It's Official!

So I made it through Pre-Service Training! I tested at a Intermediate Low level on the Language Proficiency test and I was sworn in as an official Peace Corps Volunteer on September, 7th 2012 at 3pm. It feels good to be official!

A lot has happened since the 7th, so I will try my best to give you all a run down. After swearing in, the majority of the new PCV's headed to Phnom Penh for a day of relaxing and hanging out before heading to our permanent sites.

I arrived in Kampong Chhnang on Sept. 10th and met my new permanent family that afternoon. I can't give the name of the specific village I am in for safety and security reasons, but I am about a 15 mile round trip from the provincial town.

My family is big! Including me there are 10 people...I was only expecting 3! Here is the run down...there is my Ma(mom) and Poke (dad), an aunt (maybe sister) and her 8 month old boy, a brother, another brother and his wife as well as their 5 year old daughter and 4 month old baby boy. I live in one house with my brother, his wife and kids. The other members of the family occupy the house next door, but both houses are enclosed by the same gate (this style of living is known as a compound here).

There is a market (p'saa) 1k from me where I go to get lunch every day. Sometimes I go with the usual rice and meat and other times I go with just fruits and veggies. It is crazy to think though that I can get a plate of rice, meat and veggies for the same price as a carrot and two apples! My family generally provides me with plenty of veggies in my dinner and a bowl of baby bananas at mid day, so I don't always feel too bad skipping them at lunch. 

My Health Center is small, but it is nice. There are 10 staff members at the center; the HC director and 9 female nurses. Some of the nurses are Pharmacists, general nurses and midwives. The HC serves 22 villages in the surrounding area. Since transportation from the far villages can be difficult, the HC does outreach activities every few months. During these activities the nurses go out and provide vaccinations and vitamins those that want them. Most of the cases that come to the center are for basic things like colds, fevers, etc but the HC also does deliveries.

I am still working on exploring the community...it has only been a week after all! I have been told that a few K from me there is an airport that was built during the Pol Pot regime and it was used to smuggle goods in and out of the country. From what I have learned, someone in the regime was afraid word would get out about the airport so they murdered all of the workers. It is an extremely sad occurrence obviously, but I still want to go out to the airport and see what the place looks like. There is something called the Killing Caves near me as well...another location marred by the acts of the Pol Pot Regime during the Khmer Rouge. Once I visit these places I will be sure to share what I learn.

So- that is what I have for you all for now. It is hard to know what to write sometimes, so if you have any questions feel free to ask them on here or email me, and then I can respond to those questions in future posts. Thanks again for reading this blog- I will try to do better about posting more often!