Time is Flying By!

It’s hard to believe I have been here for almost two weeks. Time has flown by and I have loved almost all of it! I went to church last week and it was amazing! It was spiritually fulfilling and one of my friends said she even liked it. We met some amazing people and learned about Namibian culture, such as the different handshakes. We also met a man who is in charge of all the Namibian Christian camps, or something like that. I love networking and that is one of the reasons I went, and skipped the hike to Pride Rock. They taught us logic models this week. We also learned about the Namibian tribes and the genocide that took place during the struggle for Namibian independence. I got my language on Monday. I will be speaking Rukwangali. I was hoping for Afrikaans, but God has a reason for everything. It was exciting to get my language, but I saw that my closest friends here received a language that will most likely place them quite far away.

On Monday, we met our host families. We moved in the next day and I am happy to stay that my neighborhood is one of the safer, nicer areas. I can’t wait to have people over. My friend’s host family has an adorable one month old puppy I love! Friday was an awesome day! We had class, but were let out early. Five of us went to another PCV’s place to hang out. It was an AMAZING time of bonding and getting to know each other. None of us wanted to leave. Another friend who lived in my neighborhood walked a PCV home, but it was much farther away than we thought. We got majorly lost. We kept asking for directions and people said “very far, very far.” Finally, we hailed a taxi and, grudgingly, paid the $32 Namibian dollars to get home. It was a fun adventure, but we learned a lesson about leaving well before dark. We were back by the curfew time, but it was very dark. We took an “I survived” picture after. It was a great bonding moment too!

I have made some close friends here already. I bond quickly with people, but I feel this time it was record time due to the others also reciprocating my actions. I can definitely tell I am already growing personally; it is reflected in some of my friends here. I think adapting to different/new personalities will help me anywhere in the states. It is also nice to have people who are similar to me in many ways. I love having a PCV down the street from me. We can go over to each other’s house a lot because our families are related. I like everyone in our group quite a lot. I cannot wait to get to know these lovely people better and grow together.

We're Finally Here!

Disclaimer: Because time is valuable, I am not really proof-reading for mistakes. I apologize for the mistakes ahead of time.

There’s a LOT to write about now that I’m finally in Africa! I’ve been jotting down stream of conscious notes in order to be able to remember. Because of this my posts may be a bit scattered. Anyways, we left the hotel at 2:30am. I could not sleep even though I had been up all night. We got to the airport three hours before it opened. Many of us were sleep deprived but I still had a ton of energy. We finally got to check-in our luggage. One important note for future volunteers; do NOT go over 50lb in one bag. Some people had to pay extra fees of $100. The flight was so longgggg, 15 hours, but I was the ONLY one who could not sleep more than 2 hours. By the time we arrived in Johannesburg, I had slept two hours in a 48 hour period (roughly). It began to get more real that I was in Africa, but it still was not totally real. I did learn a cultural thing in JoBurg. You should tip the bathroom attendants; I only picked up on this after four trips. Anyways, the airport was fancy! They were better than the American airports I’ve been in. I sent a few postcards because we had a 6-7 hour layover. I tried to sleep but I felt sick after. The food on the airlines was great; my favorite was the Chicken Tikki Masala. One note about South African Airways; they must recruit only the most attractive and professional attendants ever. The accents also were amazing.

We got on our flight to Namibia, and travel problems quickly developed. We left 2 hours late because of a lightning storm. We were told to go to three different runways, but then had to turn back because we needed fuel. It was interesting how the plane was full of Germans. I wasn’t expecting that even though the Germans had colonized Namibia a long time ago. We started to land and it hit almost all of the volunteers…we were in Africa! My first thought was “It’s so barren!” We saw only a few houses and roads over miles and miles of terrain. The airport was beautiful and was in the middle of nowhere. The weather was hot, but it got cooler later at night. We met a bunch of PC people and we had a wonderful couple hour ride to Okahanjda, where our training is. It was unfortunate that we stumbled upon a very serious car accident on the way back. We met Edward, a really cool PCV. Some things I learned from him was to never poor a man’s drink in Namibia and always say hello to everyone! We were so thankful when we got to the conference center that they did not make us train, but let us eat some tasty beef stew and rice and go to bed. The rooms were nice. There are only four guys in our group, but they are really cool. We’ve gotten along great.

