Wow, I haven't posted on this blog is a month. Now that I have an invite in hand and nothing to do until closer to my February departure, I have far less to obsess about! Let's see if there are any potentially relevant updates regarding my preparations for Peace Corps...
Well, the first thing that comes to mind is that I got myself a new camera! I think one of the most valuable souvenirs that I can bring home from my 2 years of service is memories, and a camera is one of the best ways to record these memories. I finally decided to get a DSLR camera after years of point and shoot cameras that never quite keep their quality. I invested in the Canon Rebel T3 camera - it is one of the newer models that has both camera and video. From what I have seen of other Peace Corps volunteers, lots of events have great opportunities for video, so I wanted that to take advantage. I just have the kit lens, but I am looking to getting a zoom lens as well as a wide angle lens. I especially want a wide angle lens for amazing landscape shots - unfortunately they cost more than I would prefer to spend. Maybe for Christmas/Birthday/Going Away present... I am still working on getting used to and learning all the settings on my camera, but I am confident that I will soon be able to take pictures like a pro! (okay, like a semi-pro)
I have also been working more on my wish list for things I will need for the Peace Corps. I ordered myself a nice North Face rain jacket that I have also been using for work, which has been really useful. Working in Florida outdoors = high chance of rain just about every day. And unless there is lightning, we don't quit working! I'm planning on ordering with Chacos, Tevas, or both soon. I love the Peace Corps discounts! Other things on my list include a light-weight sleeping bag, fast drying travel towel quality cotton socks and underwear. Still working on perfecting it - any suggestions from current volunteers on things I should make sure not to forget or things that are completely unnecessary? I am planning on going mainly by the Peace Corps list, with a few additions that I think I really need
My most exciting news is the trip that I have planned for this October - I am going to be going to HAWAII! One of my best friends from high school lives out there for grad school, and I will be going in October for a week to see her and her fiance. It will be a week of scuba diving, hiking, surfing (well, me attempting to learn to surf), and much, much more. I am sadly going to be in Honduras when she gets married, and it will be during the first 6 months when I will be unable to leave site. I am glad I will at least get to come and have my own celebration with them in Hawaii!
That's about all I can think of. Work is continuing to go well, and I am working on saving up some money - would love to have ome money for potential vacations during my Peace Corps service! Having money when I finish will also help me get resettled, so it's a win-win. Plus there are a few more trips I'd like to make before leaving in February :)
Love to all! To those serving, hope things are going well, to those with invitations, good luck with that anticipation and packing, and to those waiting for invitations, good luck and I am sending good vibes your way!
Monday, September 5, 2011
Saturday, August 6, 2011
Paperwork and Shopping!
Finally finished up all the paperwork for my passport and aspiration statement this past week. The passport was the biggest hassle because I had to go to an acceptance facility - I may be traveling internationally before I leave for the Peace Corps and I don't want to be without my personal passport in case that happens. I finally got it in and mailed. I know they say to do it immediately, but considering my leave date isn't until late February, they will forgive it being a week later than it should have been. With my work schedule, it was just too difficult for me to get there the first week after everything.
I am still working on processing everything. I am getting really excited about everything, but I still have the days where I freak out. Sometimes I worry about being separated from my family for that long of a period, and I certainly have a lot of worries about my Spanish (started to study it today for the first time in a few months, and it was really unfortunate). But then I think about it, and how I can make a difference in my community and really get out in the field and I know it is what I want to do, and more importantly, what I need to do during these two years.
I've started to read some of the Honduras blogs as preparation for my time there. It's nice to get some first hand knowledge of life there and what volunteers are experiencing in Honduras. It also will help when planning my packing! The only problem is I have absolutely no idea what kind of environment I will be packing for. Parts are cooler, like up in the mountains, while other parts get as hot as 100 F! It's also interesting to hear about living conditions, because my group will be the second group in Honduras to be required to live with a host family for all 2 years. I look forward to hearing how this first group deals with the lodging so I can be prepared!
