A Celebration

After weeks of banging my head against a wall, cursing at inefficiency, and later moving 23,000 books around, we were able to see the appetizer portion of the fruits of our labor on Friday, March 19th when a small ceremony of book distribution took place in Bafoussam.

The Books For Cameroon team - Kate, Siobhan, Connie, Laura and myself - was present at once finally. Prior to this, we've been working largely through email or meeting separately. It was great to have all of us in one space and witnessing the books going out to recipients.

The ceremony took place at the conference hall in the governor's office building. Over 100 people were present - principals of schools, community leaders, traditional chiefs, journalists, government officials, etc. I was pleased with the turnout and was incredibly touched during the moment when everyone stood to sing the Cameroonian national anthem.

The event was short and sweet. I made a speech (in French!) on the project. Théo gave a speech on behalf of RIDEV. Peace Corps Staff who failed to inform us of the Embassy policy changed was also present and made a speech on behalf of Peace Corps. The Secretary-General made a speech on behalf of the Governor (after a million meetings, I still have no idea who this guy is). Representative from each establishment came forward and we ceremoniously gave them a book.

After the speeches, pictures were taken, food was served (can't have a ceremony without feeding people in the country!) and then finally, everyone made their way to the warehouse and books were distributed. I was incredibly impressed at this process; it was nearly flawless. Most schools and communities came with trucks to carry their books back. It was amazing to see principals and community leaders in suits carrying boxes of books on their head and loading them unto their trucks. Within two hours, we successfully distributed books for nearly all 35 establishments. I was extremely proud of Batié, where the mayor sent a dump truck to pick up ALL the books that were going to the village. The efficiency during this process was mind blowing compare to the ridiculousness we went through to get to that point.

The books are out, but the real work of following up with these libraries, training librarians and making sure these resources are putting to good use is just the beginning. I held a pre-training meeting a few days ago and today I made a tour of the 10 establishments around my village. I already see the obstacles with this part of work brewing. Development work is a process, and two years is only the beginning of it. As much as I hope that my replacement will continue with these follow-ups, there is no guarantee, and that, is truly unfortunate.

However, a good part of the books went to the Limbé City Library - a well established library in the anglophone region. Resource libraries are being established at RIDEV & RELUFA , so I know those books will go to good use. I suppose even only half of the 35 establishments end up function flawlessly, then our efforts aren't for nothing.

Finally, I wanted to give thanks to everyone who made this project possible. Kate has been my rock through this and carrying me through when I wanted to punch people in the faces, which was often. She is also the mastermind behind the library management training design that are taking place and most importantly, she kept me sane and conducted phone calls and made things work when I was on the verge of throwing in the towel. Today happens to be her birthday, and I want to just take this opportunity to acknowledge her amazing ways of putting up with me through this process!

Next, Théo, the incredible man who carries the hope in Cameroon, and also the guy that made it possible for our container to finally made its way out of customs. Théo's positive energy is what we all hope for in Cameroonians and there is nothing more encouraging to see people in this country taking measures to develop their own society. Bravo Théo!

Besides these two key figures, there are naturally a million people who were there for us in one way or another. (I feel like I am giving an Oscars acceptance speech right now) Thanks again for all who contributed to make the $11,500 fund raising possible, to MTN Foundation and Books For Africa for the financial support. Also thanks to volunteers who had came to help us sort books, those who had left us encouraging messages on our Facebook Page and much more.

The success of this project will take time to measure, but I am glad we are at this stage where we will be able to take such measurements!

PS-Apparently my interview with the journalists were aired on Canal 2 last night (twice!). Unfortunately, I don't have a TV at home to witness my 15 minutes of Cameroonian fame. Today, people in village talked about it, and they were proud of me. That was fun! :)

The Ultimate Obstacle Course

I've been dreading to write this post on the difficulties and pure ridiculousness that we went through for those 23,000 books to arrive. After the past two weeks, the only thing I want to do is rejoice in the success, not revisit the frustration. However, yesterday I came to the realization that my time in Cameroon remains only 3 precious months. I became nostalgic for these past two years and frankly, quite sad. I need to write about the obstacles in order for me to appreciate the efficiency that I will undoubtedly face in the "real world". It's human nature to reminiscent over an intense experience and think of only the peachy parts, yet the details of the trials and frustration is equally important and merits documentation.

In January, Books For Africa gave us an estimated arrival date of February 22nd.

The week of February 15th, I communicated with Peace Corps staff and he informed me he received a call that the container will arrive on the 26th. A week later, he informed me there is a slight delay on the paperwork.

March 2nd - informed by the Embassy that there's been a change in policy and they can no longer clear the container for us! Attempted to meet the governor but was told to come back.

March 3rd - received a call to go meet the govt the next day. Théo in Douala finding out information on private clearance.

March 4th - hauled ass to Bafoussam so I was on time for the 9am meeting. Ended up only meeting the Secretary General, and he told me we need a list of invitees ready and the speech for the governor written. Why couldn't he tell me this on the phone and save me a trip to Bafoussam?

March 5th - no progress, but Books For Africa found out about our problem via my blog post & came to the rescue for additional fees that incurred via private clearance. It pays to blog & complain!

March 6th - Théo worked out the company who will clear the container.

March 9th - in Bafoussam by 8am to transfer money with Théo and had many phone calls to find out how to get the container/books to Bafoussam. Met with the Chief of Cabinet for the governor's office to get the key to the warehouse. No key. Was told the guy is on his way and to come back the next day.

March 10th - problem at port. Need additional paperwork from Peace Corps. Théo happened to be in Yaoundé to meet with PC people and they worked things out with Embassy people in Douala to help us out. 

March 11th - Container finally cleared through port. Still no key for the warehouse. Was told the truck would leave Douala this evening or the next morning with books. 

