Hey Guys!
So I said I would come back with an update in May. I'm coming with not so good news. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I was medevac'd from Mongolia. Well, after I was medevac'd, I was also medically separated. Thus, I will not be returning (or not any time soon). Although I was disappointed at first, I am now making the most of my time back. I've started applying for jobs and internships and studying for LSATs (hopefully I can start Fall 2015?). I had a great experience in Mongolia while it lasted and I will carry the skills I learned there throughout life. They say everything happens for a reason, right?
Anyway. I'm considering continuing this blog as a "Life after the Corps" blog. Any inputs? Also, if anyone has questions about any part of the process, feel free leave a comment with your email address and I'll send an email.
Thanks for taking this journey with me!
Tuesday 6 May 2014
Wednesday 5 March 2014
Hiatus
Hey guys!
Going on a hiatus. I may pop in if I have anything to update you on. But for now, probably no posts til May. If you have any questions, feel free to ask! Leave an email address and I'll message. Thanks to all who've been reading thus far!
Going on a hiatus. I may pop in if I have anything to update you on. But for now, probably no posts til May. If you have any questions, feel free to ask! Leave an email address and I'll message. Thanks to all who've been reading thus far!
Saturday 1 March 2014
Peace Corps Week 2014
Hey Guys!
So this week is Peace Corps Week (and today is Peace Corps 53rd Birthday)! I figure what better way to celebrate than to talk a little about the history of Peace Corps (just a blurb….you can read more here). So Peace Corps started in 1961 under the Kennedy administration. In his Executive Order, he said Peace Corps would "To promote world peace and friendship through a Peace Corps, which shall make available to interested countries and areas men and women of the United States qualified for service abroad and willing to serve, under conditions of hardship if necessary, to help the peoples of such countries and areas in meeting their needs for trained manpower" (See more on the Wiki page here). Since this order, Peace Corps has sent volunteers to over 100 countries around the world.
Well, as I said, just a blurb. Be sure to read more information on the links I posted. And be sure to celebrate Peace Corps Week by reading the experiences of volunteers around the world! There is no shortage of awesome blogs on the interwebs!
Anyway, tata for now!
So this week is Peace Corps Week (and today is Peace Corps 53rd Birthday)! I figure what better way to celebrate than to talk a little about the history of Peace Corps (just a blurb….you can read more here). So Peace Corps started in 1961 under the Kennedy administration. In his Executive Order, he said Peace Corps would "To promote world peace and friendship through a Peace Corps, which shall make available to interested countries and areas men and women of the United States qualified for service abroad and willing to serve, under conditions of hardship if necessary, to help the peoples of such countries and areas in meeting their needs for trained manpower" (See more on the Wiki page here). Since this order, Peace Corps has sent volunteers to over 100 countries around the world.
Well, as I said, just a blurb. Be sure to read more information on the links I posted. And be sure to celebrate Peace Corps Week by reading the experiences of volunteers around the world! There is no shortage of awesome blogs on the interwebs!
Anyway, tata for now!
Friday 21 February 2014
"The Problem With Little White Girls (and Boys) Why I Stopped Being A Voluntourist" by Pippa Biddle
So a friend of mine just sent me this post….and it was like WOW. It really does make me think. And it's not just about white boys or girls, but people coming from the "developed world" to help the "poor, underdeveloped" people of the world. I think it's a must read for anyone doing, considering, or invited to Peace Corps. The paragraph that really hit me was:
"Our mission while at the orphanage was to build a library. Turns out that we, a group of highly educated private boarding school students were so bad at the most basic construction work that each night the men had to take down the structurally unsound bricks we had laid and rebuild the structure so that, when we woke up in the morning, we would be unaware of our failure. It is likely that this was a daily ritual. Us mixing cement and laying bricks for 6+ hours, them undoing our work after the sun set, re-laying the bricks, and then acting as if nothing had happened so that the cycle could continue."
This really hit me because it made me think of all the times I've gone on service projects and built a house or fixed a hospital or build a retaining wall….with no experience! Yes, we had maybe an hour of training, but is this service really about helping someone else or boosting egos to say "oh, there was that time that I did construction to help these needy people and that makes me good". This article makes me give what I do a second look…makes me think about what my intentions are in service and how although service is great, service without adequate tools/skills may not be so useful. Definitely take some time to read this.
Talk to you all next week!!
"Our mission while at the orphanage was to build a library. Turns out that we, a group of highly educated private boarding school students were so bad at the most basic construction work that each night the men had to take down the structurally unsound bricks we had laid and rebuild the structure so that, when we woke up in the morning, we would be unaware of our failure. It is likely that this was a daily ritual. Us mixing cement and laying bricks for 6+ hours, them undoing our work after the sun set, re-laying the bricks, and then acting as if nothing had happened so that the cycle could continue."
This really hit me because it made me think of all the times I've gone on service projects and built a house or fixed a hospital or build a retaining wall….with no experience! Yes, we had maybe an hour of training, but is this service really about helping someone else or boosting egos to say "oh, there was that time that I did construction to help these needy people and that makes me good". This article makes me give what I do a second look…makes me think about what my intentions are in service and how although service is great, service without adequate tools/skills may not be so useful. Definitely take some time to read this.
Talk to you all next week!!
Saturday 15 February 2014
Cultural Window: Mongolia
Hey Guys!
Not much this week! Here is a YouTube video giving you a snippet of what life is like in Mongolia (more so on the ger dwelling side of things). This was made by one of the people in my group!! Check out her blog here. Tomorrow I'm going to a Tsagaan Sar celebration and I'm SUPER pumped! Til next week, баяртай!!
Monday 10 February 2014
As time goes on..
Hey Guys!
