6/15/2011
Monday was the Queen of England’s birthday so it was a national holiday and we didn’t work. Instead we went to Ba ward’s family fun day. I had a blast interacting with the ward members, playing games, running around, having water fights, watching a rugby game, and playing Frisbee. I won the cream bun eating contest. We had to race each other and then eat a cream bun as fast as we could without using our hands. Cream buns are one of my favorite foods in Fiji. It is just a roll with cream in it and it is delicious.
Yesterday, Kevin Geddes and I went to Koroipita to teach computer skills classes and the last budgeting lesson. I have fallen in love with the ladies we teach. They are so fun and I love seeing them apply the knowledge they are receiving. It makes it all worth it just to hear one story. Lani, one of the ladies we teach, who is the only one who has come to every single class. She told us yesterday that she was going over her family budget with her husband and they asked themselves where all the spare money was going. They realized that they had money but because they weren’t keeping track of it and being aware of where their money was going it would disappear. They would give their teenagers a couple of dollars here, a couple there and it would add up to a large sum, or they would spend a small amount here and a small amount there and before they knew it they wouldn’t have any extra money to go towards savings. I loved hearing that she is discussing money with her husband and really trying to use the information she is given.
6/17/2011
I had a great day today planting a garden at a local primary school near Ba. The little experience I have had with gardens was more than any of the other volunteers had for the most part. I really enjoyed plotting at a 20 by 16 foot garden that included radish, lettuce, carrots, beans, tomatoes, capsicum, and baygon (eggplant). It was hard work using pitchforks and shovels to break up so pretty hard ground. I have a few blisters to show for it. I just hope the stuff we planted grows. The kids were really fun to work with. They just love white people. Some of them are shy but love to just hang around and stare. It is pretty cute. Others are not so shy and just love interacting with us.
Simon is once such kid. He is a Fijian that actually is LDS and so I see him every week at church. His school was the one where we planted the garden today and he was so proud that he knew us and was showing off that knowledge to all his friends. He also likes me Frisbee and always asks if he can play with it whenever I am around.
6/19/2011
This Saturday was spent at Natadola on the beach by the Intercontinental Resort. We visited this beach already but the place we originally planned for was going to cost us more than we thought it would be. I enjoyed Natadola a lot. Some locals took us to a cave that their village would use to hide in during wars and raids. I also went horseback riding on the beach. It was a lot of fun although my legs got pretty scratched up because I was wearing shorts.
6/20/2011
I went to PCSS (Pacific Counseling and Social Services) today to continue cataloging their resources. I organized over 60 power point presentations into folders based on subject material. I also cataloged all the presentations in a excel spreadsheet. They are really disorganized with their resources and this will help them be able to spend less time preparing materials and more time presenting.
6/21/2011
Typing classes went well today. We downloaded a typing program onto all the computers at Koroipita and all the ladies loved it. Plus it makes our life easier because we don’t have to make up our own lesson plans. We also taught them basic things such as how to bold, underline, or italicize words and how to align things on the left, center, or right side. It is an interesting program breaking down and simplifying concepts or things that seem very simple and easy already. We have to remember how we learned to type, how we learned how to use word, how we learned to use a mouse…
It is not easy to explain or teach simple concepts, especially concepts that are so habitual or second nature. It is actually very frustrating. Fortunately progress is easy to see. I can already tell with most the ladies that they are better at using a mouse. Sometimes though the mouse will bump against the keyboard and instead of jiggling the mouse around the ladies will push the keyboard aside to make room to move the mouse over. There are no pads for the mouses (mice). The ladies are scared to mess up the computer so sometimes when they accidently click the right button on the mouse instead of the left button they will freeze up and call us over to show them that it is ok.
I played a little soccer today after work down at the LDS church with other volunteers and some local members. It was great fun and it was nice to get some exercise.
6/22/2011
I spent all day today revising and improving budgeting lessons plans, coming up with a business lesson syllabus, and working on lessons for computer classes. We realized very quickly that it is important to be prepared for lessons we have to teach. Even though we are teaching simple concepts it is hard to just wing it or teach on the spot. Plus the people we are teaching can tell if we are prepared or not.
I eat so much food here and it is starting to show. I have gained my Fiji fifteen. I know some of you think it isn’t a big deal but for about six years my weight has not fluctuated more than about seven pounds and in the month and a half that I have been in Fiji I have gained 12-15 pounds…mostly in my stomach area and my thighs. It is because I eat a ton of rice, potatoes, cassava, bread…and I do not exercise nearly enough.
