Estoy aqui!!

Hello all!

I have made it and am alive and well (No pops, I have not been abducted)!! If anyone ever needs to leave me a voicemail, just dial the magic jack... (513)334-8852 then dial the account number 0101115569.. otherwise, email works great.

We are in to week one of PST (pre-service training) which consists of lots and lots of language training and culture immersion with our new families. This has all been such a whirlwind of adventures since arriving for staging In Arlington, it was pretty amazing last Saturday to set all of my stuff down (plus the million and one other things Peace Corps gave us, such as my new handy mosquito net!) and look around the house that would my home for the next three months. I am living with a Nicaraguan family in Dolores, a pueblo of the department Corazo. Total immersion is the Peace Corps way of language and culture training, and that definitely what is happening now.

Here is new family! Donna Anita, her daughter Johanna and Johanna's 5 month old baby Hency...

This is only some of them, there is also Fernando, Henry, Fernanda, Gabriella, and the many other family members that are constantly coming by and introducing themselves and staying for some elementary conversations with me, which I greatly appreciate. It is me and two other "esperantes" (hopeful Volunteers) in Dolores, Natalie and Carly. We meet with our language facilitator every day for Spanish classes, where we have some informal classroom time and then explore the community in search of places and people for our health seminars, or "charlas." Training is full, full, full of information, meeting people, and establishing ourselves as part of this community, so I can't wait to get back to you with more to tell! Wish me luck!!

...chilling at the Holiday Inn

..is exactly what I'm doing right now. After an hour long battle with the TomTom in DC traffic, the Schafer crew made it to the Holiday Inn of Arlington, VA. Hooray!

We left Cape Cod bright and early this morning, I was sad to see it go but super excited to see my Aunt Anne, and cousins Sean, Rebecca, Dillon, and Celia. I hadn't been on the Cape in about 5 years, and man, have my little cousins Dillon (11) and Celia (8) grown since then. Dillon and I are about the same height, totally not cool. I just tried to upload a picture of a beautiful sunset over Martha's Vineyard but I failed.. So I'll leave it on that. I have some last important phone calls to make while I've still got a US cell phone, some final packing to do, and then I'll attempt to get a solid night's rest for tomorrow. I'm doing a birthday brunch with the fam, followed by an 8 hour orientation where I'll meet the approx. 20 other Peace Corps Volunteers that will be headed down to Nicaragua with me on Wednesday. Nighty night.

It's finally that time!!

     
       As I prepared to embark on a two year service with the Peace Corps, I thought that nothing would be more appropriate than this blog to keep my friends and family informed of the trials and tribulations that accompany  a Volunteer's life. Next Wednesday, January 11, I will be leaving the United States and flying to Nicaragua, peace out America!

                      A sign I saw in the Baltimore airport... had to capture the moment

       Joining the Peace Corps was an aspiration that floated around in my head throughout high school, and surfaced during my senior year of college at UM, which is when I began the application. It took about a year from the time I hit "submit" for the entire process to occur; first from the application to interview, then to nomination and medical review (which was a tedious, tedious prcess), to eventual placement. I found out in July while visiting my my big brother Dean in Turkey that  I was officially a Peace Corps invitee, and what a relief it was! I was terrified that with the government budget cuts, world peace would be the first thing to go.

       However, it was not (yay!), and I was officially invited in July to Nicaragua to work with the Nicaraguan Ministry of Health to promote community health. A big emphasis is being put on reducing HIV/AIDS, as it has increased in Nicaragua from .66 per 100,000 to 13.3 per 100,000 over the last 14 years (1987-2011). I have a general idea of my job title, but am really excited to see what specifically I will be doing in the field of healthcare. Before going to Nicaragua, I will first attend a "staging" event in Arlington, Virginia, on January 10- my birthday! What an appropriate 22nd birthday activity. Although staging is not until next Tuesday, today is the day I have officially said goodbye to Rutherfordton, the town in which I grew up and has become my home again after graduation between travel destinations, such a NYC, Yellowstone, Istanbul, Ohio, and of course, Miami. Rutherfordton has it's endearing "small town friendly" qualities, such as the wonderful friends that I grew up with that I said goodbye to today, and I although I'm excited about this personal adventure, I will miss them dearly.

                                                       Ben and me at my graduation, May 2011

       Peace Corps emphasizes the importance of enjoying the company of those closest to you before beginning service, and I have to agree with the importance. I am so grateful for the time that I have gotten to spend getting to know my parents on a peer level, we are practically bff since in Rutherfordton, there isn't much else to do on a Saturday night then go to your father's work party.

                                                    70s rager with the parents
     
       Seriously though, as slow of a time as it is in Rutherfordton, it has been an invaluable experience to me which I will cherish forever; it has been a time of enriching my relationships with my parents, family members, and others that I love most. I will be extremely sad to be so far away from all of these people, but I know that those most important to me with always be in my life, regardless of my location. I will keep you posted on my whereabouts once I get to Cape Cod (where Mom, Dad, David and I will be visiting our wonderful cousins Sean, Rebecca and their kids Dillon and Celia for a few days), or Arlington for Staging, or perhaps Nicaragua? The unknown factor is a bit intimidating to me, all I can say is thank you to the people that have given me their love and support, I love you, and remember, it's not goodbye, it's see you later. ;)

Talk to you soon!