For many years, I had been interested in the Peace Corps. I grew up in the U.K., but had discovered the Peace Corps while studying American politics in high school. I was fascinated and inspired by the story of its creation and its mission of promoting peace and friendship around the world. I made the Peace Corps one of my goals, and some years after leaving university, I applied to become a volunteer.
I arrived in Perú in September 2023. All two-year volunteers like me begin their time here with three months of intensive training for their new roles. I started studying Spanish when I was 12 in school, and had traveled a bit in Latin America when I was younger, so my language skills were solid if unspectacular. I could get through basic interactions without troubles, but more complex conversations were still difficult for me. I lived with a wonderful host family, and made amazing friendships with the other volunteers! The training was very tiring, as we had a lot of technical training, which for health volunteers involved learning about the Peruvian health system, the challenges of healthcare in rural areas, and basic workshops in early childhood development and nutrition. We also spent most of our days in intensive Spanish language trainings, and although we improved very quickly, we were all exhausted!
Now I’m a full-time health volunteer, and I have lived and worked in my community for 18 months.