So I did some exciting shopping for some Peace Corps things today! I went to the mall to look for a few new shirts, since I'm still gonna be in the states for another 6 months, and I found some great skirts to take with me! From what I've read, its very important in Honduras to keep covered with long skirts below the knee. I found some great skirts and got 4 - two that are short, just below the knee, and two that are down to the ankle. I stuck to gray and black for colors - they also had white, but I figure that there is no way that it could stay clean in Honduras. Especially with hand washing my clothing - it would be exhausting and dirt would get so worked in that it would be impossible to clean after a few months. I am very pleased with my purchases. They are thick enough cotton to not be see through, but are also thin enough and breezy enough to keep me cool if I am in a hot climate! And they were on sale! Yay! I don't want to do too much shopping until closer to my date of departure, but when I see a good deal, I am definitely going to jump on it!
Other than that, it's been pretty basic. Work has been a bit slow, but it's supposed to pick up later this month, so I should start getting some significant overtime then! I am also working on planning a few trips. As of now, I am almost for sure going to go to NYC and Hawaii. Other possibilities include a cruise with my mom and grandma or another trip over to Europe - I really want to see Spain before I go. And of course, the Chile trip is still a possibility, though I have no idea when I will find out if it could happen or what it might cost me. I'm excited to hopefully book some of these trips to go places and see people I want to see before I leave for two years!
Also still waiting on those Honduras volunteers to come out of the shadows... Any of you out there?
I am still working on processing everything. I am getting really excited about everything, but I still have the days where I freak out. Sometimes I worry about being separated from my family for that long of a period, and I certainly have a lot of worries about my Spanish (started to study it today for the first time in a few months, and it was really unfortunate). But then I think about it, and how I can make a difference in my community and really get out in the field and I know it is what I want to do, and more importantly, what I need to do during these two years.
I've started to read some of the Honduras blogs as preparation for my time there. It's nice to get some first hand knowledge of life there and what volunteers are experiencing in Honduras. It also will help when planning my packing! The only problem is I have absolutely no idea what kind of environment I will be packing for. Parts are cooler, like up in the mountains, while other parts get as hot as 100 F! It's also interesting to hear about living conditions, because my group will be the second group in Honduras to be required to live with a host family for all 2 years. I look forward to hearing how this first group deals with the lodging so I can be prepared!
So I did some exciting shopping for some Peace Corps things today! I went to the mall to look for a few new shirts, since I'm still gonna be in the states for another 6 months, and I found some great skirts to take with me! From what I've read, its very important in Honduras to keep covered with long skirts below the knee. I found some great skirts and got 4 - two that are short, just below the knee, and two that are down to the ankle. I stuck to gray and black for colors - they also had white, but I figure that there is no way that it could stay clean in Honduras. Especially with hand washing my clothing - it would be exhausting and dirt would get so worked in that it would be impossible to clean after a few months. I am very pleased with my purchases. They are thick enough cotton to not be see through, but are also thin enough and breezy enough to keep me cool if I am in a hot climate! And they were on sale! Yay! I don't want to do too much shopping until closer to my date of departure, but when I see a good deal, I am definitely going to jump on it!
Other than that, it's been pretty basic. Work has been a bit slow, but it's supposed to pick up later this month, so I should start getting some significant overtime then! I am also working on planning a few trips. As of now, I am almost for sure going to go to NYC and Hawaii. Other possibilities include a cruise with my mom and grandma or another trip over to Europe - I really want to see Spain before I go. And of course, the Chile trip is still a possibility, though I have no idea when I will find out if it could happen or what it might cost me. I'm excited to hopefully book some of these trips to go places and see people I want to see before I leave for two years!
Also still waiting on those Honduras volunteers to come out of the shadows... Any of you out there?
Friday, July 29, 2011
Life after the Invite
So I've been all sorts of busy this past week! I had all sorts of reading to do on my program, Honduras, Peace Corps Volunteer expectations and more! The more and more I read about my job description, the more and more excited I get about it. It really is exactly what I wanted to do. I am a bit bummed that I am probably going to be placed in a larger city - part of me was excited for the rural lifestyle and knowing everyone in a small community. No way I could know everyone in a town of 10,000 or more! Trying to not count my chickens before they hatch. You never know what will happen!