March 12th - Arrived to the governor's office and found out no one knows where the key to the warehouse is. Books were suppose to arrive later that day. Chief of Cabinet finally called the guy who built the building and found out they key is STILL in Yaoundé! (It's important to note that we've been asking for this key since January and time and again they assure me there is no problem.) Builder in Yaoundé sends his brother with the key to Bafoussam. We met him in the late afternoon, and he told us after the building was built, he was in Bafoussam for 2 weeks trying to give the key to whomever responsible, and no one would take it. Meanwhile, truck in Douala didn't end up leaving until 3pm. We had to reschedule our team of help 3 times. Finally decided we will proceed early the next morning. 

March 13th - 7am - we were waiting by the warehouse. Was informed that the truck is in Dschang - a city an hour away from Bafoussam. This would mean that by 8 or 9 am at the latest, the truck would arrive. No, 11 am - the truck finally arrives. 

March 14th-19th - the team of volunteers working during most daylight hours to unpack 577 boxes of books, arranged them by level and subject, and repacked them according to establishments.

So, there you have it. The mishaps during this entire process could easily be avoided by some better planning and execution. Luckily or unluckily, none of these problems were within our control, which makes me, who has a bit of control-freak tendency when it comes to work stuff, wanted to scream, a lot. The phrase I hated hearing during this entire process was "ça va aller" (it'll be okay). Don't tell me that it will be okay, tell me HOW it will be okay. Now that this is all over, I've learned a lot and I am pretty sure no problem is impossible to handle.

O.M.G. Books!

I am exhausted. I haven't worked this hard since May 2008. After the ultimate obstacle course, which I will write about it at a later time, the 40-ft container of 23,000 books have arrived in Bafoussam on Saturday at 11am. Since then, the team of volunteers and I have been working almost around the clock during most daylight hours to sort through all these books. In total, we received 617 boxes of books. For the large majority, we had to take them out of the boxes and sort through them by subject and level.

I am so tired that I can't even rejoice in the fact that these books are all finally here. But I must say that it was an emotional moment when the 18-wheeler truck finally pulled up to the warehouse. At that moment in time, all the frustration of money-begging and Cameroonian logistics all became worthwhile.

For now, I must go sleep and attempt to write a speech in French for Friday's ceremony in between the book sorting. I am dreading this speech. Through this project, I realized I am not a fan of publicity. It's one thing to blog and tweet, it's another to be interviewed and have to make a speech in front of people, in your 4th language no less. And there I thought writing a 5 minute speech for my public speaking class was a chore. Only if I knew...

Anyway, off I go. Thank you all for the support! And stay tuned for stories of the ultimate obstacle course we had to experienced to get to this point. Ciao!

Fondonera

 

 In an attempt to remind myself why I started the psychotic library project, I decided to write about my visit to Fondonera from a few weeks ago. 

Bernadette is the queen mother of the Fondonera clan. She found out about my project online and wrote to the Peace Corps. Her email was forwarded to me and we had been in contact since. She's a teacher and incredibly committed to the promotion of literacy and her community. She contacts me regularly to see the progress of the project. I was so touched by her enthusiasm and commitment, I decided to include her village in my project, even though there is no volunteer posted there. The village is still within the West region and thus manageable.

After months of communication, I finally had a chance to go visit her community. I was overwhelmed and touched by the generosity of people and how welcoming they were of me and Laura. We were invited to Bernadette's house for lunch, and then they gave us a tour of the community space they had prepared for the library. Later, her brother gave us a tour of the village. It was a Saturday, and a big funeral celebration was taking place. So we were invited to a few more gathers and had a few more meals.

 The village is situated in a mountain, and there is no paved road to get to the village. With the funeral celebration, there were people everywhere and music playing from all corners up and down the mountain. For a moment, I felt like a character in Tarzan and that at any moment some strong Cameroonian man will start swinging between trees!

The hospitality was overwhelming. Laura and I were in a hurry to get back before dark, so we were getting rather impatient after the 3rd round of meet and eat. If I had more time, then I would have enjoyed the village more. The queen mother's brother said, "next time, you come here and we make a two-day program for you to discover Fondonera."

The culture of remote villages like this, and the loving people are why I started this psychotic library project. Someone has to deal with the bureaucracy and administration to bring books to remote places as such. Somebody's gotta do it, and it might as well be me.

American Efficiency

Four days since I found out that the Embassy had changed its policy and can no longer clear our container. Théo from RIDEV was in Douala the next day after the news to meet with someone working at the Embassy to learn the process, and in attempt to find a solution. Yet somehow, four days later, no real progress was made.

Meanwhile, yesterday I received an email from a staff at Books For Africa. Apparently a board member who follows my blog forwarded my previous post about the frustration. They contacted me to see how everything was progressing. Within the hour, I received 6 emails from every person at Books For Africa who was working with my shipment, including a very encouraging email from the Executive Director who said they will do everything they can to facilitate us in this process. They immediately asked follow up questions to the situation, offered to write a letter of support on our behalf for the customs officials and change documentation if necessary.

American efficiency, how I've missed thee.

I am beyond frustrated, and as much as I've been trying to contain this frustration, I can no longer bite my tongue. This is not the first time that I've asked myself on what planet I find this project to be a good idea. Yes, it may benefit lots of kids, promote literacy, blah blah blah. But why didn't I just enjoy the quiet village life like most volunteers and simply do small projects?

As a Peace Corps Volunteer, we don't HAVE to do anything. We are volunteers after all. But when we do put forth the effort to implement a large-scale project, the support is minimal. The fund-raising process was frustrating as it was, but that was only the beginning of it. The Peace Corps staff who had agreed to help us in this process a year ago has yet contacted me with ways him or the Peace Corps could facilitate. Due to the lack of follow up on his part, I am now left with this ginormous mess in my hand and very little resource or information to resolve the problem.

