Peace Corps Volunteer Cami writes: Is it an evacuation? A consolidation? A vacation? In Service Training? The world will never know, and Peace Corps volunteers and staff will call it all of the above.



"Currently, I refuse to believe that we won’t go back to Guinea, so I’m looking at this as a vacation. Hopefully, my hopes won’t be proven otherwise. But as a vacation, it’s a great time so far. Bamako, is ridiculously nice, at least by the standards that living in Guinea for 7 months will leave you with. Paved roads, new buildings, working stop lights, electricity all the time, and even a Tex-Mex Restaurant with ridiculously strong margaritas. Oh, God, I even had a chocolate milkshake. Even better, on Friday, we’ll even be taking off for a music festival lasting three days on the Niger River. I’ll let you all know how that goes. As far as Guinea, the situation seems to have calmed down quite a bit there, with the strikes being called off after an agreement was reached between union leaders, religious leaders, and the government. The President has agreed to allow for a Prime Minister, who will take over most of his duties until new elections are held. It’s really just a matter of seeing who he nominates, and just how independent the new prime minister can actually be. Regardless, it is an exciting time for Guinea and Guineans, despite the fact that I continuously worry that my service might end at any time. As far as us staying in Guinea, either nobody really knows everything, or everybody is being incredibly tight lipped. I think its just that nobody really knows what will happen in Guinea. While on paper there is an agreement, we have yet to see how the country reacts to the naming of the prime minister and what he is able to accomplish. "

Peace Corps Volunteer Cami writes: Is it an evacuation? A consolidation? A vacation? In Service Training? The world will never know, and Peace Corps volunteers and staff will call it all of the above.

Evac-Consoli-Vaca-IST-ation in Mali

Is it an evacuation? A consolidation? A vacation? In Service Training? The world will never know, and Peace Corps volunteers and staff will call it all of the above. The point is, the situation got to a bad enough point that staff decided it would be better to take us out of Guinea while the situation cooled down (and hopefully not permanently).

So currently, all of us are in Mali, enjoying what has so far turned out to be a nice vacation, with the Peace Corps taking ridiculously good care of us, providing food, shuttle trips to Bamako, pay increases, and even sessions on how to raise chickens (you can be sure that I attended this one).

Currently, I refuse to believe that we won’t go back to Guinea, so I’m looking at this as a vacation. Hopefully, my hopes won’t be proven otherwise. But as a vacation, it’s a great time so far. Bamako, is ridiculously nice, at least by the standards that living in Guinea for 7 months will leave you with. Paved roads, new buildings, working stop lights, electricity all the time, and even a Tex-Mex Restaurant with ridiculously strong margaritas. Oh, God, I even had a chocolate milkshake. Even better, on Friday, we’ll even be taking off for a music festival lasting three days on the Niger River. I’ll let you all know how that goes.

As far as Guinea, the situation seems to have calmed down quite a bit there, with the strikes being called off after an agreement was reached between union leaders, religious leaders, and the government. The President has agreed to allow for a Prime Minister, who will take over most of his duties until new elections are held. It’s really just a matter of seeing who he nominates, and just how independent the new prime minister can actually be. Regardless, it is an exciting time for Guinea and Guineans, despite the fact that I continuously worry that my service might end at any time.

As far as us staying in Guinea, either nobody really knows everything, or everybody is being incredibly tight lipped. I think its just that nobody really knows what will happen in Guinea. While on paper there is an agreement, we have yet to see how the country reacts to the naming of the prime minister and what he is able to accomplish.

I’m really hopeful that we’ll be able to return to Guinea, and am praying that we do not get evacuated again, if only for the fact that the 3 day overland evacuation from Boke to Bamako was the most painful car ride of my life. It was waking up at 4 in the morning and driving through rocky paths or dirt roads (and the occasional paved road, albeit it in ridiculously bad condition) most of the way, over the course of three days for a total of 31 hours on the road. (Those of us coming from Boke had about the longest, and certainly most uncomfortable evacuation of all the volunteers). Riding sideways in the back of a Land Cruiser packed in with 8 other volunteers didn’t do too much for comfort either. But at least we’re now in Bamako, things seem to be looking up in Guinea, and I’m getting paid 140 dollars every eleven days instead 80 dollars every month. Now, cross your fingers and hope that I return to Guinea soon!

Oo’o.

