Things are really going now. ..

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Hi everyone!
I think Joe left off at our trip in Nasivikoso which, if you hadn't picked up on, was amazing and life changing. Fiji is, if nothing else, full of the most amazingly selfless, kind, happy and entertaining people i've ever met. So far the most enjoyable aspect of life here is the relationships i've made with the Fijians I work with and live with. I'm not sure how much joe said about it but around here, all over Fiji actually, everynight consists of sitting around the Kava bowl, singing Fijian songs (which we've fallen inlove with and are getting alittle better and trying to sing along with), laughing and relaxing. I'll definitely miss that when i get back.

So, staff training was fun but it ended abruptly with the first shipment of highschool students from the states two weeks ago. For those of you who still don't know how this works, there are about 25 staff that live in this big house with us (half fijian half Western) and about 40 highschool students (mostly american). there are 6 service projects that are headed by 6 of the staff members. The kids break up into small grouips and rotate from project to project, a different one each day. Im responcible for my own project which is beginning to smooth out by now but is challanging every day and quite stressful at times. Its worth it though because my project is to impliment and head art programs at 6 different schools around the area we live in on the island. none of these kids have ever had the opportunity to do art at all and theier schools can't affort art programs. some of the schools are 'public' schools which have about 150 kids and are primarily indian (the population in Fiji is about 50% Indian-Fijian and 50% Native Fijian) and most of the schools i work at are village schools which are completely Fijian since Fijian families live in Villages not towns.

i'm beginning to get the hang of it. its an interesting role to be the only point of contact and reference whle working with a group of american highschool students, the student population at these schools and the adminstration i'm working with. an amazing job and i'm learning ALOT very quickly! Joe left this morning on his first Escape trip. i don't have the itinterary with me right now but i'll put it up. his trip doesn't even come to the base house and hes got 9 kids total on this first trip. they travel around fiji camping and staying in hotels. he was pumped this morning when he left (at like 4:30 am). i'm in town today with my good friend Heidi (a staff memeber who runs the kindergarten program) hanging out with the second group of kids before taking them to the air port tonight. our third group of students comes in this afternoon....

PS: Joe and i got our Visas and their on their way to us in the mail... were going to Vietnam in the beginning of August!!!! i can't wait! what an amazing summer!

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Photos

robinson cruseau island
this is where one of the programs is, they do research on this island...Joe and I got to tag along the first week. beautiful!

soccer
joe playing soccer with some local kids

yeehaw
joe and i riding a tractor near our house.

momi guns
sun set from a 'historical site' near our house. beautiful Fiji!