If the Peace Corps wasn't going to provide the support that we volunteers need to carry out the project, then they should not have approved our project via the Peace Corps Partnership in the first place. Even if Peace Corps had told me they will play no part in the container clearing process from the beginning, then at least I would have had time to plan for private clearance. But now, we are in the worst situation possible, and I want to scream. Nothing worse than someone offering help but do not follow through. I know it's not their fault that the Embassy changed policies, but someone could have found out the change much earlier and informed us.

This is a blog on life as a Peace Corps volunteer, and this is a part of the tribulation that we face. My advice for future volunteers: think carefully before you jump into an ambitious project.

I am holding onto what little bit of faith I have left in me and believing that somehow everything will work out. How? I am not sure. But I don't have a choice, it has to work out. Hoping karma will reward us for the efforts that we have put forth thus far. Hope, that's all I have left, unfortunately.

Cameroonian Fustration

The events of this week has left me totally frustrated with the way things work in this country. I was always aware of the inefficiency, but I do everything in my power to avoid them. This past week, I've had to deal with them first hand. Let me tell you, NOT fun. I grew up in Taiwan and thus was brought up with the Asian efficiency. There were times when I thought Americans were inefficient. All this just makes dealing with Cameroonian inefficiency that much more grueling for me.

I won't go into too much detail on all the mishaps, but I'll mention them in bullet-point forms. Yesterday, it took an hour-long run plus an hour of power yoga for me to get rid of the frustration. I don't need to talk about it in detail and bring that back again. So, in a nutshell:

• two trips to Bafoussam to meet the new governor and finalize things for the ceremony and storage space. Two trips this week, in addition to many trips before, and still no confirmation on -anything-. The trips/meetings were for the most part pointless. Nothing they couldn't tell my over a phone call. In addition, I STILL don't know who the new governor is.
  
  
• was informed two days ago that the Embassy can no longer clear our container from Books For Africa. Apparently there was a new policy change, and somehow no one informed me. The person in Peace Corps who told me a year ago that he'd help me with the process also had no idea. Did I mention a YEAR?
  
  
• 23,000 books are suppose to come in one week. A ceremony and distribution of books are taking place in two weeks. We still have no idea on the following: how to get the container out of customs, how much it will cost, who will ship it to Bafoussam, if we have a place to store it for sure, the exact process of getting the books where they need to be, exactly how many people are coming to the ceremony, who is preparing for the food, etc. etc. etc. So basically, 95% of everything remains a big question. Yet, for some reason, people don't seem bothered by it. 

I know things will work out, but this whole waiting everything until the last minute way is driving me insane. I am the biggest procrastinator so I know all about putting things off, but not when it involves other people. Two days ago, during one of our pointless meetings, the guy said, "but the 19th is ways away". Did he think the books will sort themselves and the caterer and everything for the ceremony will magically show up? This is precisely how so many "festivals" that suppose to take place in this country turns out to be a bust. Because people apparently feel things will magically appear and organize themselves...

During one of my rides, I finally see why for the most part, Cameroonians are very apathetic. I thought, "I would be, too, if I was a citizen here." Why bother if you have food in your stomach and enough to get by in life? There are so many hoops to jump through in order to get even the most simple task accomplished that it's no wonder people just do what they need to, and let the rest be. Can you blame them? I know there are still plenty of Cameroonians who do care and are striving to make a real difference, and for that, I have a great deal of respect.

Senioritis: Peace Corps Edition

Today, at some point during my two-hour business class, the Peace Corps equivalent of senioritis hit me. It must have been the moment when I was teaching the importance of sharing knowledge they've acquired with others, since I won't always be here to teach the classes, and an annoying student who rarely shows up to class loudly shouted, "well you should just get married and stay here." I looked at him and said, "would you like to leave the classroom?" I don't care if he's 40. Don't be a jerk, or I will throw you out.

I've been getting back into my yoga practice. And this morning I did my one-hour session. But after the class tonight, I felt the need to roll out the mat again. If bucket-bathing in the latrine at night isn't such a pain the butt, I would have done another session of yoga to let it all go.

I am overwhelmed with the Books For Cameroon project. All along, I adopted the "one step at a time" approach, because if I try to think of everything at once, then there was no way the project would have progressed to where it is today. But now, almost a year later, there are still many more steps ahead, and I am exhausted.

I've begged for more money than I ever care to beg in a lifetime, not for me, but for the well-being of others. I've coordinated 10 schools within the 3 surrounding villages, on top of a few other far-reaching villages who all wanted to benefit from my project. My life would have been a lot easier if I just said no, but that's now what you do as a Peace Corps Volunteer, right? I've sent out a million emails to the team of volunteers whom, I'm sure by now, are so sick of my emails, in order to coordinate and ensure that 23,000 books get to the 35 libraries somehow.

When I met the fundraising goal of $11,500, people said to me, "well now you must be relieved, the work is done." Um, not quite, the work has just begun. I've ran around to all 10 schools to collect money, make sure they have shelves built for the libraries and that they are dedicated to the project. Then I realized I underestimated the cost of in-country transport, so now Théo and I are running around town trying to get big Cameroonian enterprises to sponsor our event. I think there is a big chance MTN Foundation will put up some money for our transportation cost. The last time I heard, the proposed figure is 1 million CFA ($2000). Crossing our fingers on that one!

Side note: Théo is the wonderful founder and manager of the local NGO RIDEV that many volunteers have worked with. I think he is the reason I have not gone insane yet with this project. The man is full of wonderful optimism and knows everyone, which makes life a lot easier. He also is aware of all the annoying protocol procedures that we volunteers hate. If it wasn't for him, I probably would've left this country with many libraries built, but also many important people offended. It was his proposal to organize a ceremony for the ministries and related officials to recognize the project. The ceremony itself does not do much for the project, but it gets in the good graces of Cameroonian officials, which is important for Peace Corps.

