Final Post

Dear Followers,

Thank you for your interest in my Peace Corps experience these past few year.  It has been incredible.  I hope that I've not only helped complete the third goal of Peace Corps (to share host country culture with the United States), but that I've also been able to enlighten you just a little bit to the diversity of the world.  That being said, if the only thing my readers have learned is that Africa is a continent with many cultures, and not a country with one homogenous people, it was worth all the work.

This will be my final post on this blog.  It's weird to think that I will no longer be sharing my life in such a public manner, but it's also weird to think that I did so in the first place.  The weirdest thought is that people cared so much.

If you ever want to hear more about Malawi and Southern Africa, please don't hesitate to contact me.  For those of you that don't know me personally, my email address is on this blog, and I intend to leave this up so that Peace Corps Invitees can get another perspective.


Yewo Chomene,
     Nick Parr, RPCV Malawi 2012-14

Q&A with this RPCV

I'd like to address a few of the common questions I've been getting since I've gotten back.

"Would you do it again?"
I have two answers to this.  (1) Would I sign up again and do a second tour? Probably not.  (2) Knowing what I know now, would I have gone to Malawi the first time? Hell yes!

"Do I plan to visit Malawi again sometime in the future?"
Of course, but I know that it will never be the same.  I've both traveled and actually lived in foreign places before, and I know that there is a huge difference in the two.  Even after living in Chilumba for so long, getting to know so many people, learning the language, and (hopefully) making a lasting impact, I know that when I go back, I'll once again be the outsider.

"Do you have Ebola?"
 Yes, come over here so I can cough on you.  Seriously though, people (not you, you're ok because you're reading this)!  Buy a map, and realize that Europe is far closer to the outbreak than Malawi.  Africa is big.

"How are you adjusting?"
Pretty well, I think.  I'm no longer freaked out by running water or refrigerators, or electricity.  However, I no longer feel the need to leave the TV on when I'm not actually watching it, I sometimes forget to turn lights on at night, and I still find air conditioning a little odd, but I think (hope) these are more permanent changes.  Overall, I'm quite happy.

"What are you going to do next?"
Find a job.  That's a much slower process than you'd think.  Non-competitive eligibility (federal job hiring preference) and having Peace Corps on your resume doesn't magical make everyone want to hire you.  It's a slow process, especially since I'm changing gears a little (I'm looking at work in Marine Ecology which my Bachelor's Degree is in, instead of Biomechanics, which is what my Master's Degree is in).  I'll be fine, and due to my cheap lifestyle, low gas prices, and almost free forms of entertainment (outdoors stuff), money isn't really an issue yet.  As for what else is in the future, who knows, and that's what makes it so exciting.

2014 in Video Clips

It's done!  The 2014 Year, 3-Seconds at a Time, Video is ready (with only one small mistake).  I was going to put together an explanation of each individual clip, but that's probably not going to happen (and most are self-explanatory).  Plus, I'm being realistic here, it's 18 minutes of my life, so I don't expect to be winning an Oscar, or having that massive of a viewership.  So now that I sold it so well, grab your popcorn, sit back, and enjoy my mini-documentary: PCV to RPCV.