Dear Mom, Dad and Jim,

You’re very welcome for the vacation. I’m glad you had so much fun, but do you realize how stressful it was for us? I mean, think about it-bringing three people to a country where they don’t speak the language and stick out like sore thumbs. I was sure you’d be lost before we left Yaounde. But alas, you made it the whole two weeks. And I have to admit, Brian and I had a great time with you guys. So thank YOU for coming.

(which one of these things is not like the other?)

Yaounde: its quite a horrible place to spend more than a few days at a time. When you arrived, we had already been there for a week getting shots, going to the dentist, and giving poop samples (yes, more than one). So brian and I were ready to get out of there as fast as possible. Luckily there was no problem with the train reservations like during the Hillery family vacation. Actually I think everything in Yaounde went smoothly- except when mom saw a man begging and pulled out a 2,000cfa bill to give him. Thats the equivalent of about $4. If in the US, you usually give someone $1, that wouldn’t be so bad. But here, if you want to give them something, its usually about 100cfa. So 2,000 would be like handing this guy $20! I can picture all of the beggers coming out of the crowd like cockroaches. Luckily I saw before she handed over the bill and I shoved a 100cfa piece in her hand. Crisis 1 averted.

The Train: nice sleeping accommodations, huh? And I’m not being sarcastic, those couchettes are wonderful. The “pets” are an added bonus. Just be thankful we didnt get someone who was transporting fish or some other maggot infested sack of goodies. And the problem with the porters was simply a miscommunication. As I handed on 1,000cfa they both started complaining that it was 2,000cfa. After a long discussion and a trip to the porters’ office, we realized that he was just too quick to complain. I was in the process of reaching for 1,000cfa to hand to the other, but I couldn’t get to it because the first guy wouldn’t take the bill. I guess he thought I was giving him the money for both. I don’t really know. But, like most operations here, it was 5x more difficult than it should have been. Crisis 2 averted.

As for the food on the train- I’ll just say that if you had eaten on your way OUT of the country instead of on the second day, you would have a different opinion. Ask any volunteer and they’ll say “its pretty good”. (the price is the problem for us).

The Ride to Tibati: Sorry that we had to wake you up at 4:30, but like you said, there is no wake up call, let alone a schedule to let people know when the train will get to each station. I usually just get up around 4am and ask at least 2 guards how far we are from Ngaoundal (that way you can average out the three answers for a rough estimate of time). And the driver- Adamou- is the best driver in all of Tibati, so of course he knew exactly where the couchettes would be AND he knew that the car wouldn’t start. So he chose the little loading dock incline thing to wait for us. No pushing necessary.

(the long, dusty road to Tibati)

Tibati is exactly 100km from Ngaoundal, and we made it in about 3 hours (not 5 dad-although maybe it felt like that to you. Brian and I thought the ride was nice and peaceful). Not a bad time at all, even with the flat (bologna skin) tire. Luckily a public bus was passing and they had the tools to help. By tools I mean there were 5 or 6 men who helped lift the side of the car so we could change the tire. Sometimes car problems can cause hours of delay, so be thankful for the brotherly love. Crisis 3 averted.

(the lake in Tibati)

Tibati: I think you summed up the visit here very nicely. I’m glad you liked the house-even if it did take you a little while to appreciate it. We went from living in one room with a 2ftx2ft window (and ALL of our belongings-2 bikes, 2 trunks, suitcases, water filters, buckets and all) that was 98* at midnight in Pitoa to the beautiful resort that was our house in Meng. Needless to say, it took us all of 3 seconds to fall in love with it. Of all the houses I’ve seen in peace corps, Meng was the best.

You all did well with the bucket bathing and bucket flushing, but I did have to explain the water system a few times before everyone understood.

(looking good)

As for the food, you actually tried everything we offered. Nice job. Actually dad, you went above and beyond. When I told you to give the dried fish to the dogs, the last thing I expected you to do was taste it yourself. I give you the award for the most courageous action during the trip. Gross, huh? Even though most people put that in their sauce and call it delicious. Yummm.

