Rain, Rain Go Away

Three weeks and counting...three weeks of wet, windy, nasty weather. Three weeks of wet laundry, muddy feet and lots of time indoors. Also, this is peak cyclone season, so we are on alert for cyclone warnings and possible consolidation. Oiaue.

In other news, last week was the beginning of school, although not the beginning of classes. The students at the catering school came in to fill out their school applications and scholarship forms to help pay for their school fees. The teaching staff had meetings with officers from the Free Wesleyan Church offices in Tongatapu, updating us on changes for the 2012 school year. Next week will be our first week with the students. We will start with orientation and field trips to local hospitality establishments.

The beginning of school also marks the beginning of track and field season. I may try my hand at coaching again this year, although coaches are more often found socializing under the mango trees as opposed to actually helping students. If this is the case, I am more than happy to help coach =)

Outside of school, I have been hanging out with my fellow town folks, Dominica and a new Australian volunteer, Jessica. We take advantage of our close proximity to town by eating lots of ice cream and buying lots of DVDs. Good times in Vava'u!

Back in Vava'u

Hello everyone! Sorry for the lack of updates lately, but now that I'm back at my site I should be able to start blogging again.

To wrap up my time in America, I spent a couple days giving presentations about Tonga. I spoke to classes at Highland Middle School, Reynolds High School, and the Sunday School classes of St. Mark's, all of which were great audiences. I loved sharing my stories, and I hope others enjoyed them, too.

When I arrived back in Tonga, I attended a training session with the rest of Group 76. It was great to see all of the other volunteers from different islands and catch up.

Now that I'm back in Vava'u, I'm just cleaning my house and getting ready to start school. Next Monday, we begin planning week and the following week is the first week of school. I'm excited to get back to school, see all of the Mailefihi staff, and meet the new students.

Here's to a great 2012!

Hello America!

Family, food, malls, cars, cold, food, Christmas, food, friends, travel, beer, food. America is a little overwhelming! However, it feels so great to be home and I could not be happier to see my friends and family.

Wishing everyone a merry Christmas and joyful new year!

Happy Holidays

Here in Tonga, the holidays are now in full swing. Not only is Christmas quickly approaching, but last week was graduation which marked the official end of school. In other words, in Tonga it is summer break and Christmas at the same time! How fabulous is that? This magical combination means that the past couple weeks have been lots of fun.

The first holiday celebration I attended in Tonga was our Peace Corps Thanksgiving dinner. We were able to track down all the traditional Thanksgiving foods; turkey from Tongatapu, stuffing and cranberry sauce from America, homemade rolls, mashed potatoes, glazed carrots, pumpkin pie, and apple pie. Yum! Also, it was great to spend some time with my Peace Corps family.

Last Tuesday was our Christmas program at school. Even though it's still November, Tongan schools usually do a Christmas program early before summer break begins. Each class was responsible for preparing a Christmas tree. Most classes brought in regular old trees with branches and leaves because pine trees are non-existent in Tonga. Even though most weren't traditional Christmas trees, they still looked beautiful with all of the garland, ornaments, and balloons. The program also included lots of Christmas songs. My favorite was "The 12 days of Christmas" performed by Class 1 and Class 2. So cute!

The most recent celebration was our graduation ceremony on Thursday. It was very different than most graduations I've attended in America. There were the usual speeches and announcements of the top students, but there was also lots of music, tons of candy necklaces and money as gifts from students' families, and a table full of prizes. It was also my first time attending a ceremony where I had students graduating. I was so proud of them all! Now it's time to travel, relax, and visit with family and friends.

Happy holidays everyone!

A Pleasant Picnic

Yesterday was on of the last events of the 2011 school year at Mailefihi, a farewell picnic for the teachers who will be leaving next year. As of right now, there are 4 teachers leaving next year, one of them being my neighbor and fellow PCV Ashley. Next week there will be an announcement for all the Wesleyan schools about the "hiki fiako" or relocation of teachers. That means that many of our teachers will be moving to teach at Wesleyan schools on different islands in Tonga. However, we will also be getting many new teachers next year. I'm curious to see what the 2012 staff will be!

Anyway, I think that the picnic yesterday was a fantastic way to say goodbye to the teachers who are leaving. It was a gorgeous day with lots of sunshine and a wonderful island breeze. At the beach, we had a stunning view of some outer islands and the open ocean beyond. There was plenty to do including volleyball, cards, swimming and naturally tons of food. My favorite was eating all the fresh pineapple and watermelon...perfect picnic food!

Along with this end of the year event, we had a Christmas program on Friday, our last Sunday church service with students and teachers today, a upcoming candlelight march on Tuesday, and the graduation ceremony on Thursday. We are so close to being finished, and then I'm so looking forward to my travels in December! Until then, I will be found enjoying the beautiful beaches of Tonga and some delicious island food.

Student Assessments

It's official. I have the coolest job ever. For the past two and a half weeks, my students have been doing their final assessments. Each student had to prepare an appetizer, a main, and a dessert. My job was to grade their work in the kitchen; cleanliness, hygiene, proper methods, correct uniform, use of knives, etc. After grading their work, I also got to assist with taste testing. Yum.

I was very impressed with the food the students prepared. Here are some example menus:

- Tempura, fish and chips, brownies

- Lobster cocktail, lobster bombay, banana split

- Chef's salad, fish curry, pineapple fritters

- Sushimi, stuffed chicken, tropical fruit salad

- Green salad, polynesian fish, banana foster

It was all delicious, and I had a super fun two weeks. Now, that the assessments are finished, the students have choir practice and cleaning everyday until graduation on November 24th. After that, some travels around the islands and America here I come! Can't wait!

Happy Halloween

Halloween is not a big holiday in Tonga. In fact, no one really celebrates except the tourists and expats who live here. But today thanks to a fellow volunteer, Ashley, some of the class one and class two students got to experience Halloween for the first time.

As part of their English lesson this week, these students learned how to say "trick or treat" and "thank you, happy Halloween". They also made butterfly and lion masks as their costumes, and learned to say either "I am a butterfly" or "I am a lion". The kids walked over to my classroom, decked out in their masks and carrying plastic bags. When they arrived, they knocked or my door and said "trick or treat" in their best English. A couple kids got ahead of themselves, and when I opened the door shouted "I am a lion". Regardless of what they said, they all did a great job and were rewarded with lollipops, a pencil, a toothbrush, and silly bands.

Happy Halloween!