tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24647391258165178782024-03-13T10:17:13.566-07:00You're moving where?Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.comBlogger27125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-84273737247700484812015-12-01T02:02:00.001-08:002015-12-01T02:04:08.729-08:00Thoughts On A Saturday Morning<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">October 17, 2015</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I read a lot. I wish I brought more movies though. I’ve seen
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Jurassic World</i> about 6 times. I’ve
seen <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Crazy Stupid Love</i> probably 8
times. And I’ve watched <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Grand
Budapest Hotel</i> probably 10 times. They’re all good movies, and I’m happy to
have something to watch, but man…I know those movies backwards and forwards. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I love not having to shave. Or do my eyebrows. Or do my
hair.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I really hope I don’t get sick from all the mosquito spray
I’ve been using. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Mom just told me, “<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">mongo
tempura!”</i> (Eat donuts!)<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>I should
really stop eating all these donuts. There is absolutely no nutritional value
to them. Well, I guess if you count the bugs you find in them protein, then
maybe there’s a little. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">People are going to wonder why I’m still so light-skinned
after living on an island for 2 years. And why I’ve gained weight when there’s
not a lot of food to eat here. It’s from all the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">tempura</i>, I swear.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Today we’re going to a fundraiser for the church where
they’ll be raffling off <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">amush </i>(firewood).
I don’t know why I like that word in Mortlockese so much…<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">amush…<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The women here are crazy about playing Bingo. Actually,
crazy is an understatement. My host sisters sometimes don’t get home until 9pm
from Bingo. I went with them once to watch and was bored within the first 5
minutes. Everyone knows gambling is addictive, but they don’t seem to care. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I need to choreograph the last few songs for my Zumba class
tomorrow. Man, I love not having the Internet sometimes, but right now I wish I
had some inspiration. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A drop of sweat just fell from behind my ear. It’s going to
be really hot today. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I hope the women like my Zumba class tomorrow. Hopefully
they’ll stop playing Bingo and come to Zumba instead. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">BREAKING NEWS: ZUMBA CURES THE WOMEN OF ETTAL OF THEIR BINGO ADDICTION.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I need to go shower. It’s hot.</span></div>
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Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-69016046620114965802015-12-01T02:01:00.001-08:002015-12-01T02:04:29.691-08:00Ants In Your Pants<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">October 15, 2015</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What’s worse than ants in your pants? Ants in your care
package food. I walked into my room one evening to find a trail of ants
crawling up and into box of food my family and friends had generously sent me.
I thought I had done a good job of putting everything into zip-loc baggies, but
the ants had eaten their way through those. So, looking around at my limited
resources, I emptied out my Pelican case where I usually keep my satellite
phone and solar charger, and put all of the food in there instead. Sometimes,
goodies from home are more important than technology.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-62887864445406095352015-12-01T02:00:00.000-08:002015-12-01T02:05:05.544-08:00Akino, and the Case of the Tipping Vase<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">October 11, 2015</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There is one man on the island, Akino, who had taken a
liking to me. He’s older, in his mid to late 30s, and is referred to as “crazy”
because he smokes marijuana and prefers to spend time alone rather than with
others. At first he would come up to me when I was standing on the beach or
teaching in the classroom and ask how I was or if I was enjoying myself here on
Ettal. One day he even waited outside of my classroom to give me a coconut to
drink. Then he told my family that if I should ever need anything he was more
than willing to help. Now, he’s building a local house, five feet from my own
house, to impress me. People in the village, including my students, tease me
about Akino almost every day. But, they also tell me that if I were not here
Akino would still be living with his parents.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One Sunday my family and I were in charge of making the
flower vases and maramars for church. The maramars came out beautifully (my
sister Nippy is very talented and taught me how to make them), but the flower
vases kept falling over in the middle of mass. I’d stand one up, and it would
fall down two minutes later. I’d stand it up again, then the other one would
fall. Other’s tried helping me make them steady, but they didn’t have any luck
either. My older sister and I eventually let them fall and reverted to giggling
throughout the rest of the church service instead.</span></div>
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Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-57338655315425802112015-12-01T01:57:00.001-08:002015-12-01T02:05:23.740-08:00Grandma Makes Good Flour Balls<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">September 2015</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On one rainy night my host grandmother made what we call <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">soup</i>. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Soup</i> is made from water, flour, and sugar. It’s this white goopy
soup with balls of half-cooked flour in it that does not look the least bit
appetizing. But the way my grandmother makes it is delicious. She takes the
balls of flour and mixes <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">chofar</i> (the
embreyo-type coconut meat) in it. The first thing I thought of when I tried her
version of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">soup</i> was, “Damn. Grandma
makes good flour balls.” I started calling the dish “flour balls” and my family
got a kick out of it. Now, we tack on “balls” to any and everything: breadfruit
balls, taro balls, donut balls, bread balls…</span></div>
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Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-45644460720416236192015-08-14T18:46:00.003-07:002015-08-14T18:46:52.179-07:00We're Volunteers! <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ5XI9z6LISnaq2bX_vLcgbcCWqPCrONtbOP9DbQ2E7tjYHESga0lHeXYDZqt3eM_I-nV09vENKngJnuHCZArR4VUmqhiIoRro02R0FTZW5UTwAtCfZB92PY2CtgAUYQXItEZy9ebMaAdH/s1600/DSCN5469.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ5XI9z6LISnaq2bX_vLcgbcCWqPCrONtbOP9DbQ2E7tjYHESga0lHeXYDZqt3eM_I-nV09vENKngJnuHCZArR4VUmqhiIoRro02R0FTZW5UTwAtCfZB92PY2CtgAUYQXItEZy9ebMaAdH/s320/DSCN5469.JPG" /></span></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">M81s, pre- Swear In</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXba9vl9qmEhyH2MvMKL-SAoE00RXs60jQIHNBD3pYp7lrH8oC-QzAHVjcI0ZiS8utu0kEStsHNErX4AuE4Yei7i9xP3bB_WFllvaG_RL8P8ERC8DgWzoxjzvNiySUFHFCGuZaOFvFj67f/s1600/DSCN5470.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXba9vl9qmEhyH2MvMKL-SAoE00RXs60jQIHNBD3pYp7lrH8oC-QzAHVjcI0ZiS8utu0kEStsHNErX4AuE4Yei7i9xP3bB_WFllvaG_RL8P8ERC8DgWzoxjzvNiySUFHFCGuZaOFvFj67f/s320/DSCN5470.JPG" /></span></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Taking our Peace Corps Oath</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw8OOA1dNsMeniQhA5EIDpjX1xBt_pnknRFIghMr89uI4OqO963jdQcYh9I4IrutoSHUOe3QqD1OVjLEtVUUneYr5Tkvp4OtBYws3-Z4woDT0iGpcB3SykDY-c38GzLUfoyMRVnqxBSkUo/s1600/DSCN5477.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw8OOA1dNsMeniQhA5EIDpjX1xBt_pnknRFIghMr89uI4OqO963jdQcYh9I4IrutoSHUOe3QqD1OVjLEtVUUneYr5Tkvp4OtBYws3-Z4woDT0iGpcB3SykDY-c38GzLUfoyMRVnqxBSkUo/s320/DSCN5477.JPG" /></span></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Country Director Robert Reid and I</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCZudHAltcwbOMutsUswhKzP5hCa9wgLRMM2sTDeojSdEFyNbsjNb9yTc6ZyiH8SV5VPrtI7cjvN7qQiRhhobBZF1aNCkENYOFsNy7_Jrtc3faK7iWtgGQC1cktFleUBMmIbyYNFrPgo44/s1600/DSCN5478.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCZudHAltcwbOMutsUswhKzP5hCa9wgLRMM2sTDeojSdEFyNbsjNb9yTc6ZyiH8SV5VPrtI7cjvN7qQiRhhobBZF1aNCkENYOFsNy7_Jrtc3faK7iWtgGQC1cktFleUBMmIbyYNFrPgo44/s320/DSCN5478.JPG" /></span></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">We did it! We're Volunteers!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Mortlocks Volunteers and Belinda</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Jasmin, Sana, David, and Dana (her face though...)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Lisa, Lorena, Me, and Brady enjoying milkshakes and pizza</span></div>
Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-37878030286999548452015-08-12T22:19:00.000-07:002015-08-12T22:20:55.211-07:00Meet the Mortlockese<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A few Fridays ago, our Mortlockese teacher, Belinda, organized
something incredibly special for us that I’ll remember for years to come. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">She took us to meet her family.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There is a great amount of value placed on family here in
the FSM and we all felt very honored that she, and her family, was willing to
take us in for an afternoon and treat us like their own. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Peace Corps staff drove us an hour to Palikir, the capital
of the FSM, where we met Belinda at the entrance of her family’s compound. We
were shocked to see her in a tank top that showed off her shoulders and
cleavage (Go Belinda! She looked GOOD!), but also pleasantly surprised that she
felt comfortable wearing it around us. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">She ushered us into the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">fal</i>
(Mortlockese meeting house) where more than 20 members of her family were
waiting for us. Once we were seated, Belinda’s eldest brother stood up and
welcomed us (As a woman, Belinda is not allowed to speak at meetings. Instead
she has her brother speak for her.). He introduced us to the Chief (who had a
cat perched on his lap), and the rest of their family. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was then our turn to introduce ourselves, so we each
