So this weekend there was a big festa up at the town near the park where I work. It was a very good time. Day two of the festival we spent going to different peoples houses eating goat stew. I was so full it was like Thanksgiving. At one home they served this brown chocolate cake looking substance. It was not chocolate and it was not cake, it was I think the exact opposite of chocolate cake. It was a crunchy “bread” made by using the collected blood of a cow, pig, or goat and mixing it with cornmeal. This is then stuffed into the animals stomach and baked. They must have lost a bet with the Irish at some point. That being said though the little cakes were not to bad once you got over that initial shock of realizing you were not eating a sweet dessert but rather a culinary scab. It was especially good when you let it soak up some goat stew.
Well looks like my flight has been changed. Now I will be leaving for the USA on the 11th of June. I prefer this because it means I will be traveling on a weekday rather than the weekend. Now I am trying to change my flight back to Cape Verde to a later date. I definitely want to spend at least a month in the States.
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Been a long time...
Just wanted to update with some news and information.
1. I have just put version 2.0 of the website I have been working on online. It has a new look and has been rebuilt from the ground up.
www.ecosaonicolau.com
2. I am coming home for the month of June. Wanted to travel Europe for some vacation but a weak dollar ended that. Thought about going to mainland Africa, but decided I would rather relax with good beer, hot showers, and greasy cheeseburgers.
All for now
Ciao
1. I have just put version 2.0 of the website I have been working on online. It has a new look and has been rebuilt from the ground up.
www.ecosaonicolau.com
2. I am coming home for the month of June. Wanted to travel Europe for some vacation but a weak dollar ended that. Thought about going to mainland Africa, but decided I would rather relax with good beer, hot showers, and greasy cheeseburgers.
All for now
Ciao
Friday, January 25, 2008
Moving Right Along
The other day I had a nice surprise. When I checked my mailbox I had not one, but two packages waiting for me. The first one was from my father and had some much needed supplies such as seasonings, as well as some new headphones. It is almost impossible to get good headphones here. One of the only places you can get these sorts of things is at one of the many Chinese markets. There are scores of them. Apparently the Chinese government and Cape Verde made some sort of agreement where Cape Verde got a lot of money and the Chinese markets don’t have to pay taxes. Hence we now have loads of Chinese markets. The headphones sold by the Chinese markets are incredibly cheap, sound horrible, and hurt your ears. It is also somewhat annoying to shop in any of the markets at times. You are tailed the entire time by one of the Cape Verdean girls who works at the store. They are not watching to make sure you don’t steal; they just hover pressuring you with their presence to buy something. Sometimes they can be rude. They don’t try to be; it is just a cultural difference that can be a bit frustrating for an American who likes to browse at his leisure.
The second package was from my friends back in KC. At first when I saw the package I was alarmed. The side had a gash in it and there was a large orange stain that could only be BBQ sauce. My heart sunk to the floor and I instantly swore vengeance upon the cur who had been so careless with my precious cargo. When I got back to my house I inspected the damage, and was overjoyed to see that my buddies had sent not one but three bottles of sauce, and two had survived! A bottle of Gates BBQ and a bottle of Jack Stack BBQ sat safely in their bed of packing peanuts. I tried to perform an autopsy on the third bottle but was unable to identify the brand. Then in a ceremony as solemn as flushing a cherished goldfish that has passed over to the other side, I disposed of my lost little friend in the trash. They sent the essentials: chocolates, four bottles of Tabasco Sauce, three bags of jerky. The sun actually did shine a bit brighter that day.
Up at the park my buddy Tali and I have put together our prototype hydroponics system. It is fairly simple and was not too expensive, but after we get to growing some stuff, I want to try and refine the system so it does not use a water pump and try to use recycled items for building materials. I would also like to install fog traps that collect moisture from the clouds near the peak and then use that water to grow in. I figure the more efficient, cheap, and lower the ecological footprint, the better.
