Accompong Boys Soccer

Over the past couple of months Matt has been working with some of the local boys in a soccer program. 2-3 days a week, immediately after school, about 15 boys turn out to practice with Matt and a couple of other volunteer coaches. The 9-11 year old boys have been divided up into 3 teams, each with their own coach. On Mondays and Wednesdays we warm-up with laps, stretch and then run drills and do sprints. On Fridays we scrimmage one team against the next in a mini round-robin tournament.

Most of the boys play in bare feet, whether on the basketball court or on the playfield. Occasionally we can practice on the playfield, in between the trucks and workmen coming and going. For goals we put large rocks on the ground the appropriate distance apart, if a ball flies up into the air it is usually considered a no-goal if it is above the level of the goalie’s knees. We are currently raising funds locally to try to get enough money together to construct actual goal posts of PVC or metal.

In order to make this opportunity happen for the boys we needed to get soccer balls, ball bags, some small orange cones and coaches’ whistles. All of these things were made possible with the help of Julie’s family back in the Chicago area. With the generous support of Tom, Tami and Tim we were able to bring back with us last summer 33 soccer balls, 6 ball nets, 3 pairs of goalie gloves and a dozen orange cones. Back up in Minnesota, JACOM recently had a couple of hundred youth soccer jerseys donated to their organization and earmarked for Jamaica. They were able to send down enough jerseys, in enough different colors to allow the teams to all have their own color. Our plan is to have a couple of official tournaments with the boys on the actual Parade Ground/playfield once the revitalization project is complete, hopefully this spring. For now we primarily use the outdoor, concrete basketball court as our practice and scrimmage area.

Julie’s father, Tom, made a guest appearance a couple of weeks ago during a couple of our practices. He enjoyed hamming it up for the boys, and they enjoyed trying to get the ball past the stout, white goalie.

There are few extra-curricular activities of any sort available to the students here in our rural community. This is one of the reasons that Matt wanted to develop this program… to give the boys something healthy and productive to do with their time after school. As expected, one of the biggest challenges lies in finding coaches who are willing to volunteer their time and show up reliably when practices are scheduled. The boys will always come.

With all the serious and detailed projects that we work on here during our Peace Corps service, this soccer program has turned out to be a pleasant and mostly relaxing break for Matt, one where he can run, and kick, and play, and forget about all the other extraneous stresses that are affecting him.

Recap: Christmas

It goes without saying that Christmas in Jamaica takes on a completely different feel than what we’re used to back home. No matter how much Christmas music we listened to or Christmas movies we watched, it was difficult to feel the ‘Christmas spirit’. In the US, the whole month of December is dedicated to the holidays. Christmas can be seen and heard everywhere –Christmas trees, lights, decorations, and music. Time is filled with Christmas activities –shopping, Christmas parties, baking, wrapping presents, and decorating. I know that many of us complain about how commercialized Christmas has become in the States –us included. But being abroad during Christmas for 2 years, we’re reminded of all the good still in the American Christmas season. We miss it, and we miss all of you that we’ve been away from during the ‘most wonderful time of the year’. As we’re getting ready to spend the 9 months after Peace Corps in a constant state of transition, we do know one thing about next year, ‘I’ll be home for Christmas, you can count on me.’

Recap: Family Visit

We had four visitors this month from Julie’s family: Julie’s dad Tom, her brother Pete, her stepmom Tami, and Pete’s fiancé Robyn. We had an excellent time relaxing and enjoying time together, something we’ve obviously missed out on being in Jamaica.

Dad with his 'little men'

After spending the first half of their trip in Accompong, we headed off to Negril for the second half where we rented a beautiful villa on the water. This wonderful visit was almost too wonderful as saying goodbye, especially right before the holidays we would be spending apart, was really hard. We can’t wait for next Christmas that we can all spend together again.

The highlights:
Tom-playing football with some of the Accompong boys
Matt-playing ENDLESS games with Tom on his IPAD
Tami-getting some R&R, especially with the warm weather and swimming
Pete & Robyn- getting ENGAGED!!
Julie-spending quality time with her family

(one of) the happy couple(s)

Recap: Reggae Marathon

The only Jamaican marathon is held every December in Negril, and it has become somewhat of a tradition for Peace Corps Jamaica to participate and support this event. It includes a 10k, a half-marathon, and a marathon. This year Julie decided to run the 10k. Matt did not sit idly by, but rather was an active supporter. So active in fact, that every time Julie would go out to run, Matt would accompany by bike…4 times a week for 2 months, usually at 6am. And so supportive, that he woke up as well at 4:30 on Dec 3 to make it in time for the 5:15am race start. The race was a lot of fun, and although a 10k is by no means epic, but sharing the training and race experience with other PCVs was a great bonding experience.

the REAL housewives of Peace Corps Jamaica | G81

Recap- Thanksgiving

Alright, it’s been a while so let’s do a few recaps. First off: Thanksgiving.

Considering we were away from home, we had a great Thanksgiving this year. Another PCV’s immediate family was visiting for Thanksgiving, and graciously invited a few of us PCVs to join them for Thanksgiving dinner –quite the noble gesture; you have no idea how much PCVs, who’ve been living off of Ramen and generic mac & cheese for the past year and a half, eat.

We traveled to the North coast where the McDonald’s had rented a beautiful villa where we all would feast. And feast we did. We were lavished with a traditional Thanksgiving dinner (turkey, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce,….), watched football all day on a 51” flatscreen with cocktails in hand, and enjoyed the company of each other as we took a relaxing break from life as a PCV.

A SERIOUS shout out to the McDonalds. Thank you for giving us so much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving.

