PST Week 9

 Wow... week 9. Ryan and I cannot believe that this weekend is our last weekend of homestay. We leave our current village and family on Wednesday.  Here are some highlights from our last full week in Lavengatonga:

- We finished all the fun-sized Snickers bars Mark and Nan sent. That was a sad day. But, it was also a good day because Ryan and I decided to splurge and eat 6 bars each.
- We taught our last practice classes this week. Ryan rocked out with class 5 and I finished up with class 4. We wrote some poetry and had a great time. It was sad to think that was the last time we would have the opportunity to work with those particular students, teachers and principal. We will miss GPS Ha'asini.
- Ryan was elected as the VAC (volunteer action committee) representative for the Vava'u group. He will help bridge the gap between PC staff and PCV's on matters of policy and program.
- Ryan was also asked to be our group's emergency coordinator by the Peace Corps' Regional Safety & Security Officer based in Fiji. In theory this means he will be in-charge of coordinating volunteers in case of a tsunami or earthquake. In reality, it means he gets a bunch of cool gadgets like a satellite phone and a fancy emergency locator beacon that I get to play with!
- We rode the local bus into the capital for the last time. We thought it fitting that the song of choice blared to ear popping decibels was the Joy to the World/Macarena island remix. You think such a thing doesn't exist... you are SO wrong.
- I will be serving as one of our PSN (peer support network) volunteers. This means I will be trained on how to help other volunteers cope with the struggles of service. I am really honored to be elected to this position by my peers. I really hope I can be a source of comfort if things get tough.
- The other couple in our group, Mark and Alissa, took us to the 'Anahulu cave located in a local village nearby. This was AWESOME. We had the opportunity to swim in ice cold, freshwater in a beautiful, natural, underground cave (2 points for my wonderful use of adjectives in that sentence). :) This was so great and such welcome relief from the stifling heat and sun that is summer in the South Pacific. Ryan and I literally sleep in a waterbed now as we sweat the night away. Here are some pictures from us enjoying the caves.

  

One of our students happened to be at the caves the day we went. He showed us what REAL cave jumping looked like. The Tongan kids are crazy brave... and nimble!!

 

                                                      

(Note from Ryan: This cave is a huge attraction in Tonga and it was amazing to have most of the time there be just the 4 of us. These pictures truly don't do it justice. Also, the highlight was surely jumping from a 25 ft. cliff into the water. My wife, who is of course the only female in all of PC Tonga Group 77 to do the jump, had to go before me to prove it wasn't too frightening!)

What's next? This week we will have the opportunity to fly to Vava'u to stay with a volunteer currently serving on that island. She will take us to meet our new principals, see our schools, and check out our house. We are soooo amped to get a first glimpse of the place we will be living and serving for the next two years. On Saturday, we will return to the capital to stay for the remainder of training.
We hope you all are doing well. We heard Denver is getting snow... that seems so very foreign to us right now :)  Enjoy it and stay warm. Love you all so much and we miss you all terribly. Take care!