It is Official!

On December 8, I became an official Peace Corps Volunteer! The ceremony was hosted at the US Ambassador's private residence (thank you US tax-payers) and it was a huge success.

After the swearing-in ceremony, we were taken to the VIP Maputo Hotel for the night. Being in the hotel and having the chance to clean up was great. Showering with hot running water was incredible. To put it into context for those of you who have had running water for the last ten weeks, having running water for the first time was just as amazing as that first shower you take after a long camping trip.

We all enjoyed a buffet dinner and the next morning a wonderful breakfast full of granola, milk, fruit, and, of course, pastries. I said my goodbyes to those volunteers heading to the central and northern regions and we started our trip to Beline.

The supervisor's conference was a smashing success! We started the weekend off with a delivery from the Peace Corps. They dropped off our two cardboard boxes, our black chests, our bags from Namaacha, and our two-year bags that have been waiting in the office. The excitement of opening my two-year bag was the equivalent to what I imagine children feel on Christmas morning. IT WAS GLORIOUS! It didn't even matter what was in there- I was just excited for new clothes and tons of scarves.

After a weekend of beautiful weather and plenty of time to enjoy the beach, we headed to our sites (I should mention- I saw a stingray and tons of jelly fish at the beach- no whale siting this time though). The drive to Inharrime was about three hours of hills and forests of palm trees. Crossing the provincial border from Gaza to Inhambane, the changes in scenery were remarkable. The land went from flat and relatively level to hilly with forests of palm trees. Looking over the cliff's edge in Zavala made me think of paradise; there were tons of palm trees and below them at the bottom of the cliff was the most pristine and beautiful blue water I had ever seen. I am realizing more and more how lucky I really am...

I have been enjoying the fresh baked goods and the wonderful mangoes and papayas the sisters have been feeding me! I am looking forward to these next two years more and more.

Now that I will be settling down at site, if any teachers are interested in signing up for the Peace Corps WorldWise Schools Correspondence match, please let me know. For more information, please see: http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/

Ate logo!