There are a few questions that we have been asked quite often in the past few days:
When are we going?
We have an orientation session in Miami in the afternoon of January 10th. We fly to Panama City the next day.
How long will we be gone?
We have 10 weeks of training (in Panama) and two years of service. We will return in late March of 2014.
Where will we be staying in Panama?
We won't know where we will be staying in Panama until we have been through 6-8 weeks of the training. They want to get to know everyone before placing people in specific locations. The Peace Corps tells us that we will be in a "rural, semi-rural, or semi-urban community between 2 and 16 hours from Panama City".
What type of accommodations will we have?
We won't know that either until we get our assignment. We could have a small building with cement floor, cinder block walls and a tin roof. If we go to an indigenous area we could have a wooden structure with a dirt floor. We have requested running water and electricity, but we don't know if we will get it.
Will we have internet access in Panama?
We will definitely have access to email in Panama, but we don't know how often we will have it. We might have to hike an hour or two to get to an internet cafe, or we might have something close by. Once again, we will know more when we get our assignment.
Can we have visitors?
Yes, but not during the first six months that we are there. Since we have no idea of where we will be, it's best not to make any plans until we at least know that.
Can we get packages by mail?
The postal system in Panama is not very secure and it is not recommended that people send us anything of value. We will have a generic address for mail during training, and then a specific one once we move to our site. Email will be the best way to communicate with us.
Can we visit the US during our service?
Yes, we do get vacation time and can return to the US. Miami is only 3 hours away by plane. We are planning on coming to the US for a family wedding in October 2012.
What is the climate like in Panama?
It varies tremendously from one part of the country to the other. In Panama City the highs are close to 90 degrees, with lows around 75. There is not much yearly variation in temperature. In the highlands it is cooler. The mountains in Panama go up to 11,700 feet. From the top of the highest mountain you can see both the Pacific and Atlantic. The Caribbean coast gets around 120 inches of rain a year, and the Pacific coast about half of that. The dry season is from mid-December to mid-April. The rest of the year is the wet season. There are many microclimates in Panama, so we really won't be sure of what we face until we get our final assignment. It's a pretty safe bet, though, that hot and humid will be the case.
What will our duties there be?
Steve is a "Community Environmental Conservation Extension Agent". His duties will to be to promote environmental awareness among school children and the community at large. There are many possibilities for projects. One of his first jobs will be a community assessment, where he gets to know many of the townspeople and finds out what they think the highest priorities are. Then he will try to get them to come together and carry out a project to address those needs.
Heather will be working with English teachers in the local schools through teacher training and co-teaching. Her job is to promote the effective teaching of English both in schools and in the larger community.
In addition to our primary responsibilities, we will also be doing projects of our own design. We are free to try whatever we like during 40% of our time. This might include ESL classes for adults in the evening or helping set up a computer network in the town library.
Are we excited?
YES!
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