On Wednesday night a woman died in my town. I didn’t know the lady or the manner in which it happened, but apparently she was the sister of a woman whose restaurant I frequent in my neighborhood. It happened while I was sleeping, but my friend Jon was there when she found out. He was sitting in the front of the restaurant and was the only one in the room. Suddenly she comes bursting through the door tearing at her clothes and wailing and then proceeds to roll around the floor. The next morning when I was going to work out I noticed there were a ton of people at the deceased ladies house. Inside women were wailing and tearing at their clothes. It is called cachora. Later when I was in the town plaza I saw them bringing the casket down to start the funeral. One night in Santiago for in-service training, I was woken up by the sound of cachoring in the middle of the night. It was extremely unsettling to hear an entire village wailing like they were in pain. My roommate and I lay in our beds; fully aware the other was awake, but trying to figure out exactly what was going on. Scott broke the silence ten minutes later with a timely “What the !@#$% is that?” Eventually we realized what was going on, and while comprehension made it a bit less eerie, it was still hard to go back to sleep. I try not to be too analytical of these things because a person had died, but it was interesting to see how different it was compared to how people react to death in the States. In the States it seems like everyone is shouldering their grief on their own trying to give the impression of stability for the benefit of being that rock for everyone else. Stiff upper lip and all that I suppose.
It made me think about when the time comes to put me in the ground, which I hope is a long way off. Instead of a dignified picture of me sitting for a portrait, I would like a picture of me wearing a rhinestone Elvis jumpsuit and sporting the big black hair and big ass sideburns. For the viewing of the body, rather then have my arms resting at my sides or across my chest, I would like my hands placed behind my head as if I am taking a nap. I’m not trying to be insensitive to anyone, I just hope somebody laughs when they peek inside.
Pretty soon it will be festa time over at the Casa de Sr. Hooper. Carnival is swiftly approaching and I have invited any volunteer that is so inclined to come and party in Sao Nicolau and crash at my place during the day. Carnival is basically the CV equivalent of Mardi Gra in the US. Four days of partying and parades. Here is how crazy people get: in early December we had Municipal Day and actually had one of the top five Cape Verdean singers perform at the festival. There was much dancing, partying, and swooning of the womenfolk. After he was done at between 3:30 and 4:30 in the morning, they started playing a CD of last years Carnival song over the speakers. People were going nuts, and not just when the song came on, it was like they could go for another four hours.
This years parade however will resemble a skunk, because as of last count there were seven American branco’s dancing in the parade. You have to go about three to four weeks before Carnival and get measured for you costume. They don’t let you see it till the first day of Carnival. They are so secretive that when they are trying it on you to make sure that it fits, they blindfold you first. Judging by last years costumes, who wouldn’t jump at the chance to parade down the street in sequined black bell bottoms and a silver vest complete with matching bracers and headpiece accented by a humongous feather that looks like it fell out of a pimps hat. I thought about wearing it home and just telling all my friends that this is what people in Cape Verde wear at all times, but I am pretty sure that I would get special attention when trying to get through airport security.
Till next time.
The second package was from my friends back in KC. At first when I saw the package I was alarmed. The side had a gash in it and there was a large orange stain that could only be BBQ sauce. My heart sunk to the floor and I instantly swore vengeance upon the cur who had been so careless with my precious cargo. When I got back to my house I inspected the damage, and was overjoyed to see that my buddies had sent not one but three bottles of sauce, and two had survived! A bottle of Gates BBQ and a bottle of Jack Stack BBQ sat safely in their bed of packing peanuts. I tried to perform an autopsy on the third bottle but was unable to identify the brand. Then in a ceremony as solemn as flushing a cherished goldfish that has passed over to the other side, I disposed of my lost little friend in the trash. They sent the essentials: chocolates, four bottles of Tabasco Sauce, three bags of jerky. The sun actually did shine a bit brighter that day.
Up at the park my buddy Tali and I have put together our prototype hydroponics system. It is fairly simple and was not too expensive, but after we get to growing some stuff, I want to try and refine the system so it does not use a water pump and try to use recycled items for building materials. I would also like to install fog traps that collect moisture from the clouds near the peak and then use that water to grow in. I figure the more efficient, cheap, and lower the ecological footprint, the better.
On Wednesday night a woman died in my town. I didn’t know the lady or the manner in which it happened, but apparently she was the sister of a woman whose restaurant I frequent in my neighborhood. It happened while I was sleeping, but my friend Jon was there when she found out. He was sitting in the front of the restaurant and was the only one in the room. Suddenly she comes bursting through the door tearing at her clothes and wailing and then proceeds to roll around the floor. The next morning when I was going to work out I noticed there were a ton of people at the deceased ladies house. Inside women were wailing and tearing at their clothes. It is called cachora. Later when I was in the town plaza I saw them bringing the casket down to start the funeral. One night in Santiago for in-service training, I was woken up by the sound of cachoring in the middle of the night. It was extremely unsettling to hear an entire village wailing like they were in pain. My roommate and I lay in our beds; fully aware the other was awake, but trying to figure out exactly what was going on. Scott broke the silence ten minutes later with a timely “What the !@#$% is that?” Eventually we realized what was going on, and while comprehension made it a bit less eerie, it was still hard to go back to sleep. I try not to be too analytical of these things because a person had died, but it was interesting to see how different it was compared to how people react to death in the States. In the States it seems like everyone is shouldering their grief on their own trying to give the impression of stability for the benefit of being that rock for everyone else. Stiff upper lip and all that I suppose.
