blak man no de di doty

"Blak man no de di doty" is Pidgin (most common language in the Southwest and Northwest regions of Cameroon) and it literally translates to "black man doesn't die of dirt".  It is on some level a type of metaphor or saying here that loosley means, African are very resistant to things here that foreigners will usually get sick from. The examples I was given were water and dust: the water and dust here doesnt make them (black men) sick - but when a white man comes he will get diarrhea from the water and respetory/breathing problems from the dust. 

Found this while cleaning up the SDI office.
"We make a living by what we get. But we make a life by what we give."

Although I have only been here for 26 days, I feel like it has been months and I am already dreaming about extending my stay. Cameroon is such a diverse country with so many places I want to visit and learn about. Cameroonians are genuinely hospitable and truly amazing and caring people. I feel so blessed to be spending my time here. I still have 120 days until my 'planned departure date' but since I have not bought my ticket yet...I am temped to stay. On verra (we'll see)

My favorite meal has come to be grilled fish with 'condiment vert', pepe and bobolo. Condiment vert is the sauce seen in the white bowl. It is a combination of ginger, garlic, oil and other spices. I have not yet learned how to prepare it, but I will post the recipe soon. Pepe is a combination of several spices that are ground together and put with everything to give it a little kick! Bobolo is not in the picture but is is a dish made by fermenting cassava leaves and shaping them in thing long loaf that is then wrapped and twisted to keep shut until serving. I prefer it hot but is often served cold. When Cameroonians living abroad come back to visit (or locals are going to visit family abroad) they often bring a suitcase full of bobolo!

House in Maumu Village, Beau, Southwest Region, Cameroon, West Africa.

My first day in Maumu only yielded 6 out of 20 teens who showed up. We arrived at 3pm and walked around the village for over an hour trying to round up young teens who had dropped out of school, were pregnant or already have a child. Everyone was very shy, and some girls even ran and hid from us as we walked around. I was accompanied by good friend and colleague Max (aka Delegate) and a local social worker from Maumu named Henry. By 5pm (it started at 4pm) we had about 6 girls so we talked about future activists and chose and official time and date for weekly workshops. As we left on the moto bike I crossed our fingers for a higher turn out the following week and began mentally planning for next week' s program.

The first official workshop is pictured here: to the right is Max (aka Delegate) and on the left is Henry.

For the second week in a row we had a very low turn out. I was disappointed because I spent the entire last week preparing and planning. I had a delegate from the Regional Delegation of Women's Empowerment open the workshop with words of empowerment and encouragement. Her speech was followed by a representative from Buea Mutual Health. He elaborated the importance of good health and how it leads to productivity. He explained the benefits of Mutual Health (which is a form of health insurance that SDI provides for each participant). The girls were hardly interested and kept turning their attention to the outside world not paying attention. At the end, I explained to them that this program was for their benefit not mine. I stressed the importance of their participation and need for their general interest and want to participate. We took photos of each girl and her child to begin the application process for the health insurance.

House in Maumu.

Before my arrival, SDI had identified 20 teens in Maumu who we would target to work with for the Teen Mother Empowerment program. I am unsure how this identification process took place, but it obviously wasn't the best way - we only had 6 of 20 girls show up. Because of the low turn out 2 weeks in a row and the obvious lack of interest, Suliman (SDI director) Max and I had a meeting with the Chief of Maumu. I wrote a letter expressing my concern about the lack of interested and overall participation. We told him that if we did not have the serious interest of more than 10 teens we would have to take our efforts elsewhere.

Low and behold the following week we waited until 4:30pm (30min after the workshop was supposed to start) and not a soul had showed up. We packed up our things and took a motobike back to town. That was out last effort in Maumu and we will be taking our efforts to other neighboring villages including Upper and Lower Muea, Bolifanba and Dibanda.

Lesson learned:  

You cannot help those who do not wish to be helped.

Mama Africa with Baby Jason. Jason is Bernadette's
(my host family sister) baby, he just turned 5 months.

The markets have always been my favorite part of Africa.

Here at the Muea Market held every Thursday and Sunday, you can find an plethora of goods ranging from used clothing and African fabric to toothbrushes, lotions and perfumes to literally heaps of dried foods and many locally grown fresh fruits and vegetables.

African prints: the patterns and colors are mesmerizing.

Sardines anyone?

I have a tendency of overloading my self with work but I like to stay busy. Besides the Teen Mother Empowerment Program, I took it upon myself to fill as many administrative roles with SDI and in the office itself as I possibly can. Seeing the mounds of paper documents scattered on chairs, shelves and on the floor throughout the office was unsettling; how can this NGO possible get anything done without any sort of organization or record keeping methods? When the internet is not working and I have nothing of immediate concern to tend to, I go to the office and spend my days organizing. I have purchased binders and labeled them with various headings and one for each SDI project. I hope that this organization helps future volunteers to become more equip with the knowledge of what has happened in the past, how people have done things and where to start once they arrive.

