tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2200868914298235246.post2558938040558985330..comments2023-03-22T03:48:25.223-05:00Comments on Forever a Work in Progress...: Dis na AfricaIkenna Achilihuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18009643348710862536noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2200868914298235246.post-67554184881739149062010-10-20T13:54:15.032-05:002010-10-20T13:54:15.032-05:00Ditto what Susan said --- say well and be happy. ...Ditto what Susan said --- say well and be happy. How wonderful to be able to call other PCs whenever you want. Do you have electricity and if not, how do you charge your phones?Monica Edingerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03924540264341924291noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2200868914298235246.post-91935844348640482832010-09-18T09:57:11.423-05:002010-09-18T09:57:11.423-05:00I can't imagine cooking, fetching water, and d...I can't imagine cooking, fetching water, and doing laundry all on my own--I hired people in my villages to do it for me. Then again, there was no market in either village I lived in, and washing my clothes in the river would have been very time-consuming.<br /><br />It sounds like you are coming up with some great ideas for projects that can benefit the people of Bumbuna. I wish you the best with all that!<br /><br />I also hope your house gets fixed the way you want it real soon. I empathize with your setbacks: PC houses in my time were supposed to have concrete floors but mine didn't; I gave money to my landlord to buy cement and he promptly used it to buy rice for his family! Eventually I got the cement floor, but understandably Peace Corps wasn't happy about what happened.<br /><br />You are so lucky to have cellphones and can call other PCVs whenever you want! I'm sure that will make a huge difference in minimizing the inevitable loneliness and down times all of you will eventually feel. Things are so different for PCVs now! <br /><br />Take care and stay happy! :-)Susan S.noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2200868914298235246.post-23316894198827685192010-09-18T08:08:40.740-05:002010-09-18T08:08:40.740-05:00vI cant imagine! We all have cell phones now and i...vI cant imagine! We all have cell phones now and it is free to call any of our colleagues, of course it costs money to text and it costs an arm and a leg to call the states, but free to receive calls from there. This day and age, it is very easy to stay in contact with our supervisors and we can easily report problems or talk to a fellow PCV when things are going bad...it is great<br /><br />I like how you called food chop. "CHOP TIME!"...sound familiar? Right now in my village it is really easy to find cheap wholesome food for cheap!!!! LE1000 for a huge plate of rice and plassas (approx $0.25) but I cook when I want to, Im a little weary of having a servant in my house at this point all though I will probably get someone to help me buy ingredients for food and fetch water for me. Laundry I will do by myself, when I can.Ikenna Achilihuhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18009643348710862536noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2200868914298235246.post-73646790361463451382010-09-12T04:44:45.947-05:002010-09-12T04:44:45.947-05:00Sounds familiar! (Well, familiar for what we went...Sounds familiar! (Well, familiar for what we went through decades back.)<br /><br />One huge difference ---phones. There were none, even for those of us in Freetown. So PC issued you all phones? Do you use them a lot? Say when you contacted your PC supervisor re the housing problem? We'd have had to write letters or go in person. <br /><br />Also, you all do your own cooking? Are there no longer servants? That was more typical for us --- folks who cooked, cleaned (and most importantly because of the tumba flies) did laundry and ironed all our clothes. In Freetown and towns it was typical to have a houseboy for people of our station. In villages there was no practical way to get much food so hiring someone to cook chop was what most PCs did. Often they were school kids for whom they paid school fees.Monica Edingerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03924540264341924291noreply@blogger.com