Brand new school year. Lots of old and new plans for school. English club, working with rappers, girls soccer club, and more!
Check out all of my photos of the day: http://785days.tumblr.com
Saturday, January 26, 2013
Friday, December 7, 2012
In-Service Training
A week of in-service training means hot showers, catered food, and close proximity to Mahhala, whose Pick'N'Pay is the best in the country (in my opinion!).o
Check out all the updates from my photo blog: http://785days.tumblr.com
Check out all the updates from my photo blog: http://785days.tumblr.com
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Placement Ceremony video
This is the video of our placement ceremony on the 27th of July where we found out which region of Swaziland we are all going to. I found out I'll be in Lubombo.
785 Days of Africa photo project
Put my photo project on Tumblr! You can watch me there!
http://785days.tumblr.com/
http://785days.tumblr.com/
Monday, July 16, 2012
Pap is Pap
It's always comforting when your current surroundings remind you of something pleasant and/or familiar from the past. Take for example pap. In the Kingdom of Swaziland, it is the staple of their meals. What they call "pap" here is maize, that is prepared in various ways. It can be made into a sour porridge called ingcwangcwa, a soft porridge that just tastes like gruel, or a hard porridge which tastes like a corn dough. Pap (밥) is also the staple of meals in Korean society. What they call "pap" there is rice, and it is eaten at all 3 meals.
Just little familiarities like that make me smile. There aren't many other similarities in the way of life between here and other places I've lived.
Not having running water is a big one. I'm slowly adjusting to bucket baths, but am still considering chopping my hair off so I wouldn't have to deal with so much of it. Having to boil and filter any water I come into contact with before drinking it has also taken some getting used to, but not as bad as I imagined at first. Red dust is all over the place, and I scrub my feet every night, leaving the water red after. Surprisingly, I've gotten used to it all quite quickly.
Having to wear a skirt every day is also something I've never been forced to do before. It also is another thing that bothers me a lot less than i thought it would. Ive never worn skirts much in the past, but I'm usually ok with it. I thought we'd all look like a gypsy caravan in our thrown together getups, but some girls make it look so cute in the "Swazi female volunteer style". Cute enough to make me want to start a volunteer fashion blog to keep track of all the nice outfits.
My sleep cycle is way off, too. Asleep usually by 8pm, up my 4:30am.
Despite all that, I'm definitely getting into the groove of life here. Tons of cute kids around my homestead to play with, geckos crawling around my walls (self sufficient pets, I say), learning siSwati, a beautiful vista to take in, and 40 awesome people to take it in with. I've been told by the previous groups that it's a miracle none of us have dropped out yet at 17 days. In previous years, at least one person has ET'd (early termination) by this point. I think that's awesome, and I hope w e all make it through training (the first 9 weeks) and integration (the following 3 months). Some days I feel like Maria singing "the hills are alive with the sound of music".
Lastly, a few extra details on my homestead. I live in a very large family right beside a river. There are great grandparents to great grand kids. 2 of the first generation Gama, 1 of their 5 kids lives there, 10ish of their grand kids, and 2 great grand kids. I've so far identified 3 other homesteads that have Gamas living in them around us.
I have my own little two-room on the homestead. The house is a spare house for old furniture they don't use anymore, so it's pretty full. I have a living room and bedroom. There's electricity but no running water.
Taylor is my closet neighbor, and when I'm not chilling with my family, I'm hanging out with her's.
Just little familiarities like that make me smile. There aren't many other similarities in the way of life between here and other places I've lived.
Not having running water is a big one. I'm slowly adjusting to bucket baths, but am still considering chopping my hair off so I wouldn't have to deal with so much of it. Having to boil and filter any water I come into contact with before drinking it has also taken some getting used to, but not as bad as I imagined at first. Red dust is all over the place, and I scrub my feet every night, leaving the water red after. Surprisingly, I've gotten used to it all quite quickly.
Having to wear a skirt every day is also something I've never been forced to do before. It also is another thing that bothers me a lot less than i thought it would. Ive never worn skirts much in the past, but I'm usually ok with it. I thought we'd all look like a gypsy caravan in our thrown together getups, but some girls make it look so cute in the "Swazi female volunteer style". Cute enough to make me want to start a volunteer fashion blog to keep track of all the nice outfits.
My sleep cycle is way off, too. Asleep usually by 8pm, up my 4:30am.
Despite all that, I'm definitely getting into the groove of life here. Tons of cute kids around my homestead to play with, geckos crawling around my walls (self sufficient pets, I say), learning siSwati, a beautiful vista to take in, and 40 awesome people to take it in with. I've been told by the previous groups that it's a miracle none of us have dropped out yet at 17 days. In previous years, at least one person has ET'd (early termination) by this point. I think that's awesome, and I hope w e all make it through training (the first 9 weeks) and integration (the following 3 months). Some days I feel like Maria singing "the hills are alive with the sound of music".
Lastly, a few extra details on my homestead. I live in a very large family right beside a river. There are great grandparents to great grand kids. 2 of the first generation Gama, 1 of their 5 kids lives there, 10ish of their grand kids, and 2 great grand kids. I've so far identified 3 other homesteads that have Gamas living in them around us.
I have my own little two-room on the homestead. The house is a spare house for old furniture they don't use anymore, so it's pretty full. I have a living room and bedroom. There's electricity but no running water.
Taylor is my closet neighbor, and when I'm not chilling with my family, I'm hanging out with her's.
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Welcome to Swaziland
Just checking in so that everyone knows I arrived safely. Loving Swaziland so far. The country is beautiful. Nights are hoodie weather and days are tshirt weather (it's winter here). The people (volunteers, staff, and Swazi people) have all been great so far.
The training center is definitely luxurious by Swazi standards. Lauren and I are sharing a room. There's nice, soft beds. We have hot showers AND heating for nights. We move into villages on Monday, but I'm looking forward to the transition.
Here's a short rundown of how we got here:
Tuesday (June 26) began with mom giving me a ride to Center City (Philadelphia) at 9am. I spent the morning chilling with volunteers and meeting people as they've arrived from the airport. At 2pm, we started staging, and went straight to 7pm. There was a lot of info, and a lot of get-to-know-you stuff for the volunteers. At 7:30, they assigned 6 group leaders and I was one of them.