stood up and thanked them in Mortlockese for having us. Talk about being
nervous. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My speech was a blur, I’m not even sure if I said everything
correctly: </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“Laloas allem! Itai
Rachel. Ngang sangei Los Angeles, California, pwal ngang ia ier ruameelu. Ipwe
aiti English lon Ettal. Ike pirer fito eke, nge iiei pwapwa pwe oumi
chiechiech. Ren emi etiwa amem. Killisou chapwur.”<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“Good afternoon! My
name is Rachel. I am from Los Angeles, California, and I am 23 years old. I
will teach English on Ettal. I was nervous to come here, but now I am happy
because you all are friendly. Thank you for welcoming me. Thank you very much.”<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Once we finished our speeches, the family performed several
Mortlockese songs and dances for us, which not only illustrated their culture’s
love for musical expression, but was also a very special treat. In return, the
6 of us spontaneously decided to sing the song we had been practicing for our
Swearing-In Ceremony. It was a train wreck (our voices were shaky and we sang
way too low!), but her family appreciated the gesture nonetheless.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">They came up to us afterwards and introduced themselves. We
had been very confident in our Mortlockese-speaking abilities up until that
point, but once they started talking to us individually, we were lost. They spoke so quickly and used words we hadn't learned yet. I'm pretty sure we looked like dear in the headlights. Belinda
came to our rescue and helped us translate. She also offered to send parts of
her body with each of us to the Mortlocks so we wouldn’t be so lost (another
reason why I love her so much).</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Her family had also cooked food for us, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">konen maai </i>(pounded breadfruit in coconut milk) and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">iik apwech </i>(grilled fish), which was
incredibly kind of them. It did, however, remind me of sorority recruitment
where you’d try to balance eating and talking, without making a fool of yourself. That made me laugh.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Looking back on the afternoon makes me laugh awkwardly in general, but I’ll
always keep the memory close to my heart.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Ole no</i>, </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rachel </span></div>
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Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-80615564005840598932015-08-10T21:13:00.001-07:002015-08-10T21:14:26.153-07:00Host Family Appreciation Day <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP-DiE-VwPKkrAGgC5r6l3dW8ElyZBiAp5rMdLZGqF1FUIWFNINrgk7ajzdkAInzwsFtpq3NMsjBPlwcaGTLv4SiafnVrSBrfrh4J6KOSMUkFHEwfXt3h3nDodzN7zogB9fcS74Wq_1OtI/s1600/11846440_575188482619857_583135148_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP-DiE-VwPKkrAGgC5r6l3dW8ElyZBiAp5rMdLZGqF1FUIWFNINrgk7ajzdkAInzwsFtpq3NMsjBPlwcaGTLv4SiafnVrSBrfrh4J6KOSMUkFHEwfXt3h3nDodzN7zogB9fcS74Wq_1OtI/s320/11846440_575188482619857_583135148_n.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pahpa Pancake, Nohno Pancake, and I</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Last Friday afternoon Peace Corps hosted a Host Family Appreciation Day where we were able to express our gratitude for our families.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We presented our families with vegetables from our garden in hand-woven baskets. They also received a certificate from the Peace Corps that thanked them for contributing to our success as Trainees and eventually Volunteers.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Later we showed them a video (filmed and edited by PCTs Jasmin and Kaylin) and held a small "talent show" that consisted of singing and dancing.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oyI5RAOr2tc&feature=youtu.be"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">M81: Host Family Appreciation Video</span></a><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's crazy to think that we'll be leaving our host families and moving to our permanent sites across the FSM this weekend.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">While there have certainly been frustrations living with host families, the overall experience has been positive.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And I really do feel like I've become part of my pancake family! My host sister got locally "married" last night and my Pahpa Pancake warned another menwei (white person) at the ceremony that he better not "take his other daughter (me) away!"</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here's to families, big and small, near and far.</span>Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-26300197817151227652015-08-10T17:44:00.001-07:002015-08-10T21:29:08.385-07:00Snorkeling In the Rain <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-72177649905521280392015-08-08T22:03:00.002-07:002015-08-11T14:36:57.940-07:00Belinda<style>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">“Belinda, where do people have sex here? There’s never any
privacy!” we asked one day in Mortlockese class.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">“What?! There’s always privacy in the bushes!” Belinda
exclaimed.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">We erupted in laughter, not expecting that answer, but
realizing how right she was.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDOR4gXyjtyj2jLQxKFYdg0m6JOQLy7vgOILyFlV_zs_zR42EdAuOcs5TQxRrt0fe6vz3c1QICgnDOvuUzfWe0TdzIUjxD9BWVQqlG0ZqLU8BIFmDkctYAcFCocUYzge4fcQSW0pUV9bij/s1600/DSCN5453.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDOR4gXyjtyj2jLQxKFYdg0m6JOQLy7vgOILyFlV_zs_zR42EdAuOcs5TQxRrt0fe6vz3c1QICgnDOvuUzfWe0TdzIUjxD9BWVQqlG0ZqLU8BIFmDkctYAcFCocUYzge4fcQSW0pUV9bij/s320/DSCN5453.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">because coconut wireless isn't enough...</td></tr>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Belinda is our Mortlockese Language and Culture Facilitator
(aka teacher) who probably thinks that the 6 of us getting ready to move to the
Mortlocks are weird Americans. And I don’t blame her.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">At the beginning of language class every day, we walk in,
exchange “Ranallem, ia usumw?” and proceed to talk about anything and
everything that’s on our minds. Usually it has to do with training or Model
School complaints, but other times it’s totally and completely random. Belinda
will just sit there in her seia (chair) for the first 15-20 minutes, listening
to us. In no way is she being chipwanglech (lazy) or not doing her job. 4 hours
of language class is just too long, and even she knows that, so she gives us
time to ramble, and then turns our attention to learning Mortlockese.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">After about an hour of reviewing and introducing new
information, Belinda will either tell us to take asese (a break; where we
usually lay on the floor for 30 minutes), or she’ll let us get off topic again
and speak in English.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">We alternate between learning, taking asese, and getting off
topic about every hour, and while it may seem like a huge waste of time, it’s
not. I greatly appreciate the routine and atmosphere she has created. It’s
comfortable. It’s funny. It can be serious when it needs to be. But the most
important part is that we’re learning.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">We’re learning not only the language, but also about the
culture.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Belinda does a great job of answering any random questions
we may have (like where do people have sex?). And believe me, we have a lot of
them.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">We’ve asked her (in relation to the Mortlocks) about gender
roles, the lack of toilets and toilet paper, what women do during their
periods, how bisexuality and homosexuality are viewed, and what to do for fun
on specific islands, amongst many other things.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">She’s been able to provide great insight, especially since
she is originally from the Mortlocks, and does not sugar-coat the realities we
will be facing…like walking on our knees when we have to pass through a group
of talking men. No joke.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I can’t stop raving about Belinda. She a beautiful, smart,
sassy 30-year old raising 3 children. She wears awesome mumus and has even
better facial expressions. She comes to class and sometimes complains about
being out too late playing bingo and drinking sakau. She speaks great English
and is interested in our views about the US and the world. She teaches us
relevant vocabulary and grammar. She makes up fun games to enhance our
learning. She’s honest. She’s kind. She’s patient. She’s a great human being. And
I couldn’t be doing this without her.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Killisou Belinda, </span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Rachel</span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCsWJiQrzVFLkzyWMUntSModJSPZoXa31C2WxjWNROXKswHLVTzty32lnN0JoIsowGSDJlz46Lw2d-sqYMAN0VnH1VUmG7CVHaPw8ccpNm44ijpkqc1YuF4LQJ3vtzJX3IjsMqbNH4QKn3/s1600/DSCN5455.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCsWJiQrzVFLkzyWMUntSModJSPZoXa31C2WxjWNROXKswHLVTzty32lnN0JoIsowGSDJlz46Lw2d-sqYMAN0VnH1VUmG7CVHaPw8ccpNm44ijpkqc1YuF4LQJ3vtzJX3IjsMqbNH4QKn3/s400/DSCN5455.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 16px;"> Kaylin, Me, Sarah, Belinda, Dana, Lisa, and David</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-25669315161833632122015-08-05T14:38:00.000-07:002015-08-05T22:29:32.371-07:00Model School Week 2 &3 <div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Weeks 2 and 3 of Model School were so hectic and such a blur
that it’s difficult for me to reflect on them in depth. I will say however,
that I am very satisfied with the overall experience for multiple reasons (not
just the fact that I made it through alive). </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For one, I am extremely thankful I got more hands-on
experience teaching. I would loved to have even more before I moved to Ettal,
but I realize how jam-packed PST is already. I was also glad to get an idea of
what working with a counterpart will be like. While it can be frustrating
trying to lesson plan together, it’s very rewarding when you find your
rhythm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Learning how to deal with
and manage cultural differences, in regards to students, co-teachers, staff,
administration, and the DOE (Department of Education), was extremely taxing,
but beneficial in the long run. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Long story short, Model School opened my eyes to the
education issues occurring across the FSM and presumably at my permanent site.