(thanks to the Bisons for free stuff!)

Ngaoubela: I’m glad you got to see the hospital where I spent most of my time. The first time seeing it is quite the shock, but since I’ve been there a year, nothing surprises me anymore. Goats, ducks, chickens, 10 people in a room, children peeing on my feet, women cooking in the dark kitchen over the fire. Its all normal now. But having you there made me reflect on how different it really is. And as I mentioned a few times to you- our hospital is the BEST one for hundreds of miles. Thats part of the reason its so crowded.

(mom in the state-of-the-art OR)

(the primary school at the hospital. my mother agreed to teach there. i'm not
sure if she realizes how serious they were)

After seeing the hospital, I think we all agreed that we didnt want to be treated for anything there. I’ve seen surgeries, and I’ll tell you you do NOT want to have anything serious happen. Which leads to our last night in Tibati when we thought it would be fun to play basketball. It was fun, until jim went down with a looooong string of f-bombs. Classic. Anyways, we had the doctor with us and he was able to see right away that the knee cap was broken. Actually, anyone who has ever looked at a knee before would know it was broken-it was clearly in two pieces.

With the doctors instructions, we made a crude splint and called a car to come take Jim to the hospital. Luckily I know most of the nurses there and I was able to get people moving to help. Getting the “radiologist” to come back to the hospital at 7pm took some work- as did getting the lights to go on. But 30 minutes after we showed up, we had the lights on and the X-rays taken. The doctor and I put the cast on and we were sent home. Crisis 4 averted...sort of.

The road to Ngaoundere: this one is a doozy even when you’re used to the ride and are healthy. Jim-i’m taking back my father’s award for the most courageous act of the trip. You taking the road with 12 hour old broken knee (and torn tendon as we found out later) takes the cake. That had to hurt. It has been one of my fears since getting to Cameroon. What if something happens to me in Tibati? How the hell will I get out of here? Luckily the day before we decided to splurge with the big private car.

(Brian and I thought the ride in private car was
nothing short of luxurious)

Ngaoundere: My new home. Great city. I’ll talk more about it in my next post, but everyone got to see the market and eat the gourmet food. Since I’ve been back, I’ve been exploring the city with another volunteer who lives here and I’ve found lots more cool places. Next time you come I’ll take you around.


Back down South: Having a broken leg in cameroon can be more than just an inconvenience, it can make things impossible. Take for example, the train. There is no way Jim could have taken first class. Of course the weekend we were traveling back to Yaounde, all the couchettes were sold out for four days straight. I ran around the station begging to get a bed for my father-in-law with a broken leg. Finally I was directed to the boss’ office where I nearly in tears. Finally I was promised a couchette-but the rest of us would be in first class. Crisis 5 averted.



Kribi: The second leg of the trip was the real vacation for Brian and I. The beach! It was very relaxing. Especially since I decided that you and mom had learned enough french to be on your own-at least for a little while. We took nice walks on the beach and swam in the ocean every day, no big crisis down there. Oh wait, the last night when we were going to eat at the local fish market, dad was scared of the ‘dirty’ water where they were washing the dishes and the fish. Because this was the only time anyone complained about the quality of the food, we agreed to go to the nice restaurant down the road so we wouldn’t get some fun disease. Crisis 6 averted. (until we saw 2 rats run across the floor of the nice restaurant!!)

(if you can see past his fat head, the beach
really was beautiful)

(my dad deciding he didn't want to eat here. Notice the lady
washing dishes in the 'dirty' water)

Well, there’s always more to say, but between the two of us, we’ve covered the important parts of the trip. I think the pictures really tell a better story, so head over to Voorhees to see the rest.

Mom, Dad and Jim- thank you so much for coming to see us. Now I feel like you can understand all of the things that I talk about in my letters and this blog. I had a great time showing you around and I know everyone here-volunteers and Cameroonians- was so happy to meet you. I hope you had as much fun as we did.

Love you lots, see you next year!!

-Jessie & Brian