Bienvenue a Guinee

So the internet is not great here so blog posts lag behind real time. I have already moved in with my host family and a new blog will be coming on everything that has happened since...

Hello from Guinea. I have been here since Wednesday arriving after nearly 30 hours of travelling via NY, Belgium and the Gambia. The Peace Corps compound where we have been staying is luxurious by Guinea standards so it does not yet feel like we have started our service. We have air conditioning, electricity, internet (albeit slow and only on 3 computers), showers, and western toilets. From the roof, where we do some of our training and a lot of hanging out, you get a great view of ocean through the palm trees, too bad the ocean is too polluted to swim in. By the port, you can apparently see a tangle of iron that is the entire rail system of Guinea. People ripped it up to sell to the Chinese but the Chinese dumped it in the ocean rather than being implicated in destroying Guinea’s railroad. People here have to worry about survival so they do not think about the future—some money from selling iron today is worth more than having a way to transport the gold, diamonds, bauxite, uranium and other metals that can be mined in this country.

Too much has happened to tell it all on this blog, so just some highlights:

• -       100s of young students studying by parking lot night because they have no electricity in their homes but want to do their hw
• -       Seeing a pet baby gazelle on a leash and then being asked to buy it.
• -       Dancing with locals on the beach under the stars and moon to African hip hop
• -       Finding out that mayonnaise sandwiches are a delicacy that are served to foreigners to welcome them (oh no!)
• -       Finding out that the mystery meat in my stew was tongue.
• -       Finding out that the mystery meat in my millet was bug (this happens all the time apparently, but you are not supposed to eat them)
• -       Learning Susu, a local language that resembles nothing I have ever heard before—think French mixed with stereotypical Asian language, mixed with stereotypical eastern European langue. Ex “I xilixi di” is “What’s your name”- I’d spell it phonetically for you, but I can’t
• -       Learning that how to say “I have a husband” in Susu was part of our survival language course. Literally translated to  “Yes, I have sat in the house of a man”.
• -       Being taught dances by Guinea’s version of a 4’11’’ Richard Simmons
• -       Getting lost in a huge overflowing market. If you have seen African markets, you know what I am talking about. It you have seen Asian markets, times the craziness by two.
• -       Seeing live chickens being sold next to dead chickens in said market
• -       Happening on the fish section of said market- I have never seen so many flies.
• -       Seeing the cutest babies tied to their mothers backs while they go about their day
• -       Having everyone under 15 and ½ of everyone else stare and point at me/us and say fote aka white person. 

It’s so far been wonderful. Tomorrow, I will leave the capital and go to Dubreka which is about an hour away for training and move in with my host family. Goodbye western toilets, Hello pit latrine