Though many of these issues were negative, I did have some major “ah-hah!”
moments as a teacher that I’ll keep in the back of my mind as I move to teach
in Ettal:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-The enthusiasm you put in is the enthusiasm you’ll get out.
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-Your enthusiasm has the potential to even engage and encourage
your co-teacher.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNVCPpfBK_xL9FLADd4Nw7zMeyMNAwJYF9yqo7BEjqJ919rZw0VIfYhHUV6fNfh8X1snmklzSa25XvB2Jhd6utgV5fbFoL7Aq4cWUKcPnuPcym8r0ZobFtsF-lCcaGvtlZql8x5_J6EcdB/s1600/DSCN5427.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNVCPpfBK_xL9FLADd4Nw7zMeyMNAwJYF9yqo7BEjqJ919rZw0VIfYhHUV6fNfh8X1snmklzSa25XvB2Jhd6utgV5fbFoL7Aq4cWUKcPnuPcym8r0ZobFtsF-lCcaGvtlZql8x5_J6EcdB/s320/DSCN5427.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i>Denny and Jesse acting out a story they wrote</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-Targeting the different level groups of students and lesson
planning with them in mind is extremely difficult. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-Station teaching is awesome if you have the resources and
more than one teacher.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-Your body language can make or break a student’s
confidence.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-Students love every chance they get to compete and
celebrate.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMxoHncU6Z85S_Ei9cWbmS_OdUPEwwLvsQTzU0Px2Vc3VPELhBs9Fo1OzOm4q6RT74inXNBhfdWqpyzFW5DOclHssmMyrfFrHiLQ00M-nI5-Y9TaRfZca4-Gxeb76skTtB8w1KBrMio2oo/s1600/DSCN5442.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMxoHncU6Z85S_Ei9cWbmS_OdUPEwwLvsQTzU0Px2Vc3VPELhBs9Fo1OzOm4q6RT74inXNBhfdWqpyzFW5DOclHssmMyrfFrHiLQ00M-nI5-Y9TaRfZca4-Gxeb76skTtB8w1KBrMio2oo/s320/DSCN5442.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<i>Spelling Bee winners! </i></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcAZk7YWKnYmUmRQ8q9xwbOg2J2kmVjH-Ajorjqyl49iunhJCQT9v9FoVJdcLqEcswngQj7YiC1WY0PmMxU6t-6nm4CR7Wrwr3ffd-FfxLnKTQBFswCW1V3yQNWIzxX5ioqRiPVHfNCaGQ/s1600/DSCN5444.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcAZk7YWKnYmUmRQ8q9xwbOg2J2kmVjH-Ajorjqyl49iunhJCQT9v9FoVJdcLqEcswngQj7YiC1WY0PmMxU6t-6nm4CR7Wrwr3ffd-FfxLnKTQBFswCW1V3yQNWIzxX5ioqRiPVHfNCaGQ/s320/DSCN5444.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i>First Annual Jupiter Spelling Bee</i></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-If you’re a PCV in the FSM, you’re most likely going to be
writing the lesson plans for you and your counterpart. Actually, all of them. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-You’ll also most likely have to jump in when your
co-teacher is teaching and save the lesson.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-Teacher evaluations are not done efficiently or taken
seriously in the FSM.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And I’m sure there will be many more take-aways during the
next two years. But for now,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cheers to a successful Model School!</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rachel</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ7ZZ7Wlh8tURX2gjpNRbBXuNU-W-lNrfsF3myKvcCE9sayi4-L4ycNm0jhqpGlHq0lf59tvivdaUw_-rxy912Um1mU8joHgdV3O-QjiQZK6T87Uuq2Vk9ZYy7IVDejU0ZXhPYd7sptPip/s1600/DSCN5452.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ7ZZ7Wlh8tURX2gjpNRbBXuNU-W-lNrfsF3myKvcCE9sayi4-L4ycNm0jhqpGlHq0lf59tvivdaUw_-rxy912Um1mU8joHgdV3O-QjiQZK6T87Uuq2Vk9ZYy7IVDejU0ZXhPYd7sptPip/s320/DSCN5452.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i>Laurel and I during our Christmas in July celebration</i></div>
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<br /></div>
<iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/KhV1mTiL-iI" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-75805246906811260572015-07-31T20:58:00.003-07:002015-07-31T20:58:48.573-07:00Nan Madol <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On Sunday, July 19th my Pancake family took Marisa, a fellow PCT, and I to explore Nan Madol. </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVmuV2iLn8ZcYrXicu2O0yUtFOMjuuCJDxz8Uh2_65lKXwPG-g32PqZPw1uHx0R4di1luKb2iHA0KLImDID7lKJySlPTZb1hHH2MG3lY9LTnRPJn2SkuIY8-cEBFeU70lU2HgdEerRMdjN/s1600/GOPR0818.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVmuV2iLn8ZcYrXicu2O0yUtFOMjuuCJDxz8Uh2_65lKXwPG-g32PqZPw1uHx0R4di1luKb2iHA0KLImDID7lKJySlPTZb1hHH2MG3lY9LTnRPJn2SkuIY8-cEBFeU70lU2HgdEerRMdjN/s320/GOPR0818.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The front of the ruins</span></div>
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6YC3dT_S96a5mysB0k_AOpXr3tLqARna7l4UbuaAzL9t1kUsMhO3v7QyO3-yOYathfJMxIiX8_rvnbaTqaSrFnDOAgIwJH9-Vps1Q7cwYP7WbuH512obz0rn00j95-X5c8imuB64e43aC/s1600/GOPR0820.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6YC3dT_S96a5mysB0k_AOpXr3tLqARna7l4UbuaAzL9t1kUsMhO3v7QyO3-yOYathfJMxIiX8_rvnbaTqaSrFnDOAgIwJH9-Vps1Q7cwYP7WbuH512obz0rn00j95-X5c8imuB64e43aC/s320/GOPR0820.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Pancake girls</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Marisa and I ran into PCTs Jasmin and Dana </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And joined them for some cliff jumping!</span></div>
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<br />Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-14732985814521445682015-07-20T23:34:00.002-07:002015-07-20T23:40:55.314-07:00Model School Week 1<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We finished our first week of Model School and I am
exhausted, but oh so satisfied.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After only 3 weeks of TESL training I thought that, for
sure, Model School was going to be a train wreck: I barely knew how to lesson
plan, I didn’t know what classroom management strategies I was going to
implement, I didn’t even know if my HCT (Host Country Teacher, aka, my
co-teacher) was going to show up. If all else failed I at least had my previous
teaching and tutoring experiences to draw from, but even then, how was I
suppose to walk into the classroom feeling confident and ready to teach? There
was just so much that could go wrong.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But nothing went horribly wrong. It went really well for our
first week. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In Model School, my HCT and I (Team A) are paired up with
another PCT and her HCT (Team B) to teach 6<sup>th</sup> grade. We alternate
teaching, so one day Team A teaches and Team B observes, and the next day it
switches. It is the Peace Corps’ hope that by observing each other we’re able
to improve as teachers. Along with team observations, Peace Corps staff will
also conduct formal observations starting week 2 of model school. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The school day is broken up into 3 periods and 2 breaks:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Period 1- 8:30am to 9:15am (Language Arts)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Break- 9:15am to 9:25am </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Period 2- 9:25am to 10:10am (Language Arts or Literature)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Break- 10:10am to 10:20am</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Period 3- 10:20am- 11:05am (Math or Science)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Student Dismissal </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After we dismiss our class, we have until noon to lesson
plan with our HCT (Which yes, is nothing. Don’t ask me how I plan for three
45-minute periods in that time.) The PCTs then head back to PATS for lunch from
12pm-1pm, followed by language class until 5pm. The days are long, and we’re
all drained by the end of 3<sup>rd</sup> period, but it’s been a really
rewarding experience so far. Not to mention I don’t think I’ve ever learned so
much in just one week.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Model School is held at Madenolhimw High School, but is for
students in grades 4-8.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
students are from schools around the area. And while they may be enrolled in a
certain grade level, they are typically reading and writing 2 to 3 grades lower
than that. My 6<sup>th</sup> graders, for example, are at about a 3<sup>rd</sup>
to 4<sup>th</sup> grade level. This makes it extremely challenging to teach the
national benchmarks and standards, but I’ll save that discussion (okay, more
like rant) for another time. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Some of the students are extremely shy, especially when
speaking English, while others are outgoing and eager to practice their
English. The majority of them, however, will never tell you if they don’t
understand the material being presented. We’ve established a thumbs up (no
questions, they understand everything)/to the side (questions, they need
clarification)/down (no idea what the teacher is saying, the teacher is
speaking too fast) comprehension check in our classroom, but even then the
students will always give us a thumbs up. They’re not blunt like American
students who will tell the teacher if they’re lost. I try to refrain from
labeling it as a cultural difference, but honestly that’s what it is.