While I am here, I am also hoping to create some sort of 'policy and procedure' document for interns, volunteers and other staff of SDI. There is no sort of record keeping in place so when I went to make the 'annual report' for 2012 there were no tangible records I could find. All of this needs to change. The unsustainability of the projects here are being more and more apparent to me so I am sincerely hoping I will be able to collaborate with Suli and other volunteers to improve the effectiveness of SDI's programs so that the community will see lasting results. In addition, I am aiming to also create an Emergency Preparedness Plan and apply for grants to get more funding for current projects. I have a lot of things on my list, things are very slow moving here, so we'll see how much I can get done!!

Paul lives just up the road and comes to visit sometimes.
He also made a new friend: Baby Jason.

Monica and I getting ready for Sara's Passover Seder.

Once I heard that Cameroon was affectionately referred to as "Africa in Miniature" because of its diversity - I made it my goal to visit all 10 regions of the country. Since the kidnappings in the Extreme North I decided not to go there, but plan to spend time in all the other regions. Cameroonians have told me that Cameroon is the best African country because everything you can find in all of African is in Cameroon, but you cannot find everything that is in Cameroon in any another African country. Here you can find beaches, tropical rain forests, mountains, desert and more!

My first adventure took me on a 5 day trip to Yaoundé, the capital city of Cameroon in the Central Region. Sara, Monica and I left Friday morning and arrived back Tuesday evening. In Yaoundé we visited the Mefou National Park, made tons of friends, went out to the clubs and cabarets and discovered the city on foot.

Ape Action Africa: works on the front-line of great ape protection. Their goals are to address the immediate threats faced by gorillas and chimps in Africa, and to work with communities to develop long-term solutions to ensure their survival in the wild. They rescue orphaned and injured gorillas and chimpanzees, some only days old, hours from death

Baby chimpanzee and mommy.
The DNA of chimps are more than 98% identical to that of humans.

Peek-a-Boo!

Silverback Gorilla

Reminds me of Lion King.

Mandrill

Monkey

On the left you can see bruise marks and on the right you see a scratch.
While visiting Mefou I was attacked by a monkey that somehow got out of
her enclosed habitat.

Our guide was showing us around the sanctuary when I saw a monkey walking around out of the enclosure. I told our guide, Elvis. At first I wasn't scared but then it ran around Elvis and headed towards me! Earlier that day Monica had told me a story about an Australian woman who had her faced ripped off by a monkey - - that story was racing through my head as the monkey latched onto my leg. Elvis advised me not to move or try to run just to be still. I listened. It let go of me and climbed a wooden poll that was directly to my right, the monkey was now at eye level with me so I slowly turned away so that my face was not in front of him, I couldn't get that story out of my head...I did not want my face ripped off. As soon as I turned, the monkey grabbed onto my right arm. She grabbed even tighter and then as she went in to bite me Elvis open hand slapped it off the wood post and onto the ground. She then became very angry and I was very scared at that point. Elvis began to distract the monkey and try to use his body as a barricade. He advised both Monica and I to slowly start walking away and moving down the path away from the monkey. I was convinced she was going to follow my scent and attack me again but thankfully she didn't and we made it out alive. Elvis said I was very lucky it was not a male or the alpha male because it would have been much more aggressive and would have bitten me for sure.

As I wondered around Yaoundé on Easter Sunday I stumbled upon Le Musée Camerounais de la Blackitude (Cameroonian Museum of Blackitude). I figured it was closed so I went to look at the hours as it was open. As I approached the front door a women came out of her house (which was situated right next to the museum) and offered to open the museum for us right then and there.

The artifacts in this museum had several different traditional purposes and significations. Most of them were from the West.

Making the long walk up Mount Fébé in the Bastos area of Yaoundé to see Le Musée d'Art Camerounais (Museum of Cameroonian Art) was definitely worth it. Unlike the first museum I visited, there was tons of information to read on nearly every peace of art in the 3 rooms. I would have loved to buy the book for future reference but it was out of my budget.

The first room had several wooden pipes of all different shapes and sizes in display cases smoked by several different classes of people and for many purposes. The book explain how all members of society smoked cannabis sativa (no joke, that was in the book); the larger the pipe base and mouth piece the high status: therefore women traditionally smoked very small pipes and chiefs smoked the largest. There was one pipe with 2 bowls and one pipe with 3 bowls which were smoked by a father celebrating the birth of twins or triplets.

