Where Shopping is a Pleasure??? :)

I miss Wal-Mart and Target. While lines are sooooo loooooooong here and sometimes soooooo slooooooow everyone is pretty patient. We waited in line at Popeye’s for 30 minutes just to order…taking the fast out of fast food. In America, you would hear huffing and puffing and complaints galore but here it is just a way of life.

The school supplies that are available is interesting. Other teachers have said it has improved around Suriname, but I am still trying to find 3m hooks and 3-ring (with pockets) folders.  We went to the office store (at the mall) and I was willing to shell out some money for a 3 whole punch…come to find out it is 100 US dollars!!! I wouldn’t even pay that with my last teaching salary! A three whole punch is now on my list to get at Christmas. J

Grocery shopping has been fun. We have been taken to the grocery stores that carry American brands, but you pay some pretty pennies (or SRDs) for it! Cereal is about $7 a box and hair/shampoo/body wash around $10 for the brands you want.  The other teachers have given suggestions at what to go local on compared to indulging in what’s familiar.   It is harder to eat healthy. Period.  It is more expensive…like in the States.   But I will not give up on my quest to try new things while not being carb central!! :)

Four Wheelin’ to Two Wheelin’

Well….I thought I knew how to ride a bike. I have been proven wrong. The teachers that left also left their bikes - which ideally is a money-saver. However, I can’t seem to find one that fits. I am like Goldilocks waiting for a bike to be just right. The answer may be at a bike store.

Bike #1: too tall. It was quite humorous to see me try to get on this thing. We get off to walk across the busy streets...well I had a hard time getting started again. It’s hard to get your balance when you can’t really touch the ground. This bike was equipped with a bell AND basket. Perfection! Outside of the fact that safety is more important that vanity that bike would have been the one.

Bike #2 No brakes. The next bike was better because I could touch the ground, however, needing to stop suddenly was out of the question-which on these roads…is a necessary skill.  Also, I don’t know what gear that bike was set on (because that was broken). I had to channel my inner Lance Armstrong to even go on a flat street. Alas, no bell or basket, so this bike was a no go.

Bike #3 and #4 are what I am trying next but the concern with them already is height. I will keep you posted and I am sure post pictures.

Also…the street names in Dutch only make it that much more complicated for me to find my way home. I thought I could do it today, but then I got all kinds of confused. Stephanie is a great wingwoman for the biking adventures. She laughs at my crazy!

The driving here makes a little more sense although I still think it’s more complicated than what I am accustomed to. The honking is not as intense as I thought it was going to be, but biking next to cars is nerve racking. They are more afraid of hitting us, then we are of hitting them. Still..I prefer more personal spaces than is usually extended my way.

Da House

Simply put I love my house. It is cute and big. (Don’t worry…I have included pictures!)  I have two roommates…Carmen and Stephanie.  Carmen is an amazing cook and has a car! She is from Louisiana and teaches Bible and Art at school.  I think she leaves at the crack of dawn and returns well after the sun sets.  Stephanie is my biking instructor and is a constant encouragement.  She is from the Memphis, TN area and has a BFF that I went to Union with. She will be educating 10 little kindergarteners this year.

When I arrived to my house my air-co (air conditioning) was already running and bed was made. That was a huge blessing since it was about 3am! I have an attached bathroom which is a blessing. I am not sure we have decided about a housekeeper. It is culturally accepted, but the roommates are discussing it. I support cultural roles. J  I still am waiting for my shipment of stuff so I don’t have that homey feel yet. No “after” pictures of my room…yet!!

We do have some unwanted house guests – cockroaches. They are called cock-a-lock-a here. (I am picking up the important phrases here and there.) I have killed 6 family members. One is currently playing hide and seek in my clothing closet. We also house a gecko family.

Our neighbors keep to themselves but their pets do not.  Our next door neighbor has (I am guessing) three dogs.  I think they are trying to beat the rooster across the street by barking in the wee hours of the morning. I wanted to open my window and yell some English phrases at them, but since they probably only understand Dutch I didn’t do such a thing. Our neighbor (with the rooster) works for the Dutch embassy and has a guard 24/7. It makes my street feel important…ok…I feel high class. J

The commute to school is the longest compared to the rest of the houses the rest of the teachers are living at. As of now, the plan is to have all the girls move into another house around Christmas, but I think we are secretly hoping we don’t have to mess with that hassle. Not to mention that our house has a dryer…that is a big deal here! The dryer is on speed or something because it takes 20 minutes to dry a large load and doesn’t ever turn off. Maybe I can pack the dryer with me….

