I, fortunately, have been very busy in my site. Here are some pictures from the Sewing for Success project that I am managing. The financial support for the project is provided by an organization named World Connect. Click HERE to read a World Connect blog post about this project.Here is the Sewing Group with a representative from World Connect.

Here are Francis and I. Francis provides the technical experience and the day to day leadership for the project.Here I am with the World Connect Group.

I had a really good time when they came to visit and I was so happy to be able to share my project and the Sewing for Success Group's success directly the people who made it all possible.

I am currently working with the Women's Association to build a playground and the Development Association to build a basketball court with the help of Courts for Kids.

Me on the beach in Puerto Viejo dung Easter week. I went to visit Calhita Puerto Viejo with my friend Dina. We had lots of fun and enjoyed the different Caribbean culture and food.

While we where in Perto Viejo we rented bikes and took a bike ride to a beautiful beach called Manzanillo Playa. It was beautiful - Clear skys, blue water, a great day.



Kristen, Dina, and I at the 2010 VAC dinner where all the volunteers in Costa Rica meet up and get together to catch up and meet the new arrivals and say goodbye to people who are headed home.

Last weekend I went to Punta Leona Beach with my new host sister Natalia and her friends Ximena and Laura. Laura was in a 2.5km open water swimming contest and we all went to support her. It was raining when we left but the sun came up and we had a wonderful time. It was one of the most beautiful beaches that I have ever seen and it was great to explore a cool new place.

This is a picture of Natalia, Me, Laura, and Ximena after a nice pasta salad lunch.

A strange relative of the racoon named a Parisosa. It was a long tail and long nose so it looks kind of funny.

Crocodiles in a river near the Punta Leona Beach. There were about 10 of them. All swarming and hungry.

Well that's all for now but there will be more soon!

Hi. I know its been a while and that's my fault. I'm just not much of a writer especially when I rarely get internet access. No matter - here are some pics from of this years activities.

This is a picture of a bunch of the people from my project after a long day of micro-finance training is a very beautiful small town.

This is me, Laura, and Dina when we went to visit Laura's beautiful site, La Palma, which is on the Osa Peninsula. We had a fabulous time and spent time swimming in the ocean, kayaking in the mangroves, and biking along the beach. We also went to visit a palmito plantation and were featured on Costa Rican television. If you want to watch the segment click here.

I got to see the most amazing but very loud parrots. They are just like the one in Aladdin.

My host cousin turned 3 and here he is with the cake. He is a cute kid but loud and annoying.

Superbowl 2010. Hanging out and enjoying what is basically an American holiday! Cheers!

I know that the Christmas shopping season has already begun and that Christmas might be a little leaner this year due to economic recession and all. Nevertheless, this is my shopping list (yes, I have given it some thought and yes, there are things for every budget) for when I come home for Christmas. These are things that I need and I would love it if my Birthday and Christmas gifts could come from this list.

Thank you once again for all your support and encouragement as I work so far away from home.

Birthday and Christmas Wish List

Clothing

Gap Jeans size 6 petite with low or very low waist

Cute short sleeve T-shirts; 100% (or mostly) cotton; size medium or large

Summer Party Tops; size medium petite usually

Nice Backpack - smallish but good for traveling; Northface has some good ones

Purse - summer weight, big enough to carry a notebook or two - tight shoulder carry (to prevent theft)

Work Supplies

Nice Legal Writing Pads

Pens - normal

Pens - Micron .05 black for journaling

New Journal (B&N Giftcard)

New 2010 agenda

Books - studying for the GMAT and intermediate Spanish

Personal Care -A Year’s Supply

Olay Combination Face Lotion

Chewable Vitamins - Centrum

Olay Eye Cream - total effects

Contacts - 6 boxes

Contact Solution - Clean Care

Toothpaste - Sensodyne Enamel Care

Always light days liners

Razor Blades - Schick Quattro

Acne Cream - Clean & Clear Invisible Blemish Treatment

Aleve

Excedrin

Biolage Shampoo Normalizing

Biolage Volumizing/ Bodifying Conditioner

Frebreze

Money for plane ticket ($440), property insurance ($260 yearly), or having fun

Any suggestions or products for dehumidifying and for de-molding clothing, shoes, and room in general.

My life here in Costa Rica has certainly settled down and I have gotten what I would like to think of a routine established. Things are good, quiet, but good. Most of the time I would on things related to my English classes. The English teacher is not the role I imagined when I agreed to come to Costa Rica but it is an easy role to attain here. As a Peace Corps volunteer I am ultimately here to serve the needs of the community and this community wants English. It seems like the least I could do. I enjoy helping people even though I don't necessarily enjoy teaching English.

I am hopefully that in the future I can work out some of the kinks that I am having right now and I will be able to work on a more diverse range of projects that are more in line with my interests and skills. In the meantime I have been working with the English classes and trying to get my absentee counterpart more involved / interested in working with me. We will see how it goes. As the slogan goes, Peace Corps: the hardest job you will ever love.

I have not been up to alot in the last few weeks. However, here are some photos for different activities I have been involved in.

My host family let me adobt a kitten. She is really cute and I am thinking of naming her Grey or Pixie. Not sure yet so let me know what you think.

There was a sloth in the tree across from the house one day just casually eating leaves. I took a picture and it was fun to get a reminded that I am living in a wonderfully, biologically diverse place. A place unlike any other. Pura Vida!

My little host niece turned one and half the town turned out attend the birthday party. Barberita is the cutest. Look at her adorable pinata.

Costa Rica celebrated its Independence Day September 15th and the whole country had a party. This is a picture from the parade in Puriscal. It was scorching hot but fun.

The Tico 19 had its first get together for IST training. The last night we had a night on the town. We all dressed up, when to dinner at a Sushi place, and then when dancing! Total bonding fun.

