Two hours straight into the interior. There are really only one paved road that goes around the island- everything else is unkempt gravel, so the ride was bumpy... We traveled to a village called Tabalei, a small village in the mountains of Ba. The two peer educators I went with were requested- by the village, how cool!- to come and talk about STIs and HIV/AIDS.
The workshop lasted the entire day and was done completely in Fijian. It started with introductions (which is always embarrassing for me because I have to stumble through my Fijian while everyone giggles), sign up sheet and expectations.
The village expectations for the workshop were mostly questions like; what is HIV, how can you get it, how do you know if someone has it, etc. So, the program proceeded and they answered the questions while also giving the basic training for all reproductive health workshops. We had our break for, tea (and kava of course- I dont know if I mentioned that most if not all community workshops and events are done around the tanoa bowl, where the kava is mixed and consumed), lunch, and tea again.
Around 2:30pm (just after afternoon tea) there was sense that the end of the session was coming so people began to pass up pieces of ripped paper with their own personal questions on it. The mood changed, people were suddenly more interested. The questions were very specific, which was surprising because everybody knows everybody elses business in a village. The questions came, and floor was open for discussion... though everything was in Fijian, I was able to pick up enough to know what was going on, with help from a colleague who would translate when she saw wrinkles form on my forehead. It was fantastic! This was the first workshop I had been to with the Ministry of Health, and it seemed to be more or less effective and worthwhile. Whether behavior change will take place or not is another question, but with community outreach we can only hope that a difference was made.
On the ride home, we stopped on the top of a mountain and watched the sun set over the ocean while blasting oldies (like the Four Tops) out of the SUV. Sitting on the car and looking out at my new home was a perfect way to end the wonderful day :o)
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