JQ

We just hosted our first visitor this winter: Jacquie Smith. Not only is Jacquie Matt’s cousin, but she happens to be one of the few people who knew both Matt and Julie before they were ‘Matt and Julie’. Of course we had a great time with Jacquie as we put her to work hauling bamboo, attended Matt’s football practice, went hiking, made some delicious vegetarian dishes, and spent a weekend in Treasure Beach…

"Benefits" continued

7. Easier to stay connected afterwards- Again, going along with the proximity to the US, JRPCVs are able stay connected to their Jamaican community and friends more easily once moving back to the States.

8. As a woman, it’s tricky, but not prohibitive- Okay, I’m sure many of the single PCV women here might debate this, but this is our blog, where we express our opinions, sooo…Being a foreign woman here IS hard. Really hard. The harassment and unwanted attention is enough to send many girls packing, but the truth is, again in comparison to many other developing countries, we’ve got it pretty good. There’s very little that Matt does that I can’t do. By no means am I claiming that the gender roles are equal, but Jamaican women speak their mind, are independent compared to many other women in the world, and thus I’m able to be my usual loud, passionate, and independent self without being chastised.

9. Competent Staff- At PCJ, we have a very competent staff. Now, this does not mean we don’t have our differences, because Lord knows we do. More than anything else this is probably due to cultural differences, the curious nature of a PCV, the stress of our jobs, and a staff that is held to US government rules and regulations. (Please don’t tell anyone on staff this, it would contradict our feisty, buck-the-system-nature they’ve all come to know :).)

10. Language- This is a tough one because many JPCVs were completely disappointed to find the country they were going to serve spoke English – we included. The learning of another language is a perk for many PCV applicants. However, as someone who’s lived abroad in a country that speaks a language I wasn’t fluent in….well, it’s definitely not easy, and much more difficult to be effective in. Remembering all the struggles and how difficult it is to have meaningful relationships or discussions with a 2 yr old’s vocabulary and feeling so helpless, ….well, if we weren’t placed in a major-language speaking country (i.e. Spanish, Portuguese, French), than for us, this is the next best thing.

11. Expressive Culture- where weirdness, eccentricity, and partying is embraced- We’ve said it before, Jamaica is one crazy, crazy place. The people are wild and outlandish. As a foreigner, this can be a lot to flow with at times, but it also can be stimulating and entertaining. When I hear PCV stories of serving in post-Soviet bloc countries and how mundane and homogenous they can be, I really appreciate the colorful life we live here.

12. Staying connected to the US- Currently in Jamaica there’s an international calling plan in which PCVs can call the US for roughly $.01/minute. That’s right. One whole penny. This, along with access to internet and being on a similar time zone to the US makes it much easier to maintain relationships back home, look for jobs as we’re winding down, or to chase down businesses in the US when they failed to process our paperwork or accidently closed our account.

13. Good music- It’s true, the DJs (‘Selectas’) here can make you want to bash your head against a wall. Sometimes I can’t believe some of the music that is played on the radio… there are no Parental Advisory labels here. However, Jamaica is recognized worldwide for its quality of music, and this is rightly so. Although we don’t appreciate and love all of it, there’s a lot of good stuff out there, much of which is so unique to Jamaica –not to mention that music is what flows in the veins of this country. I’m sure that in the years to come when we hear the rhythms of reggae, or the beats of dancehall, it’ll flood us with countless memories of our time spent here.

Benefits to PCVing in Jamaica (in no certain order)

We’ve shared about many of the struggles that we have here in Jamaica, and probably haven’t shared too much about the benefits of being a PCV in Jamaica. Keeping with our last blogpost, we thought we’d highlight of few of the plusses to PCVing on The Rock. This is by no means comprehensive, but here’s a quick list:

1. Connectedness with other Volunteers- We mentioned this in the last post, but every Volunteer is one convenient and free(!) phone call (or text) away. Because of our relatively close proximity to one another, we probably go on average 2 weeks without seeing another Volunteer –and we’re some of the most rural PCVs in Jamaica. This varies among Volunteers, but I feel 2 weeks is probably the overall average.

2. Visitors- Jamaica is not only a desirable location for many of our friends and family to visit, but it’s also close and affordable. We’ve had 4 sets of visitors so far, and are expecting another 3 before we leave. PCVs LOVE visitors!

3. Traveling Home- We’ve been able to travel home quickly and affordably. There’s some debate over whether or not it’s good for a PCV’s mentality to travel home during service, but WE really enjoyed ourselves. Also, life at home still continues, and there have been many JPCVs who had to travel home unexpectedly or suddenly for one reason or another.

4. Landscape- Jamaica is a very beautiful country. The lushness and the beaches, the brightly-colored buildings and countless birds…..

5. Nice weather- Two years of shorts and flip-flops! It does get hot and humid here, and we SO miss having seasons, but overall we can’t complain. We were recently reminded of this a few weeks ago after having a conversation with RPCVs from Armenia as they recounted endless weeks of always being cold, being confined to your bed and the warmth blankets could provide, chipping ice off the shower head before bathing,…yikes!

6. Good food- Yes, we have little variety here compared to the overabundance of what’s available in the average American supermarket, and we do get sick of fried chicken, but compared to many other developing countries, we’ve got it made. The food that Jamaicans cook is pretty tasty, and the uncooked food –fruit hanging on every other tree is unbeatable….

(more soon come….)

Halloween 2011

As JPCVs, we get together often for certain events (outside of PC-organized conferences and meetings), such as American holidays like Halloween. When I say often, I mean once ever couple months or so. Although this island can seem very small sometimes, one benefit is that you can reach any part of the island in one day’s journey taking public transportation. Sometimes this journey starts at 6am and ends after dark, and it can be rather painful, but for PCVs serving in much bigger countries with limited transportation, this is a gift.

