In-Service Training in Iringa or "Girls Just Want To Have Fun"

Okay, my mom is telling me that people are calling her asking her to tell me to update my blog. So alright already....

I have been in Iringa now for almost two weeks. Iringa is about 5 hours north of Njombe by bus but is still in the Southern Highlands. It is a larger town then Njombe but you can still walk everywhere. I love Iringa, there is great shopping, good nightlife and friendly people. So about 30 PCVs are here from my group for In-Service Training and PEPFAR. PEPFAR, if you don't know is a program started by Bush that is helping 15 countries in the world by giving grants for AIDS projects. It is one of the options for PCVs to write PEPFAR grants to get money for our projects. So we are in trainings everyday all day with our Tanzanian counterparts, so Juster is here with me. She has sort of stolen the show by translating everything in two languages and she gave this great speech out of nowhere about empowering women in our villages.

Basically I am spending my time trying to figure out what I should do in my village. My needs assessment yielded that my village could use help with everything. We, PCVs, have spent our time discussing ideas for projects, how to get funding, cultural weirdness that we don't know what to do about, and leaning on each other as we always do when we are together. Family is such an important concept and the more we miss our own in America the more we love and know each other. Last night we watched together as history was made and change happened. Watching Obama become president in a local Tanzanian bar with PCVs was an experience I will never forget. Tanzanians and PCVs alike were hopeful. But it was moments like these that I was thankful for my American PCV family.

So on to projects... These are some projects that PCVs are working on in Tanzania: Building wells/water supply issues, making fuel-efficient stoves, solar power, community libraries, building dispensaries, Agro-forestry/fruit trees, improved farm techniques, composting/fertilizing, income generating crafts, windmills, livestock- chickens, goats, cows, etc, beekeeping, micro-finance, food preservation, school gardens, sports for village or students, vocational programs for out of school youth, health clubs (as in clubs at school that talk about health... not 24 hour fitness... c'mon.), teaching English, girls empowerment, AIDS testing and education, nutrition education for people living with AIDS and mothers, and permaculture. So what will I do....? Sijui (I don't know).

But here are the ideas now: Still teach health/life skills at P. school. Still have girls empowerment group with Tally. Still have mama's group teaching nutrition, etc. Still have men's group teaching condom use and women's rights... oh, I am still nervous about that one. Still have a village AIDS day that will be like a party but will culminate with making my entire village get tested. But new ideas: I am technically a health volunteer, however, instead of preaching to people to wear condoms I would like to access their interest in healthful living in other ways. I think the answer is through income generation and nutrition. I want to put more of an environmental spin on things. Mostly I am interested in grafting and having people grow fruit trees-- benefit: if they eat it- more variety to their diets and increase nutrition. If they sell it- more money to go to the doctor, send kids to school to learn about condoms, etc. Also interested in beekeeping, which could provide good money. The problem: I don't know how to do any of these things. My parents have always been outdoorsy and able to do anything on their property. My mom is a master gardener, they have bees and an orchard. Unfortunately, I did not realize that my parents were the coolest people ever until I was about 17 and by that point I guess I missed out on the training I should have gotten from them. But the job of a PCV is only facilitation to keep things sustainable, so my plan is just to bring an expert in from Njombe and teach my interested villagers. Ah, so many plans, so much work. I guess I will have to stop reading 3-4 books a week. Honestly, I am a bit nervous to go back to village. Returning after IST is a difficult time for most PCVs after spending two weeks together and then going back and having to make stuff happen.

Now for the fun stuff: We have had some great nights in Iringa. We have been to the disco, out to the local hole-in-the-wall bars, watched "Friends" in bed on Kate's laptop... basically our nights have been a blast. We have started dance parties in one of those seedy tin roof bars. Picture 12 American girls dancing to Tanzanian pop music in one of those places.. it was hilarious. Especially when we got some old drunk Indian man to dance with us. It is really funny to live in a country where anything goes. When your group is all white girls it makes it so we are stared at anyways, so we go with it. We dance and sing everywhere, we meet crazy/interesting/fun people from all over, we wear clothes don't match that we all just rotate between ourselves and then tell each other how pretty we look, and we revel in our weirdness and spontaneity. Sometimes, our lives are hard: we have relationship problems, village problems, homesick or health problems. And then sometimes we just live in the moment and forget all our worries and remember that girls really do just want to have fun.