I'm not good at titles

So I know its been awhile since I posted anything with any real substance. Its been a whirlwind 2 months and I finally have a minute to think through all of my thoughts. Its also hard to try to express all of my thoughts on here so that will probably be my excuse for a short blog.

This training experience really stretched me in a lot of ways and I found myself pulling from a lot of past experiences and lessons for strength to endure some of the challenging parts of this experience, and appreciate and acknowledge my growth in some of the beautiful moments.

The toughest part of training for me were the first 3 weeks because I didn't live that close to other volunteers so sometimes I felt like I was missing out on bonding opportunities. Major thanks to my core and TDP for challenging me to be more open and embrace meeting new people. I found myself walking to other people's porches to share life and just talk. If you know me, you know that I was always on the go in the states doing a million things so it was great to slow down and just enjoy others people's company.

I am a long way from where I need to be with my Spanish but I worked really hard during community based training and I raised my Spanish proficiency by 4 levels. I am motivated and determined to continue studying in my site and my community has really embraced teaching me. Although I wish I had more Spanish, sometimes I'm excited that this can be more of a teaching exchange where I have to learn from them in order to share anything that I know. I hope it gives the members of my community a sense of pride because I have way more to learn from them than I could ever possibly give or share.

I've worked so hard to become a volunteer and now that I know where I will spend the next 2 years of my life, it is slightly overwhelming. I am thankful that Peace Corps gives us the first 3 months to truly understand the climate of our community and come up with a plan to implement throughout the rest of out first year. I am looking forward to drinking a lot of coffee (its a long story about how I became addicted)  on my neighbors porches and learning more about how to support the youth in my community in changing their lives and their community for the better.

A little more about my community, it is a very small barrio on the outskirts of a large city. It is extremely poor so it is pretty rural and everyone in my community is extremely nice and welcoming. It doesn't have the city hustle and bustle feel, it is more slow placed which is what I wanted. The kids in my community really want to work with me and learn English so I am excited to see how this goes. y host family is amazing and extremely extended. My host mom and dad have 8 kids and I live with the youngest 2 and one of their grandchildren. but I have another sister and tons of cousins, uncles, and aunts that all live within the same barrio so I have a lot of names to remember and a lot of relationships to form. Since I am an extreme needs volunteer I am partnered with an organization that is a Dominican NGO and one of the best at what they do. They built a center in my community and my task is to bring youth to the community center and lead groups such as Escojo mi Vida (self-esteem/AIDS awareness), Deportes para la Vida (kinesthetic learning about AIDS), youth groups, and whatever else I my community wants based on my 3 month community diagnostic. I think that what my community wants matches the skills that I have so I'm excited to see where the next 2 years takes us.

Also side note to friends, please keep emailing, writing letters, responding to my twitter/facebook/blog posts, calling, and offering to send me things. All of these things show that you are thinking of me and that you care which has meant a lot and will mean even more in the ensuing months. Training was very structured and I was around a lot of Americans. Now I will be in my community on my own, speaking Spanish 24/7 and the first 3 months is supposed to be one of the loneliest/hardest times for Peace Corps Volunteers so please don't forget me for the next 3 months especially. Lots of love and thanks in advance!!

I'm Officially a Volunteer!!

All 32 of us swore in as Peace Corp Volunteers yesterday! The U.S. ambassador to the D.R. swore us in and I was moved by his speech. To all of my family and friends thank you so much for all of the phone calls, letters, emails, text messages, facebook messages/status updates, twitter updates in support of my journey.

Some Photos!!

This post is all about photos!! (especially for you Jessica)

 my sisters and me

 the guys who live across the street and teach me Spanish everyday

 pretty view, my site is far below

 mcdonalds!! im excited to have this nearby whenever I'm in an American mood

 D.R. provinces..."states"

 down the hill to my barrio we go

 the rio bridge

my don in his colmado...I'm not sure why Dominicans don't smile in pics becuase he is one of the most genuine and nicest people I've ever met.

P.S. I'll add more photos later

Updates Part 2

So the luz is still here, and my familia aqui has graciously allowed me to continue to use their computer...so we shall continue with the updates. I'm currently in my site so I'll give a little backdrop on that.

We actually found out our tentative site placements 3 weeks ago after the YD team, our Manager, PC Vol Leader, and Extreme Needs Specialists interviewed more than half of us a second time. I was one of the people who was reinterviewed which I was thankful for because I don't even remember what I said in the first one. The second time around, I was much more open to whatever placement they had in mind, as long as I didn't have to take a motoconcho (I'm listening Mom!) Anyways, on Monday we got our official site placements. I know that community based training allowed me to see the total beauty of the Dominican Republic and gave me the confidence to realize that this experience would be amazing regardless of where I went. Additionally they only gave us tentative sites because they ahve always had someone who decided that this experience was not for them and they choose to go home. So far no one in our entire group has said that... We came into the country with 32 and we are still 32 =)

