How Far Will You Go?

"I want to warn anyone who sees the Peace Corps as an alternative to the draft that life may well be easier at Fort Dix or at a post in Germany than it will be with us." Sargeant Shriver

"Life is calling, how far will you go?" US Peace Corps Slogan

Last time I wrote, I told you that I was posted in Batouri, but I definitely know a lot more now than I did last week, so consider this part 2 of that first post. Being the person that writes definitely has it's perks, and in this respect, it's definitely getting to choose to ramble on and on and on about my awesome assignment.

POP QUIZ: Where am I posted? What region am I in? If you said Batouri in the East region, on are rocking at your knowledge of Stephanie Gasior... either that or you paid close attention to that first sentence and then did a google search, in which case I applaud your dedication.

Okay, anywho, this week was site visit, meaning that we left for Bertoua on Saturday, left for Batouri early on Wednesday morning with my post-mate, and then returned to Bertoua today. Bertoua has been fantastic, but because that's not my post, I'm not going to go into great depth about it except to say that it has the best fish and best pasteries I've ever had in my life--it is definitely a city to expect more from in the future.

On to the important things: BATOURI! Mike and I arrived Wednesday around 10, and I don't know what I expected to find, but it definitely wasn't what I found. Batouri is pretty moderately sized, but has a ton of government agencies, religious organizations, and private organizations. Unlike Bafia, it's also pretty clean, which was delightful. I don't know where to begin describing Batouri, but I will say that it's spread out, has a lot of different ethnic/linguistic/cultural influences, and is environmentally beautiful. I'm definitely looking forward to getting to know the little nuances and finding the intriguing nooks once I return for good in December. It's definitely going to take awhile to get acclimated, but I'm up for the challenge and ready for anything/everything that's about to be sent my way. Getting out of Bafia was definitely the kind of motivation that I needed, and I know a lot of others feel the same way. Plus, it was nice to drink a real cup of coffee and have some freedom to feel like an adult again.

So, while in Batouri, I got to see my house (100% empty, but it has electricity and running water once I pay for the counters for those), visit a logging company, see my host institution (Centre pour la Promotion de la Femme et la Famille), learn about a large number of potential projects (including one with the UN Development Project [fingers crossed]), eat lots of delicious local foods, meet my two post-mates, and generally start to acclimate myself. I'm feeling much more amped about Batouri now that I've had the opportunity to see it, I'm genuinely feeling like it's the right place for me at this point in my life: lots of challenge, lots of opportunity for personal growth, lots of opportunity for community growth (I hope.) So, thanks Program Manager Amadou for not listening to my requests, I think you made an excellent decision on my behalf :)

I am definitely looking forward to having a comfortable home of my own that I can cook food in, although I recognize that it's going to take some time before I hit that point. On that note, I would gladly accept any maps, photos, hand-drawn pictures, post-cards, decorations, etc. that you want to send my direction. Most any of that could fit in a simple envelope, and it'll make a huge difference in making my empty house feel like a home. And, yes, that was a shame-less plug, but I'm assuming that you love me enough to look past that!

I'm also just genuinely looking forward to being done with stage and creating a life for myself: deciding my daily schedule, choosing friends to associate with, grocery shopping, designing projects. All of those tiny things that I took for granted in the States are definitely what I'm most excited for now, although I clearly never rode motorcycles as my main form of transportation in the US. It is wonderful to know that there are so many opportunities ahead of me, it's just unfortunate that I need to go back to a highly scheduled life and living with a family again for the next month. But, if there's one thing that I've learned from the Peace Corps so far, it's patience. A month is a short time, and soon I'll be at post missing the structure and missing the organization.

Much love,
Steph