New house!

Today was a long day, but it was good. We went to see our new place after school, which was great. It is pretty nice! My host family is wonderful, but I am looking forward to having my own space and not be in someone else's house. I went to Nautilus again with Ruth and Falan to use the wifi after dinner. It was good to talk to some people from home and read emails from my parents. I got my first package today, yay! I didn't bring it home because I didn't have a way to carry it on my bike. I think I am giong to get a basket for it so I can carry packages home. It will also be cooler to ride without a backpack on my back because that adds a lot of heat and sweat, yuck. I have my schedule, room, and class rosters, so I am getting excited and ready to start the school year. Only a week left!

A wonderful weekend

This weekend was awesome! Yesterday I went snorkeling at the blue hole with the other people from WorldTeach. It was amazing and I got some great pictures with my waterproof camera that I will post as soon as my internet allows me to. Then I had a few relaxing hours at home before heading to Nautilus for happy hour with a couple of the other teachers. Since we only see each other at school, it was nice to just relax and get to know each other a little better. Apparently while I was there, I missed a party held by the Phillipinos that my host mom was going to take me to. She was gone when I left for Nautilus so she couldn't tell me to stay, and I was gone when she left for the party, so we missed each other. I'm kind of bummed, but I had a good time at Nautilus. Hopefully there is another one I can go to. This morning, just Kokok and I went to church so Almitta could stay home and cook. Lunch was awesome, as usual. I had fresh crab, which I love, in addition to the usual fresh fish, rice, and other local foods. I got some work done on my lesson plan, and then Kokok and I watched a movie together. Ruth and Falan came over, and then wanted to use my laptop for internet, so we went to Nautilus for dinner and checked facebook and I got to send a couple emails. I had a burger, which was delicious! I needed a little taste of America (but mostly red meat), so it tasted extra delicious to me. Back to school tomorrow for the last week of orientation (yay!). I am getting anxious to start classes and get going on the school year. We start a week from tomorrow, so it is coming up quickly, but I am excited to get going.

Local appreciation

I haven't written for the past couple days, but not a ton has happened. A couple days ago, I went fishing with Kokok and Falan. it was a lot of fun! Fishing in Kosrae consists of wrapping fishing line around an empty water bottle or can. You put the hook and bait on the end, and your all set. I didn't catch any fish, sadly, but Kokok and Falan caught 3! They have gone fishing each day since, but I stayed in because I was really tired yesterday, and today I had a massive headache. I feel kind of guilty for staying inside when I am in such a beautiful place. The good news is I still have almost a year to explore! My bike rides to/from school are absolutely beautiful. Everything is so green here! I don't know if I have mentioned this yet, but the people here are so friendly! My host family has been extremely welcoming, but this goes way beyond that. Everyone I have talked to has been so excited that I am here and genuinely hopes I enjoy my stay. Everyone is thankful to have WorldTeach here and I feel so appreciated and school hasn't even started yet!

Coral!

I am starting to feel a little more settled now. I am learning my way around the island better, so that makes everything feel more manageable and I feel a little more under control. We are getting into a lot of teaching and planning now with Orientation, so I am starting to feel overwhelmed. I know planning will make me feel so much better once school starts, but it feels like a lot right now. I guess I would rather feel overwhelmed now than the first month of school.
I went swimming today and went a little farther out than I had before with my goggles. The coral and fish were amazing! I have never seen coral or so many different kinds of fish. I didn't go very far because I didn't have my snorkel, but I am definitely going to come back and go out again with my snorkel and camera. Can't wait!

Lazy Sunday in Kosrae

I went to church this morning with Almitta and Kokok. We got there late and left early, but time doesn't seem to be a big deal here, so I guess that was normal. When we got back, Smith's brother's wife (I think) and Kokok took me out to eat at Nautilus. I got pizza, which wasn't amazing, but it was nice to have a little slice of home (haha slice, see what I did there?). The rest of the day I mostly just laid around. I read for a little bit, took a nap, and then it was time for dinner. As usual, there was a huge meal prepared, complete with cooked fish, sashimi, rice, corn on the cob (again a reminder of home), and a few other local dishes like taro and breadfruit. I got to wear a muumuu to church today and Almitta braided my hair with a clip so I could really look Kosraean. I got a lot of compliments on my dress. Also, back to lunch with who I believe to be Smith's sister-in-law. This family is huge, and everyone is coming and going all the time so I honestly don't even know who lives here. It also feels like it doesn't matter because everyone is always welcome all the time. There are so many families that I can't keep them straight. I am already bad with names, so this many people with Kosraean names just compounds the problem. Hopefully with time I can learn them all. But then again, I'm sure at that point, someone new will walk in and the problem will start all over.

