mutedstep

Remember when MTV Cribs used to be a popular show? You'd get to see the nicest, decked-out apartments of famous celebrities. They had swimming pools, tennis courts, movie rooms, etc.

Well, let's just say Peace Corps China is definitely not your grandmother's Peace Corps. I have electricity, hot water, a western toilet, A/C, multiple heaters, broadband internet, a TV/DVD player, a spare room, a study, a fully equipped kitchen, dining area, and more. It's the nicest place I have ever stayed on my own.

Still, it did take about a week to clean and redesign the interior (aka move stuff around), but now I'm loving my apartment. Here it is in all its glory:










































So if you ever want to visit Kaili and need a place to visit, you know where to come =)

It's almost time for me to take the Foreign Service Officer Test again. I can't believe it's been about a year since I last took it. I remember feeling excited as I moved through the process and got to the Oral Assessment last April. Then feeling the disappointment after missing the cut-off by .05 of a point (-.-;)

This time, I'll try my best again and hopefully I'll get the results I want. At least I don't feel as nervous or worried as I did last year. I went through the whole process once so I know what to expect and how I should prepare. Also, I feel confident that my Peace Corps experience so far has helped me grow and mature in many ways (^_^)

I'm registered to take the FSOT on Saturday, October 10th. Originally, I wanted to take it in Chengdu, but the Consul General from Swear-in told me that because the consulate has been so busy recently, they won't be offering it. Instead, I'll be taking it in Guangzhou. It's about 18-20 hours by train from where I am. Since new volunteers are not allowed to leave site except for the weekends during the first three months, it's going to be a tough trip. Essentially, I'll be on the train the whole time except for the hours I take the test.

So here I go again! Back to studying..

If you're not familiar with the process, you might be wondering why I am taking the test now considering that I just started my Peace Corps service. First, the whole process takes a long time. The time from taking the written test to the oral assessment takes at least 6 months. Getting the necessary clearances after that can take anywhere from 3 months to over a year. Then you are on a waiting list until you are called to serve. So that can mean waiting anywhere from a year to four years. Second, you can only take the test once a year. So I'm taking mine as soon as possible after my last one. Third, if I get through the whole process and get "the call", I can defer during my time at my Peace Corps.

Kaili is just perfect! I live downtown where I have access to everything in the city. The city isn't so big that I can't navigate, but it's large enough that I can find everything I need. As for my university, it is literally in the mountains. It's a new campus so with Miao inspired architecture, and I can see blue skies almost everyday. It's easier to just show you..



















































And here is a video that my sitemate took while we were off to Kaili during our site visit. This is what the countryside looks like:

Saying bye-bye to CDU Staff, friends in Shiling Town
















Host Family Appreciation Dinner (8.21.2009)
















Ambassador Jon Huntsman swears us in (8.28.2009)
















The Ambassador is a Penn alum! Group pic!
















The Korean crew (lived and worked in Korea), my favorite Chinese teacher
















Best friend Tristan, fellow awesome blogger Kacie

I AM NOW AN OFFICIAL PEACE CORPS VOLUNTEER!

A few days ago, we had site announcements, and I was assigned to Kaili in Guizhou province. Where is Kaili? I provided a map on the left to show you:


Kaili is a small city of about 500,000 people located in Qiandongnan prefecture of Guizhou province. Guizhou is the poorest province that Peace Corps serves in and has the lowest per capita GDP in all of PRC (less than $1500 a year). Here’s a picture of all the trainees going to Guizhou with our LCFs and site manager:


I’ll be working at Kaili University with my awesome site mate “K”. Kaili University is a small university with a student population of about 6000. Most of them are studying to be middle school teachers for minority areas. Actually, about 80% of the students are ethnic Miao and Dong minorities.


Let’s see what else do I know about Kaili? There wasn’t much information I could find about the area. All I know is that it’s a very scenic area in the mountains with a huge minority population. Many tourists visit the area to go hiking, camping, and see the many ethnic festivals. Oh and it’s famous for its “sour fish soup”.


Honestly, Kaili is exactly what I wanted for my site. I think Peace Corps does a great job trying to place people where they should be. Now I only have my site visit and about 2 weeks of PST left. Time really flies!