Hey Everyone,
I just biked into San for perhaps the last time ever!!! Hard to believe it but the next and last time I come to San will be on public transport because I’ll have my suitcase and water filter and more luggage that won’t fit on the back of my bike. It was a cool and non windy morning so about as much as I could ask for as far as ideal Mali bike riding weather goes.
It is supposedly rainy season though it’s got off to a very rough start. It should be raining just about every day but it rained twice in the past 3 weeks…my village is nervous to say the least. Last year was a great harvest so to have a drought this year won’t be too detrimental to the village but the danger lies in having another bad harvest next year in which case food becomes scarce and money that is already hard to come by becomes nearly impossible to acquire as food prices soar. I’m hopeful August will bring more rain and ease the palpable tension in Sebanso.
It’s been a nice few weeks at site despite the lack of rain. Bah’s oldest daughter, Madeline and I chat and make sweet potato fries most afternoons to sell and then we get to eat the delicious left over woso (Bambara for sweet potato). I’ve had a good amount of time to read as well and chat with friends who have returned from Bamako for rainy season, but don’t have any work to do in the fields because the lack of rain has made the ground rock hard. When people are in the fields, the kids are left to fend for themselves in village so I’ve spent a good deal of time playing with them as well. They’re always a source of entertainment. There are, however, still a few who cry at the site of me…though I probably propagate that fear when I chase them away from the well when I go to pull water…
I visited my friend, Lindsey at her village and spent the past weekend there. It was really nice to have some girl time as two of my best girlfriends have already COS’d and returned to America. Her younger sister in Iowa had a high school play that we watched on Lyndsey's computer at night and I’m so impressed with the talent of those kids. It was a musical and some of those voices belong on Broadway. It was also startling to see high school students and realize that it’s been 6+ years since I was in their shoes…and I thought I was so grown up then.
I’ll be in San for a few days with perhaps a day trip down to Segou for some more shopping but things are really winding down here and mostly just getting things ready to come home. I’m moving out on August 31st and spending a few days in San before I go to Bamako for my medical exam and Close of Service interviews/last minute paperwork. It’s smooth sailing until then, just enjoying my last few weeks. Hope everyone is well and I miss you all terribly.
Much Love,
Cait
July 10, 2011
Hey Everyone,
It hasn’t been long since my last update, but I expect to be at site for a few weeks before I get back to internet. This will be my last long stint at site with a trip out in early-mid August and then moving out at the end of August. Today marks my two year anniversary in country and my third July away from home…
Today is also a big day as my first niece turns 1 and I found out that baby Z, due in November, will be a boy and whose birth I’ll be home for!
I just returned from a trip, perhaps my last, from visiting up north. I left last Sunday with my friend Lindsey whose sisters were in town visiting from home. She rented a car to take us up and very appropriately, we broke down just an hour outside of Bandiagara. We made it though and in relatively good time despite the hiccup. There was a small party for the fourth with some quality pool time at one of the nicer hotels but sad to say no fireworks. The weather was nice however. Rainy season is just getting underway at my site, and Bandiagara is about 2-3 weeks behind so the weather was cooler without the rain.
I got some shopping done in Bandiagara, but towards the end of the week, I wanted to visit Mopti, the regional capital which I’ve never been to before despite all my time in the region. Justin and I took an early car out and got to Mopti before it got too hot and spent the day shopping, hanging out at the pool and enjoying the AC at a local hotel. I’ve been trying to get the last of my souvenirs and gift shopping done this month and succeeded with the majority of it. We went to walk by the huge mud mosque in Mopti and stumbled across a very new museum of the mud buildings in Mali. I’ve now been to the two mud mosques I am allowed to visit as the others reside in the north of the country, Timbuktu and Gao, where it has been deemed unsafe to travel. Thus Djene and Mopti will have to suffice. The mosque in Djene is the only one recorded as a World Heritage Site, but the Mopti mosque was still quite impressive.
Mopti is located as the meeting point of the two major rivers in Mali, the Bani and Niger, thus a major fishing town. This is also a large port in accessing the salt mines in Timbuktu and Gao so everywhere we looked there were enormous mounds of salt. It was a cool market but a little overwhelming being treated as a tourist. We would be hassled until we started speaking Bambara or Donoso (Justin’s language) then prices were dropped nearly in half of what they were originally asking and even lower once we bargained. I felt a little vindicated being able to chat with the locals and being treated more fairly, but it was annoying none the less. We ended a wonderful day at a delicious restaurant overlooking the river…a river whose bank was several feet deep in trash, but we live in Mali and were just delighted to see water.
