First Impressions

I’ve have now been “on-island” for 5 days.  All 5 days have been packed with plenty of new experiences – so much so, that I don’t know where to begin. 

I am staying with a host family for the next week and a half, and they truly may be some of the nicest people I have ever met in my life.  My ‘family’ consists of a husband and wife only, as their children are in their 20’s and have gone to the US.  I was very nervous to meet them on day one, and really didn’t know what to expect – but low and behold, it was a great match.  The husband works with children who have special needs, both in the school and in the homes (what a coincidence!).  The wife is a joyous little lady who is soft spoken and shy, until you make her laugh – then she produces a high scream of a laugh that puts mine to shame!  They were initially as nervous to have me, as I was to be here, which was entirely reassuring.  I hear my name A LOT, although it has become 3 separate words “Mey LA nie, Mey LA nie, are you happy?  Are you okay?”  Somewhere between today and yesterday I have been transformed into simply “LA nie”, and there is currently a large argument taking place over whether my “local name” will be the maternal or paternal grandmother’s name.  They really have welcomed me in a manner I can’t begin to put into words – they have literally given me the meals of their plates, the pillows off their beds, and the local clothes off of their clotheslines.  I hear the words “EAT. EAT. EAT!” more times a day than I can count, as they seem to think I have an eating disorder with this “no meat thing”, and gangly build.  Tonight at dinner, my Host-Mom said, “I want to make you fat”, to which my Host-Dad replied “We want you to be 300 pounds”.  They roared with laughter when I said my boyfriend back home may not share their sentiments.

The language is tough.  I am learning it in school every day, and studying it with my Host-Parents at night.  Pronunciation is key.  Last night, while attempting to say “I’m tired” (Nga ullac), I said “I have crabs”.  The puzzled looks encouraged me to re-annunciate a clear “I’m from hell”.  Lovely.  Especially for such devout Christians to hear at the dinner table.  Our first day of language class, we learned the basics.  Our teacher was very thorough, and asked us to repeat the words/ phrases several time as the pronunciation is so difficult.  This means, for a solid 5 minutes we listened and repeated to the word “Fukyeah”, with different amounts of emphasis on the Fuk vs. Yeah, and nobody burst into laughter.  The teacher emphasized that it was very important to pronounce it properly, because if you were to say “Kom Fuk-eh” instead of “Kom Fuk-yeah”, you would be saying “You’re crazy”, instead of “How are you”.  Perfect.  Lesson learned, watch your ‘eh’s, little Canadian girl – but Fuk is always acceptable. 

The food….  ohhhhh, the food.  There certainly is no shortage of food here.  While all imported goods are ridiculously priced, there is plenty of meat, rice, local fruit (tangerines, papayas, breadfruit, taro, more kinds of bananas than I knew existed, etc), and some vegetables grown in small gardens (mostly cabbage and cucumber, although I was promised pumpkins for Halloween).  Vegetarian dishes?  That’s an entirely different topic of discussion.  I have eaten well still, as my Host-Mother is very creative and whips up meals just for me despite my telling her not to go to the trouble (tempura vegetables, cooked instead of raw tuna, fried rice pilau, vegetable soup, etc.).  I have had some tougher moments still, as Sunday’s meals are provided by the church and have sometimes 5 kinds of meats piled on top of the rice and vegetables.  Typical meats are sashimi/ raw fish, fried chicken, dog, some pork (although mostly on special occasions, and often cooked underground), spam (if that counts as meat), and turkey tail.  Turkey tail, is not so much the tail of the turkey as it is the rear end, deep fried in batter.  Needless to say, I have yet to sample it. 

We did watch the solar eclipse here – passing around 2 pairs of glasses, and trying desperately to get one good photograph.  Much to my chagrin, I was not able to capture it, but for 2 photos which are somehow entirely purple. 

Overall, my experiences here thus far have been wonderful.  The locals are friendly, welcoming people with warm smiles and big hearts.  While I may always be considered “Canadian – ahhh, that’s part of the states”, I definitely feel well received and comfortable thus far.  Luckily for me, the attitude towards Americans is generally positive here. 

Until next time….    Khut fa oshun!   

(photo:  Plumeria en route to island via overnight stay in Oahu)