Learning the fate of my next two years!

TODAY WAS SITE ASSIGNMENT!

Everyone in the Omnibus has been anxious, nervous and excited (on top of exhausted) for the past few days (weeks, months?) as we have awaited site assignment, which finally came today!

When we got to the training center, we went out back to the soccer field and discovered a giant map of Ecuador with each province outlined with bright rose petals. It took up most of the field and was really beautiful. The provinces were all labeled and it was a great way for us to visually see where our sites our in Ecuador! They drew our names out of a hat and called us one by one, then grabbed our hands and ran us to our spot on the map where we will be for the next two years. The facilitators and staff worked hard on the ceremony, and all came dressed in their Ecuadorean colors for the celebration.

I am in the Provincia de Carña, one of the more southern provinces. Although I´m not allowed to share my exact location because of security reasons, I am in the southeast of the province, which is in the Sierra! The ceremony was helpful because we got a picture of where all the other members of the Omnibus are. There are only 3 volunteers in my Omn in Carña, all of us in the health program, but there are a few volunteers from other programs already there.

Once we did the map ceremony, we went inside with our programs to get a powerpoint presentation that had a slide for each person to tell them their counterpart and organization they will be working with and more details of the job. We then got packets with much more information, and a little time to absorb all that was happening. So, here are the details of my next two years, at least how I understand them right now:

My site is a small, rural town in the Sierra. I will be at approximately 9,800 ft in elevation, so it will be cool and dry. The population of my town is 2,020 people, a mix of mestizo and indigenous peoples. While some Kichwa is spoken, Spanish is the primary language so I will continue to learn Spanish (while some people now switch into Kichwa classes). The town has a migrant population where a majority of the men migrate out of the town for work, sending money back home to support the families. With this, a huge portion of the population will be women and children, which I am really looking forward to!

My counterpart is a female doctor and director of the subcentro in the town, so I will be working directly with the subcentro (small, government run health facility)! My primary roles are stated as participating in community health assessments with the subcentro staff, attending the health center meetings  and assisting the staff with the organic medicinal garden at the subcentro, doing community health outreach into the 14 surrounding communities (including giving charlas on sexual reproductive health, nutrition and hygiene at the primary and high schools in these communities), and socializing! Yes, socializing was put on the request from my counterpart. At least I know I´ll be able to do one of my jobs!!

Some of the parts that might be a bit more challenging: I am pretty isolated. I am about 11 hours from Quito, all of which I have to travel alone tomorrow (EEEK!). The initial reports say that I will not have any internet access or cell phone service, and there is very limited transportation into and out of my community. The other two health volunteer in Cañar are closer to each other and on opposite ends of the province from me. While it seems far  right now, I think I am only a few hours outside of Cuenca, which is supposed to be an amazing city! I talked to some of our PC volunteer leaders today and they said that the initial reports are often outdated or not entirely correct, so I will probably have some communication, although it still may be limited!

I will be living with a host family for at least 3 months when I get to my site. The report says that there is a limited quantity of non-potable water in the area, but my house report says that we have tubed water and an inside bathroom! I do not know anything about my host family, but the house is said to be a three-story, brick house, right in the town center (one of my two closest neighbors is the market!!).

That´s about all for now - I´m going to try to do a little research myself on the site now before heading home to pack. We get dropped off at the main terminal in Quito tomorrow, at which time I will begin the 9 hour bus ride on my own. My counterpart is meeting me at the terminal in the closest big city, then driving me to my town (the remaining two hours...). So, I will report back next week. Until then, let the adventures begin!

Besos a todos!

Kerry