Becoming a Stranger/It's [Not] Beginning to Feel A Lot Like Christmas

Becoming a Stranger

12/12/09

I am getting weird. The longer I am here in Africa, the stranger I get. Between the immersion into this new culture, speaking a new language, having all new friends and infrequent communication with my friends at home I can tell that I am already different. I am worried that being in Masha, a very remote village, will magnify the Africa effect. Here are some examples I can think of. In Ethiopia, a way of saying "yes" is gasping (the first few weeks whenever someone "said" yes I asked "what happened"). At first this was weird to me, but now I do it too and I know it will drive you all crazy when I go home. Also, when speaking to Ethiopians I speak in broken English so that they may better understand me. I also do direct translations to help them out (instead of "How are you?" it is "Are you fine?" or "I can't" is "It is not possible"). Now, sometimes when speaking to other volunteers I use my Africa voice. Andy and Berny...if you are reading this I think you are cringing. I also have a few Amharic words that I use in everyday conversation that make perfect sense to everyone here, but will be just as foreign as the aussie slang I once was fluent in. I also have NO idea what is going on the the United States. I do not know what the economy is like, what the deal is with health care reform, pop culture (though I was never good at that before), fads or any current events. I do not know what is going on in the lives of my friends. I don't know what the inside jokes are, what YouTube video the Putnam kids are quoting, what movie Mike is obsessing over, if Mark and Kate have any new squatters in their home or how Ellie's doing in England. Facebook tells me more about my friends than they do...and in a week I will no longer have Internet on a weekly basis. I feel like I will be like Fry when he first gets sent to the 31st century, or like Tom Hank's character in Cast Away when he comes back from the island. I can already understand why Peace Corps warns us more about coming home than leaving.

Speaking of becoming a stranger, I will be leaving Gonde and starting all over again in Masha. I am finally comfortable here, I have friends (both American and Ethiopian), my family is wonderful, I know my way around, people don't try to rip me off as much and the kids know my name here. I am very excited, but also very scared about moving to Masha. I keep reminding myself that Gonde was crazy scary 2 months ago and now it is home. The culture shock from Gonde to Masha will be nothing compared to that of America to Gonde. Things that would make me very uncomfortable in America are now no problem. If my point of view can change that quickly, I can become comfortable in Masha. It's going to be difficult and lonely the first few months, so I hope to get a lot of letters and phone calls. Don't forget about me, I certainly haven't forgotten about any of you.

It's [Not] Beginning To Feel A Lot Like Christmas

12/13/09

It is less than two weeks from Christmas and I have barely thought about it. There is no snow, there are no Christmas lights or TV specials, Ethiopia doesn't even celebrate Christmas this month. I even miss the Christmas music (except that one song that has the children's choir during the chorus) and traffic jams on the way from Hamden to Putnam. I think it is better though that I do not feel like it is Christmas. When I do think about it I get very sad and homesick. Being here takes the Hallmark out of the holidays though. When I think of Christmas I do not miss the gifts, I do not miss the overabundance of food, I do not miss the cocktails, the mall, or the snow. I miss my family and friends. I miss having the first glass of Hood eggnog with dad and making dinner with mom. I miss baking cookies with Jess (or at least testing the cookies she bakes). I miss getting excited to play with the Rice kids the day after Christmas. I miss secret santa (my gift will be late...sorry!). I miss playing pitch with the family. I miss Mandy jumping on me. I miss how Danshults' family knows every single gift under the tree even before they unwrap them. I miss playing wii games with Spencer. When I start thinking of these things I am reminded that 2 years is a long time to be away. At that low point I need to get out and spend time with my Ethiopian family, vent with my PC friends or just take a walk. It does not take me long to remember why I joined the Peace Corps. This country still amazes me and there will always be something to make me smile here. Today it was seeing my favorite Gonde kid in a denim trench coat...I hadn't seen her in a few days and she was just as excited as I was to see her.

Ethiopia: The Soundtrack

Nothing horribly exciting has happened since my last post so today I will write about the sounds of Ethiopia. In the morning at about 5am we are all awoken by the Islamic call to prayer being broadcasted over a loudspeaker. This lasts for hours, and no matter how hard I look I cannot find this man singing anywhere. Along with the call to prayer,the African sunrise is also accompanied by the farm choir. The cows and ox form a thick bass line (some cows sing like I do though and just sound horrible), the tenor is the braying of the donkey that reminds you just how miserable his existence is. The alto voices are that of the sheep and goat that bleat like screaming children, and then on top, just in case you haven't woken up yet, is the rooster. Before I surrender to the din and get out of bed I hear Nate and Musse (my host nephews) outside my door either calling my name, shouting the alphabet(usually incorrectly), counting (...6, 7, X, Y, Zed), or fighting.After I finally get out of bed, get dressed, and [sometimes] wash up I leave for school. The moment I walk out my door the people begin to shout at me. "Faranj!!" "China!!" "Amerikawit!!" "What is your name!!!" "Nikki, Nikki, Nikki, Nikki" or "Selam!!!" even after I stop to say hello they continue to shout at me until I am no longer insight. Some days it is like the comforting sounds of the Putnam kids singing Queen or The D by a campfire , other days it is like Greg singing "Crawling" by Linkin Park. The shouting never ends. Every time I step outside I am surrounded, the kids are like the Ethiopian paparazzi. Once the sun goes down the sounds get a bit scarier. Dogs howl at each other like in 101 Dalmatians when the puppies get stolen."Dogs aren't that scary", you may think, but when you are taught that all dogs have rabies they are less cute than the Mandys and Peles of America. Then the "whoooop whoooop" of the hyenas start (I was very disappointed to learn they don't laugh). At that point I stay in my compound until the sun comes up...hyenas are bad news. As I go to bed I put in my headphones until I fall asleep. I never dare to try to sleep without them because then the fact that I have roommates with buck teeth and long tails becomes all too apparent. Sometimes the sounds of scurrying across my floor or in my ceiling wakes me up, but usually I just pretend it is a Mefloquin hallucination and go back to sleep unphased. Then, at 5am, the call to prayer starts and the day repeats itself.


