Going Back

Hi Everyone,

Hope you're all having a good day. I definitely am! This time next week I'll be back in Vanuatu!! I found out just over a week ago that I would be able to go back to keep teaching.

Originally I was placed at Level Mission Primary School. It's in central Pentecost and as far as damage to placements goes, we were the worst hit. The big water tank was damaged, the gardens flattened and trees and buildings were down everywhere. This means I won't be able to go back to Level. I absolutely love all of the people there but going back would be a burden on the community and would be completely irresponsible, as they are struggling with food as it is.

My new school is a four and a half hour walk north of Level at a place called Atavtabanga. It rhymes with cowabunga. I'm going back with a different placement partner, because Courtney will be going back to Level later this year, something I can't do. Ally, my new partner, and I will be at Atavtabanga for ten weeks. Ally was placed there in February but came home for a little while after TC Pam.

Atavtabanga wasn't hit at all during the storm. It's one of two placements that is viable on Pentecost right now, so I am extremely lucky to be able to go there. I'm fairly certain that I'll be teaching primary school again, although there is a high school as well, so I'll just have to wait and see.

Moving placements means I'll be up to at least five mamas in Vanuatu. I'm probably going to need to start using my toes when I count how many sisters I have. The Ni-Van are amazing in the way they just adopt people they've never met before. It's an incredible thing to arrive in a new placement and have a horde of kids introduced to you as your siblings, while your new parents smile.

As you can imagine, going back means that this little blog isn't going to be a very interesting place for a while. There's no internet on Pentecost. I'll be putting some links to places you can get information about Vanuatu and what I'm up to up in the next few days.

Now, if you'll be so kind as to excuse me, I have to go and pack!

Love From Me and My Backpack

"Travel isn't always pretty. It isn't always comfortable. Sometimes it hurts. It even breaks your heart. But that's okay. The journey changes you - it should change you. It leaves marks on your misery, on your consciousness, on your heart, on your body. You take something with you... Hopefully you leave something good behind." -Anthony Bourdain.