Considering that PC has been in Jamaica for almost 50 years, and that Jamaica is a tourist destination, JPCVs have a small list of accommodations and attractions that either provide PCV discounts, or some way or another can fit into the PCV budget. The place we stayed this last weekend provided both, a PCV discount and a rather large house that normally sleeps 11 in which we slept 30. (As a PCV, you’re not picky about where you lay your head, as long as you have somewhere to lay it.)

Thirdly, I think we’re pretty well connected compared to other PC posts. We all have cellphones, which isn’t too rare these days for PCVs (roughly 90% of PCVs everywhere have one), but we also have a CUG (Closed User Group), in which we can call anyone in JPC world –staff and volunteers- for free! This is rare. Of the handful of PCVs I’ve met serving elsewhere, none of them have this, nor know of other posts that have this. AND they’re way jealous. Lucky us! As a result, we’re able to stay linked to PCVs throughout the island with no cost to our pockets. Most of us also have regular internet connection. I don’t know of any JPCV who is unable to access their email at least once a week, without great inconvenience.

As a result, we’re able to have fun get-togethers, like Halloween this last weekend.

(P.S. Matt was a party Ref, and Julie was a market woman.)

Money, money, money, MON-ey!

“So how does that whole money thing work then? I mean, I know you guys are Volunteers, but I also know that Peace Corps provides you with enough cash to get by. So what’s the deal?” Good question.

So here’s the rough scoop. The idea is that PCVs are supposed to live as close to the local lifestyle as possible. This can controlled largely by limiting the monthly stipend PCVs receive. PC tries to determine, to the best of its ability, what the local wage might be, and then determines if a PCV can honestly get by with this amount, making adjustments if necessary. Again, just a rough scoop.

Here in Jamaica, all Volunteers receive the same amount for the month, regardless of where you’re located on island. The one thing that does vary from Volunteer to Volunteer is how much we pay in rent. One Volunteer might pay $130 US in rent a month, while the next pays $200. A PCJV’s stipend will reflect this difference.

In the beginning of PST, we were all given our own personal ATM (ABM as they’re called here) cards. PC automatically deposits our monthly stipend into our accounts towards the end of each month. PC does reimburse some random costs, such as travel if PC requires for us to travel into Kingston for example, and PC also reimburses us when we have to fill our propane cylinders we use for cooking.

Aside from all of this, PCVs get somewhere around $400US/month for everything else: food, transportation, phone usage, utilities, ‘personal sundries’, etc., etc., etc. This means that in Jamaica the average PCV, including rent, lives off of less than $6,000US/yr.

Jamaican Cooking!

A nice benefit to this is that there’s no keeping up with the Jones’ here. All your PC friends know you’re broke, and they understand, because they’re just as broke as you are. So, for get-togethers everyone’s always trying to figure out the best deals, cheapest rates, and all-around most affordable fun-time-activities. And there’s surely no embarrassment in admitting that you have less than $10US in your bank account.

Now, does that better answer your question?

Family Matters

I (Julie) teach grades 7-9 at the Jr. High school here in Accompong. The two classes I teach are computer class and Health and Family Life Education (HFLE). In HFLE last year, for part of a school project, I required each student to do a very small presentation about themselves at the beginning of each class i.e. one student each time class met. For part of their presentation, they needed to bring in a “family” picture to present to the class. Knowing that most students wouldn’t have access to any photos, and also knowing that JACOM had a photo printer I could use, and also knowing that it would be nice for each student to have at least one ‘family’ photo to call their own, I agreed to come to their home sometime before their project was due to take a picture of them with someone else in their family. I printed the picture and brought it to class, and if they successfully completed their presentation, they would get to keep the picture. (This was also really helpful for me to connect with their parents/guardians, especially after first coming to site.)

I thought I might share some of these pictures with you:


p.s. It still amazes me how much some family members resemble one another here.

PCMI

Peace Corps Master’s International is a collaboration between PC and certain US Universities. PCMI offers graduate students the opportunity to incorporate their PC service into their studies. It differs from university to university, but generally, most PCMI students take a year’s worth of coursework at university, and then follow this with their 27 month PC term, in which they receive graduate school credit.

Julie is enrolled in this program through University of Alaska Fairbanks, studying Alaska Native and Rural Development, or as she likes to put it, “Rural/Community Development with a Cross-Cultural or Indigenous component”. She has already completed all of her coursework, a small portion of which she did correspondence since being in Jamaica, and while here is receiving graduate credit while she works on her thesis. This means that the only thing that stands between Julie and her Master’s is the successful completion of her thesis, as well as the passing of her comprehensive exams, to be taken next summer upon returning to Alaska. If everything goes as planned, we will finish our service here in May, and Julie will graduate in August.

There are many benefits to being in the PCMI program:

• PC tries to place you with an assignment that corresponds with your studies. This is nice, as sometimes PCVs are placed in fields they might not have first chosen.
• Julie regularly communicates with her professors back in Alaska, as they offer guidance on her studies, suggest applicable readings, as well as provide insightful discussion on all topics pertaining to PC/grassroots development/cross-cultural interactions/etc. This has augmented Julie’s PC service nicely, as well as provide more practical experience for a graduate degree.
• The PCMI program has also greatly helped our piggy bank, as UAF waives her tuition fees for the credits she’s gaining while in PC, AND Julie also received a fellowship during her year of coursework due to her involvement in PCMI.
• Plus, having a Master’s Degree on your resume should count for something, and being a Returned PCV must open some doors… right? So, what about the double whammy… A Master’s Degree that worked hand-in-hand with PC service? We’re hopefully talking about pretty hirable material, right? As we start to shift our focus to life after PC, AND hear about the job climate back home….we sure hope so.

And some last pics of Culture Camp:

Let the Rumors Fly

The other day I was voicing my frustration to Matt about the amount and level of rumors we’ve been the subject of during our stay here in Accompong. We’ve been rumored to be thieves, adulterers, involved in regular domestic violence, liars, spies, and probably almost anything else that might make for a good story.