In the evenings I usually play a variety of card games…spades, scum, nerts, wacky six, speed, California speed, hearts, and a few other games. A few of the volunteers want to learn Pinochle and I am the only one that knows how to play. It will be interesting because I haven’t played for over five years and I have never taught anybody let alone three somebodies. I want to teach the volunteers Muhammad’s Trump also.
Oranges are so amazing. I eat 5-7 oranges every day because that is the cheapest fruit here and it last the longest. The oranges here a little larger than Mandarin size and have green peels. They are delicious.
6/23/2011
At Koroipita I had a meeting with the orchid growers and craft ladies there to get them excited about basic business lessons we are going to start teaching them next week. The whole orchid situation is unique. The Koroipita Rotahomes model community project was contracted by South Sea Orchids (SSO) to grow the flowers. SSO provided the original baby flowers four or five years ago and basically handfed the original 16 orchid farmers with all the supplies and start up they needed…which included the plants, fertilizers, the fencing. The orchids do not belong to the residents at Koroipita but to Koroipita itself. So if a resident moves out the next resident is obligated to take over the orchids and care for them regardless of whether they want to or not. At the end of July SSO is going to pull out which means the orchid growers are going to become independent and have to do everything on their own. This could be a problem because they have been so dependent on SSO for so long plus some of the residents do not know how to care for the orchids so they get neglected. We are teaching them business lessons to lay a foundation for them and SSO is going to do a training also so that the orchid farmers know how to harvest and take care of the plants.
The craft ladies make makes to sell to tourists mainly because Koroipita gets a lot of foreign volunteers from Australia and New Zealand mainly. These business lessons will teach them about have to market their products and help them find a more unique niche. All the craft ladies, which there are about 20 total, make basically the same crafts; safety pin bracelets, cards, book marks, angel ornaments, and necklaces.
6/24/2011
Friday has turned into “manual labor Friday” which I love. We went to two schools today and planted gardens. The first school, Tagore, had already prepped the ground so we just helped the different grades plant their plot. When we got there they were having a program promoting being drug free. All the different grades presented skits that had to do with why drugs, alcohol, cava and tobacco were all bad. It was quite entertaining to watch them and it reminded me of the Red Ribbon days we would have in grade school.
The second school we planted at was the Ba Special School, which is the school they have for mentally and physically disabled kids. I loved working at this school. We had to start from scratch at this garden. We had three plots that we 3 ft by about 10 ft. We planted cabbage, French beans, raddish, carrots, and okra. Afterwards we had a great time playing soccer with all the kids. They were so adorable and fun to play with. All the kids here in Fiji just adore us. Anywhere we go they stare and smile or just stare and then the less shy ones come up and just love to shake our hands, give us high fives, and hugs.
6/26/2011
Yesterday I spent an amazing day on a spectacular hike. Alex Bickmore, Amanda Cherry, Kim Lowe, Chanae Wellar, and I went on a hike with some guys from the village Vakabuli. Amanda knew the guys from the village because she works on projects there. They took us to a stream/river that we hiked up. Kim and Amanda stopped at the first waterfall we came to but Chanae, Alex and I went to the head of the stream where the water was pretty much coming from springs. It was so awesome. The water was refreshing to swim in, the scenery was beautiful, and the guys who took us were so helpful. There were five guys that hiked with us. They literally had to lift us up some of the boulders we had to climb because they were really slippery and hard to climb. Abo, one of the guys, held my camera the majority of the way up and all the way back without getting it wet or broken. At the top we climbed a thirty or forty cliff and got to look out at a gorgeous view. The guys had to blaze a trail for us with their machete. We told them we wanted to go to the top and they said sure. We walked along the face of the cliff for a bit and came to a vine and they said that is how they got up. We all looked at each other and then were like “uh-uh.” There was no way we could climb that without out getting hurt or seriously injured so instead the guys just made a trail for us.
We were exhausted and starving by the time we got back but it was so worth. We might go again but horseback riding.
6/28/2011
We started business classes today at Koroipita. Not as many people showed up as I had hoped but the ones there seemed to enjoy the first class.
