Welcome to my Peace Corps Blog!

Hi all,

Throughout my 27 months in Costa Rica with the Peace Corps, I will attempt to regularly post entries to this blog. I will try and email you when I post new entries. However, due to the probable dearth of Internet access, this may not always happen; check it every now and then and you may find updates.

I leave in 29 days and I am very excited, but also quite nervous. It is by no means a bad nervous; it is similar to the way I felt before leaving for college. My biggest fear is that my Spanish will be awful and that people will laugh at me, but I'm sure that as long as I refrain from using the word embarrasado incorrectly, I'll be fine. My current Spanish class is going well and I should be able to manage.

The first three months in country will be intensive language and skills training. I'm pretty pumped for this, because I will be with several other Peace Corps Volunteers (PCVs), and I'll have a chance to adjust. For these three months, I will be living with a family in their home. I think that such a set up will be great in terms of learning Spanish and picking up on Costa Rican (Tican) culture. I'm looking forward to being with a family, but oh my god am I praying that they don't have a beautiful daughter. The last thing I need is a super paranoid Catholic father breathing down my neck; I'll need to explain that I'm waiting for the perfect Tican Jewish girl. I don't know how much that will help.

Throughout training, I will be evaluated. Based on that evaluation, I will be given my official two-year assignment. Once training is finished, I will be sworn in as an official volunteer and start my work. By this time, my language skills will (hopefully) be strong enough to competently work with Ticans in youth development.

If you would like to correspond with me, the best way to reach me will probably be email (dhlarkin@gmail.com). Please be patient if I do not respond immediately. While my mother thinks that we will speak on the phone every day, in truth, I do not know how often I will get to use the phone or Internet. If you would like to send me letters, my mailing address for the first three months will be:

David Larkin
Cuerpo de Paz
Apartado Postal 1266
1000 San Jose
Costa Rica

Once I get my two-year assignment, I will let you know if there is any change of address.

I probably wont write another entry until I arrive in country. So put this blog on your favorites, and wish me luck!

Salud,
Dave