Pictures??

ok, so I think I posted pictures of: me in my house, some kids from homestay, and some of the other volunteers? by the time they finally uploaded, I forgot...sorry. hope it works this time.

Pictures

So I'll try this again. I'm only going to put two up for now (and they will be small) to see if I can get this to work. This is my house, and another of me inside.

First Real Update and Phone number

Ok! so, I have a lot of catching up to do, so I'll make it short and sweet. I made it to Malawi on Feb 28th. Training went well...the staff and language trainers here are amazing and I stayed with a nice family during "homestay". my amayi's (mother's) name was Love, so I had that going for me...which was nice. I started learning the language of Northern Malawi (Chitumbuka) and did fairly well on my final exam by scoring Advanced Mid level...only to find out during a quick visit to my actual site that they speak a different language, Chisukwa. So that was kinda discouraging, but not much I can do to change it, so I'll just start over and keep going panandi panandi (little by little). Our swearing in was held at the U.S. Ambassador's house in Lilongwe, which was lovely, except that I had been pretty sick the days leading up to the ceremony and actually had an interesting little accident in my pants the day before swearing in. But, I guess that's the type of thing that makes you remember stuff... Now, I am in a small village in the very far North of Malawi called Chisansu. It is in the Chitipa district and kinda sandwiched inbetween Tanzania and Zambia (I am pretty close to both borders). For those of you who try to find it on Google Earth, find Kapoka on the road that goes towards Chitipa from Karonga in Malawi, and then look 2-3 miles North of Kapoka up in the mountains. I will try to stand outside with my shirt off as I am sure you will be able to see my pasty white body all the way from space!! I really like the area I am in, and the people are very and friendy and hardworking as well as progressive (in terms of willingness to try new things), but it is very mountainous and my legs are sore. I will be in superb shape in no time as long as I don't die :-)... I am going to try to upload some pictures of my house and maybe a couple others, but we'll see if it works. Thank you all for the letters that I have gotten, and all the birthday wishes too. It means alot. Feel free to call me if you can, because I don't have anyone's number and it is super expensive for me here. (I recommend buying a phone card or using Skype). To call me, dial: 00265991950398
I am 9 hrs ahead of MTN time. I hope you all are well, and I'm looking forward to talking to you soon.

new address

new address\;

PCV Phillip Rich
District Forestry Office
P.O. Box 55
Chitipa, Malawi
Southern Africa

It's Not Sunny In Philadelphia

Well, I made it to Philly...but just barely. There is a huge snow storm blowing through here that has caused a lot of flights to be cancelled. So far, only me and one other person in my group made it here. I heard that quite a few others got stranded elsewhere, and won't make it here until late tomorrow. Not sure how the Peace Corps is going to deal with this. Maybe we'll get an extra day here, but maybe not. We'll see.

Also, I realized on the plane today that I completely forgot to gather up everyone's mailing address', so if you want me to write you, you'll have to send me a letter first so I know where to send the reply. I didn't really bring any pictures, so feel free to include some photos too if you want. I might have a chance to update this thing again, but not sure yet. I'm really excited and happy to get started and looking forward to getting over there and out of this damn snow!

Leaving and mail details

So...it's finally here!! I'm flying into Philadelphia on Thursday, Feb. 25th. I'll be there about a day and a half, then on to Malawi! This will be the last post for quite sometime as I will not have access to the internet during my first three months or so of training. A fellow volunteer that will be leaving in my group posted some more details about sending us mail over there, so I thought I would do a quick plagiarism gig before I flee the country. Here's what she had to say:

So, here's some important stuff to keep in mind:

- Just a simple letter in an envelope can take anywhere from 6 to 9 weeks to reach me.
- Number your letters and envelopes as they might arrive out of order, or not at all.
- Anything other than letters and postcards should be sent in bubble envelope mailers and can take upwards of 12 weeks to reach me. Boxes are often opened and are less likely to get to me.
- Never declare a value of $15 or more on anything you send me. The duty taxes I will be required to pay will be half my monthly salary.
- On that note- don't send me anything valuable or irreplaceable because I may never get it.
- Be sure to write "Air Mail" or "Par Avion" on the letter/package.

During the first three months (February 27th - April) my mailing address will be:


PHILLIP RICH PCT
PEACE CORPS /MALAWI
BOX 208
LILONGWE
MALAWI

If you want to send something faster or more valubale, go through DHL or Fedex- but make sure to put this below address and information on the package:

PHILLIP RICH PCT
c/o U.S. PEACE CORPS MALAWI
AREA 4 PLOT 70
ACROSS FROM OILCOM DEPOT
LILONGWE
MALAWI

You'll also need to put the phone number for the Corps on the label, which is: 265-1-757-157

After this three month training session, I will be given a new address which I will put on this blog as soon as possible.