I went to the Guayabo National Monument for the Central Valley VAC meeting on the 10th of July. It was this old archeological site with ruins dating back hundreds and hundreds of years. It was such an old site surrounded by a steamy jungle it was amazing to fund out that the aqueduct system the natives built is still functioning. Our group had lunch there and talked about all the agenda items we had to cover.The next day my host mom – Donna Rosa, host sister - Caroline, and her boyfriend - Kevin took me to see several of the beaches around Jaco – Playa Herraduna, Playa Jaco, Playa Hermosa, Playa Estrillos, and Playa Bejuco. We swam and had lunch at Playa Bejuco – a pretty, calm, and clean beach. It was so nice to get out and see a little of this beautiful country.The next weekend my host mom, host sister, her boyfriend, host nephew – Josue, and I went to Manuel Antonio National Park. It was AMAZING! I got to see two sloths, three different kinds of monkeys, iguanas, and tons of cool trees and flowers. We first hiked thru the park and send swimming under a small waterfall. The after walking some on a trail we got to the most beautiful beach I have ever seen. The sand was so white and the water was clear and turquoise blue. I had fun watching the monkeys steal food from people picnicking on the beach. It was a fabulous day.

Then yesterday my host sister - Caro and I went to the MutliPlaza – a very American style mall in San Jose. We saw Ice Age 3 dubbed in Spanish and Happy Potter 6 with Spanish subtitles. We also went shopping and I bought a really cute pair of Reef flip flops.

I finally swore in as a Peace Corps Volunteer in the country that I was to serve in on the last weekend in May. It was a nice ceremony – nothing really inspiring or interesting – but still gratifying. There were some speeches by an Ambassador’s representative, representatives from various counterpart organizations, the Peace Corps Director, and three volunteers with good Spanish from our Tico 18 group. Then we all paraded up did the handshakes, picture, and certificate deal then had snacks and more group photos. After the swear-in ceremony, a group of friends and I went to the college town section of San Jose. It was fun to visit the Costa Rican version of a college town and it was a lot like the college town in the States – lots of bars and fast food places.

Grifo Alto is a fabulous small rural town about three hours from San Jose. It is high up in the mountains with these fabulous views that just take your breath away. It’s a farming town where most everyone has some family involved in the raising of livestock. When I came here the first time for my site visit my counterpart – president of a local microfinance bank – showed me his 100+ pigs, goats, chickens, and cows. As a vegetarian opposed to animal cruelty, it was an interesting experience to say the least. At first I thought that the slaughterhouse was in the town but I later learned that it is somewhere else. My Spanish is still rusty and it can be especially hard for me to understand the accented Spanish of some of the older men. Nevertheless, being a vegetarian living in a town where the primary source of income comes from selling the meat of animals is bound to be quite an experience. One interesting cultural note: vegetarianism here in Costa Rica is not very well understood and the perception of it is influenced by the Catholic tradition. When people learn that I am vegetarian they often think that I don’t eat red meat and that chicken is okay. They often have a hard time understanding that I do not eat fish. Even after I have explained that I am vegetarian and do not eat the flesh of living creatures, I still get served tuna. I think this is a reflection of the Catholic tradition wherein during the fasting part of lent one does not eat meat but it permitted to eat fish. Anyway…

Things have been slow my first month here in Grifo Alto – purposefully slow. The Peace Corps has it set up so that the first three months in your site are simply for integrating into the community and writing a long report..in Spanish. I am doing that fairly slowly – a little work with the microbank, a little wandering, alot of studying my Spanish, and some cafecitos. Mostly, I have been spending time with my new host family and with all of their extended family. The family is well established in the community and pretty much known to everyone. It has been really nice and I have been trying to integrate into the community in a very organic and natural way. Just letting people see my face and have little conversations with people. I have also begun to experience the rural way of life by attending a rodeo, a baby shower, and several birthday parties. Everyone I talk to here is interested in learning English as there is opportunity in the call center and tourist fields. I am planning on getting an English program off the ground in the following month and I hope that it will be a success.

The last few weeks have been fun and interesting. With the schools out for a short summer break, my host family has invited me on some trips with them to the beaches by Jaco (not Jaco because that is not a great beach at all) and to Manuel Antonio beach and reserve. Its been great to spend time with them and to be making some progress with the comprehensive report I am writing in Spanish on Grifo Alto. I also traveled to the Guayabo National Monument near Turriable for a Peace Corps meeting and saw some very old and interesting ruins. Its always amazing when you realize that you are walking in the footsteps of people who lived thousands of years before you did.

My new house!

My bedroom - really nice and comfortable!

A view from my town - its really high up in the mountains

My CED (community economic development) program group!

My training host family and Leah´s - they are related.

Here is the address that you send all my mail and care packages to.

PCV Theresa Wilson

Cuerpo de Paz

Apartado Postal 1266-1000

1000 San Jose

Costa Rica

The Peace Corps recommends that you send all packages in those large manila envelopes with the bubble wrap inside through the USPS. This get through customs very easily and for the declaration for just put that its documents or books and that it is valued at a few dollars. You do not need to send it through any special carrier like UPS, Fedex, etc.

This is a picture of Allison and I on our Beach trip to Jaco Beach. It was a nice trip. We stayed at a hostel called Las Camas and it was pretty skezy. Still the trip was a nice break from all the training and the stress of Site Assignment Day.

This is me and my Program Director while he shows me where I am going on the map. I will be going to a small town called Grifo Alto which is in the Puriscal area about an hour and a half west of San Jose. I think it is going to be a nice town and I will let you know how the site visit goes.

Here is Me, Adrienne, Brigette, and Katie at our Pre Site Assignment breakfast. We are about to have eggs and gillo pinto. I have to say that I am already getting tired for rice and beans.

Things have been pretty calm here although the training has been tough. There is always some place to be and something that needs to be done. There has also been a lot of traveling which I enjoy but not a lot of time to get other stuff done. My host family is interesting and I will have to tell you more about them later on - they are a traditional family and represent the culture of Costa Rica has it has been for many years. Sometimes I wish I could understand more or figure out how to ask the why they act the way they do.

This is a picture of me at the VAC dinner in San Jose with Nicole, Melissa, and Brigette. It was a fun night out and a chance to get to know all the volunteers working in Costa Rica.

This is a picture of a Costa Rican landscape. Its taken in Trabaca, a small town near mine, while I was on the way to our Program Director Luis's house. It is really beautiful here and I am enjoying all the lovely scenery.

This is my language training group with our first instructor, Lindsey. (Nicole, Lindsey, Leah, and Me) Language has been going well and I am progressing a little more every day.