Micronesian culture is non-confrontational, so it’s something we’re adapting to
in the classroom. And that’s fine. We’ll just have to get creative.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We have, however, tapped into our students’ strength to make
our lessons flow and be more engaging. And you know what their strength is?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Dancing.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It’s fate. I adore dancing. I dance in my underwear in my
room. I dance in my living room with my host sisters. I dance during
Mortlockese class breaks. I dance in the rain with my fellow PCTs. I dance
anywhere and everywhere. It’s fate. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In the first few minutes of class, we have our students
stretch, warm up their bodies (because it’s not hot enough in Micronesia
already, duh), and then either dance or do a class-related activity that
involves moving around the room. It’s like magic. The shy students start
smiling and talking, the outgoing students get to express themselves, and
everyone remembers the material better because of TPR (Total Physical
Response). </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We’ve tried to incorporate as much movement as possible into
the lessons this past week of Model School. We’re lucky to have a small class
of 12 students so we have lots of space both inside and outside of the
classroom. We’ve taken our students outside for a blind-fold game, we’ve taught
them the Cha-Cha Slide, we’ve held relay races, and much more. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It’s draining. We’re running out of ideas. We have very
limited resources. But we’re dancing and moving every day. And our students are
learning, leaving the classroom happy, and are coming back each day ready and
excited. That’s all I can really ask and could have hoped for.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As I was saying goodbye to our Temporary Country Director,
Michael Ketover, last week, he gave me a big hug and said, “Keep dancing,
Rachel.” Although I only knew Michael for a few weeks, what he said really hit
me hard. I may have no idea how to make the best lesson plans, I may not know
what classroom management strategies I’m going to use, and I may not even know
if my co-teacher will show up. But that won’t stop me. I’ll keep dancing.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Love, </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rachel </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Laurel and I</span></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">P.S. I would love to hear of any dance/movement activities
that have worked for you inside or outside of the classroom that you think I
may be able to tie into my lesson plans! </span></div>
Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-89570733808947594572015-07-14T23:27:00.001-07:002015-07-14T23:27:33.532-07:00TESL Training Reflection <div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">**I would have posted this last week, but the internet went down at PATS.**</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On Monday July 13<sup>th</sup>, we start model school. Model
school is a teaching practicum for PCTs and their partner HCTs (host country
teachers) that allows us to apply and perform ESL teaching methodologies and
approaches that we (supposedly) gained from the first 3 weeks of our TESL
technical training during PST. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">These past 3 weeks we have covered topics like:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-Learning styles</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-Teaching listening and listening activities</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-Teaching speaking</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-Teaching vocabulary</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-Critical thinking</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-School accreditation </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-Classroom management</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-Decoding: Learning to read</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-Motivating students to learn</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-Comprehending: Reading to learn</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-Classroom assessments and tools</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-Teaching young learners</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-Beginning writing and paragraph writing</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-Teaching grammar and functional approaches</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-etc…</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">TESL training was nonstop for 3 weeks, yet I feel as if I
didn’t learn anything new. And that really worries me. As a relatively new
teacher I was hoping the sessions would provide me with useful and appropriate
teaching theories and practices that I could try out during model school and
then hopefully apply to my classroom on Ettal. However, much of what the
training staff has “taught” us is common sense and not in the least bit
enlightening. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On top of that, there were other issues that inhibited
learning. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The sessions tended to be rushed and we rarely had time to
debrief, discuss, or have our questions answered. I understand there was a lot
to cover in the first 3 weeks, but that’s no reason to stop us in the middle of
an activity or cut our lesson planning session (one of the more important
sessions, in my opinion) down so we make it to lunch on time. If the sessions
actually started on time and were paced appropriately (maybe have us do 1-2
group work activities per session instead of 5) I believe we would have gotten
much more information from them. We would also have had opportunities to
regroup and discuss any issues we struggle with or foresee struggling with in
the classroom. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The presenters did not model good classroom management or
teaching techniques. Many presenters had difficulty being engaging and
providing us with clear directions when it came to individual or group work. It
was blatantly obvious and, I’m sure, made many people think the session was a
joke, which is really unfortunate. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The HCTs were and continue to be apathetic. A good number of
the HCTs are required to come to the sessions and teach in model school either
to earn credit for their teaching degree or because they’re getting paid to do
so. To each his own, but really?! I can see the boredom on their faces, hear
the sarcastic comments under their breath, and notice that they don’t have
anything to contribute to lesson planning! The partnering between PCTs and HCTs
was created to encourage the sharing of knowledge and experimentation in model
school, and ultimately to plant the roots for sustainable development. But
that’s definitely not happening when the PCTs are doing most of the work. It’s
also incredibly discouraging for us to see the HCTs’ apathy.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In no way am I trying to be a Debbie Downer. I’m just trying
to be as honest (yet respectful) as possible. There is very little public
literature about whether or not Peace Corps trainings (Pre-Service Training,
In-Service Training, and Mid-Service Training) are beneficial to Volunteers’
actual service. In theory they should be beneficial, but it’s hard to tell when
Volunteers don’t actively record and reflect on it. So that’s what I’m trying
to do here. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Do I feel like the 3 weeks of TESL training prepared me for
Model School on Monday? Nope. But I’m predicting a lot of my Peace Corps
experience will be jumping into things not really knowing what’s going on and
doing my best. So I guess I need to get use to trial and error.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Did TESL training reinforce any ideas I had about teaching?
Yes. Teaching is incredibly difficult and requires a lot of preparation. But
when you see a light bulb go on in a student’s head, it’s all worth it.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Did I learn anything new during the TESL training? Sure. I
learned some new songs and activities to refocus my student’s attention. But
the most important thing I learned what the type of teacher I <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">don’t</i> want to be.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Do I foresee using anything from TESL training in my
classroom in Ettal? It’s hard to say. Hopefully the “keep-at-it-Rachel!”
reminders I tell myself when things aren’t going so smoothly (like when my HCT
doesn’t say a word to me during lesson planning) will come in handy in Ettal.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’ll let you know how Monday and the rest of Model school
goes. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Stay well, </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rachel<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">P.S. The TESL training content was created by the Peace
Corps department in Washington D.C., so I do acknowledge that the
Micronesia/Palau training staff had little say in the materials they presented.
I do believe, however, that the manner in which they presented it could have
been more engaging and time efficient.</span></div>
Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-87480831969590482312015-07-04T23:41:00.001-07:002015-07-04T23:43:49.772-07:00PST Pictures <div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I apologize for slacking on uploading pictures. I’ll admit
I’m really lazy and hate waiting for them to upload on the slow wifi. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here are a few pictures from the first 4 weeks of PST:</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My host sister Emmy and my host nephew Estion (wearing my
Chacos)</span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My host niece Natrine looking at some of the awesome notes
my friends and family wrote me (she loved the design of yours, Pam!!)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The itsy bitsy gato I found on our front porch when I came
home from PST one day!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Swollen hands </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Some M81s and I at Cocos before 4<sup>th</sup> of July
celebrations in Kolonia. From L to R: Laurel, Dana, Lorena, Marisa, me, and
Sana. </span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Puppy Pancake and I!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Dana and I during our Water Safety Day</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was a prune by the end of the day, but loved every second of it!</span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Some M81s and I at the waterfall by PATS during our first
weekend of PSTs</span></div>
<br />Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-80561680961620338762015-07-04T23:16:00.002-07:002015-07-04T23:16:54.802-07:00Slip. Laugh. Get naked.<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of the things I am most proud of is my ability to laugh
at myself even when things aren’t going so well. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Take this past Wednesday morning for example.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I woke up in a pretty bad mood. I had gotten little sleep
due to a bug bite on my palm that was exceptionally itchy and at times painful.
