Bravo! Come on! C'est beau! Let's go!

I had no idea how much I would need those words by mile 22. After training for months for the Montreal Marathon, I thought it would be such a breeze, but as the hours passed by on Sunday morning, I realized that I was undertaking the most intense physical and mental endurance test of my life.

Three hours, fifty minutes, and fifty-three seconds (3:50:53.57) after the fifth corral was released from the south end of the Jacques Cartier Bridge, I crossed the finish line in La Fontaine Park. What a rush of adrenaline! I am so proud of myself that I completed this huge goal that I set for myself months ago. I knew when signing up for my half-marathon in November 2012 that I'd like to eventually complete a marathon, so immediately after I finished that intermediate goal in May 2013, I started searching for a race that would be meaningful and keep my motivation high during the summer months. I decided on the Montreal Marathon on September 22, 2013. I fell in love with the city last year during my first visit, and I knew that doing my first marathon there would be very fulfilling, as I'd get to see my good friend, Max, and tour more of the city.

Preparing for the race was the most grueling task of my life, apart from the actual race. Months of sore muscles, early morning runs, missed social gatherings and hours and hours staring at the wall in the gym culminated in a nerve-filled train ride from Washington to Montreal the day before the race. I was so worried all week about the weather, with menacing news reports predicting a low of 39 and a 90% chance of rain on race day. Immediately after arriving in Montreal, the skies darkened, and it began to pour, continuing all night. I slept well and woke up early in the morning to see extremely overcast skies, but it wasn't raining, and the temperature hovered at a pleasant 54 degrees. I decided to go only in a t-shirt and shorts, and I brought an umbrella in case of rain before the start. I had to walk a few blocks to the metro and then take the metro to the station closest to the start line. I was in corral 5 of 24, so I had to walk the whole way across the bridge, about a mile, to start.

After soaking in the pre-race emotions surround me, the moment finally arrived, and I began to soak in the cool Canadian precipitation. By kilometer 2 my right foot was soaked, and the left foot was even wetter by kilometer 4, despite the pack trying to jump over huge puddles. It stopped raining at mile 8, and I dried off mostly, except my feet, which were completely wet throughout.

The first half of the race was without a doubt much more stimulating as far as scenery and crowds go. I pushed myself probably a little too hard through the rain and went runner and finished the the half with a personal record of 1:41. All of a sudden at mile 16 it was like I was carrying bricks on the back of my calves, and my hips started getting sore. The worst part of the race was miles 20-23 and the last mile. I slowed down considerably at the end but never let myself walk at all. I didn't meet my somewhat unrealistic goal of 3:30, but I had told myself I'd be happy with myself as long as I do under 4 hours, so I'll just have to do better next time.

Well, if there is a next time! ;) ...and knowing myself, I imagine there will be.

Medically cleared!

After what feels like forever (36 days to be exact), I received my final medical clearance first thing this morning - what a relief! This is essentially the last hurdle to jump before one is guaranteed a spot in the Peace Corps group to which he has been invited. I will begin my Pre-Service Training on January 13 and leave for Morocco on January 15 if all goes well. In the past, groups destined for Morocco have done the United States portion of PST in Philadelphia before flying out of JFK directly to Casablanca.

So glad to be able to really breathe a sigh of relief and focus on learning more about my soon to be host country!

Salaam alaikum!

Salaam alaikum! So, I just finished my first Arabic class. I can say that I'm beginning this literary journey literally from zero! I had no idea how to even respond to hello when I entered the class. As I sat there struggling to write the basic 28 letters of the Arabic alphabet, I had the scary (but awesome) realization that by this time next year, I will hopefully be able to speak this language well enough to teach Moroccan youth in a variety of subjects. I'll continue to include updates on my language training in this, as I think readers may be interested in my progression.

Oh, so, you may ask why I'd be speaking in Arabic and teaching Moroccan youth in Latin America? Well, here's the surprise that you've all been waiting for (well, really none of you, because you'll already know by the time you may read these first entries!)...

I'm going to Morocco! Yes, Morocco! No more Spanish speaking in my immediate future. I need to focus on learning Arabic and immersing myself in Islamic culture, as I'll be in a completely foreign land in less than four months.

My first thought when I opened my invitation email was that it had to be a mistake. I was seriously so taken aback that I didn't even read when I'd be leaving or anything else...I immediately opened the Peace Corps page on Morocco to see the basic facts, such as how long volunteers have been there and how many are there. The rest of that day I was gulping down every basic fact about Morocco that I could find. Since then, I've been reading blogs of current and former volunteers to find out what life is like for Americans in the Maghreb. I'm extremely excited about this turn of events, and I think it will be even more of a great experience to explore a completely new part of the world and an entirely new people and way of thinking.

