This Is Fiji.

I have been living in my new home for just over a month now. School ended at Thanksgiving time (which no one has ever heard of here) and so I have had a lot of time.. Before coming to site I told myself I wanted to take things slowly when trying to integrate into my new community. Two years is a relatively long time and I want to be sure to take everything in before taking everything on. I quickly and surprisingly found myself overwhelmed by things I thought I was prepared for. I no longer had any other volunteers nearby to seek support or solidarity from. One of my biggest struggles the past month has been trying to explain to the people of Dakuivuna Village my role as a Peace Corps volunteer..and what the Peace Corps is. In this area of the country they get a lot of Australian volunteers. Most who come for a day, or a week and bring lots of goodies or complete a large project quickly for them. My village called these people Peace Corps volunteers. The village seemed to have missed the education assets I was able to bring to the community (teaching Family Life Ed classes, Lifeskills, HIV/AIDS, Family Planning, Drug Abuse/Awareness, Sexual Health, etc) and were zoned in on when/how I would complete all of my projects they had planned for me (build a sea wall, school library, school computer lab, school church, etc). And so the majority of my first month I felt a bit uncomfortable not knowing how to answer their questions because yes, projects are possible but there is a process to make projects happen in Peace Corps, and it certainly isn't what I am most excited about doing with my new community. I want to collaborate, educate and inspire. I want to share, experience and learn. But I was getting stuck in my internal half and found myself shying away from opportunities because I knew I was going to get quizzed about 'my projects'. Last week we were able to get some clarity to the village with the support of one of my supervisors. She is Fijian and so she was better able to explain the community my role. Every one speaks some level of English (British English) but there is still a large gap in understanding one another.
With all that said, things are on the upswing and I am becoming more comfortable in my community every day. Each day I make a small goal for myself...sometimes it is as simple as go to the neighbor's and learn all their names and ages. And hopefully as time goes on my goals will get bigger and better.

Alright so enough with all that jazz...here is a silly little list that former and current volunteers have made of "You Know You Are A PCV in Fiji When...." (not all are true to me, but to give a little insight into our lives as volunteers here in Fiji)

• You see 6 fairly large stains on your shirt and you think 'oh yeah, this shirt is still good'
• ants in your food=free protein
• a hot sunny day means laundry day
• you cover yourself in baby powder because you don't have enough water to shower with
• you choose dinner based off of what is about to rot/expire
• you decide not to sleep in because your neighbors start pounding grog at 7am
• you spend 20 minutes discussing with your neighbors what may have bit your arm the night before
• you're constantly brushing off bugs or poop
• you are constantly checking each pocket to make sure you didn't lose your bus ticket to and from town
• you haven't washed your hair in a week in hopes of not catching lice
• you've made enemies with the village roosters because they love crowing outside your window and your window alone
• you've been charged at by a goat
• your best friend in your village is your cat
• you've made a game of guessing how many frogs are in your bathroom when you go to pee in the middle of the night
• your feet are always dirty
• you are lolled to sleep by dog fights
• you use orange/lemon/lime as after shave
• you step in freshly made cow pie when trying to take down the laundry
• you bargain with the spider in your bathroom to not move until your bowels are evacuated and they surprisingly comply
• you've gotten real good at day dreaming and completely leaving reality in church
• you're not sure if you just agreed to marriage or dinner
• you don't have a kitchen or a sink so showering, washing the dishes and doing laundry has become one activity
• at first you don't understand how Fijian can sleep anywhere and everywhere and now you can fall sleep on the hardwood floor in the middle of a social gathering
• you experience more emotions in one day than a human is meant to experience in a lifetime
• you have at least one good poop story
• "never trust a fart"
• you've lost or gained 15 lbs, or both
• it is considered a successful day when you come home without visible sweat stains
• you're convinced you're going bald, have parasites or a skin disease, and sometime you do
• you never travel anywhere without toilet paper
• grocery shopping and doing laundry are considered day long chores
• you've started to name the cockroaches, rats, spiders and lizards that live in your home
• you treat every month like no-shave november
• you get excited when you order something with chicken and it doesn't have bones in it
• you eat the entire contents of your care package in one sitting
• you preach nutrition and then consume an entire sleeve of oreos after work
• you have spent more time in church than you have your entire life (and understood 1% of what was said)
• you gamble with death every time you ride public transportation
• most of the time, you have no clue what is going on.

The contents of this Web Site are mine personally and do not reflect any position of the U.S. Government or the Peace Corps.

Well. that was weird.

