Correspondences (Email 4)

Part 4 of my emailing with a new volunteer coming to Madagascar. I've left out her writings for privacy purposes.

19January2014

Hi,

Yeah, I'm in the capital now at the Peace Corps house (Meva), which
has like 20 something beds for vols in-transit/in town for conferences
and such. My stage is slowly coming in this weekend until Wednesday
when our COS starts. Getting our going home dates and all other kinds
of fun facts! Oh, and we'll be filling out TONS of forms! The forms
fun never ends in PC haha.

The Ag sector (formerly Env/CED) has the most relaxed schedule of any
other sector in Mada. We tend to make our own schedule and it changes
from day to day, week to week, season to season. Planting/harvesting
seasons tend to be the busiest, where I would typically work about 4
days a week. During weeding/winter seasons, usually about 2 days a
week could be considered actual "work" days. Don't forget, the idea of
"work" in Peace Corps (and in Madagascar, in particular) is a very
loose idea. Telling someone some facts about American culture is work.
You learning something new about Malagasy culture is work. You're a
24/7 representative of America, so just being you is part of your job.
It can often be funny the ideas Malagasy people will get about America
just based upon your daily habits at site.

Days off at site tend to vary greatly from days off away from site. At
site, I tend to read a lot of books, play dominoes or cards with
friends, get into ridiculous conversations about peoples' perceptions
of America and the outside world (geography is real fun), cook a
badass meal, do laundry and clean, if you have electricity you can
watch movies, go to a place at your site you've never been to before,
work out, crunch up crackers and watch the ants carry it way if you're
REAL bored. Away from site, going out to eat is great, interneting
(posting pictures, skyping, emailing, etc), having a rum drink or a
warm beer.


James