Contacting me

On a lighter note, I feel like some of you may want to contact me.  I will still have my personal e-mail going for friends and family (for those of you who need it, feel free to call/text/contact me through Facebook), and when I can, I will try to make time for Skype, but for anyone interested in getting in touch with me about my Peace Corps experiences, I will also be reachable by mail.  It may be slower, so plan accordingly (according to the Peace Corps, mail can take up to a month to reach me).  My mailing address during training will be as follows:

For mail/packages sent through USPS-

(My name)

c/o Peace Corps Namibia

P.O. Box 6862

Windhoek

Namibia 9000

Namibia

For packages sent through DHL (express shipping)-

(My name)

c/o Peace Corps Namibia

19 Nachtigal Street

Ausspannplatz

Windhoek

Namibia

I will warn you that they may search through my mail, so sending me valuables may be difficult, but I'd love to receive mail, and if anyone wants to receive post cards from me, just send me your mailing address.  I'm getting a list going.  I make no promises during training, but once I settle in I will try and mail post cards to those on my list ever couple months (could be more or less frequent, depending on how much it costs).

Another thing Peace Corps recommends, since mail can sometimes get lost, is numbering your letters to me, so I know if I missed one.

Are you scared?

  Okay, so, one of the most common questions friends and strangers have asked me when talking about these last few weeks leading up to my departure is "are you nervous/scared/frightened?"  The short answer is yes.  In fact, I'm terrified.  I'm scared out of my mind.  In my experience, starting a new job is always a bit scary.  Add in the fact that I'll be living in a completely different country, where English may officially be the language but isn't as widely spoken as it is here, with different cultures, different diets, less technology, etc.  Basically, I'm leaving behind my entire life.  Everything I own, everything I'm used to, my comfort zone, I'm leaving it all behind.  Just like I did when I went to Israel, though this is to an even larger degree.  And unlike Israel, I'm leaving family and friends behind.  On Year Course, I knew a couple people going in.  I had a cousin in Israel.  I don't know anyone in Namibia, and other than a few Facebook exchanges, I don't really know anyone I'm doing this with.  I'm hoping to bring a couple DC/Tulane relics to provide me a little comfort zone in my home over there for when I get homesick.
  That being said, it's not the changes that terrifies me the most.  I'm going abroad for 2 years.  I'm going to have limited communication with my friends back here.  For 2 years, they're all going to have more-or-less lives that are completely Jay-free.  I'm terrified about how much is going to change while I'm gone.  I'm scared that by the time I get back, I'll be completely out of everybody's lives.  Of course, I know that's a bit extreme, but when I look back at all the changes over the last 2 years, and how much more will change over the next 2, with friends starting to get married, have kids, move away, etc., it's hard to try and predict where I'll fit in when I get back.  I'm terrified that as I say goodbye to people (my fair-well tour now on it's final leg), in some cases, it might be the last time I ever see them.  As my departure date approaches, reality sets in more each day.
  However, I don't want this to sound all doom-and-gloomy.  I'm really excited.  I'm really looking forward to this.  I can't wait to get there, to meet the people I will be training with, to meet the community I will be living in, and to get started with my service.  But the honest truth is, as excited as I am, of course I'm scared. And I wouldn't have it any other way.  Everyone likes to talk about the Robert Frost line about the road less traveled.  I've never been a fan.  To me, it's not about the road less traveled, so much as the road I, as an individual, have yet to travel down.  "All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us".  Sometimes that decision requires leaving our comfort zone.  And those who have never been scared rarely, if ever, leave their mark or reach their full potential.  So I'm glad I'm scared, glad that this is going to be a challenge.  Because otherwise, anybody could do.  Otherwise, it would not be as fulfilling a use of the time I have been given.

