Manaraka volontany – follow the color of the road

The phrase ‘Where do I begin?’ has started a lot of my thoughts, journal entries and now blog posts. I arrived in Madagascar July 22^nd (I had to look at a calendar because at this point, the minutes and the hours and the days and the weeks all run together.) I hadn’t been by a wireless connection in quite sometime. So this is the first time since I left for Mada that I have been able to contact anyone. We are in the capital today (Aug 12^th) to open a bank account, use the internet and do any shopping. I may have a lot to say. Tomorrow we leave for a week to go to our sites – ‘SITE VISIT.’ I am going to Farafangana…more info later.

The other PCVs are awesome and we all seen to get along well, because we are all like-minded individuals. There are about 41 volunteers all from around the country, for some reason a lot seen to be from Ohio and the Mid-West. Kelly and I are the only ones from Florida. No one is from Connecticut. It is interesting to meet and talk to all these people and get to know them because essentially they are going to be my colleagues and close friends while in the PC and after. Some of us are already talking about traveling Africa and going to India when we are done; but we’ll cross that bridge when we get there.

Madagascar is a beautiful country, but most of you do not know that it is also the poorest. You think it’s a tropical location with lemurs swinging through the trees; which the areas by the coast are, but what I along with most of you fail to realize is that the people here are stricken with malnutrition, disease, lack of education and most importantly non-up-to-date farming techniques. There main staple, which I have eaten three times everyday since being in Madagascar is RICE. White rice, either ‘sticky’ or in a soupy liquidy form. Breakfast, lunch and dinner all consist of a main serving of rice (vary) along with a loaka (side dish), the side dish will either be a salad of some kind, vegetable or a small small portion of meat (hena) – whether pork (henakisoa), beef (hen’omby) or chicken (hen’akoho). I told my family I love green onions (tongolo maintso) which NOW they try to incorporate in any dish they can. Not complaining.

I will translate some words as I go so I can educate you too about the Malagasy language.

My host family (which I will live with for three months) consists of two grandparents, the grandfather’s brother and the grand-daughter. The two parents (I call Mama and Dada – the Malagasy terms for Mom and Dad; easy enough) are the most welcoming people. The uncle (Dada Fara) and the grand-daughter are very friendly and welcoming as well. The day I arrive in Mantasoa, we drive up to a little school which consists of three main classrooms and families waiting outside waving. All I could see is white teeth and big eyes all awaiting our departure from cargo vans. We get out of the vans and it hits me…I’m in Madagascar and I’m ready! I have never felt so good about myself in my entire life.

The Peace Corps staff separates the health and education volunteers (21 in education and 20 in health) into two of the three classrooms. There our families are waiting to meet us and bring us to their home so we can get acquainted. We are told to stand in the front of the room (all of us are cold, wet and exhausted from traveling so much) and say hello to the families and our name – ‘Manahoana, Raffaele no anarako.’ Then the family that I am assigned to jumps up and starts clapping. I walk over to them and they give me the biggest hug and kiss on the cheek. While sitting next to them the mother is constantly holding my hands in efforts to warm them. I think to myself, ‘This is going to be the best experience of my life.’

We take the cargo van ride back to my host families’ house. Unload our belongings and enjoy the rest of the night in a house with a family. The mother leads me to my room, all the while holding onto my hand. She opens the door and turns on the light, the nicest room in the house. The house, mind you, is the highest house in all the village…I’m pretty sure, on top of a mountain; made of bricks, clay, branches and a tin roof. My room has hardwood floors, a bed, desk with two chairs, TV and DVD player, (which I have not turned on yet – I have better things to do then watch TV) a lounging sofa, three lounging chairs and of course a metal chest to lock up my belongings. I know, a lot of furniture but I make due. I can tell the family had to rearrange the entire house to have me there.

The water is from a well about 150 km from the house here and every morning Dada Fara has a huge pot of water on the fire for me to wash up. I use it to brush my teeth and take bucket showers. There is no running water. We wash our hands using water our of a  bucket and our clothes by hand.

