A couple weeks ago, I received my invitation to serve in Namibia with the Peace Corps. I will be leaving on October 29 to embark on a 27 month stint in southern Africa. Here's a map showing where I'll be. Details are slow in coming, for example, I won't know exactly what part of Namibia I will be living until sometime during the first two months of training, but here's what I know thus far:
~I will be a Health Extension Volunteer in a Community Health and HIV/AIDS program, working with either a government agency (like the Ministry of Health or Ministry of Youth in a particular community), an non-profit organization or a faith-based organization.
~While English is the national language of Namibia, it is not the first language for most, so I will be learning Afrikaans and another local language (otjihereo, oshiwambo and damara-nama might all be possibilities).
~After going through a two month training in language, culture, technical skills, etc., I will officially begin my service on December 28, 2007 and be done December 28, 2009 (which means I'll be home sometime early 2010!).
~for more information, there's a Peace Corps Namibia site with a lot more detais: http://www.peacecorpswiki.com/index.php?title=Namibia
A quick trip to the downtown library provided me with a big stack of reading material, so I'm happily learning more about the history, culture and travel information for Namibia. I'll share more later.
