Overdue post

I'm not very good at posting on a regular basis. This I know. I'm vowing to start working on it. What's going on in my life? Well, lots. First of all, life here has somewhat normalized. I think that's one reason I'm posting less. I've become used to things here, so I don't see something and think, "I should post about this..." Basically I've just been trudging along, doing my thing, teaching the kids, hanging out with friends, etc, etc.
On a positive note, the rainy season is coming to an end. October 15th is the day they like to quote as the end of the rainy season. We still get a few storms every now and then, but mostly only at night. The negative side of the dry season is the heat and the dust. It's amazing to me that it's fall at home and it's getting colder, while here it's getting sunnier and hotter. I do mean hot. And the sun-I put on spf 50 yesterday to go chill out at the pool with a friend and still got sunburned. We were only out there for maybe an hour or so, it's ridiculous.
So the other night I was coming home from trivia and saw a tank rolling down the street-just something to think about.
I've FINALLY posted some pictures to a public gallery online. Go to picasaweb.google.com/christy.n.lewis. Check it out!
I went to church this morning. It's only the second time I've gone since I've been here. The first time I went to the Episcopal church closest to the compound. It was interesting. I went with the director and his wife. We were the only white people in the church. After the peace they did announcements and asked all first timers to stand up. I looked at Rory and said, "Well I guess we can't hide." Today I had to stand up too (different church), but I wasn't the only first timer so it was a little less awkward. I also went with some friends today, so that was nice. One thing, there are no air conditioners in the churches here. This one also did not have fans. It was sweltering. You can't do much without sweating here anymore.
About being white in Liberia: I don't think I've mentioned this, but being a white ex-pat is a pretty interesting experience here. Going back to the normalization point, you know you're getting used to things when you walk down the street, you're the only white person in view, and you don't feel awkward because everyone is staring at you. I was really paranoid the first few weeks with everyone staring. Now, it doesn't bother me. I've also gotten used to men telling me they love me when I walk down the street, telling me they want to marry me, calling me their wife, their mommy, etc, etc. I'm also quite good at saying no to people trying to sell me things and avoiding the beggars without being super rude to them. I've only had one get really mad at me for not giving him money. I think he was a bit extreme because no one else has seemed to have had such an experience. They like to tell you that they were in the war and now they're poor and need money. Most are missing a limb or have some other ailment which they like to throw at you as well to make you feel even worse. It works sometimes.
So I've made some really great friends here. Just thought I'd let everyone know. I'll start sharing stories soon. The fun thing is that we're all from different places. I had a huge discussion about cornbread and how it's the best thing ever with an english guy the other night at dinner. He had never had it before and he still swears it's got nothing on Yorkshire pudding...whatever that is. But yes, my friends are awesome, we pretty much spend the entire weekend together, and I don't want them to leave. The depressing thing about this place is that the people here are very transient. People are always coming and going. One of my friends leaves at the end of November, it seems so soon! A bunch of others are leaving in six months. I know new people will be coming, but I still don't want to see anyone leave. We have so much fun together and keep each other in line and on track. Liberia is a really difficult place to be, we need each other here.
Okay, promise to actually post this week. There's still plenty to say.

What a week it's been

So it's been a bit of a long week. I got a new student on Monday, which just totally disrupts the rest of my class and makes my students go crazy. It also brings my class number up to fifteen. This girl is Nigerian, so that's another nationality on the list as well. Unfortunately, the craziness didn't just last for one day, it lasted the whole week. Of course, even on the bad days my kids have their bright and shining moments. We were working with the word family -it the other day. We had reviewed it a few times before, so I thought my students were ready to start trying to write their own words from that word family. I put eight letters on the board and told them to make as many words as they could. Well, they didn't quite understand the assignment. Most of them just starting writing words that began with one of the letters on the board. This is still good, but not quite for what I was looking. I went to the board and we started to review their words. I wrote sit on the board and asked what rhymed with that word. One of my boys got very excited, his hand shot up in the air and he stood up and yelled very loudly, "TITS!!" Now, he didn't say this to be crude, in fact none of the students seemed to pick up on the situation, including the boy whole yelled it out. I, on the other hand, had to turn away after quickly replying, "That's not quite was I was looking for," in order to keep from bursting out laughing. I had another student today say the word 'fuck.' She said it to one of the other girls and then said it a few more times, rolling it around in her mouth as though she were trying to get the feel for it. She looked at me and said, "I don't know what this word means, what does it mean?" I simply replied that it's not a nice word and we shouldn't use it. She was content enough with this answer and didn't say it again. First graders, even when I hate 'em, I love 'em. Oh, this one's for Maya. One of my girls looked at me today and serious as can be said, "You know the best singer ever Hannah Montana, she's real in Spain." They still have trouble with what is real and what is not real (refer to Mary in our first math word problem.)