We have been rumored to do more and worse during our limited time in Jamaica than we had during the whole of our lives back in the US. I cannot tell you how infuriating this can be. Here we’re doing our part to better the community, and it seems all you get is grief. The two of which seem to go hand in hand. The more we do, the more we get scrutinized. (I’m sure public servants everywhere are nodding their heads in understanding.) However, in my earlier naiveté, I kept thinking, “don’t worry, once they see what we’re really here for, that we’re decent people who are just trying to help, it’ll get better.” And it did....for some people. And for others it gets worse.

You put yourself in the spotlight, and all of a sudden everyone wants to talk about you and pick you apart. It is ironic because usually the people who are the most critical are the ones that never stand up or help with anything. And who would, with people like themselves lurking around?

The truth is we’re probably the most active community members in Accompong. We’ve been able to accomplish alot in the short time we’ve been here. And this comes with a lot of power. When you write the grant for the revitalization of the parade grounds, you have asay in who gets the jobs associated with it. If you successfully refurbished the library into a top-notch internet café and library, you get to help determine the rules for the facility. Let’s say you’ve decided to teach computer classes for the community, well then you can decide the class schedule, what will be taught, and who you’ll be targeting for classes.

Now, that being said, we really and truly try our best to make the best decisions for everybody. We try and try and try to be fair. We don’t abuse our power, but we do hold people accountable. If you stole coffee suckers from the farmer’s co-op, we’ll confront you. If you disrespect the library employees, we’ll kick you out for a week. If you came out and volunteered on a community project, we’ll give you job priority in our next project.

Fair or not, this doesn’t always go over well with everyone. Most people, yes, but not the people you kicked out, confronted, or snubbed… And their friends…. And maybe with all the unemployed idlers (which is every other person here) who have nothing better to do with their time, and just want a good story about the weird white people who moved into town.

Sure, there are other factors at play here. We live in a rural small town, where everybody knows everybody, and there’s not a whole lot going on a.k.a. rumorville worldwide. Also, we’re strange. I mean, I think we’re strange to those of you who know and love us, so can you imagine how we must seem to rural Jamaicans?

So here’s the ultimate paradox: Our character has never been questioned more in our lives since we started our work as Peace Corps Volunteers…. And that’s the paradox. We’re VOLUNTEERS. That’s what we do for a living. For 2 years. I don’t know if I’ve ever done more outright ‘good’ in my life. Makes you think twice the next time you bash a public figure? Hope so.


(Some more Culture Camp pics....)

Nine Nights, Dead Yards, Funerals

We made reference to how death, and all that goes with it, differs here in Jamaica. With Tony’s passing it’s been our minds more than usual lately. In comparison to our experiences in the US, death and ‘all that goes with it’ is a big thing here, bigger and more common than weddings.

In Accompong, when someone dies, it is not uncommon for the whole town to come around the yard of the deceased to ‘pay their respects’. Sometimes, ‘paying respects’ has more to do with curiosity than anything else.

Following someone’s death, a ‘dead yard’ is held at the home of the deceased, sometimes for weeks, until the ‘nine night’ and funeral. A dead yard largely consists of the home/yard being open to visitors to hang out, play dominoes, drink, etc. In many cases, it is expected that the food and alcohol be provided by the family and friends of the deceased. (Sometimes I find out someone has died because ratty, blue tarps have been strung outside someone’s home, ready to host that evening’s visitors.)

A ‘nine night’ is held the night before the funeral, and it’s much like the grand finale -one huge party. Often there is a DJ, food, a band, dancing, singing, and just straight up partying. Anyone’s invited to a nine night; we’ve been invited to countless nine nights of people we’ve never met. Accompong will sometimes empty for the evening while many from the town attend a nine night in a neighboring village. Nine nights –like all Jamaican parties- last ALL night, often not really getting started until after midnight.

Funerals are HUGE deals, and like most Jamaican services and ceremonies, they last hours. The more ornate and flashy the casket, grave, the hearse, etc. the more respect it is thought to give to the deceased.

Other interesting tidbits: Cremations are not common here. In Accompong, the Abeng (cow horn instrument) is blown upon someone’s death as well as at the funeral. If someone dies with their eyes open, it is thought that they died looking or waiting for someone –often a loved one. When someone dies, the persons clothes must all be gathered in one place or pile, the bed turned a different way, and whatever chair, couch, etc. they were sitting in when they died turned as well.

Coconut bowls...

Serving as a volunteer, anywhere, means that you are constantly giving and serving. In Peace Corps life there is sometimes a need to work on small, simple projects that are not related to Peace Corps work: projects that are non-stressful, fulfill a personal need or are therapeutic. Over the past couple of months I have started work on a coconut cup and bowl project.



Based on their age, there are a couple of different types of coconuts: jelly coconuts and dry coconuts. Jelly coconuts are the young, green ones that have lots of the sweet coconut water in them, but almost none of the coconut meat that people grate and use in candies, to make coconut milk, etc. The dry coconuts are the ones that we as Americans are more familiar with, they are what we think of as a coconut, with a fibrous, brown, hard outer shell. Once they are cracked open they a have a little coconut water in them but are mostly meat. After the meat is pried out of them, the hard, woody shell can be used to make nice cups and bowls.

Generally people just chop them with a machete or bash them against a rock to get to the meat out the dry coconuts, but if a person, like me, wants to make something nice out of the complete shell and not just the shattered fragments then a little more care needs to be taken with them. A stiff, fine-tooth handsaw works nicely to cut off the tops exactly where you want the rim of your cup or bowl to be. Next, the meat of the coconut needs to be carefully extracted without cracking the rim of the shell. Once the meat is out I take a wire brush and remove all the excess woody material on the outside of the shell, which also save s me a ton of time in the next step… sand papering. Just like any other piece of wood a coconut shell needs to be sand papered smooth before applying any type of finish.


