Best Week I’ve Ever Had

So they say that Peace Corps is like a roller coaster, but I think it’s more like Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride. The ups are great but then without warning you are turned into a fiery hell that scares the shit out of you when you are 7. Thankfully this week was when Mr. Toad went out with some friends, pleasant and enchanting.

            It all started on Sunday. I was bored so I decided to go for a walk down by the river, one to start my daily walk to burn off some of my blubber, and two because it was finally spring with a nice warm breeze instead of the chilly I hope my nips aren’t showing like it usually is. I started listening to an audio book and walked for about an hour. Funny thing is I was paying so much attention to not falling on my ass I still can’t really understand what the book was about. Something about famous people getting drunk, but that’s beside the point. When I finally come back after turning around because a dog was staring at me, and yes I am afraid of dogs now, you would be too if you saw some of the countryside dogs that look like they can tear your spleen out in one snatch, my music teacher’s husband was waiting outside my haasha in his car. I said the courtesy hello and thought I might take a nap, but somehow I ended up in the car on the way to his house. Don’t worry the story doesn’t get creepy or anything. But it ended up that he had been waiting for like 10 minutes to invite me over for dinner. I’m pretty sure it was to thank me for having her over for American Tsagaan Sar, but who knows something could have been lost in translation seeing as neither of them speak any English. We had delicious baked vegetables and meat, which is kind of amazing because not many people have ovens, let alone use them. I once caught my cp keeping her notebooks in hers. Anyway, we talked and she showed me pictures and she even gave me pomegranate! I know! Crazy right? She had just come back from UB and said a friend gave her one and she chose to share it with me! After dinner we all hopped in the car, my music teacher, her husband, her daughter (6), and her granddaughter (3), I know weird family timeline but it works out really well surprisingly. We drove to the culture center, which is approximately a 2 minute walk from my ger where her husband went in to see the wrestling tournament. The girls stayed in the car because she was in her robe and slippers. I didn’t just want to leave her so I stuck around, that and because I didn’t know if it would be considered rude. We hung out for a while or so chatting about our families and her children, you know good bonding topics. She sent her daughter out to get ice cream, which we also ate in the car, and after what seemed like an hour I started to keep track of the time. We laughed sang English, Mongolian, and Russian songs, I bonded with both the kids so that when I see them now they actually talk to me instead of staring blankly in my direction. But after 2 hours I decided to go ahead and walk home. I got a shitty nights sleep because I got home so late, but she also told the teachers the story of how we sat in a car for probably 3 hours right outside my house in the teacher’s room. It was well worth it.

            The next awesome turn was when my department (English, Russian, Mongolian, and Social Science *basically foreign language and a rando) decided to do some team teaching exercises. So we were all put into teams of 3-4 teachers and went at it. I was paired with one Mongolian and one English teacher. We decided to focus our lesson on animals and adjectives because we were going to teach 6^th grade. Our Mongolian teacher, Paga, talked about the differences between 4 animals (elephant, lion, rabbit, and giraffe), habitats, eating habbits, and so on. Ichka, our other English teacher reviewed past adjectives to get the class warmed up to English. And finally I introduced six new adjectives and did an exercise with them too. We used a projector to make it that much more spectacular. Needless to say our presentation was almost flawless. Can’t toot my own horn too much. I was actually really proud of putting together such a great lesson in just one day. The feedback we got back from the other teachers who watched was amazing. They said that it was a true lesson focused on the student’s abilities and not just making the teacher look good. They complimented us on our organization and time management too. It seriously made my week. The other teacher’s lessons were very good as well and had plenty of materials to work with. It was great to see them put that much effort into lesson planning, but now I know that they can do it and just choose not to do it with me….

