Fatin Turizmu

Well it’s been about a month since I was back from Dili. The weather is starting to change, less rain in the afternoon (sometimes none) and the morning bucket showers are starting to get pretty nippy. We are easing into “Tempu Bialoron”, the Dry Season. A time when, here in the mountains, the temperature cools and it rains little. Talk of upcoming water scarcity is one of the discussion topics in the family. Water is supplied here from higher elevation wells connecting the village by a labyrinth of plastic hoses. The norm in Timor Leste. But when the rain stops falling, some of the wells run dry. We will see how things unfold over the coming weeks and months.

I will let my photos lead my blog (as usual)…….

I received a “site visit” from Maun Celio, CED director from my organization. He, and his driver Maun Simpel, drove from Dili and stayed a couple of nights. It was a really nice visit and Maun Celio is an awesome guy. It was good for him to meet all the counterparts I am working with in the village and see my activities. Below I show some photos over the two days. First pic is with Maun Janu and Maun Jacob from EAMO. Second pic is with my disability group FJDE. Third pic is where I took Maun Celio to the Fatin Turizmu overlook here in Fatuquero 😁.

So,,, there is another Fatin Turizmu location the other side of Gleno (about 20 mins cycle for me) in Lauala Suku. Myself and Shelby (my fellow Peace Corps Volunteer based close in Gleno.. has her own fantastic blog here) went last week to check it out. They need some support with advertising and promotion and we went to see if we could help. Its a really nice place and they worked super hard to make it.

We met up with 3 of my disability class students at the same time (Mana Espera, Mana Celestina and Mana Santina) which was really nice. They live in Lauala. We were invited back to Mana Esperas home for lunch and were welcomed by a full family turn-out as well as being presented with traditional Timor Ties. It was an unexpected surprise. The family were super nice to us and it was heart warming. Photos below of that day.

My English classes with both kids and adults continue to go well but are challenging to prepare. I have a nice Video on my YouTube channel of the kids from EAMO at the end of class playing with my phone (link here). I am also supporting EAMO and FJDE with creating and submitting funding proposals and I have been seeking out possible funding from Embassy’s in Dili. Also on the horizon is for me to give some financial book-keeping training (a skill which is in great need here and in both FJDE and EAMO). So lots of activity on-top of English Teaching.

I have a new puppy! 😁🥰. I have named him Charles (Charley). He is a biter and likes to wee and poo 💩 on my bedroom floor. In Timor, dogs are typically kept outside and not really treated as pets. So Charley sleeping in my room is pretty unusual. He climbed on my bed this morning and my host Father (Senor) walked past and nearly spat his tea out when he saw Charley on my bed. I think I need to stop that. I need to respect the Timor way. A couple of photos of Charley below.

My host Sister, Cidalia, continues to be my little helper in the house. She’s always keen to help me wash my bike and get things ready for me to wash clothes. I took the nice picture of her below with my other host sister, Monica’s, daughter. I also managed to capture Mana Berta with 3 of her 4 daughters in the back yard having fun. Its coming up to Easter week where here there is the biggest Catholic holiday of the year, so there is a “holiday feeling”.

Last week I took Mana Adriana and 3 of her Fatuquero Women’s Group to the Fatuquero Fatin Turizmu (I seem to be visiting this place a lot). It was a challenging climb up. I was tired from my morning run. Took some nice shots below. We met the owner of the Fatin Turizmu Maun Flori and it looks like Mana Adriana may be able to put some business his way with some Church activities 😊, so I’m happy I could help drum up business.

Finally. This morning I came out of the bathroom (haris fatin) to find my neighbors daughter (who is in one of my English classes and extremely sweet) proudly holding a large rat 🐀!! I’m not sure how it died (I assume it was dead). A fitting end to this blog I think. Stay safe out there!!! James.