Links to Related Topics (Tags):

Headlines: January, 2007; Peace Corps Guinea; Directory of Guinea RPCVs; Messages and Announcements for Guinea RPCVs; Blogs - Guinea; Safety and Security of Volunteers

When this story was posted in February 2007, this was on the front page of PCOL:




Peace Corps Online The Independent News Forum serving Returned Peace Corps Volunteers

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Subscribe to Peace Corps News Don't miss our new web site, Peace Corps News, for the latest news about the Returned Volunteer community and what is going on with the Peace Corps around the world. Subscribe to our news feed to get Peace Corps news delivered to your desk as it happens. Then visit the Peace Corps Library, History of the Peace Corps, the worldwide RPCV Directory or leave a message for the RPCV community on the RPCV Bulletin Board.

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January 14, 2007: This Month's Top Stories Dodd declares candidacy in 2008 Presidential race 11 Jan Malawi RPCVs found "Orphan Support" 11 Jan John Garamendi takes oath as California Lt. Governor 8 Jan Amy Smith prepares her students for field trips to remote villages 8 Jan CES provides loans to rural constituents in Guatemala 6 Jan RPCV Tom Bissell writes: Rolling Estonia 5 Jan Lance Holter writes: 1st Lt. Ehren Watada risks it all 2 Jan Paul Theroux writes: Remember the Cicadas 2 Jan Louise M. Pascale republishes Afghan children's songs 31 Dec Husband remembers Niger RPCV Mary Ann Hobson 30 Dec Bob Leventry faces problems importing organic quinoa 29 Dec Congressmen urge increase in diplomatic and development programs 27 Dec Family says treatment after PCV death left bitter feeling 27 Dec Family finishes project after PCV dies in shark attack 26 Dec Mark Ridoff writes: Productivity doesn't aid middle class 24 Dec Dodd says begin process of getting troops out of Iraq 24 Dec PCVs caught in street protest in Bolivia 22 Dec Honda named to powerful Appropriations Committee 22 Dec PCOL and NPCA collaborate on story "Snowshoe Bob" 21 Dec Alejandro Toledo charged in Forgery Scheme 21 Dec Michael O'Hanlon writes: The State of Iraq 20 Dec Carl Pope writes: Renewable energy offers new jobs 20 Dec

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December 20, 2006: This Month's Top Stories Tunisia RPCV Jeannie Ritter is new first lady of Colorado 13 Dec John Nichols writes: Petri ought to consider change to Democrat 19 Dec Craig Simons writes: Wolong is home to wild pandas 17 Dec George Neavoll holding essay contest for stamp collection 17 Dec Taft plans to revisit Tanzania where he served as PCV 17 Dec Tschetter gives address at Florida Gulf Coast University 16 Dec President of Macedonia addresses PCVs taking oath 15 Dec President Dr. Thomas Boni Yayi of Benin visits PC HQ 14 Dec Submissions sought "Letters Home from the Peace Corps" 14 Dec Hill leads negotations with North Korea after 13-month hiatus 14 Dec Reed Hastings endows new charter school organization 14 Dec John Bridgeland launches 'Malaria No More' 14 Dec Ann Easterly creates libraries in Africa 13 Dec Damian Jones started Annapolis-based "Aid Through Trade" 13 Dec Alberto Ibarguen to be Chairman of the Newseum 13 Dec Jonathan Lash writes: World undergoing rapid change 13 Dec Ben Moyer named Chief Executive Officer of Pro Mujer 12 Dec James Rupert drafts letter of protest to 'Newsday' 11 Dec Tom Weisner potential contender to replace Dennis Hastert 11 Dec PC deploys SPSS Predictive Analytics for PCV Surveys 11 Dec Congress passes Walsh's Resolution supporting democracy in Nepal 10 Dec

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Ron Tschetter in Morocco and Jordan On his first official trip since being confirmed as Peace Corps Director, Ron Tschetter (shown at left with PCV Tia Tucker) is on a ten day trip to Morocco and Jordan. Traveling with his wife (Both are RPCVs.), Tschetter met with volunteers in Morocco working in environment, youth development, health, and small business development. He began his trip to Jordan by meeting with His Majesty King Abdullah II and Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah and discussed expanding the program there in the near future.

