New Zealand, Australia, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia

Tuesday, January 15, 2008

Bring on 2008

Happy New Year! We hope everyone had a fabulous holiday season! We got back in Fiji just in time for Cyclone Daman to run its course through the northern group of islands. Peace Corps consolidated all the volunteers to the main 2 islands, so we were sent to Suva for 5 days waiting to see the cyclone’s course. From November- April its cyclone season in Fiji and with global warming they say to expect more cyclones than in the past. Besides dodging Daman, we have been enjoying the slow holiday season. Everything winds down during this time because it’s the “summer break” for all of the kids. Despite the indolent attitude towards working, Drew managed to get his water distribution project up and running before Christmas- just in time for all the visiting family members. All the villagers are so happy they don’t have to draw water from the well anymore. We spent Christmas day with our village family eating lots of roast pig, chicken, and fish, going to lots of church, and playing games on the beach with the kids. We decided to go to Taveuni Island- coined the garden island of Fiji- for New Years. We spent a few days surfing, hiking to waterfalls, snorkeling, and camping on the beach with a few other Peace Corps volunteers. It took us 26 hours by ferries and buses to get there, but the breathtaking scenery made it all worth the journey. Since the date line runs directly through Taveuni we were absolutely the first people to bring in the new year. We look forward to getting our last few projects finished up in the next few months. Drew will finish his water project in the village and help Liss with the construction of the new compost toilet project at the school. Our village is having an official ceremony this week to open our dispensary, so Liss can finally work in our village. All the best in 2008!

Blog Archive

*The contents of this blog are ours personally and do not refelct the U.S. Government or the Peace Corps*