I went with a few others down to South Street for my last pizza fries at Steaks On South. The others got cheese steak. I was in bed at 10:30pm and back outta bed at 2am. By two, we had to be packed and ready to go. 2:30am, we were on the bus, and off to JFK airport and arrived around 4:30am. All along the way, us group leaders were counting the others to make sure everyone was there because no staff took the flight with us. Check-in didn't start until 7am, so we were just chatting, playing games, and sleeping in front of the South African Airlines check-in counter.
The flight was at 11:15am and took 15 1/2 hours. We arrived Thursday (June 28) morning and were met by local staff and a couple current volunteers. The only stops on the bus ride were lunch at Steers (the South African McDonalds) and the South African-Swazi border. We arrived at 6pm with enough time to check-in, eat dinner, and pass out.
The past two days have just been non-stop health info, country info, and language instruction. We're all exhausted, but enthusiastic! More to come later.
The training center is definitely luxurious by Swazi standards. Lauren and I are sharing a room. There's nice, soft beds. We have hot showers AND heating for nights. We move into villages on Monday, but I'm looking forward to the transition.
Here's a short rundown of how we got here:
Tuesday (June 26) began with mom giving me a ride to Center City (Philadelphia) at 9am. I spent the morning chilling with volunteers and meeting people as they've arrived from the airport. At 2pm, we started staging, and went straight to 7pm. There was a lot of info, and a lot of get-to-know-you stuff for the volunteers. At 7:30, they assigned 6 group leaders and I was one of them.
I went with a few others down to South Street for my last pizza fries at Steaks On South. The others got cheese steak. I was in bed at 10:30pm and back outta bed at 2am. By two, we had to be packed and ready to go. 2:30am, we were on the bus, and off to JFK airport and arrived around 4:30am. All along the way, us group leaders were counting the others to make sure everyone was there because no staff took the flight with us. Check-in didn't start until 7am, so we were just chatting, playing games, and sleeping in front of the South African Airlines check-in counter.
The flight was at 11:15am and took 15 1/2 hours. We arrived Thursday (June 28) morning and were met by local staff and a couple current volunteers. The only stops on the bus ride were lunch at Steers (the South African McDonalds) and the South African-Swazi border. We arrived at 6pm with enough time to check-in, eat dinner, and pass out.
The past two days have just been non-stop health info, country info, and language instruction. We're all exhausted, but enthusiastic! More to come later.
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Current feelings =)
"My boss fired me today. But it's okay, he's an alpha-gazelle, and I'm a lion. He just couldn't handle me." - quote from random guy at a house party in Seattle.This quote is totally how I feel right now. A lioness about to embark on the adventure of a lifetime. All the alpha-gazelles around me lately who've been asking me if I'm scared about Africa (um... why would I move there if I was scared?) or the ones who've been making rude comments........ step out of my way, please. I'm coming through.
P.S. Check out my tumblr (http://zaichiki.tumblr.com) for some photo updates!
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
One week left!
I can't believe that a week from right now, I'll be sitting at JFK airport, waiting to depart to Johannesburg airport. That is the first stop in our journey.
So a little update... here's what's going down next week. Next Tuesday morning (the 26th), mom's driving me down to Center City, because staging is in PHILLY! A day of orienting, vaccinations, etc. Then prolly followed by a night of stuffing our faces full of American food (I got S.O.S's pizza fries on the brain) and some sight seeing maybe.
At 2:30am Wednesday (27th), we're off for JFK airport. We'll arrive at JFK around 4:30am. The plane is at 11:15am. We arrive the morning of the 28th in Johannesburg. They'll give us a chance to change into something a little nicer from plane clothes. Then a 4-5 hour bus ride to Mbabane, the capital of Swaziland. So yeah.... about 2 days in transit for that.
At this point, I'm pretty much all packed except for some stuff I'm waiting on from Amazon. I made the stupid mistake of sending it to Normal instead of Philly, so now I had to rebuy everything. They said the easiest thing to do would be to rebuy it, and have the roomies reject the packages in Normal. When Amazon gets those back from there, they would refund me. Also, I'm going to pick up some prescriptions sunglasses today I ordered cause I decided not to wear contacts in Swaziland.
I made some new business cards made up for myself for networking.
Box 2797
Mbabane H100
Swaziland
AFRICA
So a little update... here's what's going down next week. Next Tuesday morning (the 26th), mom's driving me down to Center City, because staging is in PHILLY! A day of orienting, vaccinations, etc. Then prolly followed by a night of stuffing our faces full of American food (I got S.O.S's pizza fries on the brain) and some sight seeing maybe.
At 2:30am Wednesday (27th), we're off for JFK airport. We'll arrive at JFK around 4:30am. The plane is at 11:15am. We arrive the morning of the 28th in Johannesburg. They'll give us a chance to change into something a little nicer from plane clothes. Then a 4-5 hour bus ride to Mbabane, the capital of Swaziland. So yeah.... about 2 days in transit for that.
At this point, I'm pretty much all packed except for some stuff I'm waiting on from Amazon. I made the stupid mistake of sending it to Normal instead of Philly, so now I had to rebuy everything. They said the easiest thing to do would be to rebuy it, and have the roomies reject the packages in Normal. When Amazon gets those back from there, they would refund me. Also, I'm going to pick up some prescriptions sunglasses today I ordered cause I decided not to wear contacts in Swaziland.
I made some new business cards made up for myself for networking.
And lastly, here's my temporary address for the first 9 weeks while we're in training. Send me stuff!!!!
Danni Shtraus
Peace Corps SwazilandBox 2797
Mbabane H100
Swaziland
AFRICA
Saturday, March 31, 2012
Things standing in the way of me and SWAZILAND
Here is a list I compiled on Wednesday of things I need to take care of before JUNE 26, 2012!! If it's been x-ed out, it means I've done it already. Alas, the list is still long.