Not too much else to report on my end. I’m looking forward to a few weeks at site. Much of my days will be spent in the fields though I suspect my lack of farming skills will serve only for entertainment then I’ll be sent to rest under the trees. It’s probably for the best; I’m really slow and can’t plant a straight row of millet to save my life. Already the ground is greener and things are sprouting and I’m pretty excited that I’ll be leaving Mali at its prettiest time of year. 9 months a year it’s brown and barren but for a few blessed weeks it’s green and alive and beautiful.
Hope all is well back home and looking forward to being there in eight short weeks.
Love,
Cait
It hasn’t been long since my last update, but I expect to be at site for a few weeks before I get back to internet. This will be my last long stint at site with a trip out in early-mid August and then moving out at the end of August. Today marks my two year anniversary in country and my third July away from home…
Today is also a big day as my first niece turns 1 and I found out that baby Z, due in November, will be a boy and whose birth I’ll be home for!
I just returned from a trip, perhaps my last, from visiting up north. I left last Sunday with my friend Lindsey whose sisters were in town visiting from home. She rented a car to take us up and very appropriately, we broke down just an hour outside of Bandiagara. We made it though and in relatively good time despite the hiccup. There was a small party for the fourth with some quality pool time at one of the nicer hotels but sad to say no fireworks. The weather was nice however. Rainy season is just getting underway at my site, and Bandiagara is about 2-3 weeks behind so the weather was cooler without the rain.
I got some shopping done in Bandiagara, but towards the end of the week, I wanted to visit Mopti, the regional capital which I’ve never been to before despite all my time in the region. Justin and I took an early car out and got to Mopti before it got too hot and spent the day shopping, hanging out at the pool and enjoying the AC at a local hotel. I’ve been trying to get the last of my souvenirs and gift shopping done this month and succeeded with the majority of it. We went to walk by the huge mud mosque in Mopti and stumbled across a very new museum of the mud buildings in Mali. I’ve now been to the two mud mosques I am allowed to visit as the others reside in the north of the country, Timbuktu and Gao, where it has been deemed unsafe to travel. Thus Djene and Mopti will have to suffice. The mosque in Djene is the only one recorded as a World Heritage Site, but the Mopti mosque was still quite impressive.
Mopti is located as the meeting point of the two major rivers in Mali, the Bani and Niger, thus a major fishing town. This is also a large port in accessing the salt mines in Timbuktu and Gao so everywhere we looked there were enormous mounds of salt. It was a cool market but a little overwhelming being treated as a tourist. We would be hassled until we started speaking Bambara or Donoso (Justin’s language) then prices were dropped nearly in half of what they were originally asking and even lower once we bargained. I felt a little vindicated being able to chat with the locals and being treated more fairly, but it was annoying none the less. We ended a wonderful day at a delicious restaurant overlooking the river…a river whose bank was several feet deep in trash, but we live in Mali and were just delighted to see water.
Not too much else to report on my end. I’m looking forward to a few weeks at site. Much of my days will be spent in the fields though I suspect my lack of farming skills will serve only for entertainment then I’ll be sent to rest under the trees. It’s probably for the best; I’m really slow and can’t plant a straight row of millet to save my life. Already the ground is greener and things are sprouting and I’m pretty excited that I’ll be leaving Mali at its prettiest time of year. 9 months a year it’s brown and barren but for a few blessed weeks it’s green and alive and beautiful.
Hope all is well back home and looking forward to being there in eight short weeks.
Love,
Cait
July 2, 2011
Hey everyone,
It’s official that my Close of Service (COS) date is set for September 9, 2011. I don’t have my flight information yet, but it’s very likely that I’ll be home a few days after that date. I can’t believe that the time is already here to start planning my life back home, but with less than two months left at Sebanso, I have to start mentally and emotionally preparing myself.
The COS conference was brief, but fun to see everyone again…well, what’s left of us anyways. Of the original 66 starting in Philadelphia we ended with 36 at the conference. The days consisted of lots of logistics and paperwork, but also resume building and interviewing tips as well as some networking opportunities with Returned volunteers (RPCV’s) stateside. And perhaps more importantly, the conference was held in a AC hotel and Peace Corps paid for our rooms for 4 nights and all our meals…I didn’t each rice or millet once that whole week!!