Traditional masks used for ritual dances.

The next room is pictured below. It was full of statues, masks, stools and beds. Several things were made with geometric patters and/or spider legs. Spiders represented wisdom so it was used often.

One of the 3 rooms in the museum. Notice the stools on the ground: chiefs and quarter heads
would carry these from meeting to meeting, village to village - it was like their portable throne.

View of Yaoundé from Mount Fébé!

I spent the last night in Yaoundé was with some friends at Dani's house (the Algerian Consulate to Cameroon) eating homemade Algerian soup and couscous whilist taking about his work throughout Africa. We had met him our first night out on Friday at a bar where he immediately extended an invitation to dinner. We saw him quite a few more times over the weekend and was very happy to have made that connection.

In only 5 short days I feel in love with the Francophone capital. I made so many friends that I cannot wait to visit again. I know I will be going back soon - it was a 7 hours bus ride but very worth it. It is a fantastic place to improve my French as well - not many people speak English.

I had the Teen Mother Empowerment identification on Wednesday after I returned and had spent the entire previous week preparing. Last week I went around to different radio station in the area to broadcast messages about the program, met with the Upper and Lower Muea chief and had a friend pass out announcement/introduction fliers to all 25 churches in the village. I was certain there would be a satisfying turn out. 

As I walked around Muea Village before the identification workshop, I noticed that there were some (just 1-3) very nice looking houses amongst more normal looking ones like in the picture of Maumu earlier in the post. I mentioned it to Max and he told me that when someone passes away and there is a funeral celebration, it is usually held at the families house. The family does the major remodeling/redecorating in honor of the deceased loved on and for the funeral celebration. The houses I had seen he explained, had recently had a family member die.

There was a somewhat disappointed number of attendance but my hopes are still high! I had tons of community support and many local adults were interested in helping with the program. They told me that the community center (where the workshop was held) should be full, the message was just not getting out to the teens. They suggest that we find 'social mobilizers' who will go from door to door

I'm starting to understand the logistics of the country/regions/cities here as well. Buea is a huge city - there are more than 200,000 people living here (which is a lot to me). Buea is in the Fako division (like a county) of the Southwest region (like a state) of Cameroon. Inside of Buea there are tons and tons of small villages. These small villages each have their own chief. Traditionally, the chief is an inherited position but sometimes it is chosen by local elders. Below the chief are "quarter heads" which are just in charge of a very small area (like a couple of blocks ) of the small village. Also within the village is a "town crier" which is someone who runs around from door to door spreading news of some sort. Sometimes the town crier is paid other times he is not. What a neat form of communication.

Yesterday I went to the villages of Bolifamba and Dibanda which are also known as Mile 16 and Mile 14 respectively. The chiefs were not around so we left the letters introducing the program with their wives asking him for cooperation and to mobilize the 'quarter heads' and the 'town crier' so that we can get the maximum amount of participation. As we were walking around looking for the chiefs 'palace' (it is just the name of the chief's house: it is not usually like the palace on Aladan or anything) Max explained the tradition of greeting a chief. Here in the Southwest region of Cameroon and in the Littoral region right next door to us, people are allowed to greet a chief by simply shaking his hand. The Southwest and Littoral regions are both coastal regions and are what Max calls "more liberal and civilized" because they were the first areas to be infiltrated with white men, they picked up the custom of handshakes. In every other region you must greet the chief by bowing your head and getting on one knee. That is a good thing to know for when I am traveling.

Locally grown fresh bananas: 12 for 300 cfc (= $.60).

10 mangos from Maumu for 500 cfc (=$1).

While I was traveling and studying in 2011/12 I spent some time in Senegal which is where I first discovered this wonderful purple sweet juice. I never learned the name of it but frequently bought it on the street, and even paid one of my friends to make me a couple of bottles to enjoy at home. Once I left Senegal I never saw it again. To my surprise, it is a traditional Cameroonian drink and they call it Folore.

I am pleased to present you all with my first of many recipes from Africa and specifically Cameroon. Here is a short video of the preparation, continue scrolling down to see the full recipe.

Folore - le jus des ananas et des hibiscus 

Ingredients
2 Pineapples
2 ½ cups dried hibiscus leaves
2 cups dried hibiscus powder
2-5 cups of sugar (to taste)
10 liters of water
*have rubber gloves available*

Directions:
Put all dried hibiscus leaves in a big bowl with the water.
Cut pineapples into large 2-3 inch chunks and put in bowl. Save all scraps in separate bowl.
Using your hands, squeeze together the pineapple chunks and the hibiscus leaves extracting all of the juice. Literally squeeze and rub the hibiscus leaves and the pineapple together – twist, rub and smash them. When finished, let it sit for 30min-1hour or more.
Transfer to large pot and add remaining pineapple scraps.
Bring to boil and then remove from the heat and set it aside to cool.
Once cooled, put on your gloves.
Remove all of the large pineapple and hibiscus chunks by squeezing all of the juice out.
Strain out all solids with a strainer.
Add sugar to taste.
DRINK and ENJOY!!!