(updated 5.26.12)
X passport photos
X Send passport app
X yellow fever vaccine
X figure out readings course
X Mideast research proposal due
X Econ Decentralization presentation (4.10)
X Food Justice conference observation paper (4.10)
X Mideast class presentation on Syria (4.11)
X Stats asn 3 (4.12)
X Final report on Poli Sci 2012 assessments
X Food Justice exit paper (4.17)
X Mideast reflection 2 (4.25)
X Food Justice final paper (4.29)
X Stats asn 4 (5.7)
X Mideast final paper (5.9)
X Econ final
X grade papers for Modern Political Theory (5.10)
X capstone topics
X find capstone adviser
• Final grant (5.29)
• Summer Econ final (5.31)
• business cards
• prescription sunglasses
• USP reunion
P.S. Today was a beautiful day! Took these on the quad at ISU.
X passport photos
X Send passport app
X yellow fever vaccine
X figure out readings course
X Mideast research proposal due
X Econ Decentralization presentation (4.10)
X Food Justice conference observation paper (4.10)
X Mideast class presentation on Syria (4.11)
X Stats asn 3 (4.12)
X Final report on Poli Sci 2012 assessments
X Food Justice exit paper (4.17)
X Mideast reflection 2 (4.25)
X Food Justice final paper (4.29)
X Stats asn 4 (5.7)
X Mideast final paper (5.9)
X Econ final
X grade papers for Modern Political Theory (5.10)
X capstone topics
X find capstone adviser
• Final grant (5.29)
• Summer Econ final (5.31)
• business cards
• prescription sunglasses
• USP reunion
P.S. Today was a beautiful day! Took these on the quad at ISU.
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Bumps in the road: vaccines and capstone options
So I decided to be proactive (haven't sent off my Peace Corps passport details yet, oops!), and figure out where I can get my yellow fever vaccine for around the price Peace Corps will cover for it. Peace Corps covers up to $150, but the local Travel Clinic will cost around $300-350. So it seems like I may have to head out to Peoria for the vaccine. Only problems there is a.) I have to find a way to Peoria which is an hour away when I don't have a car, and b.) they don't want to do the vaccine because their documents say Swaziland is not at risk of yellow fever. So tomorrow I'll be faxing them the Peace Corps documents to them in hopes that they would change their mind and do the shot for me. *breath*
The other issue is my capstone. It's turning into very much the chicken and egg process.
1.) It's hard to pick a capstone topic before I find out what I'm doing in the Peace Corps if I'm meant to relate the topic to my assignment. It's hard to find out my assignment before I go through Peace Corps training. It's hard to do preliminary research on my topic while in the Peace Corps.
2.) I'm encouraged to pick a faculty who I feel will fit my capstone topic to be my advisor. Refer to (problem 1).
3.) Doing youth development, I will most likely need to do an IRB review for my capstone project. It will be hard to do this in the Peace Corps. If I had a professor to be my advisor, they would be able to help me through the IRB process. Refer to (problem 2).
*sigh*
The other issue is my capstone. It's turning into very much the chicken and egg process.
1.) It's hard to pick a capstone topic before I find out what I'm doing in the Peace Corps if I'm meant to relate the topic to my assignment. It's hard to find out my assignment before I go through Peace Corps training. It's hard to do preliminary research on my topic while in the Peace Corps.
2.) I'm encouraged to pick a faculty who I feel will fit my capstone topic to be my advisor. Refer to (problem 1).
3.) Doing youth development, I will most likely need to do an IRB review for my capstone project. It will be hard to do this in the Peace Corps. If I had a professor to be my advisor, they would be able to help me through the IRB process. Refer to (problem 2).
*sigh*
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
"Go slow! You're not in New York, anymore!"
"Go slow." Something that was called to me often during my week long stay on the beach paradise in Caye Caulker, Belize. It was the perfect beginning to my winter break Central America trip, because I'm not the kind of person who's good at going slow. I like walking fast, and I'm always in a hurry to get somewhere, never really taking in my surroundings and enjoying the moment. Learning to go allowed me to stay a few extra days in a town I liked.
And then I came back from winter break this semester, and back into the thick of things. Everything moves so fast. It feels like time has absolutely FLOWN since August when I first became a grad student, and am now just waiting to finish up classes and start my Peace Corps in just three months!It's funny that here in Normal everyone else moves so fast that my friends here think I actually walk pretty slow, talk pretty slow, move pretty slow. But I've been taking it all the wrong way. As if these qualities I've been striving for the past couple years I've now become embarrassed of. While I used to practice talking slower and clearer, and moving slower and more calm, these are things I've once again come to take for granted in the United States.
Well it's not the way for me. In Swaziland, I'm sure things will be a lot slower, and so I wanna start here and now. Focus on stressing less about school, which after the exam this morning, and paper I've turned in this afternoon, I've officially hit the halfway mark. Just a little bit left to go, and it's really not that important in the scope of what's ahead. The next exciting chapter in my life, a new continent to conquer. I just need to concentrate and get it out of the way, and then back to "going slow" for me. =)Friday, March 16, 2012
Sawubona! (hello)
It's official! I got SWAZILAND!!! Now... time to work on my siSwati. =D
The invitation arrived on Thursday when I was in Chicago, and Greg texted me to tell me it arrived at the house. I told him not to open it, but then Buj went to look at it and said that you can see the invitation without even opening it, and it said Swaziland... So yeah, no surprise for me....
The roommate wall of Peace Corps invitation packaging for Buj, Greg, and me.
The invitation arrived on Thursday when I was in Chicago, and Greg texted me to tell me it arrived at the house. I told him not to open it, but then Buj went to look at it and said that you can see the invitation without even opening it, and it said Swaziland... So yeah, no surprise for me....
The roommate wall of Peace Corps invitation packaging for Buj, Greg, and me.Saturday, March 10, 2012
Invite......? Am I DREAMING?
So my placement officer said this'd be in the mail mid to late April, but....
SQUEEEEEE!!!!!!!! REALLY??? OMG, I CAN'T WAIT! I won't be back til Friday night.
In other news, I'm in Seattle right now visiting Jamie, a neighbor from Korea.
