Climbing the rope ladder out of the rainforest to the Debunscha Lake

 

 

P.S. I wrote a Blog Post for my 10 week mark called "10 down, 2 to go" I have since posted a lot of pictures and the post has been pushed to page 2 of my Blog.  Please scroll down and enjoy the post!  Sorry for the inconvenience.  Next time pictures will come first, promise. 

Obi enjoying AVFAL's new keeper gloves!

 

FYI - Obi's nickname is Mr. Official because of the one day he forgot his shoes and acted as the match's official.  He gave me 3 yellow cards. 

Sunset in Debunscha

I stepped in mud.

At the hidden hidden rainforest lake in Debunscha...

John Molua and Josh

 

I met John in my first few weeks in Limbe.  Since then we have sat down and had many conversations about football in Africa and Cameroon and some of the opportunities that are present there.  He has been an amazing source of support and friendship during my time here.  I have shared my experiences with him and vice versa.  I have also shared my views on sports and the power of sport that can be used in development.  We share a lot of the same goals and passions and that has led to a great friendship!  We have shared many a fish together. 

Josh and Lucas

He has a hairy face

Very dirty after training ...

10 down, 2 to go

It is currently 9:42 am on Sunday September 30 and yesterday marked exactly 10 weeks here in Limbe.  I still remember a time when August 1 seemed like a lifetime away and now here I am on the cusp of October and it's weird. 

These past 10 weeks have provided me with an unbelievable adventure, memorable moments, valuable life lessons as well as frustrating interactions, cultural misunderstandings and missed opportunities.  Here in Africa, apparently things are done differently; lesson 1. 

I am so grateful to have had this opportunity to come and volunteer my time here in Cameroon and am so proud of how far I have come.  The 10 months that I spent in Canada planning and applying pressure to this trip alotted me sufficient time to prepare myself mentally for what lay ahead, which I apparently did not do correctly.  I was so intent on learning about using Sport for Development and assumed that everything else would fall into place that I overlooked so many possible complications that I could have never anticipated until I got here. 

Learning to work with people from around the world and how to adapt to not-so-ideal situations are just 2 parts of this experience that became apparent very early on.  The unfortunate reality of life is that we learn more from our mistakes and the difficult or annoying situations than from the easy ones where everything goes perfectly and no adaptation is required.

Three months in Africa's 2nd most corrupt country and one of its poorest too, seems like a long time.  Ten weeks ago when I de-planed at Douala International Airport, clean shaven and naively excited, I looked ahead at the 12 weeks I had to go as an almost insurmountable amount of time.  i suspected at some point it would end with me lying to my insurance company so that they would send me home.  That day never came and now on the last day of Spetmeber I do not see myself backing out now.  In the past couple of weeks I have met many awesome volunteers including Tjeerd and Johan from Amsterdam, Julia and Franzika from Germany, Laura from England and many others. I have loved hearing about their volunteer work and how working for different organizations provides a plethora of different  experiences.  Most of the volunteers I have met from Germany are here for a full year with a government-run organization and they all told me that it usually takes at least 3 months before you really start to get the hang of everything.  It's so true.  While I am very excited to fly from Douala to Paris and then spend 3 weeks travelling around Europe visiting friends and family and then go home to Toronto to see my Bubbie, I am also extremely angry that just now as I start to find my groove and hit my stride, I'm prepping to go home. 

All I can do now is make the absolute best of my final 1 week and 6 days here in Limbe and come back to Toronto and actually APPLY what I have learned here to my life and my career.  It would be such a shame to see all of the lessons learned here go to waste because I decided to forget them once I am reminded of what a hot shower is and enjoy a cheeseburger again ... but that is not going to happen.  I have spent 10 weeks coaching, learning, teaching, reading, meeting people, climbing mountains, trekking  through rainforests, playing the harmonica, and embracing the adventure for all that it is, both good and bad, and done all of it thousands of miles from my home, my family, my friends, and my entire support system.  Sometimes you need to shock the system to really get it moving. 

Two weeks from right now I will be in Paris, France wanting to write a summation blog but probably sleeping instead. 

Love to all. 