The final trick in making coconut cups and bowls is in making some kind of pedestal that allow the round-bottomed cup or bowl to stand upright. I have yet to perfect this, but in the attached pictures you’ll see where I’m going with it.

Matt

Uncle 'T'

One of the reasons that we’ve been MIA this past month is that one of our closest friends here in Accompong died a week ago. We’ve referenced Tony before, but for those who don’t recall, Tony was the other American living in Accompong. He’s been here roughly 8 years, running a humble eco lodge called Baboo’s Garden. His death wasn’t out of the blue, as he found out definitively 3 weeks prior that his cancer had returned, and there was a lesion on his liver. Tony suspected this and he hadn’t been feeling 100% for months.

As far as our lives here in Accompong, Tony was much like family, and I’m pretty sure he’d say the same about us. As such, we’ve been the primary people ‘sorting out his business’ over the last few weeks, alongside Dowdy his closest Jamaican friend. Tony was a close friend to the previous two Peace Corps volunteers who have been most recently in Accompong and they considered him family as well. Tony’s place has been a refuge of sorts to many Peace Corps volunteers over the years not just those, like us, who have lived in Accompong.


Although it’s sad that Tony passed, the hardest part for us has been ‘sorting out his business’, alongside cultural differences with death. Although we have had loved ones die before, neither of us have been the point person to call the hearse, pick up cremation ashes, and sort out death certificates –not to mention figuring out what debts need to be paid, what money might be available, and what’s to happen with his ‘stuff’, his business notwithstanding. (We do have to give a shout out to Coby, Tony’s sister, who traveled down to Jamaica the week before he died and helped us to get much of this in order. She’s been an amazing support through all of this. )

It’s been difficult responding to the handful of people who claim that Tony owes them this or that. Or the people who are trying to interfere with Dowdy’s right to Baboo’s Garden and the land it sits upon. It was also difficult to have 50 people arrive up at Tony’s within 2 hours of us finding out he passed, many to pay their respects, some because they were curious, and yet another handful to see what they could gain from Tony’s death themselves –even if that just meant ‘a likkle breakfast’.

The good news is that timing couldn’t be better, as Culture Camp is over, and school has yet to start back up again. And it has been nice to just be ‘human’ in this community for a little while, rather than the unending role of Peace Corps Volunteer. It’s nice that most people in town seem to understand our loss and the stress of the situation, even if they didn’t really know either us or Tony, and as a result have given us some much-needed space for a little while.

There’s no doubt that things will never be the same around here with Tony gone. He was quite the character, and extremely generous with us...I’m sure there are many things that we’ll never forget about our PC experience, and Uncle T happens to be one of them.

Culture Camp

Part of the reason that we’ve been putting off this blogpost is because Culture Camp was such a big project, it’s difficult to summarize…

In a nutshell, working alongside the Junior Council, we put on a 2 week summer camp that revolved around cultural preservation of Accompong Maroons. Here’re some key facts to help better understand the camp:

-Indigenous groups worldwide are seeing their unique cultures and traditions disappear within two generations, largely due to globalization and influences of Western culture. Experiencing this firsthand in Alaska, we also see this in Accompong.

-Many experts believe that this loss of identity is much of the cause of the rampant social ills found in many of these indigenous communities.

-In attempt to revitalize Native culture and traditions in Alaska, culture camps are practiced throughout the state, bringing younger generations and older generations together in a structured format to teach and share skills, knowledge, and traditions that otherwise would be lost.

-We decided to do this here in Accompong.

-We had roughly 60 students attend ages 9-20.

-All classes taught were focused on Maroon culture: Traditional Drum Building, Traditional Cooking, Ambush, Abeng Making and Blowing, Herbal Medicine, Traditional Drumming, and Traditional Singing and Dancing.

-All classes were taught by community experts and elders from Accompong.

-A history lesson was also taught each morning by local elders.

-Seeing an 83 year old man show a 15 year old teenage boy how to build a traditional drum is emotionally moving.

-Watching an elderly woman lead a traditional song and dance with a group of high school students of whom most likely never would have paid attention to her otherwise, who probably were ignorant to the wealth of knowledge only she knows… this can bring tears to your eyes.

-Witnessing some of the youths in our community pick up and learn skills that not even their parents can do is powerful.

-Reviving a lost culture, reclaiming a unique identity, empowering a people –even if for just a small moment in time- is one of the greatest things we’ve been a part of since stepping off the plane in Kingston.

The Land of Milk and Honey

Life at site is super busy right now, as we’re right in the middle of summer Culture Camp. We’ll tell you more about that later, but as for now, we thought we’d share a little about our trip home last month. Here was our rough itinerary:

June 1- Matt flies to Buffalo, NY to spend time with his family. (Matt had an extra 3 weeks, as Julie took 3 weeks for Africa in April.)
June 17- Matt hits the road with his mom to do a little East coast road trip.
June 20-Julie flies in to Portland, Maine to meet up with Matt and Judy.
June 21/22- We spend roughly 24 hours checking out Unity, ME, where we hope to ‘settle down’ post-PC.
June 23- We’re all back in Buffalo to spend a couple days chilling out there.
June 25- We fly to Chicago to spend a week with Julie’s family.

It’s hard to know what to share, what all of you might be interested in. I’m sure if we really tried hard we could come up with some insightful parallels, or ironic symbolism. We could probably talk about the paved, flat roads; how for our whole trip, we didn’t get begged once, or harassed, or stared at; that everybody seems to follow the rules and that there seems to be a system for everything; how people were so nice; how we ate like kings (and got fat too! The first thing Julie heard stepping out of the airport, from one of our close Jamaican friends was, “Julie, you put on a whole heap a weight!”) ; how life is so easy, and comfortable and convenient –you want anything in the world, you just hop in your car and go get it; to have intellectual conversations; how we didn’t have to think about Jamaica, or site, or the poor, and the cumbersome and difficult task daily to give them opportunity for a better life. But, to be honest, our brains are fried, especially with Culture Camp, so consider yourselves lucky to be getting even a blogpost. So let’s just summarize with this:

As far as vacations go, our trip back home was AMAZING. It was hard to leave….so thanks to all our friends and family who gave us the break we needed.

