Traditional Macedonian Costume

Image from the web: http://www.ethnicdance.net/ethnicmusic.html

This is only ONE KIND of traditional Macedonian costume, but it is indicative of what they look like. Each village and community (and other smaller ethnic groups, such as the Albanians) have there own costume, with different kinds and colors. Cool huh?

Happy Halloween!

Mac 10 had a Halloween Party that I organized. No one had made any definite plans, so I decided that someone had to just do it. I tried to get some input from the others and then announced that we would meet at a local bar in Veles at 7:30pm on Saturday night. I encouraged people to bring something scary, as well as chocolate and candy and that there would be a prize for the scariest thing. I also shared some of my Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. Dennis brought himself, as a Republican, which was pretty funny. Several of the PCT’s in Veles made carved gourds jack-o-lanterns, since they don’t exactly have pumpkins here. They were really well made. But what took the cake was Luke’s video on his digital camera. That day, several groups had visited other communities of fellow PCT’s. Our group in our village hosted the group from another nearby town. Two other groups had visited each other that day and it just so happened that a family picked that day to slaughter their large pig. So several in the group watched it and Luke videoed it on his digital camera. When I watched the video I felt nauseous. I don’t think I could’ve watched it if I could’ve heard the sound over the loud music at the bar. The video was pretty disturbing and he got the popular vote for first place (but was nice enough to share the prize of chocolate candies with everyone).

Other than us crazy ex-pat Americans, Halloween is not celebrated in Macedonia.

One down, twenty-six to go!

It's hard to believe that I've now been in Macedonia one month exactly. So much has happened in such a short time. It's also incredible to think of how much of the language I've aquired in this time, although I still struggle to have anything other than really basic conversations and I still am the slowest in my advanced class!

Today was one of my practicum days, when I go into Veles to go to the elementary school and work with a Macedonian English teacher. I've finally realized why I do not exactly get excited about or look forward to my practicum teaching days. I have no idea what is going to happen before I go to these classes. Being unprepared, especially for teaching, goes against every teaching experience I've ever had and is something that I detest. The reason for this is that my practicum teacher (who I like on a personal level) gives me little to no direction on what I am supposed to do in these lessons. Today turned out to be "ask Jesse whatever you want to" for the students, which was very amusing and funny, and I didn't mind, for the most part.

I will say that kids are kids are kids everywhere.

But the same is definately NOT true for schools and teachers.

Today my teacher whacked one of the kids on the head (I missed what he was doing, I'm sure he was misbehaving). And yesterday I witnessed a physical fight in the hallways. Despite several teachers and lots of kids witnessing it, and the teachers yelling at them to stop and making a half hearted attempt to split them up, there were no consequences for the two who were fighting, which blows me away!

The kids today were curious about what America and Seattle are like and what kinds of things I am interested in, like music, food, hobbies, etc. They wanted to know what the nightlife in America is like and what my impressions of Macedonia are, as well as if I have a car and a boyfriend. They asked what the curfew for young people in America is. They asked me what sports I like, if I like french fries, who my favorite actor is, what kinds of clothes I like to wear and not wear and how old I am. They asked how many US states I've been to and what the prices are in America.

I have a site placement interview on October 31st. This is in regard to where I'll be placed for my 2 years of service. They'll be asking me questions about what kind of location I'd like to be in and the kind of work I want to do. I'll ask them lots of questions regarding this particular assignment of teaching homeless Roma youth near Skopje. The more I think about it, the more I am interested, even if it is not everything I want. It may be a very difficult, frustrating experience, but then I didn't join the Peace Corps so that everything would be nice and easy and simple.

A possible prospect assignment

This afternoon I met with some Peace Corps staff and learned of an interesting possible assignment. It is rare to learn of specific assignments before placement interviews (which don't take place until October 31st), it is like classified information about where and what specific assignments are available. However, from word of mouth and talking with PC staff I had heard a few things. For example, that there are no TEFL placements this year in Skopje or Veles (which disappointed me because I'd been thinking that I'd like to be in one of those sites).

When I mentioned that I'm interested in working with street youth as a secondary project (TEFL being my primary one), I learned about a placement that really piqued my interest. There is a placement for teaching at a school for street kids. I know that this would be a very difficult assignment. It is working with the Roma population, who are an ethnic group where the people are, generally speaking, poor and disadvantaged. I also know that the location would be a suburb of Skopje, the capital (pop approx 600,000), which would also have it's advantages. I don't have any other specifics, I'll have to wait until our site placement interviews. This really sounds like something up my alley, something that I would really like to do.