I know…my posts have been late every week. And to be honest, it's mostly because I literally have nothing to write about! The biggest thing from the past week is the Peace Corps event I went to. It was a discussion on the experience of black volunteers in the Peace Corps. There was a panel followed by a question and answer session. It was great to hear that volunteers around the world have similar experiences when it comes to race! Even the volunteers who served in African countries talked about not necessarily racially, but culturally as African-Americans. It was definitely a great learning experience. Outside of this event, my week has gone on about the same as the others: pretty uneventfully. Hopefully I will have more to discuss next week! By the way, If anyone has any specific questions regarding my experience, feel free to ask by email or here (I can even make a Q&A post if anyone wants). Talk to you next week!
I know…my posts have been late every week. And to be honest, it's mostly because I literally have nothing to write about! The biggest thing from the past week is the Peace Corps event I went to. It was a discussion on the experience of black volunteers in the Peace Corps. There was a panel followed by a question and answer session. It was great to hear that volunteers around the world have similar experiences when it comes to race! Even the volunteers who served in African countries talked about not necessarily racially, but culturally as African-Americans. It was definitely a great learning experience. Outside of this event, my week has gone on about the same as the others: pretty uneventfully. Hopefully I will have more to discuss next week! By the way, If anyone has any specific questions regarding my experience, feel free to ask by email or here (I can even make a Q&A post if anyone wants). Talk to you next week!
Monday 3 February 2014
Sunday 26 January 2014
Post slacking
Hey Guys,
So I literally have nothing new to update you guys on. All I've been doing is sleeping, eating, and talking to Peace Corps. But I just saw an article on Mongolian food and thought I'd share the link. The three main dishes in Mongolia are buuz, khuushuur, and tsiuvan. This link will tell you a little more about them. Enjoy!! I'll try to get you guys more entertaining things for next week!
So I literally have nothing new to update you guys on. All I've been doing is sleeping, eating, and talking to Peace Corps. But I just saw an article on Mongolian food and thought I'd share the link. The three main dishes in Mongolia are buuz, khuushuur, and tsiuvan. This link will tell you a little more about them. Enjoy!! I'll try to get you guys more entertaining things for next week!
Friday 17 January 2014
News!
Hey Ya'll!
So I've been away for about 2 weeks. I've had internet troubles and some other troubles. Also, I'm currently on a medevac, so the next couple posts will be my journey back (Check out the link to find out what a medevac is). That's been about it. I did get a care package recently (super pumped!!) with all sorts of goodies. Stay tuned for pictures!!
So I've been away for about 2 weeks. I've had internet troubles and some other troubles. Also, I'm currently on a medevac, so the next couple posts will be my journey back (Check out the link to find out what a medevac is). That's been about it. I did get a care package recently (super pumped!!) with all sorts of goodies. Stay tuned for pictures!!
The package of greatness! Granola bars, seasoning, peanut butter, thyme, crackers and smoked herring....sooooo excited!!
They even wrote messages on the box!
Well, on 2 sides.
And one of my favorite pairs of pants were in the box! These are an awesome pair of wool camo pants!
Sunday 5 January 2014
2014 is here!!!
Hey guys!!
So I know I'm a little late (my school's internet went out...again), but I'm here with a New Year's post!! Since we last spoke, the 2 big events have been my school's Shine Jil party and the mini party that my site mates and I had. At our school's shine jil party, we had lots of food, games, dancing, and singing (like most Mongolian parties). It was lots of fun and everyone looked soo nice!!! I left at about 11 pm (though the party kept on going without me....It started at 5!!). Then on Tuesday night, my site mates and I all spent time together for the new year. We tried to go out to dinner, but every restaurant was closed! It was pretty crazy. We cooked together and just hung out (one of my site mates' counterpart came to spend time too!), although I didn't make it til 12 (old age, I guess). On Wednesday, no one had work or school so we spent the day resting and cleaning and later on we went to my site mates' counterpart's house for dinner. Then it was back to work the next day. That's been the past week, for the most part. I am now back in my ger (and freezing...yay). Thank goodness I can still make a fire!! Anyway, here are some pictures from the school party! Talk to you guys later!!
So I know I'm a little late (my school's internet went out...again), but I'm here with a New Year's post!! Since we last spoke, the 2 big events have been my school's Shine Jil party and the mini party that my site mates and I had. At our school's shine jil party, we had lots of food, games, dancing, and singing (like most Mongolian parties). It was lots of fun and everyone looked soo nice!!! I left at about 11 pm (though the party kept on going without me....It started at 5!!). Then on Tuesday night, my site mates and I all spent time together for the new year. We tried to go out to dinner, but every restaurant was closed! It was pretty crazy. We cooked together and just hung out (one of my site mates' counterpart came to spend time too!), although I didn't make it til 12 (old age, I guess). On Wednesday, no one had work or school so we spent the day resting and cleaning and later on we went to my site mates' counterpart's house for dinner. Then it was back to work the next day. That's been the past week, for the most part. I am now back in my ger (and freezing...yay). Thank goodness I can still make a fire!! Anyway, here are some pictures from the school party! Talk to you guys later!!
My library buddy (I'm now in the library when I have no class instead of in the teacher's room)
Some of the teachers from my school
Shine Jil dress!
Some of the teachers singing a Mongolian New Years song!
Cheers all around!!
The training managers, director, and accountants
Check out the dance floor (typical Mongolian dancing....in a circle)!
The one in the middle is one of my counterparts!
There was a game that they played where they had a guy and a gal from each table come up. Then they used tape and taped around the men's heads, shoulders, stomachs, and legs and then see how many balloons would use static to stay. The team with the most balloons won. Then they popped all the balloons....while they were still on!
2 of the teachers and I!
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