Entonces I've only been in my site 2 days and I already know that this is the perfect place for me. (Someone remind me that I typd this when I go through the ebb and flow of the PC Volunteer experience.) I was placed in an Extreme Needs Site which means that the PC DR YFCD [program has defined the youth in this community as some of the msot at risk in country because of several factors they may encounter in their community]. When I first got to my site it reminded me of D.C and the stark contrasts within the city. There are some beautiful parts of D.C. where everything is beautiful (streets, houses, etc. and I saw that here because I live on the outskirts of a city) and when you go just a little farther within D.C. you get a totally different experience...poverty can smack you in the face. That is what happened to me here. Then I went to the community center where I will spend the next 2 years of my life working alongside jovenes. Its a beautifully built and very new structure that is designed to be a huge resource to this community. I'm so excited to learn more about this community and initiate projects that they feel they need, and prayerfully when I leave, numerous juventud leaders will step up and continue the projects. There are so many opportunities to do exactly what I'm skilled in and passionate about. (more on all of this 3 months from now) Hats off to Peeace Corps YD team, they really did find me the perfect placement. City life but with a campo/family style feel working with youth who need this the most. This is exactly the experience I came here to get.

Now my family here is also amazing. I really prayed for a family as amazing as the family I had in CBT (who by the way still call me everyday) and I believe I have exactly that within my host family in my site. Thanks to my sister for taking pictures of us through facebook chat and putting them up so you can go look and see them. Their family is huge and everyone is so lovely and caring. Everywhere I go in this communtiy, I have an aunt, uncle, cousin, niece, brother, sister. It is an amazing feeling...they hav FIVE generations of the same family living here...its breathtaking really. They have truly embraced me, calling me their daughter, sister, cousin, etc. I feel so loved and warm here, just like how I felt in community based training. While  I know its very early on, and the honeymoon season has not even started, I have an amazing feeling about this. Gracias a Dios!!

I have not really said that much about other trainees in my group, and that is not because they are not very special to me. I have developed some amazing freindships that I had hoped for but didn't necessarily expect. It is wonderful to have a amazing core group of friends/family within Peace Corps to share this experience with...all of the triumphs and disasters, and know that they support and love me. My friend Rachelle told me that I would develop friendships that would last a lifetime, I haven't even been here 3 months and I already know that to be true. Its wonderful to have a support network in country because I truly want all of my friends that I started with here to finish the journey with me.

But let me not get too far ahead of myself. We go back to training next Monday and prayerfully, all 32 of us will swear in next Wednesday and officially become Peace Corps volunteers. And then the next part fo this adventure begins. I'll try to post another blog before that happens thats more reflection focused on the past 2 months...si Dios quiere =)

Updates

The luz may go at any point so I'll try to touch on as many things as quickly as possible. Last week we finished community based training. CBT is when we go into a community, live there for 5 weeks, and learn more about our technical area. For youth development, we work with a group of youth to implement a service learning project, or some kind of talent show at the end of the 5 weeks. We created a community diagnostic, interviewed people in the community, and created a FODA. From that we identified an activity that would be beneficial to the community and youth. All while having training from 8-5 which included learning about specific youth development D.R. initiatives and projects and intensive Spanish. We also lived with a new host family (mine included a mom dad sister and brother, and my grandmother, grandfather, and great grandmother lived downstairs.I was surrounded by a lot of family and I've often said that if I lived in Nigeria, I imagine I would have a similar experience with a lot of love =)

It was by far the best experience I've had in the Dominican Republic. I had a great trainer, the best youth group team (much love to Hilary, Malika, and Sean) and I had the most amazing and loving host family. To top it off my Spanish teacher was amazing and another wonderful Spanish teacher lived downstairs with my abuela so I hung out with her all the time! Words cannot even describe how much working with youth in Monte Plata, learning Spanish with my host family, laughing and drinking cafe with my grandmother, just talking meant to me. The whole experience intensified/confirmed my belief that God has given me this opportunity for this moment in my life. I have much more to say, expecially now that I am in my site, but I will post little by little to ensure you to get to read at least some of it.

If You ever wanted to send me anything

Hello lovely people

IF you ever wanted to send me anything... This is what I would love to get. Please send me an email though so I don't get too much of one thing. Thank you for thinking of me and please please send a letter or a picture to accompany your gifts because thats the stuff that makes my heart smile.

Deordorant (dove purple or blue) Biore face wash Crest whitening toothpaste clean mint Dove soap Rubbing alcohol Stickers Construction paper Hand sanitizer Bath and body works lip gloss (mint) Cheap fun nail polish Nail polish remover Cotton balls Pedicure kit Baby wipes Hard candy jolly ranchers Head phones (the expensive over ear $30 ones so that it will last more than a week) Glue Glitter Coloring books Spanish/English children's books Rice krispie treats Cookies and cream reduced fat chewy bars Spanish alphebet laminated World map in espanol Cotton round premiums purple from target Pencils Small pencil sharpener Highlighters UNO cards Regular playing cards Scrabble espanol Credit to buy stuff on iTunes Qtips Monopoly Credit to buy books for my kindle Flashcards Lined paper Spanish letter flashcards Sheet protectors Index cards More durable sandals Nalgene water bottle I'll post another blog with my site placement info soon!!