When I looked at my hand the next morning, I found the bug bite had caused my
hand to swell and become a worrisome red. Cool. The swelling would go down
eventually and for the meantime I’d just have to deal. I laughed and
congratulated myself on my first Peace Corps medical issue, and what a lame one
it was at that.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I then decided not to wash my hair or shave my armpits
because my hand was so uncomfortable (and honestly because I just wasn’t in the
mood) and I laughed that I was no longer the Rachel back home who could not
leave the house without her hair washed or her armpits shaved. It helps not
having mirrors around.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After my short body shower and dressing myself, I walked
into the living room and sat down to flies swarming my breakfast. I laughed a
few minutes later when I realized I didn’t even hesitate to eat the food. Sanitary,
I know. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Walking to school I got caught in the rain and slipped twice
on the wet ground. I did that awkward catch-myself-then-look-around-to-see-if-anyone-saw
movement and had to laugh when I realized people definitely saw me. I’m making
such a great impression here.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And when I was maybe 3 yards away from our training
classroom, I stepped into a giant puddle of mud. I was SO CLOSE to making it
all the way, free from dirt and mud! I laughed that I’ll know when I’m completely
assimilated when I can walk anywhere in sandals and keep my feet perfectly
clean, just like the locals do. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">While any of those things could have ruined my day, I tried not
to take them too seriously. That may be because I subconsciously know this lifestyle
is only temporary. It may be because I’ve stopped caring. But I prefer to think
it’s because I’ve come to the realization that there are far worse things to
fret over than dirty feet. Then again, that could just be the optimistic PCT
side talking. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Whatever the reason may be, I’m glad I’m laughing and not
freaking out (for the most part).</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Laughter and making light of situations is something that
I’m not only using as a coping mechanism, but that other PCTs are using as
well. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">During our language session that same Wednesday afternoon,
one of my fellow PCTs told us about an awkward interaction she had had with her
host family the night before. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hoping to practice her Mortlockese, she used the Mortlockese
word for “thank you”, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">killisou </i>(key-lee-so),
when her host dad gave her some bottled water. The host dad became very quiet
and looked at her questioningly. She noticed the rest of her host family had
fallen silent and she wondered what she had done wrong. Apparently she had
mispronounced <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">killisou</i> and ended up
saying <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">kilisou</i>, which is a Pohnpeian
word for “naked.” Her host family is Pohnpeian, so they didn’t know she was
trying to say “thank you” in Mortlockese at first. Talk about awkward. She said
the whole family was still laughing and joking about the incident the next
morning at breakfast.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rather than getting upset or frustrated with her
pronunciation mistake, she laughed about it and recounted the story to us so we
could all laugh with her. I think I speak for the rest of the PCTs when I say
laughter is a great coping mechanism.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As I’ve mentioned in previous blog entries, I have yet to
reach the most challenging parts of my service, but I hope I can keep laughing
at myself even when those times come.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Enjoy your clean feet,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rachel </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">P.S. My hand continued swelling throughout Wednesday and
Thursday, causing me to contact the PCMO (Peace Corps Medical Officer). I took ibuprofen
and used a hot compress to help reduce the swelling, but it took a few days for
my hand to return to its normal color and size. Still not sure what caused it—I
don’t think a bug bite would continue spreading like that after the first day… </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">P.S.S. If you’ve stayed updated with me though Facebook, you
probably know that my permanent site will be on Ettal Atoll in the Mortlocks of
Chuuk, so I’m also learning Mortlockese along with the PCT I mentioned! There
are 6 of us going to the Mortlocks, 2 going to Chuuk Lagoon, 3 going to Yap
main island, 3 going to Kosrae, and 4 staying on Pohnpei. Since the languages
are different in every state, and sometimes even from island to island, we’ve
been separated into groups for our language classes. We move to our permanent
sites and in with our permanent host families mid August of this year. </span></div>
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Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-6133623569581784742015-06-27T23:39:00.003-07:002015-06-27T23:39:55.234-07:00Let me be honest. <div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">PST (Pre-Service Training) is getting boring and I’m getting
homesick. It’s not a great combo. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Monday through Friday, from 8:30am to 5:00pm, we PCTs (Peace
Corps Trainees) sit through training at PATS (Pohnpei Agriculture and Trade School).
We are presented with topics ranging from medical issues (like acute diarrhea)
to safety and security to TESL training to culture shock to accomplishing Peace
Corps’ 3 goals to language training to anything else the Peace Corps thinks we
need to know. The topics are presented in 2 to 3-hour blocks, and our language
training is usually a 4-hour block in the afternoon following lunch. It’s a lot
to take in. And if the material is dull or the presenter isn’t engaging, the
days drag on. It’s actually been happening a lot lately.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To top it off, Romy’s 18<sup>th</sup> birthday was this past
Wednesday, and not being with her to celebrate broke my heart. I was able to
talk to her on Friday and wish her a happy birthday, but I still felt an
immense amount of guilt for not being there. (If you’re reading this and see
her within the next few days, please give her a humongous hug for me!) I’ve
cried numerous times in front of my friend and fellow PCT, Lisa, about missing
Romy and the rest of my family and friends and I’m not in the least bit
ashamed. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’m lucky to have such a special relationship with everyone
back home and am equally fortunate to have the means to express my feelings as
a PCT/PCT through this blog. I believe it’s important to voice my emotions as
I’m feeling them not only for my benefit, but also for those interested in
and/or curious what they might experience if they’re thinking about joining the
Peace Corps. The more awareness, the better. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So yes, let me be honest. This week sucked. And I haven’t
even started the hardest part of my service yet. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But that’s okay. Through reflection I’ve found what’s really
bothering me about PST and how I can manage my bouts of homesickness. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of the reoccurring messages throughout the PST sessions
has been the importance of classroom management. We are constantly being told
that classroom management will either make or break our teaching experiences.
We can be presenting interesting material to our students, but if we don’t have
any sort of control over our classroom, it will be extremely hard to be
successful. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And I can see what they’re telling us is true, just from our
PST sessions. Some PST presenters are confident, they establish ground rules,
they know how to provide useful information, and they ultimately accomplish
their intent for the session. Those are the types of “teachers” I admire and
hope to be like (I put “teachers” in quotation marks because I believe that
even those who are not technically teachers, still have so much to teach us).
Unfortunately, other presenters are less successful because they lack the
confidence needed to command their audience, they never set up ground rules,
and they are unable to present their information in an engaging manner. I find
it interesting that the Peace Corps is modeling bad classroom management for
that matter. Yes, some of the PST presenters may have little to no training in
classroom management or presentation skills, but I cannot help to find that
problematic. Shouldn’t the Peace Corps be exemplifying good teaching practices
to us during this integral training period? </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rather than dedicating my energy towards that issue, I need
to redirect it towards learning from the experiences. There is, after all, much
to learn, even from those who do not demonstrate classroom management.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Likewise, rather than being distressed by missing out on
things occurring back home, I need to allow myself a few minutes to be
homesick, then refocus on why I’m here in Micronesia. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Training days are long, presenters and their material can be
boring, and I often think about how much easier it would be to be back home.
But it honestly could be worse. I’m fortunate to have many small victories so
far.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I eat pancakes with peanut butter and coffee every morning.
I have supportive teammates and staff. I know how to take a bucket shower. I’m
slowly conquering my fear of spiders. I taught my host family how to play Uno.