75%

So I am trudging through the rainforest of Debunscha on my way back from the remote lake whose name I can not remember, and one of the other volunteers I was with said, "hey look, a monkey!"  Well the Rapid Intervention Batallion (BIR) soldiers, from Cameroon's military force, sprung into action arming their assault rifles getting ready for the hunt.  I tried desperately  to keep up with them because it is every little boys dream to catch on video 2 African soldiers shooting a monkey out of a tree with assault rifles for dinner that night.  Well, the other volunteers, being vegetarians, scared the monkey away with a hand drum.  It was still fun though. 

After one of the most stressful weeks I have had here in Limbe, I was offered to join Bantu and some other volunteers in Limbe to go on a trip to Debunscha, the wettest place in all of Africa, for some music playing and hiking and sightseeing.  SO HAPPY I WENT!  It was just the little vacation I needed! 

I got to talking to the other volunteers and we compared experiences and confirmed my thought that each volunteer experience presents similar frustrations as well as some unique ones.  Regardless, it was amazing to get to know some other people and talk about development experiences from different points of view.  It was also great to get to know other people while exploring a new village and taking in some great sights and adventures!  Not to mention playing my harmonica for a bar full of Cameroonians! 

About 6 weeks ago my lovely parents sent me a lovely package.  Inside that package was a group of toiletries that I ran out of a month ago (I received the package 4 days ago) and my favourite brand of cookies that lasted 4 minutes, and an external hard drive filled with my favorite shows.  This package came at the most amazing of times. It was at the peak of my stress here in Limbe. The package included a lovely hand written letter from my parents and  now I can go to sleep after having had a good laugh to Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin in 30 Rock.  THANK YOU ALAN AND DIANNE. 

I now have my hands on some coaching manuals that will help me learn more about how I can use football for development in Africa.  Tackle Africa is a UK based charity that published an amazing manual on how to use football to talk to kids about HIV and AIDS awareness.  I plan on taking full advantage of my 3 weeks left here by putting a few of these drills to good use.  I have already talked to one of my players about this and he thought it was a great idea. 

Throughout my trip I have spent an unhealthy amount of time reflecting on my thoughts before and after my departure and also about my experiences here thus far.  I have been thinking a lot about corruption.  Wanting to learn about the field of international development, corruption is unfortunately a big part of that.  Cameroon, being the second most corrupt country in all of Africa, I was warned about social and general dealings in Cameroon because of that.  However, when I am told that Cameroon is a very corrupt country while sitting in the comfort of my Toronto bedroom, it was easy to shrug off.  No one will ever truly understand how a corrupt government really affects all of the people of that country until they get over here and experience it on their own.  We all know what a corrupt government is by definition but we do not know what the affects of that government is on everyday life here.  I now have an idea, and it sucks. 

My relationship with the Delegation of Sport and Physical Education is going amazingly.  I work with Saker Baptist College on Mondays and Wednesdays and Ibolyka Szabo Foundation on Fridays.  I have been helping these schools organize and run their PE programs and am having a blast!  The delegation has also asked me to speak at a seminar on October 10th for all of the PE teachers in this division.  Very exciting! 

I would like to take this opportunity to send a shout out to the Sport Development class at Brock University being taught by Dr. Laura Cousens who has been a tremendous source of support these past 9 weeks.   I am so looking forward to coming to St. Catherines to speak to her class about my experiences! 