The Concept of Time


Time in Ethiopia is quite the paradox. I feel like I have been here forever but at the same time training has flown by. In just 2 months I have learned enough language to have conversations, everyone in town knows my name, I have made friends and really feel at home. Putnam feels like so long ago and America so foreign it blows my mind. I can barely remember everyday life at home. Then other days it is like I just got here. I really can't believe training is almost over and I'm an actual Peace Corps Volunteer. Time has flown by, but then again I still have 25 months to go. Some days that is exciting, other days it is depressing.
On the topic of time, I want to explain the way the clock works in Ethiopia...and I thought military time was confusing!!! The Ethiopian day begins when the sun comes up, and since I am on the equator that is just about 6am. However, they call it 12am. Lunch is at noon, 6am.I get out of class just about as the sun sets, at 6pm. So to convert international time to local time you subtract 6 hours. So now that I have nearly converted to local time, determining what time it is in the US is significantly more difficult. I have to add the 6 hours to get international time, then subtract the 8 hour time difference. whew!Confused yet? It gets better. The Ethiopian calendar is different than the Gregorian calendar. It has 13 months rather than 12, and is 7years behind. So to find the date I need to subtract 7, 8, or 9 days(depending on the month) and then 7 years. I am still working on that.

One good thing about this country is that appointments and schedules are suggested times, not mandatory. So if I am late because I can't figure out what time it is, or make an error in scheduling the meeting it is okay. If I don't know what day it is and need to reschedule,it's okay. The downside is though that if I do want to get something done it is unlikely that everyone will be present. I'm not punctual enough for that to really bother me though. Sometimes there are things that are just more important than work.

Well, I don't want to use up all of my "life isn't exciting enough fora real post" blogs so I will sign out for now. Let me know if there is anything you want me to talk about in these posts, one of the goals of Peace Corps is to teach Americans about the host country's culture so here I am, ready to teach!

Miss you and love you

Cheers,
Nikki

Something to be Thankful For

12/03/09

So many of you know I was very ill on Thanksgiving. I had a 24 hour bug that has been passed through my family, it was only a matter of time until I got it. Unfortunately the one day that the Peace Corps made a delicious American meal was Thanksgiving: the day I spent with a fever, throwing up and shitting all day. The funny thing is though,I have never been so thankful on Thanksgiving. I am immensely thankful for the two jell-o jigglers that I was able to stomach without throwing up. I am thankful that I had great friends to spend the holiday with. I am thankful that my friends convinced me to go to Assela even though I was feeling ill. I am thankful for all the great notes my fellow trainees left in my envelope. I am thankful that people know me well enough to thank me for teaching all the card games rather than for my "great smile" (the default compliment people go to when they can't think of anything else). I am thankful that I do have a FANTASTIC group of people to share my Peace Corps experience with and to lean on for support. I am thankful that these people aren't still entertaining the freshman-in-college mentality of "I love absolutely everything about everyone". I am thankful that I have a wonderful host family that went out of their way to treat me to a good holiday even though I could barely stand to eat. I am thankful that in a country so far away from CT I can feel at home. I am thankful that I have this opportunity to reach people that can really benefit from my skill set. I am thankful that I have enough electricity to make it through a buna ceremony. I am thankful that my friends and family have the opportunity to find work and enjoy living in a developed nation. I am thankful that even in economic uncertainty my family and friends are surviving comfortably. It is a weird feeling to be thankful for basic needs...something that many Americans (though definitely not all....people here seem to think that all Americans are rich) will never struggle for. Even when I was worried about finances at home I was never worried about having a place to stay...but I have already met so many people that have to make the decision whether or not to eat. I am planning on making mac and cheese on Christmas this year....and I am very, very thankful for my mom who is sending options for Christmas dinner. I remember just a few years ago when the family was unable to get together and my mom and I had thanksgiving dinner at a restaurant. I remember being very upset and depressed that we spent the holiday just the two of us....today I find myself wishing to death that I was having dinner with my mom, let alone my whole family. Funny how life can put itself into perspective when you need it.

In other news, I am almost finished with training. Crazy- it feels like home was so, so long ago, but it also seems like I just got to Ethiopia. When I think about Philly and my first few awkward nights in Gonde where I sat and smiled while life happened around me I laugh.Now I start and sometimes even dominate conversations at home. I laugh with my host family and have real, deep conversations with my American friends. I am moving to Masha soon and feel completely lost, but I find comfort in knowing that I can have a conversation with someone in Amharic....a language that seemed more foreign than Elvish a few weeks ago.I am pleading to all of you to send me mail in Masha and to call me on or near Christmas. I am having a difficult time with the holidays...my training ends right before Christmas..I am going to try my hardest to make it feel like any other average day, but I suspect the day will have an aura of sadness and loneliness.
I will write again when I get to Masha. I hope to hear from you soon.I miss you all and love you tremendously.

Cheers,
Nikki

Address

I forgot to mention. My new address is
Nicole Therrien
PO Box 100
Masha, Ethiopia


If you are sending a package send it there. If you are sending a letter do not use that address until Dec 7th

Thanks!

