An Open Letter to DreamWorks

Author’s note: I know that the majority of my blog posts to date have been long-winded bouts of often overly-sentimental naval gazing, but with this post I hope to do something a little different. Along with posting this letter on my blog, I am sending it via email to as many DreamWorks contacts as I can find. If you are as angered as I am by the information I’ve presented below, I urge you to sign the petition here:

To Whom It May Concern:

First of all, let me congratulate you on the success of the most recent Madagascar movie “Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted”, which, according to your most recent earnings report, has earned over $720 million at the worldwide box office. I have yet to see the newest film, but I look forward to watching it when I return to America in 2014, after my Peace Corps service is over.

It should come as no surprise to you that when I first announced to my friends and family that I would be serving my Peace Corps assignment in Madagascar, most people’s reactions had something to do with the Madagascar movies. And truth be told, when I announced my assignment on Facebook, I did so with the visual aid of a film still from the first “Madagascar” movie. Because of its massive success, your film series is responsible for many Americans’ entire perception and knowledge of the country of Madagascar.

However, once you get past that initial name recognition, most people will admit that they don’t know much about the actual country. I didn’t either, when I first got my invitation to serve here. But here is what I have learned: while Madagascar is indeed a wild and wonderful biodiversity hotspot, full of unique and colorful creatures like the lemurs and fosas shown in your films, it is also one of the most heartbreakingly, devastatingly impoverished countries in the world. According to the Malagasy government, more than 75% of people here live on less than $1 a day, an increase of 68% since the crippling political crisis of 2009, which ground local industries to a halt and caused many international donors to pull their aid funding. This is a country in which its people fight a daily battle just to survive and feed their families.

The needs here are so great yet so simple: access to clean water and reliable electricity, improved bridges and roads so that all routes are passable even during the rainy season, rehabilitation of schools so students have a proper learning environment, money to pay the teachers so that they don’t go on strike and disrupt the children’s learning, and in fact, money for children to pay the very meager school fees that they can continue to learn. These are all things that we as privileged Americans take for granted, but are veritable luxuries here in Madagascar.

And getting beyond basic human needs, there is an immense need for wildlife protection and natural resources conservation. This is a country that has already lost over 80% of its original growth forest to increasingly desperate farmers who clearcut land in order to plant food, only to exhaust the soil's nutrients within three years, forcing them to move on and clearcut even more land. Disappearing forests means the disappearance of animals that live there—lemurs, chameleons, frogs, birds, spiders, and all sorts of creatures that are found nowhere else in the world. They are dying because their forest is dying. Once they are gone from Madagascar, they will be gone from the entire world.

So as I began learning more and more about the poverty, despair, and environmental disasters that exist in this breathtakingly beautiful and unique country, I started to wonder if your company had donated any of the profits from the “Madagascar” movies to the country that they are named after. I posed the question to a State Department official here, and I was shocked to hear anecdotally from him that, aside from a token gift of around $50,000 (to which entity I am not clear), DreamWorks has not used any of the franchise profits to aid the people or the environment of Madagascar. Yet this is a franchise that, according to a June 2012 press release, has raked in over $1.1 billion worldwide. That is more than 10% of one year’s GDP of the entire country of Madagascar. Certainly the argument can be made that the success of the “Madagascar” movies increased the country’s reknown and elevated tourism revenue, but that is unfortunately not the case. (Even if a child saw the films and then begged his parents to take him to Madagascar, it’s just not economically viable as a family vacation destination when airfare from the United States costs upwards of $2,000 a person.)

I am not one to enthusiastically lobby for aid; in fact, I am serving as Peace Corps Community Economic Development volunteer because I am passionate about helping people improve their livelihoods through economic activity and business development. However, when I see something as imbalanced as a movie studio making billions of dollars using the name of one of the world’s poorest countries, I feel that there is a need for rebalancing. It’s about doing what is right. If you named a film “Haiti” and then proceeded to make millions of dollars of profit from it, surely there would be a public outcry for some portion of this revenue to be shared with the country. But because Madagascar’s poverty is not quite as visible to most westerners, the public attention is not there.

I know that DreamWorks Animation is by nature a charitable company, with a namesake foundation of your own, and that your founders Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg, and David Geffen have also personally donated much of their wealth towards charitable causes. So what I am asking of DreamWorks is this: take some of the money you allocate for charitable giving and direct it towards an organization that is doing a lot of good work here in Madagascar, such as CARE, WWF, the United Nations World Food Programme, UNICEF, or the International Red Cross, just to name a few. Or even better, how about dedicating a portion of DreamWorks’s profits that can be attributed to “Madagascar 3”? According to your most recent earnings statement, your company posted a total of $24.4 million in profit for Q32012, an increase of 24 percent profit over the previous year. That earnings statement also noted that “Madagascar 3” accounted for 25 percent of your total Q3 revenue ($47.1 million). So how about taking a very tiny part of this small portion of the film’s total revenue, and pledging it towards good works in Madagascar? A mere 1% of the Q3 revenue would be $470,000, and this comparatively small amount of money could do such a world of good here. For example, just $20 could pay one year’s high school fees for one student. $1,500 would pay to install a water pump that would literally change the lives of the people who’d use it. Even a large-scale project such as paving an important 20 kilometer stretch of road could be achieved for under $100,000—a huge amount of money to a country as poor as this, but I am sure there are Hollywood charity benefits where reserving a table commands a more princely sum than this.