So, I'm very jazzed right now about this prospect, it is going to be difficult not to get my hopes up too high. Besides, the Peace Corps has already been teaching me all about expectations...so far, with my track record, most of my expectations have been challenged. For example, I was originally nominated for Asia. So I had 9 months of expectations that I'd go to Asia, and hopes of going to China or Thailand. I was also nominated to leave in June. Instead I was sent to Eastern Europe (Macedonia), and left in September. I had also had hopes of being in Veles for training, instead I got a little village, but fortunately it is nearby to the town. Fortunately, it has all worked out for the best and I have no resentments about all of it now. But it really is a reminder to me not to future trip, which I'm so good at doing! :p

Oh, and by the way, it appears as though I may have been able to adjust my schedule so that I don't have to teach at 7:30am anymore (I hope). Regardless of the time, fortunately I only have student teaching twice a week, and the schedule switches week to week whether it is morning or afternoon. Kind of strange huh?

An Unusual Americanka

My weekend was good but it went by too fast. Some of the other volunteers and myself went on a little hike on Saturday, we walked up the nearby "mountain" (large hill) that our village huddles next to. It was soooo nice to get out of the village, get a little break, some fresh air and sun and everything. One of my favorite moments was when I discovered a praying mantis and was able to pick it up and get some photos of it. I've explained to my host family and other locals that it is unusual for American girls to like insects and frogs like I do. I wanted to explain that because it seems that a lot of what we volunteers do and how we are is interpreted to represent all of the US. My host grandmother thought that since I do not eat much bread that all Americans do not like to eat bread.

I just finished my second day at the local elementary school. Other than having to be there at the awful hour of 7:30am, it is all good. I am hoping that I will not have to go to the school that early on a regular basis, but it doesn't look promising. I have to get up at 6:30am in order to get a taxi there on time. And as many of you know, I am not a morning person!

The other thing that my family thinks is strange is that I do not like to drink whole milk with a dallop of honey in it, yet I'll add sugar to my yogurt (since it is plain and soupy). They don't understand why us volunteers don't like the cheese, why we want to spend time alone or why we don't feel the need to spend the entire day having "nagosti"; hanging out having tea and goodies at each others houses.

I've also had to tell my family and locals that I am unusual in the amount of traveling I've done. Even amongst the other PC volunteers, I've been surprised to find out that I really am a kind of freak about traveling. I know it's not that common for Americans to travel as much as I have. And I'm not trying to boast here, I feel a little self conscious about it.

I also am probably driving my host mom crazy because I don't give myself a full half-hour to eat breakfast and she thinks I'm going to get sick because I don't dry my hair after a shower (one of the advantages to having short hair).

Well, this can all be politely chuckled about and that is fine. My family is really sweet. The other day I also was able to watch a football (soccer) match on TV with my host brother. Oh, that's another thing, an americanka interested in sports? I think my host brother and dad can adjust to that just fine.

An Afterthought about the PC

Another thought about the Peace Corps.

I've talked to a few fellow trainees about the Peace Corps and they reminded me of a few things that I'd forgotten to mention in a former post...

The PC program only goes to countries where it is *invited* to work in. The countries themselves request that PC volunteers come assist them in certain areas, usually education, business, health, environment and agriculture. At that point, before volunteers are sent over, the PC Staff will meet with the government officials to find out the best way for PCV human resources to be best utilized and helpful to that country.

Peace Corps works with local people in the communities, so it is starting from a grass roots level. Each PC volunteer has a counterpart, a Host Country National, that they collaborate with, so it is a team effort for things to be worked on and improved together.

Peace Corps provides cross cultural training, so that we, as volunteers can collaborate with the locals with a sensitivity to the cultural differences that occur, often on a subtle or invisible level.

It can be argued, at times, that local people can be trained to do the same job that a PC volunteer does. If I felt that were true in my case, then I would see if there is another way that I can be useful because I don't want to put a local person out of a job, especially since unemployment is very high in Macedonia. However, being a native English speaker is not something a local person can provide. In fact, when I met with my teacher today, she asked a few questions about saying some phrases in English and receptive to working with me, which I am really grateful for.

Adjusting to the adjustments

Milomeay!
I met my Macedonian teacher today, the one that I will be working with. She is the same age as I am and she is a good teacher. I like her and her classes a lot and I feel so much more at ease about my student teaching. It turns out that she teaches middle school, which at first I wasn't crazy about (6th, 7th & 8th), however, the good thing is that they have a couple of years of English under their belt. And since I'm really limited in my Macedonian, that will make it easier for me to communicate with and to teach. The kids are fascinated with us, we are probably the first Americans they have ever seen in real life.

