Sticking Coconuts

Thirsty?  The locals don't reach for water when they have been working hard all day in the hot sun.  To refresh they drink the water from fresh green coconuts!  

One way to get them down from the tree is to cut some foot holds in the trunk and climb their way up.  This works for my cousin brothers Daniel and Michael.

For taller trees (or those people that can't climb them) we use bamboo to "stick" the coconuts.  Here is Mama carrying the bamboo!  It is long and heavy.

With a few coordinated jabs you can get some coconuts to fall down.  Watch out they don't land on your head!

 

Now...what can be done effortlessly by Mama takes me about 10 minutes.  To drink the coconut water you have to cut away the strong skin first.  She and Papa guide me step by step and make sure to laugh at me the whole time!

  

Now drink and enjoy!!  This water is better than Gatorade and free!

Camp GLOW/BILD

During the 2 week break between school terms Peace Corps volunteers gathered together for a Camp GLOW (Girls Leading Our World) and BILD (Boys in Leadership Development) at Vureas School on East Ambae.  This is part of the GAD (Gender and Development) initiative through Peace Corps posts around the world.  This one week camp is a way to build leadership skills, boost confidence, and increase motivation of local youth.  They are the future of the communities around Vanuatu but lack the proper working knowledge of what it means to be a good leader.

We traveled from West Ambae to East Ambae by boat...an overcrowded boat that is!

Throughout the week we had various workshops to work on building up leadership skills. 

Team building...



Communication and goal setting...

Public speaking...

Decision making...

Trust...

Adolescent Reproductive Health...

One day we even roasted our own lunch over an open fire!  Who needs plates when you have leaves?

We had time to play too!  We taught them how to do friendship bracelets and hair wraps...

 We made a banner and wrote thank you letters to the donors...

At the end of the week we had a closing ceremony where each participant received a certificate and award for their hard work and participation. 

Here are my 3 village participants, Jio, Alice, and Soloman getting theirs:

This camp was such a blast!  Not only did we get plenty of time to laugh and play but we learned lots of strategies to help guide us as leaders in our communities.  Yes I say "us" because I learned a lot too and I am already a good leader.  Our plan is to now run a similar camp in our village within the next few months.  Thank you to Mom and Dad who donated money to help pay for a chinese bag full of materials that will help us prepare for our camp on West Ambae.  This support will be appreciated by not only us by the members of the community that we will teach our newly acquired knowledge to!