I have no clue how the majority of this post got deleted...but there's no way I can rewrite it since I don't remember what I babbled on about anyways. I will post again this week to make up for it!

As many of you know, last week we found out our site placements for the next two years. It was an emotional day for many. 28 of the 35 of us are placed primarily in secondary schools. A couple people are in offices working for the Ministry of Youth and a couple people are working for a sexual and reproductive health NGO. We are scattered throughout Fiji. A large number are on the second largest island in Fiji,  Vanua Levu. Several of us are on the main island, Viti Levu (including myself) and then there are several people on outer islands such as Kadavou and Taveuni.
I found out this week I passed my language test, thank goodness! I thought I did absolutely terrible. But I guess I did good enough. Now, I need to stay focused and continue to soak it in and practice. I am lucky because my site placement is so close that the dialect is going to be pretty much the same (Bau dialect) besides of course with their own slang and whatnot.
The last weeks, days and hours in the village were intense. After two months I felt as though I had started to find my niche and then it was time to go. I hope to stay close with the locals I can now call my friends, and my host family who has truly held me down through it all.

First three things I am asked when meeting a new person in Fiji:

1. How old are you?
2. Are your parents still alive?
3. What religion are you?

The contents of this Web Site are mine personally and do not reflect any position of the U.S. Government or the Peace Corps.

Goin' to Church

Bula!
Hello!

Na yacaqu 'o Melissa.
My name is Melissa.

(Yacaqu pronounced - yathangu)

I no longer am known as Missy. Although even Melissa isn't completely accurate for what Fijians call me.. it is more like Melisha. Words that end in 'y' do not exist in Fijian. Words end in 'a, e, i, o or u'. It is a very vowel heavy language, which makes it kind of fun to speak!

Obviously a lot has happened over the last month so I am just going to try and highlight a few main things.

Family is much more complex here in Fiji. In all reality, most of the village (and sorrounding villages...pretty much all of Fiji) is related. There are many taboos and rules that the Fijian culture abides by within family relationships, roles and dynamics. I still don't understand many of them clearly. Not to mention Fiji is in a time where many more traditional aspects are clashing with more Western and modernized aspects..a very difficult balance to make.

My host family is mainly just my host Na (mom), Matilita. She is 63 years old and a widow. At night time, it is just her and I that sleep in our house.

However, her niece (Vere, 8 yrs old) and nephew ( Epa, 10 yrs old) are frequently around. She cooks, cleans and takes care of them as their mother left their dad (Matilita's brother, Moni) and them about 4 years ago.

In addition to my momo (uncle) Moni, Momo Simi and Momo Epa and their wives live in houses next to mine. Everyone takes good care of me. Too good at times. The village is about 60 houses big and It is rare that my family lets me go somewhere alone. They send someone with me anywhere I go. I truly am taken in as a part of their family and they take that very seriously. They want me to be the best at speaking Fijian and the best at eating and the best at drinking kava, etc.
I have more aunts and more uncles who live in nearby villages and in the city, Suva but they just randomly pop in and out to visit.

Food:
The food has been fine. The root crops (dalo, cassava, white yams) are really dense and have little nutritional value but I don't mind the taste. I just dip them in whatever else I have or use them as a buffer if there is something I am served that I am not a big fan of.
My host mom worked in a hotel in the city for 35 years so she knows what is new food to me and what I may like based off her experiences with Americans  (although sometimes an inaccurate assumption ie. cereal..not a big fan). She gets me lots of fruit, local (pineapple, papaya, mango, banana) and otherwise (pears mmm). And lots of veggies as well  (beans, peas, carrots, dalo leaves, cabbage, bok choy). Potatoes and onions are in a lot of dishes she makes for me and I am a big fan of those!  Most things are fried, boiled or soaked in (freshly made) coconut milk.Sometimes fish is served all three ways in one meal Special meals are cooked in the 'lovo' which pretty much means they are cooked in the ground. I haven't actually seen this happen even though I hate ate the food from it so more to come on that front.
Butter, mayonnaise, tomato sauce, salt and sugar are a few of Fijian's favorite condiments are that way overused...like way.

Language:
Well...I can sum this up by saying I have a lot of work to do. Fijian isn't too difficult but it is more of a confidence thing for me. I know lots of verbs and adjectives and nouns but don't always know how to throw a sentence together. The good thing is that I understand the pronunciation well and can read it properly..even if I don't know what it is I am reading.
My host family and most people in the village speak English, although some better than others.