Now it is the weekend (yay!) I am ready for a break. Even though I've been here for 2 weeks I feel like I've been here for about 2 months. I think it is because my days are jammed pack.

Every day I have 4 hours of Macedonian language lessons with the 4 other volunteers in my village. Then twice a week we'll go to Veles for our student teaching practicm. Then at least once a week, sometimes twice we'll have Peace Corps meetings (either TEFL training or medical meetings, cross cultural meetings or something like that). And then perhaps I'll have some private tutorage for Macedonian so I can keep up with my advanced classmates! That doesn't leave me much spare time! When I do have spare time I like to go on walks with my fellow trainees in my village (which we're really limited with since the village is pretty small and often have an entourage of little kids following us everywhere), or go into Veles for internet and/or socializing.

I feel tired a lot. I'd been wondering why. Then recently I was reminded...it takes a lot of energy to adjust to everything that we've been having to adjust to! A new country, a new language, a loss of language (English), pre-service training, settling in, living with a new family, a new culture, a new job, the food, the weather, doing without the familiar comforts of home, culture shock, a loss of routine, spending time alone, not having as much privacy or independence, etc etc.

Also, yesterday, I bought my first CD of a Macedonian pop singer. It turned out to be slightly cheesy and overall, pretty good. Today I got my second, one of the most popular Macedonian singers "Toshe", who is incredibly cheesy and pretty good. The best thing about it is that both CD's have lyrics, so it will help me to learn Macedonian. As some of you know, I really got into Latino music when I was in Ecuador, and I fully expect that I'll do the same here. The music in other countries can be cheesy, but I enjoy it. The cheesier, the better! Music is one of my favorite components of other cultures.

Feeling like the Christmas Goose

Well, time is trodding along and overall things are going well. Everyday I have 4 hours of language lessons. Then sometimes we have Peace Corps meetings in Veles in the afternoon. Like today, we came into town for medical meeting where we got the rest of our vaccinations. I thought I wouldn't have to get any, but as a precaution the PC gave me a tetnus booster and Polio (which I got once as a little kid, now I should be good for life). Two shots, one in each arm. Now both my arms are sore. Oh well.

The language lessons are with the other PC volunteers in my village (there are 5 of us). My school is just next to my house, since I live off of the village square. I like my teacher a lot. The problem with my class is that as a class we are really advanced. But I'm not advanced. I'm just normal. So compared to my classmates I'm the slowest one. Well, I'm tired of being in an advanced class, I want to be in a normal class now. But that's not an option. I will probably opt to have some private tutorage with my teacher once or twice a week. At least it's free.

As for my host family, they are very sweet, but they overfeed me. I've been joking with the other PC volunteers that I think my family is trying to fatten me up for Christmas. I feel like the Christmas Goose! And then yesterday they actually weighed me! They brought me back to a storeroom where there was an old scale and they had me stand on one side while they added metal gram boxes. I know it is true that they want to fatten me up. They think that I'm just being polite when I tell them I'm full. I know that this is a common issue and it is one of the cultural differences between the US and Eastern Europe.

But I'm not having as many issues with my host families as some of the others. Some of the other host families don't give the volunteers any privacy or free time. Some of the volunteers in the Albanian community aren't getting fed very much. One gal in our village had her host grandfather pass away yesterday! The family is now all in mourning, it is really tough.

Tomorrow we start our student teaching, we are all at schools in Veles. We'll all be paired up with a local elementary teacher. I'm a little nervous, but with the way things have been going, it will probably be fine.

Last weekend one of the relatives visited and she is about my age and speaks very good English. Her name is Vane (prounounced "Van-aye"). We spent some time hanging out, she did a lot of translating. We went to the family's garden and then to their summer house on the lake. We got along really well. She is a student in Skopje. She has invited me to visit her. I am so glad to have made my first Macedonian friend!

Now I'm off to go find a CD store nearby so that I can discover the best of local Macedonian music!

Photos We've All Been Waiting For!

A local near my village.

Jesse at Stobi, a nearby archeological site, about 2000 years old.

Some members of the "fan club".

The Macedonian Alphabet.

The city of Veles with the Vardar River, view from our hotel.

My Brother is a Brat

Learning Macedonian is very interesting. The language is very unique, using a Cyrillic alphabet (and not latin based, as Spanish is). However, there are words that are similar to English or Spanish. For example, the word for "table" is "masa". The word for "brother" is "brat". The word for "dog" is "koo-chay" (which sounds a lot like one of my best friend's dog's name). The word for "small" is "malo", where the word "malo" means 'bad' in Spanish!