           

            But not to worry because my week picked up for the last and final curveball with a field trip to the aimag with my 5^th grade students. I tutor one of the 5^th grade teachers, Tegshe, two to three times a week and asked if I could tag along. And man am I so glad I did. We went to celebrate the end of elementary school, which is kind of a big deal, especially where 30% of students don’t graduate. (and yes I just made that statistic up…) We took both 5^th grade classes (50 students in total) in one meeker (large van which held 24 students and 2 adults, excluding the driver) and a bus (holding 26 student, 2 teachers, and 2 teachers kids, excluding the driver). Needless to say it was packed. I sat by the door to keep the kiddies safe. We left around 8 and were off for the four-hour drive! (The drive time has shortened thank goodness because spring is finally here!) My teachers had the trip planned down to the minute. They even made an itinerary. It was adorable. We stopped at a few religious statues along the way, with our teacher trainer explaining the meaning of them to the students. Only 4 out of 24 students got sick, which I call a success too! Once we got to the big city we stopped for lunch at one of my favorite restaurants (aka a guanz, or a local food palace). The teachers were spoiled with breaded chicken while the kids got an assortment of eggs and mystery meat. We then drove to the first museum, the history museum. Basically the history of Mongolia’s clothing, artifacts found in the dessert and paintings. It was kind of an assortment of Mongolian traditions and traditional items. Even though most of the kids knew what most of the stuff was, they were still really interested. It was fun to see them intrigued in their own culture. We wandered over to the next museum across the street after about an hour or so. My friend, April, joined us too. The second museum is more about the nature and animals of Mongolia. It had taxidermy animals and even a dinosaur skeleton that was discovered in Bayankhongor. Needless to say the kids were ecstatic to see everything, and went a bit cray-cray.

            After the museums we walked to the park where there was a huge type of cat with a slide coming out of its mouth. The kids went wild. I mean I would have too if I were a kid and just came out of two museums. We then walked all around Bayankhongor to a bunch of different statues where our training manager explained the meaning, symbolism, and when it was built. It was really interesting to see that she knew all those things even though she lives so far away. We finally made it to the hill in the middle of the city with an oboo, or religious statue, on top. We all walked up slowly and took countless pictures. Finally the day was done and we were all exhausted. The drive back was pretty nice. We all sang and relaxed our feet. It was pleasant because the sun goes down around 9:30 or so, so the whole drive was lit and we didn’t get lost once! We even made it back in record time. This was definitely the best trip I have had so far. The kids just made it so much more memorable and entertaining.

            Oh and last but not least I put on an alcohol awareness month. I was a little skeptical of whether it would work or not because a month is a long time. The goal was to have one competition per week all in Mongolian of course. And so far it has been a great success. The first week was the drawing competition where students grades 5-9 drew pictures of what our soum and families would look like without alcohol. We had 34 students participate and the pictures were incredible. We gave out medals so they got really into it. The second week we did an essay or poem competition for 10-12 graders where they wrote about their families and the affect alcohol has on them. We had an astonishing 68 students participate and the essays got very real. It was really nice to see the students portray their real lives, even though they might not be idyllic. We winning essays were incredible and very personal. We decided to type them up and post them without names to keep their identities from judgmental eyes. This past week we did skits, or role-play. We only had 3 groups participate, but they were phenomenal. They used stories that have actually happened in our soum to make it that much more meaningful. They were so good they are going to present them at our parent’s day next month.

            So basically I had the best week I’ve ever had in Mongolia so far. What have you been up to this week?

            Hope your week was as baller as mine.

                      

                              Rojo

PS This next photo is a special treat for all of you who actually read this far down. Just look at all their faces. They love me. 

For almost every volunteer here in Mongolia, unless you are the naturally blessed curve-less petite whose doctor asks to gain weight, there comes a time when one of your friends calls you fat. Now it is not that they are being mean, but most people here are just naturally skinny, just like the ones most hate back in America. Granted America is known for being a fat country, and I have nothing against fat people, but man it doesn’t sting any less.

            I love this country and all the experiences and people I have met, but they are blunt and don’t really grasp the concept of offensiveness. I guess I should start from the beginning…

            In high school I was pretty average, except for large boobs, which to this day I am very proud of. They have taken me far. In college I gained the freshman 15-20 but not freshman year. It kind of all began when I could drink legally. I mean the liquor adds on the pounds and then I found out I was going into the Peace Corps so I started eating my favorite foods, healthy and not. And it added up. I left for Mongolia not at my ideal weight, but my clothes still fit and I didn’t consider myself obese. Being here has been a completely different story.

            Over the summer I hiked almost everyday for hours and my clothes actually started to feel loose. I can only hope and guess I probably lost about 10 pounds, which for me was awesome! I was in a new country, eating new foods, and losing weight. What more could I ask for!

