May 26, 2003 - Personal Web Site: Pete in Cameroon Blog

Peace Corps Online: Directory: Cameroon: Peace Corps Cameroon: The Peace Corps in Cameroon: May 26, 2003 - Personal Web Site: Pete in Cameroon Blog

By Admin1 (admin) on Monday, May 26, 2003 - 8:40 pm: Edit Post

Pete in Cameroon Blog



Pete in Cameroon Blog

Saturday, May 24, 2003


Ok, so its been a week or so since my last post... but its also been a week since I've had computer access! In the past week, my condo buyer officially backed out (its back on the market now, and I dismissed my lawyer- he's lucky I'm not going to be around to sue him, but that's a long story) and I moved out on schedule. I rented a small Penske truck and moved some stuff to my bro's pad in Brooklyn, some stuff to the Salvation Army and the rest got packed in and driven down to Hopewell, Virginia in the pouring rain. All of that in two days. Much thanks to my ever-loving brother, Matt (Happy Birthday-today!!) and Albert. I couldn't have done it without you guys.

I've successfully made it down to lovely Myrtle Beach, SC and have had my first chance in weeks to relax for a day. It was my cousin's son's 9th birthday yesterday, and we all went to the water park to hang out in the sun. Jacob and I even got to ride double down the "Black Hole" waterslide on a large tube in the dark. I've been enjoying some quality family time before heading up to Raleigh for a few days with good high school friends. I leave next Monday for Philadelphia for final instructions and lots of shots.

I'm getting more excited every day about my new adventure! Its almost here! I just need to double check my packing list one more time...

In case you're wondering what we're (other Cameroon-bound volunteers) talking about, this is a great forum...
posted by Pete 9:19 PM


Friday, May 16, 2003


This is the email I sent out with my contact info! (edited some for general internet consumption):

*********
This is it! I'm about to embark on the "toughest job I'll ever love" for the next 27 months. Joining the mid-career program of the Peace Corps in Cameroon is not something I thought I'd be doing even six months ago, but when the opportunity came up, I decided it was a perfect time to explore the world for a while.

I leave Hoboken on Wednesday morning and the US on June 4th from JFK. I will have my cell phone with me until then. After that, here's what I know:

My mailing address for the first 3 months of training in Cameroon (until Labor Day):
Pete Bine, Peace Corps Trainee
Corps de la Paix
B.P. 215
Yaounde, Cameroon

Please make sure you mark all letters and/or packages with "Par Avion". It will speed the process. I've been told that it can take anywhere from 3-6 weeks for mail to reach me. For important items, DHL has a presence in Cameroon.

I will have a different, more direct address after training is finished (when I get placed in a specific position in a different city), and I will send out that address when I get my own place (as well as a cell number- hopefully!).

I am planning on having access to the internet and email, although its unclear how frequently that will occur. I will continue to use my yahoo account as my primary account. (if you still have the usa.com in your address book, please update since I will not be using this account any longer)

I have also set up a blog so I can easily share general and extended thoughts and observations about my experiences in my new world. That address is: http://peteincameroon.blogspot.com That way, if you find yourself thinking, "I wonder what Pete's up to?", you can go to that site and read all about it!

I am extremely excited about my new adventure and the opportunity to travel all around Africa. If you're interested in coming to visit, please let me know! Its likely that I'll have plenty of room. And, if you want to go to a different part of Africa, there's a good possibility I could meet you there (Egypt? Tanzania? Morocco?) since I get lots of vacation time.

I want to thank you all for your incredible support you've given me. I wouldn't have been able to keep it all together or be able to take advantage of this opportunity to see the world and make it a little bit better place to live without my friends and family.

I look forward to hearing from you while I'm there! Mark your calendars now for Labor Day of 2005 for a big return party!

All my best,
Pete
posted by Pete 1:42 AM


Thursday, May 08, 2003


so, here are a couple of other interesting links about Cameroon that I thought might be interesting. Expedia has quite a bit of background information and of course the Peace Corps country link has some interesting, maybe more pertinent stuff.

I have been struggling with the packing, but don't make it too messy thing. My real estate agent and I have decided that the current offer has a good chance of falling through, so we're still showing it until the last possible legal moment. Speaking of which...for a region full of unemployed people, why does it seem like everyone I'm dealing with in this transaction is so freakin' busy!!
posted by Pete 4:33 PM


Wednesday, May 07, 2003


That's it! I'm officially posting on the World Wide Web! What a wonderful feeling... I'm so...connected...
Well, that's the goal anyway. While I can't make any promises as to how often I'll be able to update this while in Cameroon, my goal is to add something every time I have internet access. Sooo, while I may not be able to respond to your email as quickly and with as much general detail as to what's going on there as I'd like, I figure this way at least you can know what the latest scoop is every once in a while. I'll be publishing items such as my mailing address, helpful links and countdown to departure over the next couple of weeks. I hope you enjoy!! For the first link, I suppose the Peace Corps is a good place to start http://www.peacecorps.gov/familyfriends/index.cfm
posted by Pete 12:03 AM



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Story Source: Personal Web Site

This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; COS - Cameroon; PCVs in the Field - Cameroon; Blog

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