Pre-Service Training (PST): Week #1--"True Peace Corps Life" ...kinda

What a week it’s been! On Tuesday, I met my host family for the first time and moved in! I have a host mom (apa), a host dad (ata), and three younger siblings: Aigerim (F), 14; Adilet (M), 12; and Aiturgan (F), 5. They don’t speak any English, and so far I’ve had 3 Kyrgyz lessons, so you can imagine how communication goes around here! Needless to say, it can be quite humorous… I whip out the few words I know, and they jabber on to me in Kyrgyz while I shake my head and repeat “Kaycheraysis” (I’m sorry) about 50 times a day. Another favorite phrase of mine is “Bul emnay?”, which means, “What is this?” So when things get silent, I can use that to try to learn new vocabulary, which is almost hopeless unless I write it down. It is helpful that I speak some Russian because my family also speaks Russian, and just knowing the alphabet is beneficial because Kyrgyz also uses Cyrillic. So while other volunteers are often still struggling with reading, writing and pronunciation, I feel much more comfortable and have been able to focus more on actually learning words and phrases. But I’ve got a LONG way to go!

The first night with my host family, they invited me to go “guesting” with them—a popular Kyrgyz social custom, which can be most closely compared to a dinner party, I suppose. It’s a huge event, and I didn’t expect to experience it on my first night! But I accepted the invitation and went with them to my host dad’s sister’s house, where at least 25 other people were gathered. I walked into the dining area to see something straight out of a dream. There was a table about 15-20 feet long PILED with food. Cakes, breads, sweets, fruits, nuts, candies, meats, salads, and more. It was like a royal banquet! I tried to pace myself, but every time I thought we were done eating, they brought out more food! Then when I was absolutely stuffed, we went into ANOTHER room, where they brought out the sheep! Well, it was cooked and cut into pieces, but I’m pretty sure it was the whole sheep (the head was a good indicator)… So I was forced to eat even more! Around 9pm, we finally went home, and I went to bed, exhausted.

Unfortunately, my rest was short-lived. Did someone once say you’re not a true Peace Corps Volunteer until you’ve bent over a squat toilet in an outhouse throwing up in the middle of the night? Well, if they did, I guess I’m a true Peace Corps volunteer now! Needless to say, it was an uncomfortable night running back and forth between my room and the outhouse, but it was a noteworthy experience in retrospect. Although, it has made me a little wary of future guesting adventures…

Since then, things have been somewhat less eventful, but I’m definitely grateful for that! Peace Corps has broken us up into small groups of 4-6. There are four volunteers in my group (me, Michaela, Matt, & Nick), and we all live in the same village (easily within walking distance) with our “Language and Culture Facilitator (LCF).” Each LCF speaks English and the local language (in my case, Kyrgyz, but I think my LCF speaks Russian as well… most people do), and runs our language lessons and generally takes care of us. My LCF happens to live right across the street from me, which is nice. We have our language classes at her house, just the 5 of us, which is a great learning environment for me. We study language about 5 hours a day, 4 days a week. One day a week we go into Tokmok (the nearest town) with the larger group of volunteers for TEFL training, and one day a week we go to Tokmok for medical/culture/safety & security training. We finish our language lessons by about 2:30 each day, so I have a lot of free time. I often spend that time visiting with the other volunteers nearby, taking walks around the village, hanging out with my little sisters, and reading or studying in my room. I have my own room with a bed, desk, dresser, mirror, and locking door. It’s very comfortable and safe (for any of you who were worried :-) ).

I do miss home, at some times more than others. There are definitely ups and downs, but it is comforting to have other volunteers nearby. I’ve found it’s hardest for me when I start thinking about being here for 2 whole years, and how I’m just at the very beginning right now. So it’s best to just take it one day at a time. Now is the hardest time as far as adapting and learning, so I think it will only get easier as I learn to communicate, which will give me much greater freedom. So please keep the emails and/or letters & care-packages coming! I miss you all a ton, and mail is gold.

Random note in case you were wondering: the time difference from California to Kyrgyzstan is 13 hours (CA is behind). So keep that in mind for all those times you get the urge to call me at 3am :-) . Alright, this is a hefty post, so I’ll sign off for now. Blessings to you all and lots of love!