            By August I moved to my soum where I originally lived with a host family, in their house, no privacy, no kitchen. Needless to say it was awkward because my mom was antisocial, even for Mongolian standards. (For those of you not here Mongolians don’t like to ask personal questions, just polite greetings). So it went for almost 2 months with me eating bread and soup over and over and over again. On the bright side one of my teachers and I ran in the mornings everyday for about a month until it was too dark and there were too many stray dogs to ward off.

            In October I moved into my ger and things got a little better. I had my own space, could cook my own food, ect. But going from using the elliptical 3-4 times a week to nothing doesn’t help. Time continued to pass with holiday feasts and birthday fiascos but nothing changed in my new lifestyle. I used to consider myself a fairly healthy person, but now I just don’t know.

            Don’t get me wrong, I still don’t view myself as obese, but overweight yes indeed. I would say I am in the chubby yet seductively curvy phase. The one benefit is that my ass has finally come into its own.  The approaching gut and muffin top I could do without.

            That about brings us to present day. I was having kind of an awesome day because one of my teachers who never lesson plans with me came over to plan two days in a row! With great ideas too I might add. I had just added some new old pictures from high school up in my ger and we were just chatting and talking about them. This is when she commented, and I quote, “Rojo was thin in high school, but now in Mongolia Rojo is fat.” Remember Mongolians think of fat as just a descriptive word and nothing more, so I laughed along and continued to be polite, but later that evening I couldn’t watch any of my tv shows with skinny stick people in then for fear of jealousy. So of course I watched my idol on “The Mindy Project.” Needless to say she is an inspiration for all normal sized people who aren’t ridiculously naturally twigs. I’m not bitter or anything. This was the point where I knew I could go no further.

            I know what you are thinking… Rojo why don’t you just get off your fully voluptuous ass and do something about it? Three problems arise with this quest. One: most Mongolians in my soum think it is weird and odd if you run or work out in public if you are not playing a sport. Most of them don’t need to so they don’t understand. Two: I hate working out alone. It is one of my many weaknesses and I have yet to find a way to accomplish it. I have P90X and Insanity but what fun is it if you do it alone in your ger, which has no windows and is somewhat depressing when working out. Three: I have no motivation. I look in my tiny mirror where you can see one body part at a time and think why don’t I work out all the time! But then that tiny voice pops into my head saying, why bother? It’s not like you are going out clubbing tonight or like anyone is going to see you naked for another year. The evil voice of laziness also keeps chiming in that I could always just get a personal trainer when I get back to the states, but I also want to have a rockin’ bod when I get back too.

            
           So here I am reaching out to all my friends, family, and random people my family has passed my blog to, who I don’t know or don’t remember but I’m sure you are all nice people (sorry for the profanity and racy language grandma), for advice, help, or encouragement of any kind. So I need help. And real help too. I don’t mean that bullshit of “oh, you’re perfect the way you are” “you are beautiful at any size” blah blah blah. I want to be in the prime of my physical fitness when I get back to America, but I can’t seem to get past my mind to reach serenity, or something like that that sounds like an inspirational quote. 

Sincerely the blonde, blue eyed, white, Peace Corps volunteer out in pursuing her dream of going from chubby to chunky to normal, and maybe even back to backup girl at the bar in case the hot girl turns you down status for when I get back.

Rojo

So I know I have been mia lately and I am terribly sorry if you have been idly waiting by your computer to read my posts from halfway around the world. Here is what you missed in the last four months:

December:
       I went to the capital, UB, for an official Peace Corps conference. It was pretty great to see all the other volunteers, but it was also very overwhelming. I hadn't been around that many Americans in months and to say it was stressful is an understatement. Now it is hard to explain to Mongolians that just because people are from America they are not the best of friends. Don't get me wrong, I have a handful of volunteers here who I love to spend time with and call on occasion when I am in my soum, but I am not biffles with every volunteer here. So with 88 American volunteers plus 88 Mongolian English teachers in one hotel with sessions from 9-6 everyday it was a little excessive. I did have wonderful meals, pizza included, and plenty of venting on how we all miss American things and whatnot, but by the time it was all over I was ready to go home. It was a little surprising to me because I hadn't really considered Bogd my home until that moment when I was relieved to be on my way home, despite the 12 hour bus ride in the snow...
      When I got back it was just in time for New Years! We had a fantastic celebration with all of my teachers at the only karaoke joint in my soum. It was a blast! We ate, drank, and sang our hearts out the whole night long. This was definitely a bonding moment for me and my teachers. And my dancing skills are still talked about to this day. Also was asked multiple times if I could milk camels and if I wanted to live in the countryside with some drunken Mongolian herders. Needless to say I was flattered.