The ladies there are so nice. I was asking about where I could find a Fiji rugby jersey and how much it would cost. They were telling me the good places to go and were saying that if I went by myself the store owner would charge $30 because I am white. They said if I went with one of them they could get a jersey for me for about $18. They are always looking out for and trying to make sure I don’t get ripped off. They are constantly telling me if I ever take a taxi to make sure the driver starts the meter so they don’t charge ridiculous amounts.
A week ago it was officially winter here and yesterday it actually felt like it. I had to bust out my jeans for the first time sense I have been here. I wore a long-sleeve shirt and a zip up sweatshirt. I even used my sheet when I slept at night. It rained all day yesterday and it was chilly.
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
5/27/2011
I had a rather fun time today. Fiji has implemented a program called the “Yellow Ribbon Project” to help inmates transition back into society. It involves the inmates, families, and communities working together. Today in Ba this program was started and we went to watch the ceremonies and performances. It was actually a lot of fun. The Fijian military band played and did some marching. The best part was that some inmates from the Ba prison did a traditional Fijian warrior dance and some other dances. Then, they pulled four girl HELP volunteers, me included, out to dance in front of everyone. That is the second time I have danced in Fiji now, which is two more times than I have done it in the USA. Fiji does odd things to me. It was great fun though. A simple Fiji dance that I have done twice now is to do the train, switching directions a few times, and then everyone getting in a line and just doing a little stepping and then waving a hand in the air. I enjoyed it. The inmates were fun and the crowd loved seeing us white girls out there dancing.
5/29/2011
I really enjoyed yesterday. I went with five other HELP volunteers, Mallory, Thomas, Zac, Chanea Weller, and Natalie to Natadolo beach, which is between Nadi and Sigatoka where we met up with seven other volunteers who came later. We played on the beach by the Inter-Continental Resort, a super nice resort. I had a blast exploring the beach and body surfing. There were some great waves to body surf. It was so awesome. The whole day cost me $26.50 FJD so about $16 USD, not a bad day at all.. Then, we got back into Ba just as the sunset. We walked home and it started down pouring and the group I was with didn’t have a key so we took a shower in the rain, in our swimsuits while tossing a Frisbee around. The power also went out for about an hour. It was an adventure. The great thing about Fiji is that even when it rains it is warm. The rain water is warmer than our shower water.
I have a record for number of people in a taxi. I was in a 5-seater taxi with 7 other people from the house into Ba Town, so about two miles maybe. I have been in a 16-seater minibus with 19 other adults. I need to count one time on a bus because I am pretty sure those go over the limit quite often, especially at night when people are trying to get home.
Transportation in Fiji is an adventure. I rode in a carrier yesterday from where the bus dropped us off down to the beach. A carrier is a small, little 2-seater pick-up that has a canopy-type cover over the top of the bed, with wooden benches that line the two sides. I think I have now been in every type of vehicle that is used for transportation here in Fiji. I have used the taxi, the mini-bus, regular bus, express bus, and a carrier. The regular and express buses are the same is style. Express buses are quicker because they don’t usually stop in between towns. Regular buses will stop anytime a passenger pulls the cord to ring the bell. The buses vary in comfort and style though. Some just have wooden benches with a little padding, other have individual seats with higher back rests. The bus we traveled in from Lautoka to Natadola was super nice and new, had air conditioning and played a movie for us. Almost all the buses play music. Most bus drivers mixed cds that usually have the same 10-15 songs. My theme song for this summer is “Fireworks” by R. Kelly. I usually hear it playing at least twice a day and sometimes more. Brandi had one of the bus drivers burn her a copy of his cd and “Fireworks” was every other track just remixed a little differently each time. Here in Fiji they play American music but usually they songs are remixed with some cool beats. I have heard quite a few Celine Dion songs remixed, although they usually play hip-hop and the closest they get to country is Taylor Swift. I want to get the “Fireworks” song. If the bus driver has the radio on then there is a little more variety in the music.
I can’t believe I am 22 years old and I got to celebrate my birthday in Fiji. A few of the girls in the house put together a nice, small celebration for me. Instead of making me a cake they made me a fruit plate. It was perfect and totally fit me. One reason they didn’t make a cake is because we don’t have an oven and I also mentioned that I prefer fruit to cake so it all worked out. They also requested that our cook, Miya, make fried rice for dinner because I really like it and she did. During Sunday School I went to the front of the room while they sang “Happy Birthday” to me. The Fijians have a second verse that says “Happy long life to you” that goes to the same tune as “Happy Birthday.” It was a great birthday. I enjoyed relaxing and chillin. It was nice of Lex Hatch and Brandi and the others to get me the fruit and ask Miya to cook something I like.
