Because you only go around once

I've always thought blogs were a bit self-indulgent. I mean, who actually has that much to say about themself that they require an entire blog to document their life? But alas, I've made the crossover, and I've realized that, if you take the time to sit down and read a few, a lot of these "bloggers" actually do have something important to say. I may not have anything important to say, but this may be my only means of communication for the next few years, so cut me some slack. And, sorry for any past judgement. Here's my first post:

On November 7, 2005, I will leave home and begin my journey as a Peace Corps volunteer. After over two years of consideration, and nearly an entire year after that of the dreaded application process, I was finally invited to serve with Peace Corps as a "primary teacher trainer" in the southwestern African country of Namibia. This blog will chronicle my daily life in Namibia, and will provide its readers (family, friends, general public, peace corps prospects, etc..) with as much information possible about Peace Corps. I have no idea how accessible internet access will be in Namibia, or how frequently I will be able to post and update this blog, so please be patient.

I get a lot of questions about Peace Corps in general, so instead of going through the specifics in a post, I've included them on a separate page. If you're interested, check it out here.

Since March of this year, when I was first nominated, I knew that if I ended up getting an invite, I would be serving in Sub-Saharan Africa in the field of Education. Great! Cameroon, or Mozambique, or Malawi, or maybe even South Africa, I thought. I have to admit that when I finally received my invite and saw "Namibia," I was a bit thrown. How was it possible that I had barely heard of this country and knew nothing about it? After a bit of research, and some exchanging of information from fellow bloggers (Yahoo! Africa 14ers), I realized there may be good reason for this (or at least a good enough excuse to help me feel less 'Africa-deficient.') Namibia gained its independence from South Africa in 1990, only 15 years ago. Originally called "German South-West Africa," Namibia was a German colony until WWI in the early 1900s when it was taken over by South Africa and renammed "South-West Africa." Under the government of South Africa, Namibia fell victim to apartheid, and remained oppressed until its independence. Today, the effects of apartheid are still strongly felt throughout Namibia.

It was only 6 months into their independence when PC began sending volunteers to serve in Namibia. Though slow, the country has made progress and vast improvements in many areas, including education and equal opportunities for all peoples.

So, what do I think will be most challenging? I think it will be challenging to be the minority. I think it will be challenging to be a liberal, independent, opinionated woman (but hey, not too different from the US, right?). I think it will be challenging to live in a country thousands of miles from anything and anyone I have ever known. I think it will be challenging to modify the way I do things to accomodate people who may never understand what I am trying to teach them. I think it will be challenging to live in a place where gender equality is virtually non-existent and racial tensions run high. I think it will be challenging to live in poverty. I think so many things will be challenging.... but that's what I was looking for.

Okay, I promise if you continue to visit my blog throughout this journey, my posts will be much more interesting, and much less factual (I had to get this one out of the way). So, if you are interested or have more questions, browse what is here now or let me know, and please visit again.