Some of the highlights of my first day in country:
- A fun last night in DC. Hot wings and Karaoke with PCP (Peace Corps Panama)
- A quick and painless transition from Hotel to Airport.
- A random upgrade to first class!
- Hot food served on both flights. Thanks Copa airlines!
- Perfect weather In Nicaragua. Hot, but not stifling, smothering heat AND there was a nice breeze.
- A warm welcome at the airport from in-country staff and current volunteers.
- Staying in a resort-like hotel for the weekend.
- A relatively quick overview of the schedule for the weekend.
- Lounging poolside in the afternoon sun chatting with corps members about their past travel experiences.
- Finding out I have a birthday buddy in the Group!
- A delicious first dinner in Nicaragua.
- Comfy Beds AND Hot Showers.
After all this, my thoughts were, if this is Peace Corps…count me in!
The second day was a bit more down to business. We discussed various topics such as safety and security, expectations for training, and the specifics of our PC assignment. They also gave us a few goodies: A first aid kit, a diarrhea treatment kit, 15 reference/informational books and instruction manuals related to our assignment, a huge binder for training materials, and a mosquito net (its green!). We also had language testing, medical interviews, and took care of administrative tasks. It was kind of a busy day.
On our third day in country, we were assigned to our training groups and given survival spanish classes. My spanish language ability fell somewhere around or above intermediate-mid. I'll be placed in Dolores with 3 other trainees for the next three months. Dolores is near Jinotepe, a bigger city. Tomorrow morning we head off to meet our host families. I have 2 kids in my family: a 15 yr old and a 5 yr old. So excited!
It might be a while before I can post again.
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