Before I end this post, I wanted to share yet another thought about using sport for development that has become evident to me.  Using sport or physical activity to send a message, be it HIV/AIDS awareness or teamwork or trust and understanding, can be extremely effective.  However, if sport is going to ever erect any kind of long term sustainable change, the system and organization needs to not only want to change, but implement and support change.  Tournaments, coaching clinics, grassroots leagues, feeder systems and field scheduling ALL need to be better organized and governed.  Despite the overwhelming passion surrounding all aspects of sport, especially here in Cameroon, there seems to be a lack of effort to really organize any kind of long term system that uses sport to better the community.  For example, when I first arrived in Limbe the AVFAL players were in a tournament called the Paco Melville Junior Football Tournament.  It was a lot of fun and the community support seemed pretty good for a junior tournament.  BUT, a few weeks after the tournament ended I saw a banner for the tournament that said "2012 Paco Melville Junior Football Tournament to end HIV/AIDS"  A tournament aimed at HIV/AIDS awareness is an amazing concept, but no one knew that was the objective.  I certainly didn't and there was not a single event within the tournament that had anything to do with HIV/AIDS.  The opportunity is there, in abundance.  The execution is not.  IF that is going to change, it needs to change at the top with the organizers and coaches and community.  It needs to filter down.  People need to realize the potential of these kinds of social institutions and make sure that the potential is reached.  Football academies that function within a fractured system, within a fractured country can only accomplish so much.  But, like I have learned, we adapt and learn to work with what we have and do our very best everyday.  That will only be enough for so long....

Off to bed now because je suis fatigue.  Bilingualism here I come!!!!!

Cheers and love to all. 

Josh

8 Weeks

8 weeks down and 4 to go.  2 months down and 1 to go.  No matter how I look at it, I still can not believe that it is September 16 already.  There was once a time when I did not think I would be in Africa to see September.  But here I am! 

It seems like every time I write a blog I go on and on about all of the obstacles I have overcome and how its frustrating but I learned a valuable lesson and I had written a whole long blog for today that I realized after did more of the same.  I have instead decided to focus this blog on something different.

Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings I work at 2 schools here in Limbe.  On Monday and Wednesday I am at the all girls school in New Town called Saker Baptist College.  On Friday I am at the Ibolyka Szasbo Foundation. And of course Monday - Friday I train the AVFAL kids at 4, after school.  I am very busy.  ALSO, I met a guy last week at the Delegation for Sport and Physical Education (where I made these school connections) who has offered to be my personal trainer for my final month here and make me "sexy".  It should be exciting. 

I have been trying very hard to develop as a coach and I think I have accomplished that.  Learning new drills and all about the sport of football itself is obviously a very important aspect to the field of sport for development because when implementing a program football is usually the sport used....  Working with new people from different cultures is a great way to learn because everyone comes with their own experiences and ideas.  Coaching and development should be a collaboration of ideas and cultures to move forward with sustainable change.  It does not always happen that way which is why it is very important to surround yourself with people that you know and trust and who share similar goals as you. 

It is inevitable that you will need to work with some people throughout your career that seem to make accomplishing your goals difficult but they too have valuable experience and knowlege and all you can do is learn what you can and move onto the next life experience. 

With 4 weeks left and the other volunteers already gone, there is a lot of emphasis on my coaching ability now.  There will be a lot of times when my presence is the only one at the field and it can be intimidating coaching a group of 15 teenagers who are clearly better footballers than you, but this trip has been about overcoming mountainous (literally) obstacles and teaching what you can while learning what you can. 

One of the valuable coaching AND life lessons that I have learned while I have been here is that sometimes you need to adapt to what you have and learn to work with whatever resources you have available to you.  You won't always have the personnel you want, you won't always have the necessary equipment and you won't always have the space to maneuver the way in which you might need to ... but things can always be accomplished with what is there and the way I see it, it's impossible to TRY and fail. 

Off now to say goodbye to Domenqiue who is heading out of town for school .. sad to say goodbye but it has been really awesome coaching him!  He is a great kid!  On that note, I just received another message from Leonel who is doing his best and loving school! 

Cheers and love to all! 

Josh

SUMMIT!

 

Stick that in your pipe and smoke it Mount Cameroon ... you just got Summitted.  Mark the time, 7:41am September 5, 2012. 

Sunset at Hut 2

3:30 AM ... time to Summit

 

Needed about 8 hours more sleep...

Josh ready to climb!

Naive.

Mount Cameroon

13,255 ft. up and down in 2 days.  Mount Cameroon has been conquered by yours truly. 

Tuesday September 4, Andy and I rose at approximately 6am to be ready to make the trip to the nearby town of Buea to begin our climbing of Mount Cameroon.  We reached the base of the mountain and met our guides and porters and started to hike at just after 9am.  I was tired after 15 minutes.  I was A LONG way from being finished. 