January:
       The new year rolled around and it was time for the traditional winter camel races of Bogd. I was ecstatic when my director asked me if I wanted to go with my training manager and her family. It was during school so it was quite a treat to skip class. Some of my teachers still haven't seen it and they have been living here for years. So i packed up my famous deviled eggs to go and hopped in the car with my training manage, Bontorma, her father, husband, and two sons. It was incredible. We drove about 30 minutes into the countryside, aka the middle of nowhere, and stopped at a ger to have some tea. One of her sons took a motorcycle the rest of the way because he was in the race. Traditionally in races children ride the camels so it is kind of a big deal. It is also terrifying because they don't wear helmets so if they fall it could become serious fairly quickly. Anyway, there were two races, one for one year old camels, and the second for the rest of them. The race was 20 kilometers and we drove behind them. At first they were walking and I was a little disappointed because it was so anticlimactic, but it turned out they were just walking to the starting line. Once the race began they were fast. It is beautiful to see camels run. They are so majestic and fast. We drove along side them most of the way and then sped up to see the finish line outside the car. It was an experience I will never forget. I also got to ride a camel for the second time with some of my bank workers. It was so exhilarating. They are so tall and gentle, but they can kill you with one kick. Mine was a little stubborn so I stayed on it for a bit because it refused to sit down so I could dismount. So I enjoyed the view, posed for some pics, and relaxed on a camel in the middle of the desert in Mongolia. It was also really exciting to see some of my student participating in the race. It was really cool to see how excited and proud they were to be apart of it all.

February:
       It finally came to one of the most famous holidays in Mongolian history. Tsagaan Sar, or Lunar New Year. Now this holiday is similar to Christmas and also very different in so many ways. People come together from all over the country to visit their relatives. In most places the tradition on Tsagaan Sar Eve is to make buuz, or meat dumplings, and put one coin in one of the buuz. The one lucky soul who gets the coin will have good fortune for the rest of the year. In my soum it is a little different. We make huushur, which is basically fried meat dumplings, and exchange it with family members. I helped one of my elementary school teachers, Tegshe, roll dough, as well as my haasha family and the next day my shoulder was sore. Hopefully that puts into perspective how many we made, here is a hint: a little over 100. Tsagaan Sar officially lasts three days, but truthfully it continues for about two weeks because realistically how are you supposed to visit all of your relatives in three days if they don't live in the same place. So on the first day of Tsagaan Sar I went with my haasha family to the countryside to visit a few of their relatives. When we entered each ger we were served milk tea, arol, and candy. Then we were served buuz. And then finally the host gave a present to each guest. This happened in each house or ger. So needless to say it is quite an extravagant holiday. Many Mongolians even take out loans to help pay for it all. The second day there was a huge wind storm so I spent time with my haasha family and relaxed. The third day I slept mostly. Although technically the holiday was over, we continued to visit teachers houses for the next two weeks. It was intense.
       I decided to throw and American Tsagaan Sar because I knew my teachers would be busy and wouldn't have time to visit my ger on the actual days. I invited 13 of my teachers to come, my English teachers, and others that I have become close with throughout my time here so far. So they came over a week after and I served them deviled eggs, goat stir fry, and pancakes for desert. I gave each of them a spring scarf, a red correcting pen, and three sea shells from my hometown. They loved it and when I visit some of my teachers I see the shells on display in their homes and it lets me know they are proud to be apart of my life.