I am exactly where I am supposed to be

The plane landed nearly an hour behind schedule (right on time if you are going by African time) but thankfully it was still light outside. As I stood in line for customs I could feel my skin soaking up the humid sticky Cameroon heat. Suddenly, the power went out and as if rehearsed, the entire airport let out a synchronized sigh. “I'm back” I thought to myself as the corners of my lips lifted towards my ears. The line was moving slow, but I was in no rush. I could hear the officials speaking in French as they used their cell phones as a flash light to review passports.

Paul was right around the corner waiting to greet me in the luggage area. What a blissful reunion it was. He pointed out Mr. Suliman Turay (CEO/Director of Social Development International) who was waiting in the balcony region. They had been waiting since 2pm – it was now nearly 7pm. It was necessary for them to leave Buea early because depending on traffic, it can take anywhere form 1 ½ to 3 hours to get to Douala and you might have to wait for the bus or taxi to fill up before it leave (taking from 10min-3hours).

I collected my luggage and we met Suliman outside near our taxi. I was welcomed to Cameroon by being called “cheap” for not tipping the two men who literally only lifted my luggage into the car (without asking, just taking) and were both tipped by Paul 2 seconds before they asked me for money.

I was quickly reminded of the terrifying roads and drivers of Africa. There are no rules, no regulations, no lines on the road – nothing. I call it ‘chaos that works’. As our taxi zipped left and right tooting his horn and braking for no one I recalled the secret to keeping your sanity while on the road – don’t look out the front window, always look to the side so you don’t see what the drive is doing or what is really going on. I have heard the front seat be called the death seat in many regions because there are so many head on collisions with public transportation.

Mt. Cameroon (view from Paul's house)

I took Monday as a free day to get acquainted with the city but realized it would take me at least a couple of weeks – Buea’s population is over 200,000 and is very spread out – there are many districts and villages within the city. I met the two others who are working for SDI right now as well – Sara (from the US focusing on farming and agriculture) and Monica (from Australia focusing on Health and Nutrition). We are all staying with the same host family right next door to University of Buea. Paul lives behind Malingo Junction which is only about a 10min walk from my house.

Tuesday I went to the SDI office and met Suliman to discuss my projects for the next 5 months. We decided I would focus on facilitating capacity building workshops with teen mothers in Mamu village. I did as much research as possible on the previous projects that had been facilitated by previous SDI coordinators/volunteers, but information and contacts were scarce. Paul and I went to the Police Department to get a photocopy of my passport/visa, get it stamped and laminated so that I can use that as my ID. Afterwards we went to the Linguistic Center to take a French placement exam. I am Intermediate B and Paul is Beginner A. Classes start April 8^th.

On Thursday I met with Max (aka Delegate) who is the SDI Social Worker. He worked with the previous project in Tole (another village in Buea) and was the one who assessed Mamu village and identified the 20 teens whom I will be working with. Max is a short, middle aged Cameroonian who is not yet married, he says it is because he can cook better than the women and they don't like that. I was hesitant to partner with him at first, mostly because I my self was being gender biased not sure how good of an idea it was to have a man working with with teen mother empowerment. But I have to say, his attitude and knowledge wooed me and I am thrilled to be working with him on this project.

Later that evening Max and I met up to go to Mamu village to meet the teens. The meeting started at 4pm but we spend the first 30-40min walking around the village ‘rounding up’ the girls and reminding them of the meeting. It was finally about 5:15 when the meeting started and there were 6 teens present. I can see that my two biggest challenges will be 1) getting them to come out of their shell; 2) language barrier between their Pidgin-English (mix of broken English and local dialects but it is codified as its own language) and my English. We decided to meet every Thursday at 4pm. As part of this program, the women (and their babies) will be enrolled in Mutual Health (a local health insurance) for an entire year. Upon completion of the program, SDI will fund the teens to either A) go back to school; B) start a business (trading foods, small shop, etc) or C) learn a trade/apprenticeship (hairdressing, seamstress, etc). The program is absolutely free of charge – all that we require is attendance and participation from the girls. This year, SDI and the project received a grant from The Girl Effect and is has made all of these wonderful things possible.

