I wanted to sail around the world, just ‘cause it’s round. Ya know?

11.28.09

Today is my last day of language instruction before swearing in, which will be on December 3rd. I passed out of needing to take any more French last week, so I started studying Fulfulde earlier this week and I’m basically just getting a basic understanding of it before I begin to head up to post on Thursday (12/4). Fulfulde is a language spoken across much of the Sahel region of Africa, although it does differ from country to country. It seems like a pretty rad, easy language so far. None of the greetings use verbs and every verb is conjugated the same way, regardless of subject. The grammar is pretty straightforward too, it’ll just take a while to get used to the vocabulary because it’s like nothing I’ve ever studied before. I also realized a few days ago that Fulfulde is now the 5th language I’ve studied, 6th if you include English. (The others are Spanish, Swedish, French and German. I guess I could through in Danish and the local patois here in Bamena, too, but I’ve never properly studied them.)

Anyway, it’s been a pretty wild ride so far. No, that’s not quite right. I can’t really say it’s been wild, yet. I’ve had some pretty crazy experiences, some VERY interesting conversations, and also been given some cool names. I’m currently known in my neighborhood as Tanji. That’s a name my homestay mother gave to me, because it’s also the name of my homestay brother and the nephew of the chief of Bamena. I also found out when I went to the chefferie (chief’s palace) and an old Mama called me Tanji that it is a title given to somebody that means “father of twins”. Well alright then. One of the language instructors for PC has started calling me “le Prince de Bamena.”

My homestay family has gotten me a couple shirts made out of panye, the local fabric which is rich in vibrant colors and patterns. Joey, I know how you feel about white people dressing up in African garb but to this I say: too bad. My family loves it and tells me I’m a real African (un vrai africain!), especially when I greet them and their friends in the patois. I can’t wait to get some boubous once I get up North.

A couple quick notes on communication: I have a cell phone and I’m sorry if you tried to call me on the original number I posted on facebook, I wasn’t too clear on the area codes and whatnot. Anyway, my number, to the best of my knowledge, is 011-237-70143164. I think. Maybe if that’s not right, Joey or Jacob or my parents can comment on what to do. I would really like to talk to you all. If you’ve been waiting for me to call you, then, well, keep waiting. It costs me over a dollar a minute to call anyone in the states and I don’t usually have more than 5 bucks worth of credit at a time. Also, it is free for me to receive calls and I believe it’s the same price for you in the states to receive or make calls. So really….call me. Also, here’s an address you can send me stuff to, starting now:

HH, PCV
B.P. 1825
Garoua, Cameroon
Africa

It might be useful to write on the letter in red ink, apparently that makes it less likely to be tampered with or stolen. Also, if you feel so inclined, draw some crosses or religious symbols on it and maybe write “Rev. or Fr.” in front of my name. It’d be great to get some mail from you guys in the states. If you mail something, it seems to take about a month to get here, so don’t be expecting an immediate thank you, though it will come. Also, padded envelopes seem to get here the quickest if you wanted to send something more than just a letter, though the flat rate boxes from the post office are the cheapest.

We had a great Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday. We cooked a couple turkeys, made mashed potatoes, stuffing, and loads of other stuff. Then we read off a bunch of superlatives that we’d voted on, secret-ballet-style last week. I got a few: Most likely to write a book about their experiences, Most likely to have an unsual pet at post, Least likely to be able to speak English at the end of service, and then Paul, the only other male trainee in the health program, and I got most likely to become a couple. Good stuff. Guess I’ll be writing a book about my pet giraffe in French (or Fulfulde).

Well, I must be off, but I’ll try to post again in a few weeks, once I’m at post and can make it up to Garoua to utilize the internet.