Although I'm not the fastest learner, I do enjoy learning other languages. I like the way the words are pronounced and roll off your tongue. Macedonian also has a rolled "r" like in Spanish. Writing it is also proving a challenge (however, learning Macedonian is not as hard as Chinese would be! As some of you know, I was originally nominated for Asia! And I learned that indeed, had I been medically cleared in time, I would have gone to teach at a university in China--I met my original Placement Officer in DC). Nevertheless, I am now very glad to be in Macedonia, learning their language.

Oh, and have I mentioned that they have Turkish toilets here? Thank goodness my host family has a western toilet, but in restaurants and in my school where I have 4 hours of language lessons every day, there is a turkish toilet (just do a google search of images to see what one looks like). And when I was in Ecuador I quickly learned that the plumbing system cannot cope with toilet paper and so therefore, the paper goes in a bin next to the toilet...well, it is the same here!

Different Schools of Fish

There are different schools of thought about the Peace Corps and what it does. Just like there are different ideas about how useful or appropriate it is for people around the world to learn English. I struggled with whether or not I wanted to become part of the US government when I personally have issues with it's foreign policy. I also struggled with the idea of teaching people in Ecuador and other countries English. I don't rejoice at the idea that English is becoming the universal language. However, that is beyond my control. What I concluded is that, while I do not believe that American culture is better than other cultures, the reality is that by learning English, people can better their lives, for example, get a better job. That is the reality, right or wrong.

Also, from my experiences in other countries and cultures, I know that to understand another culture you have to experience it to really appreciate it. There is the well known idea that you can give a man a fish or you can teach him how to fish. The Peace Corps goal is to teach him how to fish.

"In 1961, President John F. Kennedy established the Peace Corps to promote world peace and friendship. Three simple goals comprise the Peace Corps' mission:

1. Helping the people of interested countries in meeting their needs for trained men and women.
2. Helping promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of the peoples served.
3. Helping promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of all Americans."

While I don't believe that the PC is perfect or infallable I do believe that it makes a positive difference. For example, countries that the PC used to go to 20 years ago, for example, Chile, have become self sufficient to the point that PCV's don't need to go there anymore (which, of course, is also argueable, but from actually traveling to Chile and other countries such as Bolivia, I can say from what I saw with my own eyes that a country like Bolivia has a greater need for PCV's right now than Chile).

So, what I am doing in Macedonia right now is learning the language and culture. I would not have this opportunity if it wasn't for the PC. And how many of you would be learning about Macedonia if it were not for my experience here now?

I don't believe that I'm going to change the world. I don't have unrealistic goals of what the PC can do. In fact, I think that I have more to learn than what I have to teach.

The teacher becomes the student. And I am eager to learn.

My Host Family

Things continue to go well for me and I am very greatful. Friday they announced what community we would be spending our training living with a host family. There are about 5 communities in and around Veles, with one group in Veles. One community is Albanian (and Muslim), some towns are about a half hour drive away. I got a nearby town, it is like a small village very close to Veles, but the citizens don't like to be called a village, they say they are a suburb of Veles. I was disappointed at first because I wanted Veles, I didn't want a small town. After language class our group took a field trip to a nearby acheological site called Stobi. It was cool. That evening was the welcoming ceremony where we met our host families. My fellow trainees joked about it being "Free American Day. Take an American home with you. It even has all it's shots!" (immunizations)

I met my host mom Pala and my host dad Dime (dee-may). They had traditional dancing that we also joined in with. Then we packed up all our stuff and were taken home. I met my host grandma "Baba Booba", she is Dime's mother and is absolutely adorable. After they helped me take my stuff to my room the first thing they wanted to know was how old I am. As I was escorted downstairs I saw a few kids standing outside the gate and they said "What's your name?". They stood around and giggled as I answered. I thought of them as a fan club. As I sat in the kitchen some of the braver boys crept up the driveway and peeked in the doorway and repeated "What's your name?" I giggled and Pala shooed them away. Pala and Dime have two sons, both in their 20's. One of them, Loopche, now lives in Holland. The other one is named Kyrie and he is about 27. I think Pala and Booba really like having a girl around. I am really well taken care of, even babied. Plus with the language barrier I spend a lot of time smiling and shrugging my shoulders, so I really feel like a little kid.

I have my own bedroom. All the bedrooms are upstairs, the kitchen is downstairs and so is the bathroom. My only complaint is that I have to go outside to get to the bathroom. It was also raining all day Saturday, so we spend the day with our host families. It was like a day-long language lesson. My family is very sweet, they don't speak much English, but that's what I prefer anyway. Today (Sunday) we got to get a tour of our little town. The fan club was soon in tow. The kids are sooooooo cute and I learned that it is common in this culture for the kids to be overindulged. My family also owns a store that is downstairs, so the family members are often around during the day.

