Are Vampires Omnivores?

As a matter of fact, no.  Vampires are not omnivores because they only feed on blood, which I'm pretty sure would make them carnivores.

Yes, this is a real answer I gave in class the other day while trying to teach my students about carnivores and omnivores (for those of us who are not science geeks, omnivores eat both flesh and vegetation while carnivores only eat flesh).  Goes to show that vampire mania is not only found in America, apparently it has transcended across the globe!  Despite stumbling over questions about vampires and bats, I felt like my last day of lessons went surprisingly well.  I even incorporated group work and presentations skills, which was not preapproved by my mentor teacher and was probably poorly received on her end; however, my students appeared to enjoy it and benefit.  Plus, they got all the right answers, and that's what counts right?  My primary school was sad to see me go, and my mentor teacher even said "If you keep teaching, I think you'll be a wonderful teacher."


As most of us know, sub-Saharan Africa is currently struggling with a huge HIV/AIDs epidemic.  In response to this epidemic, the president of Uganda, Museveni, has implemented a program called PIASCY.  It is an initiative to educate the Ugandan youth about the truths and realities of HIV/AIDs and methods of prevention.  In a primary school (remember, that is elementary school), there are signs posted all around the school to promote the PIASCY message.  Here are some examples:


Always say no to sex


Incest is bad


Menstruation is normal


Make good choices


Stay safe


Follow your religion


Stay a virgin

Follow the ABCs (Abstain, Be faithful, Condom usage)


Avoid bad touches



Obviously, this is a very different approach to sexual education.  Interestingly enough, when I interviewed the students about the various clubs available after school, their favorite was PIASCY, which means they must be doing something right.  Since the implementation of this program, the HIV/AIDs rates among youth has decreased!  Just something I wanted to share with all of you back home about some the differences in education.


What do PCTs (Peace Corps Trainees) do on the weekends, you might ask?  Well let me tell you what this PCT does on the weekends.  On Saturday morning, we had a teaching fair put on by volunteers that have been in country for the last year.  It was amazing to see how resourceful and creative these volunteers have been, and it seems like they have accomplished so much!  Just a few examples of things they talked about: building a dutch oven to bake (yes we cooked banana bread!), making innovative teaching materials, dealing with the frustrations of PCV daily life, teaching reproductive health, educating Ugandan women about available, cheap, reusable sanitary pads, doing yoga, making a work out routine using your body weight, making a rocket stove, etc etc.  They had so much to offer- even more importantly they are willing to come to your site to do workshops with your students and teachers about these things.  It was awesome and got all of us excited about getting to our sites and starting whatever work we'll find there!


I spent the rest of Saturday having meals with my homestay family, which by the way are amazing!  I love the food that my homestay family feeds me.  I've never eaten so many bananas, they always have homemade passion fruit juice, sometimes I get yogurt for breakfast and we basically had mexican food the other night!  To make up for all this food I've been downing at homestay (and believe me they want me to eat three whole plate fulls-I stick to one), I went for a 5 mile run with a friend. 

This morning, I washed all my clothes- how in the world did I accumulate so much dirty clothes in only one week, I have no idea.  Believe me, I will NEVER take a washing machine for granted again.  As I was standing over my dirty clothes, with the four basins spread out in front of me (one for soapy water, three for rinse), listening to my running mix on my iPod, hearing the breeze whip through the banana leaves, I realized that people can get used to anything because it felt totally normal.  My host mom actually said that I did a good job and was surprised I knew how to wash clothes- seriously, one of the best compliments that I could get from a Ugandan woman!  Hopefully, my arms will get that work out more than once a week.  I think it will help me manage my clothes situation, and it won't take an hour and half!  I then organized my room and mopped my floors.  From here, I'll be going to training center to hang out with the other trainees and relax some before Week Four starts up with a bang tomorrow morning at 6:30.


Note: Sorry there are no pictures on my blog yet.  There have been numerous requests.  I'm only using computers at the internet cafe, which are full of nasty viruses, so I don't want to be sticking my flashdrive anywhere near here.  Hopefully, in a couple months, I'll have an internet modem for my laptop and I can do lots of updating on the picture front.  Thanks for being so concerned and interested in my blog though!