The books are estimated to reach the Douala port on February 22nd. So I'm working with Peace Corps and the Embassy to get this container cleared through customs with as little problem as possible. There is the logistics of how to get 20,000 books to where they need to be. Can you even imagine how many books that is?! I can't, but I suppose we'll soon find out. Who knew logistic management in developing country is a skill I'd acquire in Cameroon? Something more to go on the résumé, I suppose.

Logistics aside, the list of things to do and to think of goes on, and on. The library management training: besides writing the classes, I have to somehow organize all these schools and make sure they send the right people to come to the training. And after I train them, I have to run around and make sure they are implementing what they've learned. This is going to be a pure nightmare.

Let's not forget about the ceremony that I'm suppose to organize.... You see this is why I must go one step at a time? Thinking about it all is driving me into a freak-out moment.

Planning and organizing an event is difficult in the US, the country of efficiency. Imagine doing that in Cameroon - the country of... well, not efficiency. To be honest, I have been fairly lucky and have not ran into too many problems. But it's the sheer volume of things to think about that is becoming far too overwhelming. I suppose this offsets those first few months when I didn't do much... ça va aller...? on espère.

Old Habits Die Hard

I've always been a terrible procrastinator. In college, the semesters when my grades were less than stellar were the semesters when I didn't have a sufficient part-time job. I take the free time for granted and I procrastinate. In the end. I don't accomplish as much. Being busy in a way manages my time for me. There are only so many hours in a day to go around, and when the days are filled, I don't have the choice to sit around.

Here in the Peace Corps, I have nothing but time. And as a result, I procrastinate, a lot. For the Books For Cameroon project, we are in the process of designing library management training for the participating schools and communities. Kate has compiled materials from two different sources to create the training manual. While I've delegated the training design to Kate and the others, I still somehow ended up with the amazing job of translating 30+ pages of document into French (note the extreme sarcasm.) I just keep telling myself it will be good for my French...

I have started on the translation work and frankly, it's not that bad. But, it is a lot like in college when I have papers to write. I know all it takes is me sitting down and just doing it. Yet when I have the time to put it off, that's exactly what I've been doing...

For the past few days, I have been obsessing with thinking about life in London next year and everything that comes along with that. Oh yes, battle of graduate school is over. I made a decision to attend London School of Economics next year! Anyway, I told myself I would reserve the entire Sunday to my translation work.

Naturally, Sunday gets here and my Internet was out all day. Internet makes my life a lot easier with the online dictionary. So of course, I decided the work can start tomorrow. Old habits die hard.

It is also no wonder Cameroonians never rush to do anything and are always nonchalant about scheduling. Why bother scheduling anything when things out of your control will happen and mess up the plan?

Limbé

Located in the Southwest region of Cameroon, Limbé is one of my favorite towns in the country, and my preferred beach vacation destination here in Cameroon. After Christmas, I spent a few days there both for business and pleasure. I needed to visit Limbé City Library, one of the participating libraries for the Books For Cameroon project. I thus used this and gave myself a few days of vacation hanging by the beach and eating amazing seafood.

Amazing Seafood at Down Beach

Limbé is an English colonial town, and I dare say the cleanest, more orderly town in Cameroon, far better organized than the political and economic capitals of Douala and Yaoundé, respectively, both Francophone cities (remnants of the French colonization).

The Limbé City Library became a participate of the Books For Cameroon project when a Cameroonian living in the US emailed Peace Corps Washington about participating. When his email reached me, I happily agreed because I love Limbé, and the beach. :)


The former librarian Maggie and I have been corresponding via email. When I finally met her and the library, I was thoroughly impressed. It's already a well-functioning library with card catalogs, reference materials, and even a kids corner. Their biggest need is more books, which is where the project comes in.

Here I must comment on the wonderful Cameroonian hospitality. Maggie and I met to tour the library and she graciously invited me to her home after the visit. Her sister was getting married that day, so the house was filled with a flurry of activities - chicken killing, food cooking, people singing (rehearsing) and the like. Maggie introduced me to her family, and showed me photo albums of her family that are abroad. She made sure to tell me that her home is always welcome to me when I visit Limbé and she also wanted to see if I was able to attend the wedding that evening. Weddings here is an ALL night festivity and since I was to travel back to Yaoundé the following day, I kindly declined the invitation. It blows my mind how nice she was to me, a total stranger that she has never met just two hours prior!

Oh, funny side note. One of the many people I met at her house met me and said, "oh, I follow you on Twitter!" It was so strange for that to happen here in Africa! Oh, the power of social media!

October Happenings

Hello my loyal readers!

I am still around, and the excuse for the lack of update? well, the lack of activities. The month of October so far has been a lot of GRE studying, money-begging to fund Books For Cameroon by the end of October and preparation for graduate school applications.

Concerning the project: we are making very good progress. With just $2k left to go, we hope the project will be funded by the end of the month. Actually, we have to. We don't really have a choice since I received an email from Peace Corps Washington with pressure to get things off the ground. Since this is very much an all-or-nothing project, we really need your help! Don't let the $9k we've raised go to waste! Spread your Christmas cheer early this year. Rumor has it the decorations are already up in some part of the States? Donate today!

This past week I visited the schools in Batié, and aside from one school that doesn't quite have a room ready, the rest all have at least a room, and some even had the shelves built. I was really impressed by the engagement of the school staff. While the challenges are still ahead in successfully implementing the project, I can already envision the rewarding feelings in the end.

Last week was Mid-Autumn Moon Festival for the Chinese, so I went to spend it with my Chinese family. I am quite sure I celebrate more Chinese holidays here in Cameroon than I did in the United States... Just two days before the holiday was China's 60th anniversary of the current government. My Chinese family has no other channel but CCTV - the State-run television- and it broadcasted special programming for both of the holidays.