The family chose to have a PCV live with them. My family was convinced to have me because the grand-daughter wanted to live with an American and learn English as well. This is the first time the family is having a Volunteer stay with them. They have electricity and a single light bulb hangs from the center of the ceiling in my room. The same in every other room in the house.

There pets include two dogs (roa alika); which go by Olphy and Oly, numerous amounts of chickens (akoho) that run throughout the yard and porch and three ducklings (telo ganakely) that are housed in a basket. The puppy Olphy hangs out by my door but does not enter. The dogs here more than likely have rabies and are not vaccinated so I wouldn’t want them in my room anyways. He watches me and follows me around…he’s cool. He has worms so hopefully I can get him deworming medication while I’m in the capital so he can get better.

Since being here I have made my own peanut butter – which the Malagasy people eat with their rice. Imagine an enormous mortar and pestle big enough for a person to operate made of wood – add about a pound of fire roasted peanuts, 5 tablespoons of sugar and 1 teaspoon of salt. Start pounding away – and in about 15 minutes and burning forearms and triceps later, you have amazing chunky peanut butter good enough to eat with a spoon. I’ve done it – it’s amazing. This is definitely something I am going to bring back with me.

I have also learned how to properly kill a live chicken; de-feather, cut up into necessary pieces and cook it. I won’t get into detail but it IS something I am going to have to do when I am on my own. And plus live chickens cost about $4 so I can’t go wrong. This too is definitely a skill I will bring to my site – maybe not back to states!

We started our language classes which at first consisted of basic survival pharses and words. Hello (Manahoana), Goodbye (Veloma), I’m tired (Reraka aho), I’m hungry (Noana aho), I want to go to bed (Te ho natory aho); those sorts of things. Enough to survive a week. After a week of being in Mantasoa we are then assigned a location somewhere else in Madagascar where we will be living for the next two years after training. I am assigned to Amporoforo, on the southeast coast about 15 km from Farafangana. This is a new site and my house there is right next to the hospital where I will have easy access to patients and help out the community whenever I can. I do not have a kitchen – which I have to make my own, the water source is about 50 km from my house, and I will have no electricity.

I absolutely love it here. I wake up at 6am everyday, eat breakfast, get ready then by 7:30am walk with other volunteers to the nearby school and start our classes – language is usually in the morning from 8am-12pm then we have a break from 12-2pm where we go back home an have lunch, study, nap whatever…then go back to the school from 2pm-5pm, where we either have Cross-Cultural training or a Health Technical class which is general education about nutrition, diarrhea, vaccinations…etc.

The majority of our training includes information sessions about diarrhea in Madagascar, malnutrition and the resources that will be available to us when we go to our site. As our primary focus is the overall health education for women, infants and children. We are also required to do a secondary project of our choice either relating to health or not. I have been thinking about starting a local garden, teaching English, having an art class or starting a soccer team. I will decide when I actually evaluate the needs of my community and make a decision.

I am happy, healthy (the walk to the school is up a steep climb and about a mile away and through a rice paddie at that!), anxious, frustrated infrequently (at the language and communicating) and excited. I make due, don’t worry.

I started reading Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder last week; on a cliff over-looking the village and all of a sudden the sky turns a dark orange as the sun settled, I look up and to my left and an enormous rainbow looks down upon the village. I felt it appropriate because the book is about Dr. Paul Farmer who is my hero, to say the least, and I want to be just like him when I grow up. Who knows, I’m on the right path anyway.

To all my friends and family, I miss you all and think about you everyday. The people of Madagascar need my help and Mada is now my home. I will return shortly.

It will be a while since I have another internet connection so in the meantime check out my facebook with pictures and write me. We get mail weekly and I will definitely respond if you write me.

Raffaele Macri, PCV

Bureau du Corps de la Paix

B.P. 12091

Poste Zoom Ankorondrano

Antananarivo 101

Madagascar

-my address is wicked awesome by the way

Good luck to all in Etazonia and hope you too are having a blast.

In due time. Mandrapihaona (See you soon)!

~ by healthymadagascar on August 13, 2010.