Saturday, May 31, 2003

Its getting down to the wire now... and I'm sleeping less and less. Not so much because of the things left to do, but more nervousness, anticipation and a bit of anxiety. My brother arrived yesterday afternoon, and so now we have the whole family back together for one last time before my departure. My parents' house isn't all that big, so with the four of us and a dog, its a bit tight, especially with all of my bags and preparation for the big adventure. I'm basically packed now and most of my financial house is in order, so I'm feeling comfortable about the state of things.

My trip to Raleigh was quite fun, if only for a short time. I was able to get together with some of my best friends that I have known for many and in one case, many, many years (Marcus is my "oldest" friend- since 7th grade!!) We spent lots of time laughing and eating and laughing some more. It was quite a sad goodbye, as it has been with a number of good friends who I have seen over the past few weeks.

Back in Hopewell, my parents have been great, trying to feed me all my favorite foods, have some quality family togetherness, and helping me get all of my long list of "to-dos" done. I even got a brand new Virginia drivers license yesterday (after 3 trips with the wrong identfying info). Its so much nicer than my old NJ one which kept falling apart!

At this point I have gone over my decision about 2 billion times. There have been thougths and events which remind me of the wonderful life and friends I have here in the US. Its not an easy thing to do, yet I feel compelled to go out and explore the world, meet new people and become a citizen of the larger world out there.

If you want to send mail or anything else to me, this USPS site has lots of pertinent information! I'm not exactly sure why sending used clothing is prohibited though... something to investigate when I get there...

Sunday, May 25, 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...

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