Saying Goodbye

  So, a month from yesterday, I report for my staging in Philadelphia, and a month from today (as my dad pointed out), my plane with be on the runway, waiting for me to board.  I still have a few more things to get before I leave, and I obviously have to find a way to fit in in my bags.  I also have some orientation videos still to watch, but I'm at a point where I'm mostly ready to go.  So now it's time to say goodbye.  The first leg of my journey has taken me to Texas.
  On Friday morning, I flew into Houston to spend the night with my mom's friend from when she served in Honduras.  After a quick meal of gorditas (the real thing, not the Taco Bell version), we went to the Museum of Fine Arts to see their exhibit on Spanish portraits and look as some gold and pottery from Africa and pre-Colombian Latin America.  We spent the rest of the night relaxing, chatting, watching news of the storm pounding the northeast (where my brother and the younger son of my mother's friend both attend college).  For the record, the suffix "eaux" is pronounced "oh", in case you had any doubts.
  The next morning got off to a slow start.  In fact, I had forgotten how nice it feels to wake up without my alarm blasting.  After a short walk around the lake they lived on, my mother's friend's husband cooked up some steaks and seared tuna with some sticky veggies mix (sort of like a gumbo).  As good as the food was, the best part might've been the homemade hot sauces he put out.  After lunch, we packed up and headed down to Galveston to experience what they consider Mardi Gras.
  Now, if there's one thing I've realized in my short time in Galveston, it's that it's a lot like New Orleans.  Only not quite, in every way. It's hard to put into words, almost a New Orleans lite, which is not to say it's worse or better.  Oh, also, they have a beach. Which brings us back to our story.  So, after quickly stopping in at Tommy's to drop off a case of Shiner beer and say hi to his cats, we got back in the car and headed over to the Seawall for the parade.  The way Mardi Gras works in Galveston is a bit different from New Orleans.  There are 2 celebrations.  One is over the Strand, and it costs money.  Having lived in New Orleans for 4 years, there was no way in hell I was going to pay to celebrate Mardi Gras, especially after having lived through the best Mardi Gras celebration north of Rio (from what I hear).  So, we decided to enjoy the free celebration over at the Seawall.  We'd gotten there a bit early, so (after finding a bathroom without too long a line), we explored a couple stores, grabbed a couple drinks, and sat around until the parade started.  Like I said, Galveston is New Orleans lite, and the parade made this very clear.  The floats were a little smaller, they were stingier with the throws, which were also a lot less exciting that the ones in the Big Easy.  The marching bands were good, but like in New Orleans, they all played the same walk-beat, and half of them walk-beated past us.  Still it was an enjoyable night.
  After the parade, my mom's friends gave me a lift back to Tommy's, where I said goodbye to them and spent the rest of the night hanging with Tommy, his kitties, and Sarah, who had come down from Houston that night.
  The next morning I began really exploring Galveston.  After a walk around Tommy's neighborhood and a quick trip to Walgreens, I went over to the Strand.  Since there was nothing going on for the Mardi Gras celebration that day, I was able to avoid paying.  After checking out a couple stores I stopped into a bar called Brews Brothers to watch a band perform.  It was typical Bourbon Street type music, though the bar itself was pretty fun and the beer was nice.  After walking around some more (and getting a free pork taco), watching a couple other bands perform, some amazing fudge, and snapping a few photos, I made my way back to Tommy's to avoid the oncoming rain storm.  The next day I went back to the Seawall.  I figured it would be nice to see it on a day when it wasn't crowded.  A nice walk, but the highlight was meeting an off-duty cop.  I was wearing my Tulane hoodie and walking around with my camera.  So he came up and started asking me about New Orleans and the Mardi Gras down there.  After chatting a bit, we decided to wait out a rainstorm by grabbing a couple burgers and some rum at The Spot.  And then, when the rain ended, some more walking around, and made my way back to the Strand.
  Today is my last day in Galveston.  Later today, I'll be taking a bus back to Houston overnight, and then catch another to New Orleans in the morning.  I'm going to do some more exploring now, but I will leave you with a few photos.

The lake

Seawall, getting ready for the parade

Old ladies

Feeding time for the poor souls who actually beg for beads

For you, Courtney

Mixture of the old and the new 

"THE BEGINNING OF THE END" I find that a fitting sign

Winston, who never leaves that spot

And Tam

Why would you ever want to do that?

  So, one of the most annoying things about getting ready to leave for the Peace Corps is all the people who ask you "why would you want to do that?" or "what made you want to do that?" or "why Africa?" or (my favorite) "after over 50 years, what's the point?"  So, to get things started, I had no real choice where I am going.  An no, that's not a bad thing, it's just the reality.  Speaking Spanish, my original nomination was for Latin America.  However, when the time came and I had my final interview, there were no available postings in Latin America, and when I got my nomination, it was basically take it or turn down the Peace Corps.  And the more I've read about it, the more excited I am for my country.
  Okay, so, now that I've gotten past that one, I guess it's time to get into why I am doing this.  As many people know, my mother served in the Peace Corps in Honduras.  Washington, DC has a very strong RPCV community, in which my mother was very active.  She would bring me to events when I was little, and I grew up with Peace Corps stories.  By the time I was in middle school, I had realized that at some point in my life I wanted to live overseas, and the more I've thought about it, the more I've wanted to do the Peace Corps.  While I don't plan on getting too much into religion here, I will say that my Peace Corps desire does stem from my religious beliefs.  I was brought up a Reform Jew, and one thing my synagogue preached and my parents emphasized was Tikkun Olam, or "repairing the world."  Over the years, my level of observance has changed. I have never really gotten much out of prayer, but I have always felt a sort of spirituality from helping people.
  After high school, I took a year off and took part in the Young Judea Year Course in Israel, a educational and community service based program.  For the next few years, during my studies at Tulane, I sort of felt satisfied in my desire to live abroad.  Other friends did study abroad, but I felt no desire to leave New Orleans.  However, the end of my junior year changed things.  I had a rough year.  At the end of it, one of my close friends graduated, and we went out to celebrate on Bourbon and Frenchmen for his last night in New Orleans.  The next morning, things felt different.  It started to hit me that I only had one year remaining in my undergrad career, and then it would time for the real world.  As I sat in bed thinking about the future, I re-discovered my desire to go abroad.  The summer before, my girlfriend had left me to study abroad, and her experiences had reminded me that I wanted to experience something more, something very different.  Over the next few days, I began thinking more about the next year while packing to return to Maryland for my little brother's high school graduation.  After talking to a friend who mentioned she had started her application for the Peace Corps, I decided to consider it.
  When I got home, I spoke briefly with my parents about it.  Both of them were very supportive, so I began an application.  I began talking to returned Peace Corps volunteers in the DC area over the next year, and as I went through the application process, I got more and more excited.  It seemed perfect for me.  An opportunity to help people, have a completely different experience, and a new setting.
  However, the application process was long, and eventually I began to worry about what I was going to do after graduation.  I took a few interviews, took the LSAT, applied to law school, and looked into other service based programs.  And then came Spring break.  And the phone call.  I was walking back from the coffee shop when my phone rang.  I was offered my nomination to be a Health Extension volunteer in South/Central America, leaving in February 2013.  For those of you wondering why they made me a Health Extension volunteer, despite being a PoliSci major at Tulane, my qualification to work in healthcare was a summer I spent as an EMT.

