Another month has come and gone and the rains have started to taper off. But as I recall, last month we left off with my sign finished, but not yet in place, so let's take up with that...
My house now has a name! Like any good boat, your estate should have a name. Mine is now officially christened Lizard Palace. This was a fun project, and I had a great time making and hanging my sign.
I've hung up another new addition in my house too. A friend departed for America and left me his solar light as he went. I decided to rig it up in my kitchen as a more permanent option than my handheld solar lights. I bought some eye screws and used some rope I had leftover from hanging my sign. When you want to turn the light on, you lower it down and hit the button, then raise it back up. It is also capable of charging things via USB port on the back, so it was very important that it be able to be raised and lowered easily.
I also helped fix a neighbor's shower. This was good because it gave them a more private place to get clean, but it was also important because they were hosting the new volunteer who was visiting for a week to check out the town.
Speaking of the new volunteer, we've been very hard at work getting her house ready for her permanent arrival in just a month. Here is the roofer hard at work lining up the palm fronds to make a nice watertight roof. He was very adamant that I get his picture in this exact pose, and he made me take multiple pictures until we got the right one. He also gave me a few cucumbers from his garden, so I was more than willing to take his picture as many times as he wanted!
Heres the inside of the house with the roof still unfinished. The floor will need to be replaced too due to rain damage before the roof was finished, but those pictures will have to wait, because I've been focusing on a different part of the house.
The bathroom. I've spent three full days digging that hole so far, and it's getting close to being done. Currently it's about two meters deep, but the hard part is getting around the rocks you encounter when digging. When we hit 3 meters, it'll be done and then we can finish off the hut around the hole.
All this construction can be hard on your tools though, as evidenced by my hammer. I was trying to pull out a nail holding down a hinge we intended to repurpose and I accidentally pulled my hammer into two. It was a nice fiberglass shaft, and I was fairly upset, but I already have a new hammer ready to replace it, and I donated the head from this one to a friend who can knock out the remains of the fiberglass shaft and make his own wooden one.
There's been more creativity than just with the building going on, and here's some of the evidence. Spicy guacamole with grits and limeade. I was trying to use up the last of the food in my house before I went away for a few days, and this was the result. Very tasty, and filling.
On a trip to Diego I got inspired to hit the kitchen and made this wonderful concoction; Shrimp in an orange honey hot sauce with couscous. It was a very big hit with the three other volunteers who ate with me and I had fun cooking it too.
The kids that live near me know that I love fishing, and they've been bugging me to go with them for the past few months. I finally relented and we took a walk to a small stream that runs through the village and tried our luck. We were able to haul in 6 fish by the time we called it quits, but the biggest was about half the size of my palm, so I let the kids take them to cook as they saw fit. I'll definitely try to go with them again at some point, so look forward to more pictures soon.
The kids aren't the only ones I hang out with, I also got invited to a party for teachers. Here was the setup, and shortly it was filled with all the teachers from the region celebrating the New Year... only a few weeks late.
I hung out with the teachers from my school and got to meet some new ones from around the area too. Ursula, the Malagasy teacher at my school, insisted that we take a picture together, and I think it came out really well. I had a great time at the party, enjoying food and drinks while meeting lots of great teachers.
I also got to meet a very new friend, Jonathan! Here is Ashley holding Jonathan who is only 11 days old. He was having nap time when we visited, but he was cute and didn't mind being passed around for photos.
But eventually he made his way back to his dad, Kamar. Kamar is an employee of the Peace Corps here in Diego Suarez and I am lucky to get to work with him and learn from him over my two years here. I am overjoyed that he has a healthy and happy son to share his amazing personality with. I wish Jonathan and Kamar the best and I will truly miss him when I leave in a few months!
I've been feeling the need to connect with the other volunteers here more as my time draws near to leaving, and so we took some time out to celebrate Jackie's birthday with a night out dancing. It was a great night and everyone had fun, including the random Malagasy man that we met who joined us in our evening of dance. I don't go out very often, but this was a great night on the town, and I'm glad that I got to help congratulate a friend and fellow volunteer on another year of life in this wonderful island.
The last connection I made this month was with Alyssa. Alyssa is the new volunteer that is headed to the wonderful town of Sadjoavato. Here we are getting ready to head off to Diego. She's currently finishing up her training and will be back to stay in just under a month. I can't wait to have a site mate and to help her out with the undoubtedly great projects that she will attempt here. It's always inspiring to meet new volunteers and I look forward to working with her when she gets in.
Thats wraps up another month of fun in the sun, and I'll be sure to post again next month and there might even be a new load of puppies to look forward to by then!
