Back from the Bush

Site visit has been defined by current volunteers as: the best most awkward time of your life, and I think I have to agree. It all started with ten hours of silence next to my counterpart on the way there. During the visit, I got to see the school, meet most of the board, some of the other teachers, and the village authorities. Aside from that and visiting my house, I spent most of my time "integrating". A word here which means stumbling through the various greetings, being laughed and stared at, and eating more than a hobbit. I know there are starving people in Africa, but not in Guinea. Malnourished yes, because their diet consists of starches, oil, and sugar, but not starving. I was really impressed with my soon-to-be house. I have a REAL toilet (seat included) and even a contraption which should allow me to take a shower rather than a bucket bath. If there's one thing to complain about it's that I don't have anywhere to hang my hammock.
The journey to site was quite crazy and it is impossible to do it justice. While I was lucky enough to be in a PC bus for the first six hours, there were some major shocks for the remaining 4-5 hours. The second taxi we took, which was as much a bush taxi as they come, had a cracked windshield that was precariously glued together. The car kept dying in the middle of the road, and everyone had to get out to push start it. During the ride, the driver was pointing and grunting at me and I finally realized that he wanted me to light him a cigarette. Amazingly, I didn't get carsick on the 20 miles of unpaved road between my village and "civilization." On the ride back down that road, the driver drove so fast over all the bumps that the key kept flying out of ignition and even the Guineans were getting sick! We had to pull over so that my neighbor could get out and vomit. I was really proud that I didn't even feel nauseated! After several bush taxi experiences, I am still not sure how they are "safter" than moto's, but I did end up arriving safely in Boke and even arrived at the Peace Corps house in the personal car of the Boke minister of education (long story). I'll spend three days here and then head back to training! The other volunteers from this region are cooking us dinner and I hear rumors that it's soup, grilled cheese sandwiches, carrot cake, and pina colada's. What more could one ask for?