After watching all weekend worth of CCTV with coverage of the celebration and also holiday programming, I began to think of China as this wonderful, heaven-like place, and why wouldn't all of us want to spend our lives there? Until I got home and was reading articles on the uncensored world-wide-web. And then I realized I was probably being brain-washed.

Yesterday was October 10th - the independence day of Taiwan. A day in my childhood when we didn't have to go to school and can watch fireworks. I was not at the Chineses' this weekend, but I can almost guarantee there was no coverage of the 10-10 holiday in Taiwan on CCTV.

As a Taiwanese/Chinese-American living in Cameroon, I don't have any particular strong feelings regarding the Taiwan/China politic. However, during times like this, I do get slightly lost and not sure which side I'm suppose to be "rooting for". This is precisely why we need global citizenship!

On an unrelated note, I had created a personal online portal for all the virtual contacts that I've been making via social media tools. Asian Polyglot will be the blog where I talk about everything outside of my Cameroon activities. But for the time being, they will overlap somewhat. Feel free to take a look!

You just never know!

Current Mood: Uggghhaaahhh I am SO sick of begging for money.

My goal to fund Phase I of Books For Cameroon by the end of September is unlikely to happen, unless either an amazing, generous philanthropist decides to donate $3.5k in the next 24 hours, OR, if by some bizarre miracle, 700 people decide to donate their next $5 latte/beer in the next 24 hours.

I am somewhat disappointed; however, I suppose raising $5,000 within a month still wasn't too bad of an effort, considering it took 3 months to raise the first $3,000. At least, I have been learning a great deal and showing progress. That's the important thing, right? Or so I tell myself. Ça va aller.

Okay, now I got that out of my system, let's talk village life.

A journalist once asked me to describe my "typical day" as a Peace Corps volunteer. That, I have decided, is simply impossible to define. The constant surprises are both the beauty of life as a volunteer, yet also the source of many frustrations. Last Friday, I went into Bafoussam for banking and other various errands. The car ride from my village to Baf. is only 30 minutes. Yet, we stopped in Baham - a town near my village - to pick up more clients and we waited there for an hour. Unexpected frustration. I was once again reminded that time is not money here and the term "opportunity cost" means nothing for the most part.

Yet when there is bad, there is good. Yesterday, I had a pretty productive Sunday of studying for the GRE and getting work done. Late afternoon, I made my way into town. The weather was gorgeous, so I enjoyed the walk and took in the tranquility that Batié has to offer. While in town, I had a Schweppes Ginger while waiting for my grilled fish. Meanwhile, had some funny conversation with villagers. One guy was trying to give me a hard time about the fact I can't speak Batié even after a year. And everyone else in the bar defended for me saying I had to learn French, and what in the world would I do with Batié after I leave? Funny villagers.

I got home and just as I situated myself for a movie while eating my fish, Billy and Loïc came by. Apparently there was a big dance event at the rich neighbor's house that I had to go see. So I took my camera and off I went with the kids. There I saw the group of villagers dressed in traditional Bamiléké fabric and getting ready for a big dance. Turns out Le Grand had invited white people to come observe this village tradition, and that's why there were all the fuss.


Just about everyone from the quartier were there, and ALL the kids were around. They love getting their pictures taken and I created a bit of a chaos when I asked Billy & Loïc to take pictures of me and the little ones. There were ALL over me. You would've thought I was running a daycare in Africa or something. So funny.


I hung out with the kids for the most part; they are so much fun. The dances were going on with the traditional musick; not much different from the others I've seen, but extra special since it was in my village and people dancing were my friends. Later, I saw the "white people". They apparently were a group of priests from all over the world were in Yaoundé for a week, and they are friends with Le Grand's wife. I met them briefly. It was really weird, even for me, to see all these white people in Batié!

So that was an interesting turn of events to my quiet night with a movie. Today, while I was getting some work done, neighbor came to knock on the door and invited me over for lunch. You don't turn down food when offered here, so off I went! The group of missionaries was also there. Also, my amazing, non-corrupt mayor was also present. It was a mini-UN right there in the living room with English, French, German, Spanish being spoken, and people from France, Spain, Fiji, South Korea, and other exotic places. I chatted briefly with the missionaries about my work and they told me a bit about their stay. It was really cool to find such an international setting right in my village, and I got a real kick out of my mayor speaking German. And just like that, an unexpected Monday afternoon!

Since I've been utilizing the RPCV network to seek funding for my project, I've had the chance to read many profiles of RPCVs. The common theme that I've extracted is that Peace Corps is the best two years of their lives and they have very fond memories for years after. I don't doubt that to hold true for me as well, but I wonder if the experience must stop after these two years, or will I be able to continue create memories that will be just as good as these two years, if not better?

Why Libraries?

In honor of International Literacy Day on September 8th, I decided to write about why I began the Books For Cameroon project. I am a business volunteer, but why am I building libraries? Today, I will share the story behind this motivation.

As a kid growing up in Taiwan, I was definitely an introvert. While didn't realize it at the time, I didn't have a ton of friends. Partly culture, partly personality, I passed most of my free time either fighting with my sister or relishing in books. My parents were too busy to read to me, but they bought me lots of books on tapes to listen to before going to sleep.

And then there were times when my mother is too busy with errands or work, but instead of finding a baby-sitter for a few hours, she dropped me off at the children's library near our house. I loved it there. The library was kid friendly and had hard-wood floors. I could lay on the floor and read all day long. The only thing I did not like about the library was their 3-book check out policy. I could only borrow three books at a time and I'd often finish those three books by the next day.

The hours spent at the children's library shaped me in ways I hadn't realized. I became very curious about the world and its people. Years of reading also gave me the skills to learn anything I want through a book. In college, I often said that going to classes can seem like a waste of time since I feel like I teach myself most things from textbooks. With advent of Internet, I don't visit libraries anymore. But just yesterday, while sitting in a small village of West Africa, I was indulging in the collection on international finance and development from Google Books.

