Long time, no write?

Hey all,

It's been a while, and I'm fine. Here's an update

The elections went well, there was almost no violence or problems. Unfortunately, the vote was too close and no candidate got over 50% so they need to do a run off vote for the two leading candidates. The vote is scheduled for Dec 28, so for safety, PC has put us all on standfast during the holidays around the vote. (Standfast=stay at site). It's a drag for people who had plans to travel, but I didn't plan anything, so I'm okay. We'll see how the next one goes, I'm pretty confident that it will be a good election.

The All Volunteer Conference was the week before last. I prepared end-of-term exams for my classes before I traveled down to Bunso to hang out with all the other PCV's in Ghana. It was really fun, and I met lots of great people, and even learned some stuff at the PEPFAR workshops. The best part was the PC Prom. I made myself a bowtye out of water sachets and since the theme was "Ghana Fabulous" everyone wore their best/worst Ghana garb. We drank and danced and had a blast. Check out pics on facebook, Ming "the Real Man" took some great ones. We also had an entertainment night, sort of like a talent show followed by another dance. Kyle and I sang some Steven Lynch songs. If you know anything about Steven Lynch, you know that they were funny and vulgar. Good times!

After the conference, I traveled with Kyle and Katharine to his site and then to the beach at Adda Foah. We met Jen, Sara, and Caroline and had a great time. It was beautiful, although not too clean. There was plenty of trash on the sand and in the water, and in places, we saw people "praying" on the beach in a squatting position. I think you can figure it out. Overall the beach was awesome and relaxing and I only got minorly burnt. We took a long walk along the beach, and encountered some fishermen and women pulling in a huge net. They had all sorts of fish in there, I wish I knew the names. They also had some cool sea snakes, pufferfish, small lobsters, and lots of trash. Nothing got out alive and even the smallest fish was collected. The fishers gave us two small lobsters and we took them back to the "resort" and had them cook them up for us for supper. We also caught a bunch of little crabs who wanted to hide in holes on the shore but weren't fast enough. We put them in a plastic bag and ate them, too! It was really fun and I realized that I really needed the break.

After a few days, I made my way back north and am now settled back in Sirigu and getting to know my new neighbor Shauna, who is a Small Enterprise Development pcv who lives just close to me. She is way cool and we are learning how to play the guitar together.

I send my good holiday vibes to everyone, If you see someone I know and like, give them a hug for me. (I hope this will facilitate a lot of hugging, as I know and like a lot of people). Thanks especially to my family in Seattle for all the awesome care packages! I have now amassed a substantial supply of cliff bars, candy and powdered cheese. It's just what I wanted for Christmas!

Also, new random pictures here.

all the best,
Toby

PS. I love you.