Les chinois sont imperméables aux S.I.D.A.

For all you french speakers out there, you already know what the title means, to Spanish speakers, I'm sure you can muddle your way through the translation, and to those that just can't figure it out, I'll explain in a bit...or you could just google it. Anyway, this entry is dedicated to all the Asian American volunteers in Togo, which amounts to about...6 out of 100 people. The myths about the "chinois", which means "Chinese" if you haven't deduced that, is quite large here. Let me display these wonderful myths apropos the Asia man:

Myth #1: If you're Asian, heck if you just look different than white or black, you be chinois.

In fact, it's not much different from the States. If you look Asian, people think you're chinese. Plain, simple and frankly inescapable. It's to the point where my whitie volunteer friends, get chinois too. Shoot, my friend David got chinois, and he's like have british, half southern american. If you're realllly chinois and with a group of whities, they'll say "chinois" more times than they'll yell Les Blancs (Granted, I get " le blanc" as well, oddly enough). When I attempt to share the wonders of the U.S.'s cultural diversity by explaining that I'm a Korean American, they still don't respond and still think I'm chinese....that is until I drop the "foot ball bomb" on them and tell them to recall the last World Cup, when Togo was decimated by South Korea, first round. They remember that....quite easily, actually. Anyway, everyday, I get bombarded with, "chinois, viens!" or just plain ol' "chinois!" so they can grab my attention. Funny, once they grab my attention and walk away, they proceed to run away from me in terrifying fear. Even 20 some year old women run from me like the plague, which leads to my second myth.

Myth #2: All chinois know karate.

Yes. All chinois know karate, an ethnically japanese martial art. Oh no. It's knowing karate, before kung fu. Not only know it, but are experts. But you know what? That's not too different from the States either. In the States, they at least know it's Kung Fu and not Karate that "chinese know." Perhaps the women run from me because they believe I would judo chop them to the head for altering the course of my very important destination to nowhere. Perhaps it was my face, ironically, just like in the States. Who knows. I digress. This also, leads me to the third myth.

Myth #3: All chinois are related some how to Jet Li and Jacki Chan.

Okay, maybe they don't actually believe that, but I'm gonna try darn hard to perpetuate this one. "Why on earth would you go out of your way to try and perpetuate this ignorance?" you may ask. Well, dear readers, because it's fun. It gives me an outlet of practical joking, and perhaps, they have fun with it too. When people come up to me and ask, " Connaissez-vous Jet Li??", I say, " Mais, Oui, mon frere, Nous somme des cousins!" ( "You know Jet Li?" " Why, yes, my brother, we're cousins!"). Of course they don't believe me. I take advantage of their age old " All y'all asians look alike" stereotype and say, " I mean...look at my face. We look alike don't we?? He's my father's brother's son." They always want some proof, after saying that was chinese minutes ago, that I am in fact chinese, by asking me to say something. They first thing that comes to my mind? " Knee-how". They lose it. They, of course, start laughing and are astonished at my fluency in the chinese language. They begin to believe that I am in fact, the cousin of the legendary, Jet Li. I mean, really, I'm not lying. In the larger scale of things, I really am some how distantly related to him...like the orangutan is related to the chimp.Anyway, I could have pulled this stunt in the States too, and the people that would ask me if i knew Jet Li probably would have believed me. I know...childish Michael...childish... but you say that to my face, I'll get jackie Chan to come get you.

Myth #4: Chinese are impervious to A.I.D.S.

Yup. You guessed it. That's what the title of this entry means. I can't get A.I.D.S. Ever. It's probably something in my blood. Or some sort of ancient acupuncture technique that prevents me from contracting the deadliest S.T.D. They probably think that we want to keep it to ourselves, because the chinese aren't already providing 75% of what Togo consumes. This amazing statement was made on AIDS Ride, oddly enough, when I nor Ruthia (The other korean) weren't around. Not even once, but twice in different villages. We chinois got mad street cred. Of course, that's one myth I can't morally perpetuate. So the other volunteers put that one to rest. Oh, Togo....

Anywho, I'll update y'all on more myth's that I'll be conquering....or making, when they present themselves! I miss you all......again! And God Bless!

How I'm on the internet most of the week...

So, as most of y'all know, internet isn't available in my village and it requires me to be in Lome, the national capital, in order to do so. So, no I'm not in the Posh Corps, where I have wireless internet in a walled-in 7 bedroom compound with electricty. Well... actually, I just don't have the internet, the others I have. That being said, I've been in Lome a lot this week. By a lot, I mean, 4 days out of the week alot. I can't believe I'm being this honest over the internet when inevitably, my country director will read my entries. "Hi Country Director, and no I'm not in Lome trying to use government funds to post informative, entertaining but otherwise pointless blogs....I promise." Okay,with that out of the way, the reason why I've been in Lome is because of the following;

1) I went to Lome on Monday because I had to do some research at the Chamber of Commerce regarding the necesssary steps a small business should take to formalize and to start exporting, which by the way, was long and almost completely fruitless. These people try to charge 40,000 F ( which is $80 ) for a book full of tax laws that businesses have to pay to import. So, in essence, you have to pay for you to know how much you have to pay... right. All in all, for 3 hours worth of work to get there, get beauracratically slapped across the face, and have my PCV friend Matt dressed in a black, oversized, swedish tourist shirt with a heart and dagger, bright blue pj pants with green swirly whirlies and shower slippers translate for me to some director ( which was highly embarrasing because, well, who wears shower slippers to speak with a director at the chamber of commerce...which was actually 100% my fault:), I left the place with one photocopied piece of paper, which didn't even tell me what I needed to know. I do, however now know that swedish tourist shirts don't give you the respect you command in a professional setting.

