Swearing In and Starting Service

Finally, after two months of training, we were finally sworn in as Volunteers last Thursday! 49 trainees of the 52 that showed up on island made it through the full two months. Now I have no more endless days of lectures, no more studying for tests on Peace Corps policy, and no more restrictions on traveling and staying somewhere over night.

In reality, I don’t have too much to complain about with the last week of training. PC put all the trainees up in a pretty nice hotel in Kingston which was set up as a bunch of smaller buildings on a pretty large compound. The rooms were comfortable and some even had kitchens, which made eating during the week a lot cheaper than going out every night (which we can’t really afford to do, especially with the prices in town). It was nice to finally take a shower and shave with hot water for the first time in a few months. The hotel even had a bar and a pool on site which allowed for some enjoyable nights and coffee to help wake up in the mornings.

The week in general was very relaxing. The only hard part was the final exam we had to pass in order to become volunteers. Talk about awkward, we had to sit down in front of a panel of six people and answer random questions about various PC policies, information regarding out assigned agencies, information about reports that we are required to fill out every few months and questions about Jamaican culture and Patios. The test was supposed to take about 30 minutes, but I just couldn’t talk that much about each topic, so I think mine only took about 20 minutes, including a lot of long, awkward pauses. I’m pretty sure that I answered every question wrong, but, just like most my tests in college, I got enough partial credit to pass. Other than that, there was only one day of lectures, a BBQ/pool party at a really nice apartment complex where most of the US Embassy workers live and a few late spent talking with the other trainees.

Finally, on Thursday morning, we all got dressed up in our jackets, shirts and ties (which will probably be the only time I where those things for the next 2 years) and went over to the Embassy to be sworn in by Ambassador. The Embassy itself was very impressive building to see (not to mention a little weird to actually see a bunch of other white people around) and we heard some good speeches from the Ambassador, the PC Country Director and the Jamaican Minister of Agriculture. The best speech, however, was one that one of our fellow trainees was required to give in Patios. It was hilarious to see him say “Big op tu di bassda!” (Give props to the Ambassador)

After the swearing in ceremony was over and we were all officially volunteers, we were supposed to have a few refreshments and then be taken back to our sites by our supervisors from the local agencies we are working with. However, due to the fact that Tropical Storm Gustav started to hit the island on Thursday morning and most businesses were shut down, only supervisors for 9 of the 49 trainees actually showed up. Therefore, the rest of us were loaded back onto the buses and taken back to the hotel to ride out the storm. Other than being let out to get groceries early Thursday afternoon, PC put us on lock down and did not let us leave the hotel for two days; not that we wanted to since the hotel had its own generator and water storage tanks. So while most of the rest of the island had no power and no water, we were enjoying watching movies on laptops and taking hot showers.

Other than the fact that it rained hard for two straight days, the winds were not very strong and there was limited damage around the island. The places worst hit were on the far eastern side of the island, in the parishes of St. Thomas and Portland (where I was originally posted in Port Antonio). One major bridge was cut in half and a few roads were blocked due to landslides. Most of the volunteers were finally sent back to site on Saturday except for those stationed in St. Thomas, Portland and a few other localized areas that had to spend an extra two days in the hotel before they were able to get back to their sites.

When I got back to my site there was no damage in the neighborhood, we had electricity but we had no water until late Sunday night. Fortunately, my host family had prepared by filling two large containers with about 150 gallons of water, so we never had to really go without anything.

The weirdest part about finally being done with training was that I was happy to finally be done with all the lectures and tests, however it a little scary finally being turned out on my own and PC basically saying that the next time I would have to see anyone would be in a few months when they have a large meeting in Kingston for all the volunteers. It finally hit that I would be a lot more on my own than I have been so far. Granted the fact that there is a PC support staff and there are a little under 100 volunteers around the island (two of which live a few blocks away from me) whom I’m sure I will be visiting throughout my service, but it is up to me to keep in touch, up to me to find out how to get around, and up to me get things done. It took a day or so (and a lot of sleep) to grasp this realization and come to terms with it.

The next big test comes next week when I no longer come into my agencies office on a daily basis and start setting my own schedule of traveling to job sites and trying to get work done at home. We’ll see how that works out.