Hi everyone!
Can you believe it's been 8 months since we left? Only 19 more months to go and we know they are going to fly by!
Life on Vatulele is heating up everyday. Now that it's the rainy season, it really has been coming down and everything is growing at exponential rate including the humidity. You know it's harder than you think to cut the lawn by hand. The mosquito's have hit frenzy status but somehow we are managing to cope with them. We recently received a small plot of land for a garden with the help of the village men and planted nearly 100 cassava plants (root crop that is eaten almost everyday). There is lots of room for vegetables still so we will see what the next season will bring.
Since we came back after Christmas we have been very busy working on projects on the island. Drew is working to get running water into the village and is on the paper work phase of the project. Melissa has been working at the health center and recently conducted a dental survey of all 175 school children.
We realize education is the key and we are pulling together our resources to get on it. We're still teaching at the primary school and we've decided to start a Saturday class for kids to teach them first aid and other life skills. Melissa's getting her yoga/nutrition class started while Drew is refining his fishing skills.
We decided to go to Suva, the capital, for one week to get back in touch with the real world. Of course we have been enjoying all the popsicles, and cold water we can possibly drink, but it's really been meeting after meeting with Peace Corps Staff, NGO's, and other government ministries. It has been nice to have some good dinners, see a couple of movies, and not worrying about combating the bugs.
We still love our little abode and our garden is booming right now with basil, eggplant, tomato, melon, and papaya. Our puppy 'Tave' is still keeping us entertained. He follows us everywhere, which can be annoying when he runs after you all the way to the next village. We taught him how to shake with saying "Bula" and he is pretty good at sitting and laying down by command. We still receive tons of seafood and recently someone gave us a lobster. It was such a treat! We are staying healthy with fresh island lifestyle and we are as happy as ever.
We love you and miss you all!
Since we came back after Christmas we have been very busy working on projects on the island. Drew is working to get running water into the village and is on the paper work phase of the project. Melissa has been working at the health center and recently conducted a dental survey of all 175 school children.
We realize education is the key and we are pulling together our resources to get on it. We're still teaching at the primary school and we've decided to start a Saturday class for kids to teach them first aid and other life skills. Melissa's getting her yoga/nutrition class started while Drew is refining his fishing skills.
We decided to go to Suva, the capital, for one week to get back in touch with the real world. Of course we have been enjoying all the popsicles, and cold water we can possibly drink, but it's really been meeting after meeting with Peace Corps Staff, NGO's, and other government ministries. It has been nice to have some good dinners, see a couple of movies, and not worrying about combating the bugs.
We still love our little abode and our garden is booming right now with basil, eggplant, tomato, melon, and papaya. Our puppy 'Tave' is still keeping us entertained. He follows us everywhere, which can be annoying when he runs after you all the way to the next village. We taught him how to shake with saying "Bula" and he is pretty good at sitting and laying down by command. We still receive tons of seafood and recently someone gave us a lobster. It was such a treat! We are staying healthy with fresh island lifestyle and we are as happy as ever.
We love you and miss you all!