My room! (not cute...yet)

From my bed - bathroom on left/door to house right

speaks for itself i'd say!

love the shower! I just need to work on the shower curtain not invading my space while I bathe!

Entering the bathroom...

 A perfect closet size for this diva. :)

Are We There Yet???

(First off…let me apologize that I have not updated my blog. We only have internet at school right now, and when I am at school I am preoccupied with my job – imagine that! We were supposed to have internet about a week ago, but timelines mean different things here. Once I have internet at the house I will be ready to SKYPE!!!! SO as a way to make amends I have several posts for your reading delight. ENJOY!)

After a wonderful send off from my dear friends, I boarded the plane in Atl with two large (and heavy) carry-ons. I arrived in Miami late Saturday night and felt like I was already out of the US! After only getting a measly three hours of sleep at the Doubletree it was time to board the second flight to Port of Spain.  That morning I met up with Terri (a fellow teacher – teaching first grade). We got to “Spain” and went through customs like pros. However, we didn’t know that we had to get our luggage out of customs. We were told at our original check-ins that our luggage would go all the way to Suriname. Well…they lied.  We had to nervously wait for an American Airlines employee to show up so we could get our luggage. We needed them to show up before our flight began boarding. It was a nail biter. We waited for hours. I didn’t think the employee was going to show! But God provided the employee to arrive before we departed…and I am pretty sure I hugged a few people because I was so happy. J

Once we got to our gate, we met up with Jennifer (teaching 3/4/5 various subjects). We ate “dinner” (picture included) and had a few laughs. By 9:30pm we were boarding for Suriname. We landed shortly after and had to go through customs…again. This was short and sweet…besides having to wait in line. After a looooooooong and emotional traveling adventure it was nice to see the sweet faces of Stephanie and Carmen. We trekked the 45 minute ride back to our houses and called it a night. My bed never felt so WONDERFUL!

"Dinner"

They were hungry and excited about food!

Here we be!

The money Dixie gave me...what am I gonna buy?

Right outside of the airport at Trinidad and Tobago.




What I purchased with Dixie's money...notice I am wearing long sleeves and a scarf (not pictured rainboots)...I was HOT!And getting some strange looks, but it also could be because I am white.

The Farewell Tour

So on my Farewell Tour I had an ample amount of time in the car...alone.  I have realized a few things...

1. Katy Perry is "Wide Awake."
2. If teaching doesn't work out, trucking may become my new occupation.
3. Car karaoke is best with Becca Warren. She knows how to almost bust out my speakers and manage to sing louder than the artist.  UU girls - I still don't know song lyrics...nothing has changed!
4. God created some pretty beautiful scenery across our land...I took some mental snapshots to enjoy the beauty of America the Beautiful while I am south of the equator.
5. I am thankful God has equipped me with a spirit of independence and learning to have complete dependence on Him.  I am nervous to go from being independence to dependence on a new culture.

Prayer Requests:
1. I found out I can only have 2 50lb bags...how can I pack up my life in 100lbs??? Prayers and packing tips are appreciated... after all, it's only stuff riiiiiiight????
2. Wrapping up the Farewell Tour...I want to leave well so I can enter well.
3. Have I mentioned I have a few to-do lists??? Time management is essential. :)

Learning to R.A.F.T.

SO I thought that since I had FAILED at posting once a week, I owed at least 2 posts. :)

This past Friday I finished Pre-Field Orientation (PFO).  A whirlwind of information was learned, friendships bonded, and started processing of an array of emotions.  The whole process of transferring your life to a new place (especially internationally) for an extended period of time takes quite a bit out of you.