My first few months at post, I was bored out of my mind. So to find something to do, anything, I began teaching English at the 4-room primary school by my house. Through my interaction with the children, I realized they can't read, at all. Even at a 5th grade level, many of the kids can't read. And then I realized most of these kids have never even seen a story book in their life. I thought how differently my childhood and life would be if my mom hadn't dropped me off at the library during her errands and busy afternoons.

Most of us take the ability to read for granted. But being here allow me to see the harsh reality that in fact, a lot of people have trouble reading. Even the adults in my business classes. While they can read, they can't read at ease. Hardly anyone in village ever read for leisure. I wanted to change this, and I thought it would be the easiest to begin at the schools. Bring books into the country, and then provide training so people know what a library is and how to utilize it.

I never imagined that I would be building 30 libraries. But since I somehow got myself into this situation, I will somehow find a way to make it happen. In honor of International Literacy Day, I hope all of you reading this will consider making a small contribution to this project (Http://www.booksforcameroon.org). I know I haven't picked the best time to launch a project like this given the state of economy. Yet, $5 isn't much to much people, and with just that, it can change lives.

We are fighting poverty with literacy; one latte at a time. Will you join us?

Campus For Cameroon/Community For Cameroon

In the same vein of Classroom For Cameroon, I hereby introduce Campus For Cameroon and Community For Cameroon. I hope through the power of community, I can spread the third goal of Peace Corps: Helping promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans. And through the power of group effort, the Books For Cameroon project will become a reality.

• Who? Community & campus groups around the USA! (girls scouts, boy scouts, rotary clubs, church groups, etc.)
  
• What? An opportunity for community and campus organizations with a service component to learn about Cameroon and life in the Peace Corps. Members are encouraged to organize presentations for the community to inform other U.S. citizens of life abroad as a Peace Corps volunteer and the country of Cameroon. In addition, organizations are encouraged to organize fundraising events to help make the Books For Cameroon project a reality.
  
• Where? Across the USA and beyond!
  
• When? The months of September & October, 2009
• How? Organizations can host presentations to discuss the Books For Cameroon project, the Peace Corps and life in Cameroon. Campus groups are encouraged to working with local Peace Corps recruiter to inform the university community about opportunities in the Peace Corps. Scout troops can use this opportunity for members to earn badges. Organizations who raise over $500 will be mentioned in the press release at the conclusion of this project.
  

Some Fundraising Ideas
- Lemonade stands
- Bake sales
- Car wash
- Local restaurant night (donation are tax deductible!)
- Change jars (Penny War)
- Benefit concerts (local bands/student groups)
- BBQ

Please feel free to leave comments of any other fundraising ideas!

Classroom For Cameroon

After a month of bugging everyone I know on Twitter/Facebook/Email begging money to fund Books For Cameroon, my friend Colleen gave me a brilliant idea to incorporate classroom teaching into the fundraising. I took to the idea immediately since it encompasses the third goal of Peace Corps: Helping promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans.

Ladies and gents, I present to you: Classroom For Cameroon

• Who? Students and Teachers in grades K-12 all around the USA!
  
• What? Month-long activity for kids to discover Cameroon, Africa, and the Peace Corps. Meanwhile, students will collaborate to create fundraising activities to help kids in Cameroon to have libraries!
• Where? Classrooms all around the USA!
• When? The months of September, 2009
• How? Each week, teachers and group leaders will spend some time to help students answer the week's topic question. The method of teaching is free for each teacher to decide. Below are some suggested links and resources. The fund-raising effort will begin on September 1st. Each Friday, each group will submit their progress to be posted on the Cash For Cameroon honor roll! Schools raise more than $500 will be mentioned in the press release at the end of the project!
  

Resources for elementary school teachers (grades K- 5)
Resources for middle school teachers (grades 6-8)
Resources for high school teachers (grades 9-12)

Some Fundraising Ideas
- Lemonade stands
- Bake sales
- Car wash
- Local restaurant night (donation are tax deductible!)
- Change jars (Penny War)
- Benefit concerts (local bands)
- BBQ

Please feel free to leave comments of any other resource materials & fundraising ideas!

A Call for Help! - Building 28 Bilingual Libraries!

As many of you know, I somehow got myself into this silly project of bringing 28 bilingual libraries to Cameroon. All I wanted was some books for this tiny 4-room school by my house. How the project manifested into such scale, I haven't a clue.

Either way, here we are, trying to raise funds to pay for the shipping fee requires for a 40-foot container of books to come from the US (about 22,000 books), in collaboration with Books For Africa. I suppose it's been about a month that I've been sending out emails, bugging the crap out of you on Facebook and Twitter, yet we are barely at $1,000. How much do we need? $11,500. Riiiight.

$11,500 may seem like a lot of money at lump sum, but if you break it down, it only takes 2,300 people to donate $5 to reach the goal. You are telling me in this day in age with all the social networks, I can't find 2,300 people to give up their next $5 latte/beer/burger? I hope humanity is better than that.

That's not all. In phase II, we'll be needing roughly the same amount of money to get French books, in collaboration with Biblionef and l'AESCO. Yikes.

So anyway, I am desperate. I am calling for help. Literacy is something most of us take for granted. Yet here, most people can't read. Think about if you can' read - how your life would be different? We want to help Africans to help themselves. But if they can't read, how far can they go? I want to change the fact that most of the people I've met here has never seen a library in their entire life, and if they did, it's because they were privileged enough to go to a university.

Can you contribute some pocket change and help me make this project a reality? If you are a small business owner, this is a perfect tax write-off! Let's help Africans help themselves by giving them the resources. Tell your friends and neighbors!