In other news, it's been a while since I last posted. There was a huge storm on Monday night. Lightening struck close to (or perhaps even within) the compound twice. I know this because I nearly had a heart attack each time I was awoken from my sleep by bright flashes of lightening and huge cracks of thunder. The lightening struck some wires and blew out my TV and microwave. It also knocked out the internet. They've been working on it for the last few days, but so far no luck. I've only been able to access the internet from the school and the past few days have been so crazy there hasn't been much opportunity to sit down and write for a bit.

Last weekend was busy. It was also very fun. I hung out at a local pub on Friday night with some ex-pats. I feel like I'm starting to have a circle of friends here. We had a few drinks, played some darts, and threw around some (semi) witty banter. After that we disbanded, went home, and went to bed. I am generally exhausted on Friday nights. Saturday, however, I started early. I went to an Obama fundraiser (yes, even in Liberia we're raising money for our favorite presidential candidate). It was at a man's house who's a special representative I believe. Needless to say, security was tight. Guards with guns and everything, which after the disarmament here you don't see too often. It was a lot of fun, though. We all watched the VP debate, played Palin Bingo, ate delicious food, and had a few drinks. Quite a bit of money was raised as well.
After the fundraiser, we went to a party. Sunday, now this day was wonderful. Got up, ordered in brunch, and spent the day at the beach. A different beach this time, this one was cleaner and the current wasn't as forceful as usual. All in all, a very nice weekend.

Liberia wins again!

This week seems to be going by faster than usual. I had a good weekend, kept busy and relaxed all at the same time. I think that that made the beginning of my week seem less stressful which has in turn made the rest of the week go by more quickly. Also, today was the first day this week that I had a full class. Many of my students are Muslim, so with the end of Ramadan they either took a day off or left early on Tuesday. They were all back today, though, chipper as ever. Like I've said, my kids are very sweet and generally kind, but they are a handful. Why none of them try to be mean out of ill-will, they are sometimes rude and have trouble following directions and listening. Oh the joys of five and six year olds. I put a math problem on the board on Monday that was a word problem. It was the first word problem I've introduced them to so far. My kids are still non-readers, so I wrote it out and then read it aloud to them, trying to make them more comfortable with words while working in math. The trouble with the problem was not the fact that they couldn't read it or that they weren't used to working with word problems in math, the trouble was in the fact that the problem used they hypothetical you. "You are six years old and tomorrow is your birthday. How old will you be?" The biggest concern all of my kids had (and I do mean all of them) is that their birthday was not tomorrow. "But Ms. Lewis, my birthday's not tomorrow. Ms. Lewis, my birthday's not till March." This and that half of my kids aren't six yet. "Ms. Lewis, I'm only five." "Ms. Lewis, I'm only five and my birthday's in April." I eventually changed the problem to read, "Mary is six years old and tomorrow is her birthday. How old will Mary be?" Then came, "Is Mary real? I don't know Mary. Is her birthday really tomorrow?" To which I answered, "In math, Mary is real." Then, "Like Mary had a little lamb?" I must give them credit for being persistent. I eventually just gave them the answer so they could see how word problems work and how the problem of the day would be set up for the rest of the year. Things very rarely seem to go exactly as planned in my classroom, but that's what makes my job very un-boring and exciting.

In other news, the debate evening was an experience that defines life in Liberia. I went out with some friends to dinner beforehand, arrived and it was raining. We got there around 10:30ish maybe, though the debate wasn't starting till later as we were watching live and what with the time difference and everything... Anyway, it was a bunch of ex-pats sitting/standing around drinking and talking, waiting for the Presidential debate to begin. Not all of us were American, either. There is an intense interest in the American elections by those from all over the world. The rain, however, tends to thwart even the best laid plans here. The tv was hooked up to a projector, showing the screen large on a blank wall in the living room with chairs and couches set up around it. The feed to the tv was the problem. It went out about an hour before the debates were scheduled to start. When it didn't look like it was coming back on, a few people started leaving. It flashed back on right when the candidates were being introduced, everyone was happy. We caught maybe the first 30 or 40 minutes of the debate, and it went out again. It came back, went out--this time in between even less now. Basically, Liberia wins again! I should be happy we were able to see as much as we did. If nothing else, it was a great night to hang out and meet a few new people. What I'm really hoping for is a strong enough internet connection to catch part of or watch the recap of the VP debate. Now that should be interesting.

Another week goes by...