This is a picture of my bedroom in the house were I am staying. The house is made of wood and has a lot of termite damage but its fine. I don't have closet so I put all of my things either in those plastic shelves or in the suitcases under the bed.

Easter (Semana Santa) here in Vuelta de Jorco was very nice. We had four days off of school and I spent my days simply recovering from the madness that is training. It was really interesting to see the festivities surrounding the Semana Santa. There were big processions, lengthily services, and traditional food which consisted of a lot of tuna and sardines. On Friday, I went to see the procession which was a reenactment of the stations of the cross complete with many actors and props. The streets had signs and designs on the ground to indicate where each of the stations were to be. It was really interesting and over 100 people participated.

A bunch of the relatives of my host family came to visit and it was nice to meet some of the other people in the family. We had several large family meals of rice, arroz, and a fabulous dessert arroz con leche (rice with milk) with coconut, cane sugar, and cinnamon sauce. One dish that my host mom serves often which I like is gillo pinto, a very traditional dish with rich, beans, egg, cilantro, and other spices.

On Easter Sunday, Leah had a birthday party and I brought the ice cream. It was nice to see everyone together. We had a great salad – its amazing how excited I get about vegetables or really anything that is not rice, beans, or fried. Really though its not bad at all and there is a lot of fresh fruit available. Training has been rather uneventful although certainly stressful and work filled. I got really sick the first few weeks while I was taking this malaria medicine but I asked to switch to a different kind and things have been better. There have not been as many bugs and big bites as I was excepting although it’s the dry season. I hear that when it starts to rain the mosquitoes start to multiply and things can get uncomfortable.

My Spanish proficiency grows in fits and bursts. I have the LPI tomorrow so hopefully that goes well. The LPI is the language proficiency test and I need to be at least intermediate mid before swear in and I don’t think that that will be a problem – I guess I just want to be as proficient as possible because I need to be able to represent myself in a professional manner upon arrival to my permanent site and its hard to that when you talk like a kindergartner. Another cool thing about tomorrow is that we are going to visit a coffee plantation which will be interesting!

I almost forgot to mention, about a week ago I went on a site visit. I went to go visit a current volunteer, named Emily, who lives about two hours from Cartago. She works mostly with women’s groups, starts English classes, and helps out at the school. She finishes up in about six months and she has had an interesting service. The town she lived in was pretty rural and had a lot of sugar cane farms. I went to go visit a women’s group which handmade bamboo souvenirs to sell to tourist. It was interesting to see the group dynamics and learn about how entrepreneurship works in this country. I really don’t know what I will be doing but I will probably be working with a FINCA bank (community microfinance bank), help ecotourism groups, and teach computer and English classes. I have a very multifaceted job description. Until next time – hasta luego!

So I have been in Costa Rica for about 2 weeks now. Its been a whirlwind the whole way through and its both hard and interesting to be back in the exhausting grind of training. We have a lot less language training than in Georgia which given my language level is not a good thing. But being a self motivated person, I am devising my own language plan to make sure that I surpass the language requirements. Above is a picture of the whole Tico 19 group on our last day of orientation. I am living about an hour outside of San Jose in a great little village in the mountains. My host family is great and I am enjoying living with them even though our conversations are always haphazard as we struggle to bridge the language barrier. Its really a great situation. Last week, my friend Nicole has a birthday on St. Patrick's Day and we had a nice little birthday party for her. This is a picture of me, Adrienne, and Nicole. We has a great cake that said Pura Vida on it and we played games like Frisbee. On Saturday, after an exhausting day of training, Carmen had a little fiesta at her house and she made the most delicious salsa for us. It was fantastica! A lot of the other trainees from other towns came to visit too. It was so nice just to be able to talk and relax. I also got a change to practice my salsa which I started learning when I was in Luxembourg for a semester. Its really interesting how the things you learned but never thought you would use actually turn out to be really useful.

I have safely arrived in Costa Rica!!! Its so exciting to finally be back out in the field and involved again. Orientation in DC was brief but nice. Its always fun to see who is going to be in the group - all the different personalities and interests. There are three different projects - everyone is some form of Community Development but its broken down in Rural, Youth, and Economic. The Economic Development group seems cool and I am interested to see what our dynamic will be like. We had to get up at 1:00am to be at the airport at 2:45 and the airport did not even open until 4:00. That was not well planned but we all got on the plane and made it to San Jose without any problems. All of my luggage made it intact as far as I can tell and I think its all going to be fine. We are at a nice retreat up in the mountains - in Tres Rios. Its cool at night and warm during the day. I experienced my first earthquake tremor while taking a siesta - very exciting. Tomorrow will be another long information filled day. We take our placement LPIs and I know that I am not going to do as well as I would have liked. A lot of the people have been studying Spanish for a long time and are very able to converse while I can't think very well in the language and have a hard time forming sentences. Spanish is so much easier than Georgian that I am not worried about picking it up - I am simply envious of their ability to communicate so well already. More later - right now I just need some sleep!

After coming home from my whirlwind European backpacking experience I rested up and just spent time with my family for a few days. It was fantastic to have nice hot showers and laundry machines whenever I wanted. I settled in and then sent off my re-enrollment paper to Aimee (Aimee placed the Georgia group the first time and came to visit us in Armenia to help facilitate the transition). I asked for Central or South America because I wanted a different experience - something that would not have me comparing it to Georgia all the time – but I was open to anything where I could work in business development, entrepreneurship, and microfinance. Not more than a week or two later I get a call from Aimee and she asks me if I would like to go to Costa Rica. Of course I said yes! I sounded like the kind of experience I was looking for – Spanish speaking, Community Economic Development / Microfinance / Women’s Entrepreneurship.

I got started on improving my Spanish right away and have been working through a review book I bought and a Rosetta Stone subscription the Peace Corps kindly provided. I found that while I remember a lot of things, it’s still hard for me to put complex thoughts into words. I am sure that it’s something most people struggle with. I find it ironic that I am traveling to Costa Rica with a greater level of language capability in Spanish then the level of Georgian I had at the very end. Still, every now and then a Georgian word will pop into my Spanish sentences. I just hope that all the hard work pays off when I get there – we get tested on our Spanish almost right away and I am not the most calm test taker.