It made me think about when the time comes to put me in the ground, which I hope is a long way off. Instead of a dignified picture of me sitting for a portrait, I would like a picture of me wearing a rhinestone Elvis jumpsuit and sporting the big black hair and big ass sideburns. For the viewing of the body, rather then have my arms resting at my sides or across my chest, I would like my hands placed behind my head as if I am taking a nap. I’m not trying to be insensitive to anyone, I just hope somebody laughs when they peek inside.
Pretty soon it will be festa time over at the Casa de Sr. Hooper. Carnival is swiftly approaching and I have invited any volunteer that is so inclined to come and party in Sao Nicolau and crash at my place during the day. Carnival is basically the CV equivalent of Mardi Gra in the US. Four days of partying and parades. Here is how crazy people get: in early December we had Municipal Day and actually had one of the top five Cape Verdean singers perform at the festival. There was much dancing, partying, and swooning of the womenfolk. After he was done at between 3:30 and 4:30 in the morning, they started playing a CD of last years Carnival song over the speakers. People were going nuts, and not just when the song came on, it was like they could go for another four hours.
This years parade however will resemble a skunk, because as of last count there were seven American branco’s dancing in the parade. You have to go about three to four weeks before Carnival and get measured for you costume. They don’t let you see it till the first day of Carnival. They are so secretive that when they are trying it on you to make sure that it fits, they blindfold you first. Judging by last years costumes, who wouldn’t jump at the chance to parade down the street in sequined black bell bottoms and a silver vest complete with matching bracers and headpiece accented by a humongous feather that looks like it fell out of a pimps hat. I thought about wearing it home and just telling all my friends that this is what people in Cape Verde wear at all times, but I am pretty sure that I would get special attention when trying to get through airport security.
Till next time.
Monday, January 14, 2008
Strikes and Gutter Balls
I’ve been back on Sao Nicolau for a little over two weeks and things have pretty much returned to normal. I guess this is good and bad. Being back in a routine after two weeks on the road is kind of nice. The traveling had gotten to a point where it was a bit nerve wracking. This is only exacerbated by the chaotic nature of the countries transportation services. There never are any sure things when traveling in Cape Verde. You don’t know if you are actually going to make your flight until you have actually landed at your destination.
One good thing that emerged from my stay on Santiago was steps were made to rectify the current situation between myself and my counterpart at the youth center. The head of the community development sector and I went and spoke with my counterparts boss in Praia. He seemed to side with us on some of our grievances and at other times he seemed to side with my counterpart. What was really nice is the amount of support I received from my boss in the Peace Corps. He did not budge on any of the issues and made our position very clear. After the meeting he told me that if we are unable to come up with a solution that was acceptable to both parties, he would switch me to a different site while trying to keep in my current location. We would just find another group for me to work with. Sigh of relief.
To fill my time here I have set down my keyboard and am currently trying my hand at farming. I am trying to implement hydroponics here on the island. Now I have never grown anything in my life unless there is some plant from my childhood that I raised, killed, and subsequently erased it from my memory. Luckily I have made some contacts who can help me learn what I need to know, and in February my boss is talking about flying me down to Santiago again to get some training from an expert who lives there. In the mean time I am learning as much as I can by building a prototype system with Tali, my friend from the UN. We are hoping on growing a variety of plants with it and then showing it to some interested parties. If we are able to get enough people interested and willing to invest in hydroponics, I am hoping we can start producing strawberries and other cash crops that will sell for a premium on the tourist islands like Sal and Boa Vista. With that money we can then invest in more equipment and grow the business.
One good thing that emerged from my stay on Santiago was steps were made to rectify the current situation between myself and my counterpart at the youth center. The head of the community development sector and I went and spoke with my counterparts boss in Praia. He seemed to side with us on some of our grievances and at other times he seemed to side with my counterpart. What was really nice is the amount of support I received from my boss in the Peace Corps. He did not budge on any of the issues and made our position very clear. After the meeting he told me that if we are unable to come up with a solution that was acceptable to both parties, he would switch me to a different site while trying to keep in my current location. We would just find another group for me to work with. Sigh of relief.
