June 2, 2007

So this is my blog. I always thought I would never write one as I generally hate them, however, this is sort of a special occasion. This is meant for my family, friends, and folks generally interested in life in Mongolia. The views and opinions expressed here are my own and do not reflect the views of Peace Corps, the United States Government or Americans everywhere. With that bit out of the way let’s get into it.

I graduated from Brown University on May 27, 2007. I studied economics and love Brown more than I should. I joined the Peace Corps for a variety of reasons none of which seem to matter anymore. I could tell you I did it for my career, or because I believe in service, or because I wanted the adventure and maybe because I wanted to delay life for a bit. The reality is, I joined because my gut told me it was the right thing to do and this was the right time to do it.

I flew from Portland Maine to Atlanta Georgia on May 31, 2007. In Atlanta we registered and trained and got to know each other a little better. There are about fifty of us in my group and we are all going to Mongolia. The folks going with me are as diverse as the United States. We have young and old, married and single. All of us are tasked with different missions and bring different educations and world views to the table. Binding us all is an intense enthusiasm and general believe that we can change the world for the better. A general fear of cold also bids us all together.

Today, June 2, 2007 we fly to Seoul South Korea. We have a 28 hour layover in Seoul and then we are off to Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. We spend our first night or two in a ger camp and then we are off to a hotel and meet our host families for training. We will be training in UB for about three months.

Training focuses on language and skills. Mongolians speak Mongolian, Russian, and Chinese. We will be focusing on Mongolian. It is a tricky language but Peace Corps commit any amount of resources to help us learn it, which is nice.

Am I excited? Sure am! Am I nervous? Well….It’s tough to be nervous when you have no idea what you have gotten yourself into. Instead, I permeated with an electric sense of curiosity. I have often wondered what is on the other side of the world. This is my chance to find out.

Cheers
StasztheMongol.