Health:
I would say that of the 35 volunteers in my group all of us have been sick with something or another in the last month. Many people have had stomach issues, moquitoe bites, centipede bites, mold and outdoor allergies, strep, colds and bed bugs.
I was bothered by some allergies the first week but have been more or less okay with them since. I have however been blessed with strep (throat) twice...currently suffering from the 2nd time at the moment. It has been 7 days and I haven't had any improvements but they did switch my antibiotic today so hopefully I see improvement tomorrow. They wanted me to go into the city and stay at the hospital or a hotel to rest and be watched over but I asked if we could try just switching my meds first. We only have 3 weeks left with our families and 4 weeks left with all of the other volunteers (before site placement) so I hate to go twiddle my thumbs in the city just for strep.

Other tidbits:
Rats...seen a few...in my house..and my room. I was trying to mind over matter them but then I saw one come in through the slatted window, scale the curtain down to the floor and scurry off. ..Yeah.
Lots of lizards that sound like rats but they are ultimately nice because they eat the other weird bugs and mosquitoes and whatnot.
I have been to church more times in the last month than in the last 8 years of my life combined. The church in my village is Methodist. Sunday masses are around 2 hrs long and 98% in Fijian. There are also masses for funerals, weddings, holidays, new guests, youth week, womens week, childrens week, holidays.....
I have also been attending the church youth group. It is a a bit uncomfortable because I am not religious and it has been a long time since I have discussed the bible and sung church songs but it isn't so bad. I enjoy the small group conversation it allows in youth group. And in mass in all Fijian let's be honest I probably wouldn't understand if it was in english anyways.
Last week in church my family had to get up and sing...they neglected to tell me I was going to be joining them. So I sang my screechy voice in front of the whole congregation with 3 other people and all in Fijian. It was...an experience.

I have tried to add a bunch of pictures but cannot edit them until I get on my computer at some point (currently using purchased data on my phone).

Bula!

I can't tell you what day or time it is but I can tell you that this is where I should be. This is will quite possibly be my last post for a few weeks as I head into the village life.

The first few days in Fiji have blended together and it is hard to believe I haven't even been here a week. Our program is really well organized and they have done a marvelous job on of easing us into our new lives. I have participated in a few "grog sessions" drinking Kava. There will be more on Kava..probably a post dedicated to it itself as I learn more and can better explain the importance of this in the Fijian community. I am learning every moment of every day...including being challenged. I am definitely out of shape - being shown to me in my slow swim in to shore during our swimming competency test yesterday. Maybe that means I have secured a spot in city?? Haha, just kidding.

 This has been a wonderful time in getting to know the 34 other volunteers here in Fiji with me (plus the 15 Tonga volunteers we spent 4 days with). We have played tons of volleyball, soccer, frisbee, football, swam in the river, the ocean, pools at the hotels, walked around towns and played lots of games. We have a solid group here and I look forward getting to know this 92nd group of Fijian Peace Corps volunteers over the next 27 months!

Tomorrow I will move in with my host family. My host mom is 63 years old and widowed. She has two grandchildren living with her, ages 8 and 10. I am super excited to meet them and kick the soccer ball around in the village! The name of my village for the next two months, is Savu Village which means Waterfalls in English. WATERFALLS ARE MY FAVORITE. I can't wait. We will have 2.5 hours of language training Monday through Friday and then several hours of cultural and technical training (in youth development). The house I will be living in is wooden with two bedrooms and a flush toilet :). It is a Peace Corps requirement that the host family is able to provide the volunteer with their own room and a lock to the room. 

Ready or Not!

Packing sucks. I included some pics of my first attempt at packing this week. I don't have final pics to upload because I'm giving up and finishing in the morning..along with 282802 other things I need to do before 9am tomorrow.

Tomorrow morning I leave for LA.

Tuesday night I leave for Fiji.

Wednesday never happens (Fiji is 17 hours ahead of Minneapolis).

I arrive in Nadi, Fiji Thursday morning at 5:30am after a 11.5hr flight (still Wednesday for ya'll). 

We hit the ground running right away when we arrive in Fiji. We have some basic training in a hotel in Nadi, Fiji along with Peace Corps Trainees for Tonga for a couple of days. Then we take a two and a half hour bus ride to Pacific Harbour and spend a night in a hotel. Then we take a two hour bus ride to our host family villages where we will spend the next two months learning language (Fijian and possibly Hindi), cultural taboos and norms, and immersing ourselves into everything Fiji...even getting to know the wildlife (Fijian rats better watch themselves!).