Anyway, I have spent a lot of time with my family and felt lucky to be able to spend the holidays with them. I also got to spend time with my friends – which was awesome. My family went on a weekend ski trip in January and lucky for me, my clothing finally came back from Georgia. After 5 months, I was great to have it almost all back – all things liquid or cosmetic, any medicine, any school supplies, etc was kept and donated by the Peace Corps to the displaced persons of the Russian bombings.

I have recently taken some time away from blogging. In part because it is hard for me to write when I have not made sense of what has happened and where I am going next. A long story short (hopefully I will be able to elaborate at some point) The Monday after the initial conflict started we made a daylong trip through rough back roads to a secluded Georgian-Armenian border crossing. There we literally stood and waited in no mans land for hours while our visas were processed. It was there in that cold barren place I told my final steps out of Georgia. The Armenian Peace Corps staff kindly fed us snicker bars and escorted us to a wonderful hotel in the mountains above the capital, Yerevan. We must have eaten dinner that night about 1:00 or 2:00 in the morning.

The next three weeks were some of the longest of my life. We basically waited for two weeks amid reports of increased bombing and slow international support for word from Washington DC on the our fate as volunteers in Georgia. I knew in my heart the moment that I walked across the Georgia-Armenia border that I would not be coming back. I had hoped that the G7s would have been able to come back because they had strong language skills and where already integrated into their communities. Unfortunately it was not to be. A transition team, including Aimee the original placement officer who I meet in Philly, came to help the Georgia team process all of our paperwork and either transfer or COS us. I choose to be COSed (closed of service) because I wanted some time to process my experience and the way that it had ended before commiting to a new country and a new experience.I got together with a few other ladies, Jamie, Katelyn, and Lindsey, who wanted to travel before returning to the states. We quickly mapped out a plan to travel in Europe and see some of the families or host families that we had left behind on our earlier study abroad experiences. On 9/1/2008 I was officially COSed and on the 4th we flew to London for a few days and then on to Stockhold, Helsinki, Tallinn, Riga, Vilnius, Warsaw, Krakow, Vienna, and finally Dublin. We traveled for about three weeks and it is amazing to think that we did that with just the clothes on our backs - just the few things we grapped for our weekend in the mountains. We worked on a really tight budget too, taking our cash in leiu and making it pay for most of the trip.I was so greateful to have that time though, just to decompress and see new parts of the world. The contrast of meeting both Katelyn's deaply generous and eccentric uncles and Jamie's kindhearted and urban host sister was heartwarming. I was also able to see a dear friend while passing through New York on my way home. Jenn, who recently got a marvelous job and moved in a great apartment in Austoria, was willing to take me around to parts of New York I had never been too and listen to my stories about Georgia.Now that some time has passed I feel even more blessed to have been given the opportunity to feel all the wonderful people in Georgia, make such fabulous friends, meet such a diverse group of people while backpacking across Europe, and reconnect with a dear friend. It just reminds me - moments, opportunities, people - they all move in and our of my life but I am blessed to have them for however long it lasts.

Here is a synopsis of the last 2 days I have spent in Agara, Georgia. The 2 days that changed my life, the lives of those around me, and the Republic of Georgia forever. Thursday, August 7, 2008The day started like any other – I got up around 7:00, used the outhouse, had porridge and tea for breakfast, and brushed my teeth at the well. I had language class in the morning in Bebnisi (by Kareli) and then went to Gori to help with a marketing training being given at a local university. Gori is about a half an hour from my training site, Agara. That morning I heard that some fighting had broken out in South Ossetia but I was not too surprised or concerned as current volunteers had warned us that this often happens, especially in August. Apparently last year in August, Russia dropped a bomb near Gori but it did not explode. We heard from host families and Georgian friends that the Ossetia’s had pushed the Georgians back and were invading Georgian towns in South Ossetia. Around 5:00pm we got a text from Peace Corps telling us that there was an emergency meeting in Khashuri – the home base for Peace Corps training this year. As we drove the 30 minutes from Gori to Khashuri we passed convoy after convoy of Georgian soldiers and equipment – hundreds and hundreds of soldiers, tanks, and field artillery. In Khashuri our training director, Tengo, informed us about the fighting in South Ossetia and the fact that President Mikheil Saakashvili had mobilized the military. Tengo said that we should not worry too much as this was likely to be simply as show of force to make the Ossetians back down. I went back to Agara not too concerned about the situation. The Agara cluster went to Stephanie’s house and watched a movie. Stephanie’s usually warm and hospitable family was tense and worried – a sure sign that something was wrong. Still, I was sure that everything would be alright. When I got back to my host family, my host sister Lia was in from Tbilisi as well as some other family members. I had a quick dinner and talked to them in my limited Georgian about the soldiers I had passed on the road. It was then when I realized that the reason why my host sister was here must be because my older host brother was along the soldiers I passed along the road. Concerned but hopeful, I went to bed.Friday, August 8, 2008Around 2:00am I went outside to use the bathroom and I could hear the boom, boom shelling and the sharp bangs of gunfire in the distance. Friends of mine in villages closer to the conflict later reported that the shelling and fierce fighting started around 11:30 and that their houses were shaking from the blasts. I had not heard the fighting start because I live next door to a family with 7 loud dogs so I sleep with ear plugs every night. I checked my phone but there was no word from Peace Corps so I went back to sleep. In the morning I could still hear shelling from tanks and field artillery and gun fire, we went to Khashuri for our regularly scheduled HUB day. Heather reported that tanks went through Agara during the night and Stephanie heard the tanks going through the fields by her house. At HUB, I heard stories from more people about the fighting. Phil, a friend of mine, lived so close to the conflict that he went up on the hill behind his house and watched the Georgian troops move into South Ossetia. Tengo reported that the Georgian troops had moved into South Ossetia, repelled the Ossetians from the Georgian villages, and where moving to secure more of South Ossetia. Early in the afternoon, we learn that Russian planes had bombed Gori and Kareli – places I have been many times. I immediately ask if, Jeremy and Kelly, the two volunteers currently serving in Gori are okay and what told that they were. Tengo, then announces that we are consolidating in Bakariani, a remote winter resort in the mountains with quick back road access to the Armenian boarder. Tengo explains that we will be in Bakariani just for the weekend and we should be able to go back to our villages on Monday after things have cooled down. We also learn that Saakashvili calls up the reserves and institutes a cease fire from 3:00 to 6:00 in the afternoon. During the ceasefire we return to our villages to make a quick emergency bag. We are given 5 minutes to go into our houses, tell our family we are leaving, and pack a small bag of necessities.