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Election 2006: Results of RPCV Races Chris Shays claims victory in closely watched race Jim Walsh wins re-election to Congress in close race Tom Petri unopposed for re-election to Congress Sam Farr wins re-election to Congress Mike Honda wins re-election to Congress Jim Doyle wins re-election to Wisconsin Governorship Kinky Friedman loses in long shot bid for Texas Governor John Garamendi elected Lt. Governor of California

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The Peace Corps Library The Peace Corps Library is now available online with over 40,000 index entries in 500 categories. Looking for a Returned Volunteer? Check our RPCV Directory or leave a message on our Bulletin Board. New: Sign up to receive our free Monthly Magazine by email, research the History of the Peace Corps, or sign up for a daily news summary of Peace Corps stories. FAQ: Visit our FAQ for more information about PCOL.

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Chris Dodd's Vision for the Peace Corps Senator Chris Dodd (RPCV Dominican Republic) spoke at the ceremony for this year's Shriver Award and elaborated on issues he raised at Ron Tschetter's hearings. Dodd plans to introduce legislation that may include: setting aside a portion of Peace Corps' budget as seed money for demonstration projects and third goal activities (after adjusting the annual budget upward to accommodate the added expense), more volunteer input into Peace Corps operations, removing medical, healthcare and tax impediments that discourage older volunteers, providing more transparency in the medical screening and appeals process, a more comprehensive health safety net for recently-returned volunteers, and authorizing volunteers to accept, under certain circumstances, private donations to support their development projects. He plans to circulate draft legislation for review to members of the Peace Corps community and welcomes RPCV comments.

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He served with honor One year ago, Staff Sgt. Robert J. Paul (RPCV Kenya) carried on an ongoing dialog on this website on the military and the peace corps and his role as a member of a Civil Affairs Team in Iraq and Afghanistan. We have just received a report that Sargeant Paul has been killed by a car bomb in Kabul. Words cannot express our feeling of loss for this tremendous injury to the entire RPCV community. Most of us didn't know him personally but we knew him from his words. Our thoughts go out to his family and friends. He was one of ours and he served with honor.

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Meet Ron Tschetter - Our Next Director Read our story about Ron Tschetter's confirmation hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that was carried on C-Span. It was very different from the Vasquez hearings in 2001, very cut and dried with low attendance by the public. Among the highlights, Tschetter intends to make recruitment of baby boomers a priority, there are 20 countries under consideration for future programs, Senator Dodd intends to re-introduce his third goal Peace Corps legislation this session, Tschetter is a great admirer of Senator Coleman's quest for accountability, Dodd thinks management at PC may not put volunteers first, Dodd wants Tschetter to look into problems in medical selection, and Tschetter is not a blogger and knows little about the internet or guidelines for volunteer blogs. Read our recap of the hearings as well as Senator Coleman's statement and Tschetter's statement.

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Peace Corps' Screening and Medical Clearance The purpose of Peace Corps' screening and medical clearance process is to ensure safe accommodation for applicants and minimize undue risk exposure for volunteers to allow PCVS to complete their service without compromising their entry health status. To further these goals, PCOL has obtained a copy of the Peace Corps Screening Guidelines Manual through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and has posted it in the "Peace Corps Library." Applicants and Medical Professionals (especially those who have already served as volunteers) are urged to review the guidelines and leave their comments and suggestions. Then read the story of one RPCV's journey through medical screening and his suggestions for changes to the process.

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The Peace Corps is "fashionable" again The LA Times says that "the Peace Corps is booming again and "It's hard to know exactly what's behind the resurgence." PCOL Comment: Since the founding of the Peace Corps 45 years ago, Americans have answered Kennedy's call: "Ask not what your country can do for you--ask what you can do for your country. My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man." Over 182,000 have served. Another 200,000 have applied and been unable to serve because of lack of Congressional funding. The Peace Corps has never gone out of fashion. It's Congress that hasn't been keeping pace.

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PCOL readership increases 100% Monthly readership on "Peace Corps Online" has increased in the past twelve months to 350,000 visitors - over eleven thousand every day - a 100% increase since this time last year. Thanks again, RPCVs and Friends of the Peace Corps, for making PCOL your source of information for the Peace Corps community. And thanks for supporting the Peace Corps Library and History of the Peace Corps. Stay tuned, the best is yet to come.

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History of the Peace Corps PCOL is proud to announce that Phase One of the "History of the Peace Corps" is now available online. This installment includes over 5,000 pages of primary source documents from the archives of the Peace Corps including every issue of "Peace Corps News," "Peace Corps Times," "Peace Corps Volunteer," "Action Update," and every annual report of the Peace Corps to Congress since 1961. "Ask Not" is an ongoing project. Read how you can help.

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