On the 14^th (the next day), I woke up at 2am. By this time I had only 6.5 hours of sleep out of 72. My stomach was feeling pretty poorly at this time too, but it was a manageable challenge. I was able to use the red light on my geeky headlamp during the night! I also got up to read my Bible; it was so peaceful at 5:30 in the morning. It was our first day of training and they greeted us with song and dance. I wanted to join in right away. All the staff here are wonderful! I have met every single one and we get along great. They are really fun people. (Just a random note, as I was writing this just now, songs came on the cafes radio system that I have heard on K-Love.) Our country director introduced himself and he is impressive. He has worked with the UN, the US State Department, and internationally. It was extremely exciting to me as one of the reasons I had joined the Peace Corps was to form international connections.  One note, one of the other staff told us that 18 out of the 45 PCVs in his group had ended up marrying. That was quite a lot different than what I had expected, but hilarious.

On the 15^th (today), we had medical and program interviews. After looking through materials and talking with the staff, I feel so prepared for this. Most of the teachings are about things I have previously learned. As I have been speaking to people, more and more things come back and I have ideas and numerous strategies that I cannot wait to hash out. I have never been so confident in my professional life as now (we’ll see I feel when I get thrown into a Namibian context). They asked us about what we wanted, and I told them a few “ideal” situations. Overall, I told them I want them to put me where they need me. I believe it will be difficult no matter what, but I have faith in God and in their judgment that I will go where I fit best. We were also given shots today and have free time until tomorrow. It’s 4:05pm here by the way.

 Most people went to get internet at the café, but Nay Nay, another male PCV, and I went to explore. We went to a local market and did a quick walkthrough because it was almost lunch time. It’s definitely interesting being a non-Namibian here. People speak to me often; ask for things; offer me goods; or they just want to chat. Being an extrovert is a huge asset here. But I do feel it will be a challenge in the future because I stick out like a sore thumb. After lunch I went to the cafe. It was like PC headquarters with PCVs everywhere using the internet. To my surprise and my pleasure, there was an American girl who walked into the place who was not with PC. She is a missionary from California. Of all the things in the world, she said she was going to grad school where I graduated from with my Bachelor’s, Azusa Pacific University. We spoke for a while about a number of things and I am going to visit her church on Sunday. I feel fortunate that she will introduce me to her church and its members, which will be great for finding my personal church, but also for making new friends, as well as helping my work. It was entertaining when she said you could tell PCVs by their nice backpacks. Anyways, I’m caught up until now (March 15, 2013 4:53pm). I will most likely not be able to have internet like this or be able to post such a long post with all the busy training coming.

One hour until I leave...all-nighter!

I just realized this is the first all-nighter of my life, even after having gone to college and grad school! Here are the first few pictures, by anyone in my group I think of Group 37's Staging! My post is down below the pictures.

It’s 12:17am here in Philadelphia and I decided not to sleep because I am getting up in less than one hour to leave for Namibia. I got to Cleveland yesterday around 4:50pm. I left Sacramento at 7am and arrived in Minneapolis around 12:30pm. Then I flew to Philly from there. The first flight was great; the second flight was on a smaller airplane so my body (plus the major jet plus losing an hour due to daylight savings time) was/is sooooo sore. I love talking to people on airplanes though. I had good conversations with 3 different people and they were very encouraging and almost admiring of my future service in the Peace Corps. Anyways, I spend the evening with my aunt and uncle and had a GREAT time catching up and having heart-to-heart chats. We also ended up watching I Am Sam. I got up today and had breakfast and left for the hotel. We went by subway. I really appreciated my aunt and uncle’s help. It is so wonderful to have my immediate family and my extended family support me in my journey.

I got to the hotel and caught up on Facebook. I was a litter jittery, but I decided to go downstairs to find some of my PCV friends. The first person I met was Bonnie. It was great to see people in the flesh, but also surreal because we had been talking on Facebook for about 4 months. Around registration time I was also happy to meet the people who I call “The Mysterious Three” (the people who didn’t join our Facebook group). Orientation was fine and there were a lot of good activities. However, I was somewhat longing just to talk and interact with the other volunteers. It is so interesting to me, especially as a social worker, to see the group dynamics and learning from everyone’s nonverbal cues. There are some hilarious people in our group. There are some leaders and followers. There are introverts and extroverts. There is a lot of diversity from religion to age to accent to upbringing to race and much more! I cannot wait to talk to everyone else. I definitely feel some bonds growing already. I also feel great because I am back in my element. I loved being home, but I get to be with amazing, intelligent, fun, energetic people. I get to use the knowledge that I have in a useful way.

