Tonight, I went in for a Spanish level assessment. At the end of the session, the Spanish teacher says to me, "Wow Vivienne, you've got great conversational skills. You speak so fast and I'd definitely put you in a level 3 class...Except that you speak a LOT of Portuguese." Merp.
This, of course, I suspected. During a game of Spanish Taboo I'm trying to get the other participants to guess the word "ribs" and I'm screaming "los ossos!" which means "bones" in Portuguese, and "bears" in Spanish. Needless to say, they had no idea why I had bears on my body.
Having minored in Spanish in college, I'm a little bummed that I have to take a step backwards and "re-learn" even the basics.
The Portuguese I've spent the last two years speaking has warped my Spanish pronunciation and vocab, just as it occurred the other way around when I was first learning Portuguese in Moz.
"Obrigada" comes out more naturally than "gracias" and well, a lot of the time, I don't even know if the words tumbling out of my mouth are Spanish, Portuguese, or a mix of both.
So I'm commencing a rigorous training program to get back to Spanish because, let's face it, Spanish is what I'll be speaking in Southern California.
But at the same time, I'm terrified of losing my Portuguese. As much as it's helped me- building Portuguese on top of Spanish- because they are so similar, the flip-side is that, um, they're so damn similar. And to lose my Portuguese would be like losing a huge part of my Peace Corps experience.
To top it all off, I'm starting a French class tomorrow. Can I juggle so many foreign languages, use them effectively, and continue to learn and improve in each of them? In a way, it's like re-integrating into American culture while keeping all the lessons I learned in Mozambique.
The game here is balance. Now how do I find balance?
Monday, January 14, 2013
Friday, January 11, 2013
Float on
A friend of mine, Cameron, served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Tanzania at around the same time I served in Moz. While catching up with a mutual friend of ours yesterday, I was told, "Whenever we stalked your pictures online, we always wondered why it looked like Cameron lived in a third world country but you just looked like you were on vacation!"
Haha well, the other PC programs didn't refer to us as "Beach Corps" for nothing.
And now, I look through the Facebook pictures documenting the glorious beach adventures of my friends still serving in Mozambique, and I get so nostalgic. Some days I'd give anything to be back on the beach, soaking in the heat of Africa instead of stressing about finding a job,
paying for a wedding, making rent this month, studying for the FSOT. America's so fast-paced and as the days fly by, I easily get wrapped up in these concepts of "progress" and "productivity." It's no wonder that despite all the luxuries available to us, we as a nation are still so unhappy.
I've started eating those giant grocery store bananas again, and buying those tiny, expensive, mushy avocados. I won't even talk about how expensive mangoes are here.
I've started driving again, and going to the gym.
I still don't know any of my next door neighbors.
I guess it's all a part of being American.
I move on to another day,
to a whole new town with a whole new way
Went to the porch to have a thought,
Got to the door and again, I couldn't stop
You don't know where and you don't know when,
But you've still got your words and you got your friends
Walk along to another day,
Work a little harder, work another way
Well uh-uh baby I ain't got no plan,
We'll float on maybe, would you understand?
Gonna float on maybe, would you understand?
Well float on maybe, would you understand?
- Modest Mouse, "World At Large"
Haha well, the other PC programs didn't refer to us as "Beach Corps" for nothing.
And now, I look through the Facebook pictures documenting the glorious beach adventures of my friends still serving in Mozambique, and I get so nostalgic. Some days I'd give anything to be back on the beach, soaking in the heat of Africa instead of stressing about finding a job,
paying for a wedding, making rent this month, studying for the FSOT. America's so fast-paced and as the days fly by, I easily get wrapped up in these concepts of "progress" and "productivity." It's no wonder that despite all the luxuries available to us, we as a nation are still so unhappy.
I've started eating those giant grocery store bananas again, and buying those tiny, expensive, mushy avocados. I won't even talk about how expensive mangoes are here.
I've started driving again, and going to the gym.
I still don't know any of my next door neighbors.
I guess it's all a part of being American.