Another part I am really excited about is that there is a lot of interdisciplinary work and collaboration with PC Honduras volunteers. For Water and Sanitation, volunteers work in clusters of 3 or 4 to work on water issues for a whole region. We all will be placed in different sites, but there is an emphasis on collaboration that I really like. There also are collaborations between different types of volunteers. An education volunteer might work with a water and sanitation volunteer to create a sanitation component to their lessons. I really look forward to meeting all the amazing people I will get to work with (where are you all anyways? I'm the only February one I know of!)
Honduras is fairly well off technologically - they say most volunteers have cell phone and internet in their sites (particularly in big cities... i.e. me!) This is definitely helping my parents with the possible move - the knowledge that they will be able to contact me and talk to me often. It's also great because I know I will be able to keep up with my blog while I am there!
There are some great vacation possibilities for while I am down there that I look forward to taking full advantage of. Honduras is known for some of the best scuba diving in the caribbean! I haven't been often, but I LOVE scuba diving! I will be sure to take full advantage of the scuba diving opportunities! There are some beautiful beaches, particularly in the bay islands. I think that will probably be one of our family trips, which should be nice and relaxing! Honduras was one of the places that the Mayans were located, and there are mayan ruins around the country and neighboring countries. I would love to see some of these ruins in person! FInally, they have canopy walks and ziplining! I LOVE ziplining!
The weather there is also pretty nice. The country is very mountainous, so even though it is further south, the mountains keep the country cooler. Many sites are located at higher altitudes, which are consequently cooler. It will be nice to not have a completely unbearable weather year round.
There is one thing that has been disappointing me a little, but is also understandable. The Peace Corp Honduras has instituted a policy that volunteers must live with a host family for all 2 years. This is for the safety of the volunteers as well as to ensure that volunteers get cultural immersion and language practice daily. While I appreciate the safety aspect, I can see it being extremely difficult to live with a family for 2 years. I am a very independent person - I can see problems arising with things such as wanting to cook, wanting to get a pet, having visitors, and wanting alone time. One option for volunteers is to live in a separate house in a family complex - it gives more independence while still being with a host family. I think I will definitely be looking for something like that in my site!
Thats all I've got for now. This weekend my plan is to write my aspiration statement and finalize my resume to send in next week. Tomorrow I need to go do my passport application too! Will post more when I know it
Another part I am really excited about is that there is a lot of interdisciplinary work and collaboration with PC Honduras volunteers. For Water and Sanitation, volunteers work in clusters of 3 or 4 to work on water issues for a whole region. We all will be placed in different sites, but there is an emphasis on collaboration that I really like. There also are collaborations between different types of volunteers. An education volunteer might work with a water and sanitation volunteer to create a sanitation component to their lessons. I really look forward to meeting all the amazing people I will get to work with (where are you all anyways? I'm the only February one I know of!)
Honduras is fairly well off technologically - they say most volunteers have cell phone and internet in their sites (particularly in big cities... i.e. me!) This is definitely helping my parents with the possible move - the knowledge that they will be able to contact me and talk to me often. It's also great because I know I will be able to keep up with my blog while I am there!
There are some great vacation possibilities for while I am down there that I look forward to taking full advantage of. Honduras is known for some of the best scuba diving in the caribbean! I haven't been often, but I LOVE scuba diving! I will be sure to take full advantage of the scuba diving opportunities! There are some beautiful beaches, particularly in the bay islands. I think that will probably be one of our family trips, which should be nice and relaxing! Honduras was one of the places that the Mayans were located, and there are mayan ruins around the country and neighboring countries. I would love to see some of these ruins in person! FInally, they have canopy walks and ziplining! I LOVE ziplining!
The weather there is also pretty nice. The country is very mountainous, so even though it is further south, the mountains keep the country cooler. Many sites are located at higher altitudes, which are consequently cooler. It will be nice to not have a completely unbearable weather year round.