SQUEEEEEE!!!!!!!! REALLY??? OMG, I CAN'T WAIT! I won't be back til Friday night.
In other news, I'm in Seattle right now visiting Jamie, a neighbor from Korea.
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Finally!!!?
Katie, Kate, and I were sitting in the beautiful library 4th floor nook (they have a nice comfy nook with big windows on the four corners of 4th floor) when my phone suddenly rang. I picked it up to see who the 202 number was, and ran to the fire escape as if the place had been set ablaze. It was my placement officer, calling to give me my final interview and see where I'd be going to in the Peace Corps. Originally, he said I'd be good for Southeast Asia or Eastern Europe, but I was secretly hoping neither of those. He was pretty lenient and said he'd let me choose from my options, and unless he called me back chances were that I'd be going to the region I chose. I told him I'd been hoping for something south of the equator, and would take anything there.
"Well, you said you'd be willing to leave after June 30. Are you willing to bump it up 5 days?"
"It depends..........."
"Well I have one in Sub-Saharan Africa that leaves 5 days before."
"/calm/ Really? /calm/"
"Yes."
"Sure!"
So.... here things are. I had no idea where I'd be going only that I knew it'd be Sub-Saharan Africa at the end of June. Oh, and he told me I should receive my invitation either the second or third week of April. Right after we got off the phone, Katie and Kate received the same call. I was so excited for the both of them! Katie is either looking at Eastern Europe or the Carribean. Kate is looking at Sub-Saharan Africa as well (excited!!) but not leaving til September, so not the same place.
After I got out of the class I TA for, I got a call from Lauren saying that she was told her and I are going to the same country! She got some extra details such as it's an Anglophone country, and I'd be doing Youth Development while she's doing Health. YAY! Lauren and I are together!
So I looked online at the Peace Corps Wiki (the Peace Corps equivalent of Wikipedia) to look at their timeline, and the 3 countries around that date are Benin, The Gambia, and Swaziland. Now I'm really hoping it's not the first two, because I don't want to go to West Africa. But I'm SUPER excited about Swaziland, AND it's the only country that has both programs we've been assigned for.
Now... Lauren and I have pretty much accepted that we are going there, googling everything in the world about it and prepping ourselves to learn siSwati. We've also been reading a chunk of Peace Corps blogs about Swaziland. I promised I wouldn't get too excited til I got my invitation in April, but it's hard not to get excited. Both of my roommates (Greg and Ambuj) have now received theirs. They're both doing economic development in the Dominican Republic!! It's awesome that they'll be together like Lauren and me.
Here's what I know so far about Swaziland:
Capital: Lobamba (royal and legislative) and Mbabane (administrative and largest city). The international airport is in Manzini, always important information.
Area of the country: 6,704 sq mi
Population: 1,185,000. Roughly half of whom are married to or sired from the king....... JOKES!! (or is it?)
Official languages: English and siSwati
King with absolute power: King Mswati III (with 14 wives and 26 kids)
It used to be a British colony until 1968 when it gained independence.
Disclaimer: Nothing is set in stone until I get my invitation hopefully by the 3rd week of April. *fingers crossed*
"Well, you said you'd be willing to leave after June 30. Are you willing to bump it up 5 days?"
"It depends..........."
"Well I have one in Sub-Saharan Africa that leaves 5 days before."
"/calm/ Really? /calm/"
"Yes."
"Sure!"
So.... here things are. I had no idea where I'd be going only that I knew it'd be Sub-Saharan Africa at the end of June. Oh, and he told me I should receive my invitation either the second or third week of April. Right after we got off the phone, Katie and Kate received the same call. I was so excited for the both of them! Katie is either looking at Eastern Europe or the Carribean. Kate is looking at Sub-Saharan Africa as well (excited!!) but not leaving til September, so not the same place.
After I got out of the class I TA for, I got a call from Lauren saying that she was told her and I are going to the same country! She got some extra details such as it's an Anglophone country, and I'd be doing Youth Development while she's doing Health. YAY! Lauren and I are together!
So I looked online at the Peace Corps Wiki (the Peace Corps equivalent of Wikipedia) to look at their timeline, and the 3 countries around that date are Benin, The Gambia, and Swaziland. Now I'm really hoping it's not the first two, because I don't want to go to West Africa. But I'm SUPER excited about Swaziland, AND it's the only country that has both programs we've been assigned for.
Now... Lauren and I have pretty much accepted that we are going there, googling everything in the world about it and prepping ourselves to learn siSwati. We've also been reading a chunk of Peace Corps blogs about Swaziland. I promised I wouldn't get too excited til I got my invitation in April, but it's hard not to get excited. Both of my roommates (Greg and Ambuj) have now received theirs. They're both doing economic development in the Dominican Republic!! It's awesome that they'll be together like Lauren and me.
Here's what I know so far about Swaziland:
Capital: Lobamba (royal and legislative) and Mbabane (administrative and largest city). The international airport is in Manzini, always important information.
Area of the country: 6,704 sq mi
Population: 1,185,000. Roughly half of whom are married to or sired from the king....... JOKES!! (or is it?)
Official languages: English and siSwati
King with absolute power: King Mswati III (with 14 wives and 26 kids)
It used to be a British colony until 1968 when it gained independence.
Disclaimer: Nothing is set in stone until I get my invitation hopefully by the 3rd week of April. *fingers crossed*
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Since blogging about the Peace Corps seems so popular... (my timeline)
I have decided to start this blog up again to talk about where I am in my own Peace Corps application process...
So here is my Peace Corps timeline. It's been a LONG ride.
October 1, 2010: Received the application packet from Peace Corps.
November 9, 2010: Peace Corps received my application packet.
November 15, 2010: First interview with regional Peace Corps coordinator.
November 30, 2010: Application withdrawn pending acceptance to a Masters International program since I do not intend to go to Peace Corps until I do the MI.
April 5, 2011: Wait-listed for the Illinois State University's Masters International program.
April 25, 2011: Accepted to Illinois State University's Masters International program.
April 26, 2011: Nominated for Peace Corps.
May 5, 2011: Date my medical kit was mailed to me.