I move on to another day,
to a whole new town with a whole new way
Went to the porch to have a thought,
Got to the door and again, I couldn't stop
You don't know where and you don't know when,
But you've still got your words and you got your friends
Walk along to another day,
Work a little harder, work another way
Well uh-uh baby I ain't got no plan,
We'll float on maybe, would you understand?
Gonna float on maybe, would you understand?
Well float on maybe, would you understand?
- Modest Mouse, "World At Large"
Sunday, December 30, 2012
I'll be home for Christmas
I've been gone, on the road again, for over 3 weeks. My passport's gotten quite a workout and I'm ready, once again, to settle back in to American life.
Here's a brief rundown of my past few holiday seasons:
In 2010, I spent Christmas on a beach in Moz with fellow PCV's. We rented a beach house in Xai Xai and drank beer and reminisced about America, over 100 degree weather. I also attended a Mozambican neighbor's Christmas party.
In 2011, I spent Christmas in Taiwan with my sister and relatives. We gorged ourselves on seafood buffets and celebrated my sister's 20th birthday over tiramisu. I got bronchitis.
This year, 2012, I spent Christmas in LA with my fiancé and his family. I even had a stocking with my name on it! We played games, drank wine, went to church, and opened presents on Christmas morning.
Mozambique, Taiwan, USA. Each of these places has been home to me at some point in my life, and has become a part of me. In each of these places I find people I call my family. Aside from blood relations, "friends are the family we choose" and I'm never alone.
I'm lucky to have roots in different places and be able to see and experience so many things.
My heart is scattered to the East, to the West, to the North, to the South. The world is mine and I am the world's and no matter where I am, as long as I'm with people I care about, I'm always home for Christmas.
Here's a brief rundown of my past few holiday seasons:
In 2010, I spent Christmas on a beach in Moz with fellow PCV's. We rented a beach house in Xai Xai and drank beer and reminisced about America, over 100 degree weather. I also attended a Mozambican neighbor's Christmas party.
In 2011, I spent Christmas in Taiwan with my sister and relatives. We gorged ourselves on seafood buffets and celebrated my sister's 20th birthday over tiramisu. I got bronchitis.
This year, 2012, I spent Christmas in LA with my fiancé and his family. I even had a stocking with my name on it! We played games, drank wine, went to church, and opened presents on Christmas morning.
Mozambique, Taiwan, USA. Each of these places has been home to me at some point in my life, and has become a part of me. In each of these places I find people I call my family. Aside from blood relations, "friends are the family we choose" and I'm never alone.
I'm lucky to have roots in different places and be able to see and experience so many things.
My heart is scattered to the East, to the West, to the North, to the South. The world is mine and I am the world's and no matter where I am, as long as I'm with people I care about, I'm always home for Christmas.
Wednesday, December 5, 2012
Visiting abroad and Peace Corps Goal 3
Much to the surprise of some of my friends, I am abroad once again, less than two months after my return from Africa. This time, I find myself on the delicious continent of Asia visiting friends and family.
I have so far spent four days in South Korea with an old roommate, Natalie, who is teaching English in Seoul. The next leg of my journey is Jakarta, Indonesia, where I will be visiting a Japanese friend named Yoko who was once my neighbor in Chibuto, Mozambique. (So you see, the world is not so vast and it's possible to transcend cultural and linguistic distances to keep up friendships.) The 3rd leg of my journey will be a visit to my motherland, Taiwan, where my little sister is studying Chinese.
Going from "residing abroad" to "visiting abroad" definitely has its differences.
During my two years in Mozambique, I only hosted one American visitor, my boyfriend (now fiance) Kevin, who actually came twice. I feel like it really made a difference in our relationship, because he was able to understand so much better the things I was experiencing in Africa. It was an amazing opportunity for me, to be able to show him a country that would otherwise not have been so accessible to him, and have him see it through my eyes instead of just written in a blog or posted onto Facebook via status updates and photos.
And that's what Peace Corps is about too, Goal 3: Helping promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans.
I really think that visiting friends abroad is a nice way of bringing a bit of "home" to them, bridging the distance, showing you support their work and are interested in their life. Living abroad for an extended period of time can be super challenging and lonely. (I personally would have loved to have more visitors in Moz.)