I eat entirely with my hands. I lay on the living room floor for hours with my
host family. I taught my Pahpa Pancake how to open a bottle of wine. I dance
almost every day. I’m teaching my host sisters and nieces English and Spanish,
little by little. I’ve bonded with my host sister over boy problems. I had ice
cream for the first time in a month.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But by far the most beautiful moment I’ve experienced was
when I had 3 young host family members all reading out loud in English together
in my room. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And I’ll be very honest about how awesome fostering literacy
felt. That’s why I’m here. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Stay well, </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rachel </span></div>
Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-41286795725654112382015-06-24T23:14:00.002-07:002015-06-24T23:14:31.615-07:00Fashion Faux Pas<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As most of you know, I appreciate fashion and try to look as
put together as possible whenever I go out in public. At home in California,
looking nice was easy when I had mirrors and washers and dryers and many
clothing options. In Pohnpei, it’s another story. For one, I only brought 9
shirts, 3 skirts, and 2 dresses with me, so my options are limited. Secondly,
the humidity makes me sweat constantly and turns my hair into a frizz ball. And
thirdly, I’ve had to hand wash all my clothing, so I often re-wear clothing to
extend the time between my washes (don’t judge, it’s a lot of work to hand
wash!) To prevent myself from getting bored of my clothing options and to make
it less obvious that I’ve been wearing the same shirts and skirts for weeks
now, I try to mix and match my outfits as often as possible. It’s definitely
not how I’d prefer to be dressing and to be looking, but I’d say I’ve been
doing a pretty good job so far.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The fashion in Micronesia is relatively simple, and quite
comfy in my opinion. Women typically wear embroidered skirts that cover their
knees and shirts that cover their shoulders. Sometimes they match, sometimes
they don’t. On Sundays at church, you’ll usually see women wearing mumus, which
are knee-length dresses that have very little shape to them. Not so cute, but
very comfy and airy. Women’s hair is often in a bun, secured with a butterfly
clip or a colorful rubber band. The men are less conservative and wear shorts and
can opt out of wearing shirts if they’re not in a professional or formal setting.
Everyone wears flip-flops and goes barefoot in the classroom and around the
house.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The other morning as I was getting ready for PST, I put on a
skirt that my host family gave me the first night I moved in with them. The
skirt is pink with darker pink flowers and green leaves on it, and has a light
blue stripe running around the bottom of the skirt. Back home in California I
would never wear pink, but my Pancake family’s gesture was so kind, I sucked it
up. Plus, the skirt is really unique, and I kinda dig it. Anyway, I paired a
blue shirt with it to match the blue on the skirt. That’s about as match-y as I
could get (like I said, I don’t usually wear pink and therefore didn’t bring
any pink shirts to pair with it). I thought I looked pretty fashionable by
Pohnpeian standards (that’s not to say their standards are lower—just different
from what I’m use to!), but apparently not.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I walked out of my room and my Nohno Pancake quickly called
me into another room where she and my host sister were going through piles of
clothing. “Mom wants you to wear this,” my host sister Emmy said as she passed
me a different purple skirt. “Wait, am I not suppose to wear this skirt more
than once?” I asked. I had worn the pink skirt to church the Sunday before and
was under the impression I could reuse skirts since they barely show any dirt.
“Just wear this,” Emmy told me. “Okay, thank you…I have the blue dress you lent
me too! Let me go get it,” I responded. When I brought the blue dress back to
them, my Nohno Pancake said “No, that’s for you! Keep it.” I tried arguing that
it was theirs and I couldn’t take it, but they insisted. I then told them I’d
return the purple skirt to them once I had worn it and washed it, but they told
me to keep that one too. 2 new skirts and 1 new dress in 5 days?! They really
shouldn’t have. It was extremely generous of them, considering how expensive
those skirts and dresses can be. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After thanking, I put on the purple skirt and walked back
into the living room. My whole Pancake family stared at me. I knew that
expression too. It’s the one my little sister, Romy, gives me back home when
she doesn’t like what I’m wearing. “Do you have another shirt? An orange one or
a green one?” The stitching on the purple skirt is orange and green, but the
only clean shirts I had left were the blue one I was wearing and another teal
one in my suitcase. “Let me go see what I can find,” I murmured as I walked
back into my room for the second time to change. Just as I suspected, all of my
green shirts were dirty and I didn’t bring an orange shirt with me to
Micronesia. What to do, what to do...What the heck, let me go through my dirty
clothes pile and see if anything somewhat matched and didn’t smell disgusting.
I found a pinky-purple shirt, sniffed it, and decided it was my only option. I
put it on and walked back outside. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“Mwowwwww!” my Pancake family exclaimed all together. Back
home I would have never worn purple on purple. But I am glad my host family is
looking out for me and making sure I don’t look completely American every time
I leave their house.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Show some shoulder and thigh for me, </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rachel </span></div>
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Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-85299277663254473942015-06-21T14:22:00.002-07:002015-06-21T14:22:44.169-07:00Nohno Pancake<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On Saturday, June 20<sup>th</sup>, the other M81s and I
moved in with our host families for Pre-Service Training (PST). We were all
quite nervous that morning as we waited for our families to come pick us up
from PATS. What if they didn’t like us? Would they teach us how to take a
bucket shower? Will they show us how to properly hand wash our laundry? Will
there be kids? What happens if we can’t understand each other? There were so
many questions running through our heads, but the Peace Corps staff reminded us
it was okay to be anxious. Once all of the families arrived at PATS, we did a
quick “speed dating” round (or as one Trainee jokingly called it “speed
adopting”), where the Trainees and the families received clues about each other
and then had to go around and find their match. Talk about awkward first
interactions. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My clues were:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Father
is the Deacan in the Catholic Church</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Mother
is a good pancake maker.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Family
has hosted a Trainee in the past.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Armed with the 3 clues about my host family, I took a deep
breath and sat down in front of the first host family. In broken Pohnpeian and
English, I made my way through 2 more families before I finally found mine.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“Are you good at making pancakes?” I asked a woman I
recognized as part of the PATS kitchen staff. All I got was a confused look. A
man in his 30s sitting next to her leaned forward and read the paper with the 3
clues written on it. “The Deacan is my Dad…” and then he took out the sheet he
had been given about the Trainee that would be staying with him. He handed it
to me. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It read:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .75in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Has
a B.A. in Literatures and Cultures</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .75in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Studied
Spanish</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .75in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Enjoys
reading, writing, and doing arts and crafts.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bingo. “That’s me!” I told them. The woman stood up from her
chair and leaned across the table to give me a giant hug. What a relief. I was
under the impression hugs were uncommon in the culture, especially during first
meetings. She introduced herself as Nohno Maria. Her son, Hurston, the man
sitting next to her, quickly said, “You can call her Nohno Pancake.” Little did
I know that that was the beginning of many more pancake jokes to come. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Fast forward to when we made it back to my host family’s
house (a 5 minute walk from PATS...holla!). I met Hurston’s wife, their two
daughters (Lilirose, 7 and Janerose 8), his nephew they were taking care of
(Estion 1), and some random people in the backyard (not that many people for a typical
Pohnpeian family actually). My Nohno Pancake then told me about her husband who
was in Kolonia for a meeting and who would be home later in the afternoon.
“When you see him, you should say, ‘Kasalehlie Pahpa Pancake!’” she laughed. I
thought she was joking. Turns out she wasn’t. When I greeted him with a polite
“Kasalehlie mang” a few hours later, she glared (okay, more like sternly
looked) at me until I finally gave in and said “Kasalehlie Pahpa Pancake.” He
and the whole family laughed. Thank goodness.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My Nohno and Pahpa Pancake then took me to a funeral
anniversary* that evening and relayed the story, I kid you not, at least 10
times about how they got their new names. Everyone laughed, including my Nohno
and Pahpa each time, which made me feel part of the family and eased many of my
fears about integrating. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hurston’s eldest daughter, Janerose, especially liked asking
me what my name was. I’d respond with “Etay Rachel” at first, but she wasn’t
satisfied. She’d ask me for my name again. I would say, “Etay Rachel…Pancake,”
when I finally caught on. She then began asking for my parent’s, sister’s, and
grandparent’s names, and I’d make her giggle for minutes on end by tacking on
“Pancake” to each one of them. So just a heads up Mom, Dad, and Romy. Your new
names are: Rosanna Pancake, Peter Pancake, and Romy Pancake. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Later that night, as the whole family and I were sitting on
the living room floor, I mentioned that I thought their puppy was adorable.
“Puppy?” Nohno Pancake asked. “Puppy, like….kitti, but smaller,” I tried
explaining. “You can name it,” she said. “Wait, really?” I asked. She laughed,
“Puppy. Puppy Pancake will be its name.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Guys, I accidentally named my first dog. And by the time I
leave Pohnpei in August, everything will be named Pancake. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Koaros pancakes,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rachel</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">P.S. We had delicious pancakes and coffee the next morning.
