It has been 80 days since I received my nomination. On July 5th, I was notified that I had no dental holds on my account and the waiting game began, once again, to hear the results of my medical evaluation. Yesterday, I finally received word that my medical paperwork has been processed and I am officially medically qualified for service. :) The medical and dental examinations for Peace Corps are very in depth and 5-10% of nominees are medically (or dentally) unqualified because it can be hard to accomodate certain medical conditions since many volunteers are not located in urban areas or near doctors.
Now, the waiting game begins, yet again. Leaving me more anxious than ever to receive my official invitation to teach mathematics in hopefully, one of the following countries: Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Ethiopia, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia.
I am sure you are wondering why I chose these specific countries. Well, they are currently the only countries in Africa asking for Peace Corps volunteers. Although, my nomination said I would be going to Africa, anything could change. Although I have my heart pretty much set on Africa, I am trying to keep an open mind. After hearing my recruiters story, I realize that anything can happen:
When she was nominated, Peace Corps told her she would be going to Russia. She studyied up on Russia and the Russian language only to receive her official invitation (2 months before her departure date), it read: Location, Jamaica!
With these two drastically different locations, I need to be ready for anything. Right now, anything is possible.