The hike starts off up a steep hill and through a prison that apparently still has prisoners in it, I was not allowed to take pictures.  We then entered the forest.  It rained.  Our path turned into a river.  That is when the struggle started. 

By the time we reached Hut 1, we were wet, tired, and sweaty.  At Hut 1 we met James. James lives in the area and climbed up to Hut 1 under his own accord and has been living there for almost a month.  He came up there to pray.  He has a scrapbook full of people who gave him pictures of themselves or wrote down requests for James to pray for them.  I asked James if the Mountain holds some kind of significance with regard to prayer ... he said no.  I decided not to push any further.  He did make us the most unbelievable cup of tea ever.  So.....

Once we left Hut 1, we were totally oblivious to the Hell that awaited us in the Savannah of the mountain.  Once we made our way out of the forest the Savannah was beautiful.  After having your whole environment for 3 hours be crushed by trees and branches and dense forest, any open space is warmly welcomed.  After about 18 seconds of climbing the Savannah, we were all wishing for the forest.  The Savannah is about 5000 ft. of slippery rock and grass on a severe uphill slope.  Every step I just wanted to sit down and rest.  Everytime I caught my breath, I had lost it again after 2 steps.  Everytime I thought my leg muscles were going to explode I had to take another step, then another, then another, then about 1000 more.  At each resting point I welcomed the concept of sitting down on something that wasn't a wet sloped mountain side, but then we were off again in 15 minutes. 

The last 45 minutes leading up to Hut 2, I was struggling.  Our guide, Matthias, is 59 years old and beat Andy and I up and down the mountain.  He patiently waited for me and encouraged me along to Hut 2.  Once we reached Hut 2, the sight of where we were started to sink in.  The sun started to set and it was BEAUTFIUL. But the best was yet to come. 

We finally ate some dinner and was told that if we wanted to reach the Summit and then make it all the way back down again that we would have to wake up at 3:30am and start hiking by 4.  I was in my sleeping bag at 7:30pm.  Finally, 3:30am rolls around and my 28 minutes of sleep really got me ready for the long day ahead.  None of the porters of guides thought I was going to be able to make it to the Summit.  WRONG. 

We started hiking in the pitch black of night and still sore and tired from the day before, Andy and I were moving slowly.  The minutes and hours ticked on and the next thing we knew the morning sun was peaking up over the horizon seemingly at arms length.  It was beautiful. 

One thing I should mention is that the most amazing views we had while on the mountain were either so minute or of the stars at night so I could not even take pictures of them!  On that note, I have never, and would be shocked if I ever did, see such a beautful starry night again in my life.  Being 9000 feet up, there is no light from the city, no cloud cover and nothing at all that stands in between you and the trillions of beautiful shining lights in our night sky.  It was unforgettable, irreplaceable, and impossible to capture in anything but my memory. 

By the time we could at least see the Summit, nothing else mattered except reaching that peak.  Each step was agony and each step all I wanted was to be in bed with 2 people rubbing my freezing cold and sore feet, but nothing was stopping me from reaching this goal.  Andy reached the top first and waited just steps shy of the landmark so that we could conquer the mountain together.  WHAT A FEELING!  To be able to say that I climbed a mountain, is something I am very proud of.  Considering the physical and emotional toll that the mountain takes from you.  It was amazing! 

The way down, sucked.  It was rainy, dangerous, frustrating and physically exhausting.  Every step I could feel my leg muscles twitching and begging for a rest.  Every step I thought I was going to slip either from lose rocks, wet grass, or basic muscle exhaustion.  But with each step I could feel myself getting closer to my goal ... BED. 

The mountain had this very frustrating and almost rude way of presenting you with a landmark or resting point so that you THINK that it is close when really, after you walk and struggle for another hour, the resting point seems just as far away as it did an hour ago. 

But eventually you get home and get to bed and it is glorious!  Then you wake up this morning and you can not move your legs.  Small price to pay. 

So that is that, enjoy the pictures I can post from here and hopefully I can share the videos with you when I get home! 

Tomorrow I have my first day at the school and I am SO EXCITED!!!!  Can not wait to start working with and get an understanding for how physical education is taught here in Limbe!!!!! 

