National Strikes, Changing Seasons, Whitewater Rafting, Jellies, and Eyeglasses Mission!

National Strike
It has been an eventful past few months in Guinea, the national strike was not widely observed but it did delay all of the students’ final exams and the military action taken resulted in the deaths of several students. It was difficult to work and plan future projects with the future so unstable as it was. The strike has been suspended but with no concrete resolution it seems unlikely that the situation will remedy itself. But, for now the students are taking their exams a month late and the teachers, many of who were not paid all year are expected to receive their meager salaries at the end of July.
Changing Seasons
The seasons have changed here but unlike the familiar transition from spring to summer the changes have been from brown and dry to lush green fields and forests. The change in season was market by many strong storms – reminding me of a summer storm in Wisconsin and quite unlike any rain that falls in Seattle. The area of the country that I live in is absolutely beautiful and I love that I can usually bike within a few hours to anywhere I would want to go.
Whitewater Rafting
In the unfortunate event that I am stocking up on hard to find groceries or other necessities in the regional or national capital I have the generally unpleasant occasion of taking public transportation. This would mean riding the ‘bush taxi system’! It is difficult to explain completely this organized chaos to someone who has not yet had this experience. Yet, after passing many, many hours riding in taxis around the country I had come to make a good analogy in order to better explain.
The analogy began one day when I was riding in my counterpart’s car to visit one of the local co-ops that I work with. At one point after we had reached the peak of a small hill he abruptly stopped the car, opened the door and stood gazing upon the road before us. Leaving the door open he took a few steps away from the car and planned his decent. This experience reminded me of other times – on rafting trips where the experienced guide had decided to step onto shore and scout before running a difficult stretch of rapids. Looking down a particularly difficult stretch of road the rocks jet out from the ground in haphazard direction necessitating careful maneuvering on the part of the driver – to avoid bottoming out his overcrowded 1980s station wagon. The feeling of driving here also mimics rafting in that you are somewhat helplessly tossed along the bumps of the unpaved roads. All additional motivation to get outdoors and bike!!
Jellies
Who can remember back to the ‘80s when all the rage was jellies sandals?? Did you ever wonder what happened when they suddenly when out of style? Well…I though that I’d update you all on what really happened to jellies. Millions of ‘out of style’ jellies must have been shipped on very slow boats across the Atlantic. And after finally clearing customs (a difficult process) they arrived here in Africa (about 20 years later). But, they did not come with the fashionable assumption as they had in the US. Instead, they because the new official sport shoe of Africa. On the way to any given field on any given afternoon you can see boys walking to soccer fields in flip flops carrying in hand their athletic footwear. I don’t think the fashion industry could have guessed that across the continent of Africa soccer games would be started up, each sides players with their jellies securely buckled. This is an admittedly random topic…but a story that I continue to find surprising even as my 6th month in country comes and quickly passes.

Eyeglasses Mission
Last week was spent in Tougue, a city about 3 hrs north-east of Labe (I live about an hour south-west of Labe), assisting an eyeglasses mission from Madison, WI. I had met the former PCV and his Guinean wife in Madison before coming to Guinea and it was great to be able to meet her family and to see some midwesterners. The mission was very successful, we fitted a lot of people into glasses and the general population was very thankful for our efforts. I did some French-English translating for the doctors and wrote out consultation cards for people in order to attempt to organize amidst the choas that is always at least a little present in Guinea. The town itself was rather small even for being the largest in the area and it was situated between two hills. The volunteer that I was staying with happened to live on one hill and the cilnic was half way up the other! But this way I got to see a lot of the town in the short period of time I spent there.

So, these fine observations make up the latest news from Guinea. I'll write more about my actual project work next time I have a chance. Also, on another positive note, I should have a cell phone soon...then maybe I'll be a little more connected to the outside world...or at least more connected to my fellow volunteers in Guinea.

Take Care,

Amy