september 4

So, we fly out in like six days, it's pretty soon, and we're pretty excited. We are currently at the outer banks in North Carolina and will be here for two more nights before returning to DC for a few rushed days of packing and then we're outta here Thursday morning. Our 'friends and family' tour has been fantastic, we've been able to spend a few days in the life of many of our closest friends. There's been lots of babies and young-uns on the tour and we've had lots of conversations about our baby plans. It seems a large proportion of folks believe we're going to be pregnant sooner than later. funny. We've also talked to everyone about how the economy has been treating them and it seems many are struggling - many are working less hours than they would prefer, but everyone seems like they are going to be alright at the end of they day. Alex and I are happy to ride out the recession in the South Pacific...

Peace Corps sent us a letter to pass on to family and friends, it seems fine to me and includes our address - so check it out:

"Dear Families,

Greetings from the Pacific Desk in Washington, D.C.! It is with great pleasure that we welcome family members to the 2009 Vanuatu training program. We receive many questions from Volunteers and family members regarding travel plans, sending money, relaying messages and mail, etc. As we are unable to involve ourselves in the personal arrangements of Volunteers, we would like to offer you advice and assistance in advance by providing specific examples of situations and how we suggest handling them.

1. Written Communication. (Please see #3 for the mailing address to the Peace Corps office in Port Vila, the capital of Vanuatu) The mail service in Vanuatu is not as efficient as the U.S. Postal Service; thus, it is important to be patient. It can take 4 to 6 weeks for mail coming from Vanuatu to arrive in the United States via the Vanuatu postal system.

We suggest that in the first few letters sent, the Volunteer family member give an estimate of how long it takes to receive the letters and then try to establish a predictable pattern of how often the volunteer will write. (Keep in mind that written correspondence sometimes wanes as the volunteer’s service progresses.) Also, try numbering your letters so that the Volunteer knows if one has been missed. Postcards should be sent in envelopes--otherwise they may be found on the wall of the local post office!

Volunteers often enjoy telling their “war” stories when they write home. This is one of the exciting and adventurous elements of serving as a Volunteer. Anecdotes in letters might describe recent illnesses, lack of good food, isolation, transportation challenges, etc. While the subject matter is good reading material, it is often misinterpreted or exaggerated on the home front. There are two Peace Corps medical officers at the Peace Corps office in Vanuatu. In the event of a serious illness, the Volunteer is sent to Port Vila and is cared for by our medical staff. If Volunteers require medical care that is not available in Vanuatu, they are medically evacuated to a nearby country (Fiji, Australia) or the United States. Fortunately, these are rare circumstances.

If for some reason your normal communication pattern is broken and you do not hear from your family member for an abnormal amount of time, you may want to contact the Office of Special Services (OSS) at Peace Corps Washington at 1-800-424-8580, extension 1470. Also, in the case of an emergency at home (death in the family, sudden illness, etc.), please do not hesitate to call OSS immediately, so that we can inform the Volunteer. You may call the above number during regular business hours, as well as after hours and weekends. Tell the operator your name, telephone number, and the nature of the emergency and the Duty Officer will return your call.

2. Telephone Calls. The telephone service in Vanuatu can be inconsistent at times, as well as pricey. During training, your family member may have scarce access to email, but some of the host training families may have phones in either their homes or at a nearby location. Your family member will communicate what that phone number may be.


During their service, access to email should be available—albeit not necessarily at all times. They will also be able to inform you of their telephone number once they arrive at their permanent sites in the country.

The Pacific Desk maintains regular contact with the Peace Corps office in Vanuatu through phone calls and email. However, these communications are reserved for business only and cannot be used to relay personal messages. All communication between family members and the Volunteer should be done via international mail, email, or personal phone calls, unless there is an emergency and you cannot reach your family member.

3. Sending packages. Family and friends like to send care packages through the mail. Unfortunately, sending packages can be a frustrating experience for all involved due to the high incidence of theft and heavy customs taxes. [I, Lucas, have read that including Christian propaganda on packages significantly decreases the likelihood of theft]. You may want to try to send inexpensive items through the mail, but there is no guarantee that these items will arrive. We do not recommend, however, that costly items be sent through the mail. You may use the following address to send letters and/or packages to your family member until he/she has informed of a different address:

Alex Amorin & Lucas Obringer
Peace Corps/Vanuatu
PMB 9097
Port Vila
Republic of Vanuatu

It is recommended that packages be sent in padded envelopes if possible, as boxes tend to be taxed and opened more frequently.

We hope this information is helpful to you during the time your family member is serving as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Vanuatu. We understand how frustrating it is to communicate with your family member overseas and we appreciate your using this information as a guideline. Please feel free to contact us at the Pacific Desk in Washington, D.C. if you have any further questions. Our phone numbers are 1-800-424-8580, ext. 2523 or 2502, or locally, 202-692-2523 or 202-692-2502.



Sincerely,

Shelley Swendiman
Pacific Desk
Country Desk Assistant

Dear Prospective Volunteer: Please give this letter to your family and
ask them to hold on to it for as long as you are in Vanuatu."

Here's hoping for lots of loving letters...and we promise to write everyone we receive letters from...