Happy Birthday

I was pretty nervous about my birthday this year, scared that it was going to be terribly lonely. Honestly, it was probably one of the best birthdays of my life. The day started going to hub traning (all the volunteers get together for group training on Thursdays). My CBT group was waiting for me at the car and all sang me happy birthday, gave me birthday hugs and a birthday bracelet (half a lei tied together haha). Once I got to the hub site another CBT group was already there and gave me a slow, awkward group hug. That same group later sang a birthday rap they wrote for Alissa and I (Alissa has the same birthday as me). It was hilarious, and very sweet. I got two awesome handmade cards with sweet little notes. It was great to feel like these people are really my friends, not just randoms that happened to be put in the same country as me. After training a few of us went out for beers before going back to the CBT site.

Once back to site my family had an awesome party for me. They invited all my Americans to join too! We had dinner, french fries, habasha cake, American cake (it's impossible to find sweets here so that was amazing), cookies, candies and fireworks. They decorated the house with streamers and a flashing Happy Birthday sign. They also made me wear my traditional Ethiopian dress that my host mom bought me a few weeks ago. My family gave me two gifts, a bracelet and a flashlight, because they think its funny that Masha has no electricity. The night concluded with a traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremony. I felt so great that night. I was surrounded by friends, family and it felt almost like home.

Also contributing to my fantastic birthday was all the mail!!! Thank you to everyone who sent me birthday wishes. I got fantastic packages from mom, Elisa/Bobby/Patrick/Emma and Jess as well as cards from Jess, Mom/Dad, Andrea/Jeff, the Slotas, Sally/Tom, and Aunt Jeanne/Uncle Bob. I also got a phone call from Nick and the Jersey kids. Thank you all so, so much.

Unfortunately that night the Mefloquin (turns out I'm not allergic to it) gave me awful dreams. I didn't sleep at all because of the nightmares and today I feel awful. The high of yesterday definitely outweighs the bad dreams though.

Site Visit

Wow am I glad to be back with my host family. This past week was site visit, where all the volunteers spend a week at their permanent posts. What a week it was! Coming back to my host family really felt like coming home. I take great solace in knowing that a place in Ethiopia can feel like home in just a month, so it is possible that my site will one day feel comfortable. My site is one of the most remote, I really live in the jungle...complete with 2 species of monkeys and herds of baboons. To reach Masha I had to take a 2 day journey on public transportation. Without going into too many details, the trip was terrifying. Ethiopia has the most car accidents per capita in the world...I can definitely understand why. We almost hit cows, goats, sheep, donkeys, dogs, people, other vehicles and often veered off the road. Perhaps the word "road" isn't really appropriate. Most of the way to Masha is unpaved, steep and winding. Luckily was I was not travelling alone for this first trip out there. The two closest volunteers to me are awesome and our personalities compliment each others' very well. This will prove to be a very important support system I am sure.

The adventure did not end there. Living in my town is going to be a challenge. With the exception of about an hour I did not have electricity the whole week I was there. The water definitely needs to be purified and filtered...there are floaters. I do not have running water and need to take bucket baths, which I am not very good at yet. I share a shint bet with a ton of people, which is pretty unsanitary and smelly, but at least it is pretty well kept. Because of the lack of electricity I need to keep my door open to let light in...apparently an open door is an invitation. Kids poured into my room, touching my things, putting things in their pockets, rubbing their snotty hands all over everything and eating on my bed. I think the privacy issue will become my biggest problem...I need to fashion a screen door out of my bed net (I don't have mosquitoes! so no need for a net). My living space consists of two rooms, very similar to dorm rooms. They are across from each other, not connecting. One room I will use for sleeping/bathing and the other for cooking/eating. It sounds like I've got the roughest living conditions of the people I have spoken with, but I'm kind of flattered by the placement. The fact that I am so far from other volunteers, close to no-go zones and quite rural means that the Peace Corps staff thinks I can handle it and that I'm tough. Maybe I should have acted a bit more needy and codependent those first couple of weeks?

So enough about the challenges of my site. There are so many good things about it too. The area is bat'am k'onjo naw! (very beautiful). It is wild, untamed, untouched and exactly what I envisioned when I thought of Africa. The jungle is dense and very, very green. The cell phone network is good, so you can call me (hint hint) with no problem. I have a posta bet (Andrea, you know how much I like towns with 1 post office) and a bank, so there is no real need to leave my site other than travel. I am far from a lot of things, but there are also a lot of awesome places to visit near me. I love the volunteers that are next to me. My counterpart is excellent and very helpful. My landlady's daughter is an awesome dancer (iskista dancing!) and I am determined to pick up some sweet moves for when I come home.

My first night sleeping at site was hard. I really, really wanted to pack up and go back to America. Being in my home made me realize for the first time that this is real. I am going to be away for 2 years...and 2 years never seemed so long. Fortunately, that night Kevin called me, and it was the most comforting phone call of my life. Just hearing a familiar voice, being able to speak in English and to talk about familiar things was so, so nice. Kev, thanks...you saved me that night. The next day, however, was much better. I had meetings with local groups such as the PLWHA Assoc (people living with HIV/AIDS), a group of local volunteers, administration, and schools. The exact moment when I changed my mind about the night before and realized that I am exactly where I need to be was when talking to the PLWHA assoc. I guess that they have been trying to get help from NGOs for a while now but with no success. A woman said to me "we would be so happy to be able to work with you for two days, let alone two years". It's going to be hard, but I see a lot of opportunity already and cannot wait to get started. I think I have found my Lambarene.