There is one thing that has been disappointing me a little, but is also understandable. The Peace Corp Honduras has instituted a policy that volunteers must live with a host family for all 2 years. This is for the safety of the volunteers as well as to ensure that volunteers get cultural immersion and language practice daily. While I appreciate the safety aspect, I can see it being extremely difficult to live with a family for 2 years. I am a very independent person - I can see problems arising with things such as wanting to cook, wanting to get a pet, having visitors, and wanting alone time. One option for volunteers is to live in a separate house in a family complex - it gives more independence while still being with a host family. I think I will definitely be looking for something like that in my site!
Thats all I've got for now. This weekend my plan is to write my aspiration statement and finalize my resume to send in next week. Tomorrow I need to go do my passport application too! Will post more when I know it
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
INVITATION!
And my post is....
HONDURAS!
Basically, it has been the craziest few days ever. Lets start back at Wednesday.
So I had originially been told that January-March invitation would begin going out in late August, early September at the very earliest. Well, I check Peace Corps Journals, Peace Corps Wiki Timeline, and Peace Corps facebook page fairly often. Come Wednesday morning, I saw the first January invites going out. Well, I wasn't going to be left behind - I sent me resume to my Peace Corps placement specialist on Wednesday, with a note to confirm receipt and to let me know if there were any updates. On Thursday I received an email saying my placement specialist had received my resume and there were no updates. I expected I wouldn't hear anything for a few weeks. Well, Friday, my family was leaving to Canada for a 5 day trip. We were going to Toronto and Niagara Falls, which should be a really fun trip. Our flight on Friday had two legs - Jacksonville to Atlanta and Atlanta to Toronto. We had a layover of about 45-60 minutes. Well, who would have thought, but waiting at our gate in Atlanta, I get a phone call from a 202 number. I try to calm myself - its probably just an update about my status and when I should hear an update. Well, this is my approximate conversation:
PO: Thanks for your updated resume!
Me: It was no problem.
PO: So I was looking at January to March placements and I have two programs leaving then. I'm gonna go ahead and invite you to one!
Me: Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!
Literally, I was jumping up and down in the middle of the Atlanta airport! He told me 5-10 days for my package to arrive. I can't stop thinking about it all weekend. We land this morning (Wednesday) and my mom calls the USP store. They have my invite. We stop there on our way home. and I find my invitation!
I am SOOOOO excited! The placement sounds AMAZING. I am going to be a Water and Sanitation Engineer. I am probably going to be placed in a larger site (10,000 to 50,000 people) and I will be working with Water and Sanitation Extensionists to work on latrine projects, water distribution projects, and other projects. It sounds so great and I still have tons more to read (as well as my aspiration statement, resume, passport, and etc.) I will post more information as I find it!
Congrats to everyone reading who has their invitations, and good luck to everyone waiting! It will come sooner than you think, and it's so worth all the waiting when it gets here!
HONDURAS!
Basically, it has been the craziest few days ever. Lets start back at Wednesday.
So I had originially been told that January-March invitation would begin going out in late August, early September at the very earliest. Well, I check Peace Corps Journals, Peace Corps Wiki Timeline, and Peace Corps facebook page fairly often. Come Wednesday morning, I saw the first January invites going out. Well, I wasn't going to be left behind - I sent me resume to my Peace Corps placement specialist on Wednesday, with a note to confirm receipt and to let me know if there were any updates. On Thursday I received an email saying my placement specialist had received my resume and there were no updates. I expected I wouldn't hear anything for a few weeks. Well, Friday, my family was leaving to Canada for a 5 day trip. We were going to Toronto and Niagara Falls, which should be a really fun trip. Our flight on Friday had two legs - Jacksonville to Atlanta and Atlanta to Toronto. We had a layover of about 45-60 minutes. Well, who would have thought, but waiting at our gate in Atlanta, I get a phone call from a 202 number. I try to calm myself - its probably just an update about my status and when I should hear an update. Well, this is my approximate conversation:
PO: Thanks for your updated resume!