So believe it or not, it's raining again here in Liberia. Yes, ladies and gentleman, the rain just never seems to end. Never thought I'd hope for October quite so strongly before now. It's getting warmer here (and more humid) every day. Hard to imagine it turning to fall back home, though I do miss the prospect of turning leaves and cool autumn days. I don't think I've explained the road situation here. The roads are very...interesting. Some of them are paved in asphalt. A few of these have lines (usually only a middle one, though) and even fewer of these were done properly so the rainy season hasn't destroyed them. The Chinese (yes, that's how people explain the road process here) came and were paid to fix some of the roads. Unfortunately, no one quite informed them of the rainy season, so when it came they had to put all projects on hold. Some roads were right in the middle of being repaired. Also, they didn't make the roads well enough to make it through the rainy season. So the rains came, the roads fell apart. They are basically just potholed messes. Now, if the paved roads are destroyed by rain, I'll let you imagine how the unpaved roads are holding up. To get to school, we follow the main road called Tubman, out to Old Road in Congo Town. Tubman is paved and actually in fairly good condition compared to the paved roads in downtown Monrovia. Old Road is not. There a numerous ways to get to the school, but one of them involves going through part of Congo Town where it doesn't even seem like there should be a road. I don't think anyone can quite imagine what this road is like. It's dirt similar to Virginia clay. The holes are so big there is absolutely no way around them. You can only drive about 10 mph down the road due to the people and the holes. When it rains, the holes fill with water. At this point, they become small ponds. You think I'm kidding. This is why everyone (except the taxis) drives big SUVs here. The water reaches up to the top of the wheels at times. Yesterday, it rained so much that one of the roads flooded outwards through the neighborhood. Today, I saw a car in the neighborhood whose wheels had sunk into the sandy-red clay due to the mini-flood. I took a few pictures, but posting still isn't happening here. The ride is always interesting, sometimes painful.

A few weeks ago the core teaching staff took a tour of the Mercy Ship here in Monrovia. Mercy Ships is something worth looking at if you don't know what it is. It's a Christian organization where volunteers come to their ship and work in impoverished areas for a certain amount of time. There is a mini hospital on board and they tend to target some of the main problems in the areas at which they are stationed. The docking in Monrovia is the longest one they've done yet. They will be here for ten months total, to mid-December at this point. It's a huge ship (used to be used to transport railroad cars) which has been completely re-done with new floors added and everything. Mercy Ship Africa's hospital is focused on three different issues affecting Liberians right now. Other than the hospital, volunteers go into communities and do work there. They also need to people to go into communities and inform people of Mercy Ship and do screenings. It is completely volunteer run, so the people that work on the ship are actually paying to be there. They often fundraise through their local churches, families, donations, etc. Since some people live on Mercy Ship for years, they also have a school on board, Mercy Ship Academy. Today, they brought their students to the campus of AISM for a sports/field day. They have about 35 students through grade 12. Our numbers are up to about 65 through grade 9. This seems like a big difference, but both schools are quite small. It was a big success thanks to much time and planning by one of our teachers. It was a fun, relaxing day and a great way for our students to interact with those from a different community. Also, as all of their kids live on the ship, they don't get to go outside and run around too often. The ship has a play area and the deck is open for bikes and such, but no real grassy area to just run and play, so that was great.

Well with those two tidbits I'm off. I'm going to watch the presidential debates later tonight. Oh the exciting life I lead....

oh meanderings...

I'd like to start by saying thanks to everyone who writes comments on here, sends me emails, or skypes with me every now and then. It really means a lot to me to hear from friends and family! I've received some emails lately from people who are worried about me here in Liberia. My last post mentioned that I've been having trouble meeting people here and forming friendships. I should say, though, that I'm not sad to be here. If there's one thing I've learned it's this--there is a difference between being sad and being lonely. I'm living by myself, working with a very small staff, and live on a compound that's not the most social around, and I'm one of the youngest people here--it's an adjustment for sure. That being said, I'm not upset about the choice I made to come here. I'm happy to be here and I'm enjoying myself.
In other news, I have been making a few new friends lately. This means getting to get off the compound every now and then which is wonderful. Just going out makes life a little less stressful. The people I've been meeting have also said that in Liberia it takes everyone time to start meeting people, which is reassuring. I was told that for being here for just four weeks, I'm doing a pretty good. Who knew? A group of ex-pats started up trivia here a few months ago. It happens on Thursday nights at an Indian restaurant just down the road. You all will be excited to know that my team won last night. This means that my team hosts trivia next week. So this week I will be making up trivia questions. If anyone has any good ones, send them my way, I may need the help. There are five rounds: a Liberia round (of course), a picture round, and three other rounds which each have their own theme. My team won a few weeks ago, too. It was very exciting.
A head's up on the weather here. We are currently in the rainy season. I look forward to the non-rainy season arriving (hopefully at the end of this month). When it rains, it pours here. My students also go crazy cause they can't go outside and play. The 'roads' here get horribly pot-holed during this time, and half the place floods. It's quite interesting actually. When it rains, though, it disrupts any connection which requires a satellite, etc. I think I mentioned this last time, but the internet is the first thing to go, whether at the compound or at school. If you email or comment on anything it may take me a bit to get back to you. While I'm usually lucky enough to be able to access my blog and email on a regular basis, the work of sending information over the internet from my side is a bit much for connection. I've tried uploading pictures on here a few times, but to no avail. I'm trying again now. If they work, you will be seeing pictures of my apartment (in all its glory) and the school.