On Tuesday we all met up in scary Addis Ababa for the counterpart workshop. For those of you who don't know, my counterpart is my #1contact in my host town and my coworker. He will be doing most of my projects with me, and just as importantly, translating meetings while I'm still learning Amharic. We met yesterday and I am very excited about working with him. He is about my age (which is awesome, same as in the US, the young people here are yearning for changes). He is the HIV coordinator at the town health office which oversees the clinic.I'm not actually working in the clinic which is perfect because this way I get to be more on the business side of things.
My town is in the Southern Nations and Nationalities Peoples Region in the western highlands. I'm the farthest west of all the volunteers and in one of the more rural posts. The town has a population of about 7,000 and is supposedly beautiful! Lush forests, temperate climate,high elevation, few mosquitoes and lots of tea/bunna/tej production. I get to visit next week which I am way excited about. And the 2 day journey on public transportation will be an adventure! Luckily my counterpart will be with me and able to guide me through the rougher cities. I will also get to stay at my house!! It has two rooms, and an outside latrine (no luxury toilet like at my host family's house). I have to sleep there all week with no bed...thank you greg and Melissa the sleeping bag.

Mom wrote me a letter asking if this is a hugging culture. It's a bit hard to explain. They do not hug and are often surprised when I try to hug them (I'm a Putnam kid...I love hugs...especially dancing hugs).When people greet each other they shake hands and, if they are good friends, do a shoulder bump. However, they are very touchy feely people. It is not uncommon for two men to hold hands (or pinkies)while walking in town, and they also always have their arms around each other. A hand resting on someone elses thigh is ok too. Not ok with me yet though. I still like my space.

I'm running out of internet time here in Addis, but I will end by thanking everyone for the letters! I get more than anyone else at training and it really makes me happy. So thank you Mom (and Dad for signing the card, too haha), Danshults, Beth, Rosie/Brad, Ellie, Kevin and Jess. You all have letters in the mail. But it takes much longer to get from ethiopia to america than america to ethiopia.

Also, happy birthday greg and jess!!! wish i could be there to celebrate. you should all call me during the parties and pass the phone around.

Love you all and miss you. Come visit, Africa is wonderful!
Cheers,
Nikki

10/24/09

Blogspot is still blocked in Ethiopia, but thanks to Andrea I am able to post semi-regular updates! I'm feeling a bit better today than I have for a while...turns out I am allergic to Mefloquin (malaria propholaxis) because once the doctor told me to stop taking it my hives have started to go away. Good thing too, the itching was beginning to be unbearable and really put me in a funk. Fortunately there are no mosquitoes in my training town (because of the high elevation) so I don't have to worry about getting Malaria. Also, I had a good reason to request a cooler, higher altitude post (no 100 degree Africa sun OR mosquitoes!) which, if they give me, will be wonderful.I will eventually go back on Malaria meds, probably Doxy, once this stuff gets out of my system and the hives go away. Between Spice this summer and the allergic reaction I've almost forgot what it is like not to itch. I really can't complain though, I'm one of the few who haven't had a GI episode yet (knocks on wood), my family thinks I'm allergic to T'eff so they don't feed me injera anymore, my host sister makes my friends and me french fries and onion rings and I live in a beautiful town.

The past week I discovered some great places in this town. There is a river that supplies the surrounding areas with water (It flooded on Sunday and knocked out the pipes, so because there was so much water there was none) that is absolutely stunning. It flows through green hills and on Sunday the whole town goes there to bathe, wash clothes or just to hang out. I went with my sisters to explore a bit. There is one place where the water looks as though it is flowing from the inside of a tree. The locals believe that the water has a healing power and people come all the way from Addis to drink from it. I'm not convinced though, it did not clear the rash, but it was still really cool. I took lots of pictures, someday I'll figure out how to post them. Then on Friday during community discovery we went walking through the farmland on the other side of town. The fields went on for miles and miles...beans, corn, wheat and lots of those trees that are in every picture of Africa you've ever seen. We stopped to talk to the farmers (by talk I mean introduce myself and say hello a bunch of times because that's pretty much all I know) and to "simply sit".Simply sitting, walking etc...is big in Ethiopia. And I thought Putnam-ites had to be creative with recreation time! It's great though, sometimes I just stop in my tracks to look around in awe at the untouched natural beauty in the rolling hills and mountains. At night I still am struck every time I walk back to my room from the shint bet and I can clearly see every single star in the sky...the best part about no lights.

There are definitely times when having to be incredibly polite to every single person (Ethiopians are much nicer than I am) drives me crazy. And when the fidel (Amharic alphabet) makes me want to stab my eyes out. Sometimes I dread turning on to my street because the neighborhood kids all wait for me at 5:00. And then there are times when I desperately want to be with someone that knows me and I can be myself with. But at the end of the day I am always happy that I made the decision to join the Peace Corps. Especially this past week when we started to get into the technical training and visit health centers I remembered why I am here. The APCD was right, this is a gift. Nowhere in the US would I get the chance to slow down and have the time to reflect on life and appreciate every little thing. You should all visit, Africa has some kind of magic that soothes the soul. And I miss you and would enjoy the company of a familiar face.

Write letters...I have lots of time to write back. And it sucks to be the one who doesn't get mail on hub day (but I wouldn't know because this week I got letters from mom and one from ds!). It looks as though it takes 10 days to send a letter from the US to Ethiopia. I sent my first batch on the 16th...I will let you all know when they got to their destinations.
Hope to hear from you soon.

Cheers,
Nikki

10/16/09
I haven't been able to blog since arriving in Ethiopia because the little town of Gonde does not yet have Internet. So I am posting this from Asela, the nearest city. Here is a short re-cap of my time so far in the Peace Corps.

