Finishing Training...

Friday, May 30, 2010

I know I’ve been MIA for a bit, but I’ve been busy! It’s been an interesting couple of weeks and they have flown by! A couple of weeks ago we took a “Mock LPI”, which is the Language Proficiency Interview and the test which determines whether we can swear in as Peace Corps Volunteers. The Mock test was run just like the final was supposed to be and we were given scores which range from low, mid, or high Novice or Intermediate, then Advanced and high Advanced, and then there is Superior, which is basically fluent. We have to score high intermediate in order to swear in. The LPI runs just like a conversation… but it follows certain topics which are used to determine how good your grammar usage is, what your vocabulary range is, etc.

I thought I did horrible on the Mock LPI because I was a bit stressed over it and felt like I hadn’t learned very much in seven weeks. As it turns out, I scored high intermediate! I do think the test is very subjective depending on who your tester was, but it still felt pretty good to do well on it! So it was motivating and I feel like I have improved dramatically in the last couple of weeks and I actually feel pretty good about this language. I still have so much to learn… but I can actually make myself understood, which is an amazing feeling. The last couple of times that I went to see my host mom, we could actually make conversation… on the topics I know anyway! But it was really great. So today we took our final LPI, and we find out our scores tonight! So I should have them before I get around to posting this blog…

I also cooked with my host mom the other day which was quite fun! They cook on traditional charcoal stoves, so everything is quite the chore here. We made a peanut sauce and ubugali, which is a doughy kind of bread made from the cassava root that you eat by pinching it off with your hands and dipping in sauce. And it was good! We took a few pictures… so hopefully I’ll be able to post those on facebook. They’re entertaining because the first thing my host mom did when I showed up was hand me igitenge (colorful African fabric they wrap around themselves to dress in and also wrap to use as an apron) and a head scarf.

The girls here have also taken quite a few trips to the umudozi (tailor) to have dresses made for swear-in! So I have a cute wrap dress made out of the colorful igitenge to wear… we are going to be a very colorful group at the ambassador’s house on Wednesday!

So now I just have to pack and get ready to head out to Kigali on Tuesday, we swear in on Wednesday, hang out in Kigali until the weekend, and then I have two weeks of training in Kigali with my organization, Access Project, before I head to my site in Gashora. So I should be able to get a decent internet connection every so often while I’m in Kigali… in addition to some good food! From what I hear, there’s a great Indian restaurant and a good Thai restaurant… which makes me really happy!

And right now I have a ton of healthy good food, wonderful Easter candy, and loads of baby wipes and batteries from the last couple of care packages… I have the greatest friends!



I received Advanced on my language interview! Yay! The testers said that I have a full grasp of the grammar… I can describe any situation… my speech is fluid and coherent and I easily understand questions… I feel so accomplished! And yet so aware of how much I have to learn… but I’ve never been to this point with a language before where I can actually make sentences and talk to a native speaker even just a little. It feels so good to be at this point in training… I’m going to be a Peace Corps Volunteer by this time next week!!!