5/30/2011
I went with two other HELP volunteers to FRIEND Fiji today. FRIEND Fiji is a local ngo that goes to villages around Lautoka and Ba to help these communities develop plans to improve. FRIEND teaches about six modules on community governance that includes doing a needs assessment, prioritizing needs, then planning the steps it will take to help lower the needs. Usually FRIEND will start with the easiest or simplest need and work towards the hardest one so that villages can see improvement. The village we went to was doing community rubbish clean up. They have burn piles for the burnable rubbish and pits for metal and glass. We helped pick up a bit around the settlements and also see how their trash system was working. Some had made rubbish piles right by the river which is not good because it can get in there because the soil erodes, the bank collapses and the rubbish ends up in the water.
5/31/2011
I taught my third computer skills class at Koroipita today. It went well. We had the ladies go onto “paint” and just play around because some of them really struggle with controlling the mouse. A few are very quick learners and do well with the stuff we are teaching them but others are very slow learners and can’t even keep up when we only teach a few new things a day.
The budgeting class was a littler smaller today but still great because I could spend more one on one time with them. We went over how to find out yearly income based off of how much they made monthly or weekly. I would ask them how to find out the yearly income if they made $150 weekly and had to explain that you multiply it by 52. Some of them struggled with this concept but I think by the end of the session they understood more. It is hard to give examples because I am still figuring out the amount of money to work with. Some of these women have a husband who makes $80 FJD a week and that is their total income for their family. That translates to an income of about $2500 USD a year. Granted their standard of living is a lot lower than in America it is still crazy to think I make more doing a summer job than they do in a year. It puts things in perspective. I hope these budgeting classes help them know how to use their money wisely.
6/5/2011
I could fall from 10,000 feet above earth at 120 mph every day. It is so amazing to see the earth from up there and then to come dropping down and have the parachute come out and float down the rest of the way. It is completely awesome and just incredible. I loved every second of it; the plane ride up and amazing view, the 30 second free fall, the five minute parachute ride, the landing. It was just amazing. I wish it wasn’t so dang expensive so I could do it more often. I went with Rachel Anderson, Kerali, Sara Stanger, Alyssa Zundel, Rohit Chaudhary, and Brandi. We stayed the night in a hostel by Smuggler’s Cove in Nadi the night before. Then we sky dived Saturday morning and early afternoon. I paired up with Alyssa and she was the first one out of the little plane and I dropped ten seconds later with my partner. It was such a blast. I had a permanent smile the entire plane ride, sky dive, and landing. My cheeks started quivering ten minutes into the plane ride. Afterwards we all went to Denerau Island, a touristy place to eat at LuLu’s. I spent too much money on a really good burrito.
I continue to teach at Koroipita on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I really enjoy teaching the ladies. Some of them really enjoy the budgeting classes and the math that is involved. I hope they use the knowledge to help themselves out. With development work, especially sustainable work, you don’t always get to see right off the fruits of your labor. You just have to have faith that what you are doing is making a positive difference in at least one person’s life. It can be overwhelming realizing how much work has to do done and knowing that you won’t be able to do all of it or even a small portion of it. That being said, you can always make a difference if you try hard enough. Someone is always looking for help and sometimes you’re the help they need.
6/7/2011
We are partnering with an organization called Pacific Counseling and Social Services (PCSS) now. I am starting to work on several projects with them. One includes cataloging their resources. They do a lot of community and village outreach. Instead of having their resources, programs, and modules in a central location where all can access it on a shared drive, each individual will make their own presentation on each topic. I am helping them organize all this material onto a shared drive so they can spend less time preparing and more time doing outreach.
I taught at Koroipita today. The computer classes are going well. It is still very frustrating sometimes but rewarding at the same time. I am really learning how to simplify things I already thought were simple. I hope that the women are internalizing the knowledge I am giving them.
6/12/2011
This week went by so fast. I can’t believe it is Sunday already. I helped with a medical screening at Koroipita on Wednesday. A few of the HELP volunteers are medical students and wanted to get some experience. I helped record data while the other HELP volunteers checked their blood pressure, blood sugar level, calculated their BMI, and gave basic advice on their health based off this information. Diabetes is a big problem in Fiji. There were about 50 people who came to the health screening. Quite a few of them had high blood pressure. Of course the HELP volunteers weren’t doctors so they couldn’t diagnose the people but would strongly advise them to seek medical help if they had high blood pressure or stuff.