It's been a Month!!

By this point we should all realize that I'm pretty bad with blogging, and I cannot promise to get better within the next month. I am laptopless for the next month and one of my friends here is graciously letting me use hers to type out this blog (and prep for a session I am doing) I've also gotten 3 bug bites in the last 2 minutes so consider this love fam and friends.

I've been in the D.R. for over a month now and even though I am training (and technically not really settled) I am settling into life abroad. Slowly but surely I am understanding more of the language and working really hard to speak more and more daily. I've started to develop really positive friendships with other trainees and its nice to have really cool people to share this training experience. I am also taking time daily to reflect on lessons learned, cultural cues, and questions/things I need to work on for the next day. I definitely live hour by hour, day by day...its hard to plan or think farther than that. Also, now that I'm learning Spanish I realize that I will become pretty bad in 2 languages so apologies in advance for really weird tense usage and any Spanglish that might be thrown in here.

Now for some specifics... I am sure you are wondering about what my everyday life is like and some of the emotions I've been experiencing. I'll try to share as much as I can but we all know I'm pretty private and this is a very public space. Send me an email if you have any specific questions...and I love to hear about what is going in on you life so that is an added benefit.

I spent 3 weeks in Santo Domingo in core training where everyone in my group (there are 32 of us) went to training everyday from 8-5pm for Spanish and other pertinent info like transportation in the D.R. and staying healthy. I have been in our CBT (community based training site) for 2 weeks. So I am with 13 other youth development volunteers for this training. We are in a new site for youth development CBT so we are laying the groundwork so that future groups have positive experiences in this location. I absolutely LOVE it here...many people in my group wish that we could just have this site. It is a little urban, but it is not the hustle, flow, and noise that is Santo Domingo. It is more tranquilo and there is a family vibe here that I really dig. We are in the mountains too in a pretty pueblo. I feel more at peace here so the Spanish studying/development has really picked up in a positive way.

Who do I share life with right now. I live with a host mom, dad, brother (13), sister (just turned 12), and I believe an extended relation (she is about 20). They live on the 2nd floor. I have a grandmother, grandfather, (mom's parents) great grandmother, and one of our Spanish teachers (who is becoming one of my absolute favorite people to talk to) live there. My host family is amazing. They are patient, kind, and they have welcomed me into their family. They share everything with me and they are interested in the life I lived in the States. They are thoughtful, inclusive, and funny which has been an absolute dream. I really will be sad to leave them so please rest asssured that I am being well taken care of here. It is so nice to have extended family downstairs because I sit and have cafe with my grandmother (she converted me by giving me a cup and standing beside me til I drank it) playing scrabble with my host sister and my Spanish teacher, playing dominoes with my host brother and dad, and this weekend they are taking me and my youth group team to the beach. Yep pretty amazing! It feels like what life would have been like if I lived in Nigeria so close to my grandmother, aunts, uncles, and cousins. I love the vibe and thankful to be able to experience it.

My group...We are a pretty diverse group which I am thankful for. People in my group come from all across the country, and have very different backgrounds. I appreciate all that I've learned about them and I am interested in learning more about their experiences with youth and in life because I know it will just enhance my volunteer experience. We are a pretty chill group, we don't ask a lot of questions, but everyone is thoughtful and reflective in their own way. Some of us had a second interview with our boss who came into our cbt site for the day. In a week, we will find out where and what kind of site we are going to spend the next 2 years of our lives. Exciting, unnerving, scary, and relieving all at the same time. I'll hopefully be able to post again soon after that.

My everyday.... I've started waking up around 7 to work out with some of the girls in my group. Its been a great opportunity to reflect in the morning and release some stress. I have to work out early because it is super super hot here right now. Then I get ready for training and for breakfast I usually have mangoes (yum) or boiled eggs and boiled plantains. Then I have 4 hours of Spanish or technical training and the opposite in the afternoon after lunch. Technical training covers how to do a community diagnostic of the community, how to work with gender initiatives, and other projects within PCDR YFCD (Peace Corps Dominican Republic Youth, Families and Community Development) Lunch is the biggest meal of the day and it is always rice, some kind of meat, and beans. It is also always very good and reminds of Nigerian food so that is a comfort =) After our afternoon session I am either studying Spanish, hanging with my host family, working with my youth group team or having a youth group meeting. (We were split into 4 groups to work with 4 different youth groups so that we can plan and execute a project with them before we leave. It is practice for when we get to our sites and an insight into Dominican youth.)  My days are pretty long but I never feel exhausted, I think I am still on a high from this opportunity.

The youth here are curious, creative, bright, fun, and they love dinamicas... Being at cbt has helped me realize that no matter where I end up in country, I am going to have an amazing, challenging, humbling, and thoughtful experience with the youth in my community.

Well this is all I have in me for today. By this point, I've gotten 5 more bug bites so enough is enough. So remember I am healthy, safe, in high spirits, and I would love letters/mail/treats from you guys. My next blog will include what I need. Hasta luego and thanks for reading amigos!