Me: It was no problem.
PO: So I was looking at January to March placements and I have two programs leaving then. I'm gonna go ahead and invite you to one!
Me: Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!
Literally, I was jumping up and down in the middle of the Atlanta airport! He told me 5-10 days for my package to arrive. I can't stop thinking about it all weekend. We land this morning (Wednesday) and my mom calls the USP store. They have my invite. We stop there on our way home. and I find my invitation!
I am SOOOOO excited! The placement sounds AMAZING. I am going to be a Water and Sanitation Engineer. I am probably going to be placed in a larger site (10,000 to 50,000 people) and I will be working with Water and Sanitation Extensionists to work on latrine projects, water distribution projects, and other projects. It sounds so great and I still have tons more to read (as well as my aspiration statement, resume, passport, and etc.) I will post more information as I find it!
Congrats to everyone reading who has their invitations, and good luck to everyone waiting! It will come sooner than you think, and it's so worth all the waiting when it gets here!
Thursday, June 30, 2011
A Long Overdue Update
Hello lovelies.
I know I have been totally MIA - I was hoping I would get some concrete news from PC before I updated again, but alas, the situation is as follows.
A few weeks ago, I think it was May 27th, I got a phone call from my placement specialist. I had my final interview, and it went GREAT. He told me he was clearing me for placement, and I was SOOOO excited. However, it was followed by a bombshell. My program for 2011 was full, and the soonest I could go in my nominated program (Environmental and Water Resources Engineering) was January-March 2012, and even that wasn't for certain. He told me he could do a teaching position for Math or Science or possibly a health position. I asked if I could think over it for a bit before getting back to him. I was devastated, even though I knew this was a high possibility with the budget cuts. With my engineering degree, I have really had my heart set on doing water work. After thinking it over for the weekend, I told him I would rather wait for January-March 2012 departures. If I don't get a water slot then, we can discuss another slot, or I can just put PC on hold knowing that it will be there for me in the future.
On a better note, I just got back from a 2 week trip around Europe! It was for my graduation, and it was amazing. I traveled with one of my best friends from college, Laura, and we went all over the place. We did a week in Italy, visiting Venice, Florence, and Rome, and then went to Amsterdam, Paris, and London. It was great to travel and see all these sites I've always wanted to see.
I also have a job that will hopefully work out in the coming days. I'm still getting the details worked out, but it would be great to get some experience and money!
I'll try to be better with updating this in the future - it's just been a really rough few weeks with the PC news and then all my traveling!
I know I have been totally MIA - I was hoping I would get some concrete news from PC before I updated again, but alas, the situation is as follows.
A few weeks ago, I think it was May 27th, I got a phone call from my placement specialist. I had my final interview, and it went GREAT. He told me he was clearing me for placement, and I was SOOOO excited. However, it was followed by a bombshell. My program for 2011 was full, and the soonest I could go in my nominated program (Environmental and Water Resources Engineering) was January-March 2012, and even that wasn't for certain. He told me he could do a teaching position for Math or Science or possibly a health position. I asked if I could think over it for a bit before getting back to him. I was devastated, even though I knew this was a high possibility with the budget cuts. With my engineering degree, I have really had my heart set on doing water work. After thinking it over for the weekend, I told him I would rather wait for January-March 2012 departures. If I don't get a water slot then, we can discuss another slot, or I can just put PC on hold knowing that it will be there for me in the future.
On a better note, I just got back from a 2 week trip around Europe! It was for my graduation, and it was amazing. I traveled with one of my best friends from college, Laura, and we went all over the place. We did a week in Italy, visiting Venice, Florence, and Rome, and then went to Amsterdam, Paris, and London. It was great to travel and see all these sites I've always wanted to see.
I also have a job that will hopefully work out in the coming days. I'm still getting the details worked out, but it would be great to get some experience and money!
I'll try to be better with updating this in the future - it's just been a really rough few weeks with the PC news and then all my traveling!
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