They have internet in Ghana too

So lot's to update on and I'm sure I'm going to miss stuff but I shall try.  This is the first time I have gotten on the internet in two months.  I feel like I'm in middle school again.  First and foremost, I'm in Ghana.  Woohoo!  Everyday the realization that I'm living on a different continent populated by a different culture that speaks a wholly unfamiliar language slowly sinks in.  I have had many 'Welcome to Africa' moments.  From that cold shower on the first morning, to playing frisbee with my host aunt while she had a baby tied to her back with a piece of cloth, to lying in a three foot pile of corn in the middle of my mud brick compound gazing up at the stars, all have served to illustrate that Kansas is indeed very, very far away.
I know many people (especially my brother) have been wondering what I have been eating.  First off, I should say that in Ghanaian culture it is thought that one is is a bad host if their guest has to ask for more food.  Thus, despite my mother's concerns I have been eating lot's and lot's of food.  Many volunteers have been told to "Eat all!  It will make you strong!".  At first my host family would express dismay when I couldn't finish the 5 pounds of rice they gave me, but after I assured them that I was satisfied, they relented.  Overall, the food has been pretty good.  Their staple crops are yams, cassava, corn (maize), rice, beans, peanuts (groundnuts), plantains, bananas, oranges, chicken, and guinea fowl.  Not to mention fish.  They put them in everything.  From little fried fish that I ate whole (bones and all) to canned fish (bones and all).  Ghanaians eat everything from the skin to the bones.  I had crab one day and was instructed to eat every part of the legs including the shell.  Crab is not supposed to be that crunchy.  Anyways, one of the main food preparation techniques consists of pounding the food using a long wooden mallet of sorts.  Maize is pounded into banku, and yam or cassava or both becomes fufu.  They both have a doughy consistency and when eating them you dip a bit of the dough into a soup and swallow it whole.  It takes a little while to get used to. Everything is pretty spicy because they like to put spicy peppers into everything.  Like I said, overall I have enjoyed it.
Most of the past two months have been spent listening to various lectures about medical, cultural and agricultural information.  Some of the technical training has been more hands on and we visited various farms and animal rearing places to see how they did it.  We learned about beekeeping, rabbit rearing, maize, cashew, and shea farming.  Needless to say I think I will have enough to do for the next two years.  My community is very excited to have me working with them so I hope I will be able to help them out.
I spent three days at my site and was able to get a better picture of what I will actually be doing in Ghana.  My village is called Toronyilli and it is about an hour south of Tomale.  There are about 300 people in it but I will be working with the surrounding villages as well.  The only way to get to my village from the paved main road is an 8 mile trip down a dirt road.  Since the Peace Corps won't let me ride motorbikes it looks like the only option is to ride a bicycle.  I guess I'm going to be in better shape by the end of this.  The village itself looks like a classic African village.  There are small compounds where each family lives with 8 or 9 round houses with red mud walls and thatched roofs.  The surrounding land is full of tall grasses, termite mounds, a few trees, and local farms.  There is even a local herd of cattle that moved from area to area.  Additionally, there are goats, guinea fowls and chickens that run wild around the village.  I will be living in a compound with my counterpart and his family in a cement room with a zinc roof.  My counterpart acts as a local guide and helped introduce me to all the important people I will need to work with.  Not to mention he knows a lot more Dagbani then I do.  He introduced me to the chief, the elders, the local farmers and the district assembly man.  He is young and full of energy and has really high expectations for me.  I hope I can deliver on them.  My village has no running water or electricity, but the solar charger I brought with me should come in handy.  Plus, Tomale is a big city so I should be able to get everything I need (including the internet) there.  Overall, I'm really excited about everything and can't wait to finish training and settle in to my village.  They greeted me with open arms and a welcoming ceremony where they danced for me and made formal introductions.  They seem excited about having me in their village.  When my chief asked me what I was hoping to get out of my time here I responded that I wanted "Teach the village what I know, and learn from them what they know".  The foundation has been set for what should be a fruitful and important experience for not just me, but the village as well.

Ghana be Going

Wow.  Tomorrow marks the first day of what will be a truly life changing experience for me.  After talking about this for a year it seems to have snuck up on me.  I am filled with a vortex of emotions; nervous, excited, hopeful, anxious, relieved.  Most of all I feel ready to face the challenges ahead of me.  Once I get there I will finally be able to see what I'm actually going to be doing on a physical level and not just the goals of service.  My training provided by the Peace Corps will arm me with the skills I need to be successful.  A combination of support from back home and my personal life philosophy will help get me through everything else.  I can't wait to meet the 24 other Agriculture volunteers.  I have the sense that our collective experiences will draw us very close together and that we will support each other because at the end of the day we are in it together.  My one major concern is learning a new language, but I know that once I start the classes I will be fine.  This past week has been filled with friends, family, food, fires, and frequent encouragements and congratulations.  Not to mention a decent amount of good, ol' 'Merican beer.
I figured that it would be a good idea to get a serious haircut before I left.  Upon discussing it with my Dad, he said that I should "Have some fun with it, and shave my head for a charity."  So, I raised $1,000 towards the International Children's Fund, an organization that works with countries across Africa including Ghana.  Most impressively, only %2 of monetary donations go towards administrative costs.  The support I received from my friends and family was awesome!  With their help I was able to double my goal of $500.  That should give me a little good karma to get things started.
Lastly, I want to post my packing list.  I spent months researching everything that I would need for the next two years so I would like to show it off. 

