From Albania's newest Peace Corps Volunteer:
We all had our swearing in ceremony this morning and it was really nice to get it out of the way and to finally be done with training. When something like this is evolving as it should, we are usually ready for the next step to come into place. Also, after my site visit, it has been strange to go back to my site because I knew that I was leaving and it doesn't really feel like my "home" anymore. The idea that I will go to Kucove now and establish some roots and make it my home for the next two years is very exciting to me.
There are a lot of things that are really scary about this as well. During training you have this nice security net where you are surrounded by other people, the Peace Corps staff is always right there, and you are very very busy almost all of the time. Once I get to my site there will be another volunteer there and others within 20 or 30 minutes. I will have a lot of free time, however. Especially in the summer teachers dont really have a job. I know that I will be able to get some reading done and I will teach some independent English lessons, but that doesn't fill up very much time. I am excited that I will be able to travel around Albania a little bit. Wow there has been a lot of rambling here.
The ceremony was really nice. The Ambassador, the President of Albania, and the Mayor of Elbasan all spoke. The Ambassador administered our oath. It was all really nice. Just a few minutes ago I saw the report on the news. It was kind of a big deal in this town.
I was really glad that my host family was able to come to the ceremony as well. I know that they had to give up other things in order to come, and I was really happy that they wanted to. Last night my family and the family of another volunteer had dinner together. Our host fathers are brothers and they live next door to eachother, so we usually end up spending a lot of time together. John and I bought a big chocolate chip cookie cake from an American bakery here in Elbasan and the family really enjoyed it. It was kind of a late night, however, and today I am pretty tired. I know that tonight will be a late night as well because this is kind of our last night together and everybody wants to go out. A late night here is all relative, however, being around 11 (actually last night was more like 12:30).
That is all I have for now. I will send out an email when I get to Kucove and it will have my new mailing address. Letters can still be sent to my current address for those of you who have it.