Checkpoint

So according to statistics the highest number of early termination volunteers occurs within the first three months of being at site. Probably since this is when the realization that this will be your life for the next two years finally sinks in. But I am proud to say that all 38 of my colleagues turned up at our in-service training in Mantasoa (just 30 km. outside of the capital Tana). After catching up with most of everyone I realized I wasn't alone in all of my struggles. There were those who had it even harder than me. Without mentioning names I learned that people were being terrorized by fleas and parasites, hit by fast-moving vehicles, throat operations, harassment by strange Malagasy men/ women, and constantly being asked for money since people mistake all vizaha for having money. One thing I am grateful of is that I learned all of this through the voices of the individuals versus through the "Peace Corps grapevine" as we call it. Living in remote isolation compared to other already remotely isolated volunteers has allowed me to hide away from petty intigue and gossip which has actually been quite rewarding. Seeing so many vizaha (foreigners) in one place after many months of not seeing anyone from my stage but Cecilia (closest neighbor to me, by close i mean 90 km) was incredible anxiety building. But overall it was really nice to see everyone again. I found the information gained at IST pretty useful, and now I feel like I have a clearer picture of what direction I want to move my service. The fact that we were given an opportunity to investigate our sites using Community Development Surveying techniques over the past five months made this training much more relevant as far as technical training than PST (pre-service training). A leading expert in fruit science/ preservation techniques Fonsa came to speak to us since many of us do work with fruit growers or confiture microenterprises. I work with both groups, so I found what she had to say particularly interesting. I learned more about bee-keeping, very useful since my community asked me to investigate further. Plus, numerous other guest speakers and volunteers offered their advice, expertise, and experience.