And travel costs aside, why wouldn't you take advantage of local connections who can, through their insight and recommendations, take you beyond the normal tourist experience and help you understand better the cultural aspects of what you're seeing? And take you to eat yummy local food.
So anyway. Get out of America and go visit someone who lives in a cool place!
I have so far spent four days in South Korea with an old roommate, Natalie, who is teaching English in Seoul. The next leg of my journey is Jakarta, Indonesia, where I will be visiting a Japanese friend named Yoko who was once my neighbor in Chibuto, Mozambique. (So you see, the world is not so vast and it's possible to transcend cultural and linguistic distances to keep up friendships.) The 3rd leg of my journey will be a visit to my motherland, Taiwan, where my little sister is studying Chinese.
Going from "residing abroad" to "visiting abroad" definitely has its differences.
During my two years in Mozambique, I only hosted one American visitor, my boyfriend (now fiance) Kevin, who actually came twice. I feel like it really made a difference in our relationship, because he was able to understand so much better the things I was experiencing in Africa. It was an amazing opportunity for me, to be able to show him a country that would otherwise not have been so accessible to him, and have him see it through my eyes instead of just written in a blog or posted onto Facebook via status updates and photos.
And that's what Peace Corps is about too, Goal 3: Helping promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans.
I really think that visiting friends abroad is a nice way of bringing a bit of "home" to them, bridging the distance, showing you support their work and are interested in their life. Living abroad for an extended period of time can be super challenging and lonely. (I personally would have loved to have more visitors in Moz.)
And travel costs aside, why wouldn't you take advantage of local connections who can, through their insight and recommendations, take you beyond the normal tourist experience and help you understand better the cultural aspects of what you're seeing? And take you to eat yummy local food.
So anyway. Get out of America and go visit someone who lives in a cool place!
Saturday, November 24, 2012
American Thanksgiving
I've always had a lot to be grateful for, but this year especially. After two years abroad, I was able to come home and spend Thanksgiving in America and ohmigosh, was it GLORIOUS.
Here's a quick breakdown of Mozambique Thanksgiving vs. American Thanksgiving:
Traveling 3 hours by crowded chapa and slow boleia to get to Chokwe vs. 2 hours in a private, air-conditioned car to get to LA
Sweaty 110+ degrees F vs. Balmy 70 degrees F
Small charcoal one-burner stove to cook with vs. Oven and four stove-top burners (oh the possibilities!)
The power keeps going out (cutting off the fan) vs. Having an iPhone, laptop, iPad, and TV going at the same time
Dubious packaged turkey meat vs. Two full turkeys cooked two ways (fried and oven cooked!)
Cheap wine and liquor vs. Fancy vodka/ cranberry / champagne cocktails
Washing the dishes in two buckets of water vs. Throwing them in the dishwasher
Playing homemade Apples to Apples (Moz relevant topics) vs. Playing 10-Days-In-Africa, a board game [ I have to say, Moz Thanksgiving wins this category ]
Cold bucket baths vs. Hot, steamy showers
Sleeping on a straw mat, batting away mosquitoes all night vs. Snuggling in a big bed with a room heater and no mosquito net
What I really did appreciate about holidays as a PCV was seeing the determination of Americans to get together, despite distance and other obstacles. Both years we managed to have turkey feasts on Thanksgiving, despite having seen no existence of turkeys in Moz. Which just goes to show, you can always "make it work" even without electricity, running water, or grocery stores.
Of course, two years in Africa has taught me to really, really appreciate the variety and abundance of food and flavors in America. I can recall countless times in which other PCV's and I sat around drooling while talking about foods that we missed from back home. And this year, Thanksgiving did not disappoint with a delicious home cooked meal of turkey, stuffing, gravy, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, grilled asparagus, cranberry sauce, Kev's chopped veggie salad, pumpkin pie, apple pie, and ice cream.
But of course, the best part was being with my fiancé, friends, and family during this festive time of year. The holidays would be a sad, lonely time if I didn't have them.
I thank God every day that I do.
