Starting to settle in!

So just as a warning, this blog is going to be pretty rustic, and I am going to be bad about checking facebook and skyping while here. My housemates and I checked out internet packages and decided to get the cheapest one which won’t really allow me to skype at home, and the only time I’ll have full unlimited internet access is while I’m at work. Which is kind of refreshing even though I’ll miss everyone bundoodles. E-mail me though! I’ll be good about checking that. Soo anyway our house is great. Kind of musty in some areas but really nice. There are about 10 full sets of dishes which is nuts considering there wasn’t one cutting board…Our neighbors who basically share a yard with us are the nicest people EVER. They are so friendly and helpful and last night gave us a tray of home cooked dinner for no reason at all.

                  We have been grocery shopping like mad (struggles trying to find balsamic vinegar) and live behind this place called Cost U Less which is basically like a smaller Costco or Sam’s (it’s a good thing I brought Employee of the Month with me!). We also have been buying some produce from stands on the side of the road-mostly bananas (like Costa Rica they have like 4 kinds and call them all bananas which is really confusing because there are plantains, mini bananas, regular bananas, and these other pretty much flavorless kind they boil and serve green which is really starchy), papayas (which are soo good here), scallions, super long steroid green beans, coconuts, and then there are star fruit, pineapples, baby eggplants, boc choy and some more that we haven’t tried yet. We cooked broccoli and pasta and garlic and oil then fried mini bananas (coated them in flour and then cornstarch and water then fried them then AJ made caramelized sugar to pour over them) the first night and a stir fry last night (almost all of the grocery stores here have a plethora of Chinese options and are owned by Chinese families). We have so much fun cooking together. We also started a quote wall in our house and have ongoing “Samoa problems” jokes (for example: I have to work out inside the house by running in place and making up weird exercises because after about 1/10 of a mile running outside I got surrounded by 7 stray dogs or I almost got hit by an old boot someone flung out of the water while we were cleaning up some wetlands or I had to get a size medium t shirt that I could have easily worn as a dress because that is the smallest size that exists here or  vegetarian problems on Samoa-2 lunches were served, one at 10:30 and the other at 12, the first of which included a ham sandwich and chicken flavored corn puffs and the second of which was hot dogs and hamburgers).

                  Yesterday we helped out at this conference that all of the high schools on the island attended (the island has a population of only 50,000 and is only 50 square miles but has such a large youth population that there are about 12 high schools). It was part of Ocean Week and the OSOS class which is a group of about 25 high schoolers at Samoana High School who choose to take a swimming class as their gym period led by one of the women at the Fagatele Bay National Marine Sanctuary office (the National Marine Sanctuary office at which I am interning, the smallest national marine sanctuary since it’s comprised of a ½ square mile coral reef, one of the NOAA organizations here) presented their projects at it. 80% of the AS population can’t swim, and the obesity rate is so high that this class was a great opportunity for them. The kids presented mostly videos and a few in person presentations that included raps, music videos, and the story of the conquering of the Evil “Polutinator”. They were hilarious and the winning group won all of these crazy prizes like a cell phone and gift cards and snorkeling gear and more. I was signing a lot of the students in and the whole name thing was such a struggle for me because not only were there so many names I had never heard of but the kids mumbled when they told me their names so I looked like an idiot searching for their names on my sheet for like 10 minutes and having to ask them to spell their names for me. Then there was a speaker who was a 13 year old girl who is an environmental advocate for Samoa from Western Samoa (an independent country that used to be owned by New Zealand). She goes to conferences in places like Japan and Brazil and lead service days and climate walks. And makes everyone feel terrible about themselves no matter how many cool things they have done. Then the students broke off into six groups (after the “snack” break which was really a full lunch) and went to different tables to be lead by the OSOS kids to discuss different issues. I judged who was the best leader at the Climate Change table and helped facilitate discussion although Lele, the spunky student leading it, was really awesome and was not shy to try and pry answers from a few unenthusiastic kids. My favorite moments were when the students shook my hand and said it was great to meet me and when they asked me questions like how exactly coral reefs connect to climate change.

                  Then the kids had a job fair which was great. There were eight booths set up, and the kids had “passports” they had to get stamped by three organizations after having conversations with the staff there in order to get their hot dog or hamburger and a free t-shirt. When did we ever have job fairs in high school?

                  There are very few people from the mainland here comparatively (probably a few hundred) so you want to know the story behind why everyone you see is here. This one woman was at the conference and was the principal of a great private school that sends kids off to colleges as competitive as Columbia and MIT. She has lived on Samoa since she was 15, brought here by her mother who got a job here, and is now in her late fifties or early sixties. She speaks fluent Samoan, is married to a high chief, and has 4 grown children who live in both Alabama and California. She also adopted her four year old son recently. She got educated in the mainland and calls AS home. She gave us some great suggestions of where to travel (I think we’re going to New Zealand for a few weeks at the end!) and invited us to her vacation home to swim and relax on another part of the island. She is so friendly and enthusiastic and fascinating.

                  Every time I look at the mountains I can’t even believe how I could be lucky enough to come here. It is so unbelievably beautiful. But cleaning up the wetlands this morning was interesting…it was pretty early in the morning, but I was pouring buckets of sweat. We cleaned up so much trash including tons of bottles, cans, plastic bags, wire, clothing, etc. and were covered in mud. Before we started cleaning, we had to wait for the blessing from the high chief of the village we were in, and I was talking to Kelly. I continued what I was saying and one of the NOAA employees Travis kept hitting my leg. I thought he was just being silly as he usually is and kept talking. I then realized that the high chief was talking and everyone was staring at me. I stopped and looked at him and got a good 20 second glare. There are very strong traditions here and I cannot believe I was so ignorantly disrespectful. It is very important to honor the elders, especially the chiefs, to look down during the prayer, not to eat while standing up, for them to speak in Samoan during certain occasions, to dress appropriately, among other things. I’ll learn though.

                  So overall I have been reading, working on my project, attending some events, relaxing, cooking, starting to meet people, working on planning some trips, and while it is very very different from home, I am just so grateful to be here. So many things I’m planning on trying out like the free Tae Bow class one of my favorite women in the office teaches 3 days a week and a group that plays ultimate Frisbee on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I still need to go snorkeling, check out some karaoke that apparently goes down, get a traditional dress made by a seamstress, go hiking, get a better understanding of recycling and alternative energy initiatives, and so much more. Miss you all but not enough to come home!