6 March 2006
Well, tomorrow it’s off to our PST sites! I’m very excited, but also kind of sad. Up until this point both the Environment Education and Health sectors have been going through all of this together. I ended up making friends with some of the folks in the Health sector: almost more than in E.E. I suppose if I actually counted then I might actually know how true that is, or if that’s just what it feels like. Anyway, both of the roommates that I’ve had, the girl I borrow the guitar from and the guy who I sat next to on the plane over are all Health volunteers. So, hardly a week into training an I’m already saying a goodbye of sorts again. That is unexpected, to say the least.
On the other hand, I am so incredibly excited to get into training proper! In less than a week we’ll be in language classes, and in only two we’ll be in home stays!! Knowing which language we’ll be learning is even cooler because it gives us a specific region where we’ll be working. (!!!!) And, no I can’t post exactly where I’ll be online. In fact, doing so could easily get me fired. So, if you want more detailed info on that, write to me. Or call me. Once I get a cell phone. Also awesome is starting the technical training… hooray! Well, I’d best get to sleep.
Bslama (goodbye) for now.
Saturday, March 8, 2008
4 March 2008
4 March 2008
We have arrived in Morocco!! It’s wonderful to finally be here. The countryside that we saw on the way from Casablanca to Rabat was very beautiful. Flocks of large sheep, fields of cactus that look like over-sized prickly pears, donkeys pulling carts. We’re staying in a nice hotel, all 60 of us. It’s a large group to herd around, I’m sure the directors feel like the shepherds of those large sheep. Only moreso—one of the PCTGL’s (that would be Peace Corps Trainee Group Leader’s) said it was like herding cats. J
Interestingly we saw a street demonstration soon after we arrived in Rabat. We asked about it, and were informed that this past week there have been several demonstrations (which are legal with permits in Morocco). This one was about the unemployment of intelligent, educated young people. The group included both men and women, most of who weren’t over 35, but some of who probably were. It’s hard to tell from a distance. Apparently there is a shortage of jobs… or, some say, a shortage of jobs with the government. Anyway, it was an interesting glimpse into Moroccan life, economics and politics, if only a glimpse.
Rabat is a clean city, cleaner than I expected, which says more about my expectations than it does anything else. For example, I was expecting something like Dar es Salaam, but this is not a third world country. It’s a second world country. Thus, the rolling black-outs I nearly expected aren’t in evidence either, which is nice. We got to see the Peace Corps Office; a lovely little complex in the city, with a library, offices for all four sectors, doctor’s quarters, and a swimming pool that has been converted into a garden with a curious concrete lip all the way around it. The PC staff here seems friendly, excited and competent, all of which is really good to know, as all of those qualities are needed here!
So, that’s the news from me! There will be more later…
We have arrived in Morocco!! It’s wonderful to finally be here. The countryside that we saw on the way from Casablanca to Rabat was very beautiful. Flocks of large sheep, fields of cactus that look like over-sized prickly pears, donkeys pulling carts. We’re staying in a nice hotel, all 60 of us. It’s a large group to herd around, I’m sure the directors feel like the shepherds of those large sheep. Only moreso—one of the PCTGL’s (that would be Peace Corps Trainee Group Leader’s) said it was like herding cats. J
Interestingly we saw a street demonstration soon after we arrived in Rabat. We asked about it, and were informed that this past week there have been several demonstrations (which are legal with permits in Morocco). This one was about the unemployment of intelligent, educated young people. The group included both men and women, most of who weren’t over 35, but some of who probably were. It’s hard to tell from a distance. Apparently there is a shortage of jobs… or, some say, a shortage of jobs with the government. Anyway, it was an interesting glimpse into Moroccan life, economics and politics, if only a glimpse.
Rabat is a clean city, cleaner than I expected, which says more about my expectations than it does anything else. For example, I was expecting something like Dar es Salaam, but this is not a third world country. It’s a second world country. Thus, the rolling black-outs I nearly expected aren’t in evidence either, which is nice. We got to see the Peace Corps Office; a lovely little complex in the city, with a library, offices for all four sectors, doctor’s quarters, and a swimming pool that has been converted into a garden with a curious concrete lip all the way around it. The PC staff here seems friendly, excited and competent, all of which is really good to know, as all of those qualities are needed here!