I rushed into the house, waved at my host-sister Lea, and ran upstairs to pack. I was able to pack two shirts, a pair of jeans, a light jacket, two pairs of socks, tennis shoes, and some other necessities as well as most of my electronics and important documents. It all happened in such a surreal rush that I just did not think about how serious the situation was. We traveled back to Khashuri, regrouped, and then traveled the hour plus ride to Bakariani through Borjomi. On the winding bus ride through the mountains I thought about the fact that I had not had a chance to say goodbye to my host family - something, now, I will always regret. I just did not think that I would never be able to return to Agara, to 22 Gargarini Gucha.

We checked in at the same hotel, Hotel Tbilisi, that we used for the supervisors conference just a week or two earlier. That night we learned that Russia was continuing to bomb sites around Georgia and the fighting continued. Georgia was calling up all of its reserves – just about every man in Georgia because there is mandatory service here. The staff decided that we would still have language classes as normal on Saturday, in an effort to give us a sense of normalcy – but everything was not normal and the attacks on Georgia continued.

This attack and the upcoming invasion has shaken my view of the world, like 9/11 - you just don't think something like this should happen to a beautiful, hospitable nation who wanted nothing more than to be a part of Western society and who's location made it ideal for a gas pipeline which would bypass Russia.

I have gotten my assignment and I will be assigned to Samtredia in western Georgia. Samtredia is a nice small town with great people and a nice atmosphere. I will be working for a few small, just started NGO that works out of the local government building. The NGO deals with information and currently publishes a little brochure/magazine that informs the local population about the goings on in the government. I will be helping the organization work on improving its organizational structure and workings a more effective organization. I will also be writing grant and project proposals for the organization so that they can be independently funded and work on other projects. One of the difficult things is that there is no English spoken in the office so I will have a great deal of difficulty communicating about complicated business concepts, conducting trainings, and generally collaborating with my new colleagues. It will be interesting though and I am excited to finally know where I will be stationed and the type of work I will be doing. I am sad that I will not be able to work on business development or tourism liked I had hoped but things may change in the next two years.

So I have had a fun few days here in Georgia. Last week I got a text message from Tengo, one of the PST staff members, asking if I wanted to go meet Secretary of State Condeezza Rice as she was going to be in Tbilisi for some meetings. I immediately texted Tengo back to let him know that I would love to go meet Condoleezza Rice. A number of other volunteers decided to go and so we all got up really early in the morning and drove to Tbilisi. We went to the Mariott and were able to grab a donut and coffee (a complete and total luxury!!!) before going in to hear Secretary Rice say a few words. She gave a quick but nice speech and then she went around the room shaking everyone’s hand and saying hello to Peace Corps volunteers and American Embassy staff. I got to shake her hand and thank her for coming. It was nice and I think there is a picture of me shaking her hand somewhere, maybe I will be able to post it soon. Secretary Rice was very gracious and seems like a nice person. You have to admire what she has done as a minority woman with her career. After the meeting, on the way back to Agara, we convinced Sarah, our G6 escort, to let us stop at McDonalds for lunch. Let me tell you, I have never been so excited to see a McDonalds in my whole life. It looked just like McDonalds look everywhere but the menu was in Georgian and some of the things on the menu where slightly different than in the US. For example, I was able to get a vegi burger but it was not soy. Instead it was a fried patty full of mashed potatoes, carrots, corn, broccoli, and other assorted vegetables. The French fries were exactly the same as in the US. It was amazing! [The is a picture of Stephanie and I in front of McDonalds] Another great experience was a trip to Gori I took a weekend or so ago. I went with two friends, Heather and Allan. We took a marshutka, Georgia’s form of mass transportation, to Gori in the morning and then toured the town. Gori is a famous city in Georgia because it is the birthplace of Stalin and the Georgians are very proud of this fact. Gori is also a very old city and it has this amazing fort on the top of a hill with the city is sprawled out around it in all directions. After looking around the outside of the Stalin museum and checking out the preserved house where he was born and the train car that he used to travel in, we took some pictures by a statute. After the Stalin museum we trekked up the hill to the top of Gori Fortress. We took some amazing pictures as you can see. I was so excited to see such an amazing view of the city. As I walked along the old stone wall I could see the city from every direction with the amazing mountains in the background. Georgia has such amazing scenery – it is truly a beautiful country. I cannot wait to fully explore it throughout the next two years.

On the 3rd of July, many of the Peace Corps volunteers got together for a 4th of July party. It was a very nice place outside of Gori. We all talked, got to know the Peace Corps staff, and ate hamburgers and hotdogs. As a vegetarian here in Georgia, I was excited to have a really good soy burger with real ketchup and mustard. For dessert we had Girl Scout cookies which someone had imported from the States and a big cake. It was so much fun to just relax and talk with people who I had not seen in several weeks. For this PST (Pre-Service Training) all of the volunteers are separated into groups of about 5 and placed in small villages around Kashuri and Gori. I later learned that this is not how things have always been done because other groups have been placed in a larger city and were able to get together more regularly. Regardless, it was a great time and I know that it re-energized me to a large extent. I have been learning so much about myself over the last few weeks. I know that because I have been spending time with people who I really cannot communicate with on a higher level I started to tap into my creativity. I spend several evening just reading to my host sister and the two little nephews that often stay with us from a Georgian English grammar book. I also spent time playing with the stuffed animals that they have and in the process we would discuss the English and Georgian names for animals and body parts. They get such a kick out of just trying to talk to me. Georgians seems to have a true interest in American and in American culture. They all what to know if all the things that they see in the dubbed American TV shows are true for me and how America is different from the United States. I am learning so much about the differences between American and Georgian culture. The Georgians are very proud of their culture and it is one that is strongly rooted in religious traditionalism but influenced by all the invasions they have experienced. In many ways the Georgians are much more open with each other about family, about values, and about money and health. For example, the first day I arrived at my host family they took me around to visit the neighbors. The neighbors were very curious about my family, about what my father did for a living, about the amount of money he made, about any relationships I might have had. I think they felt that it was important to get to know what type of person I was and to let me know that some of the things that were acceptable in America are not acceptable here. They told me that people in Georgia do not date and so I should not have any boyfriends. On the other hand, they wanted to know why I was not married, if I wanted a Georgian husband (with the intent of matchmaking me to any unmarried male relatives they might have), and if I wanted to have children. The Georgian culture has this concept that a women can be either a ‘good girl’ [kargie gogo] or a ‘bad girl’ [tsudie gogo] and this perception determines how the community treats you. To say the least, I am working on making sure that my host family and the community of Agara perceives me as a kargie gogo.