Nohno Pancake’s clue indeed proved to be true. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rachel Brenner</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">*One year funeral anniversaries are important in Pohnpeian
culture, and I’m really fortunate to have gotten to go to one my first night
with my host family. Since my Pahpa Pancake is a Deacan he led a short mass,
which was followed by dinner and Sakau making. There were probably 30-40 people
of all ages at the anniversary and I had the best time observing their
interactions. During PST the Peace Corps staff had made it sound uncommon for
men and women to interact for more than a few minutes, but there was a decent amount of mingling from what I
saw. That could be because it was mostly family and friends, but regardless I
was pleasantly surprised. The Sakau pounding was mesmerizing to watch, and
tasted much better than the other times I tried it. In typical Pohnpeian
fashion it started pouring, but nothing could have ruined my night. I not only
felt incredibly honored to be there, but I also finally grasped how integral
community is in Pohnpei.</span></div>
Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-5276248753317766512015-06-17T17:49:00.000-07:002015-06-17T17:49:51.628-07:00When life gives you coconuts...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-39630414197906073592015-06-17T17:41:00.002-07:002015-06-17T17:42:30.543-07:00Quick update before the wifi goes out.<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm alive. I'm well. My bug bites are greatly improving. I'm pooping normally. I'm feeding myself. I've danced in the rain. I've played volleyball in the rain. I played soccer in a maxi dress and scored a goal. I got my first letter (thank you Anthony!). I've finished 3 books already. I do 6am yoga. My body is slowly getting use to the heat. I have supportive teammates. We find out site placements today. I can't complain.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Love you all.</span>Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-21525448787663076242015-06-08T12:59:00.001-07:002015-06-08T12:59:12.931-07:00Pic Post<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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one of the many geckos in our room</div>
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the church at PATS, our training site </div>
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the view from our dorms...never gets old!</div>
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we try to read under this tree as often as possible</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgovYWgdzie5znmQapspDWOqAUdBy7d2Tt7_LgbQFcSTh6X9brVH7QTUfYtpi5nUcc4ZXOA2VS4hSwQJJdCRCaFzTgAvRqG5NKcr2epwsOu9jRUZKagrJy-s7xz5S6fycw2LVcbZan3xXqf/s1600/G0080370.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgovYWgdzie5znmQapspDWOqAUdBy7d2Tt7_LgbQFcSTh6X9brVH7QTUfYtpi5nUcc4ZXOA2VS4hSwQJJdCRCaFzTgAvRqG5NKcr2epwsOu9jRUZKagrJy-s7xz5S6fycw2LVcbZan3xXqf/s320/G0080370.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-32577385061776176542015-06-07T23:19:00.002-07:002015-06-07T23:19:30.616-07:00Volleyball in the rain<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We are so spoiled in America whenever it rains. The second
the skies turn grey and it begins to sprinkle, we grab our raincoats and rain
boots and find shelter somewhere warm. We’ll call in sick from work or complain
that we’d rather be curled up in bed reading a book. And it’s a bit ironic that
we hide from the rain when we so dearly need it (at least in California). </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Since being in Pohnpei, I’ve gotten caught in numerous
rainstorms that come out of nowhere. I’ve come to gladly greet the rain,
understanding its importance to the ecosystems on the island, and have tried
not to worry about getting drenched. It’s bound to happen anyway. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As some Trainees and I were returning from a trip to a
nearby waterfall earlier today, we passed by a basketball/volleyball court
(I’ll explain) where a handful of neighborhood kids were playing. We had
discovered the kids’ love for basketball yesterday when they kindly invited a
few of the guys from our group to play with them. Fun fact: Pohnepians play
barefoot! The guys who had been invited to join tried going barefoot, but ended
up with gnarly blood blisters and torn feet by the end of the afternoon. Today,
they came prepared to play with their tennis shoes on, and we joked that while
it’s usually jerseys vs. skins, in Pohnpei it’s shoes vs. bare feet. While
those guys were playing basketball on one side of the court, there was also a
volleyball game going on midcourt (the volleyball net in the middle of the
court could not be moved, so everyone was making do). When some of the kids saw
us walking back from the waterfall, they invited us girls to join their game.
We happily accepted, hoping for a similar bonding experience with the local
Pohnpeians that the guys from our group had had yesterday playing basketball. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Let me just say this. The kids were badass volleyball
players. Especially this little girl… who may have been 7 or 8? She came up to
my waist, but would send the ball flying and leave us standing there in shock
wondering where all that power came from. They put us Trainees to shame. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">They also seemed very mature for their age. They’d say
things like “Do you want to serve?” “No, no, it’s the other teams ball,” and
“good teamwork!” Say what?! I don’t think I know any kid back home who shares
that well and is so willing to play with someone much, much older than them! </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On top of that, one of the girls on our team started
giggling and dancing with another Trainee and I whenever we scored a point. I
said it…dancing!! What 14 year old do you know that dances goofy with 20
something year olds that they just met?! Regardless, it put the biggest smiles
on our faces and warmed our hearts. These kids were awesome. We suddenly
understood what the guys were raving about after their basketball game yesterday.
It didn’t matter that we came from different cultures, that we looked
completely different, and spoke different languages. We were all having fun at
the same time, and that is one of the greatest bonding opportunities there is.
Well, until it rains. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Then it becomes even better. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The rain quickly turned from a light sprinkle to a heavy
downpour as we were on the volleyball court, probably on our 4<sup>th</sup> or
5<sup>th</sup> game. One of the Pohnpeian girls on our team looked at another
Trainee and I and asked, “Do you still want to play in the rain?” We responded
that we’d still love to play and you could tell she was thrilled. We continued
playing in the rain for quite some time, laughing, dancing, and forgetting
cultural differences. We were all drenched by the end of it, but ask any of us
where we’ll be tomorrow afternoon, and we’ll say on the volleyball court,
playing with the locals and hoping it rains. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Screw umbrellas, </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rachel </span></div>
Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-89254413705438721742015-06-07T23:18:00.001-07:002015-06-07T23:19:55.987-07:00Don't look up.<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I remember reading one Micronesian Volunteer’s blog some
months ago and her writing that it’s best not to look up when you’re in the
bathroom or in the bedroom. Why? So you don’t see all the insects crawling
above your head, of course! And boy is that true.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Around 4am last night, I woke with a dying urge to pee. I
lay in my bed weighing the pros and cons for a few minutes of leaving my
mosquito-free room, but eventually came to the conclusion that I’d rather face
the unknown of the dark bathroom rather than deal with a UTI for the next few
days. I grabbed my headlamp, took a breath, and quickly walked outside and into
the bathroom a few doors down (we’re staying in dorms for the first two weeks
of training, and even though my room is closest to the bathroom, I still feel
accomplished every time I venture in there at night). As I was doing my
business I made the mistake of looking up and shinning my headlamp on a spider
two inches from my face. Lovely. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You think I would have learned my lesson after that, but I
guess not. As I was getting ready to turn the water on for my shower this
morning (yes, we’re fortunate enough to have over-head showers at the dorms!) I
saw something move near the showerhead. And you know what I did? I looked up.
And there, gazing at me was another lovely spider. This time bigger and much
less friendly looking. Luckily there was another shower available, spider-free,
but let’s just say that was the quickest shower of my life. My roommate Lisa
even noted my speed when I returned to our room. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Later at breakfast another Trainee mentioned that they saw a
giant crab in the shower as well. I’d take a crab over a spider any day. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I hope you all are enjoying your clean, animal-free
bathrooms back home. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rachel<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-51422049861104980432015-06-07T23:17:00.001-07:002015-06-08T12:49:17.608-07:00Broken strap, swollen feet, and a whole lotta love. <div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I don’t think I realized how difficult it is to keep up a
blog when faced with jet lag, slow wifi, and experiences that need to be
experienced rather than explained. But please bear with me as I attempt to
capture all of these past few day’s activities in this post. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqTiLhskVG7TSrbZH-5dWJ6C4MEEFl0SXof0U1bVr-YYMiZpWfBZUvBt8c7ejI_eQSOghIDfHkcvsyp-J8AOfdPFo33WbNAFWfnveh3PsyeGDLpasSnmMit8wjRawAx6t_s1xScSIp2Khq/s1600/11377381_552613508210688_6414849872203416118_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqTiLhskVG7TSrbZH-5dWJ6C4MEEFl0SXof0U1bVr-YYMiZpWfBZUvBt8c7ejI_eQSOghIDfHkcvsyp-J8AOfdPFo33WbNAFWfnveh3PsyeGDLpasSnmMit8wjRawAx6t_s1xScSIp2Khq/s320/11377381_552613508210688_6414849872203416118_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
M81s at Staging in Honolulu 6/2/15</div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After meeting in the hotel lobby in Honolulu Wednesday
morning, we (a tired, yet eager group of 19) took a bus to the Honolulu Airport
to catch our 7:30am Island Hopper. As we were walking to check our luggage, I
heard a snap and my laptop case that I was carrying fell the floor. I looked
down to see that the shoulder strap had separated from its clasp and there
would be no way I could use the strap again. Lisa, another Trainee in our group
who I had also been roommates with in Honolulu, quickly came to my aid and
handed me a roll of duck tape. With two strips I was able to repair my broken
strap, while giving my laptop bag some character. It’s amazing what duck tape
can do.</span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBF55nIaSy1gN29DpHS2opKyCHqLoJWq4T9IQ8cwN7I-rwu-EGmEjpfyt_nzWv9nJ40_6jSuvDl05SMY1kPguMJ4f2k709r3Ga2CjsJEUn2KzO1szIHtwaO2R9dRZvNYRNsifvtLQGTMat/s1600/DSCN5200.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBF55nIaSy1gN29DpHS2opKyCHqLoJWq4T9IQ8cwN7I-rwu-EGmEjpfyt_nzWv9nJ40_6jSuvDl05SMY1kPguMJ4f2k709r3Ga2CjsJEUn2KzO1szIHtwaO2R9dRZvNYRNsifvtLQGTMat/s320/DSCN5200.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Since we were such a large group it took a while for us to
check our baggage and go through security. But, we finally all made it through
and boarded the plane that would take us from Honolulu to the Marshall Islands
of Marjuro and Kwajelein then finally to Pohnpei.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Flying over miles and miles of ocean and then seeing these
islands come out of nowhere was the most insane yet beautiful thing I had ever
seen. It made absolutely no sense that there should be life in the middle of
such an extensive ocean, but there the islands were, beautiful and flourishing.