To make a tax-deductible donation: Http://tiny.cc/booksforcameroon
To follow us on Facebook and look at adorable pictures, and read stories that's been published about the project: Http://tiny.cc/booksfc

Thank you all for your support!

Books For Cameroon Libraries

West Province
- Bandenkop Community Library
- Lycée de Batié
- Cetic de Batié
- École Publique de Nso'O
- École Publique Bilingue de Bapa
- École Catholique St. Jean Baptiste Famgoum II
- École Publique de Famgoum I
- École Publique Batié - Carrefour
- École Publique de Sim Tsela
- École Catholique St. Pierre de Lagou-Batié
- St. Augustine Bilingual School Complex
- Lycée Bilingue de Foumbot
- Good Foundation Bilingual Nursery and Primary School
- African Foundation for Education
- Standard English School
- Fondonera Community

Southwest Province
- Government Practicising School Njah
- Government Technical High School Fontem
- Government Secondary School Lebuh-Mbi Fossung
- Government Bilingual High School Fontem
- Government School Fossung
- Limbé City Public Library
- Lewoh Public Library

Center Province
- RELUFA Resource Library

Adamoua Province
- Community of Kognoli

East Province
- Government Technical School of Batouri
- Lycée Classique de Yokaduma
- Lycée Technique de Diang
- Lycée Classique de Ndelele
- Lycée de Nguelemendouka

Classrooms For Cameroon [Grade 9-12]

• Who? Students and Teachers in grades 9-12 all around the USA!
  
• What? Month-long activity for kids to discover Cameroon, Africa, and the Peace Corps. Meanwhile, students will collaborate to create fundraising activities to help kids in Cameroon to have libraries!
• Where? High school classrooms all around the USA!
• When? The months of September, 2009
• How? Each week, teachers and group leaders will spend some time to help students answer the week's topic question. The method of teaching is free for each teacher to decide; however, since Books For Cameroon is a library project, we encourage teachers to incorporate library time into the activities. Below are some suggested links and resources. The fund-raising effort will begin on September 1st. Each Friday, each group will submit their progress to be posted on the Cash For Cameroon honor roll!

Week 1 : Where in the World is Cameroon?!
Students will explore the country of Cameroon and learn about its history, its geography and its people. The objective is to provide students with a basic overview of Cameroon.
CIA The World Factbook - Cameroon
Google Maps - Cameroon
BBC Country Profile - Cameroon
Africa Planet - Cameroon

Week 2: What is life like in Cameroon?
Students will utilize library resources to discover the daily lives of people, specifically youth, in Cameroon.
Cameroon - Student Activity Books & Teacher Lesson Plans
Natural History Museum LP - Bamum People
Languages of Cameroon

Week 3: Who else lives in Africa?
Students will unsolved the mystery of the lost continent and research another country within Africa.
Peace Corps LP - Republic of Mali
Peace Corps LP - South Africa
Peace Corps LP - Togolese Republic
Peace Corps LP - United Republic of Tanzania
Peace Corps LP - Kingdom of Morocco
Peace Corps LP - Republic of Mali
Peace Corps LP - Republic of Senegal
Peace Corps LP - Congo
Peace Corps LP - Senegal
Peace Corps LP - Niger
Peace Corps LP - Republic of Niger
Peace Corps LP - Republic of Guinea
Peace Corps LP - Congo
Peace Corps LP - Republic of Mali
Peace Corps LP - Republic of Liberia
Peace Corps LP - Republic of Guinea
Peace Corps LP - Republic of Mali
Peace Corps LP - Democratic Republic of Congo
Peace Corps LP - Kingdom of Morocco
Peace Corps LP - Congo
Peace Corps LP - Republic of South Africa
Natural History Museum: Africa - One Continent. Many Worlds. Classroom Ideas

Week 4: Do Peace Corps Volunteers Live in a Hut?
Students will get a glimpse of life in the Peace Corps and see how other Americans are spending two years of their life integrating with another culture in the world.

Visiting volunteer blogs online at Peace Corps Journals
Students are encouraged to write to volunteers. I will create a Peace Corps Q&A section in this blog and post questions from students and respond to them.Peace Corps Challenges For Students
Peace Corps LP - Volunteer Story ["Declaration (of a Kgomotso Girl)"] - Republic of South Africa
Peace Corps LP - Volunteer Story [Essay on AIDS in South Africa] - Republic of South Africa
Peace Corps LP - Volunteer Story ["Mosetsana"] - Republic of South Africa

Classrooms For Cameroon [Grade 6-8]

• Who? Students and Teachers in grades 6-8 all around the USA!
  
• What? Month-long activity for kids to discover Cameroon, Africa, and the Peace Corps. Meanwhile, students will collaborate to create fundraising activities to help kids in Cameroon to have libraries!
• Where? Middle school classrooms all around the USA!
• When? The months of September, 2009
• How? Each week, teachers and group leaders will spend some time to help students answer the week's topic question. The method of teaching is free for each teacher to decide; however, since Books For Cameroon is a library project, we encourage teachers to incorporate library time into the activities. Below are some suggested links and resources. The fund-raising effort will begin on September 1st. Each Friday, each group will submit their progress to be posted on the Cash For Cameroon honor roll!