August 18, 2011: Started Masters International graduate program at Illinois State University.
October 25, 2011: Peace Corps received my medical and dental.
November 18, 2011: Rejected from the Peace Corps on the basis of my supposed lack of health.
November 28, 2011: Put together an appeal for my medical.
December 7, 2011: Peace Corps ACCEPTED my appeal for my medical status. =D
December 28, 2011: Peace Corps sent me another email asking me to send more transcripts and details.
January 19, 2012: Was informed by the Peace Corps that my application is in final review now.
February 2, 2012: Contacted by my placement officer with a questionnaire of the kinds of conditions I can handle in the Peace Corps. Submitted answers same day.
That's where I'm at right now... I put June 30 as my soonest available leaving date, but would definitely be willing to leave early if it meant I could go to Tanzania on the June 11 departure. That would be a dream come true.
So here is my Peace Corps timeline. It's been a LONG ride.
October 1, 2010: Received the application packet from Peace Corps.
November 9, 2010: Peace Corps received my application packet.
November 15, 2010: First interview with regional Peace Corps coordinator.
November 30, 2010: Application withdrawn pending acceptance to a Masters International program since I do not intend to go to Peace Corps until I do the MI.
April 5, 2011: Wait-listed for the Illinois State University's Masters International program.
April 25, 2011: Accepted to Illinois State University's Masters International program.
April 26, 2011: Nominated for Peace Corps.
May 5, 2011: Date my medical kit was mailed to me.
August 18, 2011: Started Masters International graduate program at Illinois State University.
October 25, 2011: Peace Corps received my medical and dental.
November 18, 2011: Rejected from the Peace Corps on the basis of my supposed lack of health.
November 28, 2011: Put together an appeal for my medical.
December 7, 2011: Peace Corps ACCEPTED my appeal for my medical status. =D
December 28, 2011: Peace Corps sent me another email asking me to send more transcripts and details.
January 19, 2012: Was informed by the Peace Corps that my application is in final review now.
February 2, 2012: Contacted by my placement officer with a questionnaire of the kinds of conditions I can handle in the Peace Corps. Submitted answers same day.
That's where I'm at right now... I put June 30 as my soonest available leaving date, but would definitely be willing to leave early if it meant I could go to Tanzania on the June 11 departure. That would be a dream come true.
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
First day of school!
Yesterday (Tuesday) was a really good day. It was the first official day of school in South Korea, and I didn't have any classes, but my Mentor Teacher, Jenny, asked me to come in anyways. I came for a meet and greet with the other teachers and various assistants I hadn't met yet. So after that I hung around on the internet at in the teacher's lounge until lunch time, and then had my first staff lunch.
Food was delicious, then left school to go to my local library. I spent a few hours there watching Black (a Hindi film that I would recommend to ANYONE!) and then a BBC version of Persuasion, the only Jane Austen story I don't know anything about, which also was quite good. Two minutes after I got home, I got a call from Jenny saying she was downstairs waiting for me because the staff was going to have their first hwi-shik, which is an obligatory staff dinner type thing. It's a good thing I hadn't started dinner yet, because I was planning to eat cereal for every meal the next few meals because my milk expires in 2 days.
Hwi-shik was everything I'd ever hoped it would be and more. Lots of delicious food, good conversation getting to know more of my school staff members. The only thing I probably should have participated in that I didn't is everybody going around the table pouring soju for each other. Just worrying about how I should pour for each person, in which order should I approach people to pour for them... I just kinda zoned the whole practice out even though I saw it going on all around me. I guess I'll have to do it eventually.
Afterwards, we went to Karaoke with the whole group, about 16 of us. We were told at orientation that our principal will most likely be a very serious person, and the vice principal will usually be more of a party animal and outgoing person especially at hwi-shiks. At our school it seems to be the other way around. From the first day, Jenny told me that they call our principal Gandhi because he's a very kind and loving person. He even looks a bit like him. He's always been really friendly to me, talking to me in Korean all the time, asking me about myself. The vice principal has been mostly quiet and shy around me. The principal loves Celine Dion, and requested that I sing his favorite song, Believe, at Karaoke so I had to oblige.
When we left, I took a taxi back to my area with two people who live nearby, both of which are the closest to me in age. I realized that the one girl, Hana actually lives in Clasium with me! That's means now I have someone from my school that I can talk to and spend time with. She has a cute little puppy, and she brought him over last night after we got home, and we just chatted and looked at pics. She's the archery coach at my school, and I heard from some other teachers that we have the top archery team in the area. Maybe she can teach me some time!
Anyways... A great day =D
Food was delicious, then left school to go to my local library. I spent a few hours there watching Black (a Hindi film that I would recommend to ANYONE!) and then a BBC version of Persuasion, the only Jane Austen story I don't know anything about, which also was quite good. Two minutes after I got home, I got a call from Jenny saying she was downstairs waiting for me because the staff was going to have their first hwi-shik, which is an obligatory staff dinner type thing. It's a good thing I hadn't started dinner yet, because I was planning to eat cereal for every meal the next few meals because my milk expires in 2 days.
Hwi-shik was everything I'd ever hoped it would be and more. Lots of delicious food, good conversation getting to know more of my school staff members. The only thing I probably should have participated in that I didn't is everybody going around the table pouring soju for each other. Just worrying about how I should pour for each person, in which order should I approach people to pour for them... I just kinda zoned the whole practice out even though I saw it going on all around me. I guess I'll have to do it eventually.
Afterwards, we went to Karaoke with the whole group, about 16 of us. We were told at orientation that our principal will most likely be a very serious person, and the vice principal will usually be more of a party animal and outgoing person especially at hwi-shiks. At our school it seems to be the other way around. From the first day, Jenny told me that they call our principal Gandhi because he's a very kind and loving person. He even looks a bit like him. He's always been really friendly to me, talking to me in Korean all the time, asking me about myself. The vice principal has been mostly quiet and shy around me. The principal loves Celine Dion, and requested that I sing his favorite song, Believe, at Karaoke so I had to oblige.