March:
     Finally March arrived and it started to warm up. I rarely make fires now and it is wonderful. I have more free time and I love it. I recently went on vacation to a neighboring state with some other volunteers and visited another volunteer in a far off soum called Batultzii. There we were able to visit a frozen waterfall and a hidden monastery. It was unbelievable. First it was crazy how much colder it was just a little more north than I live and second there were trees! She basically lives in the forest it was beautiful. We went to the waterfall first and were able to walk on the bottom and look up. It was an extraordinary perspective that I will never forget. Then we went to the monastery. Because of the snow we drove as far up the mountain as we could and then hiked the rest of the way. It took us around 2 hours to make it all the way there, but it was worth it. It also told me I am in the worst shape of my life because it was exhausting. We legitimately climbed part of the mountain to make it up to the meditating caves. There we met a monk and a Mongolian who had meditated for three days in the cave without leaving. I wanted to ask technical questions like, did they make a fire in the cave, where did they pee, and so on, but I thought it might be a bit rude considering we were on their turf. We spent about an hour wondering around, taking pictures, and basking in the glory of the frozen mountains. After our 2 hour walk back we were exhausted. It is definitely a trip I will never forget.

       Now for the stuff I am truly proud of. Last week was the Mongolian English Olympics, which is the national and state English tests. Each some gets one student per grade to participate and through tests my teachers and I chose each student. I had been working with my students for weeks on preparing them for the exam. We did speaking and listening practice almost everyday. It was intense to say the least. But it paid off! For the state olympics my 6th grader Gantigmaa took 4th place, my teacher Ichka took 2nd place, and my 5th grader Munk-Erdene took 1st place! It was amazing to see such results because student in the aimag or state capitol have so many more opportunities to learn and practice English. But finally my 9th grader Uyunga took 3rd on the National test for my state! Needless to say we were all pretty excited about it.

In conclusion, sorry for the untimely post, but as you can see I was trying to live my life to the fullest here in my soum I finally call home.


Rojo

            So last you all heard I was having a bit of a pity party for myself. I guess everyone is a party pooper once in a while. But things are looking up and I am back or at least 50% to what I normally feel like.

            So many of you wonderful people reached out to me and I have to say it feels good. To know that some are actually reading my blog, or maybe even looking forward to it (sometimes I tend to exaggerate), but in these circumstance why not. Some friends from years past even got in touch with me and I feel honored to still even be on their minds, aka thanks facebook. But anyway here’s the scoop:

So a week ago was Thanksgiving. While down in the dumps I decided to go up to my aimag and visit some fellow volunteers to have a true Thanksgiving, stuffing and all (turkeys are a bit scarce in these parts…). I took the post office car back on Thursday and actually made it in time for a Thanksgiving dinner. My friends and their coworkers all met up for a dinner and we all gave thanks, even the Mongolians! It was a sight to see. Because I am fairly isolated we hit the town. We went to the “club” and danced the night away! Granted it is a little different from American clubs, but you still had the token handsy guy and drunk in the corner. It was so much fun we decided to go back the next day. There were a bunch of young people, probably close to my age which was a bit unusual. At least for me because in my soum I am really the only 22 year old who is single and not in school. I was teaching my friend how to Mongolian waltz and sadly to say she was struggling a bit. When suddenly a fellow Mongolian grabbed my hand and started waltzing with me. It was really fun. He was the perfect height for me, just a bit taller than me, not skyscraper tall or anything. And he smelled amazing. Now I don’t know if it is because I have been alone for so long or if it was the beer talking but to me he smelled of soap and it was wonderful. Unfortunately that is where our story ended. I will forever remember my thanksgiving soap smelling waltzing partner, whose name I was too shy to ask.

            Tangent, but this is what I realized a few days ago when I was sitting in my ger contemplating the phenomenons of life.  I am a shy person. But I am also an extrovert. I think it is a unique thing to be both. When people first meet me, especially if it is at a party, they might say what are you talking about? But my close friends know. Maybe even some of my family members, but I cannot say for sure. I realized it when I was reading a book or an article or something that was actually in English for once. But I do get shy or timid if I don’t have a bit of friendly encouragement. But this is what I have come to, some might think otherwise but for me in some aspects of life I believe I am bashful so to speak. 

            While my friends went off to work on Friday I milled about, went shopping for some canned goods (which are also absent in my soum), and giddily wandered over to the shower house. It was incredible. I felt like a new woman after that shower. It has been 3 ½ months since I have been in the presence of running water and it was fantabulous. Yes, it was so great it needs a fictitious word to describe it. Of course because it is significantly colder in the aimag compared to my soum I wore a hat most of the time and my hair was greasy yet again within 2 days. You win some, you lose some I suppose.