I am also looking forward to any leadership roles that I can fill. I already have one small one here. To some, this may come off as wanting to be the center of attention, but to me, it is putting myself in a somewhat uncomfortable and challenging position. I do not necessarily want to be the leader, but I will put myself there because that is a very important way to grow. I am going on an adventure, which will be scary, but so rewarding. Anyways, after orientation, I went with four other PCVs on a longgggg walk to Chilis. It was a very enjoyable meal with an enormous amount of good conversation and openness. We then walked back to the hotel and here I am, writing this blog. By the way, Peace Corps has definitely taken good care of us! The hotel is great; the arrangements for our trip our superb; the money was MORE than adequate.

Here We Go!

Wow…it’s finally here!!! Tomorrow, I am getting up at 2:30am (of course it had to be the day when we set out clocks forward, ugh), to leave for Philadelphia. My flight leaves at 7am. Then, I have a one hour layover in Minneapolis, and then on to Philly, where I’ll be arriving at about 5pm. I am so fortunate that my aunt and uncle live in Philly so I will be able to have dinner with them and then have them drop me off at the hotel at 1pm for staging. So let me give you the skinny on staging:

Monday

1:00 PM

Official registration as Peace Corps trainee -- turn in completed forms

2:00 - 4:25 PM

Who We Are

What's Expected of You

4:25 - 4:45 PM

Break

4:45 - 7:00 PM

What You Expect

What's Next

Closing

Tuesday

2:00 AM

Check out of hotel

2:30 AM

Bus arrives for loading and departure for New York JFK Airport

11:15 AM

Flight departs for Namibia

My flight from the US to Namibia arrives in Johannesburg for a short layover and then to Namibia. The first leg will be 15 hours long; the second leg is two hours!!!! Good thing one of the Peace Corps Volunteers is a masseuse and I already asked her for lessons and she said she’d love to teach me!

Anyways, for my last day at home I decided I didn’t want to just spend it in doors and risk getting nervous by thinking about what could happen. So my family and I went to a Celtic Faire in Sonora. Somewhat unorthodox, but my family loves Celtic stuff/music. It was an awesome day! The weather was great; the food was great; the re-enactors in costume were great; the music was AWESOME! Driving to Sonora is one of my favorite drives because the hills are emerald green and exquisite. I was going to sleep on the way back, but then I realized it might be the last time I saw these hills and country that I love so much, so I decided to stay awake. I took a picture of the sunset and posted it to Facebook because I realized it was my last California sunset for a while. I will miss all these things, but I’m not sad, except for the possibility that my dog, whom I have had for 10 or 11 years, will not live to see me when I get back. I’m more looking forward and eager to see what God will do in my life and those I work with.

It is weird to think I am doing so many “last” things, especially because my parents will be moving, hopefully in the next few months. I wondered here and there if I should dramatically look around, as people sometimes do, at everything and say “Goodbye” and shed a few tears. I decided against this because I am not sad for leaving; the time is right and I am excited for the new things to come. Some tears may happen at the airport when I say goodbye to my parents, but I somewhat doubt it. The things that matter most to me are not the weather, beautiful geography, comfortable schedule, but the people in my life, such as my mom, dad, brother, and friends. Of course, God is important too, but He is always with me! Also, I know that anything can happen in life, but I know I’ll see them again.

One of my friends texted me as I was writing this and it made me thankful for the friendships I have. I have a good group of diverse friends, some closer than others, who I hope to write letters to. I was only going to write a few people at first, but I recently learned a lesson that, if I want to strengthen and grow “real life” friendships, and not just college friendships, I need to work on them, even when it is not my favorite thing to do or I do not get as many responses back as I want. I am hoping that I learn to LOVE letter writing and that I will have the time, money, and motivation to continue. I also know that letters will be a huge encouragement to me, especially when things get tough.

I could probably go on and on about things, but I think this is good enough for now. I still have a few more nights in the United States, so I may be able to blog (but I doubt it). Just don’t hold it against me if I post again from the US! However, most likely the next time I blog, I will be in Namibia! (If you want to get emails notifying you of when I post, please type your email address into the box "Follow by Email", on the right side of my blog.)