Definitely post-card worthy, but unfortunately I didn’t snap any photos. I was
sitting next to two Micronesian women on the plane and didn’t want to seem like
“that American.” </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After the 9 ½ hour flight, security checks at each island,
and almost-lost luggage at the Pohnpeian baggage claim, we made it to our
destination. We were greeted by Peace Corps staff at the airport and were each
given flower crowns. The welcome made the heat and humidity much more bearable.
We were then taken to a hotel in town where we would be staying for a few days
until we moved to our training site. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN5W0JYCI2c1sawtUKM9LlMVZlqNZBph_7Se8kmaC0juheHSLN4xyLFIMrKW0geRFh8isYr8ij8837QdQ0HU9DM42VpsL7DuX9bFYJMFlXYGYBqFXP72BI_THdXApJJu_sXharJzzzuqBL/s1600/DSCN5185.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN5W0JYCI2c1sawtUKM9LlMVZlqNZBph_7Se8kmaC0juheHSLN4xyLFIMrKW0geRFh8isYr8ij8837QdQ0HU9DM42VpsL7DuX9bFYJMFlXYGYBqFXP72BI_THdXApJJu_sXharJzzzuqBL/s320/DSCN5185.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Lisa- my awesome roommate and fellow Trainee! </div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMk6a1SZS1fB1fLwq5mjRsWa6_r3JIvKs14aes7oy2aFBA8u5FCrqwuYKBike1BdUJMcHLLtIqX7ofSM9cokHjLKNq9_tEODQq3_x_BinuXwkh1oI_Rv_C4td-ScYIxHhensL_kiEE95GU/s1600/DSCN5186.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMk6a1SZS1fB1fLwq5mjRsWa6_r3JIvKs14aes7oy2aFBA8u5FCrqwuYKBike1BdUJMcHLLtIqX7ofSM9cokHjLKNq9_tEODQq3_x_BinuXwkh1oI_Rv_C4td-ScYIxHhensL_kiEE95GU/s320/DSCN5186.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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Bananas and water from the hotel</div>
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<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAsUObSEH78vs0JUc1GNwwAdP6doj4r2YQ-WM7VousiHaYzuXS5lz99iPoHLSAnBr4FOzOATMJM_zhphA1M5P623rydxAmzRiakauGKGJkP888-zRvFH3mCv7DxBxEX5Kdg9ge4ikOU7dR/s1600/DSCN5190.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAsUObSEH78vs0JUc1GNwwAdP6doj4r2YQ-WM7VousiHaYzuXS5lz99iPoHLSAnBr4FOzOATMJM_zhphA1M5P623rydxAmzRiakauGKGJkP888-zRvFH3mCv7DxBxEX5Kdg9ge4ikOU7dR/s320/DSCN5190.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Flower crowns from PC staff</div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsXGIe_D7nCLR8sA5hYrTJg5eK3Ax-4r3y5fzqy4s6Ng8EtiqO2lIPZIelMejFCPiP8ckAk3QFhtb5BIHmB70PEh3Nz6v5hLSIpDLKt9kkj6pg6X7APPWXObks7qfrtqgDD4qbWT7cb1Ak/s1600/DSCN5192.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsXGIe_D7nCLR8sA5hYrTJg5eK3Ax-4r3y5fzqy4s6Ng8EtiqO2lIPZIelMejFCPiP8ckAk3QFhtb5BIHmB70PEh3Nz6v5hLSIpDLKt9kkj6pg6X7APPWXObks7qfrtqgDD4qbWT7cb1Ak/s320/DSCN5192.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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The view from our hotel balcony</div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Coming from a culture where both men and women are
encouraged to care for themselves, many Trainees and I began bringing our
luggage to our rooms upstairs when we arrived at the hotel. We were quickly
told to put our bags down and let the hotel staff do the heavy lifting. I felt
awful letting 4 men carry around 80 pieces of luggage up the stairs by
themselves while we all watched. But even when we tried to help with the
lighter bags, we were told once again to put them down. It was very kind of
them, but it reminded me that were going to be many cultural changes ahead. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Once we settled into our rooms we were invited to a welcome
dinner hosted by Peace Corps staff. After introductions, we all ate together
and enjoyed a wide variety of foods local to Pohnpei: breadfruit, sashimi,
pork, chicken, crab, and others I honestly don’t remember (thank you jetlag). The
Trainees then introduced themselves and told the staff what state they were
coming from. There are only 2 other Trainees aside from myself that are from
California, which really surprises me. The majority of the Trainees are from
the East Coast. Everyone is so unique and has a plethora of experiences they
bring to the table. The majority of us are in our early to mid 20s. Most of us
have studied abroad, or at least traveled outside of the U.S. Crazy to think
we’re all so different, yet similar at the same time to bring us all to join
the Peace Corps. It’s great that we’re able to project a diverse image of
America. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After dinner I noticed that my feet and ankles were swollen
to almost twice their size, so I sat with my feet on my suitcase for a couple
of hours before heading to bed. They were still swollen in the morning, but
luckily my Chacos have adjustable straps so I was able to loosen them before we
headed out into town for our first day of Pre-Service Training (PST—Peace Corps
loves acronyms). It reminded me of my first few weeks studying abroad in Italy
when my feet were equally as swollen and uncomfortable to walk on. I thought it
was due to walking on cobblestone, but I’m now thinking it has more to do with
altitude and temperature changes when traveling from one place to another (did
I mention Micronesia is incredibly hot and humid?). </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">From when we arrived to when we left Kolonia, the Pohnpeians
we met were all incredibly warm and welcoming. Not only our staff, but people
we came into contact while walking through town. Some would go out of their way
to say “hi” to us and one man even stopped his car to let us cross the street
and called out the window: “Welcome to Pohnpei!” From what we noticed so far,
the women seem demure but seem to have this loving aura around them. We’re
obviously still learning and observing the culture, but so far we’ve really
enjoyed and appreciated the hospitality the Pohnpeians have given us.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’m thankful not only for their hospitality and kindness,
but also the opportunity to return such things to them. My fellow trainees are
just as awesome, supporting each other as we try to integrate into this new
culture and environment, and I hope I can be just as supportive as they are to
me. I know these next 27 months are going to be challenging, but I can’t wait
to see what’s in store. I love it so far.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sending all my love, </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rachel </span></div>
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Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2464739125816517878.post-50718236779151910822015-06-02T20:43:00.002-07:002015-06-02T20:44:17.097-07:00Aloha<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After sitting inside during Staging all day, I decided to take a dip in our hotel pool. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Tomorrow we board a 7am Island Hopper to Micronesia! We should arrive around 2pm Thursday, June 4th (Micronesian time). Until then, I'm going to go enjoy all the hot showers, wifi, electricity, and comfy beds that I can. Oh, and Starbucks. There's conveniently one right across the street from our hotel. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Stay well, </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rachel </span></div>
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Rachel Brennerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07998505712891753171noreply@blogger.com0