First Week in Makeni

Today and yesterday I was left to myself. On Monday, Vicar General Dominic asked me if I would need some time to settle in before I began work. I told him I think it would be best to take some time to get used to living in Sierra Leone and yes I definitely needed to rest. So he said I could start working at the hospital next week.

I’ve been trying to stay active while I’m here. First, I usually do some light yoga. But then I go for a walk down the road where I live. It’s called Stocco Road at Stocco Junction. I live in the Stocco Compound. Stocco Compound is very clean and there are a lot of beautiful plants here. In front of my house are two bushes with white flowers that I found out are called “crepe jasmine”. They smell heavenly. Outside the compound, Stocco Road is a dirt road with many pot holes and bumps. The road is lined with the homes of people who live here. Chickens run around free and goats are usually tied to trees but sometimes they get loose too. Cars and motor bikes make their way up and down the road, honking their horns the whole time. Children play close to the road. All the locals are very friendly. When I’m walking down the road they smile and wave. Many people, especially children, invite me to talk with them. One family even had me come and sit on their front porch with them. They all are pleasantly surprised that my name is so similar to a Siera Leonean name. I try so hard to remember their names but it’s so difficult because I’ve met so many people and the names I am given are so different from American names. After seeing what I can see of Stocco Road, I go back to my house.

There is something a bit odd about my meals though. The Vicar General had told me on Monday someone would come to take me to dinner that night and no one did. And then no one came at lunchtime the next day. It’s not like I was starving. I had been given some canned tuna and ground nuts by the bishop so that was good. Lunch finally did come at 2:30 pm with a delivery man. Apparently, my meals are going to be brought to me instead of me brought to them. It was a chicken leg, with some very spicy rice, and some vegetables. Dinner was the same. And then the next day (thankfully at an earlier time), lunch was the same. I wonder if I’m going to get tired of chicken and rice. Actually, as I’m writing this, the delivery man just came with dinner and low and behold, something different! It’s fish, pasta, and vegetables! Hurray!

I do worry I’m going to get bored while I try and rest up. Granted I do have chores I do around the house but even just the little things wear me out so much because I’m so hot and sweaty all the time. I have a kindle and other things to keep me occupied though. And a cold shower always makes me feel better. The power still goes out a lot. I hope the water doesn’t give out too.

I also hope I can learn where I can go and buy things. I especially want to learn how to barter. I asked one sister living here named sister Vivian if she knew of any stores close by. She said she would show me. I also want learn what a fair price is. There is so much I need to figure out while I’m here! God bless!

 

The Next Day:

 

Today was a great day! This morning, I had my first class with Father Gabriel learning about the language here called Krio. I learned different ways to greet people, different words that they say here that are similar to English, and different phrases that will be useful when I am working at the hospital, like “Do ya si don” which means “Please sit down” and “Ow yo dai fill?” which means “How do you feel?”. He even taught me the Krio words for different parts of the body. For example, when people say “han”, it means more than just hand. It means the wrist, arm, and shoulder. Father Gabirel is a good teacher. He is patient but also makes me do work. Instead of just talking at me, which I feel a lot of teachers do, he has me repeat phrases and try to figure out what phrases mean on my own.

When he asked me how I was doing, I told him I was doing fine, just a little tired being at the house all day. It’s good I’m resting before I start work, but it’s hard being here with no internet or phone yet. When he heard that, he told me he was going out to the bush today to meet with some people in a village. The bush basically means the countryside outside of Makeni. He asked me if I would like to go with him. I said I would love to! So after lunch (and applying a lot of sunscreen and bug spray), I got into his car and we drove out of Makeni.

The roads in Makeni are paved. But when you leave the city, it’s all dirt with a lot of bumps and pot holes. It’s kind of like Stocco Road, the road I live on, but that road is short. This road goes on and on into the jungle. I’m sure we went for miles and miles but I didn’t feel any of the bumps or dips. I was too fascinated with my surroundings. We passed by many villages with colorful buildings. There were palm trees, mango trees, people walking up and down the road, farmland where people grew their crops. Father pointed out many churches where he used to preach and baptize people. Everything was so new and different for me I was over the moon seeing everything. At one point we passed by a plot of land where people were growing peppers. Father Gabriel asked if I had ever seen these peppers. I said no and he immediately stopped the car and let me get out to go meet the people in the field. They showed me all the hard work they had done picking the peppers. I even got to practice the greetings I learned. They were very friendly.

Later down the road, we passed some mounds that looked like giant fancy mushrooms. I asked Father Gabirel what they were, and he said they were ant hills. He told me that people will saw them off at the base and break them open so their chickens can eat the grubs inside. Then people will mix the broken pieces of the ant hill with sand to help them build their houses. Father let me go out to take pictures of the hills. I was careful to watch my step so I wouldn’t run into those ants. The last thing I ever want is fancy ants in my pants!

 

Every time we passed by a village, the children would see me and call out “Porto! Porto!” Father Gabriel explained that it’s short for “Portuguese”. The Portuguese were the first Europeans in Sierra Leone. So now whenever they see someone with pale skin, they call them “Porto”. When we stopped so Father could speak with someone, all the children came up to the car to see me. I greeted them by saying “Kushe O,” and they all smiled and greeted me back. I gave them all high fives before Father drove on.

When we came to the village that was our destination, Father explained that he was building a church there across from the village school. We met one of the teachers and a builder there and while they spoke with Father, I took some pictures and looked around at the surrounding area. I was careful not to go off the road though because of snakes or whatever else was crawling around in the brush. The flowers are so beautiful here. I asked Father what kind a pretty pink flower I found was. He told me it was just a regular flower. But not to me! It was brand new and beautiful. One of the men Father was talking to saw how much I wanted to get closer to the flower, so he picked one for me so I could see it better. It was so nice of him. Everyone I meet is very polite and say their happy to see me. And I tell them I’m happy to see them too!

After his business was done, Father drove me and some of the villagers back to Makeni. We made one stop at a hardware store so one of the builders could get some materials, then came back to Stocco Compound. Father says if I want, I can come again with him sometime. I can’t wait! I thank God for this day. Or as they say in Krio, “Ah tankee God!” It was truly a blessing to get out and see more of Sierra Leone.