            That morning I was able to speak to some of my extended family because of the gloriousness of what technology is today. For only 22 cents per minute! (Feel free to call me anytime! But seriously if you are bored why not right? 94411072). Who wouldn’t want to be able to say to the question what did you do yesterday? Oh you know I talked to my friend in Mongolia for only 22 cents per minute! Anyway, it’s weird how you never forget people’s voices. Especially your family who you have been around your whole life. It seems odd that my life, or at least my day to day activities, doesn’t revolve around my family anymore. But I suppose that happens when you grow up and then eventually start a new family if you so desire.

            Anyway that evening we made chicken, stuffing, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, and even pudding pie. It’s amazing what resources you can find if you are truly determined. Granted one of the other volunteers was in UB, the capital city, the previous week to get stuff so it was mostly good timing but still. It was a lovely thanksgiving feast followed by a round of kings cup to keep the American spirit running. By the time we were all sufficiently stuffed and content we bundled up into the below freezing weather to head to “da club”. Although there were not as many young people as the night before it was still fun! I even sat and talked with a Mongolian who was a friend of a friend for quite some time. It was refreshing to talk to someone who wasn’t a student too. I even got an invitation to a New Years party from the gentleman. I’m not saying I’ll except but at least I have options now ;). Don’t worry mom I wont marry him and stay in Mongolia forever. He doesn’t speak a lick of English, so that might be a bit of an obstacle. We wandered back home around 11:30 or so, which was something. They kept the club open an extra 30 minutes for us Americans. Funny how here I am referred to as the Russian instead of the blonde.

            I wandered back to my soum after the wonderful long weekend and hit the grind. Why do they say that anyway, I know it’s probably an idiom of some kind but I never understood the meaning behind it. Where did it start? Also if you haven’t noticed I stopped taking my ADHD medication so I tend to wander off topic sometimes, but Mongolians don’t seem to mind and I am more creative off it anyway.

            This week has been crazy. I haven’t even washed my hair I’ve been so busy and that’s saying something. Before thanksgiving I started going to the dormitory to teach sexual education. I gave a condom demonstration and thankfully there were plenty of volunteers to show other students. The previous volunteer apparently had given many lessons on sexual safety and relationships, which to be quite frank I am very relieved. Now I go to the dorms to play games and teach songs. I love it. I go every Tuesday and Thursday when I can. I eat dinner with them and they all call over “Bagsha, Bagsha, Nasheer!” Which means, teacher, teacher, come here. It is nice to see I am wanted or at least for the celebrity status. We played human knot, uno, and I taught them the Christmas song “Up on the housetop.” They loved it. It’s funny to me because they are very similar to me in the fact that they catch on to the base rhythm of songs but words are troublesome. I am the same with Mongolian songs.

            To add on to that this week has been English week. We have the students 2 weeks to prepare. Everyday was a different English activity after school. Monday we watched the original version of The Grinch. Tuesday we had a poem competition where students memorized a poem from a given list. 7 students participated which was amazing! Wednesday we had a song competition. They were wonderful and cute! Thursday we had a trivia competition, aka jeopardy. And Friday we will have a dance! It was a lot of work because I did it all, sometimes my coworkers are less inclined to participate in extra-curricular activities. But I am fairly satisfied with the results.

Next week I am off to Ulaanbaatar for our In-Service-Training, or rather IST as we volunteers like to say. I am extremely excited to put it lightly. We will have training sessions mainly all day for a week covering tips on teaching large classes, multi-level classes, games, and more. My counterpart Gerelee is coming with me and I am so happy! She is by far the one that works the hardest and is always willing to plan no matter how late it is. So here I am trying to go day by day as they slowly continue on.

I try to trick my mind into thinking it isn’t really that long. First IST, then New Years, then Tsagar Sar (or lunar new year, kind of a big deal here), then summer. Then the whole process all over again.

Video coming soon of my students from English week! Attempting to become tech savvy with iMovie…says the art major….

Hope you are trudging along as I am.

Xoxo,

           

            Rojo

I have been struggling.

These past two weeks have been a bit difficult for me. I live in a soum, 5 hours away from the closest American, or rather fluent English speaking person and to say I am lonely is an understatement. If any of you know me, laughing is apart of my daily routine, or rather hourly. But it seems as though I have nothing to laugh about anymore. I can’t recall the last time I laughed so hard I lost my breath. I remember in college it happened at least once ever couple of days if not more.

