Phone Call with Katie (by Katie's Mom)

On Saturday, February 22, we talked with Katie…8:00pm in Madagascar and 11:00am in Minneapolis.  Here are a few of the highlights.

 

After the long trip over with little sleep the group arrived at the Training Center on Wednesday evening, February 12.  After the flight landed, they had a 2-12 hour drive with the last half of the drive over a dirt road, so rather slow going.  The volunteers spent Thursday and Friday in orientation and language training, which she described as a bit like a college dorm with a common room for meals.  Katie says the language is a challenge, especially sentence structure.  She feels like she’s struggling with it, but also is encouraged by how much she’s learned in the first week.

 

On Saturday, Feb 15 all the volunteers moved in with host families – one volunteer per host family.  The 18 health volunteers are all in the same village, Mantasoa.  The training center is a 10-15 minute walk from the village.  All the agriculture volunteers are staying with families in another village which is 45 minutes away on foot.  Katie’s host family includes Mom (Neny), Dad (Dada), a son and daughter.  The son is mostly away at school, and the daughter is 16.  Katie taught the daughter to make a friendship bracelet and that was a bit hit.

 

Katie spends morning in language training and afternoons at the training center learning other skills.

 

The village has electricity, but no running water.  She has washed clothes for the first time, and experienced cold bucket showers. She doesn’t know how to heat the water yet for the bucket baths, but I think that would be a good goal for the coming week.

Her days go from 5:30am until about 8:30pm.  She says they have rice at every meal among other items and also that dessert is fruit, except one day it was a sweet potato.  She was planning to get up early Sunday morning to help prepare breakfast.  She watched Neny kill a chicken one day for lunch the following day.  Her family has hosted other volunteers and they speak a bit of English, so can help when she’s trying to find the correct word in Malagasy.

She says there are strong rain storms that blow up and are over in just a few minutes, and that the dirt is red.

On Sunday all the health volunteers were planning to walk to the other village for a get together with the agriculture volunteers to celebrate a volunteer’s birthday.  Sunday would be the first unstructured time they have all had.

She will find out her permanent village placement on March 5, but will remain with her host family and at the training center for another 7 weeks.

Katie remains enthusiastic and is managing thru all the new and challenging experiences with grace and humor.  We are planning to talk to Katie on Saturdays and will post updates until Katie is able to connect.

Safe arrival in Madagascar (Posted by Katie’s Mom)

Today at 12:04pm CST, we received this email message from the Peace Corp’s Madagascar Country Desk

 

Hi, family and friends of Peace Corps/Madagascar’s newest group of Agriculture/Health Volunteers!

I wanted to let you know that your loved ones all arrived safely a few hours ago in Madagascar! They have just embarked on an incredible and life-changing journey. The Volunteers will be very busy over the next few weeks, beginning to learn the language and culture of Madagascar, so please do not worry if you do not hear from them immediately. They will get in touch as soon as they can, and I assure you that they are under the greatest care of our fantastic staff members in Madagascar.

****
We talked to Katie Monday night from Philadelphia and again Tuesday morning from JFK about an hour before she boarded the flight to Johannesburg.  She was enjoying getting to know the rest of the Madagascar volunteers and in great spirits (maybe a little tired too!).

Pictures below are from the security line at the Minneapolis airport and one of the Madagascar volunteer group upon arrival "in country."  Katie is in the front row, third from left.

Katie, we love you and are excited to hear from you!
Mom and Dad

12 Hours

So far, it has been 663 days since I started my application (I typed the dates into an online calculator), and now tomorrow morning, I board my flight to Philadelphia for staging. Staging is an orientation where all 35 of the health and agriculture volunteers meet for the first time, participate in ice breakers, and listen to an overview of the Peace Corps core expectations and the programs in Madagascar. We also fill out more paperwork and receive our anti-Malaria medication. Then we all check out of the hotel and board a bus at 2:00am heading for JFK airport. The next couple of days will be long and filled with traveling as we don’t reach the training site in Mantasoa until Wednesday night. Keep in mind that I may not have regular access to the internet for several weeks and may not be able to update my blog. Remember that no news is good news.

Last weekend, I had my going away party. It was so much fun and I really appreciate all of those who made it and the well wishes from those who couldn’t. At the party, I set out notecards that people could write memories, advice, joke, or whatever else they wanted. I’m waiting to read the notecards until either the plane ride to Madagascar or when I need a pick-me-up once in country. A certain group of boys told me that they wrote jokes on the cards but didn’t actually write the punch line… thanks for that.

Since I am such a planner, I really didn't have many errands or shopping to do this last week. My time was mostly filled with many lunch or dinner dates, and I’m kind of looking forward to not eating out for a while (did I actually just say that?). Normally, I'm not a procrastinator but I waited to pack until last minute. I absolutely dreaded packing because I was so concerned with the weight of my bags. It took me four and a half hours and one repack but the task is done. My bags come in at a whopping 78 pounds for the two checked bags and 35 pounds for the two carry-ons. Besides my packed Peace Corps gear, my stuff is confined to just a few bins located in a closet in my parent’s house. It’s crazy to think that I completely downsized all my belongings from my apartment in Eau Claire to such a small space.