Tomorrow we'll start formal language lessons in town. I also know that we will have a practicum student teaching assignment that will be in Veles, so at least I know I'll be going into Veles often enough to have some internet access (like today).

Thank you all for your e-mails and keeping me up to date on your neck of the woods. I miss you all very much. I still can't believe I'm in Macedonia in the Peace Corps!!!!

(I'll also try to post some photos very soon!)

In Veles Macedonia

Zdravo! Hello!

I arrived in Macedonia with my group on Monday after almost 20 hours of traveling. We left WA DC, drove to Dulles airport in Virginia, flew out at 5:45pm on Sunday, Sept. 25th. The flight to Vienna was 9hours. Then we had a 6 hour layover in Vienna (which only had metal chairs and tile floor, which we slept on). Our hour and a half flight to Skopje Macedonia left Vienna at 3:30pm local time and we arrived at 5pm. Next took a bus to Veles (which broke down, had to wait for a new one). We got to the hotel, got our rooms, then a traditional Macedonian greeting of 2 women dressed in traditional clothes with bread that we dipped in salt and ate.

We also got a little tour of the town today. Macedonia is reminding me of a cross between Greece and Ecuador. It's beautiful, the people are friendly, the sidewalks are crooked, and the food is often fried.

We're staying at a hotel for 5 days, then this Friday we go to our host families and will stay there during our 11 weeks of training.

Things are cheap here. I guess the average Macedonian earns about $200/month. That's about what we'll make too. Internet is $1 an hour. My dinner cost me about $3 tonight.

Veles is a beautiful city, despite the pollution. It has a pop of about 40,000. I was surprised to learn that the capital city Skopje has 600,000! That is huge, a third of the country! Macedonia is about the size of Vermont, but has a pop of 2 million.

I learned that most likely I will be in a town with another PC Volunteer. That is great. I am also going to get a cell phone, as pretty much everyone else is too.

Today we had some technical training. I learned that I will be like student teaching during training. That eases my nerves too.

I am learning the language quickly. I really like it a lot. Today I learned how to say "Good Morning, Good Day, Good Night, How are you? Where is...", and count to 10.

By the way, Steve, the guy stuck in Houston, due to Hurricane Rita, arrived yesterday. Thanks for all the prayers. One cool thing, he studied at a University in Buenos Aires, so we had something in common.

Oooooooo! My favorite song in the whole world just came on here at the internet cafe.

"Where the Streets Have No Name" by U2

Love ya lots!

Prijatno! Chao!

Staging at WA DC

So I just finished Staging (really a broad overview and intro to Peace Corps) in Washington DC. I've met the rest of my team (with the exception of one, Steve, who has been stuck in Houston, trying to get here in time. Fortunately it sounds like he will get here just in time to join us as we fly out to Macedonia on Sunday). Our group has really gelled nicely, I like the other trainees a lot. We are 33 in number, being mostly caucasian, female and in their mid-20's. We have 4 older volunteers and two married couples. Geographically most are from the mid-west (Kansas, Texas and Colorado) and a few from the East Coast and Californians and me (the lone Seattle-ite).

I'm doing great. I got into WA DC late Thursday night, staying at a hotel in Georgetown. I have a roomate which is one of the gals that I got connected with via e-mail prior to coming here.

Generally speaking, staging is what I expected, sitting and listening to a lot of PC rhetoric, but it is also great to find out that others share similar anxieties and aspirations to myself and sometimes we've gotten to do some fun activities. The best part has been bonding with my fellow trainees and talking to some staging staff who have lived over in Macedonia.

I'm also discovering that many are less traveled than myself, for some this is their first time outside of the US!

One person, Todd, was previously in the PC in Uzbekistan for about a year and a half when the program closed. So he has chosen to join a new program, that one being with us in Macedonia.

Sunday is when we fly out of DC. Our flight is at 5:45pm local time. We have about a 6 hour layover in Vienna. Our flight from DC is almost 9 hours long. We arrive in Skopje, Macedonia (the capital city of 600,000) at 3:30pm on Monday. (Then we'll take a bus to the town of Veles, 45 minutes away, where we'll spend our 3 months for training).

I expect that they'll be some internet access in Veles.

I'm getting really excited about going to Macedonia. I know it is where I'm meant to be.

