Tuu Here

About the Book

Moving to Africa in 1979, from rural, small town Mississippi was a leap of faith and a catalyst for great adventure. With graduation from college looming and looking for direction, a Peace Corps flier crosses Mary Duncan’s path. Mary volunteers to teach Cameroonians how to grow fish for food by building fish ponds in Cameroon. After four months of training, she is assigned to a very isolated post in Yoko. She must adapt to a French speaking, half Muslim world without electricity and plumbing. For the first year, the only other volunteers in the area are a 12 hour bush taxi ride away.  Mary gains a unique view of what life is really like in Yoko, where the local tribe, the “Bavuté”, speaks their own patois (language) and are happy to share their opinions on a wide range of topics including homosexuality, polygamy, nuclear bomb programs and whether or not pygmies are indeed human. The first year Mary is occupied with work and survival: learning how to live without modern conveniences, communicate with the locals, and with very little to eat. During the second year, as the locals begin to know and trust her, she gets to look under the surface and discovers not everything is as innocent as it seems. On this journey to the third world, Mary learns as much about herself as she does of the people around her. Mary’s cross-cultural experience attests the commonalities of human beings on higher levels than the boundaries we build between us, and that many challenges that we face are universal: the need for shelter, friendship, and fish. For those thinking to joining the Peace Corps or those looking to travel abroad on a road less traveled, this book can give you honest insight into what you can expect on your own journey.

About the Author

Mary Barbee lives in South Florida with her husband and three children. She was born in Mississippi in 1957, and grew up in the region, eventually graduating from Tulane University in New Orleans. Upon returning to the United States after her experiences as a Peace Corps volunteer in Yoko, Cameroon, she continued her education at Tulane and received a Masters of Business Administration. Since then, she has at turns been a businesswoman, banker, designer, teacher, and scientist; she has always been a devoted, caring mother and wife. Today, she finds fulfillment from her work with the United States Government, from her loving family, and from the opportunity to share her story with others.