November 17, 2010

Frustrations:
1. English class in Ribeira das Patas – My counterpart/ “boss” does not tell me that he stopped paying the electric bill for 3 months, so I show up to class with all my students to find we have no classroom to use. After two missed classes, we find another room to use. After one class, the ministry of education decide they want to demolish that building to the ground, so again no class room to use, and again no communication to me and my students.

2. English class in Cirrio – I arrive for the first day of class to find out the coordinators never communicated what day and where we are starting class so no one is there. Day 2, we try again and this time there is no chalkboard.

3. Clothing drive – I plan a clothing collection and distribution project with the girls of Camp Crioula 2010. They planned all the details, I just helped in implementing the project. We decide on all the details, post signs, and the day of the collection, all girls back out saying they have previous engagements (watching soap operas, braiding hair, etc….)

4. Clothing drive- We collected clothing door to door in both Ribeira das Patas and the larger city of Porto Novo. Sunday night I called the girls to confirm a pickup for the next morning. Monday, I went to Porto Novo to pick up the clothing. All the clothing was in different houses and half of the girls were not home when we had arranged for the pickup.

5. World AIDS Day – I approached our local medical staff to plan a big community event. He said he did not have the authority and that I would have to plan a meeting with the head Delegado of Health in Porto Novo. After 3 weeks of planning and expensive taxi rides, I find out that same local nurse had planned a World AIDS Day event in the same venue for the same day for the same time.

6. Youth Center – My community partners have known about this project for 3 months, and I went to them today to reconfirm that repairs were being made to the facility. They respond saying “Oh, the elementary school is having class there for a month because there school is being demolished. They said it will be “only a month”. Problem being “only a month” in Cape Verdean terms can mean anywhere from 3 months to never.

7. Youth Center – Other community partner said they could provide 17 chairs and 10 tables. Now that I have done my part and the money has been raised, they said those materials are being occupied.

8. Book Acquisition – So I have two contracts with organizations in the US and in France, both which have agreed to donate a total of 2,000 books. Those contracts need to be approved by the head of the high school. Problem – this director decides to take a month long vacation in the middle of the school year. How does the head of the school decide to up and leave in the middle of school?