            Now please don’t get me wrong. I love my job and my coworkers, students, and many other acquaintances. But that is just it. They are acquaintances. My coworkers are my friends, but I think friends are a little different here. We work together, talk, and do chores, but just hanging out, having a drink, or even talking about deep concepts are out of the question. The first reason because of Mongolian culture and the second because of the language barrier.

            The hard thing is that because I am not fluent in the language I don’t understand most things. When I speak English it is to teach or plan lessons. I don’t speak for fun anymore. I can’t make inside jokes with people, or jokes at all for that matter. I feel like I am going stir crazy, yet there is nowhere to go to get rid of it.

I know the purpose of me being here isn’t so that I can laugh and have a good time, but to make a difference in people’s lives and help in any way that I can. But shouldn’t those go hand in hand? Should I be unhappy in a foreign country, just to say that I was in the Peace Corps?

            When I first got to site I wrote letters to over 30 people and I have received 4 responses. I know everyone has busy schedules, and I understand completely. But for me, I go to the post office on Thursday, the day when all the mail comes with a sliver of hope for a letter or a faint hope of my lost package but I always leave empty handed.

My workday is busy and I always have something to do, but when 5 o’clock rolls around everyone goes home, does their chores, hangs out with their families, and more. Even volunteers who live in cities get to see each other many times during the week. While here I am having a pity party all by myself. Now I know this is a downer and who wants to read that, but you have to realize, way out here there is no one to vent to, so writing is my venting. After work I read or watch movies, which makes me think of what my life would be like somewhere else.

            Every day I think about what I will do after my service is over, but shouldn’t I be in the moment? Shouldn’t I be all here. I feel like I shouldn’t be planning my future while I am here, but the whole time I just keep thinking when is my life going to start. Should I be thinking this is my life or plan the future.

            The thing that gets me the most is that it’s not like I miss material things. I’m not craving specific food or anything like that. I miss people. I miss my friends, I miss meeting new people, I miss being able to strike up a conversation with someone and not have to worry if they understand you or not.

            So needless to say I have been struggling. I know I have made a difference at school and when I am there I feel needed and wanted, but afterwards when I come home I feel like I am in a cold empty dark shell, aka my ger. Is this what selflessness is supposed to feel like? Like you are wasting your prime youthful years to help others? Maybe I am being cynical, but I just keep seeing people my age living it up. Should I be doing the same?

            Maybe I have just been a bit off lately. Maybe it is because my monthly visitor has come into town. Or maybe I can’t do this. But all I know is I committed to two years of service and I will be damned if I quit on another thing in my life. But then again the thought comes to mind, can I handle or cope with being melancholic and  isolated for another 2 years?

            So yes, I have been struggling……………….and it’s not even winter yet.

           

                        Xoxo,

                                    Rojo

            Last I left off it was right before Halloween. And I know what your thinking. How can you celebrate a holiday where people scare the shit out of people or dress as slutty as can possibly be? (Reminder I took part in both of these tasks only a year ago…) But if you can put your thinking caps on maybe you’ll remember tick-or-treating, the whole “boo” phenomenon, and of course those cherished children’s Halloween parties where you played PG rated games. To my surprise as much as yours I organized a Halloween party for my students. They were all really excited about it too. I dressed up as snow, putting as minimal effort in it as I could, only wearing white while some of my student went all out with makeup and costumes. We played musical chairs, mummy wrap, the candy jar guessing game, and pin the face on the jack-o-lantern. We had awards and everything. It was legit.

            I had a little squabble with my director because the weekly teacher’s meeting just so happened to unexpectedly be planned at the same time when it is usually on Mondays. My teachers, as well as other teachers who wanted to stop by for a bit couldn’t come. I was rather upset because we had been planning this party for over a week. Then again I thought next time I’ll make a bigger deal before hand. No sense in getting upset when nothing can be done.

            The next week was finally break! The end of the first quarter was upon us and man was I excited to go to the aimag to see some Americans! Although being Mongolia I waited two days for a car up there. Embarrassing for me to admit, but those two days I never left my ger. Only watched movies and ate bread and jam. I was even too lazy to make a fire so I just shuffled around in my sleeping bag. That was the tell-tale sign I needed to get out.