On Friday, Suli, Max and I went to the Regional Deligacy of Women’s Affairs in Buea Town. I met with a the Chief of Services for Family and Children's Affairs and he wants to help me and contribute. I will go back to meet with him at the end of this week because he is traveling until then and will not be around. Before leaving, we stopped to see the Regional Delegate for Women’s Affairs. She was very interested and impressed by our program and is looking forward to hearing more. She even mentioned that she might want to come by one of the workshops. I have to stop back and see on on Tuesday or Wednesday to show her the program for the first workshop.

I went to Buea Town market on Saturday and got a wicket sun burn. The market was beautiful (as are all African markets) and I spent close to two hours wandering around with Sara and Monica.

Sunday Mama Pocome (Francophone neighbor) took the three of us to church because of our activities in Buea. She thought we could benefit the church. In my case, I went so that I could talk to their congregation about the problems that teen mothers face and how they can be addressed (i.e.: what topics I should use for my capacity building workshops). We went to Full Gospel Mission Church (which is a Pentecostal church) for 2 hours. I think faith is good, I think the morals that many mainstream religions bring are good, I think spirituality is also good – but I think there is a line and sometimes that line is crossed. I said it before and I’ll say it again – the missionaries devastated Africa and the destruction is evident all over the continent. For me, I am much more interested in traditional and animalism practices like the Ndep ceremony I saw inYoff, Senegal. I hope I get to be a part of something like that again.

Later on Sunday I wandered down to Muea (pronounced Moon-ya) town market by myself and made some new friends. Ruth helped me find some great fabric stalls and is going to look for the International Women’s Day fabric so that next Sunday I can buy it from her.

My backyard/compound

Sister Bernadette

Everyone here is genuinely hospitable and caring. I really enjoy their generosity and their frequent greetings and smiles. I have made it a personal goal of mine to visit every region (except for the Far North and the North) while I am here. I am living in the Southwest region and I visited the Littoral region in 2011/12, so I am left with 6 regions: East, South, Center, Northwest, West and Adamawa. 5 out of 6 are Francophone regions. J'ai haït de voyager (I am excited to travel).

Cameroonian food I have tried (so far):

Soya – meat on a stick (variety of meats).

Chin-chin – small crunchy fried sweet fried dough-balls.

Puff-puff – fried dough, sometimes with sugar (like a donut).

Ekwang – pounded coco yams, mine had a sauce that was fish based and had a lot of palm oil, not sure if it is always served like that.

Okro soup with Gerri - A fish based stew like soup made of Okro and vegetables with gerri which is ground dried cassava.

Ndole with Water Fufu – cooked green veggies with ground wet cassava. There is also corn fufu which I haven't had yet.

Dodo – slices of plantains fried in oil.

Bobolo – long pieces of cassava wrapped in leaves, traditionally eaten with grilled fish.

Fufu

Pre-Departure Build Up

After all the motivating, working hard, budgeting and planning that has taken place since September 2012, it was time for me to pack up and head out to begin writing the blank pages in the next chapter of the book called "My Life".
Last year's study abroad program and overland travels [13 countries, 12 credits, 9 months] required an immense deal of planning. From HSU campus bureaucracy and approval to scholarship and visa applications to obtaining a 'temporary secondary passport', I could have joined the circus after all the flaming hoops I had to jump through. Which is why I highly recommend taking the ease and stress off by starting the planning early.

This time around, I had less time, less things to do and fewer destinations. I began searching for internships in September with the requirements being a grassroots organization that focuses on social justice, human rights (specifically women's rights) and/or poverty alleviation in the Republic of Cameroon.

Using the F A N T A S T I C book my Aunty Patty bought for me, The Big Guide to Living and Working Overseas, I attempted to perfect an international curriculum vitae [way harder than I thought] and individual letters of motivation/cover letters to send to potential internship organizations. This is what I ended up with:

Two had internships in place, another nine or so accepted volunteers and a few such as UNICEF didn't mention anything other than activities and office location. I applied to 13 of these in December and began receiving feedback by 12 Dec. Things were looking good.

Storage Unit/Month = $41
Cheaper than rent!

Storage unit, on the second floor, around two corners.
Photo Credit: Paul Gamache

See ya next year!
Photo Credit: Paul Gamache

After some good quality family and friend time, and a little bit of snow shoeing...

Snowshoeing around my parents property on the Montreal (Wisconsin) River

...I decided to choose Social Development International (SDI), a small NGO in Buea, Cameroon. I will be working as their Community Service and Development Intern from March-August 2013.

