I am finally online again! It is such a fun experience. :)

Let me try to fill in everyone.

Right now I, along with all the other Small Enterprise Development Volunteers, are in Tamale. We are on our fieldtrip and left Techiman on Saturday. After leaving Techiman we traveled in a tro (which was an orange mercedes van, all 16 volunteers, 1 PCV, 2 teachers, the driver and his mate) north to get to Mole National Park. The PCV that was with us had spent his first year at Mole. It was quite the ride. The road to Mole is a dirt, bumpy road and was pretty rough, however, the road was worth the trip.

Mole is beautiful. After showering and getting settled into our rooms we all had dinner and relaxed. On Sunday morning we had a walking tour of the park. Much of the park is unreachable and because it is still the rainy season we were unable to go very far. This didn't restrict us. We saw a lot of baboons and warthogs, we also saw some elephants and other deer like creatures (forgive me for not knowing). We spend the morning walking around taking it all in. We also had a small class in regards to the park and tourist sites, since most of us will work with tourism in some way.

We left Mole on Monday morning to travel down to Tamale. We had to go on the dirt road again and I ended up with the last seat in the tro, by the window. I had my big sunglasses on and when we reached Tamale, I was covered in dirt. Everyone was laughing at me. It was a scarey site. It was very exciting though because our living accomodations in Tamale (a Catholic Pastoral Center) has running water with shower heads, so I very much enjoyed getting clean. (although there is running water, you do not let it run like we do at home).

Since in Tamale we have been visiting various offices and business to get a sense of how things work. It's quite a nice town and I have enjoyed it. We will leave mid-afternoon tomorrow to head back to Techiman. I am anxious to get back so I can hand wash my clothes!

Forgive me that this will be a long entry-

I have also found out my site. It is a new site so I know very little about it but it is in the Central Region, which is where I did my Vision Quest. The village is Kukyekukyeu (the ky makes a ch sound). I haven't found it on a map yet but it is on the outskirts of Kakum National Park. There is a volunteer that will be placed in Kakum so I am very excited to be able to see her when we travel to Cape Coast and so forth. She is a wonderful lady from Indianapolis!

My project is an ec0-tourism spot working with the bamboo orchestra. Most of the community are farmers but some play music using the bamboo and have formed an orchestra. That is all I know. I will be visiting the site in about three weeks, which I am very anxious for. I am happy to say that the water in the community comes from a borehole so I will not need to filter or boil it. No electricity though - good thing I didn't bring anything to plug in :) The language I am learning is Fante. It is going well. I can count to ten, greet people, say where I am from and where I stay, a lot of the food and so forth. We do about 12 to 16 hours a week but there are just two of us with our teacher.

Okay, so, there is a quick update. Things are going well. I am acclamated to the food and already have my favorites. I have moments of frustration and moments of clarity. I have quite the farmers tan! Already I'm used to the weirdest things, bugs everywhere (although I still don't prefer this), going in a pit latrine, eating with my right hand, going to bed early and so on.

Hopefully when I'm at site I can be more regular on the computer and have more stories than updates. Miss you all!

Sarah

OK! I am going to try this for a third time!

I will make it quick so I can atleast post something. I am currently living in Hanseau, outside of Techiman. We have our training in Techiman. I live with my host brother and sister. John, 29, and Dorothy, 19. They are really cousins and Dorothy doesn't actually live in the house but she comes over all day and does everything. Making food and cleaning is an all day thing, especially since there are no conveniences like in the U.S.

They are both nice and both speak English. Also in the house is John's senior brother, his wife and their three children. I have my own room, which is split into two areas, a small living room and bedroom. I am sort of by myself, I have my own door to get in. They have also given me a key to the pit latrine so I am the only one currently using it. There is no running water at the house so we take bucket baths, but we do have electricity, which is pretty nice. I still use my flashlights most of the time. Once it gets dark, around 6 pm, everything winds down. I am usually in my room by 7:30 or 8:00 and I read for a little while or listen to music. I am always asleep by 10 pm, I think usually by 9:00. But the roosters, goats, dogs, and people all get up and start making noise before 6:00 am so I'm always awake by then. The roosters actually start around 5 or so.

We will find out our sites tomorrow so I will start my language and get a better idea of what will be my primary project. Everyone is very excited. As soon as I can I will let everyone know where I will be and what I will be doing. Hope everyone is well!

I will be in touch again.

Sarah