MONKEY TALES #4
(7/29/03)
MONKEY TALES #25
(3/13/04)
MONKEY TALES #24
(3/8/04)
MONKEY TALES #23
(2/12/04)
MONKEY TALES #22
(2/5/04)
MONKEY TALES #21
(1/31/04)
MONKEY TALES #20
(12/22/03)
MONKEY TALES #19
(12/13/03)
MONKEY TALES #18
(12/6/03)
MONKEY TALES #17
(12/1/03)
MONKEY TALES #16
(11/22/03)
MONKEY TALES #15
(11/13/03)
MONKEY TALES #14
(10/24/03)
MONKEY TALES #13
(10/16/03)
MONKEY TALES #12
(10/11/03)
MONKEY TALES #11
(10/4/03)
MONKEY TALES #10
(9/27/03)
MONKEY TALES #9
(9/19/03)
MONKEY TALES #8.5
(9/13/03)
MONKEY TALES #8
(9/13/03)
MONKEY TALES #7
(8/21/03)
MONKEY TALES #6
(8/14/03)
MONKEY TALES #5
(8/8/03)
MONKEY TALES #3
(7/24/03)
MONKEY TALES #2
(6/29/03)
MONKEY TALES #1
(7/17/03)
"YO!"
(6/27/03)
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Super quick since I have almost no
time left and internet is slower than death today...
1. Me and some of my girlies got together on Saturday to whip up an American
feast, or baked chicken, mashed potatoes, and a kidney bean and advocado
salad. The host family found the potatoes revolting but we couldn't have
been happier. However, the best of the evening was cornbread made with
manioc flour and Sangria....boxed red wine dumped into a deep cooking
pot and filled with pineapple, bananas, limes, and apple. Beyond divine
tho totally ghetto...wasn't even cold but it tasted sooo good.
2. Random Factoids: 6 PCV from Gabon married locals last summer after
their service, and one couple even popped out their first kid. Nutty.
One of our group just got fleas this week, and a second person came down
with malaria. Festively fun, I assure you, and they're all on the road
to recovery. There are 1.2 million people in Gabon, but 500,000 live in
Libreville.
3. Had the utter joy of watching an STD video for one of my health tech
sessions the other day. I missed a similar video back in high school because
I was taking a CPR class, but I couldn't escape this time. The NASTIEST
images you can conjure up of men and women in various stages of assorted
STD's...I'll spare you exact details, but just imagine having to look
at genital pus, scabs, oozing sores and lesions an hour before lunch.
And you thought I'd censor myself...HAH!
4. Tonight is quite the evening here in Koula Moutou...the entourage for
Miss Gabon 2003 is passing through to select a contestant from this province.
It's gonna be nuts and in typical African fashion, since it's supposed
to start at 7, it won't get going till at least 9. I don't think there's
a talent portion, just evening dress and maybe swimwear. And apparently
it's brutal audience participation to decide a winner...Our instructors
said that people will shout things out things like, "You're too skinny,
you probably have AIDS", and other ego-boosting material. All about
the cultural experience, right?
5. Just came from a quick trip to the....library! Checked out Robinson
Crusoe (en Francais, of course! Like there were other options...) and
have decided to make it my new challenge to get thru a few pages a day.
And by the way, I use the term "library" loosely...unorganizd
conglomeration of random literature is more like it. Heck, at least someone
was inspired/interested enough to start one up.
6. My (African American) friend, Claudette, came up with the best observation
the other day...may not be funny to ya'll, but after experiencing life
here for a month, she nailed it spot on. We were walking back home at
night with a few of her (host) sisters and I was walking a little behind
them so that people would start talking to her like a native, but as soon
as they saw me, they realized she wasn't "one of them". After
15 minutes or so of this, she turned to me and said, "You know, I
might actually be able to pull of this whole African thing if I didn't
have a glow-in-the-dark American next to me all the time." I lost
it, mostly because she was spot on.
7. So they tried to feed me porcupine last night; but of course I wouldn't
touch it due to the intestinal trauma that ensued last time. Therefore,
one of my brothers felt inspired to reach into the bowl and yank out the
head. He sat right next to me wiggling the porcupine's teeth, making him
talk and such. Then he showed me where the bullet went and then where
they had to hack at the neck to finally kill it. The coup de grace? He
whipped out his machete and whacked the skull in half to show me the brains.
For the love! I think forensics is pretty sweet, but there's something
about having intimate knowledge of the porcupine cranium at the dinner
table that just didn't sit right with me. At least they made up for it
today by serving fresh pineapple...I swear it's so sweet and juicy here
that it tastes like it's been marinating in sugar for days.
Alrighty, my little minions, I'm off. Tomorrow is site announcement, so
cross your fingers that I get what I want. I'll either be leaving Friday
or Saturday to spend a week visiting my future site, so I dunno if I'll
be able to email. However, I am bringing my phone to see if it works,
so try and call if you feel so inclined. Otherwise, I'll be back online
when schedule, time, and money permit. Lovin you all! 1 month down, 26
to go. OH, and I turn 22 in 3 months :-)
Still hacking up lungs (tropical colds are the worst)-
Leah Ann(e)
P.S. Until I get pictures on my site, check out my friend Mercy's site
at http://www.oocities.org/mercyroberg/gabon.html
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