8/18: Stranded

The small plane, which was the only remaining plane, is now broken. This means the only means of inter-island travel is now by ship, but those do not come around very often. Around 18 of the original 45 WorldTeach volunteers and 9 of the original 12 Dartmouth volunteers managed to reach their teaching sites before the transportation meltdown, and the rest of us are waiting indefinitely in Majuro for the next opportunity to travel to our sites. The dormitory where I and the other Dartmouth volunteers were staying during orientation is no longer available, so I (along with Erin and Sarah) have moved in with the other stranded WorldTeach volunteers on the floors of the classrooms of the Rairok Head Start Elementary School. I am told the small plane’s problem is minor, so the wait shouldn’t be more than a few days; but one can never be too sure.
I don’t mind waiting, although it would be nice to have some closure and reach Kili so I could begin getting ready for school. And if we end up waiting for more than a week, I could help out the volunteers (such as Annie, Paul, Chimpo, Ray, and Mariko) who are teaching at Majuro schools. They are scheduled to start this week or next week. The other volunteers are also eager to reach their new homes, but are still content to pass the days idly in our camp. That contentment won’t last forever, though – we’re all bound to get antsy sometime.
It rained all day today, unusual for the Marshall Islands. Typically if it starts raining, it begins with a heavy wind, then a heavy downpour, and you just have to wait it out for a few minutes. I was doing errands when it happened and started waiting it out in some shelter, but gave up after an hour and just got soaked instead. I was hoping to play soccer with the Fijians today (they play pickup Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday afternoons), but they didn’t show up because of the rain. The rain really kills activity here; everyone just sits inside or under their eaves and wait for it to stop. School attendance drops dramatically on rainy days – kids just don’t want to have to walk through the rain to get there.