Here's a quick breakdown of Mozambique Thanksgiving vs. American Thanksgiving:
Traveling 3 hours by crowded chapa and slow boleia to get to Chokwe vs. 2 hours in a private, air-conditioned car to get to LA
Sweaty 110+ degrees F vs. Balmy 70 degrees F
Small charcoal one-burner stove to cook with vs. Oven and four stove-top burners (oh the possibilities!)
The power keeps going out (cutting off the fan) vs. Having an iPhone, laptop, iPad, and TV going at the same time
Dubious packaged turkey meat vs. Two full turkeys cooked two ways (fried and oven cooked!)
Cheap wine and liquor vs. Fancy vodka/ cranberry / champagne cocktails
Washing the dishes in two buckets of water vs. Throwing them in the dishwasher
Playing homemade Apples to Apples (Moz relevant topics) vs. Playing 10-Days-In-Africa, a board game [ I have to say, Moz Thanksgiving wins this category ]
Cold bucket baths vs. Hot, steamy showers
Sleeping on a straw mat, batting away mosquitoes all night vs. Snuggling in a big bed with a room heater and no mosquito net
What I really did appreciate about holidays as a PCV was seeing the determination of Americans to get together, despite distance and other obstacles. Both years we managed to have turkey feasts on Thanksgiving, despite having seen no existence of turkeys in Moz. Which just goes to show, you can always "make it work" even without electricity, running water, or grocery stores.
Of course, two years in Africa has taught me to really, really appreciate the variety and abundance of food and flavors in America. I can recall countless times in which other PCV's and I sat around drooling while talking about foods that we missed from back home. And this year, Thanksgiving did not disappoint with a delicious home cooked meal of turkey, stuffing, gravy, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, grilled asparagus, cranberry sauce, Kev's chopped veggie salad, pumpkin pie, apple pie, and ice cream.
But of course, the best part was being with my fiancé, friends, and family during this festive time of year. The holidays would be a sad, lonely time if I didn't have them.
I thank God every day that I do.
Monday, November 12, 2012
One month
It's been exactly one month since I returned to the United States. Since then, here's what's changed:
- I don't get carsick anymore. Strangely enough, when I first got back I was feeling nauseous in the car ... because the roads were so smooth. I'm not even kidding. Any fast acceleration would leave me feeling sick; I guess I was used to the bumpy roads in Moz.
- Portuguese feels weird on the tongue, now that I am speaking it maybe once a week instead of all day every day. So I've joined a weekly language meetup group, but mainly they speak Brazilian Portuguese and call me out on my Moz accent.
- I don't wake up in the middle of the night and wonder where I am or where my mosquito net is.
- I've eaten about 80% of the things on my "Foods I Want When I Go Home" list.
- Kevin says my butt got bigger...
- ... So I'm working out again.
- All the other 15ers are steadily trickling home! It felt weird being here while they were all still there.
- One of my dogs in Chicumbane passed away. (See previous post)
- I've begun the job search, which may eventually lead me to the East Coast.
- I've started studying for the FSOT in February.
- I have re-learned the concept of personal space as it applies to standing in line.
- Winter in San Diego has arrived, but who are we kidding. 60's and 70's are nothing to complain about.
- I've not only gotten caught up on Facebook, Pinterest, LivingSocial, and Gangnam Style, I am now addicted to my iPhone. And Instagram. Thanks, Kev.
- I was finally approved for LASIK surgery and am getting it done this Friday :)
- I've made further plans to travel. In December, I will be heading to South Korea, Indonesia, and Taiwan to see friends and family.
Here's what hasn't changed:
- The president. (Boy, was I tired of election stuff by the end of it.)
- I still automatically place one hand under my elbow when shaking people's hands, a sign of respect in Moz culture.
- I still, when inebriated, run off into the bushes to tinkle. But at least I don't have the urge to do it when sober. (Anymore.)
- I still constantly marvel at how "expensive" everything is in the States and how easy it is to spend money.
- Grocery stores still intimidate me, with their absurd amount of options for everything.
- I continue to get offended when people don't greet me or acknowledge me when they walk by. Rude.
- I still haven't started driving, which makes living in California a bit inconvenient.
- I still miss Moz every day.
