Continuing the tradition of awesome song lyrics...
So I am at a hotel in DC with fellow PC folks, about 30 plus of us total, all headed to Madagascar. We had a long day of lectures and listening to rules and such, and getting to know people. But it was fun, if exhausting. I probably won't be posting again for a while, so make sure to send me REAL MAIL so I can respond. I certainly won't have email access for the first few months. And I'd love to hear from you, old school style (aka letters).
Also, thanks to all my friends for making the sendoffs (multiple weeks) so fun for me. And thanks to all who chipped in to get me all geared up for my adventure. I appreciate it all more than you can know. You should all know that I am bringing myself to Madagascar, but all of you are coming with me in spirit. Thanks again, and I'll check back in as soon as I can.
Peace,
Monday, February 18, 2008
Sunday, February 10, 2008
But as the eagle leaves the nest, it's got so far to go...
Well, I finally got around to putting up one of these fancy blog thingies. I figured I'd get as much information up here as possible before I left. Hopefully this will help keep everyone informed (or, as informed as possible) during my adventures abroad. Let's get to it with some frequently asked questions:
Q- Where are you going? When do you leave? What will you be doing?
A- I am going to Madagascar, an island on the south-west coast of Africa. I leave for a two day orientation on Feb. 18th, but it's in DC so I don't actually leave the country until Feb. 20th. After a 15 hour flight, I spend the night of the 21st in Johannesburg, South Africa. Then it's another 3 hours on the 22nd to the capital of Madagascar, Antananarivo. I will be working as an Agroforestry volunteer, which could include a variety of projects that I probably won't know more about until I complete training.
Q- Madagascar, that's a big island (fourth largest in the world!). Where will you be? What is the climate like there?
A- For the first three months I will be training with the other volunteers in a village near the city of Mantasoa, east of the capital. After that time I will be placed in a permanent site somewhere in Madagascar, but I won't know where until my training. The climate in the country can vary greatly, so I should know more once I learn about my permanent site.
Q- Will you have internet access?
A- No. At least, not regularly. I likely won't have electricity, let alone internet, as I will almost definitely be located in a small village.
Q- So, if no internet, why set up a blog?
A- Well, when I do have access, I will update this blog with all sorts of crazy stories and hilarious anecdotes. Hopefully I will be in a bigger city every few months and can relate some tales at that time. Maybe I'll even be able to upload some pictures of lemurs and geckos.
Q- OK, but how do we keep in touch with you?
A- Letters! I know, so 20th century. But I would love to hear from you all and will respond as well. The down side is mail can take a long time to arrive. From the Madagascar Peace Corps guide: "Mail takes a minimum of two to three weeks to arrive in Madagascar. Some mail may simply not arrive (fortunately this is not a frequent occurrence, but it does happen). Advise your family and friends to number their letters and to include “Airmail” and “Par Avion” on their envelopes."
But still, I would love it! Here's my address for the first three months during training:
Chris Planicka, PCT Peace Corps
Corps de la Paix
B.P. 12091
Poste Zoom Ankorondrano
101 Antananarivo
Madagascar
After I complete training and go from a PCT to a PCV, I'll update you all with my new address.
Q- Go from a what to a what?
A- A PCT to a PCV. Peace Corps is full of abbreviations and ultra-hip lingo, but I'll do my best to explain them all. So for starters, here are a few common ones:
PCT: Peace Corps Trainee, my status during training
PCV: Peace Corps Volunteer, what I am hoping to become at the completion of my training.
CD: Country Director, the head Peace Corps official in Madagascar
COS: Close of Service, the end of service in Madagascar (27 months from now, basically, unless I were to sign up for more time)
Tana: Apparently the term everyone in Madagascar (not just PCVs) use for the capital, Antananarivo. Makes sense, if you're into that whole 'brevity' thing...
Those are the few I could think of now, I'm sure there will be more as time goes on.
Q- What language do they speak in Madagascar?
A- Malagasy. Malagasy, French and English are the official languages, but Malagasy is the one that is used by everyone. Malagasy is also the term used for the people of Madagascar. I'll see if I can get some frequently used expressions up here to give you an idea of what Malagasy is like.
Well that's a good start. I'll put up some more information over this last week here in the States as I think of it. So take a look around at the links, they are pretty informative. The exception might be my "other links" section, which is really more like a bookmarks section for me while I'm gone (gotta keep up on my Irish!) and makes it easier for me.