My mailing address until November:

Missy Martin
Peace Corps/Fiji
Private Mail Bag
Suva, Fiji
SOUTH PACIFIC


Some Random Facts About Fiji and Peace Corps in Fiji

*Peace Corps has been in Fiji since 1968 (two years before their independence from Britain)
*Peace Corps did leave Fiji from 1998 to 2003 due to a coup. There is a large Indian population (Indo-Fijians) who often conflict with the Fijians.
*In Fiji you are considered youth until around age 35, or married
*Gender roles are strongly defined
*Many religions are represented but the major three umbrellas are Christianity, Hindu and Muslim
*In Fiji, "...an open door is an invitation for people to come in while a closed door is considered rude..."

After I am sworn in as an official Volunteer in November I will be placed in a position working with the Ministry of Youth, Ministry of Education or Ministry of Health. Any position I am placed in should be focusing on the goal of educating and modeling better nutrition and exercise for the youth of Fiji. I could be placed on one of six islands, could live with another volunteer or live a few hours from the nearest volunteer, could be in a city, town, village or outer island. I will be assessed over the next two months as well as interviewed and surveyed on my thoughts for placement. 

Flights are Booked, Let's Look Back

Received the highly anticipated email today saying I could go ahead and call Peace Corps' travel agent and set up my flight for staging in LA (August 31st) and flight to Fiji (September 1st)!!!

I have started to take the final steps of selling furniture and my car, filling up my parents' storage with all of my lovely belongings, talking to school loan lenders and Sprint, and booking as many play sessions with friends and family AS POSSIBLE. After getting my car beautifully detailed today in preparation to sell it, I came home and reflected back on what got me here from 11 months ago when I decided to apply for the Peace Corps. And as most things in my life, the vision I had for what I wanted took a turn. I went from really wanting to become fluent in Spanish to being offered a position (in FIJI) to utilize my Family Life Education and Parent Coaching work in a way I hadn't even thought possible.

This is the 492 word essay I wrote for my application (max allowed was 500....so much pressure when this is pretty much all they judge you on initially).

The challenges I have faced, chosen and stumbled upon have one thing in common: they have permanently changed me for the better. I participated in a two-week study abroad course in Belize, Central America to study the local culture. My fascination with this new culture led me to connect with Cornerstone Foundation, a local non-profit focused on empowering youth, woman and families to improve their situations by connecting them with meaningful resources. I proceeded to spend three months that summer immersing myself in San Ignacio, Belize working with Cornerstone and immersing myself into the local culture. I ate the local dishes, attended cultural celebrations, and informally picked up Creole (Belizean).  Through the autonomy given to me at Cornerstone I was able to create sustainable youth programs by collaborating with the existing community infrastructure. Success in these programs was not easily come by; I was faced with many challenges. It was essential for me to slow down and observe my community in order to create successful relationships and recognize the needs of those around me.

After being accepted into City Year as an AmeriCorps member, I moved to the neighborhood of East Harlem, New York. East Harlem is an area of concentrated poverty with high school graduation rate of around fifty percent. Working as an AmeriCorps volunteer during this time was a rewarding challenge in which I found much fulfillment. I lived on a small stipend, received food stamps and inhabited a 700 square foot apartment with three other volunteers. This was my first time living in a United States city as a minority. Many of the volunteers began their time in Harlem with fear. They were afraid of the unknown, of the statistics, and of the people who seemed so different than them. I embraced this. I acknowledged the hellos from those hanging out outside the laundry mat, visited the deli on the corner daily, and made myself approachable. Allowing myself to be receptive allowed me to quickly become friends with the people of East Harlem. My friends’ stories were much different than mine. Our conversations ranged from gangs and guns to parenting styles. These conversations gave me insight as to the needs of the community. Drawing from these discussions bettered my work in the school in how to implement interventions, approach parents, and mentor youth.  I had to be creative and resourceful in my work.

I am highly prepared and motivated in regards to Peace Corps service. I trust that my education, experiences, cultural acceptance, and motivation to improve a piece of the world will lead me to work through any challenge that may arise during my service. I know that I will learn just as much from the Peace Corps in my time exchanging cultural experiences. I hope to return to the United States with a deeper understanding of another language and culture that I am able to utilize in my work as a Family Life Educator and Parent Coach.    

28 Days Folks. Don't you worry, I have been eating cheese every day, at every meal.

The countdown.

You guys. I need to tell you something. Before I moved to Harlem (NYC) 7 years ago I was SO excited and anxious and READY...until like 3 days before I left. I freaked out. Who in their right mind leaves everything they know and understand and love and buys a one way ticket somewhere they have Never been before?? Luckily I had a few people in my life who knew that this was just a momentary freak out and that I was making the 2nd best decision of my life.