Philadelphia: Staging was quite brief. We all got together in a hotel to go through paperwork, discuss aspirations/anxieties and get an overview of the Peace Corps. The next day we got the Yellow Fever vaccine and departed for the airport. Nothing too eventful.
Addis Ababa: Addis was a bit more interesting, but not really Africa.We had a couple days of safety/security training, food and water safety, typhoid, rabies, meningitis and hepatitis vaccines along with the start of the Malaria meds. The meds were the cause of only one interesting dream starring a talking rhino that threatened to kill me if I left my house. He also had a friend giraffe. In Addis I got to know the other volunteers a bit and got past the artificial conversation that you all remember from the first week of college. We went from hanging out in hoards to large groups. Finally on the last day in Addis we left the hotel and braved the streets. We had our first "fishbowl" experience being watched very carefully by everyone.It's a weird feeling being a celebrity of sorts. Everyone wants to shake your hand and listen to you try to say hello. This phenomenon becomes more apparent later.

Training Hub: We all boarded buses to Asela, and then our respective training sites. On the way there we came upon a car accident. Instead of waiting in traffic our bus detoured through the mud. And since the bus couldn't make it through the mud we had to get out of the bus to lessen the weight. Eventually the bus made it back to the main road- I feel like some kind of hitch had to happen. In Asela we had lunch and learned to dance. The Ethiopian dance is a lot of jumping from one foot to the other and controlled arm movements. Women also do this awesome shoulder shake that I have not yet mastered. We all gave it as hot though and a good time was had by all.

Satellite Site: My town for the next 3 months is the smallest of all the satellite sites...it just moved up from being classified a village two months ago. When we arrived it was down pouring and we got out of the bus with all of our bags sloshing through the mud. We took shelter in the pharmacy, which I would later discover is my host father's shop. I had a conversation with a few children while we waited for the rains to stop before walking home.
Two young men carried my bags for me (good thing too, at this point I was not good at walking in the slippery mud) and my host parents led the way through puddles, up a mud/rock road. On the way we passed donkeys, goats, sheep, dogs, horses, cows and tons of curious people watching the "ferenji". We stopped to knock on the metal gate of the compound. The gates open up and I am let into the house which smells like incense. Everyone lines up to meet me, and I am relieved to hear the words "Hello, welcome. My name is Sunnat". She speaks English! Sunny has since become quite close to me and a wonderful resource to be integrated in family chats. Dinner is being brought to the table and a girl brings over a watering can and a slotted bucket with a bar of soap. The family washes their hands and I sit down with mom and dad to eat a wide spread of food. Injera, wot, french fries, vegetables,bread, juice, water, and tea. This is the first time I am able to enjoy food since being in Ethiopia...not because it had made me sick before, but because it was too spicy for me to eat. I eat tons and love every second of the precious food. After dinner I sit on the couch with the family and look at a photo album while coffee beans are being roasted on a charcoal stove. The rest of the night we drink coffee, laugh and I watch them all interact. All my worries were washed away and I was happy to be surrounded by family.

Since then I have fallen in love with Africa. I go to bed every night in awe of how beautiful this country and the people are. I am able to say hello to every person that I meet (and everybody wants me to stop to say hello) and learn Amharic in the garden of one of my friend's compounds. Life is very simple and beautiful. I wake up early when the rooster calls, eat a homemade breakfast with my father and then get walked to school. During school we have 2 tea breaks where we walk through town to practice what we have learned in the community. We often sit at the chaibet with our LCF and make friends with the locals. After school I go home, hang out with the family, have dinner,and hang out some more. We have coffee at lunch and dinner. Then I go to bed around 9-10. Every night I go to bed thinking how lucky I am to have this opportunity. Life here is just so natural. The stars are even more brilliant than in New Zealand. I can't really explain what it is like, but I love it here.

I have so much that I can write about, so to make my blog more interested let me know what you want to hear about. Language?Training? Food? Peace Corps? My Family? Other volunteers? Visual descriptions?
Love you and miss you all.
Cheers,
Nikki

Getting Ready

Now that is September, and only a month before I depart for the unknown, I am terribly excited. Facebook has introduced me to a few people that will also be a part of Ethiopia Group 3 which makes the adventure more of a reality. This past week my parents visited from Maryland and we got the paperwork business out of the way (appointing power of attorney, insurance, car etc...) and they also were a HUGE help in outfitting me for the journey. True to form I packed immediately and am just about physically ready to go. Not sure I'm emotionally ready quite yet. I don't really feel like I'm leaving my friends and family, that part hasn't sunk in.

For those of you who are working on packing, here is a list of items I've packed. If you have any suggestions please let me know! I tend to under pack (who goes to eastern europe without a raincoat?!) so its likely I forgot something.

Netbook/DVD drive
Memory sticks
Camera
Voltage/Outlet converters
Ipod
Chacos trail shoes
Sandals
Hiking boots (keen hybrids)
Clothes
Toiletries
Sun Block
Sewing Kit
Non-stick frying pan
Knife
Headlamp
Nalgene bottles
Flavored water packets
Alarm clock
Bandanas
DVDs
Pictures
Gifts for host family
Books
Duct tape
Stationary
Journal
Playing cards
Scrabble
Sleeping bag (thanks greg and melissa!)

And probably a few other things I forgot to list.

My Aspiration Statement

Everyone asks me why I want to join the Peace Corps, and describing why is difficult. Below is the aspiration statement I had to write to the Ethiopia country desk, maybe this will make my reasons clearer. You can probably tell what the questions are by the answers.