Week 1 : Where in the World is Cameroon?!
Students will explore the country of Cameroon and learn about its history, its geography and its people. The objective is to provide students with a basic overview of Cameroon.
CIA The World Factbook - Cameroon
Google Maps - Cameroon
BBC Country Profile - Cameroon
Africa Planet - Cameroon

Week 2: What is life like in Cameroon?
Students will utilize library resources to discover the daily lives of people, specifically youth, in Cameroon.
Cameroon - Student Activity Books & Teacher Lesson Plans
Natural History Museum LP - Bamum People
Languages of Cameroon

Week 3: Who else lives in Africa?
Students will unsolved the mystery of the lost continent and research another country within Africa.
Peace Corps LP - South Africa
Peace Corps LP - Republic of Guinea-Bissau
Peace Corps LP - Kingdom of Morocco
Peace Corps LP - Republic of Mali
Peace Corps LP - Republic of Senegal
Peace Corps LP - Republic of Guinea
Peace Corps LP - Congo
Peace Corps LP - Senegal
Peace Corps LP - Niger
Peace Corps LP - Republic of Niger
Peace Corps LP - Republic of Guinea
Peace Corps LP - Congo
Peace Corps LP - Republic of Liberia
Peace Corps LP - Republic of Guinea
Peace Corps LP - Republic of Mali
Peace Corps LP - Democratic Republic of Congo
Peace Corps LP - Kingdom of Morocco
Peace Corps LP - Congo
Peace Corps LP - Republic of South Africa
Natural History Museum: Africa - One Continent. Many Worlds. Classroom Ideas

Week 4: Do Peace Corps Volunteers Live in a Hut?
Students will get a glimpse of life in the Peace Corps and see how other Americans are spending two years of their life integrating with another culture in the world.

Visiting volunteer blogs online at Peace Corps Journals
Students are encouraged to write to volunteers. I will create a Peace Corps Q&A section in this blog and post questions from students and respond to them.
Peace Corps Challenges For Students
Peace Corps LP - Volunteer Story ["Declaration (of a Kgomotso Girl)"] - Republic of South Africa
Peace Corps LP - Volunteer Story ["Oh, Kingdom in the Sky"] - Kingdom of Lesotho
Peace Corps LP - Volunteer Story [A Lifetime of Service] - Lesotho, Malawi, Botswana
Peace Corps LP - Volunteer Story ["Mosetsana"] - Republic of South Africa

Classrooms For Cameroon [Grade K-5]

• Who? Students in grades K-5 all around the USA! Teachers, scout troop leaders, youth groups working with kids in grades K-5.
• What? Month-long activity for kids to discover Cameroon, Africa, and the Peace Corps. Meanwhile, students will collaborate to create fundraising activities to help kids in Cameroon to have libraries!
• Where? Elementary school classrooms all around the USA!
• When? The months of September, 2009
• How? Each week, teachers and group leaders will spend some time to help students answer the week's topic question. The method of teaching is free for each teacher to decide; however, since Books For Cameroon is a library project, we encourage teachers to incorporate library time into the activities. Below are some suggested links and resources. The fund-raising effort will begin on September 1st. Each Friday, each group will submit their progress to be posted on the Cash For Cameroon honor roll!

Week 1 : Where in the World is Cameroon?!
Students will explore the country of Cameroon and learn about its history, its geography and its people. The objective is to provide students with a basic overview of Cameroon.
CIA The World Factbook - Cameroon
Google Maps - Cameroon
BBC Country Profile - Cameroon
Africa Planet - Cameroon

Week 2: What is life like in Cameroon?
Students will utilize library resources to discover the daily lives of people, specifically youth, in Cameroon.
Cameroon - Student Activity Books & Teacher Lesson Plans
LP - Baka People in Cameroon
Natural History Museum LP - Bamum People
Languages of Cameroon

Week 3: Who else lives in Africa?
Students will unsolved the mystery of the lost continent and research another country within Africa.
Peace Corps LP - United Republic of Tanzania
Peace Corps LP - Republic of Guinea
Peace Corps LP - Togolese Republic
Peace Corps LP - United Repulic of Tanzania
Peace Corps LP - Tanzania
Peace Corps LP - Water in Africa
Peace Corps LP - Togolese Republic
PBS-Africa For Kids
Natural History Museum: Africa - One Continent. Many Worlds. Classroom Ideas

Week 4: Do Peace Corps Volunteers Live in a Hut?
Students will get a glimpse of life in the Peace Corps and see how other Americans are spending two years of their life integrating with another culture in the world.

Visiting volunteer blogs online at Peace Corps Journals
Students are encouraged to write to volunteers. I will create a Peace Corps Q&A section in this blog and post questions from students and respond to them.
Peace Corps Challenges For Students
Peace Corps LP - Volunteer Story ["Oh, Kingdom in the Sky"] - Kingdom of Lesotho
Peace Corps LP - Volunteer Story [Narrative Cartoons] - Africa

Phase I Project Timeline

ESTIMATED PROJECT TIMELINE

Date	Activity
December 2008	Brainstorm project idea with community member; research donor organization for books.
January 2009	Contact Books For Africa to confirm book donation of 22,000 English books.
February 2009	Contact other PCVs to expand the library project over 3 provinces and 25 schools.
Mach 2009	Contact PCVs worldwide who have successfully completed the project with BFA.
March 2009	Identify target schools and discuss with administration to ensure meeting desired needs.
March 2009	Assess schools involved on appropriate library space. Prepare application for interested schools.
April 2009	Arrange logistics with RIDEV as NGO responsible for port clearance.
April 2009	Project marketing Stateside to raise awareness of the project and identify potential donors.
April 2009	Collect project application. Select participating schools. Deliver acceptance letter and project contract.
April 2009	Submit Peace Corps Partnership proposal for approval.
May-October 2009	Launch project campaign via social media to raise funding. Contact and encourage groups Stateside to fundraise for project.
November 2009	Complete fundraising; submit payment to BFA and enlist on shipping list.
December 2009	Books shipped from Books For Africa.
January/February 2010	Training sessions in each province and each school.
February 2010	Receive books in Douala port and ensure secured transportation of books to the West Province.
February 2010	Week long book sorting in the West Province.
February/March 2010	Distribution of books to each school.
March/April 2010	Library organization in each school.
May 2010	Oversee functionality of all libraries and continual training of staff.
June 2010	Project completion/evaluation.