coming soon: pictures

First order of business, the group has started a Photobucket site for all our pictures. Here is the address: http://photobucket.com/Fijifre6 I'm not sure how it works on your end, but I think you should be able to go there and look at pictures. Alas, nothing is posted... yet! Hopefully we can get some pics up there soon. I'm just as anxious to show my pictures as I'm sure you are to see them.

Second, thanks so much for the comments!! It's so wonderful to hear from people. kelsey, I totally appreciated the updates! The only news I get is about the Fiji 15s rugby team. I also eagerly await any and all packages, large and/or small! But I don't expect them because I know it's expensive and I still have a good two+ years to go here in Fiji.

What else. My nickname in the village is "Di Tela." "Tela" means tailor and "Di" is a shortened word for aunt or a sign of respect and chiefly position in the village. It's fun. Kids shout out my name as I'm walking around and call me stuff like Mommy Taylar. Friday we're finding out our site announcements and celebrating the 4th of July. Next week we go visit our sites then return to our villages for two more weeks. It's starting to go fast now!

Foods I've taken to liking are "rourou" which is the leaves of the dalo plant and sosopi, which in English I'm told is soupsop. It's this delicious fruit that is both sweet and sour at the same time and so utterly delicious I can't even describe it!

Once I get to my site I'll get a new address, so I'll keep you posted on that. I'll also get a mobile soon, too. Technology is amazing sometimes.

Fiji is full of a lot of paradoxes. The more I learn about the country, too, the harder the problems seem to be to solve. There aren't really a lot of resources here except for the natural ones and space is really limited so it's hard to start up industries, especially because the infrastructure also isn't really here. The investment in the country is all foreign and with an interim, not democratically elected government, it's hard for anything to be accomplished. I'm excited about what we'll be doing because we'll actually be working with people who will most benefit who aren't being heard or don't know where to go. A lot of the kids are sick (always with runny noses, coughs, etc) or have boils and scabies. Medical care is free is some areas but the tradition is so strong in the villages that they don't like to go. [Speaking of which, I have my first PC injury: a little heat rash spot on the inside of my left elbow. I have no idea how it happened.]

I'm really encouraged by the way PC goes about their work, but Training is a whole different story. It's pretty unorganized and we spend a lot of time waiting. We don't have any free days except Sundays and by then we're just tired and our families want to spend time with us. Balancing "American time" and organization with "Fiji Time" is a really hard place to be.

I think I'll stop there. If there are any questions, shout them out. I forget what I write.

Much love!!!!!