First Weekend

Today is Saturday, so we didn't have anything to do at school. It was a slow morning, which was nice, and then around 2 (we were supposed to leave at 12, that's island time for you), we went to the laundry facility and cooked and swam all afternoon while laundry was going. It was a fun afternoon, but now I am exhausted after a long day outside. Tomorrow should be fun because I am going to church with the family and Sunday is basically a national holiday for Kosrae. You can't swim, exercise, or work on Sundays so it should be a laid back, nice day.

Rally

I am 100% sure I am going to gain weight here. "Going to" is probably inaccurate because although I have no scale, I am pretty confident I have already put on a few pounds. My family is wonderful and makes copious amounts of delicious food that they continue to tell me to eat more of even after I've said that I am full. I am planning to continue to come back for at least one meal a week to eat with them even after I move out. The food is amazing and they go out of their way to make sure I am happy. Smith went fishing yesterday specifically so I could have fresh fish. I told them I love fish, so they want to make sure I have the very best. By the way, fresh yellowfin sashimi costs just over $1/lb here, which is ridiculously cheap so I plan to gorge myself for the next year. I love sashimi ik mea (ocean fish, basically just means big fish caught off-shore). I am learning Kahs Kosrae (kahs-language) and practicing with the kids, Kokok and Falan. The girls love showing me around and playing with me, and I am enjoying having tour guides and kahs Kosrae teachers so easily accessible and enthusastic, so we make a good team. I am opening up to my host family more and more every day, and they are so welcoming and helpful with my transition into life on Kosrae.

First run

I started my day off with a short run around 6:15 this morning. I ran around part of Lelu island, which is where I live (for those of you google mapping, I'm right next to the Kosrae Ace Hardware). Anywhere you go is beautiful, so I very much enjoyed it, except that I am out of shape and it is hot and humid here, so I got tired really quickly. I did get some great pictures though! I already know that I will greatly miss this place and its beauty when I leave. We learned a little more about teaching and lesson plans so I am feeling better about that day by day. School starts August 4th, which is very early by American standards. I am eager to get started though! At the same time, I am nervous and have a lot of planning to do before it begins. Tomorrow should be a good day because we are doing more lesson planning and revising. I have so many ideas in my head for these classes, it is good to finally get some ideas down on paper and begin to organize my thoughts.

Orientation begins

Smith and Almitta (my host parents) have been extremely welcoming. Almitta had a huge breakfast prepared for me this morning. Kokok, the youngest daughter, was very excited to show me around today. We walked with her cousin Sike around Lelu, which is one of the villages on Kosrae. There is also Lelu Island, where I live, but Lelu Village extends farther than just Lelu island. If you google map it, you'll be able to see the small island of Lelu connected to the larger island. We walked around Lelu island today, to the church, and then across the causeway towards the main island. I cannot get over how beautiful it is here. The pictures don't even begin to show the true beauty of this island. It rained some today, which I enjoyed because it was really refreshing after being hot and humid. For the periods I was outside, I did manage to already get a sunburn. Note to self: put on sunscreen. After a long day of orientation today, I am exhausted and ready for bed at 8pm. I might go for a run in the morning to get some exercise and maybe even see a sunrise!

Day 1

We left Hawaii at about 7:30am today, but got to Kosrae (Kohsh-rye for all my non-Kosraean-speaking friends) at around 1:30pm the next day. The time change is very strange. Crossing the international date line just makes things get weird. First impressions of the island: beautiful, hot, and humid; pretty much exactly as advertised. We had a wonderful barbeque with WorldTeach and then headed to our host families. I had my first back of a pickup experience on the way there. It's the best way to ride around the island as far as I'm concerned. My host fam is wonderful and welcoming and the youngest daughter (who is going to be my unofficial Kosraean language teacher) is already making plans for tomorrow. She wants to show me everything! So far, the food has been wonderful and I've already eaten a ton of different things. My host family said that I "look fit" and therefore need to eat more. Good thing I've been training for this the past four years :) Shoutout to HSB (#RALLY) for keeping me on my eating game, endless juv to you all! That's about it for today; the jet lag is here in full force so I'm going to give in and go to sleep. The adventure begins!