Clothing

·         4 Button down short-sleeve dress shirts

·         Polo shirt

·         3 long sleeve UV 30 sun shirts

·         Long sleeve bug-repellent shirt

·         1 pair athletic shorts

·         1 pair normal shorts

·         Bathing suit

·         2 pairs lightweight khakis

·         1 pair work pants

·         7 T-shirts (including one Patriots shirt. I have to support my team somehow)

·         1 pair black dress pants

·         Dressy black t-shirt (for funerals)

·         1 pair pajama pants

·         Bug-repellent baseball cap

·         Wide brimmed hat

·         3 bandannas (1 anti-bug treated)

·         4 pairs long boot socks

·         1 pair normal socks

·         Eagle Creek money belt

·         belt

·         3 undershirts

·         Fleece jacket

·         Raincoat

 

Shoes

·         Chacos Unaweep 2 sandals

·         Merrel barefoot shoes

·         Redhead hiking boots (They are indestructible)

o   Extra boot laces

o   Mink oil

 

Luggage

·         Kelty Santa Fe 4000 Backpack

o   Rain cover

·         Redhead Duffel bag

·         Clik Elite Obscura 30 photography backpack

 

Electronics

·         Black Diamond Icon headlamp

·         Black Diamond Orbit lantern

·         Ipod (Gamestop Refurbished)

o   2 charging cables

o   Bose in-ear headphones

·         Goal Zero Nomad 7 solar panel (Pretty powerful and takes all sorts of inputs)

·         7 AA rechargeable batteries

·         4 AAA rechargeable batteries

·         Universal electric outlet adaptor

·         500GB external hard drive

·         Toshiba Laptop

o   Wireless mouse

o   Aqua Quest waterproof laptop sleeve

·         Kaito KA 1101 shortwave AM/FM radio

·         Mini-Max II portable speaker (Really loud and really small)

·         Kindle (thanks Mom and Dad)

·         Electric beard trimmer

·         3 2GB USB drives

·         Transcend memory card reader (If I have files larger than 2GB I can use it turn my memory cards into USB drives)

·         Surge protector (it seems like some places can unpredictable outlets)

·         Watch

o   4 extra batteries

·         Nikon D3100 DSLR

o   Storm Jacket rain cover

o   2 32GB memory cards

o   8GB memory card (back-up)

o   Extra battery

o   Various cleaning supplies (it’s really dusty)

 

Cooking Supplies

·         MSR non-stick frying pan

·         MSR 1.1 liter stowaway pot

·         MSR Dragonfly cooking stove (I know I don’t need one but I would like to do some camping)

o   Maintenance kit

·         MSR folding spatula

·         Italian Seasoning, Chili Powder, Red Pepper, and Cumin

·         Set of Orikaso folding plate, bowl and cup (Flat, plastic dishes that you literally fold into shape)

·         Tin cup (From Old Sturbridge Village)

·         2 cooking knives

·         Pot scraper

·         Light My Fire Titanium spork

·         Liqui Solutions plastic insulated water bottle with built-in tea infuser

o   Various teas

 

Outdoor Accessories

·         Gerber multitool

·         Small sewing kit

·         Tent repair kit

·         Hennessey Hammock Ultralite Backpacker Zip with Poncho Rainfly

o   Small brush and dustpan for sweeping out hammock

·         Emergency blanket

·         Pack Towl Large personal towel

·         Towel that stays wet and cool for hours

·         Hard plastic water bottle

·         Platypus Big Zip 3L drinking reservoir (my camera backpack has a hydration sleeve)

o   Platypus cleaning kit

·         Small bottle Ben’s insect repellent

·         Avon insect repellent

·         Mosquito head-net

·         Sleeping bag

·         Thermarest sleeping pad

·         Sealine 20L dry bag (it rains a lot)

·         2 pairs sunglasses

o   hard case for sunglasses

·         Nite Ize light up Frisbee

o   4 extra batteries

·         Pocketdisk (small Frisbee made of cloth)

·         Various straps, cords, carabiners, and tie-downs (I’m sure I will use them at some point)

 

Office Supplies

·         7 pocket expanding file

·         4 folders

·         Day-timer

·         4 legal pads

·         Legal pad holder

·         Composition notebook

·         Large Moleskine journal

·         Small Moleskine notebook

·         250 busines cards (so that friends and business contacts can get my information)

·         Pencils and pencil holder

 