Ma salaama.

Not another needle...

Thank God I don't have a fear of needles, and I hope if you're reading this while in the process of obtaining medical clearance for Peace Corps that you don't either! Despite reading dozens of blogs about the Peace Corps application process, I've found few accurate and detailed accounts of timelines, especially regarding the medical procedures. I hope to explain the process from start to finish for future applicants. I'll separate it into dental and other other medical exams.

Dental:

First of all, I knew from former PC volunteers that Peace Corps will inquire about wisdom teeth, which I've never had extracted. I was scheduled to visit my dentist for my regular biannual dental cleaning in January 2013, so I told my dentist that I was applying and would prefer to have my wisdom teeth out as soon as possible if need be. I only have two wisdom teeth oddly enough, and I insisted that I prefer to keep them if its not urgent for me to remove them. My dentist seemed to think that I should have them removed, but he referred me to an oral surgeon. In February 2013 I visited the oral surgeon, who was also on the fence about removing the wisdom teeth. Apparently there is a nerve close to one of them, and removal could affect it. After a few minutes of back and forth, he signed off on allowing me to keep my hidden white pearls. 

Six months later, I went back to the dentist in July 2013 for my cleaning and told him I was tentatively scheduled to leave for service in January 2014 and asked if there is anything I should do before then while I have insurance. He said that since I'll be away for so long, I should get all of my old silver fillings from candy-eating middle schools replaced with new white resin fillings. Luckily, I received my invitation and necessary documentation two weeks before I was scheduled to get my fillings replaced. I called the office to let them know that I would be bringing my documentation. (They had told me to let them know, as it takes about an hour for them to fill it all out. I also let them know the exact x-rays that I needed.) When I arrived to get my fillings done, they pulled by four biteway x-rays, which met Peace Corps' time requirements. However, my full 360 degree panoramic x-ray was just over two years old, which is the limit for Peace Corps. My dentist did a really nice thing and told me that even though my insurance wouldn't cover it, he would give me the $80 x-ray for only $40 because I was doing a respectable public service. After finishing up with the unpleasant fillings (and four shots of Novocaine!), I went to pay, and the office decided to give me the entire x-ray for free! What a pleasant surprise after so many bills. Many thanks to Dr. John Tsaknis at Dental Bug in DC!

Other Medical Documentation:

During the initial Peace Corps application, you must fill out a Health History Form (HHF), which details any health issues (allergies, surgeries, medications,etc.) that you've had in your life. Once you receive your invitation, you will get the HHF back, and it will be one thing your doctor must sign off on saying that it is true and nothing has changed in the past few months since you applied. The most important and longest form is the physical exam form. The doctor will do a full exam and fill out many questions about your overall health. The full list of lab tests that must be run is listed in the form. I went in to the doctor's office as soon as I got my invitation to get my lab tests taken and scheduled the full physical exam for the following week once the lab results came in. One of the tests for the physical is a shot to prove you don't have Tuberculosis (TB). It must be read negative two days later. Since I went on Friday to get my blood drawn for lab tests, I had to get the TB shot on the following Wednesday during my physical exam, which required a third visit to the office two days later (Friday) to prove the negative reading. 

Additionally, you must provide proof of immunity to Polio, Varicella (chicken pox), Measles, Mumps, and Rubella (MMR), and Tetanus and Diptheria (Tdap). I had to call a bunch of pharmacies, and only one Walgreens in DC (Foggy Bottom) had the Polio and Tdap vaccines ($130 together). I had my mom get my childhood doctor to copy a paper proving that I had two MMR shots in my childhood. The office said they could test for Varicella antibodies along with my lab tests. However, when I got my final lab test results on my third visit, they realized the lab hadn't tested for Varicella, so I had to give more blood. I then realized that there is another place on the HHF that the doctor must sign, so I had to go back for a fourth visit to get this signature and pick up the Varicella lab results. I submitted all of my medical forms, and much to my chagrin, despite reviewing everything, a PC nurse was in touch with my saying that Hepatitis C hadn't been included in my lab results, even though the doctor's assistant checked it as having been ordered by the lab. Hello, fifth visit to the office to give more blood for the Hep C antibody test.

Lesson: don't forget to look over all papers like 10 times before you walk out of the doctor's office. Luckily my doctor's office is big and has a relatively flexible schedule, so I could always go in that same day if needed. 

I hope this is useful for someone out there who wonders what the whole process is like. It took me about a month to get everything done after my invitation, and I would say that I was extremely organized and timely with my requests.

And in case you lost count, all in all...10 needles that I can count. ;p