A.
I first began entertaining the idea of joining the Peace Corps in 2006 when I studied abroad in Australia. While the difference between the US and Australia is not extraordinary, the experience of entering, sight unseen, into a new world far away from home was exhilarating. The tourism aspect was phenomenal, but what I found most enjoyable was the local culture. Living in another culture is far different than visiting. Taking on the local lifestyle, letting go to strict deadlines and allowing myself to slow down was something completely new, and quite liberating. Being from New England, I am used to a fast paced environment; if a train is late or appointment does not start on time it is an extreme inconvenience. However, I learned in Australia that if you slow down and enjoy life instead of racing through it, you can find more meaning, develop stronger relationships and, most importantly, be happy.
As I began to fall in love with Australia I also began to wonder about the experience I could have gotten out of all the places I visited as a kid if we had stayed a while longer. From there I began researching the US Peace Corps. I actually remember the first time when I learned about the Peace Corps when I was a kid and thinking to myself “why would someone want to do that”…every time I think about that instance I laugh to myself, because now I know exactly why someone, including myself, cannot wait for that experience. I want to experience the world, not as a tourist, but as a part of it. I don’t want to stand by and learn about countries and people far away, I want to be one of them. And rather than just seeking employment in another country, I want to help. The inequalities across the globe are disheartening and just do not make sense. Why is it that so many people die from malaria every year when treatment is so inexpensive? Why is a region rich in oil, a powerful resource, full of people who live on just $2 a day? And I don’t want to just hear about these people, I want to get to know them and learn how to make a difference.
With the seed already planted in my head about going to the Peace Corps I met David Ives. He probably doesn't know it, but he was the deciding factor in my decision to apply. David is the director of the Albert Schweitzer Institute at Quinnipiac University. I knew him through the Albert Schweitzer Club which I was a part of and, upon his suggestion, took a philosophy class my senior year of college titled The Thought and Work of Albert Schweitzer. We learned about Schweitzer’s mission in Gabon to repent for the mistreatment done by Europeans in Africa. He gave up fame and fortune to complete medical school and provide medical care in a forgotten corner of the world. I learned about “reverence for life” and how sacred every living thing, plant, insect, animal or person is. Through this class I kept a journal of my experiences volunteering at a Hospice and evaluated it through the lens of Schweitzer. This class, David’s account of his Peace Corps experience in Costa Rica, and his invitation to meet people like Jimmy Carter, Rigoberta Menchu and survivors of the bombings in Hiroshima, the Albert Schweitzer Institute made me realize how much one person really can do.
I realize that I will not build a hospital, I will not “fix” any major problems and I definitely won’t save the world. But what I can, and intend to do is make a difference. As my mentor in graduate school would say, passion and tenacity go a long way. I believe to be a Peace Corps volunteer you need to encompass both attributes. With the knowledge I have gained through my education and life experiences, I aspire to improve the lives of vulnerable populations in my town/village. I listen to the stories of those I work alongside with at the Agape Center (an HIV/AIDS resource center) and realize that it is not necessarily disease that affects their everyday life, it’s the isolation. These people want to be a part of the community and they want to remain productive. In fact, many of the clients also volunteer their time at the food pantry in the building. This is how I want to make a difference. I want to help remove stigmas and help people find their place in the community. If I can make a positive difference in just one person’s life, the 27 month commitment is worth it.

B.
Working in the Peace Corps is going to be very different than going to school in Australia. My work is going to be a partnership, not a solo act. As I read through my invitation packet and the blogs of volunteers already in Ethiopia I begin to imagine myself there. I think the best way to integrate into work is the same as the best way to get into the ocean after laying in the sun on the beach. First, observe everyone else already in the water. I believe that I will have to spend the beginning of my experience learning by observation. What is the organizational culture? What is taboo? Where do I fit in? I would have to learn the work ethic and goals of my host country partners instead of starting work and creating my own agenda. Second you have to ease your way in, take one step, get used to the temperature and then take another step. After observing I need to focus on working with my partners and learning where I need to be and what I need to do. I will need to try something, test it, and then if it doesn’t work in this environment, get out of the water and try again from a different angle. The third step is the plunge, when you’re in the water to your waist and the only way to get in is to jump. After I have found how the organization works and what my role is I need to jump in. I will only have 2 years, and I can’t spend the whole time scared and watching from the wings. I will have to give it everything I’ve got and watch things fall into place. And just like getting into that cold water, being side by side with someone always provides comfort and motivation. I will need my host country colleagues to help me in at first, and then work together.

C.
In my experiences, the way I best adapt to a new culture is to embrace it. I don’t like to retreat to comforts, such as exiling myself to my dwelling or clinging to the closest American. I believe that if I start by allowing myself to have a crutch, I will never fully adapt to the new culture. The easiest way for me to settle in is to make myself feel uncomfortable and awkwardly try to fit in. While the first weeks or months may not be as pleasant as my romantic fantasy of the Peace Corps is, I will learn what is expected of me and how I fit into my new community. I expect to be met with obstacles that I cannot even fathom at this moment, but I accept that challenges that lay ahead of me.
Other than being isolated by language, my biggest fear is losing my own identity. In the US I am quite passionate about certain issues and tend to be outspoken. I learned in Australia that it is not a good idea to get involved in politics in a different country so I go to Ethiopia fully expecting to remain silent on such issues. However, as I immerse myself into the new culture I need to realize what values are important to me, what I am willing to sacrifice and what I need to be firm about to keep being Nikki. As I prepare for departure, and during training, I need to do some soul-searching and decide what sacrifices I need to make and what about my own culture I can preserve. After all, the Peace Corps isn’t just about learning about a new culture, it’s about teaching other people about Americans as well.