Zac and I taught at Koroipita on Thursday and then right after that we met up with other HELP volunteers in Lautoka to head to Suva for the weekend to visit the temple. A five hour bus ride later (that distance-wise was only about 140 km), we get to Suva. Suva is a lot different than Ba or Lautoka. It is actually a small city. Walking in neighborhoods in Suva is like walking in neighborhoods in a place like La or as one of the other volunteers said like being in Miami. In Ba everything closes at 6 when it gets dark. In Suva things are still happening when it is dark and stores are open. It just has a different feel to it than Ba.
I had an awesome weekend in Fiji. We stayed right across the parking lot from the Suva temple in temple housing. On Friday we spent the day in downtown Suva going to the flea market and doing some shopping for legit Fijian souvenirs. That evening we went to an YSA dance, I know I seem be involved in a lot of dances in Fiji.
Saturday was once of my favorite days I have had in Fiji. The morning started off awesome because I got to do baptisms in the temple. It had been two months since I had last gone to the temple which was the longest amount of time not going to temple for close to two years. It felt so great to been in the temple. After the temple we went to Colo, Suva to hike to some waterfalls and go swimming in the pools below them. It was one of the most gorgeous hikes I have ever been on if not the most gorgeous. The trail just followed a river as it descended down a mountain. There were close to 15 waterfalls, most of them about 10-15 tall. It was so beautiful. The forest was so luscious, green, and pristine. I loved it. I got to swim in refreshingly cool water. The hike was just awe-inspiring. After hiking at Colo, Suva we went to dinner at a missionary couple’s house. Kerali, a HELP volunteer, knows them from back home and they invited us to dinner. We had taco salad and I loved the beef. I don’t get much meat here, a little chicken, a little fish, and some canned mutton every once in a while. I am missing beef and red meat.
6/13/2011
It was a national holiday today in Fiji so we didn't work. Instead we went to the Ba ward's family fun day. I had a blast. We played some games, like eat a cream bun as fast as possible, sack races, and carve the coconut as fast as possible.I finally got to play some good games of ultimate frisbee. The Fijians had a fun time learning it although at times they didn't quite understand the no running with the frisbee rule but they figured it out eventually. We also watched a rugby game between Ba and Tavua. Rugby is a rough game. There were a few punches thrown, a guy came off bleeding profusely, and several tackles just looked painful.
I had a rather fun time today. Fiji has implemented a program called the “Yellow Ribbon Project” to help inmates transition back into society. It involves the inmates, families, and communities working together. Today in Ba this program was started and we went to watch the ceremonies and performances. It was actually a lot of fun. The Fijian military band played and did some marching. The best part was that some inmates from the Ba prison did a traditional Fijian warrior dance and some other dances. Then, they pulled four girl HELP volunteers, me included, out to dance in front of everyone. That is the second time I have danced in Fiji now, which is two more times than I have done it in the USA. Fiji does odd things to me. It was great fun though. A simple Fiji dance that I have done twice now is to do the train, switching directions a few times, and then everyone getting in a line and just doing a little stepping and then waving a hand in the air. I enjoyed it. The inmates were fun and the crowd loved seeing us white girls out there dancing.
5/29/2011
I really enjoyed yesterday. I went with five other HELP volunteers, Mallory, Thomas, Zac, Chanea Weller, and Natalie to Natadolo beach, which is between Nadi and Sigatoka where we met up with seven other volunteers who came later. We played on the beach by the Inter-Continental Resort, a super nice resort. I had a blast exploring the beach and body surfing. There were some great waves to body surf. It was so awesome. The whole day cost me $26.50 FJD so about $16 USD, not a bad day at all.. Then, we got back into Ba just as the sunset. We walked home and it started down pouring and the group I was with didn’t have a key so we took a shower in the rain, in our swimsuits while tossing a Frisbee around. The power also went out for about an hour. It was an adventure. The great thing about Fiji is that even when it rains it is warm. The rain water is warmer than our shower water.
I have a record for number of people in a taxi. I was in a 5-seater taxi with 7 other people from the house into Ba Town, so about two miles maybe. I have been in a 16-seater minibus with 19 other adults. I need to count one time on a bus because I am pretty sure those go over the limit quite often, especially at night when people are trying to get home.
