Matt, Olivia, yours truly and Kim

Swearing In

After ten weeks of training, I have made it.  As of June 14^th, I am now a Peace Corps Volunteer.  The 27 AZ11’s, as our group is identified, all made it through training without the loss of a single trainee.  We still have one week of training to complete before we all head off to our two year assignments.

 

We were bused from our training site to a hotel in Baku.  We got there about an hour before the ceremony began.  Photos galore ensued. At eleven the ceremony began.  The audience included current Peace Corps Volunteers, Peace Corps Staff, members of our host families, counterparts from our worksites, Embassy staff and representatives of the Azerbaycan government. My host mother and sister attended, or as I call them my two bacɪms.

 

I went into the Swearing In ceremony, without realizing how important it was going to be. What followed was truly meaningful and emotional. Three of my peers performed the national anthems of both counties. The Swearing In ceremony also celebrated the ten year anniversary of the Peace Corps

in Azerbaycan.  Speakers included a woman who has worked for Peace Corps since it began in Azerbaycan, the Country Director, our Training Director, a representative of the organizations Peace Corps work with, a representative of the government, a former volunteer, the US Ambassador and an AZ11.  Each speaker was wonderful.  Ambassador Morningstar swore us in. We received our AZ Peace Corps pins and IDs. 

 

Çay and treats followed, along with more pictures.  Then we were released for the day with instructions to be back at sight before dark.  We separated into smaller groups and went different ways. Many of the groups ended up in the same part of town and the groups intermingled until it was time to head for home.  Three buses later, I arrived at sight precisely at nine (the equivalent of Cinderella’s midnight).  I could still see part of the sun on the horizon. One more short bus ride and I was home.  Tired, happy and pretty proud of my achievement of becoming a Volunteer.

 

Now the work continues.  We have one more week of training. Typically we would be heading for site, but the ceremony was held a week early to accommodate staff schedules.  We have three more days of language, one of technical, a summer camp project and two HUB days.  Then we move to our permanent sites.  I am moving 15 kilometers closer to Baku. I start my work on Monday, June 24^th.  I need to continue to work on my language and will be working with a tutor to continue my studies.  It is becoming easier to distinguish words and I can for the most part negotiate the basics of life, but I have a long way to go.

 

I will have greater access to internet at my site and plan on updating my adventures more frequently.  I hope all of you are well and I wish all of you peace. Inşallah.