My New Site!

The long anticipated site change. Here in Peace Corps Mali - in general - it's pretty easy to change sites. That means moving to a new location because of security, health or work issues. Peace Corps staff wants you to be happy and will help to accommodate that. In my case, I haven't ever really felt connected to Douentza and back in February I made the ultimate decision to leave. I had tried to push myself - to force myself to love it in Douentza. To be hard core and not need the ltitle things to help keep me going. But after considerable thought, and good conversation with other PCVs, I've decided that I just need to be happy and do what I need to do in order to make my service here a success.

Before I came to the States I asked my supervisor to help me locate a new site. Well, I moved into Sevare - which is about 2 hours from Douentza and I'm familiar with it already because I go there to do banking and we have a Peace Corps Office there where we can chill or take care of business. After a long, hot week sitting in Douentza catching up on reading with ice water in hand and a fan at my face, I finally was able to move last Wednesday. Packing up everything was kind of final, but the fact that I was getting away from my mouse infested house was reason enough to make me feel really good.

Here's my new house in Sevare -

Before everything was moved inside - here's the facade of my house.

Come on, you know a shower and toilet would make anyone happy! Admittedly, I will probably still use the outhouse at times - for nostalgia if for nothing else.

After I had cleaned the floors I bought nails for cement walls and did a little decorating. I'm very happy!

And then as far as my new job is concerned, I don't know a million things about it, but here's what I do know. It's a Dairy Co-op named Suudu Baaba which is essentially the equivilent of Dad's House or something along the lines of family cooking. Kind of hard to translate. Anyway, they have a bunch of cows that they milk each day and then bring the milk to their store where they already own a pasturizing machine - I was amazed - and then they package milk and yogurt. They have been very successful to date and I can only see it getting better for them. I'll be helping with internal management and business skills, but honestly you will soon see photos of me milking cows and making milk. How awesome is that? I've really only sat down with my counterpart and the organization for about an hour, but already I know I'll be loving it and it just feels right. I don't think I've ever felt this way about a job - and we all know I've had plenty! Needless to say, it's a perfect match and I can't wait to get started on some substantial work.

More to come soon!

We Finally Found Elephants!!!

Well, it's was a bright and cheery day when the elephants of Mali and Burkina Faso were sought out and found by on Mali volunteer (Me) and five Guinea volunteers who have recently relocated to Mali after being evacuated from Guinea for political reasons. Anyway...it was Cinco de Mayo and we were having a party in Douentza but Cathleen organized the tour of the elephants. I won't go into much detail except to say that the 3.5 hour transport to and from could have been a little more fun. And the thorn that I got embedded into my heel was equally not as fun. But oh well, right? Here are some of the photos.

Elephant footprints made during rainy season and all dried up now.

Jackpot! One of the long legged, short tusked elephants of Burkina Faso/Mali area.

My favorite photo of the day - goats with the elephant background. It kind of looks like he wants to charge at me. Luckily, that didn't happen!

I'm not sure what the next animal adventure is, but I will be going to Ghana soon! Looking forward to posting about that.

Antics in the States

I came back to Tennesse on February 22nd, thinking I’d be home for two weeks to see my Mom and take care of her after Ed’s sudden death. It’s now April 10th and I’m still here!!! Never thought that would happen. Even though I’m working on getting back to Mali, it’s a slow process. Here’s an idea of what I’ve been up to…

I took my Mom to see Alan Jackson (the other love of her life) at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville and then we went to the Melting Pot and had chocolate fondue.

Mom standing with an Alan Jackson cardboard cutout.

Mom and I standing infront of the Grand Ole Opry House.

Alan Jackson's live performance. He sang our favorite song, "It's 5 O'Clock Somewhere."

After the Opry I introduced my Mom to the amazingness that is the Melting Pot. Chocolate fondue never tasted so good.

Then, Jose invited me to Tampa, FL to visit him and see his home. It just happened to be a birthday gift. Oh, and did I mention he took me to DISNEY WORLD??? We had a blast!

Mickey Mouse! Alright, true, I am 23. But it was my first time seeing him!

Pooh, Jose, Eeyore, Me, and Tigger. Come on, how cute are we?

If you don't know my addiction to these penny machine, come on vacation with me! I was thrilled when I saw them. This was in Morocco at Epcot.

Jose and I at the end of the day at Epcot. We were waiting for the fireworks show.

Good ole' American food at Magic Kingdom. Ever eat a turkey leg? It was tasty.

Amazing fireworks show at Magic Kingdom. This picture couldn't have come out better. I can't wait to go back!

And then my sister came home for a week on vacation just to chill and hang out.

Me, Mom and Beth.

Beth, aka Dr. Dolittle, calling all the dogs and giving them treats.

Moose thinking it's a good idea to bite Mom's hand off. Just joking, she was acting!

What’s next to come? Hopefully a return to Mali before I eat any more bad-for-me American food!

Tribute to a Great Man

Ed driving the boat we rented on Tim's Ford Lake, near our home in Tennessee.

On February 11, 2007 – while Jose and I were vacationing in Timbuktu – my Mom called me with tragic news that Ed, her fiancé and the love of her life, was killed in an accident. I was so far away and felt terrible that I wasn’t there to console her. Ed had just taken a job with a company where he was on the road driving a truck/tractor trailer across the country. He was on his way home for a Valentine’s Day surprise when the accident occurred in West Virginia.

Even though I wasn’t home to console my Mom, my brother and sister and other friends and family were able to pick up where I couldn’t, and see my Mom through this tough time. They were fabulous. Flowers and cards were sent, everyone who could come did, and despite the circumstances, everything was under control. Thanks to all of you who were there and who sent your condolences.