Social Development International

As part of their team, I will be expected to identifying community issues, needs and problems; developing new community-based programs and resources; evaluating and monitoring existing programs; enlisting the cooperation of government bodies, corporate bodies, community organizations and sponsors; raise public awareness;recruiting and training voluntary staff; fundraising for community activities; planning, coordinating, attending meetings and events, and encouraging participation in activities. WOAH! That's a mouthful. I accepted this offer on Christmas Eve :)

DO NOT wait until the last week or even month to start dealing with visa stuff. Sometimes you need a lot of things which can take a while to set up and collect. Always check with the country embassy in your home county for correct up to date requirements! 

For example, the Cameroon Embassy in Washington DC website tells you everything you need to know. If you have many places (more than 3 or 4 countries) that you need to get visas for, I suggest paying a little extra to have a service company such as Dukes Visa Services do it for you.

All documentation less the USPS money orders of $275!

Two days until Canada.

Six days until French classes at ILSC-Montréal.

Sixty-seven days until I see Paul and arrive in Cameroon, West Africa. 

Happy New Year!

My new year's resolutions: 

1) More yoga and meditation: I want to delve deeper into myself and the world around me. I want to incorporate yoga and meditation into my every day life, like eating breakfast and drinking water. 

2) Always act with kindness, compassion and love: Remember that "All success in life, whether material or spiritual, starts with the thoughts that you put into your mind every second of every minute of every day. Your outer world reflects the state of your inner world. By controlling the thought that you think and the way you respond to the events in your life, you begin to control your destiny."

3) In 2013 I want to...document, research, love, photograph, laugh, cry, question, play, write, interview, videotape, observe, analyze, grow, learn, explore, inspire, motivate, challenge, and   
L i V E!

Just Do It: TRAVEL!

Pre-departure planning of an overseas trip can be many things: fulfilling or draining, easy or difficult, thrilling or frustrating, encouraging or daunting. Sometimes you will feel all of these emotions and many more.

Globalization has put the Internet in nearly all corners of the world and unlimited information at our fingertips. Just like spending your life watching other peoples’ lives on reality television, you can virtually travel the world while sitting on your couch. But why would you want to do either of those things? On average a couch is 2 meters long where as the Earth’s land masses total 149 million kilometers. If you stay on your couch, you are only exploring .000000000013% of what this world has to offer! That fraction of a number doesn’t include the endless possibilities of what one could discover in the all of the Earth’s water masses (oceans, rivers, lakes, etc).

The world is huge!

Pre-departure preparations can make or break your trip. Give yourself plenty of time to figure out the 3-W’s:

WHERE: where you want to go;
WHAT: what you want to do;
WHO: who you want to do all of this with.

WHERE do you want to go? 
This is where your planning begins. The questions is simple…where do you want to go? There are seven continents with 195 independent countries (as recognized by the US Department of State) but this list does not included territories that are ‘debated’ such as Western Sahara and Palestine.
Obviously some places are much more accessible, populated, and have a very similar to life style to that in the United States or other developed countries. Other destinations lack access to clean potable water, all inclusive resorts on the beach and over half of the population may live on less than $1.25/day. These are all facts that you must take into account – what sort of ‘trip’ are you trying to plan? Vacation, backpacking/solo travel, mission/volunteer work, etc.
Start your basic research.
- Google is a great place to start, it's a wonderful tool. Learn to use it and learn to love it. Type in the country/area/region that you are interested in. Explore. Click the “Images” and “News” icons in the tool bar. This is the fun part, seeing photos, skimming sites for more information and narrowing your search down. Be sure to read, or at least look at 10+ websites to get a good idea of what is in store for you when you arrive at your potential destination. Try different key words and feel free to get clicker crazy. Use the right of your mouse while opening websites in a different tab, that way you can open 10-15 without loosing your initial search.
- The CIA World Factbook has very practical and literal information on countries with topics such as government, people & society and economy. It is not a website that you will help you plan your trip, but it has a lot of background information which could help with safety issues. Historical research and current local news papers are always a good idea to read before setting off on your adventure.
- Read blogs and travel magazines that have information on people who have traveled to the place(s) your are interested in, get a real life perspective on what it’s like there.
- Make use of your 'bookmark' tool. Start a new folder on each different place you are interested in to keep organized. Delete and add resources as necessary.

Example of bookmark menu

 WHAT do you want to do?
There are millions of things you can do while abroad. What you want to do abroad depends on your personality and what you are expecting to get out of the trip. Ask yourself, once you get off the couch…what do you want to do? Relax, party, vacation, work, volunteer, solo travel, backpacking, group travel, eco-tourism, learn, explore, and more.
- If you have an idea of what you want to do, add that into the Google search bar. i.e.: volunteering in South America or backpacking in Australia
- Once you have virtually explored your potential destination you may want to use “quotes” to help your search be more specific (IF necessary).
i.e.: “NGOs in Peru”, “business internship in Scotland”, “all inclusive” “beach resort” in Cyprus, “hiking” tours in “Italy”, “Overland” group travel through “Africa”.
- Send emails to these organizations/groups to get more information.
- Keep using that bookmark tool!