Transportation in Fiji is an adventure. I rode in a carrier yesterday from where the bus dropped us off down to the beach. A carrier is a small, little 2-seater pick-up that has a canopy-type cover over the top of the bed, with wooden benches that line the two sides. I think I have now been in every type of vehicle that is used for transportation here in Fiji. I have used the taxi, the mini-bus, regular bus, express bus, and a carrier. The regular and express buses are the same is style. Express buses are quicker because they don’t usually stop in between towns. Regular buses will stop anytime a passenger pulls the cord to ring the bell. The buses vary in comfort and style though. Some just have wooden benches with a little padding, other have individual seats with higher back rests. The bus we traveled in from Lautoka to Natadola was super nice and new, had air conditioning and played a movie for us. Almost all the buses play music. Most bus drivers mixed cds that usually have the same 10-15 songs. My theme song for this summer is “Fireworks” by R. Kelly. I usually hear it playing at least twice a day and sometimes more. Brandi had one of the bus drivers burn her a copy of his cd and “Fireworks” was every other track just remixed a little differently each time. Here in Fiji they play American music but usually they songs are remixed with some cool beats. I have heard quite a few Celine Dion songs remixed, although they usually play hip-hop and the closest they get to country is Taylor Swift. I want to get the “Fireworks” song. If the bus driver has the radio on then there is a little more variety in the music.
I can’t believe I am 22 years old and I got to celebrate my birthday in Fiji. A few of the girls in the house put together a nice, small celebration for me. Instead of making me a cake they made me a fruit plate. It was perfect and totally fit me. One reason they didn’t make a cake is because we don’t have an oven and I also mentioned that I prefer fruit to cake so it all worked out. They also requested that our cook, Miya, make fried rice for dinner because I really like it and she did. During Sunday School I went to the front of the room while they sang “Happy Birthday” to me. The Fijians have a second verse that says “Happy long life to you” that goes to the same tune as “Happy Birthday.” It was a great birthday. I enjoyed relaxing and chillin. It was nice of Lex Hatch and Brandi and the others to get me the fruit and ask Miya to cook something I like.
5/30/2011
I went with two other HELP volunteers to FRIEND Fiji today. FRIEND Fiji is a local ngo that goes to villages around Lautoka and Ba to help these communities develop plans to improve. FRIEND teaches about six modules on community governance that includes doing a needs assessment, prioritizing needs, then planning the steps it will take to help lower the needs. Usually FRIEND will start with the easiest or simplest need and work towards the hardest one so that villages can see improvement. The village we went to was doing community rubbish clean up. They have burn piles for the burnable rubbish and pits for metal and glass. We helped pick up a bit around the settlements and also see how their trash system was working. Some had made rubbish piles right by the river which is not good because it can get in there because the soil erodes, the bank collapses and the rubbish ends up in the water.
5/31/2011
I taught my third computer skills class at Koroipita today. It went well. We had the ladies go onto “paint” and just play around because some of them really struggle with controlling the mouse. A few are very quick learners and do well with the stuff we are teaching them but others are very slow learners and can’t even keep up when we only teach a few new things a day.
The budgeting class was a littler smaller today but still great because I could spend more one on one time with them. We went over how to find out yearly income based off of how much they made monthly or weekly. I would ask them how to find out the yearly income if they made $150 weekly and had to explain that you multiply it by 52. Some of them struggled with this concept but I think by the end of the session they understood more. It is hard to give examples because I am still figuring out the amount of money to work with. Some of these women have a husband who makes $80 FJD a week and that is their total income for their family. That translates to an income of about $2500 USD a year. Granted their standard of living is a lot lower than in America it is still crazy to think I make more doing a summer job than they do in a year. It puts things in perspective. I hope these budgeting classes help them know how to use their money wisely.
6/5/2011
I could fall from 10,000 feet above earth at 120 mph every day. It is so amazing to see the earth from up there and then to come dropping down and have the parachute come out and float down the rest of the way. It is completely awesome and just incredible. I loved every second of it; the plane ride up and amazing view, the 30 second free fall, the five minute parachute ride, the landing. It was just amazing. I wish it wasn’t so dang expensive so I could do it more often. I went with Rachel Anderson, Kerali, Sara Stanger, Alyssa Zundel, Rohit Chaudhary, and Brandi. We stayed the night in a hostel by Smuggler’s Cove in Nadi the night before. Then we sky dived Saturday morning and early afternoon. I paired up with Alyssa and she was the first one out of the little plane and I dropped ten seconds later with my partner. It was such a blast. I had a permanent smile the entire plane ride, sky dive, and landing. My cheeks started quivering ten minutes into the plane ride. Afterwards we all went to Denerau Island, a touristy place to eat at LuLu’s. I spent too much money on a really good burrito.
