Oh hey!

Hello friends and family! Greetings from Africa!

Life is going well here. I am in Mali's capital at the Peace Corps office right now after a 3 day stay at my permanent site (check out my facebook for the name of the town where I will be placed, I don't think I am allowed to write it here).

My village was very welcoming and I felt at home already, despite the Grand Canyon of a languge divide that exists between the villagers and me. Dooni dooni (little little) my language will get better.

My new host family is very patient with me and they invite me to sit and chat. They say that if I sit and chat every night my Bamanankan will get better very quickly.

From what I gathered so far, my new host dad has at least 2 wifes, but might have more. One wife has 3 kids, and the other has 4. There are several family groups in my compound, and several other compounds in my village that are spread out. It was around 20 minute walk from my house to my dugutiki (village chief) 's house yesterday.

It is definitely a change from my homestay village. This new village is much smaller by population and more agriculture centered.

There was a volunteer there before me and I thank her little soul because it seems like she set some good boundaries. The kids don't go into my room like at my homestay, and the kids in the village don't call me "Toubabu" like the kids in the homestay village do.

My name changed again and now my permanent name is Assetou Diarra "Eye-sit-too Jar-ah".
Most of the men in my village have the last name Diarra, so I will fit in better and be able to joke more. I'm not sure if I mentioned it, but Malians have something in their culture called joking cousins where based on your last name you call people bean eaters, donkeys, or other slams when you meet them. Certain last names joke with each other and you can count on your joking cousins for anything. It is kind of complicated, but google it and learn more!

We go back to Tubaniso, our training center tomorrow and will be there until the 19th. I am excited to spend my birthday with my friends here. After that we will go back to our homestay villages for a few weeks, swear in as volunteers around August 5th and will go back to our permanent sites after that for our 2 year stay. Everything is happening very quickly and it is kind of overwhelming to think about, so I just take it a day at a time.

I hope you are all doing well in the states. I will know my permanent address soon and will post it on facebook. For now you can mail me letters or packages at the address I put in one of my facebook notes. I miss you all dearly. Thanks for your love and support. Please send me positive Bambara learning vibes so that I can communicate ;)

Happy birthday to my sister Wendy on July 19th!!!

Love, Jamie (Assetou)