This here is my bedroom and its a nice big room. The bed looks big and it is actually two twin size beds pushed together. Its pretty comfortable and I have been sleeping pretty well at night. The dogs barking, the rosters, or my boisterous host family keep me up on occasion but all in all the sleeping arrangements are quite nice. Everyday, throughout the next several months, I wake up around 7:30, have breakfast, and then go to language class at the local school from 9:00 to 1:00. We then go to one of the PST's host-homes to have lunch. I am training with Jason, Allen, Heather, and Stephanie. The meals in Georgia generally consists of bread, cheese, tomatoes, cucumbers, mineral water, and often some small salad, bean bread [lobioni], or cheese bread. My family is very self-sustaining in that they have their own garden and because it is summer there is a lot of fresh fruit and veggies. I have had so many fresh cherries and peaches in the last few days. In the afternoon we bus to a nearby village to train with the rest of the BSE [Business and Social Entrepreneurship] people. The session range for presentations on business strategy to guest panels on local NGO work. One project that we have is to make a map of our little village so we have been walking around and visiting the little local shops. Agara does not have anything like a supermarket. They have farmer markets and little shops that sell things like soap, candy, and some meat products. I stop in and get Coca-colas or ice-cream in our breaks during class.

This is a picture of the inside courtyard of my host-family. In the corner is the well that the family uses to get all of the water that they use. Around the corner of the outhouse complex you see on the left there is the toilet. The toilet is Turkish style outhouse. For a bath/shower the family helps me heat up a large cauldron of water and then I use a bowl to bathe. I have not done laundry yet but I will this weekend. I will let you know how it goes - but I assume I will wash it in the same pot I bath with and hang it up to dry. I think it will be an interesting experience.

This is a picture of the street that I live on. Every day and night the small herd of cows travel up and down the dirt street. The road can be rather muddy when it rains but it is a nice place to live. I think that the next two months will be a great time learn about the people and the language so that I can integrate at my permanent site. All the people have been very nice to me and its been great. I have been to visit the neighbors and they all sit and talk while I cannot say a word. My host-sister Lela can speak some English so I can get by and take care of the necessities. At night we both sit and study our respective other languages. I am getting better every day at recognizing the words the people speak - my Georgian ear is improving. There will be more next week so keep reading!! Hugs and Love

So far my Georgian journey has been fun, exciting, and overwhelming. It is amazing to think that I have only been here for a few days. I am already learning so much Georgian from my language instructor, Tamta. After an orientation dinner in Tbilisi we were split into cluster groups and assigned a teacher (language and cultural facilitator) and a small training village on the outskirts of our hub city outside of Tbilisi. Our city is named Agara and we passed it today on the hotel outside the city where we are continuing our training. When we first arrived in Tbilisi, on Monday night, after busing to JFK Airport from Philadelphia and then flying to Istanbul and then Tbliisi International Airport we were bused to a nice restaurant for dinner. Dinner consisted of bread, cheese bread, vegetables, cheese, delicacies, and fruit for dessert. We then had an information session where we received medical kits, information books, and a cell phone. Email me if you would like the number to call or text me. After the dinner we when to a nice hotel named Hotel Istanbul which was a nice hotel with hot water, wireless internet, and clean rooms. The next morning, Tuesday, we when to a local university where we had our first informational briefings and in the afternoon we went to the Peace Corps Office. At the Peace Corps office we signed paperwork, had shots, interviews, and meet the mentor we were matched with. I gave my mentor, Dan, pop tarts, peanut butter, tuna packets, baking soda, and measuring cups. It was a nice party/picnic and I was able to meet and get advice from a number of the G7 and G6 volunteer. The next day, Wednesday, we had language class and information sessions at the local University and then took a bus up to a resort hotel, Vera Palace, in the town of Bakuriani. The hotel is wonderful and we will have language classes and information / integration sessions over the next few days. On Saturday we will be placed with your host families in Agara. Hopefully tomorrow I will have time to write about the people I have meet and my impressions of Georgia so far.

Its official, I will be spending the next 27 months in Georgia. From June 15, 2008 to September 15, 2010 I will be a Peace Corps Volunteer working as a Business and Social Entrepreneurship Consultant. To finally know where I am going is so utterly exciting. When I got the blue placement/offer packet in the mail I did a little happy dance and then called everyone (aka my mom and my best friends) to let them know where I was going. I spent most of that evening reading through the packet and wrapping my head around the journey ahead of me. I know very little about the country of Georgia but I am learning more every day. It was not a country I normally associated with Eastern Europe as it seems to be more Middle Eastern from a geographic perspective. Nevertheless, Georgia seems to have a strong European base in addition to Russian/Slavic and Middle Eastern influences. The more I learned about Georgia, the more marvelous it seemed. It has its own language, Georgian, with its own alphabet. The alphabet has a strong Arabic and Slavic feel. I think it will be a really interesting challenge to learn the language. Another interesting thing I found out about was the work I would be doing. My job title will be ‘Business and Social Entrepreneurship Consultant and Adviser.’ I actually think it’s a really progressive job title as Social Entrepreneurship is a relatively new field so to speak. To learn more about Social Entrepreneurship I spent some time speaking with a professor who specializes in it and I completely fell in love with the concept. The Skoll Foundation explains Social Entrepreneurship as the following: Just as entrepreneurs change the face of business, social entrepreneurs act as the change agents for society, seizing opportunities others miss and improving systems, inventing new approaches and creating sustainable solutions to change society for the better. However, unlike business entrepreneurs who are motivated by profits, social entrepreneurs are motivated to improve society. Despite this difference, social entrepreneurs are just as innovative and change oriented as their business counterparts, searching for new and better ways to solve the problems that plague society.I am so excited to find that there is structure and research going on around an amazing idea that I could completely get behind. Hopefully I will be able to apply the practices of this field in Georgia.