Here I am. 45 days out from a one way ticket OUT OF THE COUNTRY and I feel excited and anxious and READY. Uh oh. Does this mean that all of the sadness and nervousness and freaking out is waiting to hit me moments before I leave?! Crap. Can't I just make myself feel these things now and get em over with??

Maybe if I think about all the things I am going to miss for 27 months...

45 days.
45 more days...
...of eating cheese at my leisure (and a lot of it).
...of walking into a cold house.
...of hot showers and baths
...having any food I want, any time I want it.
...watching my niece on Sundays.
...doing ridiculous things with my parents, like archery and pickleball.
...having a fridge stocked with wine  (maybe this can happen but I am preparing myself for the worst).
...of being able to spend time with family and friends.
...to binge watch hulu.
...walking 100 ft to a bar, and back home again.
...to buy a fresh brewed coffee every morning.
...of driving.
...of a predictable tomorrow.

Timeline in pursuit of my Dreams

December, 2012 - Associate in Arts Degree (Anoka Ramsey Community College)

September, 2014 - Made the mental decision to apply for the Peace Corps in hopes of departing late summer 2015

November 1st, 2014 - FINALLY submitted my Peace Corps application after writing, editing, rewriting and enlisting others to edit my 500 word essay and resume (that is all the Peace Corps was judging me off of). My first 3 choices in applying were Youth Development-Peru, Youth Development-Costa Rica and anywhere with a preference for Spanish-speaking.
*Special shout outs to Dad, Katie (sister), Katie Kampa, Sarah, Robert and Kim, Kyla and anyone else I am forgetting-I sure did need a lot of help :)!

December 2nd, 2014 - Placed under consideration for Peace Corps Peru

February 9th, 2015 - Asked to provide documentation showing 4 years of high school spanish or 2 semesters of college spanish completed, to continue being considered for Peru (I had 3 yrs in high school and 1 semester in college)

February 13th, 2015 - Informed I could no longer be considered for Peru due to it being a highly competitive program and not fitting neatly into the language prerequisites. Told I can be considered for Fiji if I would like with no guarantee that I would recieve an interview 

February 17th, 2015 - Offered an interview for Peace Corps Fiji - Community Youth Empowerment Project

February 23rd, 2015 - Interviewed via video call for Peace Corps Fiji

February 26th, 2015 - Invited to serve with Peace Corps Fiji!

May 9th, 2015 - Bachelor in Arts Degree in Family Life Education (Concordia University-St. Paul)

May 28th, 2015 - Medical and dental clearance granted (after 3 months of nearly weekly appointments to get poked and prodded)

August 31st, 2015 - Temporarily scheduled to depart for training in LA (Peace Corps calls it staging)

September, 2015 -Temporarily scheduled to leave for Fiji. Will stay with a host family and receive in country training for two months

November, 2015 - Receive specific job/village assignment for the next two years 

Dreams Deferred

During my freshman year of college (@ University of Wisconsin-River Falls) I decided I wanted to join the Peace Corps some day…

…It wasn’t a completely random thought. In March of 2008 I spent two weeks exploring the amazing country of Belize through a study abroad program. After just a few days there, I asked my professor how one might go about coming back to Belize to do an internship, or something of the sort, for a longer period of time. Professor Ed Robins walked me over to an organization called Cornerstone Foundation in the town of San Ignacio and introduced me to the staff. He said he had a former student who volunteered with them and she had only good things to say. After returning from the two week trip, it was only a matter of weeks before I made a commitment to intern with the Cornerstone Foundation (in Youth Development) for 3 months in the summer of 2008. (Highly Recommended: They have programs ranging from 1 week long to as many months as you can afford in areas from health to environmental studies to women empowerment. They are much more affordable than most study/volunteer abroad programs, provide a meal a day and dorm style living quarters equipped with a computer room ;) http://www.cornerstonefoundationbelize.org/ )

I could tell you about Belize ALL DAY LONG but if you already know me, you can go look at one of my 10 Belize photo albums and see the PURE JOY living in Belize brought me. I immersed myself into the culture, made life long friends with locals and other volunteers and made the first best decision of my life. I have now been to Belize on 5 different occasions and will be back for more. 

After that summer, I knew. I knew there was this whole other world out there. I knew, more than ever, that diversity was a passion of mine. I knew I wanted to continue to indulge in cultures aside from my own. I knew I wanted to join the Peace Corps. There was only one thing stopping me…lack of an undergraduate degree. I had heard it was very difficult to get into the Peace Corps without such a thing.