From the plane to Majuro, I looked out from the window seat and saw the tiny atoll that I’d be living on for the next year and that’s when everything hit me…the RMI is the most physically isolated place I’ve ever been to in my life. We just completed our first week of orientation so I’ll try to sum up this last week:
-We’re staying in classrooms in an elementary school outside of Majuro in a beautiful area with the lagoon on one side and the ocean to the other. It’s definitely roughing it since we’re sleeping on mats on the floor but I’m having a blast…it feels like a mix of summer camp and school, since we have sessions throughout the day. I actually love the bucket showers, especially at night when you can look up at the stars and hear the ocean.
-We befriended some local kids here and have been playing volleyball, basketball, and ukulele with them when we have free time.
-Began our Marshallese language classes…Yokwe!
-Our classes during the day focus on pretty much everything from teaching methods to local customs.
-We go to sleep just after dark and wake up with the sun…I don’t even wear a watch. I’m just getting used to “island time”, where if you say you’ll be somewhere around 4, it means you’ll be there between 4 and 5. Oh yeah, we also wake up to the neighborhood roosters (which I have definitely chased in the mornings to get them away from our door…they’re SO LOUD)
-Watched an eclipse the other day…almost full from our atoll, but not quite. Some people bought some welder’s masks that we used to look at it with.
-Tried Marshallese food…a staple of their diet is fish, rice, and breadfruit, which is a sort of starchy fruit that isn’t my favorite on its own, but breadfruit chips are awesome. We also ate some raw fish that is sort of like ceviche and pretty tasty.
-Bought my ukulele!!!! This is definitely a major highlight of orientation…a few of us bought them and have just been jamming at night. We’ve already got a band together and have written a few original songs which are absolutely hilarious and ridiculous…more on that later.
-Went to our party at the Ministry of Education where we got to meet our principles. My principle is really nice and interesting…apparently she went to the University of Nebraska and has a master’s degree. I ate dinner with her at the party and she presented me with a gorgeous Marshallese necklace made of shells.
-Learned how to open a coconut to drink the milk inside…you basically gnaw the top off a bit until you reach the “mouth” of the coconut, then take your thumb and just try to pop it open. It sprayed everywhere when I did it but I was so pumped I didn’t care.
-We’re hot and sweaty every single day so everyone has pretty much given up on trying to be clean except for the few precious moments after our bucket showers
-Marshallese dress code is quite a bit more conservative than we’re used to, and as women, we have to cover up our knees and shoulders. A lot of people have already bought muumuus and guam dresses, but I’ve stuck to long skirts thus far. I’ll definitely get some eventually but I’m not ready just yet…
-There’s usually a bug crawling on my bed, around me, or on me. No big deal.
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