I continue to teach at Koroipita on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I really enjoy teaching the ladies. Some of them really enjoy the budgeting classes and the math that is involved. I hope they use the knowledge to help themselves out. With development work, especially sustainable work, you don’t always get to see right off the fruits of your labor. You just have to have faith that what you are doing is making a positive difference in at least one person’s life. It can be overwhelming realizing how much work has to do done and knowing that you won’t be able to do all of it or even a small portion of it. That being said, you can always make a difference if you try hard enough. Someone is always looking for help and sometimes you’re the help they need.
6/7/2011
We are partnering with an organization called Pacific Counseling and Social Services (PCSS) now. I am starting to work on several projects with them. One includes cataloging their resources. They do a lot of community and village outreach. Instead of having their resources, programs, and modules in a central location where all can access it on a shared drive, each individual will make their own presentation on each topic. I am helping them organize all this material onto a shared drive so they can spend less time preparing and more time doing outreach.
I taught at Koroipita today. The computer classes are going well. It is still very frustrating sometimes but rewarding at the same time. I am really learning how to simplify things I already thought were simple. I hope that the women are internalizing the knowledge I am giving them.
6/12/2011
This week went by so fast. I can’t believe it is Sunday already. I helped with a medical screening at Koroipita on Wednesday. A few of the HELP volunteers are medical students and wanted to get some experience. I helped record data while the other HELP volunteers checked their blood pressure, blood sugar level, calculated their BMI, and gave basic advice on their health based off this information. Diabetes is a big problem in Fiji. There were about 50 people who came to the health screening. Quite a few of them had high blood pressure. Of course the HELP volunteers weren’t doctors so they couldn’t diagnose the people but would strongly advise them to seek medical help if they had high blood pressure or stuff.
Zac and I taught at Koroipita on Thursday and then right after that we met up with other HELP volunteers in Lautoka to head to Suva for the weekend to visit the temple. A five hour bus ride later (that distance-wise was only about 140 km), we get to Suva. Suva is a lot different than Ba or Lautoka. It is actually a small city. Walking in neighborhoods in Suva is like walking in neighborhoods in a place like La or as one of the other volunteers said like being in Miami. In Ba everything closes at 6 when it gets dark. In Suva things are still happening when it is dark and stores are open. It just has a different feel to it than Ba.
I had an awesome weekend in Fiji. We stayed right across the parking lot from the Suva temple in temple housing. On Friday we spent the day in downtown Suva going to the flea market and doing some shopping for legit Fijian souvenirs. That evening we went to an YSA dance, I know I seem be involved in a lot of dances in Fiji.
Saturday was once of my favorite days I have had in Fiji. The morning started off awesome because I got to do baptisms in the temple. It had been two months since I had last gone to the temple which was the longest amount of time not going to temple for close to two years. It felt so great to been in the temple. After the temple we went to Colo, Suva to hike to some waterfalls and go swimming in the pools below them. It was one of the most gorgeous hikes I have ever been on if not the most gorgeous. The trail just followed a river as it descended down a mountain. There were close to 15 waterfalls, most of them about 10-15 tall. It was so beautiful. The forest was so luscious, green, and pristine. I loved it. I got to swim in refreshingly cool water. The hike was just awe-inspiring. After hiking at Colo, Suva we went to dinner at a missionary couple’s house. Kerali, a HELP volunteer, knows them from back home and they invited us to dinner. We had taco salad and I loved the beef. I don’t get much meat here, a little chicken, a little fish, and some canned mutton every once in a while. I am missing beef and red meat.
6/13/2011
It was a national holiday today in Fiji so we didn't work. Instead we went to the Ba ward's family fun day. I had a blast. We played some games, like eat a cream bun as fast as possible, sack races, and carve the coconut as fast as possible.I finally got to play some good games of ultimate frisbee. The Fijians had a fun time learning it although at times they didn't quite understand the no running with the frisbee rule but they figured it out eventually. We also watched a rugby game between Ba and Tavua. Rugby is a rough game. There were a few punches thrown, a guy came off bleeding profusely, and several tackles just looked painful.
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