It is hot and humid in DC. I'm so glad that Macedonia won't have the humidity they have here in DC. I haven't had the time to sightsee, but that's ok, I'm more focused on the Peace Corps right now anyway. However, the last thing that some of us trainees did Saturday night was go to the (peaceful) anti-war rally where people all over the country have converged, including Cindy Sheean. It seems strange that the last thing I'm doing here in the US is going to an anti-war rally, esp since I'm now a part of the Peace Corps and a part of the US government.

I'll leave you with some interesting PC facts...

There are currently about 7 thousand PCV's (PC Volunteers) around the world serving in 71 countries.

Mexico is the most recent country to invite PCV's.
Ghana (Africa) was the first country to accept PCV's.

1961 is when the PC program began, thanks to JFK (the prez who said, "Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.")

About 178 thousand people have completed their service since the program began. 6 of them are currently members of congress.

58% of current volunteers are women
10% are married volunteers (serving with their spouse)
6% are over the age of 50

The oldest volunteer to have ever served was 82 years old!

There are currently 57 volunteers in Macedonia.

Jesse vs. Jill

Some of you have noticed that I have two names here, and most of you who are reading this know me as Jill. Well, I thought about it all summer and after long consideration, I decided to go by a new name and I chose Jesse.

In Ecuador the "j" letter has a "y" sound, so many Ecuadorians would call me "Heel" or "Geel". Upon first exposure to the Macedonian language I was under the same impression that the "j" letter has a "y" sound. I decided I didn't really want to be called "yill", so I started thinking of a new name to go by (but I'm not changing anything legally mind you). I thought about a few names that don't start with "J" for awhile and then one day I found out that Macedonian does have a "j" sound, although it's a different letter. So, again after consideration, I decided upon the name "Jesse".

Those of you back home can still call me Jill. Don't worry about that. Now, after I've gone by "Jesse" for two years, I may change my mind, but that's another story!

Questions I Get Asked About Macedonia

I've been surprised at what people know about Maceodonia, the land of Phillip and Alexander the Great as well as Mother Teresa's birthplace. It's also mentioned in the Bible as a place where Paul preached. It has a Cyrillic alphabet, it's langage is more like Bulgarian or Russian than Greek. In the past Peace Corps volunteers were known to live in mud huts with dirt floors and no electricity and plumbing and no other English speaking person for many miles around. I guess people are imagining I'm gonna go live in a village like "Fiddler on the Roof" back at the turn of the century or something. But times have changed. Eastern Europe is jokingly called "The Posh Corps" in PC circles, apparently having a higher than average standard of living than other regions the PC goes to.

In the past before going to a country, I get a lot of questions. Sometimes they are interesting, funny and downright stupid. For everyone's amusement, I am keeping a list of questions that I get asked. I will try to have it prioritized by listing them by frequency (the first question gets asked the most, etc). And then when I arrive in Macedonia, I'll have a follow-up list of questions that they ask me about the United States. For example, when I was in Ecuador one of my good friends asked me what kind of music is played on the buses in the US? I had to stop laughing before I could answer her :D

So, after telling someone that I am going to Macedonia with the Peace Corps, here are their questions (and my answers):

1. Where's that? (in Eastern Europe, North of Greece)
2. What language do they speak? (Macedonian & Albanian)
3. Is that like Greek? (Macedonian is a Cyrillic language, similar to Russian & Bulgarian. It uses symbols similar to Russian and Greek)
4. Do you speak Macedonian? (Not yet, I'm learning a few basic words right now. I'll be learning it during training)
5. Is it safe? (Depends on how you define "safe". Is New York City "safe"? Is Seattle "safe"? The point is, be aware of your surroundings and you're fine. I don't walk around downtown Seattle by myself in the middle of the night. Or I could get hit by a car crossing the street in front of my house, it's not gonna stop me from leaving my house.)
6. What is the country like? (Varied, beautiful, mountainous. I recently learned that the country converges on three tectonic plates!)
7. What is the climate like? (More varied than the Pacific Northwest: hot summers, cool winters, average temp is 50F)
8. Who lives there? (Macedonians)
9. What do your parents/family think of all this? (They are very supportive and understanding.)10. Where in Macedonia will you be serving? (I don't know yet).
11. Where in Macedonia will you be living? (I'll live with a host family during training, the first three months. After that, I'll be placed in a city or village to serve my two years and live with either a host family, or hopefully get my own apartment.)
12. What is their currency? (Denar)
13. What are the people like? (I hear that they are friendly and hospitable, I'll let you know when I get there).
14. What percentage of them speak English? (I don't know).
15. Do they have a president? (Yes, they have a president).
16. What kind of government do they have? (a Republic; parliamentary democracy)
17. Is it a part of the European Union? (Not yet, but it is in the process of joining).
18. Is it a poor country? (Compared to the US, yes. The Peace Corps works in developing countries)
19. Are the people there black, like they are in, say Ethiopia? (no, I think they are more like the Greeks).
20. What do they eat over there? (A lot of meat, fish, lamb, vegetables, and coffee--yay!)
21. Are you gonna take your cat with you? (No, my parents will take care of him while I'm gone).
22. Are you gonna take your cell phone with you? (No.)
23. Do they have electricity? (Yes. They also have plumbing!)
24. Aren't they all Muslims over there? (No, the predominant religion is Eastern Orthodox. However, about 20% are Muslim, most of them also Albanian).
25. Is it a backwards country? (Well, it's a developing country, so it's not as advanced as the US, but I don't think they'd like to be thought of as backwards. I mean, they have things like electricity, plumbing, roads and internet cafes.)
26. Is it a primitive country? (Well, they have plumbing and electricity and CD's and most things that you can buy here, so, no I don't think so. But perhaps there are some villages that don't have all the things that we do. The issue will be more about availability and how affordable they are.)
27. Is it a civilized country? (No, they are cannibals who eat the brains of their enemies).