Applying to the Peace Corps has been such a long process and I feel very ready to go. I haven’t had any freak outs or second thoughts (and only one meltdown at my going away party but I blame the alcohol). I am nervous for many things such as learning the language, meeting my host family, lack of some amenities, and missing friends and family. But I am excited to live in the moment because for months my mind has been on the Peace Corps and Madagascar, and I haven’t really been present. I’m excited to meet my stage mates and the current volunteers as we all have been so supportive of each other on Facebook. I’m super excited to begin working again since it’s been three months since I’ve had a day job. Thank you all who have read my blog so far, and now the real journey begins.

9 Days

So here I am, sitting in my empty apartment about to drive to my parent’s house in Minnesota. And it still hasn’t hit me. I am sad to leave but I have not had any meltdowns yet. We’ll see how I do at the airport.

The only time I did get emotional was when I watched my dancers perform for the last time. I’m so proud of all my dancers past and present, and all that they have accomplished. My teams made me incredibly personalized going away gifts, and I was completely blown away! My Silver team made me a shirt that each girl signed along with a generous gift card and cupcake! My Platinum team put together a scrap book in which they each made their own page! Both gifts will definitely come to Madagascar where I’ll be showing them off. My elementary class gave me so many hugs they almost didn’t let me go, all the while saying ‘Veloma’ (goodbye in Malagasy) over and over. A big thank you to all the dancers, parents, and other coaches that made teaching at Danz Kraze a truly rewarding experience!

I also met with the Girl Scout troop that will be adopting me. We ate pizza while they asked me questions and listened to me talk about all things Madagascar. They asked me the most unique questions that I had not received before (Do they eat rice with chop sticks? Do they have American animals or Madagascar animals in their zoos?). They were so enthusiastic about supporting a cause in Africa and even talked about starting a school wide fundraiser! So another big thank you goes out to Troop 4379 for following and supporting me!

I am truly grateful for all the support I have received. I have made so many great friends and memories in Eau Claire over the last five and a half years. I’m happy to say that my college town became my home.

24 Days

Aloha! I am back from Hawaii and had a fantastic time. I had the opportunity to hike, snorkel, swim with dolphins, deep sea fish (though we didn’t even have a bite), and lay on the beach (my favorite)! It was wonderful to see my childhood friend who lives there. She knew the ins and outs of the island, and I was able to do activities that I would not have done otherwise. Definitely the best way to vacation. I’ll be in a similar position in about a year: knowing the ins and outs of an exotic island while providing a free place to stay, hint hint. 

 









In family news, my brother and sister-in-law moved to Amsterdam yesterday. We were able to get together two times in the last week and a half before they left. It was a coincidence that both my brother and I chose to move to different countries within weeks of each other, and my mom jokingly referred to it as a mass exodus. We went through a somewhat similar process of moving and it was great to compare our situations. I’m very excited for them and can’t wait to visit.

In Peace Corps news, I received flight information as well as an outline of what my life with be like for the next several months.

February 10
Flight to Philadelphia
12:00pm-7:00pm—staging (orientation)

February 11
Check out of hotel at 2:00am and drive to JFK airport
Flight to Johannesburg

February 12
Arrive in Jo’burg (15 hours later…)
Flight to Antananarivo, Madagascar

February 13-14
Two day “survival training” and overview
Meet and move in with host family

February 15-April 22
Training
8:00 – 12:00 Class (Malagasy language, technical sessions)
12:00 – 2:00 Lunch Break
2:00 – 5:00 Class (language, cross-culture, and technical sessions)

April 23
Swearing-in ceremony (officially become a volunteer and service begins)

Ever since day 50 or so in my countdown, the days have flown by! I feel like I have so much left to do and I’m can’t wait for all this preparation to be over with. I’ll breathe a sigh of relief once I board the plane because even if I forgot to do something, it won’t matter anymore. I’m almost done shopping for things to pack except for a few miscellaneous items such as luggage locks or rechargeable batteries. I tend to reorganize my gear at least once a week which may be my version of a nervous twitch. I’ve also become addicted to selling my unnecessary items on Craigslist. It’s so exciting when someone emails you actually interested in your unwanted junk! In two weeks, I will begin packing what's left of my stuff to move back to Minnesota with my parents. Time sure flies!

Are you Nervous?

This is a question that I am getting more frequently as I approach my departure date. Honestly, yes I am nervous, and I think it would be concerning if I wasn’t. However, I am not nervous about my commitment to serve. I could not be more ready. I made this commitment last December. I decided that even though I will miss many important events of friends and family, I ultimately have to live this life for me. It is my life which is full of the decisions I have made. I made peace with the length of time, the hardships I will endure, and the lack of amenities last December 2012, and have since been wholeheartedly enthusiastic for the Peace Corps. I decided that I was going to love the experience. No matter which country I was invited to, I was going to love it. I truly believe that you choose to be happy, and I choose happiness in the Peace Corps. I hope to remember this when I am on a broken down bus in 100 degree weather with the windows rolled up and a chicken on my lap in the middle of nowhere in an African country. When this moment occurs, I hope I can remember the decision I made to be happy on that December day years ago. Then, I will sit back and smile at the adventure of it all.