I made it! After about 11 weeks of training, Peace Corps Jamaica Group 88 volunteers were sworn in last Friday (the live feed was recorded and can be viewed on the Peace Corps Jamaica facebook page). Afterwards we enjoyed cake and food with our PC staff and site supervisors then all the volunteers got into …
"If you get tired, learn to rest, not to quit." - Banksy. I'm back! Apologies for the delay in writing for the last few weeks. As hub technical training and project due dates drew to an end, things got stressful and I fell off the blog boat for a minute. But I'm afloat once again and …
Week 6 has been my favorite week of training thus far. Rain and storms have been a common weather theme all week - but that certainly hasn't kept us inside! Every day of training this past week, we have been outside working in the dirt, learning from farmers and our fellow volunteers in "Climate Smart Agriculture" (CSA) …
Today I am grateful for the Rasta man that came to my gate to sell jellies (young coconuts), jackfruit, and Jamaican apples. I am grateful for the riddles he told, offering free fruit in exchange for the answers. And I am grateful that I did not answer any of the riddles correctly so that we could laugh …
Today I am grateful for Jamaican music, Jamaican apples, and having time to relax. I've been living in Jamaica for a month now and it's definitely starting to feel like home. Last week we (the 14 environment volunteers) moved into a new community in the eastern region of Jamaica to continue with more sector specific …
Yesterday the ears and eyes of the volunteers in group 88 (eightygreat) were treated to some amazing performances by Jamaican artists Al Third (reggae) and MaJaH Bless (dub poet and rapper). Both have some serious talent and great energy - check out samples of their music below and/or click on their names (above) to get to their ReverbNation profiles …
Things I am grateful for today: Cool mornings, windy days, ice cubes, and coffee. Yesterday was Kraas Kolcha (cross culture) day at training where we had the opportunity to learn about other regions of the US that trainees in our group are from in a series of presentations and to learn more about Jamaican culture through …
This week during PST bootcamp we've been training and discussing extensively on the topics of gender & development, safety & security, and Let Girls Learn (LGL). Jamaica is a Peace Corps focus country for LGL, which is a US program "employing a holistic approach to change the perception of the value of girls at the individual, community …
Since landing in Jamaica on March 13th, the last couple weeks of PST (pre-service training) have been full of transition and training. I was initially intending to publish a large post once a week, but I may start posting smaller pieces more frequently to stay on top of all that is happening. After our warm welcome by …
It's been a busy first week an a half at PST in Jamaica, but that is a post for later this week. This evening I'm here to talk to you about porridge. I don't know if any of uuno (Jamaican Patois word for ya'll) have tried porridge before or if (like me) you've only heard …
Where the Wild Sage Grows 