·         Toiletries

·         Concord safety razor

·         100 razor blades (not sure how may I will go through and they don’t take up much room or weight)

·         Shaving kit (brush, soap and soap dish)

·         Aftershave lotion

·         Q-Tips

·         Nail clippers

·         Tweezers

·         Allergy pills

·         Migraine pills

·         2 tubes Burt’s Bees lip balm

·         Toothpicks

·         Blister pads

·         Antibiotic cream

·         Anti-itch cream

·         Gold Bond powder

·         Hand sanitizer

·         Comb

·         Aloe Vera

·         Tooth brush

·         Anti frizz hair cream

·         Deodorant salt stick

·         Toothpaste

·         Floss

·         Shampoo bar

·         Eagle Creek Wallaby toiletry bag
 

Other Sundries

·         2 rolls duct-tape

·         Roll of electrical tape

·         2 bottles of sunscreen

·         Settlers of Catan portable board game

·         2 sets of cards

·         Cribbage board

·         Under the shoulder waterproof document case

·         Bike multitool

·         Star guidebook

·         Harmonica

·         Hemp cord and beads

·         Set of earplugs

·         2 TSA baggage locks

·         Scissors

·         Knife sharpener

·         Bedsheets

·         Laundry bag

·         Host Family gifts

o   Nerf Football

o   Various candies

o   Locally produced coffee (Red Barn)

·         Small Flathead screwdriver

·         Small Phillips head screwdriver

·         Photo album of friends and family

·         Grateful Dead Tapestry (I may have no hair, but I'm still a bit of a hippie)

Awkwaaba!

First and foremost, welcome to my blog.  In it I shall chronicle my experiences with the Peace Corps, but before I can begin that, I must cover the events that got me here.  I won't go into much detail, although I would be more than happy to discuss the application process on an individual basis, but suffice it to say that I applied in August of 2011 after graduating from Gettysburg College, and shall begin my service in October 2012.  My experience has proven, yet again, the dangers of procrastination, but thanks to the courteous staff of the Peace Corps I will finally be serving.  One thing to keep in mind is that they are to help you make the most of your Peace Corps experience, and are not trying to find reasons to block your participation.  I want to stop here to thank my family and friends, particularly my parents whose advice, while I won't always say it, but I will write write, was right (mostly).  With your support I was able to overcome my frustration and I look forward to your continued support while I'm abroad.
This brings me to the biggest question of all, one that I have often been asked in the past year; why the Peace Corps?  While there may be a few negatives (depending upon your view) such as not making any money, witnessing the devastating effects of poverty, health concerns and (a concern for me particularly) learning a new language, the benefits far outweigh these.  I won't loose money, I get to see a completely different culture, the Peace Corps provides good medical care and the best way to learn a new language is immersion.  Furthermore, I have much to gain both professionally and personally.  The Peace Corps looks great on any resume.  I would love to have a career in the National Park Service (at least that's my goal for now, two years of living in another country may change that).  Since I was a history major the Peace Corps will give the experience I need to do that.
I could go on for days about my personal reasons for joining.  As a U.S. citizen, I feel very lucky to have grown up in such a prosperous country.  While I do not have a military mindset, I still feel that it is my duty to give back to my country.  The very language used to discuss participation in the Peace Corps with words like"service" and "assignment" mimic the language we use to talk about the military.  I feel as if I am giving back not just to my country, but to the world as well.  I hope that my service can make some sort of a difference no matter how small.  At the very least, it's the right thing to do.
I want to expand my world view.  People are physical beings and as such learn best through experience.  There is no book I can read, or news radio program I can listen to, that can completely make me see anothers' perspective.  I might be able to understand it, but only on a mental level.  I won't be able to feel it.  True knowledge is tied to the Earth.  The Peace Corps provides me a unique, once in a lifetime, opportunity to fully immerse myself in a completely foreign culture.  I will be there speaking with people in their native language who come from very different backgrounds then my own.  I will be entirely beyond my comfort level.  The Peace Corps will support me, but I will be left on my own as I never have before.  This prospect is both exciting and frightening because I can't entirely predict what I will experience.  However, in many ways it is the very unknown that draws me forward.  I don't know how this journey will affect my point of view, only that it will be expanded.  Like many things in life, I am searching for answers without necessarily knowing the questions.  As my mother is fond of saying, "It's not the destination it's the journey there".  In the end, the important thing is making the most of my experience and I plan on doing just that.
OK, that's enough philosophy for now.  On the other side, I must stress that as some of the PC literature has mentioned, I am going to Ghana to perform a job.  As much as I talk about journeys and experiences, ultimately I have a responsibility to achieve the specific goals that are a part of that job.  Although some goals are broad, it is important to keep in mind that this is more than just a personal walkabout.  Thus, it comes down to what ultimately makes the Peace Corps so great.  On a professional level I am there to teach or instruct, while on a personal level I shall learn at the very same time.  That reciprocity is what makes the world turn.