Monday, June 28, 2010

Friends

As a very curious person, I enjoy having friends with interests vastly different from my own. Though I’ve met quite a few good friends by living abroad, sometimes it’s strange to think about how many wonders I’ve seen that my college friends have never visited. I suppose it comes with the “International Education and Development” territory. They’ve all traveled some outside the States: P to Paris and Brittany, K went to Vienna once, and R to Pakistan and China. Still, I’ve traveled all over Europe, taken a boat tour of a South American rainforest, and washed my feet off after stumbling into an African sewer. Plus, I’m the only one who can somewhat se débrouiller in multiple foreign languages (French very well, Spanish OK, salutations/taxis/restaurants in a few West African languages). Until my junior year of college, I had never even been out of the country. Now, I have friends spread throughout the globe and am currently studying with others who embrace the “citizen of the world” concept. In both Senegal and France, I was lucky enough to meet some great people who I enjoy chatting with about all manner of topics. I am incredibly grateful for my friends’ stories and support – they go a long way towards keeping me sane. As much as I enjoy discussing international policy, it’s nice to chat about significant others, studies (most are in graduate/professional school), and other more quotidian affairs. These are the people who knew me as I started to discover who I was, who appreciate me for being Steven instead of “American,” “teacher” or any of the other labels I’ve recently acquired. They know that I enjoy French colonialist literature, detective stories set in Botswana, and guilty pleasure reality television. In return, I love their diverse interests: history of sexuality, painting, free and mobile clinics, vegetarian cooking, playing the clarinet, work/life balance for physicians, wine, writing poetry. While it’s fun to be around so many other people who share similar interests, it’s also nice to hear about something very cool, yet totally different. In return, I’m excited to learn more about my fellow Trainees and their interests. Excuse me, but I have to keep reading The Mysteries of Udolpho to prepare for a conversation about Gothic literature.

Saturday, June 19, 2010

Adjusting

We’ve just finished the first official week of training and I’m exhausted. In order to turn one class of Trainees who entered with various skills into a class, my in-country training consists of many hours of language, security, medical and other classes combined with family homestays. There are some very beneficial aspects to this arrangement: I learn several new things a day and have a resource for dealing with my host country’s climate and culture. Each day feels like a day and a half, starting at 6:30 am when I take my bucket shower and get ready for breakfast. This is becoming more challenging as I get more acclimated and no longer wake up as early as possible to escape the pool of sweat that has formed on my bed. Several of the host families know each other and there are a few clusters spread throughout the city, making it convenient to visit my friends. This weekend I have some light homework and household chores to do (laundry), but it’ll be nice to decompress for awhile before the cycle starts over next week. Still, I remember some of those long lonely afternoons when I first moved to France and would much rather be engaged and active.

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Arrival

Sorry it’s been awhile since posting, but I’ve been pretty busy moving around the world. After arriving in Philadelphia for staging, I checked into my hotel and set out to explore the city. I wandered around a beautiful park and ate a delightful dinner at Cosi’s, which doesn’t exist au Kansas. Upon returning to the hotel, I met my roommate B. I must admit, I was a little nervous about who my fellow stagiares would be. My anxieties were relieved once B and I started comparing life stories and things we had packed for the trip. Le lendemain, we went to Independence [square/hall/park] and saw the Liberty Bell through the museum’s window rather than waiting 45 minutes in line. Staging itself was rather uneventful – we met each other briefly, talked about the Peace Corps goals, and went out for dinner/drinks later. I volunteered to be a group leader and was responsible for getting all 20+ of us on the bus to the airport (some stagings have over 50 participants!). Our flights from JFK to Capital City via Paris went off without a hitch and I was able to watch “Tout Ce Qui Brille,” “Nine,” and “Inglorious Basterds.” Once in country, I met with staff from country headquarters, took a language placement test (Describe the oil spill disaster in French. Seriously), and got to know my classmates better. We are now at the training site and I’m so excited. I’m living with a very nice host family and no longer have to lug my stuff around all the time. Speaking French, being able to eat with one’s hands, and not being to weirded out by using a pump instead of a faucet will go along way to cultural adjustment. Of course, I’m now able to devote more time to studying my national language – personal growth never stops!

Sunday, June 6, 2010

Chicago

I’ve visited the Windy City many times for des raisons diverses: layovers during international travel, family vacations, official business. Today, while searching for the right terminal at O’Hare Airport, I stumbled upon a gorgeous exhibition of art. Backlit by the beautiful summer sunshine, the artwork created by local high school students added a punch of color to a rather dreary day of traveling. At first I reflected upon the impetus behind the project: to provide quality creative and stimulating opportunities to promote increased engagement in school and community affairs. Dazzled by the floating prisms, I nearly missed seeing the giant dinosaur skeleton by the Field Museum kiosk. My thoughts turned to friends and family: my former coworker (current friend) L who did her undergrad in the city, R who’ll arrive soon to work with medical outreach clinics, P who’ll search for law school lodgings, Mom who wants to take a short vacation with relatives. Though I’ve never lived in Illinois, whenever I’m in Chicago, I know that I’m (almost) home.

Saturday, June 5, 2010

Intro

Salaamaalekuum! It’s the day before my departure for Burkina Faso and I’m surprisingly unambivalent in my delight. Yesterday was full of anticipation and worries, which were not helped by watching “Free Zone” starring Natalie Portman. It’s a wonderful film, but looking at the desolate Jordanian landscape and listening to the animated conversations in languages I don’t speak reminded me of what the first few days on my new adventure may feel like. Thankfully, we ended the evening with a screening of “2 Days in Paris” written by Julie Deply. A light-hearted story about a bilingual française and her bumbling American boyfriend, this film reminded me of the joys of living abroad: the new experiences, the unexpected cultural interpretations. I’ll spend a few days in Philadelphia for staging before flying off to the other side of the world. I wonder what my fellow trainees are like: their motivations for applying, their interests in science and Africa, how our varied personalities will coalesce to form a unit or clash to cause divisions. As for me, I’m just excited to discover the unknown.
PS PCV refers to my future identity as a Peace Corps Volunteer. Until August, when I'm officially inducted, I'm known as a trainee. SVT refers to Sciences de la Vie et de la Terre (combined biology/earth science) which I'll hopefully be teaching.