TELEPHONE CALLS:

- I will be disconnecting my current cell phone on February 27th- the day we leave for Malawi. Feel free to call me on it before then.
- During training (February - May), I will not be accessible by phone unless it is an emergency.
- After training, aka after May, I will be issued a GSM cell phone from the Peace Corps.
-- I WILL be able to send and received text messages and phone calls on this phone.
-- I will also be in a different time zone than you and will not have my cell phone on all the time. Leaving voicemails is probably the best option then.
-- Once I have this cell phone number, I will post in on this blog, just like my new address.
-- Remember that I don't like cell phones very much, and my calls will probably be even more infrequent than other volunteers.

EMAIL/BLOG/FACEBOOK:

So during the training period, again, February through April, I will have ZERO access to internet and thus this blog will not be updated during that time. I will not be able to respond to email or facebook. The Peace Corps puts us through an intensive immersion program during this period of time, something I am greatly looking forward to. I can, however, still send and receive mail, which is why I spent some much time explaining all that up above.

After training, my internet access will be more frequent, but still very limited. I may go several weeks to a month without being able to get online. So don't panic if I can't update. Just call or write to me instead.

I know it's a lot to do, but anything you send will be greatly appreciated by me! I'm very excited about leaving and starting a new adventure, and want to say thank you to everyone who has been so supportive of my decision and helpful in my preparations for departure. I will be shutting off my phone on Wednesday(24th), so feel free to call me before to chat if you want. And as always, there is an open invitation to anyone who wants to have their own adventure and come visit me! Take care, and I'll be back in no time!
Peace,
Phil

Packing List and Mailing Address

Hey Everyone,
Sorry it has been a little while since I updated this thing. I've been pretty busy learning and reading as much as possible about Malawi, and running around trying to gather all the things I "think" I'll need for the next couple of years. I received my staging email from PC yesterday! I will leave Colorado on Feb. 25th and fly to Philadelphia where I will be for a couple days of orientation/staging, then take a bus to JFK, and fly to Malawi after a layover in Johannesburg, South Africa. In the rest of this post, I will finally put up my address where you can send letters and packages to me during training, and then write out my current packing list for those who are interested. Feel free to start sending letters, etc., b/c it will take awhile to get there, and I promise to write you back!

Mail-
Here's the address where you can send letters and packages while I am in training. for the first three months. Below that, I have pasted what the Peace Corps has to say about sending stuff in the mail to increase the likelihood that it will arrive. I also read that its a good idea to use a .98 cent stamp.

Phillip Rich
PCT Peace Corps
P.O Box 208
Lilongwe, Malawi

"Mail takes a minimum of two to
three weeks to arrive, often longer. Some mail may simply
not arrive (fortunately this is not a frequent occurrence, but
it does happen). Advise your family and friends to number their
letters and to include “Air Mail” and “Par Avion” on their
envelopes. Packages take six to nine weeks for airmail, and
surface mail packages take around six months. If someone is
sending you a package, it’s advisable to keep it small and use a
padded envelope so it will be treated as a letter." (Peace Corps Malawi Welcome Book)

Current Packing List-

Malawi/Mozambique Map
Malawi Bradt Travel Guide
Laptop (Thanks, Lori!!)
External Hard Drive (for movies,music,etc)
Camera
Tent (1-2 person)
Journal (Thanks, Quinn!)
Travel Umbrella
Guitar and extra strings
Mini Tamborine and mini maracas :-)
Deck of cards
Dice game (Farkle)
French Press coffee mug
Solio Solar Charger
Sunglasses (x2)
Small Binoculars
Nalgene (x2)
Crank Flashlight
Headlamp (x2)
Speakers for mp3 player
small photo album
Ipod

Cargo pants (x2)
Collared shirts (x2)
Socks (6 pr.)
Keen Sandals
Flip flops
Dress Shoes
Hiking Boots
T-shirts
Underwear
Khaki Pants
Running Shorts
Swim trunks
pajama pants

Sunscreen
Toothpaste
Toothbrush
Razor and extra blades
Shave Cream
Deodorant

I also bought a 1.5 liter pressure cooker recommended by PC volunteers already over there, but it has not arrived yet. I have yet to do a "test" pack, but will do so soon and hopefully stay under the 80 lb. weight limit. This list will change soon, but I wanted to get the majority up on here for now. Thanks to all in advance for the love and support, and I hope to see many of you before I go.
Peace