So, that’s the news from me! There will be more later…
Saturday, March 1, 2008
philly!
i'm in the home of the philly cheesesteak, the city of brotherly love. it's cool to chilly, and there's 60 Peace Corps Trainees running around. it's a great group so far. lot's of smart, funny people, who're passionate about doing good in the world! there's three married couples in our group, one of whom are in their retirement years. i am, however, mostly in the company of my own age group for the first time in months. it feels great! i have even met two, count them 1,2 Christians already. I know some of you were praying for that, and i'd have to say, prayers answered! although neither are in my sector, the fact that they are there at all is comforting. just someone to understand where i'm coming from if things get hard, you know? but everyone is super nice and friendly and excited and full of hopes and fears and ideas and plans and all sorts of crazy emotions! it's great, but tiring. which is why i'm going to bed. and, dad, there are many who brought their laptops. which makes me feel somewhat better, even though i'm still decked out in technology, as only your daughter would be! :)
for all of you who are over 50 and think you're too old for peace corps, but wish you had done it, i have news for you! the oldest volunteer to ever serve was eighty. that's right, 80! so, if you really want to, have the time and the consensus with your spouse, check out the online application!!! anyway.
we've been orientating, getting to know each other, and just chillin' for a couple of days. we registered, i got all my paperwork in. Mrs. Erickson, you should expect a call about the school-partnership thing sometime in the relatively near future. :)
things are going well so far!
love and peace to all
for all of you who are over 50 and think you're too old for peace corps, but wish you had done it, i have news for you! the oldest volunteer to ever serve was eighty. that's right, 80! so, if you really want to, have the time and the consensus with your spouse, check out the online application!!! anyway.
we've been orientating, getting to know each other, and just chillin' for a couple of days. we registered, i got all my paperwork in. Mrs. Erickson, you should expect a call about the school-partnership thing sometime in the relatively near future. :)
things are going well so far!
love and peace to all
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
formalities
according the Peace Corps Volunteer Handbook, it is necessary to put a little disclaimer on the blog before i start talking about my time serving in Morocco with them. thus, here is the disclaimer:
the views herein do not represent the views of Peace Corps, or the United States government, or anyone else, except my own, Jeannie Coffin. and, i will do my best to make it clear that whatever i feel or think is not a comprehensive analysis of Morocco, Peace Corps, or the United States. of course, my own bias and slant is a product of my experiences, good and bad. thus i will try my utmost to be fair, but if i fall short, please forgive me and do not make your mind up about any of those three mentioned organizations/entities based solely upon my experiences.
whew!
i thought i was done packing, but now i know... i MUST rearrange... perhaps thin down... boo. but i'm leaving so soon!!! super excited!!
the views herein do not represent the views of Peace Corps, or the United States government, or anyone else, except my own, Jeannie Coffin. and, i will do my best to make it clear that whatever i feel or think is not a comprehensive analysis of Morocco, Peace Corps, or the United States. of course, my own bias and slant is a product of my experiences, good and bad. thus i will try my utmost to be fair, but if i fall short, please forgive me and do not make your mind up about any of those three mentioned organizations/entities based solely upon my experiences.
whew!
i thought i was done packing, but now i know... i MUST rearrange... perhaps thin down... boo. but i'm leaving so soon!!! super excited!!
Monday, February 25, 2008
farewell!
saying goodbye-for-now. it's a funny thing. i'm sad, but i'm excited, i'm happy, but i don't want to leave my people here... so many thoughts and feelings and lists of things to do running through my head all at once. it's no wonder i can't stop to feel any one thing at one time! so different from saying goodbye when the other person is leaving. then, i nearly cry. sometimes.
packing is not fun. and i have much left to do.
farewell to snow falling softly through the night. farewell to turkey-angels leaving their prints in the snow. farewell to farm family sitting around the dinner table and laughing into the small hours of the night. farewell to friends and family, for now (!). farewell to my bed, to warm showers, to quiet moments, to my dog, to my cat. farewell to ice on branches, sticking pines needles together like the hair of a wet cat. farewell to skidding sideways across the road. farewell to waiting only, now to begin waiting while doing (i hope!).