D.
I have a number of items I expect to learn during training to prepare me for service. First and foremost I expect to make progress in language. I have already ordered an Amharic phrase book, but I hope that during pre-service training I will be able to at least introduce myself, learn words such as please and thank you and learn the major cultural differences so I do not offend anyone on my first day. I also hope to learn more about the resources I will have at my disposal for my work. I know that resources will be limited, but knowing exactly how limited will allow me to begin brainstorming ideas before I actually begin service.
I also want to gain knowledge about the current state of affairs in Ethiopia. What are the major ambitions and goals of the Ministry of Health? What are the biggest issues that the people of Ethiopia are faced with? What do the people want? What are the goals of the Peace Corps/Ethiopia relationship?

E.
My motivations to join the Peace Corps are primarily to use my training and experience to help a growing community. When my family and friends ask why I want to be in the Peace Corps I reply that because the world has been good to me and I was fortunate enough to be born in an area where I have the world at my fingertips, I feel like it is my duty to share my good fortune with those who do not share it. To me it is atrocious that in a world connected by the media, internet and television that people do not do more to help each other. It is not enough to “feel bad” about the AIDS epidemic, or buy a t-shirt that says “Save Darfur” instead of giving time to call a congressmen ask him or her to put international aid on his or her agenda. I need to give myself to the world, use the education and experience I have to help others.
With that said it is impossible to say that joining the Peace Corps is a complete sacrifice of my life and is without reward. Many people report that they feel they got more from the Peace Corps experience than they gave. I am going to have new experiences and adventure that will remain a part of my identity for the rest of my life. My current goal, though by the end of my 27 months I may have a completely different life plan, is to take advantage of the noncompetitive advantage for government employment. I strongly believe in civic duty, and just like if you disagree with the inequalities in the world you should act, if you do not make an effort to create change then you cannot complain about the status quo.
I believe that I should contribute to the country that has given me great opportunities. With my background in healthcare management, I want to work for the CDC as a Health Analyst. These people travel the world to determine the health needs of different countries are, and work with the host country to meet these needs. I view my experience with the Ministry of Health in Ethiopia the beginning of this career.

Mail

The post service in Ethiopia is obviously not as fast as the USPS. A letter will take about 4 weeks and packages 4-5 months. Do not send anything valuable in envelopes because one in a while the edges of envelopes will be clipped by postal workers looking for money. Also, do not send anything valuable in packages because they may or may not make it to me. Try to decrease the value of items (like if you are sending clothes take of the tags, wash them and label it "used clothing"). Also, any letter needs to say "air mail" on the front of the envelope.

For the first 10 weeks you can mail me at this address (perhaps a birthday card?):

Nicole Therrien
US Peace Corps/Ethiopia
P.O. Box 7788
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

After training I will be given a new address and will let you all know. I love mail!

Cheers,
Nikki

The Wait is Over

Yesterday it came. I have officially been invited to join the Peace Corps and I couldn't be happier with my assignment. My invitation is to be a Health Economic Development Advisor in Ethiopia. Staging is Oct 4-5 and then the evening of Oct. 5 I will board a plane to Ethiopia! I had initially thought that I would be working in the health education sector, but my actual assignment is really more business than health (which makes sense since I am a few weeks away from completing my MBA). I will be working with the Ministry of Health (sounds like Harry Potter!) to identify means of economic stability and income generation for those infected with HIV/AIDS and other vulnerable populations. My interpretation of it is that I am working to break down stigmas and get these people integrated into their communities. By assisting them with business development, people will be able to afford food, medical treatment and a better standard of living.

Since I wil be working with the Ministry, my accommodations will be set up by the Ethiopian government (no rent...one less thing to worry about!). According to my assignment description I will be in a small-medium town or village and living in a compound (whatever that means). Typically, HED volunteers have one-two rooms to themselves in a house. Most, but not all, have running water and electricity. Something I was not banking on, so that's a nice surprise. Additionally, part of my job may be teaching business owners how to use MS Office or use databases to manage their businesses. Sounds like I may have computer access (and possibly internet).

I think the only aspect of this whole ordeal that I'm not excited about is the dress code. For those of you who know me, you know I do not function well in heat. Well, Ethiopians dress conservatively and I will need to wear long skirs and shirts that cover my shoulders and go up to my neck. I need to find some super light weight material!

The next step is to accept my invitation, which I will do later today. Then its a whole bunch of paperwork and a final medical review (if the last one wasn' t enough). I also think I'm going to find a way to start learning Amharic, the language aspect makes me nervous. I love to talk, and if I don't know the language it will be very lonely.

Cheers,
Nikki

An Emotional Beating

The last time I heard from the Peace Corps was back in March when I was medically cleared. I've been busy with school and moving back to Putnam so the wait hasn't really bothered me. However, now that I am back in Putnam where life moves a bit slower than in Hamden and I'm nearing the end of graduate school the delay is quite noticeable. Last week I received an e-mail requesting an updated resume and stated that my file wouldn't be reviewed for another 6-12 weeks. Twelve weeks puts me into September, which is when I'm done school. The increased competitiveness has gotten me quite nervous and thinking about what I'm going to do if I'm not invited to the Peace Corps. So I began to look at jobs.

There is a job opening as an assistant long term care administrator with a nice salary, benefits and with a reasonable commute from either Putnam or New Haven. The job is entry level and pretty much matches my qualifications perfectly. Imagine the temptation. I had a bit of a life-crisis that day, had lunch with Andrea, spoke with Danshults and Ma. They all said that the job was a good option and that I should at least apply. Of course Danshults was the biggest proponent of sticking with the Peace Corps and Ma said to just go for the job. I took their advice and thought about it pretty much all day and night. By the time I went to bed I decided that I am not ready to give up on the Peace Corps and I wasn't going to sell out for a high paying job. The Peace Corps is what I want to do, it's where I'll make the biggest impact on the world and, if I may be selfish, on my life. Any job I could apply for would never compare and I'd think about it for the rest of my life: what if I actually did join the Peace Corps? Also, if I don't get invited I need to leave CT... I don't think I could take the "I thought you were going to Africa" comments everyday.

