After talking to Kate she asked me to post on her Blog as she is having difficulty posting to it.
Kate relates that training is going well, but is quite intense. Training is from 7:30 to 4:30 six days a week. She is studying French with a teacher who speaks perfect French very slowly, not at all like the locals. The Peace Corp has supplied her with a few tools including a machete, which is hand carved and not very sharp. Part of the training involves planting a garden and what I understand to be a fruit orchard.
Kate recently visited a bee farm where she had to extract honey. I should have asked her if the bees she dealt with were African Killer Bees, but they must have been as they’ve taken over all of Africa.
Her meals consist of fish and lots of vegetables, some being Kale, Plantains, potatoes and several varieties unknown to her.
A group of Peace Corp volunteers recently visited a larger town nearby. Kate relates that the roads are paved better than some in Madison, but transportation is unpredictable. Two hours waiting for a bus to get there and then taking a taxi van back. The taxi van had 19 people in it with everyone’s luggage strapped on top, but no goat up there yet. The larger town had a “white man’s store” (processed food) where not much was available. She also mistakenly accepted a marriage proposal from one of the men she encountered. But I don't think we'll hear wedding bells in the near future.
Evenings can be a bit cool and she wishes she had taken warm clothes. Of course they can be purchased there. But clothes tend to be discarded clothing from the US. Perhaps that is where the clothes you donated to Goodwill ended up.
She still enjoys the rain but it is difficult to not get muddy. One reason the floors are washed daily at her house. Kate says her family is a bit on the liberal side and does not try to control her as some of the other PC families do with their volunteer. She is grateful for that. She isn’t even required to go to church (thank heavens).
Kate would like to hear from you, either via email, snail mail, posting comments on her blog or even calling her. Any friend who has not received her address or phone number can contact me at legner@dwave.net. Kate's Dad
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