the grind 59 days

a bit of an update:

School is going along fine. i'm really enjoying teaching there. some of my classes have yet to start due to a problem registering freshmen....there are always problems in mali! But the classes i am teaching are a lot of fun and the job on the whole is quite fulfilling. YAY! i was so worried school would start and i'd still feel bored or useless, so it is a relief that i love my job so much.

british studies class is studying the norman conquest and continuing to read beowulf. it's interesting because my students are constantly asking me why the anglo saxons fought the kelts, why the normans invaded england, why tribes fought each other. i feel like in america i wouldn't get these questions. we americans know why people fight, they fight for land, power, money etc. malians seem to be a bit baffled why someone would start a war.

my conversation class is talking about a different important global issue each week. i'm not sure what to have them discuss this saturday, but i'm sure i'll come up with something interesting before then. last week we talked about Barak Obama. my students, predictably, are in love with barak. they hate the wars in iraq and afghanistan, and they feel like america is targeting islam in those wars. they are also quite concerned about america's financial situation because they know that america's economy directly affects the world economy. we also discussed foregin aid. i think it would be interesting to have a debate on whether or not foreign aid helps or hurts developing countries. there is a lot of evidence to suggest it simply creates a dependency..... if you have any good topic ideas please let me know. this class is open to anything, we merely talk for 2 hours on whatever subject strikes me as interesting!

I am also working at a catholic youth center once a week teaching a two hour english conversation class to 15 students. most of them are young adults and older people. this is even more fun than the university because the students are so excited to learn and i have time to talk with each of them individually, unlike my 100 students per class at the university. Last week we had a rather rousing discussion on the problems that are facing Mali. They brought up poverty, bad governance, unemployment, education, the rebels in the north, and many more. bright group of folks. i look forward to hearing their opinion on several issues.

hot season is here. well, not here, but it is certainly coming. the cool mornings are no longer that cool and the days are back in the 100's. i miss 80 degrees days and 60 degree mornings already. but the good news is mango season is here! i love mangos! it's the one redeeming quality of hot season.

still counting down days til europe!

gypsy on