So when I got the medical clearance paperwork in early December I spent time going over everything that I had to do and talking with my mom [ex nurse and amazingly helpful] about the best way to get everything done correctly, efficiently, and cost-effectively. There are essentially two parts of the medical exam that I had to deal with … the dental and the medical/physical. There is also an eye exam form that needed to be filled out if you have glasses or contacts. Because I wanted to get a head start on my medical paperwork I scheduled an appointment my doctor, Dr. R, at the student clinic. The doctor there filled out most of my paperwork for the physical but did not order any of the tests [there are a whole slew of expensive tests that you need to include with the medical examination] as she thought that my doctor/gynecologist, Dr. C, at home should handle those tests. I went to Dr. C over break and she ordered all the tests that I needed. I arranged for an appointment over winter break with a fabulous organization of dentists that do the dentist examination free of charge. The appointment with Dr. F went very smoothly, the dentist and his staff where very great, and all the paperwork was handled correctly. I also went to my eye doctor and got my eyes checked. That eye exam paperwork was rather minor compared with the other examinations as it is just to make sure that they can order you new glasses if you loss the two pairs that you are requested to come with. The Peace Corps does not recommend that people wear contacts due to questionable sanitary conditions and their ‘inability’ to supply them. Once I got all the forms and tests together I was thinking, wow this is pretty painless. I made copies of everything just in case and send in the completed packet to DC mid January. I had to wait to send the medical reimbursement forms because I had not gotten the bill from the insurance company … and I am still waiting for the bill. Typical right? SO here I was thinking that everything was all set and then low and behold I get a letter several weeks later from the dental reviewers saying that somehow, in the mail, my bitewing printouts had fused together. I was so glad that I had made copies of everything. I then made another copy of my dental file and sent it in. Several days later I got notification that my dental had been cleared. Then last Monday evening I get another letter in the mail, this time it’s from the medical reviewer stating that one of the necessary tests was missing, they needed more details on one of my medications, and they need a copy of the gynecologist’s exam. Amazed that I had done so much wrong I called up Dr. C’s office on Tuesday morning to see if I could get the necessary paperwork. I found out that Dr. C had forgotten to order one of the tests that I needed. Yikes! Determined to get all of this handled as soon as possible I call up the health center to make sure they can run the test, which I find out they can, and so I make an appointment for later that day to get my blood drawn for the test. I faxed the letter stating what I needed to Dr. C’s office on Tuesday and she faxed back the completed paperwork on Thursday. I got the test results today from the health clinic and faxed everything to the Medical Review a few hours ago. I am writing this with my fingers crossed [figuratively] that I get my medical clearance and nothing else goes wrong. I will let you know. Wish me luck!

So after coming to the realization that volunteering in the Peace Corps was exactly what I wanted to do next with my life, I started the application process. I found the application process not too grueling [mostly because I had spent the last few months filling out applications for corporate positions that I later figured out I did not want]. The application consisted of several parts dealing with past work experience, language training, hobbies, volunteer work, health screening, placement preferences. I also had to write two essays [one on my cross-cultural experience and the second on my motivation for joining] and provide the contact information for three references: one friend, one volunteer, and one work supervisor. Not too complicated right?Meanwhile I began talking to all the people in my life about my desire to join the Peace Corps and I found that many of them knew someone who had served. I got the contact information for several returned Peace Corps Volunteers and called them up to pick their brains about their experiences. Everyone I talked to was very positive about their experience and more than willing to share their stories. One person had actual meet their husband while serving. It helped me to get a feel for what to expect not just during my service but also afterward. Very soon after I submitted my contact information I received a packet from my official recruiter [a different person than the one giving the information session] with a number of forms to fill out detailing my placement category work experiences. After sending in the forms, I had a phone interview with my recruiter. The interview was a little over an hour long and included questions about how I deal with other cultures, isolation, stress, communication, vegetarian concerns, why I want to serve, where and why, what I want to do and why, and then I was able to ask my questions. It was a great interview and felt more like a conversation than anything. The next week I got a call and was able to chose where I wanted to be nominated to [what region I wanted to work in]. Because serving as a business development volunteer was important to me I made that my first priority then the region. My recruiter, Kristin, told me she could nominate me for Sub-Saharan Africa [but I would need additional French language training], Central Asia [mom and dad would freak out, literally, if I went anywhere near the Middle East], or Eastern Europe. I chose Eastern Europe because I thought that it would provide a great place to use my business development skills, it seemed the best fit, and would provide easy access to airports to go home if there was an emergency. My nomination complete, I relaxed and waited for the medical clearance paperwork to come…

“When it comes to choosing a life path, you should do what you love — because if you don’t love it, you are unlikely to work hard enough to get very good. Most people naturally don’t like to do things they aren’t “good” at. So they often give up, telling themselves they simply don’t possess the talent for math or skiing or the violin. But what they really lack is the desire to be good and to undertake the deliberate practice that would make them better.” – Authors of Freakonomics

"Of course, the difficult part is to figure out what you love. Maybe a better standard, though, is to figure out what you love to practice. That seems to eliminate a lot more possibilities right off the bat." – Penelope Trunk, Brazen Careerist

"You know what? F**k beauty contests. Life is one fucking beauty contest after another. School, then college, then work... F**k that. And fuck the Air Force Academy. If I want to fly, I'll find a way to fly. You do what you love, and f**k the rest." - Little Miss Sunshine

Question: When you’re one of the few people who can do something to fix a problem, just how responsible does that make you for it? Answer: It’s how you choose to answer that question that defines you. - Bloodfever by Karen Marie Morning

These are some of the quotes that I have jotted down that inspire me or reflect back to me some of the ideals that I espouse. I believe that it is important to find meaning and inspiration from the world around you. I find they help to banish the negativity energy I get from some people. For example, there is a really “Negative Nancy” at the office where I work about 20 hours a week in between classes and every day something else is wrong with her job or the people she has to work with. The thing is, she won’t quit her job and I just don’t get it. It’s an entry-level secretarial position. There are more of those out there than I can count. It frustrates me to see someone so unsatisfied with their work, unwilling to do anything about it, and thus spreading dissatisfaction through general negativity all day. It has taken me a long time to realize that I can’t take responsibility for a person’s problems. I have to let go of the urge to fix things, because in the end, they need to fix the situation themselves. I can only provide insight and advice and I then to just step back after a while and let them work through it. Let go, let flow, and all that.

