No internet on Aneityum so I have been out of touch with the world for a while. Sorry. Many interesting stories to tell, perhaps I will get the chance to share some soon. I am well.
Getting ready to witness a custom ceremony on the island of Tanna called Toka. Toka is the largest custom ceremony here and is regarded as a must-see spectacle. Every four or five years, the island of Tanna hosts an especially large Toka ceremony- and it just so happens that 2010 will be such a year. Villagers from all over the island will gather by the thousands and perform custom dances over a 24 hour period.
The ground will literally shake as the custom dancers stomp their feet in unison to the ritual dance and the air will vibrate as locals bellow out their custom songs, just as their ancestors have done for centuries now.
The locals will paint their faces with brightly hued colors, dress up in custom garb and colorful rooster tail feathers will add a finishing accent to their hair.
Apparently in the past, men and women, even those that were married or in committed relationships, were allowed to sneak off in bush and spend the night with any love interest of their choosing. This is not so much the case today but many young people take advantage of the ceremony to be promiscuous. In the morning as the sun rises, hundreds and hundreds of pigs are sacrificed to make amends for in sins that transpired in the evening. Kava is plentiful to say the least.
Anyhow, should be an interesting sight. Will be sure to take lots of photos...
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2 comments:
I have been considering joining the Peace Corps for quite awhile now, but I was not fully sold on the idea until now. I stumbled onto your blog a few weeks ago while researching, and I get more and more excited about the idea of joining with every post I read. Thank you for this, and keep the updates coming, I will continue reading!
no problem... i would say my assignment and placement are fairly atypical though, so don't too excited about the prospect of going to the south pacific when peace corps might decide to send you to eastern europe or sub-saharan africa.
best of luck to you in your application process!
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