Akany Avoko - village life

At the moment I am the only volunteer living at the centre, although the lovely Paulina and Patty from Poland live down the road for the next week and a half. There are other volunteers coming, but it's nice to get settled in on my own to start with. Also nice to be able to have the big bright double room until it's next required by a couple! The volunteer house sleeps 6. The first week I did spring clean with the help of the fabulous Lorna and the gorgeous CAMS girls (6 vocational training teens). The kitchen is a little dark but that's made up by the fact that the there is a balcony with a hammock on the first floor, overlooking some buildings and tropical plants, palm trees and bright flowering hedges. The sun setting behind the main office building is a beautiful way to watch the day end.

I wake up around 5am with the sounds of people stiring and getting ready for the day ahead, kids playing, showering, washing clothes...they are day people, night time is for sleep! So I read or doze for a couple of hours and my alarm goes off, I make porridge with banana, have a glass of vazaha-priced juice and go to the market, or riding. I go up to the childcare centre and play games and read to the babies, who are just soooo gorgeous. It's a bit like being in a house full of crazy people, they way they act sometimes, there is a lot of jealousy and grabbing going on for adult attention, undestandably, as there are about 10 or so of them. My second visit there I encountered Sanja, 4 or 5, I'm not sure, Malagasy kids are smaller than Vazaha kids, she was rocking on her feet with a big grin singing "Od Macdonal adafar E I E I O Moo moo here adamoomoo dere hereamooderamooevewhereamoomoo". The sweetness of children.

I start lessons at 11.30 with the on-site primary school, 4 classes. I will next week be allocated activities with different age groups, then at 4 I teach teenage boys from the boys home down the road. 6 of them help around Akany, kind of vocational training, and they seem to really enjoy the lessons. After playing English word Bingo with them the other day, they yell out "Bingo!" when they see me. Teaching the older girls and staff with songs seems to be the way to go, thanks to my wonderful mate Ali for giving me those ace songs sheets!