When we left, I took a taxi back to my area with two people who live nearby, both of which are the closest to me in age. I realized that the one girl, Hana actually lives in Clasium with me! That's means now I have someone from my school that I can talk to and spend time with. She has a cute little puppy, and she brought him over last night after we got home, and we just chatted and looked at pics. She's the archery coach at my school, and I heard from some other teachers that we have the top archery team in the area. Maybe she can teach me some time!
Anyways... A great day =D
Monday, March 1, 2010
Weekend
I've been finding ways to survive without internet in my apartment. Mostly, I've been going to school or to my local library which is really close by. Other times I am stuck watching whatever's on tv... Luckily there's usually some American tv show or movie on to pass some time.
Sunday was much better. I took the bus down to Gangneung, and met up with EunYoung, a girl who was my temporary Korean co-teacher because mine had not shown up (later I found out I don't even have one ><). She's really an amazing girl, so nice, so eager to help out, and speaks good English too. So we walked around downtown for a bit, then met up with my other friend Young who's a TaLK scholar in Pyeongchang, much more rural than me. We went to the Full Moon Festival, which is special in Korea because the first full moon after the Lunar New Year is quite important. We did all the stuff the festival had to offer, then moved on to Jjimjilbang (sauna).
We stayed there overnight, then came back to EunYoung's in the morning for breakfast. We finally got to meet her two shy little sisters, aged 11 and 13. They were absolutely adorable. I started talking to the younger one, and she's sooo smart. She didn't use much English but she could understand quite a bit. She also showed me her English homework. If I get a 5th grader who knows half as much as her, I'd be so happy. At one point, EunYoung asked her if she knew anything about Judaism saying that I was a Jew. She said right away she feels sorry for them. I was in shock when she said that because EunYoung barely knew anything. Her little sister went on to list off books and movies about WWII and the Holocaust that she read such as Anne Frank's Diary and The Pianist, and EunYoung said she knew all them but didn't know they were about Jewish people. I was so impressed, I wanted to take her back to Sokcho with me.
On the bus back to Sokcho, I met another English teacher, an Australian guy who'd been teaching here for 8 years now. He lives about 20km north of me. He gave me his card, and said to contact him if I need it. He also gave me some useful tips on getting some stuff I need, and offered some other possible contacts. Said that there are English teachers swarming all over the place here.
Sunday was much better. I took the bus down to Gangneung, and met up with EunYoung, a girl who was my temporary Korean co-teacher because mine had not shown up (later I found out I don't even have one ><). She's really an amazing girl, so nice, so eager to help out, and speaks good English too. So we walked around downtown for a bit, then met up with my other friend Young who's a TaLK scholar in Pyeongchang, much more rural than me. We went to the Full Moon Festival, which is special in Korea because the first full moon after the Lunar New Year is quite important. We did all the stuff the festival had to offer, then moved on to Jjimjilbang (sauna).
We stayed there overnight, then came back to EunYoung's in the morning for breakfast. We finally got to meet her two shy little sisters, aged 11 and 13. They were absolutely adorable. I started talking to the younger one, and she's sooo smart. She didn't use much English but she could understand quite a bit. She also showed me her English homework. If I get a 5th grader who knows half as much as her, I'd be so happy. At one point, EunYoung asked her if she knew anything about Judaism saying that I was a Jew. She said right away she feels sorry for them. I was in shock when she said that because EunYoung barely knew anything. Her little sister went on to list off books and movies about WWII and the Holocaust that she read such as Anne Frank's Diary and The Pianist, and EunYoung said she knew all them but didn't know they were about Jewish people. I was so impressed, I wanted to take her back to Sokcho with me.
On the bus back to Sokcho, I met another English teacher, an Australian guy who'd been teaching here for 8 years now. He lives about 20km north of me. He gave me his card, and said to contact him if I need it. He also gave me some useful tips on getting some stuff I need, and offered some other possible contacts. Said that there are English teachers swarming all over the place here.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Ma new place!!
"You take the things you like, and try to love the things you took." - Regina Spektor 'On the Radio'
I've listened to that song a million times already, but it's the first time I've ever picked up that particular lyric. I quite like it.
After a crazy month of orientation and trips, yesterday was finally the last day of our province orientation. So much for February being a welcome change from the whirlwind of January travels. We had two orientations, one for all 300 of us, and the second just within our province. Ours has 24 making it an enormous province with such a small group. The province below us is half our size but has three or four times as much people. I quite like it this way though.
Two days ago, we finally got the names of our mentor teachers and the logistics of our school. Mine is quite small with only 65 students from grades K-6. I was quite excited because this is the day we would meet our Korean co-teachers who would teach side by side with us in each class, and are often college students from nearby universities. I waited... waited... waited... and no one showed up for me. I went up to the Gangwon education supervisor, and it seems they could not get in contact with my co-teacher and I may not even have one.
I got in contact with my mentor teacher (who is usually the Korean English teacher at whatever school you are going to), and she confirmed that they have not been able to find one for me. Apparently we live in such a rural area that they have not been able to procure someone who speaks enough English to function teaching in the classroom with me. She also told me that they have not been able to find me an apartment yet, and when she picked me up the next day we would go around searching for one. On top of that, she didn't know when my settlement fee (that everyone is supposed to get when they 'settle' would come in). So in essence, I was FREAKING OUT!!
Yesterday came and I was still worrying about it. When I met my co-teacher finally, I saw that she is the nicest person EVER! She's so sweet. Our meeting right away went off on the right foot. I really hope that I didn't cause her much stress because we did a lot of driving around Gosung and Sokcho, first my school (so cute, I LOVE IT!), then E-mart, then the bank because my pin number somehow didn't work, then my apartment, then back to E-mart to buy everything I need, then dinner, then my apartment again.
Ok, this is something I'll forever be in debt to my mentor teacher for. She managed to get me an apartment where another TaLK scholar is living, where I was hoping to live. I have TWO bedrooms, a spaceous living room, big kitchen/dining room, and a balcony looking out onto the East Asia Sea (or Sea of Japan, depending on your politics). I absolutely LOVE IT HERE!!! Today they will have a bit of a meet and greet opening ceremony for me at 3:30pm. I start teaching next Tuesday. Now to get started on lesson plans.........