I thought it would be fun and interesting to learn the personality types of my roommates. I have heard that the more you understand about the people you interact with the more effective your communication. So here are the results of the Keirsey Temperament Sorter and the MBTI tests of: Kat is a Champion (MBTI: ENFP) “Champions are introspective, cooperative, informative, individualistic, and expressive. Champions have a strong desire to make their thoughts known to the world. Champions are concerned with ethics and justice. Champions consider intense emotional experiences to be vital to life and view the world as a drama. Champions are keen observers of the people around them. Champions are sensitive and alert to what is possible. Champions are warm, energetic, spontaneous, positive, exuberant and dramatic.” -Wikipedia Ker is a Healer (MBTI: INFP) “Healers are introspective, cooperative, informative, and attentive. They are highly compassionate and empathetic to the needs of others. Healers tend to be private individuals who have a strong sense of right and wrong and an idealistic worldview. Healers are often misunderstood as children. Most other role variants can shrug off the parental expectations that don’t fit them, but healers are greatly affected by it. They want to please their parents and their siblings and, in attempt to do this, they may mask or hide their differences. Healers seek unity of mind, body and spirit, perhaps because of the inner turmoil caused during their upbringing.” -Wikipedia I am a Mastermind (MBTI: INTJ) “Masterminds are introspective, pragmatic, directive, forward-looking, and attentive. They are driven to solve complex problems and to create organized, decided, and executed solutions. Masterminds are highly capable leaders as contingency planning and entailment organizing is highly developed in them. Despite their leadership capabilities, masterminds prefer to stay in the background until others demonstrate ineffective leadership. Masterminds are strong willed, self-confident and decisive. They are also highly theoretical and are the most open-minded of all the role variants. Before a mastermind adopts a theoretical notion, they insist on researching all of the available data and checking the idea against reality.” -Wikipedia MBTI INTJ Relationship Insights "By nature INTJs tend to be demanding in their expectations and approach relationships in a very rational manner. As a result, an INTJ may not always respond to a naturally occurring infatuation but wait for a mate who better fits his or her set criteria. Persons with this personality type are very stable, reliable and dedicated. Harmony in relationships and home life tends to be extremely important to the INTJ. He or she tends to withhold strong emotion and does not like to "waste" time with irrational social rituals." -WikipediaAs you can see we are all very different people with different ways of looking at the world and reacting to our surroundings. I think knowing why and how we are different helps me understand why they do or say things I just don't get. Knowledge is power or at least sanity. Its this kind of experience that will be very helpful when I start working with people of totally different personalities and cultural values.

One of my classes this semester is a senior colloquium where we learn the ten key principles to success and discuss the 'real business world environment'. The class is taught by a really interesting, very successful man and our assignment for class was to compose a list of ten major accomplishment we want to have achieved ten years from now. Here is my list:

1. Graduate from My University with Honors of Distinction and a 3.8 – aka successfully complete my Thesis and don’t lose it in any of my classes.

2. Successfully complete Peace Corps Service, learn the country language[s], better the lives of the people around me.

3. Become Fluent in Two Other Languages.

4. Discover my ideal career path, my passions, a vision for my life. Reconnect with my past and explore my spirituality.

5. Maintain all of my friendships, relationships, and create new strong relationships.

6. Pursue a career in international development focusing on small to mid size ventures - microfinance, working with governments to attract foreign capital investment, and the general betterment of impoverished groups through economic development.

7. Attend a top level Graduate School, largely subsidized with grants and scholarships, to get my MBA.

8. Own my own home and invest in various other real estate ventures. Build a strong financial base for emergencies, travel, and retirement.

9. Visit all seven continents and work on visiting all 50 states. Live for several years in either Portland, Oregon or Boston, Massachusetts.

10. Learn to fly a helicopter, get certified to dive and do so, ride in a hot air balloon, go skydiving, gamble in Vegas, compete in a half marathon, and have many other adventures and experiences.

Oh I know the list is a little grandiose but I think it's better to have goals and then take detours along the way than to never have mapped it out in the first place.

"Value yourself by your aspirations, not by your limitations."

-Cathie Black, Basic Black

This is my first blog entry. It was one of my New Year’s Resolutions to start writing down what happens in my life and as you can tell, I am a bit of a procrastinator. The main purpose of this blog is to share my experiences as I graduate college and begin volunteering in the Peace Corps. Now why am I joining the Peace Corps instead of taking any one of the lucrative job offers I received last semester? Well, I have my quarter-life crisis to thank for that. Seriously, I was looking at my life and trying to make sense of the fact that I am a Finance major who does not want to do Accounting (which is what entry-level corporate finance jobs are) or sell investments (which is what a Financial Adviser/Investments … positions are all about). The big Question then comes up – What am I going to do with my life? How am I going to achieve general happiness and imbue my life with meaning and purpose? What do I actually want?

So I sat down and started thinking about what I want my life to mean, what I want to stand for, and what I am passionate about/interested in. The idea of a service project after graduation but before the First Real Job [which is ironic because I have been working at least part-time since is was 15 and sometimes as much as 60+ hours a week to pay for school] was something that I had been planning on for a long while. During this time of intense reflections and mental anguish, I came to the conclusion that I needed to find an alternative to the conventional transition for college into the working world. I went to an Information Session hosted by a Peace Corps recruiter and came away from the experience not just with a solution to my problem but with a new conviction, a new desire to bring about change in a positive way. I had always known about the Peace Corps but associated it with Hippies [like my Mom] trying to save the world or PolSci Majors looking to bolster their future political careers without serving in the armed forces. The more I learned the more I realized that this experience would allow me to stretch myself and grow while also giving me the opportunity to use the business skills that I had been studying for the last four years.

To Be Continued…