- I don't get carsick anymore. Strangely enough, when I first got back I was feeling nauseous in the car ... because the roads were so smooth. I'm not even kidding. Any fast acceleration would leave me feeling sick; I guess I was used to the bumpy roads in Moz.
- Portuguese feels weird on the tongue, now that I am speaking it maybe once a week instead of all day every day. So I've joined a weekly language meetup group, but mainly they speak Brazilian Portuguese and call me out on my Moz accent.
- I don't wake up in the middle of the night and wonder where I am or where my mosquito net is.
- I've eaten about 80% of the things on my "Foods I Want When I Go Home" list.
- Kevin says my butt got bigger...
- ... So I'm working out again.
- All the other 15ers are steadily trickling home! It felt weird being here while they were all still there.
- One of my dogs in Chicumbane passed away. (See previous post)
- I've begun the job search, which may eventually lead me to the East Coast.
- I've started studying for the FSOT in February.
- I have re-learned the concept of personal space as it applies to standing in line.
- Winter in San Diego has arrived, but who are we kidding. 60's and 70's are nothing to complain about.
- I've not only gotten caught up on Facebook, Pinterest, LivingSocial, and Gangnam Style, I am now addicted to my iPhone. And Instagram. Thanks, Kev.
- I was finally approved for LASIK surgery and am getting it done this Friday :)
- I've made further plans to travel. In December, I will be heading to South Korea, Indonesia, and Taiwan to see friends and family.
Here's what hasn't changed:
- The president. (Boy, was I tired of election stuff by the end of it.)
- I still automatically place one hand under my elbow when shaking people's hands, a sign of respect in Moz culture.
- I still, when inebriated, run off into the bushes to tinkle. But at least I don't have the urge to do it when sober. (Anymore.)
- I still constantly marvel at how "expensive" everything is in the States and how easy it is to spend money.
- Grocery stores still intimidate me, with their absurd amount of options for everything.
- I continue to get offended when people don't greet me or acknowledge me when they walk by. Rude.
- I still haven't started driving, which makes living in California a bit inconvenient.
- I still miss Moz every day.
Friday, November 9, 2012
Magorducha
Today, I found out that one of my dogs in Chicumbane died.
His name was Magorducha and he was the sweetest. When he was a fluffly little puppy, he used to sleep against my front door every day and I'd have to warn him to get out of the way when I needed to go out. Actually, he still did that occasionally when he was full grown, mainly in the evenings, I think just to let me know he was there to protect me.
No one loved this dog like I did. He was my baby.
I can't help but feel guilty, because I wasn't there in his final moments. It breaks my heart to think that he crawled into the house in his final moments and didn't find me.
Life goes on, everywhere, and that's a hard fact to face. But in my mind I'll always see him running up to greet me whenever I came home, digging holes in the quintal, chasing chickens, sneakily following me to work, trying to come into the house when it rained, pulling my trash out of the trash pit, all the things that made him happy (and usually annoyed me). He was such a huge part of my life in Chicumbane, and I'll always love him for that.
I hope you're in doggy heaven, Magorducha, where you won't need to settle for maggoty goat parts anymore, and you can chase all the chickens you want. You deserve it.
His name was Magorducha and he was the sweetest. When he was a fluffly little puppy, he used to sleep against my front door every day and I'd have to warn him to get out of the way when I needed to go out. Actually, he still did that occasionally when he was full grown, mainly in the evenings, I think just to let me know he was there to protect me.
No one loved this dog like I did. He was my baby.
I can't help but feel guilty, because I wasn't there in his final moments. It breaks my heart to think that he crawled into the house in his final moments and didn't find me.
Life goes on, everywhere, and that's a hard fact to face. But in my mind I'll always see him running up to greet me whenever I came home, digging holes in the quintal, chasing chickens, sneakily following me to work, trying to come into the house when it rained, pulling my trash out of the trash pit, all the things that made him happy (and usually annoyed me). He was such a huge part of my life in Chicumbane, and I'll always love him for that.
I hope you're in doggy heaven, Magorducha, where you won't need to settle for maggoty goat parts anymore, and you can chase all the chickens you want. You deserve it.
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