Zen and the Art of Kava Grinding

I have arrived in my village in the northwest of the island of Malekula. Above are pictures of my new house and the beach nearby. The community here is divided between Seventh Day Adventists and Presbyterians. In terms of religion, this is as diverse as Vanuatu usually becomes. When I tell people about my Buddhist practice, they respond by saying they have never heard of Buddhism. I tried to explain Buddhist concepts such as reincarnation, impermanence, and mindful living in Bislama, and found that people were interested, but did not fully grasp these ideas. However, I do feel more accepted for my beliefs than I expected to be by conservative Christians, such as Seventh Day Adventists. They ask me to say grace before eating and do not object to my chanting the Buddhist prayer Namo Tassa Bhagavato Arahato Samma Sambudhassa (“Homage to the Blessed One, the Noble One, the Perfectly Enlightened One”) rather than the Christian prayers they are accustomed to. I also made Turkish coffee over an open fire using ground coffee from Tanna, an island in the south of Vanuatu, which they enjoyed. I expressed interest in visiting a nakamal to my family, who told me their religion forbade kava consumption and that, if I wanted kava, I must come to the Presbyterian area, where the religion is less restrictive. Two days ago, I did so. It turned out to be a more involved process that I anticipated. I was told to wait and smoke some strong local tobacco while I waited for the owner of the nakamal. When he arrived, he took me on the back of his truck to a man who sold pieces of the kava plant that resembled potato slices. For one US dollar/100 vatu, I purchased a large bag of kava pieces. After we drove back to the nakamal, I was shown how to grind kava. After grinding the kava into dried gray nuggets, we dissolved them a bowl of water. Using a calico cloth as a strainer, we squeezed the newly concocted kava into another, larger bowl. I was then told to drink all of it. I expressed that I did not want to drink that much kava, but they did not seem to understand the concept of only wanting a small amount of kava. In Vanuatu, kava is all or nothing. Either you do not drink it or you drink it in excess. The culture allows no middle ground. After drinking the entire bowl, I walked home unharmed, and fell asleep almost immediately.

Eclipse Over Vanuatu

Last night a lunar eclipse appeared over Vanuatu. We saw it outside a club in Port Vila called Rumors, which I found out later was one of the few that attracted gay patrons. Vanuatu has very few safe havens for queer people, and virtually all of them are in its capital city. A group of volunteers went dancing there. We spent the night dancing with each other, expatriates, and locals. I wanted to take a photo of the eclipse, but it was obscured. The night was still, however, spectacular. It had been a long time since I had been out dancing, and I thrived on the inclusive atmosphere. The locals happily allowed me to dance with them and were genuinely impressed when I told them I was from New York. Dancing is an art that unites all peoples, and last night was no exception.

Swearing In

I have officially sworn in as a Peace Corps Volunteer. I will be staying in Port Vila until I leave for Malekula on Monday. I will be living and working at a school training both students and teachers. This is a forward progression on every level: professional, experiential, mental, familial, and spiritual. Getting to the island requires a great deal of preparation, since I have many supplies to take with me. Only so much can be transported on a plane. The rest will have to be shipped on a boat. I am quite excited to be living on Malekula. Reading about it, I see that there is an abundance of ceremonial dance, body paint, sculpture, and exquisite landscapes. The above pictures are of my swearing in ceremony, some ancestral statues on Malekula, and a kastom dance. I will witness all of it with eyes of integrity and enthusiasm.

Leaving Tanoliu

I have left Tanoliu, my training village and am currently staying in Port Vila, the capital and largest city in Vanuatu, to continue my training. My host family and I honored our final night together by cooking banana pie over an open fire. They are displayed in the above photograph. My site placement is on the island of Malekula at a school in the northwest. I will have a house right near the beach, which feels like a tremendous improvement from a tiny room on the Lower East Side of New York City. I have also been placed with two of closest friends in the Peace Corps. I look forward to this new creative and professional venture. There will certainly be beautiful stories to come.

Kava

I have arrived on the island of Espiritu Santo in Vanuatu for my host volunteer visit. Here I have viewed classrooms and hiked through forests and waterfalls. The more time I spend here, the more ambivalent I become. Like every other place in the world, Vanuatu is full on contradictions. People have approached me offering food, kind words, and a willingness to speak to me in English, even though I am now mostly comfortable with Bislama (as long as people speak it slowly). However, the treatment of animals here has appalled me. Dogs and cats are attacked with stones and even large bush knives. The other volunteers have told me this is something I will need to become accustomed to, something that will not change anytime soon. I also have been enjoying an herbal drink with narcotic effects known as kava. Kava is consumed mostly at small establishments called nakamals. It is served in coconut shells, has an earthy taste, and causes the mouth to go numb, the legs to wobble, the nerves to relax, and sometimes nausea if one drinks too much. Since it can also make sensitive to bright light and loud noises, nakamals are usually dark and quiet spaces. They say the more you drink it, the stronger the effect and the more vile the taste. There are also many different varieties. Some varieties I can drink two or three shells and feel nothing but tranquil. Others I will drink one shell and suddenly feel nauseous. Driving under the influence of kava is just as destructive as alcohol, and has become a problem in Vanuatu. Kava reflects the contradictions here, as it relaxes people, yet contributes to the chaos in the country, as well as to sexism. Women in many areas of Vanuatu are forbidden from drinking it, and sometimes even looking at it. However, it is also a force that unites Ni-Vanuatus and expatriates like me.

Exciting Events

Tonight, I am attending a cocktail party with officials from the government of Vanuatu and USAID. This is quite exciting since I will be able to network with other world travelers and others invested in community empowerment. I'm very excited about meeting and learning from them. This coming Saturday through next Thursday I will be staying with a current Peace Corps Volunteer on the island of Espiritu Santo. There, I will observe classrooms and learn more about the culture and education here. My host family has told me not to go to outside at night to avoid “black magic.” I told them I wouldn't, but I'm not too concerned about it.

My First Earthquake

Last Saturday I felt the Earth move for the first time. I was outside getting ready for a gender and development workshop and witnessed the Earth shake beneath me. It was an innocuous earthquake with no damages. Vanuatu is subject to several earthquakes every year, as well as volcanic eruptions, cyclones, and tsunamis. Peace Corps Volunteers who had been living in Vanuatu for a year were unaroused by it, unlike me who was shaking and waiting to see if any buildings would collapse. This was my first earthquake, but certainly not my last. But at least I now have some idea of what to expect.