I just want everyone to know how important Ed was, not only for my Mom, but for me and our family. We had some really great times with him and he was a very supportive father for me. He supported me in DC at school and in my decisions to move across the world to help others. Most importantly, he loved and cared about us.

Here’s just a small tribute to you, Ed. We miss you and love you.

Ed and Mom at her 50th birthday party.

Me, Mom, Ed and our waiter on our Carribbean cruise.

The funeral was held in Tennessee on February 16, 2007. May you rest in peace.

Gorgeous floral heart from my brother, sister and I. Included is a photo of my Mom and Ed from one of their cruises together.

Mali Country Tour Begins - First Stop: Sikasso

As we know, Mali is a pretty big country. The CIA World Factbook puts it at 1.24 million square kilometers. Just to compare that, we're looking at a little bit less than 2 Texas'. So, it's a pretty big area. Only about 2/3 of it is actually travelable because of all north of Timbuktu and Kidal regions being desert. So, when I came to find out that within the span of a month and a half, I'd be able to see just about all of that 2/3s, I was exstatic.

It all started out in Bamako for IST. I still haven't taken any pictures of Bamako, but maybe sometime in the distant future I will. But after IST, my sector mates and I took a fieldtrip down to Sikasso region - on the border with Burkina Faso and Cote d'Ivoire - to visit some tourist sites and see how they run their operations down there. It was pretty cool, I've got to say. Here are a couple highlights.

Map of Mali - The red represents the region of Sikasso.

The Waterfalls at Woroni - Woroni is a really small Senefo village but because of the beautiful waterfalls there, Peace Corps helped to get funding to build a small campement (motel type establishment) for tourists and to help Woroni generate some income for the community. I'm planning on celebrating my first birthday in Mali here.

The Doors to the Sudan - Situated on the old road that connected Cote d'Ivoire to Mali and to the Sudan (not the country), these rock formations are called the Doors to the Sudan. They almost arc over the road and are pretty impressive.

After Sikasso I headed up to Koutiala for a couple of days to visit Andreea, Merv and Greg. Admittedly, there's not that much going on in Koutiala to take photos of. However, I will be returning and will most definitely find something to prove I was there. Koutiala is the cotton capital of Mali and it's a pretty big city with over 100,000 people. Other than waiting at the bus stop for 7 hours, I was pleased with my stay there and even more pleased with the hospitality of my friends.

Next Adventure - Jose's vacation in Mali - Stops to include Timbuktu, Gourma Elephant Reserve, Dogon Country, Mopti and Djenne. Stay tuned for more from Sara's Malian Tour.

IST and Mud Wrestling

I’ve finally returned from Bamako and In Service Training. It was a really great time! Not only seeing friends and reconnecting and learning a lot of stuff, it was nice to get away from Mali and get back to Americaland – which is what we call our training center. I weighed myself at the medical office the first day I was in town and was pleasantly surprised to see that I lost 30 lbs. I didn’t think it was that much, but it was. However, after eating two full and hearty meals a day, I gained probably 7 of it back. Not to worry, hot season is rapidly approaching and I have a feeling I’ll lose another 20, at least.

Anyway, in addition to learning lots, my friends Josh and Cara thought it would be a good idea to build a mud wrestling pit. We needed an excuse to bond more and this certainly turned out to be a good one. I don’t even need to say how awesome it was because the pictures included will prove it.

Action shot of Greg taking Aaron down. The mud splatter on the crowd was awesome!

Me and Merv, my first competitor. Yeah, I took her down pretty quickly as she screamed, "Damn, you're strong!"

Me, pretty pleased with my work thus far. This is Kyle next to me who wrestled in college. Yeah, he was hardcore all day long.

Group shot with everyone super muddy. Merv and I apparently hadn't had enough because we started fighting again.

But here's a real group shot where we all managed to look "normal." Don't worry, the wrestling continued after this too. It's never over with us Beluschi's!

There's talk about a gravy wrestling tournament coming up using all the gravy packets that come in care packages. I never thought I'd say this, but I really hope I'm around for it.

My Thoughts of the Eve of the New Year

Well, it’s New Year’s Eve and even though this will get posted after that, I thought it was important to share my thoughts on how I’m feeling tonight. I’m 22 years old, and I’ve been in Africa doing volunteer work for 5 months now. In the past 8 months, I’ve graduated from a great University, taken two amazing vacations, had my wisdom teeth pulled out, and been invited to join the Peace Corps in Mali. Needless to say, I have a lot to be thankful for today. Pretty much everyday that I’m here I wonder if it’s the right thing to be doing. In my heart I know it is, but on the surface, things look so different. I could be in Washington D.C. or some other American city pursuing my Graduate Degree and partying every weekend and experiencing my 20’s “like they should be,” but instead I’m here. I’m jealous of all of my college friends doing the former – but let’s face it, I’ve never been one for doing things the easy way and I’m certainly not going to try to take the easy road in life.

That said, I have to wonder what sort of resolutions I can have on a night that I’m passing in rural Africa. I’ve already given up everything familiar to me by coming here, and it’s been a great experience so far, so I guess I can only look toward things to enhance my life while I’m here. Here’s a list, albeit short, of my 2007 New Year’s Resolutions:

-Study more Fulfulde and actually learn the language – this includes spending more time practicing with people instead of sitting in my room reading.
-Read 1 book every 2 weeks – at least.
-Think less about American “artificial” food.
-Explore Douentza and the Falaise more – do more hiking.