2) I went to Lome on Tuesday, I went to Lome because my mom called me monday night telling me she hasn't been getting some of my student loan forms. Well, hot diggity dog that sucked. SoI took the first taxi down there the next morning to go online to fix some of the issues that were going on with that.

3) I came yesterday, Thursday, because my finger got infected where there were no apparent cuts... and then my right eye became swollen, watery and red, and I proceeded to get a 100 degree fever, which I wasn't even aware of. I love Togo and it's random acts of kindess and gifts... Anyway, I got antibiotics, and it ended up that my cornea was all nice and scratched up. SO, the medical officer told me to stay in Lome, so I can get checked on Friday.

4), Friday, today, I am in Lome writing to you with one eye open and the other eye closed, looking like I'm trying to score a date with the computer, while simultaneously crying out of my corneally scratched right eye because I know that even the computer will reject my advances, and with my left index finger swollen, near bursting on the keyboard. Yum. I'm also trying to see if I can get to village via the Peace Corps land cruiser instead of continuing the trend of spending half my living allowance on fattening the pockets of taxi drivers. Suckling off the U.S. governments teet. How un...republican. Anyway, it's to the point now when drivers see me, they screech to a halt and ask if I'm going to Lome again...and let me tell you about taxis in Togo... well that's an entire entry in and of itself.

So, those are the reasons why I was in Lome so often! Anywho, I don't think that my luxury of using the net almost everyday of the week will continue. That being said, I'll post entries around once between one to two weeks. I miss all of you! God Bless!

Don't mean to sound needy...

Yeah guys, I don't mean to sound needy...but I'm poor...therefore I'm needy. SO, here are some of the things I kinda need because I've used them up, or frankly, I've lost them...no surprise there.
Luckily... one of the items in NOT my passport...atleast not yet:)

1) SD chip for my samsung digital camera, because I lost that sucker full of pics i was going to up load:(...flippin figures

2) Pictures of you all! I miss all of you and could use some to remind me that I should write y'all! (Thanks Amanda and Daven:)...oh yeah..with your addresses....cuz I lost that too...but that shouldn't surprise y'all either.

3) Ripped DVD's and New music (hip hop, rock, pop, Christian)...I don't have my laptop yet, but I will in December/Jan!!!

4) Ramen...seriously. After the exchange rate, they're 50 cents!!! Remember that I'm po... so 50 cents is ballin outta control

5) Bumble Bees pre cooked packaged chicken breast ( sumi...you're genius)

6) More importantly, whey protein powder in ziploc bags. Sams club sells them cheap by the bucket for 19.95. I'm becoming emaciated faster than even I would like it. I hope that customs doesn't think it's coke.

7) Anything else that's "american" that you'd like:) like...drink mixes (which can be used like currency in the volunteer world), nature valley's, granola, swedish fish (thanks to max!) aunt jemimaaa's, you know...use you're imagination!

My address is:

Michael Kim
Corps de la Paix
B.P. 3194
Lome, Togo
West Africa

THANK YOU ALLLLLLL!!!!

P.S... I know the SD chip is a bit expensive, so if that doesn't come, I understand! Also,
For the protein powder, you may want to weight it out to see if it's cheaper just to send it in a regular box, or a flat rate box. Protein is pretty light.

First Entry

Just as the title portrays, this entry is not going to be that exciting. Not because I haven't done things worth writing, but because I just really don't have too much time at Peace Corps Head Quarters ( the bureau) with the queue at the computers, nor do I currently have a laptop I can pre type these entries with well thought out, clever and awe inspiring sentences...So that leaves me with telling you all the things that I've done, sans details. First, I swore in as an official volunteer August 25, 2008! It was an amazing night filled with semi-blurred memories. I then proceeded to do a lot of "cultural exchanges" with my village. I was assigned to a post city/village, called Assahoun/Keve , which is in the Prefecture of Ave. There is supposedly a population of 25,000 people, of whom I haven't all seen. In fact, I pretty much see the same people over and over again. I've been doing these " cultural exchanges" for the past 2 months, which consisted of eating the local foods and getting diarrhea, feeding them my own food and them getting diarrhea, and doing that all over again. You all may say, "Wow mike. This is disgusting that you'd write this on your blog!", but let me tell you this; bowel movements are a daily conversation starter for volunteers. You have a solid feces day, it's a good day. Besides eating the local food and getting sick, I've been doing a lot of research concerning business license for exporting Togolese made goods. That has been unfortunately depressing as it seems that the Togolese government makes it increasingly difficult for people to ship goods abroad through high tariffs and license fees. Even with AGOA (African Growth Opportunity Act), it still proves difficult.
I've also completed a national even called "AIDS Ride," where approximately 15 volunteers bike across their assigned region performing sensibilizations (sessions) about HIV/AIDS prevention. That, my friends, was gruelling and completely worth it. We biked average of 20-30 k daily in dirt, mud, sand pits, all while climbing hills. We even had accidents where volunteers were impaled my bike handle bars. I personally flipped over my handle bars, did a front roll and landed on my feet...ninjaaaa. I know. Anyway, across all the regions of Togo, Peace Corps has reached an estimated 20,000 people through these cross regional sessions!
On the personal front, I've made plenty of close friends, however, some of those friends have already E.T.ed (early terminate), which is always disheartening. I have an amazing cluster and hope that these new batch of volunteers will be as equally amicable. On that note, I better leave, as people are hustling and bussling around me. God Bless!