Hello!
Long time no…write. As it turns out, PST means almost no internet and phone access whatsoever. But I went to the mall today and found the internet cafe. Ahhh to be connected is so nice!!
South Africa is….not easily described in one sentence. I love it here, and am beginning to feel at home. We are settled in a “village” though it is rather large. Most likely we will be in a much smaller village once we get to permanent site. But even so, I am adjusting to taxis (big vans/kombies), dirt roads, and endless rooster crowing at all hours of the night. And I am even getting used to bathing in a bucket in my room and I actually like the pit latrines, which are pretty much like out houses. In fact, I like them a bit better because they can’t break-toilets can and often do. So home life in SA is going well.
Training is CRAZY! Each day is filled with about 8 hours of training-language, culture, safety, medical, and PC policies. We also go to schools to observe and eventually try teaching. The training here really does prep us for service, though in a few months I’m sure I’ll be completely at a loss when I reach site. 🙂 But for now I feel much more confident that I CAN handle the next few years as a PCV.
I won’t go into details, as I do have limited internet access. But I am typing up more organized posts as I go and will likely post them at the end of PST. Right now my brain is just kind of going haywire. But I’m alive, well, and loving life here. Oh, and I am learning Setswana, so I will most likely end up in Northern Cape or Northwest. They are more arid than Limpopo, which is alright with me. I will find out in 28 days where exactly I will be serving. Then I will take a 4 day trip there during training to check things out. I will move there permanently after swearing in on September 8th. Time is moving fast!!
-Jen
PS. A 16 hour flight is NOT fun, in case you were wondering. Good thing I’m here for 2 years because I don’t want to do that again any time soon!! 🙂
Jen's Peace Corps Experience in South Africa 