            I finally made it out of town bright and early on Monday. And by bright and early I technically mean dark and cold at 4 in the morning. The meeker even dropped me off at April’s school so I wouldn’t have to walk in the cold. And man was it cold. It was at least 15 to 20 degrees colder than my town. There was even a bit of snow on the ground. I was not prepared for that. All week we hung out milled around town, planned a seminar, and did crossword puzzles like our lives depended on it. It was great. Being able to relax and not worry about your teaching schedule, rushing to get people to things on time, or any time referenced activity was amazing.

            We went to the black market and I was able to find camel socks, yak socks, and camel pants! They are so soft and cozy it is like my feet are living in… well I can’t think of anything better than ugg boots… April’s teacher, Orgil had us over for pizza too! It was scrumptious! I ate as many vegetables and cheese as I could get my hands on that week.

We taught a seminar on Thursday for Essay writing, multi-level classes, and more. It was a nice change teaching different teachers. The best part was that there were 38 teachers instead of my usual 4, so the teaching style was a tad bit different than my usual one on one. Afterwards we took a little detour to a school supply shop where I bought magnets, chalk, and stamps that said, “Great Job” “Good” and “Terrific.” It is amazing the little things that I know will bring my students joy. I used one of the stamps today on an exercise and all the other students tried to hurry to finish so they could get one as well. It was adorable.

When we got back, my sitemate Joanna had organized a Halloween event for all the teachers. They made cheeseburgers with jack-o-lantern faces and had Halloween trivia. The teachers got really into it too. The next day we milled around, shopped for more food for me to take home, and then I was off around 8 pm. The meeker was filled to the max per usual with 17+ people. If Mongolians were worried about personal space I would probably hate meeker rides, but because personal space doesn’t exist I love them, especially when it is starting to frost outside. The meeker ride and tight and cozy and I fell asleep right as we left town. That is the one thing I love about car rides, no matter how bumpy or where we are going I always manage to fall asleep. Way back in the day my mom said she would pop us in the car to fall asleep when we were little, so that probably had something to do with it.

The next day we went to the club to practice for another concert yet again. It feels like we have one every other week. And I kind of love it! I have always loved singing and now I get to do it all the time. Instead of people telling me to be quiet or giving a snide comment they actually join in! I can get the melody of most songs after the first try but learning the words is a whole other feat. But my teachers are all incredible and if I ask they write down the words like its as simple as pie. Also that phrase makes no sense. Pie is not simple. It is actually really hard to make, especially when ovens are mia… Anyway, I learned two new songs and of course sang mini ardin, the song I sang at swearing in. On Sunday we practiced in the afternoon and at night until late. Almost all the teachers are involved and it is pretty cool. Just being a part of something like this is incredible to me. My teachers don’t even think twice about me not being involved and that’s the way I want it to be.

The day of the concert flew by. We practiced and I went home to get ready. Before I read a bit of my new book I borrowed from April’s school. And it is kind of scary. I’ve had to put it in the freezer a few times. #Friendsreference (if this needs explaining you are obviously not a die hard Friends fan. Either that or you aren’t stuck in a foreign country with Friends being the only tv show you have on your hard drive) We wore our school uniform and Mongolian del’s for different performances. I sang 4 songs and played musical rocks. It was awesome. Of course before we sang we took celebratory vodka shots to calm our nerves. They say it makes you brave, and it did exactly that for me. We ended around 8 and I was ready to boogie. Unfortunately we didn’t boogie to boogie town. We went home and planned our lessons for the next day…

So here I am 5 months in. Crazy right? Doesn’t feel like 5 months at all. I still can’t believe this is my first real job. I still feel like I am in those awkward days of middle school where I broke up with my boyfriend because he held my hand. I thought it was too much of a commitment. And look at me now! Committed to 27 months in Mongolia, with 5 already done. Check! If you would have told me I would be in one of the coldest places in the world, or at least in my mind it is, I would have never believed you. My friends, family, and especially my roommates would have never believed you. (Shout out to Aldo and Izzy! Miss you both! #butnotyoda)

Hope your as proud of your job as me!

            XOXO,

                        Rojo

 Halloween Costumes 

Musical Chairs

Winners of the costume contest

Bayankhongor aimag

my new pet

Camel races

my students casually riding camels in the town courtyard

WHITE CAMEL!

my student looking so content

My CP, Gerelee, and I before the concert