I've listened to that song a million times already, but it's the first time I've ever picked up that particular lyric. I quite like it.
After a crazy month of orientation and trips, yesterday was finally the last day of our province orientation. So much for February being a welcome change from the whirlwind of January travels. We had two orientations, one for all 300 of us, and the second just within our province. Ours has 24 making it an enormous province with such a small group. The province below us is half our size but has three or four times as much people. I quite like it this way though.
Two days ago, we finally got the names of our mentor teachers and the logistics of our school. Mine is quite small with only 65 students from grades K-6. I was quite excited because this is the day we would meet our Korean co-teachers who would teach side by side with us in each class, and are often college students from nearby universities. I waited... waited... waited... and no one showed up for me. I went up to the Gangwon education supervisor, and it seems they could not get in contact with my co-teacher and I may not even have one.
I got in contact with my mentor teacher (who is usually the Korean English teacher at whatever school you are going to), and she confirmed that they have not been able to find one for me. Apparently we live in such a rural area that they have not been able to procure someone who speaks enough English to function teaching in the classroom with me. She also told me that they have not been able to find me an apartment yet, and when she picked me up the next day we would go around searching for one. On top of that, she didn't know when my settlement fee (that everyone is supposed to get when they 'settle' would come in). So in essence, I was FREAKING OUT!!
Yesterday came and I was still worrying about it. When I met my co-teacher finally, I saw that she is the nicest person EVER! She's so sweet. Our meeting right away went off on the right foot. I really hope that I didn't cause her much stress because we did a lot of driving around Gosung and Sokcho, first my school (so cute, I LOVE IT!), then E-mart, then the bank because my pin number somehow didn't work, then my apartment, then back to E-mart to buy everything I need, then dinner, then my apartment again.
Ok, this is something I'll forever be in debt to my mentor teacher for. She managed to get me an apartment where another TaLK scholar is living, where I was hoping to live. I have TWO bedrooms, a spaceous living room, big kitchen/dining room, and a balcony looking out onto the East Asia Sea (or Sea of Japan, depending on your politics). I absolutely LOVE IT HERE!!! Today they will have a bit of a meet and greet opening ceremony for me at 3:30pm. I start teaching next Tuesday. Now to get started on lesson plans.........
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Back in Korea
After a month of travels around the US (10 different states in January!!), a nasty stomach virus, and my COLLEGE GRADUATION, I'm back in Korea now.
I arrived late, but was thrust right into things without any word of what I've missed or what I need to catch up on. Four of us arrived around the same time on Saturday the 6th, and TaLK just tossed us into the wild. After a tour of Daejeon, and a morning of instructions on how to run an English Camp, we were shipped off to Cheonan (천안) to do a camp.
Each of us were assigned a kid, and mine was really shy. She didn't want to speak English at all, and didn't really want to. Even though I tried to encourage here to speak English all the time, we spoke mostly in Korean so that she could understand me, but I would then translate to English and make her repeat after me.
We've played lots of games, and we've been running all over the place. I have bruises all over my knees. I'm tired as all hell. But at the same time, I had so much fun. Everyone had to prepare a dance, and we all presented them tonight. I wish I could adopt my kid. She's a sweetheart even though she's stubborn, and I'm sure I could help her and she could help me with Korean too.
Tomorrow back to Jochiwon where our orientation is, then Busan for the Chinese Lunar New Year for the weekend.
I arrived late, but was thrust right into things without any word of what I've missed or what I need to catch up on. Four of us arrived around the same time on Saturday the 6th, and TaLK just tossed us into the wild. After a tour of Daejeon, and a morning of instructions on how to run an English Camp, we were shipped off to Cheonan (천안) to do a camp.
Each of us were assigned a kid, and mine was really shy. She didn't want to speak English at all, and didn't really want to. Even though I tried to encourage here to speak English all the time, we spoke mostly in Korean so that she could understand me, but I would then translate to English and make her repeat after me.
We've played lots of games, and we've been running all over the place. I have bruises all over my knees. I'm tired as all hell. But at the same time, I had so much fun. Everyone had to prepare a dance, and we all presented them tonight. I wish I could adopt my kid. She's a sweetheart even though she's stubborn, and I'm sure I could help her and she could help me with Korean too.
Tomorrow back to Jochiwon where our orientation is, then Busan for the Chinese Lunar New Year for the weekend.
Monday, January 18, 2010
Kansas City
Day 28 (Jan 16) St. Louis - Kansas City
I got my stuff together by 1pm, and Willy gave me a ride to the train to get back to the main station. The bus ride to Kansas City lasted 5 hours, and I was completely dead by then. Hailey picked me up from the bus station, and took me back to her place. She goes to University of Missouri Kansas City, and lives by campus. Her place was very cute, and her roommates were really nice.
Day 29 (Jan 17) Kansas City, MO - Kansas City, KS - Kansas City, MO
Hailey was working all day, so she couldn't really hang out. I decided to go to Kansas City, Kansas for a few hours to see what was there. I missed my connecting bus, so I decided to go to walk because I figured it wouldn't be too far. BIG MISTAKE! I completely forgot about the Kansas River, and that I would have to find some way to cross it, meaning I would need to find a bridge that allows pedestrian crossing.
It took a while walking through some dingy warehouse district. Some guys I passed along the way were warning me to be careful that I wasn't in the nicest neighborhood. I wasn't really worried, and nothing happened to me. I got safely to the other side, looked around for a while, then took the bus back to the Missouri side.
Everyone I asked about what there was to see mentioned the National World War I Museum. I knew quite a bit about World War II, but not too much about the first one, so I figured it'd be interesting to go there and learn what I could. The museum was well worth it. There were a lot of great exhibits, videos, and some interactive areas as well. There was a tower to go to the top and get a view of Kansas City, but the elevator was broken, so I never got up there.
