year-old brother who is attending the College of Micronesia in Paliker, Pohnpei's capital. They've been feeding me very well. My host mother wants to get fat to which I told her is impossible. I got to try turtle this weekend. It was served in a plastic tub and every part was still in tacked. The meat was stringy and very tough, very similar to dog meat from what I hear, but it tasted like steak. I've been eating rice everyday and ramen noodles for breakfast every morning. Also this weekend, I made a map for my village for an assignment. My cousin drove me around our community and pointed out stores and important buildings that I took note of. Yesterday, he helped me draw it on a piece of flipchart paper and labeled all the buildings. On Saturday, I got my first haircut since I've been in the FSM. My brother and I went to a salon that was in a grocery store. I guess it was the Chuukese version of a mall. It took 2 hours for the barber to cut both our hair but it was an opportunity for me to practice patience, since that's an importance skill I'll need during my 2 years of service. My hair is now shorter than I picture it being but it helps keep me cool in the heat. I've met all of the current volunteers in Chuuk except for one. They seem very approachable and knowledgeable about being productive PCVs. One Micro 73 volunteer left Chuuk today to go back to the states. He said goodbye to us today. Elizabeth, our training director, came by our training site and said hi to us and talked to us about the schedule for the rest of training. She said me and the other trainee assigned to the lagoon, will shadow a volunteer for a day and a night during the middle of training. We will be able to shadow him in his classes and learn about the projects he is currently working on. Chuuk is pretty much what I pictured it. The roads are full of pot holes and puddles, the electricity goes off regularly and the people are friendly. The weather is hot but not as humid as it was in Pohnpei. For fun, I go out on the boat, hang out with my brother, sister and cousins and practice my Chuukese. I am enjoying myself here so far. Chuuk is less developed than the other states and it is in desperate need of native English speaking teachers. I got a cell phone that uses calling cards and give me your number is you want me to call you. I hope you all are well and enjoying the coll autumn weather. I won't have internet access in Fefan so the only times I'll be able to update this blog will be during my trips to Weno. I hope to update this blog at least one more time during my training.
Take Care,
Ben
I am in Chuuk and have just finished the first day of my second week of Pre-Service Training II. PST II has been good. We've been having intense Chuukese language and cultural training. I'm learning the language with a fellow trainee who's going to be serving in the lagoon with me but on a different island. The other trainee in our group is learning Mortlockeese since he'll be in the Mortlocks on an outer island. My host family here in Weno has been great. My host father is a police chief and my host mother also works for the police department so I fell very protected. I have a 10 year-old brother, a 15 year-old sister and an 18-year-old brother who is attending the College of Micronesia in Paliker, Pohnpei's capital. They've been feeding me very well. My host mother wants to get fat to which I told her is impossible. I got to try turtle this weekend. It was served in a plastic tub and every part was still in tacked. The meat was stringy and very tough, very similar to dog meat from what I hear, but it tasted like steak. I've been eating rice everyday and ramen noodles for breakfast every morning. Also this weekend, I made a map for my village for an assignment. My cousin drove me around our community and pointed out stores and important buildings that I took note of. Yesterday, he helped me draw it on a piece of flipchart paper and labeled all the buildings. On Saturday, I got my first haircut since I've been in the FSM. My brother and I went to a salon that was in a grocery store. I guess it was the Chuukese version of a mall. It took 2 hours for the barber to cut both our hair but it was an opportunity for me to practice patience, since that's an importance skill I'll need during my 2 years of service. My hair is now shorter than I picture it being but it helps keep me cool in the heat. I've met all of the current volunteers in Chuuk except for one. They seem very approachable and knowledgeable about being productive PCVs. One Micro 73 volunteer left Chuuk today to go back to the states. He said goodbye to us today. Elizabeth, our training director, came by our training site and said hi to us and talked to us about the schedule for the rest of training. She said me and the other trainee assigned to the lagoon, will shadow a volunteer for a day and a night during the middle of training. We will be able to shadow him in his classes and learn about the projects he is currently working on. Chuuk is pretty much what I pictured it. The roads are full of pot holes and puddles, the electricity goes off regularly and the people are friendly. The weather is hot but not as humid as it was in Pohnpei. For fun, I go out on the boat, hang out with my brother, sister and cousins and practice my Chuukese. I am enjoying myself here so far. Chuuk is less developed than the other states and it is in desperate need of native English speaking teachers. I got a cell phone that uses calling cards and give me your number is you want me to call you. I hope you all are well and enjoying the coll autumn weather. I won't have internet access in Fefan so the only times I'll be able to update this blog will be during my trips to Weno. I hope to update this blog at least one more time during my training.
Take Care,
Ben
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