For the rest of the school year, this hung over my bedroom door, helping me fight "senioritis"

  Graduation came and I returned to Maryland to volunteer for a couple election campaigns, re-take the LSAT, and look for a job.  A friend of mine who had also applied for the Peace Corps and had paralleled my progress finally got his assignment.  Now, I was worried.  And then I got my medical clearance.  Followed a few days later by a final interview and my acceptance to be a Peace Corps volunteer.  And then my assignment.  To Namibia.  That's in Africa, not Latin America (if you want some info on the country, see my earlier post).  It all moved quick.  Then came time to take care of paperwork.  And research the country.  And learn a bit more about HIV/AIDS, since that's what will be the focus of my work..  And figure out what I need to get before I leave.  Bringing me to this day.
  At a recent concert, someone asked me what the point was.  After all, the Peace Corps recently celebrated it's 50th anniversary.  If it hasn't gotten the job done in that time, why do people keep trying.  However, that simply isn't the case.  The  fact is, the situations in the countries have changed, the needs have changed, and so the Peace Corps goals and work in these countries has changed.  That night, another person remarked "I get the whole helping people thing, but you can do that here.  If you want to go abroad, just get a job, save some money, and take a vacation."  While this guy will never comprehend what would motivate my decision to take part in the Peace Corps, I will say that taking a vacation and actually living in a community and being part of the day-to-day life are completely different experiences.  And this is more than just helping people, this is about making lasting change in the world.  Because while some people will comment that 1% of the country accounts for 100% of homeland security (an effort to glorify our military), the truth is that foreign aid and programs like the Peace Corps do every bit as much to help homeland security by helping build friendly relationships and show people what Americans are really like.  After all, you don't have to defend yourself from people who don't want to kill you.
  So, there you go.  That's my story.  How I got to this point and why I am doing this.  If it feels like something is missing, it's because part of the problem with explaining why I am doing this is that there are things that can't be put into words.  You either get it or you don't.  But I will say this is probably the most excited I've been in years.  I am really looking forward to the next 2 years.  And a bit scared.  But I can't wait.  I leave in March, and have a lot to do between now and then.  I have friends to see, people to say goodbye to, and God knows how much preparation stuff.  So for now, that's where I'll leave things.  I may have another post or 2 before I leave, with progress on my preparation, but the more interesting stuff should come once I get to Namibia.

And so it begins

  So, if you're reading this, I assume you know this, but just in case someone has stumbled upon this blog, my name is Jay Salus, and in March, I will be leaving for Namibia to participate in the Peace Corps Community Health and HIV/AIDS program (CHHAP).  I grew up in Washington, DC, before spending a year in Israel after high school, before spending the last four years in New Orleans as a student at Tulane University.  I don't know how much internet access I will have, but to the extent I have any, I will hope to update this to keep everyone interested in my experience updated.
  So, Namibia.  Because, you know, being fluent in Spanish, I was certainly expecting to go to Africa.  But, seriously, I will admit that prior to getting my Peace Corps invitation, I knew very little about Namibia, beyond having had to memorize where it was on the map for my Idev 101 class.  Since I'm guessing many of you know about as much as I did, let me show you where it is:

  While I'm sure I will have more posts in the future regarding Namibia, for now, I'll just give some basic info for my readers (my source for most of this being the info book the Peace Corps sent me).  A colony of Germany from the 1880s, Namibia gained independence from South Africa on Marc 21, 1990.  The current population is roughly 2,100,000.  The official language is English, though most people tend to speak Afrikaans, Germans, and various tribal languages.  Because I will be working in HIV/AIDS, the CIA factbook (https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/wa.html) puts the HIV/AIDS rate at about 13%, so I've seen sources that list it as high as 15-20%.
  Many people, upon hearing my plans to do the Peace Corps, have the tendency to ask me "why" I want to do this, and I plan on getting more into all of that, as well as describing the process to getting to this point, but for now, I'll just leave it as this is simply what I've wanted to do for a while.  And while I am sad to be leaving behind so many friends and family, I am really excited for the opportunities and experiences I'm about to face.