I spent a lot of time looking at various blogs of the PCVs in Madagascar currently. You can find them all by looking at the Archive of Peace Corps Madagascar blogs in the right navigation bar. In particular, this blog gave me the cool idea of a Madagascar clock and also includes some great pictures. These blogs give some idea of what I will be experiencing.
To close, a few videos found on youtube about Peace Corps and Madagascar: a little inspirational (propaganda?) PC ad, a compilation video of Peace Corps Madagascar (very cool song) and a music video about a PCV leaving a Malagasy national who had fallen in love with her. Oh, and of course this classic video.
Until next time...
Q- Where are you going? When do you leave? What will you be doing?
A- I am going to Madagascar, an island on the south-west coast of Africa. I leave for a two day orientation on Feb. 18th, but it's in DC so I don't actually leave the country until Feb. 20th. After a 15 hour flight, I spend the night of the 21st in Johannesburg, South Africa. Then it's another 3 hours on the 22nd to the capital of Madagascar, Antananarivo. I will be working as an Agroforestry volunteer, which could include a variety of projects that I probably won't know more about until I complete training.
Q- Madagascar, that's a big island (fourth largest in the world!). Where will you be? What is the climate like there?
A- For the first three months I will be training with the other volunteers in a village near the city of Mantasoa, east of the capital. After that time I will be placed in a permanent site somewhere in Madagascar, but I won't know where until my training. The climate in the country can vary greatly, so I should know more once I learn about my permanent site.
Q- Will you have internet access?
A- No. At least, not regularly. I likely won't have electricity, let alone internet, as I will almost definitely be located in a small village.
Q- So, if no internet, why set up a blog?
A- Well, when I do have access, I will update this blog with all sorts of crazy stories and hilarious anecdotes. Hopefully I will be in a bigger city every few months and can relate some tales at that time. Maybe I'll even be able to upload some pictures of lemurs and geckos.
Q- OK, but how do we keep in touch with you?
A- Letters! I know, so 20th century. But I would love to hear from you all and will respond as well. The down side is mail can take a long time to arrive. From the Madagascar Peace Corps guide: "Mail takes a minimum of two to three weeks to arrive in Madagascar. Some mail may simply not arrive (fortunately this is not a frequent occurrence, but it does happen). Advise your family and friends to number their letters and to include “Airmail” and “Par Avion” on their envelopes."
But still, I would love it! Here's my address for the first three months during training:
Chris Planicka, PCT Peace Corps
Corps de la Paix
B.P. 12091
Poste Zoom Ankorondrano
101 Antananarivo
Madagascar
After I complete training and go from a PCT to a PCV, I'll update you all with my new address.
Q- Go from a what to a what?
A- A PCT to a PCV. Peace Corps is full of abbreviations and ultra-hip lingo, but I'll do my best to explain them all. So for starters, here are a few common ones:
PCT: Peace Corps Trainee, my status during training
PCV: Peace Corps Volunteer, what I am hoping to become at the completion of my training.
CD: Country Director, the head Peace Corps official in Madagascar
COS: Close of Service, the end of service in Madagascar (27 months from now, basically, unless I were to sign up for more time)
Tana: Apparently the term everyone in Madagascar (not just PCVs) use for the capital, Antananarivo. Makes sense, if you're into that whole 'brevity' thing...
Those are the few I could think of now, I'm sure there will be more as time goes on.
Q- What language do they speak in Madagascar?
A- Malagasy. Malagasy, French and English are the official languages, but Malagasy is the one that is used by everyone. Malagasy is also the term used for the people of Madagascar. I'll see if I can get some frequently used expressions up here to give you an idea of what Malagasy is like.
Well that's a good start. I'll put up some more information over this last week here in the States as I think of it. So take a look around at the links, they are pretty informative. The exception might be my "other links" section, which is really more like a bookmarks section for me while I'm gone (gotta keep up on my Irish!) and makes it easier for me.
I spent a lot of time looking at various blogs of the PCVs in Madagascar currently. You can find them all by looking at the Archive of Peace Corps Madagascar blogs in the right navigation bar. In particular, this blog gave me the cool idea of a Madagascar clock and also includes some great pictures. These blogs give some idea of what I will be experiencing.
To close, a few videos found on youtube about Peace Corps and Madagascar: a little inspirational (propaganda?) PC ad, a compilation video of Peace Corps Madagascar (very cool song) and a music video about a PCV leaving a Malagasy national who had fallen in love with her. Oh, and of course this classic video.
Until next time...
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