I know it will be easy enough for you to dismiss this letter and its accompanying petition as a rant from a naïve Peace Corps volunteer who doesn’t understand how the business world works. But you see, I do in fact understand a little bit. Prior to my Peace Corps service, I spent over 7 years in the business world in New York, working for fantastic companies such as Food Network and EMI Music, and now I am studying to take the GMAT in order to get my MBA when I finish my service.  I read The Economist whenever I can get my hands on a copy. And what I know now about modern business is this: in order to survive, a company cannot purely exist for profit and profit alone. A company must show that it has a commitment to serving its customers but also respecting the world in which it exists. How else to explain the rise of B Corps, or the fact that the State Department’s “21^st Century Statecraft” agenda now includes a doctrine on corporate social responsibility? I hope that DreamWorks can evolve and grow as a company just as so many others are, too. And to do so, I am asking you to please give back to the country that has lent you its name. It deserves more than to just be a line item on your earnings report.

Sincerely,

Emily Silman

Peace Corps volunteer, Community Economic Development

Vangaindrano, Madagascar

March 2012- May 2014

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READERS: if you agree with me, please take a few minutes to sign my petition at Change.org:

  

Armchair linguist

One of the most unique—and challenging—componenents of Peace Corps service is that volunteers must learn and speak the local language of where they work. This often means forgoing a country’s colonial language (often French or Spanish) and instead learning the indigenous language, which allows volunteers to work closely with people who need the most help. In Madagascar, French is the language of business and government because it was a French colony until 1960. But the majority of people here speak Malagasy on a daily basis, not French. And getting outside of larger towns and into the countryside, where fewer people have gone to lycee and almost no one has gone to university, French is rarely spoken at all. So when Peace Corps trainees arrive in Madagascar, they are given 2 months of intense Malagasy training before setting off to their sites: 1 month of learning Malagasy officiel, the standard dialect and the one that’s spoken in the highlands (the capital region), and after they learn where their site location will be, another month of either continued study of officiel, or of one of the 17 other Malgasy dialects. Each of the dialects corresponds with the tribe that has settled in a particular region of the country. In my area (Vangaindrano), most of the people are of the Antesaka tribe, so I learned the Antesaka dialect. But if you go up the road 80km north to Farafangana, you’ll be in Antefasy land, so the dialect spoken there is Antefasy. However, unlike many other African countries, the dialects are fairly similar, and most Malagasy people can understand one another, even if one person is from up north near Diego Suarez, and another person is from down south near Ft. Dauphin. My dialect (along with the other Sud Est dialects of Antefasy and Antemoro) are notable for turning all “s” sounds into “sh” sounds, a fact that some of my more northernly peers like to laugh at. (So for example, the word misy, which means “there is/there are” is pronounced “meesy” in other areas, but “meeshy” in mine.) My dialect also has a fun habit of shortening words by dropping the final syllable, especially if the word end in –na, and also boasts lots of local colloquialisms like Da ta andra? Ao ka!, which basically means “what’s up? Not much!” but would never be said anywhere outside the Vangaindrano region.

The famed naturalist Gerald Durrell writes in his book The Aye-Aye and I that “Malagasy is a fine, rackity-clackity, ringing language which sounds not unlike someone carelessly emptying a barrel of glass marbles down a stone staircase.” I don’t know if I would make that exact same colorful comparison (although Durrell certainly does have a flair for language), but I have many days when I truly do think people are rolling rocks around in their mouth. My language challenge has always been more with understanding than with speaking, and that hasn’t changed in my experience here. I’ve struggled (and continue to struggle) greatly with understanding what people are saying, and find myself frustrated on a daily basis that I can’t express myself the way that I want to.  I do have to remember, though, that I have more of an uphill battle than other volunteers, because it’s commonly remarked that language gets more difficult the further south you go, and I live in one of the most southernly towns of all the volunteers here. In the countryside towns that surround Vangaindrano, people’s accents become even thicker and their speech more rapid, which makes it incredibly difficult to understand them. Unfortunately, this is also a country that isn’t known for its dental care, so there are many people with missing or no teeth, which makes comprehension even more mind-boggling.