Off to bed!  Much love to all!


Also, in case any of you were wondering, I just received a facebook message from Leonel who has safely arrived in Bamenda and is excited to start school!!!

Leonel

The following was written on September 2, 2012 at approximately 11:00pm.

Early on in my Limbe experience I got to know one of the AVFAL players on a more personal level.  His name is Leonel.  He is a great kid and a good footballer.  The first time we met up outside of the football field he introduced me to fufu and eru a local Cameroonian dish that is, for lack of a better word, gross.  We talked about football and life and he told me about his aspirations to work in development economics so that he can use his knowledge to help Cameroon and Africa.  I instantly took to Leonel and vice versa.  Once the tournament that AVFAL was playing in ended I did not see Leonel as much as I would have liked.  But I still made an effort to see him around and we still hung out and I still stopped by to see him and his dad running their corner clothing shop.  Unfortunately, we had to say our goodbyes tonight and it was a very emotional experience for him, but also for me.  I am writing this post from my room because the following story has JUST happened and I wanted to write about it while it was still fresh in my mind. 

This afternoon Andy, John, Humphrey and I were at a local bar called Mars eating, drinking and watching the English Premiere League when I noticed that I had missed a call from Leonel.  Before I was even given a chance to call him back he appeared at Mars and came to greet us.  He sat down next to me and quickly mentioned that his father had just told him that he was being sent to Bamenda, a city in the North about 10 hours away by bus, for school instead of staying in Limbe as was expected.  I asked him when he was leaving and he said at 9pm tonight and he would not be back until after I leave Cameroon.  I immediately told him that I wanted to take him out for dinner before we had to say goodbye.  Once the EPL game ended we met up. 

As we strolled around he told me about how he was still in shock about the news and how he was upset about it because he wanted to stay and hang out with me for my last 6 weeks and also so that he could continue to play football.  I assured him that we would stay in touch through email and facebook and that the better schools in Bamenda were MUCH more important than playing football or hanging out with me.  He reluctantly agreed then asked me if I would accompany him and his father to the bus station to see him off to Bamenda, and of course said that I was honoured and that I would. 

He took me to see his father who was at a bar drinking, and clearly had been for some time.  He was noticeably drunk.  Leonel said he was going to go home to finish up some last minute packing but that his father would take me there soon to go to the station.  The next 25 minutes consisted of Leonel's father explaining how he was happy that Leonel had met me and that Leonel wanted to stay because he did not want to leave me and the football team and his friends.  He wanted Leonel to go because the schools in Bamenda were better and Leonel's future had to be his number 1 concern.  I agreed and told him that I would have told Leonel the exact same thing.  After an uncomfortable 25 minutes of Leonel's father pouring his heart to me about how he had to make his own sacrifices when Leonel was born so that he could be a responsible father to Leonel, we left.  Despite his state of mind, I was happy that he felt that way and acted on it.  It does not always happen that way in Africa.

His father then took me to their house.  We walked up a very slippery, unstable, crooked, and dark staircase to the house where he almost fell over about 10 times.  We made it inside and I found Leonel zipping up his bag.  I asked him how he was feeling and he was still unsure.  Just as we were getting ready to meet the car that had been arranged to take Leonel to the station, we found out that the driver had a "complication" and was not coming.  We had to take a cab.  Then just as I was getting up to put my shoes on I was alarmed to learn that Leonel's father was not coming because he did not feel well and wanted to stay home and sleep.  Leonel left without a hug or goodbye from his father.  He will not return to Limbe until December. 

I got in the taxi with Leonel and we drove further outside the city, the station was actually outside Limbe city limits.  We arrived at the bus station and it was pandemonium.  I am going to re write that sentence with a further emphasis.  We arrived at the bus station and it was PANDEMONIUM.  Taxis, people, bags, honking, yelling, rocks, puddles, no organization, no identifiable people to assist in locating which bus was going where, or to help shove another bag into the over-flowing compartments; it was madness.  On top of all of this, Leonel realized that he had lost his cell phone, presumably the only form of communication he had with his father until he arrived in Bamenda.  He frantically tried calling it and looking for it before he gave up.  I grabbed him and looked him in the eye and said "Leonel, do not panic.  It is ok.  When you get to Bamenda someone is meeting you right? [he said yes] And you know their number right? [he again said yes] So, once you arrive you can find them and they will help you sort everything out.  You can call them if you have to and you can call your dad to let him know you're ok! Our only concern right now is getting you on that bus!" He agreed. 