you know what the best part about travelling? (well, one of the best parts) corresponding with people back home!!! ***shameless plug for people to write to me***
:)
packing is not fun. and i have much left to do.
farewell to snow falling softly through the night. farewell to turkey-angels leaving their prints in the snow. farewell to farm family sitting around the dinner table and laughing into the small hours of the night. farewell to friends and family, for now (!). farewell to my bed, to warm showers, to quiet moments, to my dog, to my cat. farewell to ice on branches, sticking pines needles together like the hair of a wet cat. farewell to skidding sideways across the road. farewell to waiting only, now to begin waiting while doing (i hope!).
you know what the best part about travelling? (well, one of the best parts) corresponding with people back home!!! ***shameless plug for people to write to me***
:)
Saturday, February 23, 2008
treasures in the snow
i went cross-country skiing today. out our front door: one of the advantages of wisconsin in the winter is that there is usually snow. especially this winter: 90+ inches of it! so, i strap on my skiis and start hurrying around the edge of the farm fields, and enjoying the "warm" temperatures, ie. greater than 20 degrees F. the last snowstorm we had started with an inch of rain, and then some freezing rain, followed by 8 inches of snow. the result was the glazing of every single twig, dead queen anne's lace, dried leaf... everything. in sheltered places, it's still like that days later! it is truly lovely, like strands of blown glass along the delicate edges of plant skeletons. the light shines through it and it might be a forest of glass, or a blown glass sculpture of flowers and weeds.
i hurried on, squinting sunlight and slipping out of the tracks laid down by previous skiers, following the contour of the forest and field. now looking at the snow beneath me, animal tracks every which way in some places, unbroken sparkle-space in others. little friends searching for food in the foot-and-a-half deep snow. life isn't easy in the winter for the critters. mice, tiny prints show the leap inches at a time, trailing their little tail behind them. deer, feet plunging through the snow because of their weight, all balanced on four little points of hooves. coyote, cleverly walking through the skiers tracks, where they won't break through the snow as much. and turkey. messy, seems like a fuzzy trail cut through the snow, 3 inches wide. sometimes you see the edge of a talon. i scared a flock of them up, and the sprung into the air, wings thumping out their retreat. and then, the most beautiful track of them all. a turkey had landed, trailing tail feathers in the snow, and then flapped it's wings powerfully one last time to keep its balance, leaving an imprint of the tip of each feather as it carved out the snow. then it ran into the woods. so lovely! the symmetry of the wings, the delicate shape of each feather-track, the trailing tail feathers when it first touched the ground. wow!!
i skiied on, hurrying again, but having to pause to gaze at the tracks again on the way back. what wonderful gifts of winter, to remember when i am far away. :)
i hurried on, squinting sunlight and slipping out of the tracks laid down by previous skiers, following the contour of the forest and field. now looking at the snow beneath me, animal tracks every which way in some places, unbroken sparkle-space in others. little friends searching for food in the foot-and-a-half deep snow. life isn't easy in the winter for the critters. mice, tiny prints show the leap inches at a time, trailing their little tail behind them. deer, feet plunging through the snow because of their weight, all balanced on four little points of hooves. coyote, cleverly walking through the skiers tracks, where they won't break through the snow as much. and turkey. messy, seems like a fuzzy trail cut through the snow, 3 inches wide. sometimes you see the edge of a talon. i scared a flock of them up, and the sprung into the air, wings thumping out their retreat. and then, the most beautiful track of them all. a turkey had landed, trailing tail feathers in the snow, and then flapped it's wings powerfully one last time to keep its balance, leaving an imprint of the tip of each feather as it carved out the snow. then it ran into the woods. so lovely! the symmetry of the wings, the delicate shape of each feather-track, the trailing tail feathers when it first touched the ground. wow!!
i skiied on, hurrying again, but having to pause to gaze at the tracks again on the way back. what wonderful gifts of winter, to remember when i am far away. :)
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