Cockpit Country

Maybe some of you are waiting for us to blog about our recent trip back to the States… and that will come in time. (We’re currently swamped with our summer Culture Camp which takes place during the next two weeks.) However, we wanted to do a quick, but important blogpost for our friend Bart.

Bart, a former PCV, is still in Jamaica trying to continue on the work he was doing as a PCV, but on his own funds. He’s currently undertaken a video documentary project that highlights Cockpit Country, which is a beautiful and unique part of Jamaica that includes our community, Accompong. I could tell you all about it, but Bart does a much better job on his website, which also includes a video explaining what he’s trying to do.

Why are we telling you about this?
#1: Cockpit Country is currently where we call home, and the preservation of the land and the people who live here is so important.
#2: Because Bart is staying on his own funds, he’s asking for financial support from others to help him stay in Jamaica and finish this project.

So we’re asking all of you, to please, at the very least, click on this link and spend 1 minute checking out this website.

Should I Stay or Should I Go

This past month we lost 2 more Volunteers from the original 38 who arrived March of last year. This brings the total number of Volunteers in Group 81 down to 27. That leaves about 70% of us left, with about 40% of our service left to go. I recently read that on average 1/3 of PCVs will not finish their service.

Every PCV has said it over and over, “Peace Corps is hard.” This can be seen in the 2/3 of applicants who will not be placed/accepted, by the 1/3 of PCVs who don’t finish their service, and in recognizing the caliber of people who apply to PC in the first place.

We prepared for this. We went through months and months (sometimes years and years) of the application process. We packed up our things. Left good jobs. Left our homes. Said good bye to friends, families, loved ones. We set aside our American lives for 27 months to embark on this PC journey…

I don’t know anybody who joined PC, and thought, “Well, I’ll see how this goes.” Or “I guess I’ll try this for a little while.” They came to finish, and I’m reminded of this energy as Jamaica just received another set of 30 PCTs last week.

It’s always hard to lose other Volunteers. And although we have yet to be in a position where we needed to seriously assess whether we should stay or go, I surely do not envy those who have had to make the difficult choice to go.

Head, shoulders, knees, and TOES!

Rain, rain, rain, rain. It’s been raining non-stop since Saturday morning. Well, maybe not quite non-stop. It stops raining for a few hours every day. Flash flood, mudslide, and tropical cyclone warnings have all been issued this week, serving as a reminder that June 1st marks the official beginning of Hurricane season. Don’t worry, I’m safe and sound in our little, bomb-shelter of a home. Aside from getting stuck at another Volunteer’s site for an extra night due to impassable roads (hardly a punishment), and being cooped up all day, life still goes on, barely. I knew spending all those weeks at our humble Alaskan cabin would someday pay off. If you think you’d go stir crazy being cooped up here for a week, trying spending freeze-up on the Tatonduk River. Weeks in the middle of the Alaskan winter, unable to travel, your nearest neighbor 2 hours away, no internet, no phone, no TV, no electricity. Just you, your husband, 10 dogs :), and a 15 x 25 ft log home. They don’t call it cabin fever for nothing.

Anyway, back to the real reason I’m writing this post. I thought I’d share with you one of my bi-monthly routines. Getting my toenails painted! Now, I don’t wear make-up, nor do I brush my hair (don’t tell anybody), or blow my budget on new clothes, but once every month or two I get my toenails painted here in Jamaica. It’s fun, cheap, and duh, I’m trying to integrate… ALL the women here do it. Plus, this is one of the ways you meet those cool people you’d never meet otherwise, like Scean who does my nails here in Accompong. Just so everyone is clear, Scean hand paints the design. It is not a sticker or some other cheap shortcut. It’s just pure talent. And all for 3 bucks.


(I also decided to throw in some fun hair pics too…seemed applicable.)

A Delicate Balance

As Matt leaves to go home tomorrow for a month (Julie will join him in 3 weeks), we thought we might steal a blogpost idea we got from one of our good friends…

Things we love here (most of the time): Super cheap, efficient, and extensive public transportation system; the feeling of community; the abundance of fruit; beaches; laughter; kids playing in the road barefoot; community members hanging out on their porches, in shops, on the road every night; limited TVs; handwashing; time; walking ½ mile to school and being greeted at least a dozen times along the way; hardly anyone has a car; rain; industriousness; machetes; not having to worry about where our next paycheck will come from; not having to worry about being ‘cool’, because you’ll always be just ‘weird’; appreciating what it means to be a minority; the market; never feeling pressured to ‘keep up with the Jones’’; freedom within our work; the time other people have for you; frankness; overcomed challenges; scenery; everybody knowing our name; other PCVs; PCV media and book exchange.

Things we miss from home: Microbrews; quality dairy products; fresh-baked bread; the ability to shut off; yoga classes; coffee shops; hanging out with friends on the weekends; camping; our dogs; visiting family; freedom; anonymity; deep conversations; fitting in; driving; woodstoves; snow; bonfires; hamburgers; playing games; favorite restaurants; garage sales and thrift stores; wide, open spaces; skiing, mushing, hiking, canoeing; local outdoor music festivals, roadtrips; not being harassed; farmer’s markets; volunteerism; gratitude; used book stores; variety; environmental awareness; recycling; good, quality tools; good, quality craftsmanship; mushrooms; nuts; community art and cultural events; autumn; wool socks.

more hammock pics...