WHO you want to do this with?
This may quite possibly be the most important questions you ask yourself. Who you surround yourself with while abroad makes a huge impact on the enjoyment of your trip. Maybe you have a group of friends or a significant other that your want to travel with, either way, make sure all parties are on the same page with the destination and purpose of the trip. You don't want to make plans with Debbie-Downer or Flakey-McGuee.
1. Group Travel: It has many perks, especially for someone who isn't ready for independent travel. You will save a lot of time and planning because the company/organization you book with usually has an itinerary planned out. You meet awesome people from around the world, obviously you must have somethings in common if ya'll are on the same trip! There are many organizations online, here are few to get you started:
- EF College Break
- Imaginative Traveler
- Intrepid Travel
- Oasis Overland
- In a Google search, you can find thousands more by searching your country/region of choice and key words like “tours”, “group travel”, “overland”, “tourism” etc.
2. Solo Travel: It can be a daunting idea, but solo travel is the most rewarding. Another perk: you have no one to answer to but yourself. You don't have to consult with anyone, and your plans can change on the drop of a dime. This can be more dangerous (especially for women) so be sure you are prepared.
- Research, research and more RESEARCH.
- Lonely Planet has phenomenal guide books and resources on their website.
- Rough Guide books also have a great reputation. Regardless of which brand of guide books you choose, it is a VITAL purchase and will make planning and arrival much more enjoyable.
- There are hundreds of online forums with independent travelers such as yourself – they are your best resource not only for pre-departure planning but also while traveling. Once abroad, things will flow and work out the way they are supposed to work out. Don’t stress about what hotel you will be staying at on the 15th night, it will work out!

JUST DO IT: TRAVEL!

Sign up, buy a ticket, make reservations, apply, take time at work off, tell your friends and family – whatever it is you need to do to commit… DO IT! The hardest part is diving in, taking the plunge and making the commitment, but you must do it! Once you sign up you will think “oh wow, now I really DO have to do this” and you will.

Make a budget:
This is a very important and useful step. Creating a budget will help you plan accordingly. How much money you will need, how long that will take you to save, and it is very encouraging because you will see instant progress in saving to meet your goal.
- Excel is user friendly and easily accessible by most computer users. Any spread sheet program will work.
- There are many things you will need to account for in your travel budget. Major expenses include: airfare, travel insurance (highly recommended), passport, lodging, food/drinks, in country transportation, spending money, etc. Some things that depend on the destination and length of stay include: visa fees, extra money saved for bills at home, program fees, etc.
- Keep in mind that this budget will be added to and altered several times before departure and possibly while abroad.

- Besides the obvious, budgets can include the following: extra money for bills (while abroad), savings so that when you return from abroad you have a some "cushion" money, and maybe extra spending money. You might want to detail how you are paying for things with two forms of payments: cash (meaning all paid off) and credit (put on my credit card to pay off at a later date). Putting vacations or overseas adventures on a credit cards is not advised unless you are very responsible with you money and know that it will paid off ASAP. Debt = not good.
- There are few things worse than being stuck in a foreign country with no money. Budget, budget, budget..plan, plan, plan!
Motivation and saving:
There are many ways to stay motivated while planning and preparing your adventure. Usually, saving money is the hardest part!
- Cut unnecessary spending. This is easier said than done. First, identify your expenses…where is all of your money going? Then prioritize them and figure out which things you don’t really need. Maybe you go out to dinner more than once a month, maybe you have a cell phone plan that has unlimited everything and is very expensive, maybe you have a shopping habit. Whatever it is, figure it out and cut spending!
- Pick up an extra part time job! I'm sure you are thinking "I don't have time for a part time job" Maybe you go to school and already and/or have a job...No excuses, pick up a part time job! The more you work, the more money you make and the less time you have to spend that money!!
- Open a new bank account. Go to a new bank and open a savings and/or checking account for your “travel funds”. If your new part time job offers direct deposit, sign up and link it to your new Travel Savings account. DO NOT get a debit card linked with this account (that will only lead to spending). Put all extra cash in this fund.
- If you work in customer service and receive tips, start to take out a set amount (50%, $25, etc) every shift and deposit it directly into your new account. Don’t hold the money at home: out of sight, out of mind.
- Print out a couple of pictures of your destination and tape them onto your debit and credit cards to discourage spending. If you habitually shop online, put a sticker note on your computer that promotes saving money.
- If you have time to shop online, watch TV, or knit, you have time to work more hours at your job(s). ALWAYS pick up shifts (if possible) and let your co-workers know you want more hours. Even check out Craigslist for small jobs in your community such as helping an elderly woman clean her garage for one afternoon.
- Deposit cash, keep your debit and credit cards at home! If you don’t have access to the money, you can't spend it!
- Sell old stuff you don't use or need! Again, Craigslist is a great place to sell things. Especially if you are going abroad long term, you won't need your bed, desk, dresser, car or other items for a long time.