Next week is not only Independence Day in the States but also marks my 2 year anniversary in Peace Corps. I left home early on July 7, 2009 and arrived in Mali on July 10, 2009. This July 10th, will be extra special as it marks an anniversary for me, but also my first niece’s first birthday. Time can be ruthless sometimes in how quickly is slips by, so I’m trying to make an extra effort to take in as much as I can each day.
I was only at site for a week before coming into San on my way up to Bandiagara for the 4th of July. One of my girlfriends in San is taking her sisters, visiting from the States, up north to go on a Dogon hike. Dogon country is beautiful year round, but especially in rainy season when there is actually some green instead of the desert and rocks. I feel lucky to have seen that part of the country as often as I have, it’s one of the biggest tourist destinations in Mali and I have friends who speak the local dialects so it makes the whole experience more enjoyable.
It never fails during rainy season that when I want to leave to bike into San, the night before downpours. With rainy season just starting the rain is completely unpredictable but I can pretty much guarantee that if I want to bike, it will rain…I can single handedly end droughts facing my community. That said, this morning I was delayed in leaving then battled a VERY muddy 6 kilometers to get to the road. Men farming in their fields literally stopped their cows plowing to watch me struggle…I never cease to be a source of entertainment for Malians.
I’m looking forward to my last few weeks at site and feel good about the amount of time I have left to say all my goodbyes and have some closure. I know it will pass quickly but I’m looking forward to the next stage of my life back home and that too is making the transition more bearable. The goodbyes will be painful, but I think that just means I developed some amazing relationships and it should hurt to close that part of my life. Fortunately, I get to put off the inevitable for a few more weeks.
Hope everyone has a fabulous Independence Day and I wish a very Happy Birthday to Allison (and a Happy Anniversary to Molly and Chad!)
Love,
Cait
It’s official that my Close of Service (COS) date is set for September 9, 2011. I don’t have my flight information yet, but it’s very likely that I’ll be home a few days after that date. I can’t believe that the time is already here to start planning my life back home, but with less than two months left at Sebanso, I have to start mentally and emotionally preparing myself.
The COS conference was brief, but fun to see everyone again…well, what’s left of us anyways. Of the original 66 starting in Philadelphia we ended with 36 at the conference. The days consisted of lots of logistics and paperwork, but also resume building and interviewing tips as well as some networking opportunities with Returned volunteers (RPCV’s) stateside. And perhaps more importantly, the conference was held in a AC hotel and Peace Corps paid for our rooms for 4 nights and all our meals…I didn’t each rice or millet once that whole week!!
Next week is not only Independence Day in the States but also marks my 2 year anniversary in Peace Corps. I left home early on July 7, 2009 and arrived in Mali on July 10, 2009. This July 10th, will be extra special as it marks an anniversary for me, but also my first niece’s first birthday. Time can be ruthless sometimes in how quickly is slips by, so I’m trying to make an extra effort to take in as much as I can each day.
I was only at site for a week before coming into San on my way up to Bandiagara for the 4th of July. One of my girlfriends in San is taking her sisters, visiting from the States, up north to go on a Dogon hike. Dogon country is beautiful year round, but especially in rainy season when there is actually some green instead of the desert and rocks. I feel lucky to have seen that part of the country as often as I have, it’s one of the biggest tourist destinations in Mali and I have friends who speak the local dialects so it makes the whole experience more enjoyable.
It never fails during rainy season that when I want to leave to bike into San, the night before downpours. With rainy season just starting the rain is completely unpredictable but I can pretty much guarantee that if I want to bike, it will rain…I can single handedly end droughts facing my community. That said, this morning I was delayed in leaving then battled a VERY muddy 6 kilometers to get to the road. Men farming in their fields literally stopped their cows plowing to watch me struggle…I never cease to be a source of entertainment for Malians.
I’m looking forward to my last few weeks at site and feel good about the amount of time I have left to say all my goodbyes and have some closure. I know it will pass quickly but I’m looking forward to the next stage of my life back home and that too is making the transition more bearable. The goodbyes will be painful, but I think that just means I developed some amazing relationships and it should hurt to close that part of my life. Fortunately, I get to put off the inevitable for a few more weeks.
Hope everyone has a fabulous Independence Day and I wish a very Happy Birthday to Allison (and a Happy Anniversary to Molly and Chad!)
Love,
Cait
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