Swear-In time is almost here!

(Originally written on Tuesday, September 22, 2009)

So, Swear-In is this Friday, September 25th. That’s really weird! I cannot believe these nine weeks of training are almost over. What do you think?

This past week had some worthwhile highlights to share, so that’s what I’ll do. Last week, I took a zem to the bank all by myself. I discussed the price to get there, survived, did the same thing for the way back… it was a proud moment because I’ve usually shared zems (and price discussion) with people (that’s right, three people on one motorcycle) for occasions in the past and because I was going to an unfamiliar part of town. That same day, I rode my bike through the crazy, absolutely nutso marche, which I usually try to avoid. At the point I realized I’d turned down one of its many roads, I figured I should just take it for what it’s worth and have a look around. It was a success and I survived. I also got some sweet deals on tissue (cloth) and the marche mamans from whom I bought the tissue told me how great my French was. I’m pretty sure they just wanted me to buy more tissue because my French, in fact, is not that great. I was just conquering all sorts of unknowns. It was a cool day, but then a bug flew into my mouth after dinner. It turned out all right, though- I spit it out.

Last week I also had my final language interview and I surpassed the required two levels that I needed to go up- I went up three levels! This is all very arbitrary, but it is still neat to see that whatever progress I’ve made has brought me from “Novice-Mid” to “Intermediate-Low” to “Advanced-Low” in three language tests I’ve had since arriving. I’m just so glad I passed because I was so incredibly nervous that I didn’t progress enough. But I did, so that means I get to swear-in!

This past weekend we had a little field trip to Ouidah. You should read about it on Wikipedia or somewhere. It was all very interesting and hot and the trips there and back basically made me want to puke the whole time, but c’est la vie! Ouidah is famous for being a huge slave port and also its python temple (pythons are sacred in the Voodoo religion, which you should also read about because Benin is its birthplace and it’s very much alive!) and I was planning on getting my picture taken with a huge python around my neck (I know, super touristy!) but apparently it’s not “the season” for snakes, so we didn’t get to go! I was pretty disappointed. Also, what do you mean, “not in season”? They’re snakes! Apparently we missed them by about two months. I didn’t quite understand that, which is pretty representative of frequent reactions to excuses here. Some things are beyond comprehension. Here are two (basically the same) pictures of a group of us environment and health Trainees. One of our Volunteer Trainers is at the far right.

This week I also had a final interview with my APCD (Associate Peace Corps Director; these exist for each sector) and we chatted about my progress, what I think my strengths and weaknesses are, if I can still see myself being a Volunteer here for two years, etc. This was a great little conversation and I made sure to give him the highlights of my progress during training, a big one being the fact that I can ride a mean bicycle nowadays. Seriously, you should see me.

There have been a bunch of other “Post-Tests,” none of which hold any weight like the Language one. We’ve had cross-cultural, medical, technical, bike, maybe another I forgot about… embarrassingly, I got the capital of the country wrong on the cross-cultural test. The capital is Porto-Novo, but the economic capital is Cotonou (and the city you always hear about). I wrote Cotonou- oops- I’m pretty sure they don’t want to send me home because of it. I think my embarrassment is punishment enough.

So, I’m moving to Post early next week and that should be exciting/scary/lonely/cool beans. And then, the following weekend, I am getting a cat! That’s right- a kitten for me! The girl I visited for technical visit a few weeks ago had a cat with a litter of kittens and they needed good homes, so I said I’d take one! I asked for a little boy and I plan to name him (or her) Petit Chou, because I anticipate that when I come home I would wind up saying “Bonsoir mon petit chou chou!” anyway! (A term of endearment in French, it means “little cabbage.”) I have to make sure that he doesn’t get out of my concession, though, because it’s likely that he would ultimately get eaten. It’s true, but luckily I have plenty of space for an indoor cat and, also, cats here are smaller in general. For example, when I visited this girl for technical visit, I thought the mama cat was an older kitten. I would prefer to get a dog, and there are a few reasons why I’m not, but ultimately I couldn’t deal with the idea of anything happening to him, even though people have dogs in the area, so I don’t think he’d get eaten. I wouldn’t be able to keep him inside during the day like a cat and I’d be concerned about what to do when I go on vacation if the neighbors aren’t super interested. I think my situation is just better suited for a cat. I don’t know much about cats, so we’ll see! It should be fun.

Also, here are two photos from when we went to a restaurant at the beginning of September for birthdays that were happening. In the first one I'm in the way back on the left:

Well, I anticipate that this is my final post as a PC Trainee! Next time you hear from me I’ll be a PCV, perhaps in the middle of a bout of “ohmygoshwhyamIdoingthisIhavenoideaaboutanything,” but it’ll pass and I’ll be just fine! Really, this happens to everyone. Mostly, I’m pumped and really happy that I’m on this Peace Corps adventure. It helps that I very much feel your support and love throughout my days, especially when I get your mail or see your comments on Facebook, etc. So, eternal thanks to you!

Until next time, thank you! Much love to all :o)