My Itinerary & What You Can Do

Wow! My departure date is almost here! I've been so busy trying to get ready...packing, getting supplies, spending time with friends and family, finalizing business & finances, sorting out last minute details, and trying to keep my sanity!

Yes, I'm nervous and excited and freaking out and everything in between. I keep reminding myself that these feelings are all normal...

Here is my itinerary...(times are all local)

Thursday, Sept. 22nd 1:15pm Depart Seattle 9pm Arrive WA DC

Friday, Sept. 23rd 2pm Peace Corps Orientation begins in WA DC. I'll meet the rest of my Macedonian PCV's (Peace CorpsVolunteers). Our group is the 10th group to thecountry, hence we are called "MAC 10"

Sunday, Sept. 24th, 5:45pm Depart WA DC flyingAustrian airlines to Vienna, arrive 8:40am, layover inVienna, depart 1:45pm

Monday, Sept. 25th, 3:30pm Arrive in Skopje, Macedonia

Training will be held in the town of Veles, about 20miles from Skopje, the capital city of Macedonia.Training is 3 months, during that time I'll be living with a host family. In January 2006 I'll start my 2 year service in a townor city in the country, to be determined, doing English Teacher Training.

I believe there is 10 hours difference in time between Seattle and Macedonia. At least, that is until Daylight Savings Time ends.

Some people have asked about sending mail. My reply is yes please. However, I'm not sure about receiving packages during training. If you'd like my mailing address in Macedonia, please e-mail me for it. Others have asked what else they can do. My reply is to pray or send good thoughts and energy, if that is your inclination. What else? Be your sweet selves. Feel free to share this website with others who you think may be interested. And thanks again for all your love and support!


Here are some quotes that friends and family have shared with me this last week...

"With all the arguments, pro and con, for going to the moon, no one suggested that we should do it to look at the Earth. But that may, in fact, have been the most important reason of all."
--Joseph P. Allan, former astronaut.

This Great Lesson
"We can never make the world safe by fighting. Every nation must learn that the people of all nations are children of God, and must share the wealth of the world. You may say this is impracticable, far away, can never be accomplished, but it is the work we are appointed to do. Sometime, somehow, somewhere, we must ever teach this great lesson."
--Olympia Brown

A Gringa Like Me

On Thursday, Aug. 26th,2005 I finally submitted my application to the Peace Corps. Part of the application is to write a couple of essays. One of them asks to describe a cross-cultural experience. Well, that was easy, I just took my last journal entry that I wrote while I was still in South America. I don't have an exact date, but I believe it was written last August 2003, in Cuenca. So, here it is:
--------------------------------------
A Gringa Like Me

As much as I hate to admit it, I don’t have all the answers. Over the years I’ve tried to sate my thirst for travel only to finally accept my addiction to it. I cannot fully explain what about travel makes it so enticing and fulfilling to me. Yet each experience abroad has taught me many things about a different culture and about myself. I’ve learned that it’s essential to be flexible, to be patient and to have the capacity to laugh at yourself when you make a mistake (like when I accidentally ate deer cookies in Japan). Having a sense of humor has helped stave off discouragement, unhappiness and disillusionment.