And that was my test. The next day I got an e-mail from my PO saying that my file was being reviewed. I'm assuming that doesn't mean I will wait the estimated 6-12 weeks. Maybe I'll hear in July! But now I am nervous as Hell. Everytime I open my e-mail I hold my breath. But at least I'll know soon. I know that I am committed to it, and my decision to accept any invitation has been made. I've done all I can...now it is up to them!

Also, an October invite for Ethiopia has been mailed. I'm almost positive that this is the program they are considering me for. It's funny, even before my sleuthing and trying to find out possible programs leaving in October I had a feeling it would be Ethiopia. Not the most stable of geographic regions, but it's close to the Middle East...which was my first choice. It seems so perfect, but I'm trying not to get my hopes up too high.

In other news, I FINALLY found a new place to volunteer to get HIV/AIDS experience. I'm spending my Thursday mornings at the Agape Center in RI. So far, so good. The people are incredible and very honest and open. They are so supportive of my going to Africa and are eager to help me learn about the disease, how they live with it, and answer any questions.

That's it for now!
Cheers,
Nikki

The Long Wait

This is quick post since I will be leaving work in about 4 minutes. But I have been both medically and dentally cleared!!! I won't be hearing anything now until mid-April though. The placement office is currently reviewing the files of people who can leave during the summer and once all of those people have been invited they'll move on to the folks leaving after September. In the mean time I'll just keep building my resume and making myself appear more qualified than the other nominees. At this point I have a 50% chance of getting invited.
Cross you fingers!
Cheers,
Nikki

Look in the Mail for a Letter

On Tuesday I woke up with an e-mail notifying me that MyToolkit had been updated. Under medical clearance there was a message reading: Complete. A decision has made regarding your medical clearance. Look in the mail for a letter. Today I received said letter. I am medically qualified for each region. I didn't need to follow up on my Iron level or blood counts. All that worrying for nothing. What I am most excited about though is that I don't have any more medical bills!

The next step is with the Office of Placement. They look at my credentials and experience to find a project that I would be best suited for. Once they do that they send an invitation!! I just hope that it is after the cruise mom already booked, one month later than my expected departure date...

Cheers,
Nikki

Medical Hold

The medical hold officially begins today! I received the e-mail notification that my nomination status had been updated. The PC is just beginning to review my medical information now. The little message says that they do not require any additional information at this time but I'm sure that will change.

Also, I have my last dentist appointment soon so the dental hold will be released soon. Not that that matters all too much as you can still get invited with a dental hold. You just don't get to go if you don't get things figured out by the time staging comes around.

And, as always, I must put in my two cents about Tricare. It's awful. Customer service is awful. The website is awful. The entire system is confusing and nobody knows what is going on. And they gave me a PCM that isn't accepting new patients. Clearly I just got more bad news from them. Even though my father was signed into active duty in September (and Tricare is a benefit for active duty sevice members and their families) I am not covered until Feb 1. This means that the $900 in blood work, $440 physical and $550 dentist bill are all out of pocket. I'll try to call today to see if this is an error and I can file a claim. If not I will need to take out another loan from my wonderful parents who are willing to cover the expenses for now. I hate to ask them for money though. I feel like a child.

Cheers,
Nikki

Medical and Dental Review

Despite my ongoing battle with TRICARE and trying to find a primary physician, I completed my medical and dental reviews. Unfortunately TRICARE Prime and TRICARE Standard do not have the same doctors in their network and, by surprise, I have to pay for all of my medical expenses. The total was $440 so it definitely could be worse. I spoke to someone today who had to pay over $700 for the same examination.

I am learning that during the application process nothing goes smoothly. My medical and dental reviews are no exception to this rule. The dental hold I was totally expecting. I'm addicted to Diet Coke and therefore have a couple cavaties that need to be filled. No big deal since I do have dental insurance AND my wonderful new dentist is giving me 50% off because its for the Peace Corps. There is one problem though. The dental officer at the Peace Corps office says I need to have a crown on a tooth that I hada root canal on a few years ago. Two dentists have both said that it is too risky to put a crown on. I'm hoping that's a good excuse and I don't have to destroy my tooth to appease them.

The medical results are what I'm really nervous about. My blood work came back and I had my dad interpret the results for me. He told me that there was something wrong and it appeared that I had lost a significant amount of blood and my iron levels are about 60% of what they should be. I've been told that you are medically deferred until you can prove you are no longer anemic. The iron supplements my dad gave me made me horribly ill so that's not going to work. I could eat more red meat...but then my just passable cholesterol will increase. My best reasoning is that since I donate blood every 8 weeks I don't have an opportunity to fully restore my blood counts. Perhaps if I just keep my blood to myself for a while I will regulate. I haven't actually heard back from the medical officer...but this is what I am preparing myself for.

Other than medical and dental stuff I've been looking into ways to prepare myself for service. I had two trips lined up with school, one to Nicaragua and the other to Mexico to work in health facilities. Both trips fell through. Right now I'm thinking I'll do a volunteer project in Ecuador. It's expensive, but I want to know if this is something I'm good at and enjoy before I devote 2 and a half years to it. I've also been in contact with the CT Dept of Public Health trying to get into an AIDS Educator class. They are impossible to reach. Between phone tag and unanswered e-mails I am getting a bit frustrated. I know I can at least count on finding a first aid/cpr course over the summer. Those are offered everywhere.

So now I am back to waiting. I would love to hear some good news, but right now any news would be good.

Cheers,
Nikki