Feel-Good Moments

coming to get us for Book Club

“I think you’ve single-handedly taught the community of Accompong to read,” Matt says nonchalantly from the other room of our tiny home. “Wait, what did you just say?” I reply, immediately putting down my own reading book and walking into the kitchen. “I was just thinking about it tonight at the Internet Café (and Library), and I think you managed to teach Accompong how to read…and not just the kids.”

This is a hard post to write, because I don’t want to sound ‘boasty’-as Jamaicans would say-, but I have to share my excitement over Matt’s laid-back observation. Firstly, I must clarify that Matt was a being a bit extreme; I haven’t taught the whole community, nor have I taught them how to read, but maybe more to enjoy reading.

We’ve talked about Book Club before, and many of the small successes we’ve seen along the way. But never have I had experienced the success of Book Club so completely until I came back from Africa. With me being gone, book club did not keep for 4 weeks. Matt sent me emails while I was away letting me know that he had to repeatedly send 30 disappointed kids on their way, when they came by on Tuesdays. However, the most heartwarming moment came when I was working at the internet cafe/library the Monday after I got back. I was sitting at the administrator desk when a handful of Book Club members came in with books in their hands. They didn't know I was going to be there, because as soon as they saw me, they said, "Julie! Yuh back! We miss yuh when yuh ova farin. Yuh cyaan gwe no weh no mo.' That felt good, sure. BUT what was really exciting is that they then proceeded to check in their library books and go over and pick out another book, while I sat trying to comprehend something that apparently had become run-of-the-mill to everybody else. I pulled out our 'Library Rental Scheme' logbook to write down their new books, and found myself flipping through page after page of Book Club members who had checked out books over the last month. Not only has this not happened before, but from my understanding before we reached Accompong, kids never checked out books from the library. I looked up at Matt dumbfounded, and he says, "Oh yeah, all the kids have been coming in here reading and checking out books the whole time you were gone." –again, like it was no big deal.

And this has continued still. I LOVE that I can walk into the internet cafe/library at any given hour it is open, and children will be in the back corner reading books, or parents will be checking out books with their kids. We often pass grandmothers and aunties perusing through their child’s library book, many times with more excitement than the child –which led Matt to add his “…and not just the kids”-comment.

Things are not always perfect here. And we probably have more ‘feel-bad’ moments than ‘feel-good’ ones. But right now, I’m trying to do what all PCVs probably do when they hit those inevitable roadblocks, and remind myself, that sometimes all that frustration and stress is worth it.

JC members helping at Sports Day

Herbal Garden Hut Update

After a fast start the Herbal Garden Hut has gone through a slow period over the past month, but progress has been made, and from a distance it looks fantastic. 1250 pieces of thatch were required to complete the roof of the building and, during the frequent rainstorms we have now in the rainy season, it doesn’t leak a drop. It took four men 3 full days to tie the thatch in place in the traditional manner, all tied, no nails. The stone work that forms the wall of the hut has been finished except for the top, flat surface and the “pointing” (dressing) of the seams of the stones. The Accompong Maroon Junior Council has done a awesome job of coming out and volunteering for workdays, gathering the stone needed for the walls, hauling marl and sand to the site, etc.

Over the next week the concrete will be cast for the floor (all mixed and carried by hand), the top of the wall will be slabbed off, the window frames will be installed and the shutters will begin to be built. Check out the slide show and then compare it with earlier ones of the building site!

30 tips for (approx) 30 incoming PCVs

We decided to make a list for those 30ish incoming Jamiaca PCTs. Much of this is applicable to posts all over, not just Jamaica. We know this, because we ‘borrowed’ many of these tips from PCVs serving elsewhere….

#1: You have to be flexible. Keep an open mind. It’s not going to be like anything you think it will be.

#2: Jamaican culture tends to be colorful and pretty aggressive. This can be overwhelming at times, but don’t worry, you’ll eventually get used to it, and maybe even come to appreciate it.

#3: Don't be afraid to "be yourself" (within reason). The idea is cultural exchange, not cultural assimilation. Share who you are, but be safe doing so.

#4: Unless things have changed significantly, your job ‘title’ given to you in your invitation kit means little-to-nothing. Your sector, a pretty big deal. Your job title, not so much.

#5: Developing relationships within Peace Corps is just as important as the relationships you have with locals.

#6: This experience is not for everybody.

#7: Don’t stress about packing. We know, easier said than done. But, you’ll learn to cope with what you have, and buy or have loved ones send/bring the rest.

#8: Take PCJ’s packing list with a grain of salt. I don’t know how much it’s changed but you won’t need a pant suit or a cocktail dress, or for the rest of your clothes to be in neutral or earth tones. I know Volunteers who wear chacos regularly, and Matt wears shorts pretty much every day.

#9: In our experience, we dressed the nicest during PST. PCJ drives a pretty hard line on this, and dress in Jamaica is important. But SO much will depend on your job and your community, and people will give you lots of lee-way as a PCV/foreigner, and you’ll be smart enough to figure out where to draw the line once you get to site. Some things are completely inappropriate, like wearing shorts or flip flops to school, other things are not that big of a deal.

#10: Cockroaches make you squeamish? Go with the flow… pick up a flip-flop, kill ‘em, throw ‘em in front of your favorite ant colony entrance and watch the fun begin!

#11: Chill out. Don’t try to be anybody’s hero. Too many PCVs either try to be Mr. Peace Corps, or expect for the locals to think they’re their savior. Be honest with yourself. If you’re struggling, be real about it.

#12: Bring pictures of home. You’ll want to put them all over your home. Plus, Jamaicans will love to see them, and you’ll love to tell them about your life. (um, shout out Goal #2).

#13: Just because you are not hand digging a well does not mean you aren't doing something worthwhile.

