1 Month!!!

The past couple of weeks since I last wrote have flown by! Last week we received our site packets which included all of the information we need to know about each site where we might be placed. It was very overwhelming, but I have narrowed it down to my top 5 sites and my bottom 3. Now, I have to write an essay to convince my placement officers to put me in my top 5 and not in my bottom 3. Hurray for homework!

For the past week, I was on my host volunteer visit. Where I stayed with a current volunteer, went to work with her, met members of her community etc. It was AMAZING! I am so glad I got the chance to see what it's actually going to be like once I'm finished with training. My host volunteer is a bad-ass. She works at a health center in the mornings and a secondary school in the afternoons. She also gives free pilates lessons to the women in her community 3 days a week. She lives right out side of New Amsterdam, which is the second largest city in Guyana. I loved the location and am hoping to be place in that region.

I got there on Saturday and my host volunteer's neighbors took us to this place called New Forrest. The Canje river flows through it and it was beautiful! One of the boys with us shimmied up a coconut tree and threw some down for us to eat. The father, chopped them up with his cutlass and we drank the milk straight out of it and tried the jelly inside (delicious!). Then I had a guava from a tree, fished with a net (didn't catch anything) and ate cane. It was so much fun!

On Monday, we celebrated the Hindu holiday Phagwah (pronounced pog-wa). Basically all you do is run around throwing different colored powder on anyone who wants to play. It was so much fun! I was covered from head to foot and had an orange stained upper lip for a couple of days (looked like I had a sweet stache growing). My host volunteer also had a pet dog named Riesling. She is the cutest thing ever and I plan on taking her once her owner leaves. She's a Peace Corps pup and has been passed down from other volunteers for years. Let's see... what else was awesome about my visit... I had salad twice! I had 7 curry for the first time. I went to a parade. I played catch phrase with some other volunteers. I got to weigh babies and help new mothers join the clinic. I got to read "Are you my Mother?" to some 2nd graders, I laid in a hammock for hours and I met some really cool people.

I got back to the coast yesterday and even though I had an amazing time on my visit, it's good to be back. My host family is so happy to have me here. It's nice to feel so loved!

I still miss everyone every day. But am starting to feel like I can finally call Guyana home. I hope everyone is doing well! I love and miss you all:)