Thanksgiving and Scandalous Banyas
Thanksgiving was a hit even though the power went out 3 times when we were trying to cook our goose. It was absolutely delicious and my Mom and Grandma (from America) would be so proud of the way my stuffing turned out. They didn't have celery but we tried to make do with what we had. We also made apple crisp and a fruit salad. We went all out and it only cost 400 som, about 10 bucks American. Not too shabby when it's split between 5 people.
So we all had our language exams and even though I know I completely botched mine I got Intermediate Mid. To put it in perspective, there is Novice, Intermediate and Advanced and within those are Low, Mid and Hi, so I literally got right in the middle, then there is superior which means your fluent which I will probably never get. Some people did better than me, some did worse than me and some people's scores weren't very accurate but I am nonetheless happy. I will definitely continue after training is over, getting a Russian tutor is probably the first thing I will do.
I got my first bout of giardia which is an intenstinal paracite. Pretty nasty but I was loaded up with antibiotics so I think it got cleared up pretty quickly. Thank goodness.
So I am still homeless. I know that I am going to be in the Chui region but I don't know exactly where. We swear in tomorrow so I hope they figure it out soon because I am supposed to be living there Friday. I thought I was supposed to find out last Friday but I guess they meant any Friday. I'm somewhat frustrated but I know that this is probably the best decision for me even though it's going to be hard to inform my family and the school that the volunteer they thought the were getting is no longer coming. I sincerely hope there are no hard feelings.
Tim's girlfriend and I took a banya together last weekend, we were both giggling pretty hard. Especially because Tim's Mama gave me honey to rub on her chest and back since she had a cold (apparently that helps here). Then we took turns beating each other with the herb branches. Have I mentioned that I have lost all conception concerning what is normal here?
We're swearing in tomorrow and I am both nervous and excited. It seems like we have gotten so much information during the past 3 months now we have to sort through it and make ourselves actual volunteers. It's going to be really hard to say goodbye but I am leaving knowing that I have made awesome friends, a great family and a place that I can call home. I guess I can't ask for much more.
So we all had our language exams and even though I know I completely botched mine I got Intermediate Mid. To put it in perspective, there is Novice, Intermediate and Advanced and within those are Low, Mid and Hi, so I literally got right in the middle, then there is superior which means your fluent which I will probably never get. Some people did better than me, some did worse than me and some people's scores weren't very accurate but I am nonetheless happy. I will definitely continue after training is over, getting a Russian tutor is probably the first thing I will do.
I got my first bout of giardia which is an intenstinal paracite. Pretty nasty but I was loaded up with antibiotics so I think it got cleared up pretty quickly. Thank goodness.
So I am still homeless. I know that I am going to be in the Chui region but I don't know exactly where. We swear in tomorrow so I hope they figure it out soon because I am supposed to be living there Friday. I thought I was supposed to find out last Friday but I guess they meant any Friday. I'm somewhat frustrated but I know that this is probably the best decision for me even though it's going to be hard to inform my family and the school that the volunteer they thought the were getting is no longer coming. I sincerely hope there are no hard feelings.
Tim's girlfriend and I took a banya together last weekend, we were both giggling pretty hard. Especially because Tim's Mama gave me honey to rub on her chest and back since she had a cold (apparently that helps here). Then we took turns beating each other with the herb branches. Have I mentioned that I have lost all conception concerning what is normal here?
We're swearing in tomorrow and I am both nervous and excited. It seems like we have gotten so much information during the past 3 months now we have to sort through it and make ourselves actual volunteers. It's going to be really hard to say goodbye but I am leaving knowing that I have made awesome friends, a great family and a place that I can call home. I guess I can't ask for much more.
posted by Katie P. at 11:37 PM
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