We tracked someone down to help us put his bag on the bus and then we went to get him a seat.  He told me to wait outside while he put his backpack down and that he would be right back.  He came back a few minutes later and he told me he would help me find a taxi to take me the long way back to my apartment.  We found one immediately and we all of a sudden had 15 seconds to say goodbye. 

I found myself in a situation that I was not prepared for and in no way expected to have to handle in my time here.  Leonel, a terrified 17 year old, was about to get on a bus packed with strangers for 10 hours to go to a city that he is unfamiliar with to go to school for 6 months and write one of Cameroon's most difficult and important aptitude tests; and the only person there to say goodbye to him was a volunteer coach that he has known for 6 weeks. 

We hugged and I told him that he could and should email me at ANY time with ANY concern or question.  He told me he would.  I then told him that I was really proud of him for doing this and that it was the best thing for him.  He nodded and began to walk back to the bus.  He then stopped, started to cry and ran back for another hug.  The taxi, full of people, started to honk at us.  I promised Leonel that he was going to be just fine and that we would talk and that he was going to be amazing!  I promised him again that he was going to be fine and that I was proud of him.  He backed off slowly wiping tears away and nodded.  I yelled once more that everything was going to work out and that I was so proud. 

He turned to go the bus and I got into the taxi.  That was it. 

I took the taxi home, ate a quick dinner, and then came home to write this.  I still don't know how I feel about what just happened.  I came almost as close to crying as I did on my first night here when I actually did cry (from shock!) but now I'm just sad and confused.  I feel like I could have done more or should have done more for him but I can't think of what that might have been. 

All I can think of right now is my parents.  I am so thankful and grateful and lucky to have the family that I do. 

Mount Cameron Hut 2

Team Huddle

 

Taking a moment to console the team after a loss.  "We'll get 'em next time, I promise!"

6 Week Face

6/12

This blog post is unique for a number of reasons;

a) It is the first post, since my arrival, which is not being written at the Hotel Miramare in the Limbe Botanical Gardens.  I am sitting on the floor of my bedroom as I write this ... the internet was being stupid today. 

b) This post represents my 1/2 checkpoint.  This Saturday September 1 marks the end of my 6th week here in Limbe of exactly 12. 

c) This one is perhaps the most important, exciting, and my personal favourite.  It may not be posted on the date, but it is being written on my father's birthday.  I have never had any kind of internet following before so I am excited to use this one to wish my father the happiest of birthdays and mention that I can not wait to see him and the rest of my family upon my return.  Happy Birthday Dad! 

This week has been pretty interesting.  I spent most of this week looking forward to today because of the afore mentioned reasons, and thus it went by fairly slowly.  The way I see it, a slow week just means that I got to savour all the moments in it!  That double edged sword provided me with some lovely moments to remember and some tough ones to swallow.  The memorable moments were for the most part captured either by my memory or my camera and the tough ones were, as they all have been thus far, something I tried to learn from and take in as all part of this kind of experience. 

With regard to my ambition to work with some local schools, I went to the Delegation of Sport and Physical Education to speak with the Delegate about how I could not afford to pay the money that I was told was required to run the kind of program I was proposing.  I then proceeded to explain to the delegate and one of her associates some of the games and activities I was planning on using and they loved them so much they offered to let me "observe" a school during Physical Education period and offer any input and participate in some games as well.  This was all I wanted to do in the first place.  Except this time it's for free.  Game. Set. Match. 

This momentous Saturday also marked the start of Week 2 for the newest AVFAL volunteer, John.  Being with John throughout his first week brought back a lot of memories from my adjustment period here and some were good because I am proud of how far I have come and others were painful because lets face it, the first week was pretty rough.  But here he is in week 2 and here I am now on the cusp of week 7!  I learned some valuable lessons there in playing a new role for John as well as self reflection on how I handled some of my own frustrations here. 

