We spoke to Rachel again on Saturday, February 25. Here’s her latest news.

- Yesterday morning in language class Rachel gave a 2 minute technical presentation, in Malagasy, on farming. She thinks it went pretty well.

- Last week Rachel converted a trash heap into a garden at the home where she’s staying while in training.

- Rachel washed clothes for the first time since she arrived; knee-deep in a river near a waterfall. There are rice paddies all around. She said this is one of the most beautiful places she’s ever seen. (And she’s seen a lot of beautiful places - Dad’s comment.) It’s hard work, but worth it.

- Rachel has seen a lot of plants and some animals found only in Madagascar: exotic birds; an animal that’s a cross between a hedgehog and a mole; a spider the size of an egg; native tree species.

- Rachel’s feeling fine, though the anti-malarial medicine (doxycycline) bothers her stomach a bit. She needs to be sure to take it on a full stomach.

- Chef Rachel has learned to cook some typical Malagasy dishes, including anana sy hena, a kind of greens and meat with local spices.

- Next weekend Rachel will travel to Antananarivo, the capital, for a few days. The following Wednesday (March 8 ) she will have an opportunity to visit her site, Voloina (near Maroansetra), for four days. This will give her a chance to see where she’ll be spending the two years following training and talk to her Malagasy counterpart. (Should be exciting and helpful to get a better idea of what her living and working conditions will be like.)

- We asked Rachel what she wants us to send her. She asked for some real luxuries: a vegetable peeler; multivitamins; seeds to plant in a garden.

- Rachel mailed us a copy of what her job description will be when she gets to her site as a PCV. (Until the end of training she’s a PCT.) We’ll post a copy when it arrives.

Rick & Teresa