Travel, like life, has its ups and downs. Before I left to teach English in Ecuador I accepted the fact that living in South America would mean lapses in health, homesickness and moments of frustration due to a clash in cultures. And I definitely experienced all of these things more than once. However, the adventures I had, the moments of discovery, the joy of living my life different than the norm has overshadowed those times of difficulty. I have priceless memories of participating in a coastal dance performance, watching a baby capybara teetering in the grass, holding a young Shuar child in my lap with my face painted like a jungle warrior, wandering around the countless outdoor markets trying to identify strange fruit and learning how to dance Salsa at the local neighborhood club. I made Ecuadorian friends who invited me to special events, such as a birthday party, baptism and a coming of age celebration. They took me to special places such as National Parks and Incan ruins. They offered me a different insight into their culture, such as when one of them asked me what kind of music is played on the buses in the United States?

I accepted the fact that I will always be a gringa to the locals. I cannot hide my skin color, my ethnicity, my culture or my sex. Nor would I want to. While I get tired of locals looking at me and seeing dollar signs it reminds me about the differences that exist in this world and that I set an example for my culture and my country. With humility, I try to set an example of an American who is not arrogant, ignorant or loud. I learned what the average Ecuadorian wage is and, compared to my teacher’s salary, it isn’t much. When I calculate the cost of normal, everyday items and compare it to their wage, I begin to understand why some may hold resentment towards gringos like me. Yet I meet many locals who are genuinely very friendly, like the man who owns the Columbian restaurant down the street, or the lady that sells bread rolls on the street corner. These people come across as being kind and happy despite these economically challenging times.

Some days I really tire of the cultural differences, the extra effort required to speak and communicate in another language, the inefficiencies when dealing with the slow wheels of bureaucracy, the personal questions strangers ask, the insensitive comments, being stared at or cut off in line, the scent of urine next to a street corner, the strange customs and festivals I don’t understand, like shooting random fireworks into a crowd of families and the lack of punctuality prevalent in this society. However, living in another country, experiencing another culture has made me, on occasion, question my own. I enjoy the slower pace of life, allowing people the chance to appreciate the beauty of each day and I like the stronger sense of family and community. The families of my Ecuadorian friends have adopted me like one of their own. I feel as though I’ve found a place to belong.

Through these dichotomies, these opposing contrasting joys and frustrations, I’ve been given an experience that I will always remember for the rest of my life—Ecuador will always be a part of me, for better or worse. I have mixed feelings about leaving it to return to my origins—my home country. I don’t look forward to the reverse culture shock and readjustment that I will inevitably experience. Yet I know it’s bound to happen and is part of the package deal, the last segment of the journey.

With teaching—-and the relationship with teacher and student—-I may think that all I have done is teach something to my students, yet the reality is that my students have taught me just as much, especially a different perspective and a new way of seeing things. My time in Ecuador has a parallel. Ecuador has taught me just as much, and much more than I ever expected.

Messages

Recently, in the last month or two I've gotten the following Chinese fortunes:

"There is a prospect of a thrilling time ahead for you"

"You will touch the hearts of many"

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Then I came across this message from the Dalai Lama on a card which I purchased, laminated and am taking with me in the Peace Corps:

"Never Give up

No matter what is going on

Never Give up

Develop the heart

Too much energy in your country

is spent developing the mind

instead of the heart

Be compassionate

Not just to your friends

but to everyone

Be compassionate

Work for peace

in your heart and in the world

Work for peace

and I say again

Never Give up

No matter what is happening

No matter what is going on around you

Never Give up. "

--H.H. the XIVth Dalai Lama

For the Record...

I'd heard that it takes 6 months to a year from start to finish for the application process of the Peace Corps. For me, it was the latter...

Submitted application: August 26th, 2004
Interview: September 9th, 2004
Nominated: October 8th, 2004
Received Medical/Dental/Legal Clearance packet: October 15th?, 2004
Submitted said packet: February 10th, 2005
Medically Cleared: April 28th, 2005
Received Invite: June 6th, 2005
Staging (Pre-dept orientation): September 22-24th, 2005
Pre-Service Training (in-country): September 26th-December 16th, 2005
Dates of Service: September 26th 2005-December 16th, 2007

People sometimes ask me if it is hard to get into the Peace Corps. That depends. According to the PC the requirements are that you are 18 and a US citizen. The reality is that the PC usually wants you to have a college degree and some kind of experience that will lend itself to your assignment. It is also best if you are a go-getter kind of person. It's also best if you are patient and persistant about the application process since it is kind of grueling and ideally you are sane and healthy. :) The PC is not able to accomodate volunteers overseas that have certain medical conditions, such as being HIV-positive.

For more info, check out the official Peace Corps website: www.peacecorps.gov