Andy and I are gearing up, literally, for our ascent up Mount Cameroon.  We leave Limbe at 7am on Tuesday September 4 and return to Limbe in the evening on Wednesday September 5.  We climb up the mountain on Tuesday to what is called 'Hut 2' at approximately 9000 Ft.  We are staying the night there in their luxurious cabin complete with a tin roof and wooden floor and nothing else.  It's ok, sleep was starting to annoy me anyway.  Once we wake up, or more likely just notice that the sun is starting to come out, we begin the final ascent to the Summit of the mountain at just over 13000 Ft.  We will spend some time up there, snap a few photos, and hopefully get a cloudless view from above.  The view from above part is kind of up in the air, literally, since in the 6 weeks that I have been here there has not been a cloudless moment that was not rudely interrupted by rain within 10 minutes.  So ... I'll get back to you on that one.  All I can really hope for is a safe trip there, up, and back, a decent nights sleep, and the experience of eating cooked beans out of a can in front of a fire like a cowboy or one of those Hobos that carries all of his possessions in a bandanna tied around a stick.  Joking aside, beans really are awesome.  Beans aside, I am very excited about this mini adventure within my adventure! 

As the rainy season here comes to an end it is starting to rain more and more.  I know most of you are thinking that I am attempting humour or cleverness here but I am not.  Because that is the truth.  I was looking forward to the end of August and beginning of September resulting in me running out of sun block in 36 hours, but instead my rain jacket is getting its best use since July!  It is ridiculous!  Andy and I are actually a little worried about our early trip up the mountain, because we all remember what canoe trips were like when it rained.  Well imagine a canoe trip, except instead of a canoe you have a guide and a porter and a mountain in Cameroon, and instead of a tent you have 'Hut 2' (see picture), and instead of a hilarious, fun filled, organized-down-to-the-hour excursion you get a once in a lifetime 2-day trip up a MOUNTAIN IN CAMEROON.  I think I made my point.  But just in case missed it because you were getting yourself a sandwich, here it is again; I AM GOING TO CLIMB A MOUNTAIN IN CAMEROON AND IT IS GOING TO BE AWESOME. 

Some of the players were at the apartment today and I love it when they visit because they are hilarious.  They love my music and I find it amusing to watch them dance to Foo Fighters or Led Zeppelin or Lenny Kravitz like I've really put on whatever it is that they listen to here ... Hip Hop I think they call it?  Not too sure.  The point is, it makes me think that they don't even listen.  For example, Junior was cha-cha-ing to 'The Crunge' by Led Zeppelin earlier tonight.  He threw in a little Michael Jackson, but that is too be expected.  Actually, now that I think about it, I am ok with all of it. 

Last night Andy and I joined Alex and his lady friend at a Cabaret in New Town.  This Cabaret had some very amusing entertainment.  They were playing music and serving drinks and people were talking and dancing as if they were in a place I would be used to BUT the in-house entertainment was just someone on a stage with a fake microphone who was dancing and lip syncing to whatever song they played.  And people gave them money and it was very good and entertaining.  I even joined a guy named GodGive (totally not joking) on stage to dance and lip sync to Bob Marley's 'Buffalo Soldier'.  I learned a very important lesson on that stage; that I do not know the words to that song.  It did not matter because we got cut off about 49 seconds into it.  But it was a very enjoyable 49 seconds.  ...

My 6 weeks here have provided enough ups and downs to last me a while but there has been one solid consistency; reflection.  From week 1 to week 6 reflecting on what I left behind in Toronto, what I have to look forward to here in Limbe, what was frustrating here in Limbe, how much more comfortable I am now in Limbe, and being blown away by how fast or slow time seems to move here have all been topics of conversation throughout my time.  I can sit here and reflect all I want but at the end of the day I just need to enjoy it.  I’m here and I have had 6 great weeks coaching and I can’t wait for the next 6 weeks! 

Please stay tuned for pictures and by the end of this week a Mount Cameroon account.

Much love,

Josh