To fill my time here I have set down my keyboard and am currently trying my hand at farming. I am trying to implement hydroponics here on the island. Now I have never grown anything in my life unless there is some plant from my childhood that I raised, killed, and subsequently erased it from my memory. Luckily I have made some contacts who can help me learn what I need to know, and in February my boss is talking about flying me down to Santiago again to get some training from an expert who lives there. In the mean time I am learning as much as I can by building a prototype system with Tali, my friend from the UN. We are hoping on growing a variety of plants with it and then showing it to some interested parties. If we are able to get enough people interested and willing to invest in hydroponics, I am hoping we can start producing strawberries and other cash crops that will sell for a premium on the tourist islands like Sal and Boa Vista. With that money we can then invest in more equipment and grow the business.
Thursday, December 27, 2007
I'm a Bad Blogger
Yikes! I had not realized how long it had been since I made a post. In my defense I have not been home but have been traveling the islands. My first week I spent on Santiago as part of some Peace Corps training. Good to see everybody. My second week I spent on Fogo which is an active volcano. I spent Christmas Eve in the islands crater less than a mile from the giant earth zit itself. On Christmas we hiked down from the crater and my legs are still killing me. Good times.
Want to give a shout out to my mates back in Kansas City who have sent a care package out my way. Thanks to all and I really miss being back in KC. Here a bunch of us are having a pint.
Well, gotta run. I have a boat to catch and a 12 hour trip ahead of me back to my island. I'll try to post something next week.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year
Want to give a shout out to my mates back in Kansas City who have sent a care package out my way. Thanks to all and I really miss being back in KC. Here a bunch of us are having a pint.
Well, gotta run. I have a boat to catch and a 12 hour trip ahead of me back to my island. I'll try to post something next week.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year
Monday, November 26, 2007
Work Work Work
The rainy season is over and now the mountains are slowly turning brown again. It happens so subtly and slowly that you almost don’t notice it. It has been at least a month since it last rained. One of the things that really strikes me about Vila Brava is the strong sense of community that is present. I think this is especially apparent in the way that children are taken care of by the community. Many are allowed to roam about at an age that would normally be too young in the US. They don’t wander far, but it seems as if the community takes a much stronger hand in raising them. Also you have parents that bring their kids to work with them. For instance there is a bar that I frequent quite often and the woman who runs bar brings her son who could not be more than three or five. Yet this is not a bad environment like you think it might be in the States. It is simply a place where people go in the evening to get a few drinks and at no point does it get out of hand. The woman who owns the bar does not seem to mind and even seems to take a hand in raising the boy. This sense of community is also evident in a couple of the crazy people we have in town. They have no jobs and spend most of the day wandering around being crazy. Yet they always seem to have clothes and none of them are starving.
Nothing has happened in regards to my counterpart at the youth center. I have not been there for two weeks now, but have been keeping myself busy with other projects. I am still working at the park two days of the week, trying to get started on the website again. I really need to find a website creation tool that I can use at home on my mac. The search continues. I am also working on some other projects closer to where I live. Right now I am exploring the feasibility of creating a carpentry co-op. We have an unusually high number of carpentry shops in Vila, and I think if they were to coordinate their efforts they might be able to cut costs, plan for wood shortages, and possibly even sell their wares overseas. I am still investigating, and right now I am going around town to the various shops attempting to get pictures so I can have their products appraised.
Other projects I am also working on:
Starting a Scout troop here in Vila.
Introducing hydroponics.
Getting speed bumps installed on some of the streets here. The streets are narrow and sometimes the drivers speed down at a pretty dangerous speed.
I am also working on developing a plan to implement some tech recommendations I made for the park, as well as training the park in computer use in an office environment and finding someone to train who can update the website after I am gone.
Busy busy.
I have also joined the small gym that we have here and I am now going to the gym five days a week. It feels good to get in shape and it is a good place to meet different people in the community.
Nothing has happened in regards to my counterpart at the youth center. I have not been there for two weeks now, but have been keeping myself busy with other projects. I am still working at the park two days of the week, trying to get started on the website again. I really need to find a website creation tool that I can use at home on my mac. The search continues. I am also working on some other projects closer to where I live. Right now I am exploring the feasibility of creating a carpentry co-op. We have an unusually high number of carpentry shops in Vila, and I think if they were to coordinate their efforts they might be able to cut costs, plan for wood shortages, and possibly even sell their wares overseas. I am still investigating, and right now I am going around town to the various shops attempting to get pictures so I can have their products appraised.
