Traveling around the world is my life biggest joy and goal. I have been to more place in my short life time then many people twice my age. But as of now I am not done with completing this goal. I have only been on 6 of the 7 continents and I have one more to go. Along with reaching each continent I have a few places on my list of historical places to see in person I have to complete.
Within my first year of being here in the Gambia I have traveled to Senegal. Senegal is Gambia’s surrounding country (literary Senegal is on all sides of the Gambia beside the ocean). I went to the country myself which was not a very good ideal since I did not speak neither French nor Woloff their spoken languages. But with the help of others and my luck cell phone I was able to get around and enjoy myself.
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Part 7 Making connections
I have had the chance to mingle with the likes of all kinds of people.
The first connections I have made are those within the Peace Corps office it’s self. There are many people working in the office who have a wide range of experiences. In the office we have a wide range of people from different states, people who have traveled or lived outside of the US, degrees from just about every department, and shared like ideas about the future or life in general.
Second work in the education sector I am exposed to many different locals and foreigners. Many of the people work directly within or linked to the education system in the Gambia. Even though not all expects of education have high interest to me (personally) they are all wonderful people to meet. Not only do you get to find out the things that interest them about education and their job. But you also get to know some of the personal and work reality experiences. Their experiences in more ways then one can be applied to my job now and future jobs to come.
Third but the one that is most valuable is the connections that have been created with the local people. These are the people who are affected directly and directly by my existence in the community. The level of connection can be from a counter partner in the field all the way to the vendors within the market. You can either get good help at work and understanding as to way the job is hard. Or get luck by your favorite vendor saving good veggies for you or making the price a little lower.
Thus the power of connections has now become very important in my life. The only hard part about it right now is remembering everybody’s Name. Here it is very important to remember peoples name if not the first name the surname is the best. As they use name calling as a form or greeting one another.
The first connections I have made are those within the Peace Corps office it’s self. There are many people working in the office who have a wide range of experiences. In the office we have a wide range of people from different states, people who have traveled or lived outside of the US, degrees from just about every department, and shared like ideas about the future or life in general.
Second work in the education sector I am exposed to many different locals and foreigners. Many of the people work directly within or linked to the education system in the Gambia. Even though not all expects of education have high interest to me (personally) they are all wonderful people to meet. Not only do you get to find out the things that interest them about education and their job. But you also get to know some of the personal and work reality experiences. Their experiences in more ways then one can be applied to my job now and future jobs to come.
Third but the one that is most valuable is the connections that have been created with the local people. These are the people who are affected directly and directly by my existence in the community. The level of connection can be from a counter partner in the field all the way to the vendors within the market. You can either get good help at work and understanding as to way the job is hard. Or get luck by your favorite vendor saving good veggies for you or making the price a little lower.
Thus the power of connections has now become very important in my life. The only hard part about it right now is remembering everybody’s Name. Here it is very important to remember peoples name if not the first name the surname is the best. As they use name calling as a form or greeting one another.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Sorry for the late post. Its March and I have now been in The Gambia for 8 long months. My classes are starting to pick up and work is getting more fun. I have been requested to help out a few other government schools and local groups. So now I am starting to feel more like part of the community.
Life is going well nothing new or bad. Oh my laptop almost died on me. It was very sad. All I could was hope it wasn't a virus or that I would be able to correct what was wrong. And after long time of not: being able to use my Zune correctly, play any of my 20+ gigs of music, not watch a DVD, or play any of my video games. I have fixed the problem and saved the day. Now life is going very well. I can even get more work done now cause I can use my laptop at home.
This is the month I have been waiting for. Why you ask. Because my mom is coming to visit me. She will becoming into Senegal, the next country. So we will spend a couple of days there. Then come to my home, where my family is planning a naming ceremony for her. I have no clue as to what name they are picking. After we stay at my house for a while seeing my area and doing nothing. We will head for the city, where once again we will go around site seeing. After all is said and done. My mom will be leaving me. but its ok I will have new pics of her and am happy about that.
So till next time...
Life is going well nothing new or bad. Oh my laptop almost died on me. It was very sad. All I could was hope it wasn't a virus or that I would be able to correct what was wrong. And after long time of not: being able to use my Zune correctly, play any of my 20+ gigs of music, not watch a DVD, or play any of my video games. I have fixed the problem and saved the day. Now life is going very well. I can even get more work done now cause I can use my laptop at home.
This is the month I have been waiting for. Why you ask. Because my mom is coming to visit me. She will becoming into Senegal, the next country. So we will spend a couple of days there. Then come to my home, where my family is planning a naming ceremony for her. I have no clue as to what name they are picking. After we stay at my house for a while seeing my area and doing nothing. We will head for the city, where once again we will go around site seeing. After all is said and done. My mom will be leaving me. but its ok I will have new pics of her and am happy about that.
So till next time...
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