Make a timeline with ‘strict’ deadlines:
Now you know roughly how much you need to in order to make your trip possible and you are cutting spending to save money.
- Be realistic in your departure date. Sometimes setting a date a year in advance is the best way to do it – it gives you a year to save money and plan. Other times, people will have some extra money saved or will come into new money and the trip will be more of a ‘spur of the moment’ adventure which is planned a month, week or just days before departure. Whatever you choose, stick to it!
- Make small savings goals. For example, if the round trip plane ticket costs $700, try to have that paid for in the first 2 months of saving (whatever is best for you, your budget and your life).

Scholarships/Grants/Fundraising:
Depending on your purpose of travel, you may very well be able to get help in paying for your trip. A little bit of hard work and yet, more research can go a long way. Grants, scholarships and fundraising are mostly reserved for those doing volunteer type work and not for those going to have fun on vacation.
- If you are studying abroad, there are literally thousands of scholarships ranging from $100-$10,000 which you can apply for. Scholarships mostly depend on your program location, the university you study at, and your planned courses of study. Some popular scholarships include: The Gilman International Scholarship and The Boren Award. Visit your campus's Study Abroad office or The Institute of International Educational for more information on studying abroad and funding.
- There are also organizations that support motivated volunteers who are trying to make the world a better place. Again, Google is a great place to search. Google is your best friend, searching for hours on end using "quotation marks" and a variety of key words in searches will yield promising results. There are tons of grants and scholarships out there - some are very specific to the type of work you are doing - search high and low.
- Travel agencies give discounts to those who chose to travel to do goodwill/mission work. Fly For Good and Golden Rule Travel are two I have worked with.
- Nothing beats the support of family and friends. Websites such as Kickstarter, You Caring, Go Get Funding, and IndieGoGo allow you to create your own "cause" or "project" that people can view online and donate towards your trip. This sort of fundraising is usually for volunteers. You can also draft a much more personal 'fundraising letter' which you can selectively send to local businesses, family, friends, and large organizations such as the The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation or even Oprah!
-  Wealthy parents, grandparents or other family/friends? Ask them for a plane ticket as a birthday or Christmas gift - it never hurts to ask :) Instead of getting gifts that won't be useful (candles, new shoes, Starbucks gift certificates ) ask for them to buy small parts of your trip instead. i.e.: travel insurance, visa fees or other program fees.
- Make sure you always write a "Thank You" letter to those who have donated towards your trip and have helped you to make it possible. It shows your appreciation and also makes them more inclined to help others or help you again in the future.
- This is why planning far in advance is recommended. Be sure to give yourself enough time to save and earn money! Many scholarships and grants have deadlines so start the search early!

Now that you see how easy it is to plan and save for any type of trip imaginable, I hope you get off the couch and go explore! PLEASE, contact me with any questions. I am happy to help and inspire others to see the world. Let me know what you think, or if I didn't touch on a subject you think I should have.

Multimedia Journalist in the Making :)

Half way through my undergraduate studies I realized something...I really like to write. I think issues that I am very passionate about and things I am curious about are best shown to the rest of the world through journalism. I created this blog to document my upcoming adventures. Instead of the traditional blog style of writing copious amounts of seemingly redundant rambling that forces you, the reader, to either skim or stop reading, I have decided to document my life (specifically my travels) through photos, videos and some narrative/storytelling. This is an up and coming form of journalism: multimedia journalism...one where the viewer/reader gets the whole package.

On December 18th 2012 I leave the Redwood Curtain and Arcata, California behind me and head back to visit family and friends in the winter wonderland of Wisconsin.

Then, on January 3rd, 2013 I leave for Montreal, Canada via Toronto for two months of a Full Time French Immersion Study Program. A homestay with a local Francophone family will enhance my experience.

Finally, on March 3rd 2013 I leave the frozen tundra for the sunny beach town of Limbe, Cameroon, West Africa. This is where I will stay working and *hopefully* interning for the next 5 months. It is here, in the heart of the Cameroonian rainforest, where I will film, photograph, interview and write about all of the wonders (and problems) in Cameroon.

I hope everyone enjoys my first attempt at journalism!

Thank you :)