Other projects I am also working on:
Starting a Scout troop here in Vila.
Introducing hydroponics.
Getting speed bumps installed on some of the streets here. The streets are narrow and sometimes the drivers speed down at a pretty dangerous speed.
I am also working on developing a plan to implement some tech recommendations I made for the park, as well as training the park in computer use in an office environment and finding someone to train who can update the website after I am gone.
Busy busy.
I have also joined the small gym that we have here and I am now going to the gym five days a week. It feels good to get in shape and it is a good place to meet different people in the community.
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Exit Strategy?
I feel that I have sacrificed a lot to be here. There was an incredible amount of work involved in getting accepted into the Peace Corps and preparing to leave for Cape Verde. I miss my friends and family in the States a great deal. I was always comfortable with making these sacrifices because I felt I was contributing to something that was greater than myself. I don’t feel like I ever had any illusions about how difficult it would be over here. I knew I would be stepping into a completely foreign environment and working with people whose perception of the world varied greatly from my own.
One thing I did expect though was that the people that Peace Corps assigned me to work with would understand the goals of Peace Corps and try to foster a cooperative environment. I have talked before on this blog about how frustrating working with my counterpart at the youth center has been. I have made every attempt to work with him. Well apparently our relationship has deteriorated to the point where he feels he can be outright disrespectful and insulting to me. One thing I cannot abide is a lack of basic respect. I have had enough. I wrote my supervisor in the Peace Corps and told him that either I am moved out of working in that youth center or I am going to return home to the States. I really like Cape Verde and everything about the island that I am on, but I did not fly halfway around the world so my counterpart could get his jollies abusing the American. I’ll keep you updated.
That was kind of a downer so here is a picture of a kitten.
Spent most of the weekend sleeping. Saturday night my fellow volunteer John calls me up because the woodshop/ bar across the street from him is having a bit of a fish fry. Sounds good. Apparently the owner of the bar and his buddies had gone out with a net and caught a bunch of these little fish called charro. They are about 2 – 3 inches long. You gut them, bread them, fry them, and then just eat the whole thing bones and all. Not as bad as it sounds – best to think of it as one big crunchy french-fry. It was pretty tasty too.
Later that night we went to a party at a nearby club. When I say club I mean the bottom floor someone’s house that had been converted to serve as a nightclub. It had a DJ booth, bar, tables and chairs, and a 10ft x 15 ft dance floor. It is not open regularly. One of the best things about it is that it was air-conditioned. After getting a beer I quickly made my way to the front of the air conditioner and staked out a four square section of tile that I dubbed “New Missouri.” It was a wonderful land and I was a bit sad to see it go.
This week since I am not going into the youth center I have a lot more time to spend working on my secondary projects and working up at the park. Between the two I should have plenty of work.
Ciao
One thing I did expect though was that the people that Peace Corps assigned me to work with would understand the goals of Peace Corps and try to foster a cooperative environment. I have talked before on this blog about how frustrating working with my counterpart at the youth center has been. I have made every attempt to work with him. Well apparently our relationship has deteriorated to the point where he feels he can be outright disrespectful and insulting to me. One thing I cannot abide is a lack of basic respect. I have had enough. I wrote my supervisor in the Peace Corps and told him that either I am moved out of working in that youth center or I am going to return home to the States. I really like Cape Verde and everything about the island that I am on, but I did not fly halfway around the world so my counterpart could get his jollies abusing the American. I’ll keep you updated.
That was kind of a downer so here is a picture of a kitten.
Spent most of the weekend sleeping. Saturday night my fellow volunteer John calls me up because the woodshop/ bar across the street from him is having a bit of a fish fry. Sounds good. Apparently the owner of the bar and his buddies had gone out with a net and caught a bunch of these little fish called charro. They are about 2 – 3 inches long. You gut them, bread them, fry them, and then just eat the whole thing bones and all. Not as bad as it sounds – best to think of it as one big crunchy french-fry. It was pretty tasty too.
Later that night we went to a party at a nearby club. When I say club I mean the bottom floor someone’s house that had been converted to serve as a nightclub. It had a DJ booth, bar, tables and chairs, and a 10ft x 15 ft dance floor. It is not open regularly. One of the best things about it is that it was air-conditioned. After getting a beer I quickly made my way to the front of the air conditioner and staked out a four square section of tile that I dubbed “New Missouri.” It was a wonderful land and I was a bit sad to see it go.
This week since I am not going into the youth center I have a lot more time to spend working on my secondary projects and working up at the park. Between the two I should have plenty of work.
Ciao
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