#14: PC can be bureaucratic, full of rules and regulations that at times feel like they control every aspect of your life. In those moments, just remember why you joined PC in the first place, the relationships you have at site, the lives you are touching, and the real reasons we’re all here to begin with.

#15: Patience is a virtue - simple saying, lots of meaning. There is a reason Peace Corps service is 2 years.

#16: PST can be overwhelming, and there’ll be many days that you’ll just want to get to your site. But then you’ll get to your site and you’ll miss hanging out with everybody at PST. Moral of the story: even though certain things suck in the moment, enjoy it, because you will miss it later (or at least parts of it).

#17: You are gonna be misunderstood. It sucks, I know, but get ready to spend the next 2 years being misquoted, misrepresented, and pigeon-holed. People at home don't get what you are going through and Jamaicans aren't gonna understand your particular thought-processes until they get to know you (and even then, it is not always you you).

#18: Pick your battles.

#19: Back everything up. You will thank us when your computer dies.

#20: Your life is now a fishbowl. Get ready for everybody to watch the show and subsequently commentate…

#21: Patwa is a pretty cool language, and EVERYTHING is funnier when it’s in patwa. When you’re having Spanish-envy, try to see this.

#22: Everyday is an emotional day. We stock chocolate. What's your vice?

#23: There are gender rules and cultural norms that are going to seem pointless and annoying at first. Abide by them before you break them (if you ever do).

#24: Keep in mind that everything you do or say leaves a permanent impression about Americans. Many of our sites only have PCVs representing the US.

#25: Learn to laugh at yourself as early as possible.

#26: Think big expect small.

#27: It is good to have PCVs as listeners, but try to find a group that is not always negative. Negativity can just spiral you down very fast here.

#28: Jamaica is still a developing country. You can’t change that in two years.

#29: Remember you decided to do this; you may get angry at many things, but you’re here because you felt the need to give your time to somebody else in a place unlike your own home; hang tough despite the hardships. You will meet great people, have fun and amazing times that nobody else you know can even come close to...unless they too were a PCV.

#30: Not all Volunteer advice is good advice for you or your situation. Keep an open mind and form your own opinions. Your experience will be different than anyone else’s.

What We Do...Now

I bet most of you wonder what it is that we actually do lately…well, a little bit of everything. Matt and I really run the gamut in the types of projects we have gotten involved with or have taken on. It seems to be always changing, but here’s a list of the ‘projects’ that fill our days right now:

 

Accompong Maroon Junior Council. This is a group we helped to create of 8 young adults in Accompong who do grassroots community development. AMJC has more or less become the cornerstone of our PC service.

Computer Class/Health and Family Life Education- 3 days/week Julie teaches Computers and HFLE to grades 7-9 at the Jr. High School.

 

Farmer’s Co-op- Matt has been assisting with this JACOM enabled project. Primarily it is a organic coffee program with a guaranteed market back in the US.

Internet Café/Library- As administrators, Matt has played the lead role in the implementation of this grant and project. The building has been refurbished, and now we’re working towards sustainability as we train others to fill the administrative roles we do.

 

Other JACOM initiatives- JACOM always has a number of other random projects that we help with… right now, we are individually providing guidance to scholarship students, Julie’s helping facilitate the overall functioning of the scholarship/mentor program, and Matt’s developing a soccer ‘club’, inspired by donated jerseys.

Book Club- You should know about this by now….

Herbal Garden Hut and other SPA projects- SPA is a small USAID PC grant that we can apply for as PCVs. We did this with the Herbal Garden Hut, and as this project is wrapping up, we’re developing another project (more on this later….)

Water/Waste/Parade Grounds- Matt is always got a bunch of random, what I’ll call ‘Big Picture’ items on his agenda. A sustainable and reliable water system, community-wide garbage disposal, and revamping the Parade Grounds are some of the projects his regularly chipping away at.

VAC/SPA/PCMI- These are the other random things we do, aside from our ‘community development’ work at site. They’re all worth mentioning because these commitments also fill lots of our time. (Volunteer Advisory Committee –Matt, Small Project Assistance- Julie, and Peace Corps Master’s International- Julie)

MISC- Because in PC world, the miscellaneous category is always part of the job.

Sports Day

Got it?

MSC/IST

Last week was our Mid-Service Conference or In-Service Training depending on your preferred vernacular. Remember how I said that PCVs have 4 Trainings/Conferences during their PC tour? Of course you do. Anyway, just as a refresher…

… Every PCV goes through PST (Pre-Service Training) during the first few months in country. During this time, PCVs are technically referred to as PCTs (Peace Corps Trainees) as they’re not technically Volunteers until they’ve sworn in, and they can’t swear in until after they complete PST. PST is the most significant of the 4 trainings/conferences.

What school event is complete w/o a DJ

ESC (Early Service Conference) is held about 3 months after a PCV has been at site. These conferences, and the subsequent two, are all 5 days. We had our ESC back in September.

MSC is done around the half way point of a PCV’s service –when you’re about a year in, and have about a year to go. That’s what we were doing last week in Ocho Rios
 
COS (Close of Service) is held 3 months prior to a Volunteer completing their service. We won’t be doing this until next February.

So let’s see…one year in and we’re down to 30 people from the original 38. PC says that at around a Volunteer’s one-year mark, they struggle the most. Lord knows it’d be way different if this was only a one-year gig, totally and completely different. The newness has long faded, but we’re mostly in our groove. We’ve lost a lot of our original energy, but maybe we don’t need as much because we better know what to expect and how to deal with it. The bonds with our PC family are much stronger, and we’ve all settled into some sort of social place within the group. We’re more competent, more aware, more in tune to ‘wah gwaan’. So although we might be in a bit of a lull, we can kick back and relax a little, taking each day as it comes. Just doing the best we can, knowing that it’s not going to be perfect. One year in, one to go.

Tina reading her Book Club book!