When I got back to Hailey's, Quinn came to pick me up from her place. Quinn's a guy I went to school with in Tokyo, and we never hung out too much there, but he was in Geeta's architecture class, so I saw him a lot there when I was in her office working. He took me to Gate's, a pretty famous BBQ place in Kansas City. KC is famous for their BBQ, especially their burnt ends, which I never got a chance to try because the serving size was huge. I just ordered what Quinn did, beef on a bun, which is sliced pieces of beef in BBQ sauce on a bun. It looked kind of like a sloppy joe, and it didn't look that appetizing. After I took my first bite, I totally changed my mind! I now know why KC is famous for this stuff, because a day later I could still taste the BBQ flavor in my mouth. It was absolutely delicious, and I wish there was somewhere else I could try this stuff again because I doubt I'll ever be back to KC.
Day 30 (Jan 18) Kansas City - Philadelphia
Last day of my Midwest adventure… Pretty much running out of money, and tired. I just stayed at Hailey's packing my stuff so that it would look small enough to pass as a carry on, and watching some movies. My flight was at 4:35pm, and I got to Philly at 10pm. If you take into account the time difference, that was only 4 1/2 hours total with flights and layover in Memphis! Not bad at all. Tomorrow is a chill day at home running some errands, then on to New York and Boston on Wednesday!!
Wow, 30 DAYS!! Can't believe it.... Such an adventure.
The overall impression I got about Missouri is that all the people here are super friendly and super helpful. I got warned by quite a few people about being by myself in bad areas, which I had to cross a few times, but I never met anyone along the way that looked like they would harm me. People always smile when you walk past them, unlike Philly where no one ever makes eye contact. I love the accents here for sure. I had a lot of random black guys asking me for my number, and my telling them that I was leaving the state and never coming back didn't seem to deter them. They just shrugged and asked if they could get my number again. I guess that's just a quirk of Missouri. I had some other girls tell me that they've experienced that as well.
I got my flight details for Korea finally! I will arrive on February 6th at 4:50pm at Incheon International Airport. This will be my first time flying Korean Air. I've heard nothing but good things about that airline, their service, and their meals. I can't wait for that. Also, my friend works at the airport for that airline, so I hope he's working the day I get in.
At this point, the plan is to go to Seoul on Saturday, stay at Bina's house, run some errands Sunday, then get to Jochiwon (조치원) on Sunday night where my orientation is. Seoul To Do list: cellphone in Dongdaemun, piercings in Hongdae (maybe), banjo in Nakwon (maybe).
I got my stuff together by 1pm, and Willy gave me a ride to the train to get back to the main station. The bus ride to Kansas City lasted 5 hours, and I was completely dead by then. Hailey picked me up from the bus station, and took me back to her place. She goes to University of Missouri Kansas City, and lives by campus. Her place was very cute, and her roommates were really nice.
Day 29 (Jan 17) Kansas City, MO - Kansas City, KS - Kansas City, MO
Hailey was working all day, so she couldn't really hang out. I decided to go to Kansas City, Kansas for a few hours to see what was there. I missed my connecting bus, so I decided to go to walk because I figured it wouldn't be too far. BIG MISTAKE! I completely forgot about the Kansas River, and that I would have to find some way to cross it, meaning I would need to find a bridge that allows pedestrian crossing.
It took a while walking through some dingy warehouse district. Some guys I passed along the way were warning me to be careful that I wasn't in the nicest neighborhood. I wasn't really worried, and nothing happened to me. I got safely to the other side, looked around for a while, then took the bus back to the Missouri side.
Everyone I asked about what there was to see mentioned the National World War I Museum. I knew quite a bit about World War II, but not too much about the first one, so I figured it'd be interesting to go there and learn what I could. The museum was well worth it. There were a lot of great exhibits, videos, and some interactive areas as well. There was a tower to go to the top and get a view of Kansas City, but the elevator was broken, so I never got up there.
When I got back to Hailey's, Quinn came to pick me up from her place. Quinn's a guy I went to school with in Tokyo, and we never hung out too much there, but he was in Geeta's architecture class, so I saw him a lot there when I was in her office working. He took me to Gate's, a pretty famous BBQ place in Kansas City. KC is famous for their BBQ, especially their burnt ends, which I never got a chance to try because the serving size was huge. I just ordered what Quinn did, beef on a bun, which is sliced pieces of beef in BBQ sauce on a bun. It looked kind of like a sloppy joe, and it didn't look that appetizing. After I took my first bite, I totally changed my mind! I now know why KC is famous for this stuff, because a day later I could still taste the BBQ flavor in my mouth. It was absolutely delicious, and I wish there was somewhere else I could try this stuff again because I doubt I'll ever be back to KC.
Day 30 (Jan 18) Kansas City - Philadelphia
Last day of my Midwest adventure… Pretty much running out of money, and tired. I just stayed at Hailey's packing my stuff so that it would look small enough to pass as a carry on, and watching some movies. My flight was at 4:35pm, and I got to Philly at 10pm. If you take into account the time difference, that was only 4 1/2 hours total with flights and layover in Memphis! Not bad at all. Tomorrow is a chill day at home running some errands, then on to New York and Boston on Wednesday!!
Wow, 30 DAYS!! Can't believe it.... Such an adventure.
The overall impression I got about Missouri is that all the people here are super friendly and super helpful. I got warned by quite a few people about being by myself in bad areas, which I had to cross a few times, but I never met anyone along the way that looked like they would harm me. People always smile when you walk past them, unlike Philly where no one ever makes eye contact. I love the accents here for sure. I had a lot of random black guys asking me for my number, and my telling them that I was leaving the state and never coming back didn't seem to deter them. They just shrugged and asked if they could get my number again. I guess that's just a quirk of Missouri. I had some other girls tell me that they've experienced that as well.
I got my flight details for Korea finally! I will arrive on February 6th at 4:50pm at Incheon International Airport. This will be my first time flying Korean Air. I've heard nothing but good things about that airline, their service, and their meals. I can't wait for that. Also, my friend works at the airport for that airline, so I hope he's working the day I get in.
At this point, the plan is to go to Seoul on Saturday, stay at Bina's house, run some errands Sunday, then get to Jochiwon (조치원) on Sunday night where my orientation is. Seoul To Do list: cellphone in Dongdaemun, piercings in Hongdae (maybe), banjo in Nakwon (maybe).
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