Information Learned
Topics at PFO ranged from Third Culture Kids (very interesting), dealing with your marital status (or lack thereof :) ), safety, and personality assessments.  I was affirmed in the fact I am people person. My personality test proves that much - in case such an assessment was needed for those in disbelief.  It was a good tool to guide discussion with our school team on our individual strengths and weaknesses. During the safety seminar, a simulation of a bus riot occurred.  (This was after they showed a clip of the movie "Taken".)  Obviously it was staged, but still a wave of fear did come over me. I wouldn't think of what would I do if I was living in the States. It is difficult to sum up what a TCK is...basically children that are living in another country outside of their passport culture during their development years.  We talked about how and why these kids feel displaced and what we can do to help - the RAFT process. More on that in a minute...

Friendships Bonded
I met some simply amazing people. Not to my surprise there were more females than males in attendance. But the quality of these individuals was/is stellar. They have a heart to serve Christ all over the world.  One new bestie, Rebecca, and I met in our small group the first night.  She is going to be the kindergarten teacher at our school in Ghana.  She is a walking pintrest junkie. I am requiring her to make me things before we leave!  Her demeanor radiates joy and I have never met someone so helpful with other's needs.  I am her "mentor" because she is merely 21 years old, but acts at least 10 years older.  I know she will bless her team and kids with her amazing self.  A fellow Oklahoman, Lauren, is heading to Kabul, Afghanistan, to teach health and be the school nurse. This lady bring so much joy to my life.  She always smothered me with her love and bear hugs.  Her humor is infectious and I am confident she will bring so much joy to her students and team.  I only WISH I could be a fly on the wall of her classroom. :)  Another kindred spirit is Missy. She is heading to Lima, Peru, to educated special needs students.   We bonded pretty much immediately.  One thing I love about her is that she is not exactly what you expect.  She will do an amazing job, but she may starve because she eats nothing with color - like fruits and veggies.  Pray for her nutrition for the next two years!  My roommates at PFO were pretty amazing.  We all are going to schools all over - Singapore, Kabul, Caracas, Rio de Janiero, and Suriname.  We spent time encouraging and laughing at each other. I hope to meet up with some day.  I told them my intent was to become bff so that I would have a place to stay when I wanted to travel to their country.  ;)

R.A.F.T.
R - Reconcile hardships
A - Affirm those close to you
F - Say Farewells
T - Think and Talk

The training process with the transition was beneficial for me because I felt normal with all of my emotions. It also showed me how to walk the process when it is time for my students to transition to another country. I have better expectations of my students and my own situation.  It also help me understand how others around me feel about my leaving.  So since the good-bye tour has officially started, be prepared for the following steps: reconciliation, affirmation, farewell, and talking about it.  I may need a hug in there somewhere.

The BEST THING about PFO ending was a call from the consulate of Miami informing my visa has been approved! God is good! Time to buy a plane ticket, people! :)

Raft building,
Megan :)

Here are some pictures of PFO and my new friends!

Lauren, me, and Becca - now part of me

My PFO Roommates - way too much fun

Jenn and Missy

FaceTime! (in the same room!)

Me and Jenn @ Memphis Redbirds game

Ghana crew @ Memphis Redbirds game
Amazing team!

New bestie, Becca. I love: 12am photoshoot,
New Girl marathon, butterfingers,
and quality time and good conversation.



         

           PFO Small Group - so encouraging!

Suriname Team: Me, Jen, Terri, and Shane
Awesome Crew!



The Camp Life

Hot sun. Cool pool. Organized Mass Chaos. Girls' Tea. Boys Karate. Talent Night. Dancing Luau. Followed by More Pool.

I think I was made for camp most days. Not camping as much as camp.  I had the privilege to invest in my same two foster kid campers.  I love those girls to the moon and back.  At this time of so much newness, it was enjoyable to do something so comforting and so me. We played in the sun and shared how special they truly are even when the world screams the opposite message.  They aren't forgotten.

I have had one camper for four years and I thought it was appropriate to tell her about my move to South America. Well she didn't take it quite as well as I thought she was going to. She teared up and was upset the rest of the night, which pulled on my heart strings only that much more. BUT, it was a teachable moment for the both of us.  Her former caseworker and my new good friend was also a big camper (counselor) at camp.  I was able to share how God brought her to the both of us so we can have that much more ease in communicating.  It was neat to share with my camper how God works in ways we can't explain and it is important to be obedient to what He has asked of us, even if it isn't always easy.

Who knows...I just may start a foster kids camp in Suriname....  :)