I realize I'm not doing a very good job of posting on a regular basis. I apologize. I've realized that the problem is each time I think about posting I become overwhelmed with the amount of stuff about which I could write. I can't decide which is most important to share and I don't want to spend hours writing a five page post (which no one would read as it would be too long). I've decided to settle on simplicity. I'll share what I can, when I can. Liberia's not changing so fast that the things I share today won't be relevant tomorrow. I figure I can share a little about life in Liberia at a time and then about life in general as well.
So for starters, it's Monday. Monday is always a bit difficult. That being said, it's still better than Friday as far as my students are concerned. By the end of the week, they are exhausted and have trouble focusing in class. Really, this actually begins on Wednesday, but they do try their best. I'm still struggling to meet the various needs of my students. Some are completely prepared for the first grade, but others should still be in kindergarten. I have students who cannot write the alphabet or count to twenty. I have some that just don't listen. I will tell them the answer to a question and then ask the question again and they won't know the answer. This is a very common occurrence in our classroom. It's also very frustrating to me because I feel like I'm running up against a wall and I'm not quite sure how to get around it. As I said before, though, my kids are sweet and generally kind to one another. Many of them have led lives of luxury so right now it's just getting them out of the mindset that everything should be given to them and everything should be the way they want it. We have had many discussions about respect and they seem to listen and try hard to use their manners and be respectful to me and to the other students in the class.
As for life in general here in Liberia--it's been interesting. The most difficult part has been meeting new people and making friends. A lot of ex-pat groups are kind of clicky here, so sometimes it's difficult to mix and mingle. Not only that, but just going out is hard. We only have one car for all of us that work at the school and Gary (our school director) often needs it for school things. We are not supposed to take taxis according to the US Embassy and we cant walk anywhere once it starts getting dark. So basically, you can get out between 4:30 (when we arrive home from school) and 6:30ish when it starts to get dark here. Otherwise, you have to arrange for transportation from friends or private taxis which can start getting expensive.
The compound is mostly older people from the UN, so they don't tend to be the most social group around either. Basically, I get a bit lonely at times. I'm not used to living by myself and being stuck in one area. I go for walks around the neighborhood often, but you rarely see anyone else out and I feel a bit of skepticism from the locals. I'll write more on this some other time. For now, I'm going to continue lesson planning in hopes of getting my students back on track. I really will post again sometime soon.

The first week.

The first week of school is officially over. It was hectic/crazy, but also fun. Monday was rough. You never feel prepared enough, and I was incredibly overwhelmed. Tuesday was a little better, and by Wednesday I felt like a teacher. I only had ten kids this week. Many students are still returning from their summers. My kids are from all over. Many are Lebanese, the others vary--Cameroonian/Icelandic, Haitian/Canadian, from Benin, and Switzerland, a true smorgasbord of nationalities and races. I love it. The only probably is the language. Two of my girls do not speak any English, all of my Lebanese students' first language is Arabic--basically I find myself explaining things three times using different words each time and corresponding hand motions and props. I'm sure it would be hilarious to be an outsider looking in and watching what goes on in my classroom. My children are beautiful and sweet.
Another problem-they are all below grade level in reading. Some of my students can't make their letters and numbers yet. It's a bit discouraging as I was hoping they would enter first grade with some phonetic awareness and we'd be able to start reading from there. Unfortunately, we're starting from the beginning, reviewing letters, sounds, letter-sound correlations, etc. It's challenging as I was not expecting to have to start so basic. It's also frustrating as none of my students can write words either. This means anytime I'm checking for understanding, I must ask them to draw pictures or we have class discussions. I never realized how much I took reading and writing for granted with my past students. Also, bringing my vocabulary to their level has been difficult. Bringing it down to a first grade level is difficult, then bringing it down to first grade ESL level is even more difficult. Overall, it's been an experience and it's only been a week!
Well, I'm off to a faculty meeting, but I will post again soon. The internet has been coming and going this week, so it's been difficult to keep up with the blog. There are plenty of things to write about right now!