The Malagasy language itself is a bit of a mystery that is both a linguist’s and anthropologist’s dream: its closest relative is an Indonesian dialect spoken by one particular tribe on the island of Borneo. This gives credence to the theory that Madagascar was first settled by migrants from Indonesia, who traversed the precarious Indian Ocean on a raft for months on end. Malagasy also contains elements borrowed from Arabic, such as the days of the week and the greeting salama; this is due to the presence of Islamic traders who settled in Madagascar several hundred years ago.  And owing to the French colonial influence It also has a large number of Malagasy-fied French words. Malagasy uses no article, so words borrowed from French simply take the “le/la” and string it together with the actual word. So for example, the French for key, la clé, became lakile in Malagasy. (The alphabet does not contain the letters C, Q, U, W, and X.) La biére (beer) became labiera; la bougie (candle) became labozia. Other words are changed only slightly, such as legume, which became legioma. And a large number of French words were simply adopted wholesale, such as verre (glass), restaurant (no translation needed), and epicerie (small grocery store).

Malagasy is a comparatively easy language to learn because there are simply not that many words—one word could have 3 meanings. But this is at once both simplifying and maddening. For example, the word sahirana means “busy”, but it also means “stressed” or “worried”. So if I want to ask my counterpart if she is busy (a fairly common thing for Americans to ask in the workplace), there really isn’t a great way to do it. The all-encompassing phrase tsy mety literally means “not good”, but is also really the only way to say that someone is being rude. If I want to explain to a kid why he shouldn’t yell “vazaha!” at me, I want to be clear that it’s more than just “not ok”, it’s rude, but there literally isn’t a word for that. And the often-used word mazotoa means “good luck” or “have fun/enjoy”. But if my neighbor is on his way to take the baccalaureate exam, I don’t really want to say “enjoy the test!”—I want to wish him luck. This prevention from being specific is one of the language’s most frustrating aspects. However, my least favorite part of the language is that there is no verb “to be”. Think about how often you use some form of this verb, either in English or French, and you’ll realize how exasperating this is.

However, despite the annoyances, Malagasy does have some amusing quirks and features. I’ve written before that perhaps my favorite word in the language is mitsangatsangana, which means to take a walk for pleasure. It wasn’t until I’d spent a couple months studying Malagasy that I learned the utility behind this word, which is fairly fun. Malagasy employs a pattern whereby if you repeat the second half of a verb, it weakens it. So in the case of mitsangatsangana, it means “to sort of amble around”, whereas its parent, so to speak, is simply mitsangana, "to stand" (I guess if you're not really standing, that means walking around.) Same for the verb “to go”, mandeha, which becomes mandehadeha when you’re talking about just kind of meandering along. And one of my most frequent jokes is when people remark with surprise that I can speak Malagasy, by saying mahay miteny ‘Gasy enao!, I self-deprecatingly respond with ehhhh…. mahayhay fotsiny iaho (I can only sort of speak it), and this unfailingly causes a round of chuckles. This repetition/weaking utility is also employed with some nouns, most notably colors: the word manga mean “blue”, but mangamanga means “light blue”.

In all my struggles with the language, I try to remind myself that I’m lucky that I didn’t have to learn a new alphabet, or one of those notorious African languages with clicks and other unwritable sounds. And when I get depressed about my lack of language skills, it’s important to remember that I’ve only been studying and speaking Malagasy for a year—I spent 10 years becoming fluent in French. But above all, I’m proud to be able to (sort of) speak Malagasy because it sets me (and other PCVs) apart from your average French-speaking foreign aid worker or European tourist. It allows us to gain the trust and respect of the people of Madagascar, and well, let’s be honest: being able to blow someone’s mind by being a white person who speaks Malagasy will never get old.

Mariazy

During my first 7 months of being at site, I made great strides in my language skills as well as my level of integration within the community, but I still felt like I something was missing-- that my neighbors still didn't consider me to really be living there. Other volunteers from my stage had regaled me with stories of being invited to weddings, circumcision parties, and famadihanas (the "turning of the bones" ceremony that honors a family's dead ancestors), and I felt envious of their invitations, because I hadn't received an invitation to anything. It was beginning to weigh heavily on my conception of how well I was truly integrated.

In early December I had a language learning session with my neighbor and Malagasy tutor, Madame Titine, and she mentioned that another one of our neighbors, Madame Priscaline, was getting married in town in a few weeks. I'm close with many members of Priscaline's family and talk with them on a daily basis, but none of them had mentioned the wedding. Later that day I stopped by the epicerie that Priscaline's mother, Madame Marcelline, runs, and I mentioned hearing about her daughter's upcoming mariazy (wedding). She clapped her hands with delight as a smile lit up her face, and invited me to come. And just like that, I finally had an invitation to my first Malagasy cultural event!

The wedding was a big deal for the people of Ampasy, my neighborhood in Vaingaindrano, and on the morning of Saturday December 15th, people were up and about getting ready. My teenage neighbor Sonia wanted to braid my hair for the event, so she came over at lunchtime and gave me a beautiful set of braids that, if I wasn't quite so white, would have made me fit right in with the other women in my town. My 8-year-old friend Marinah, sister of the bride, came over afterwards and we did our nails together. And then I put on a nice dress that I rarely wear and headed out to the main road to meet the rest of my community before walking to the church. The sense of joy and excitement was palpable, with little girls giddily dressed up in their finest dresses just for the occasion, wearing swipes of lipstick courtesy of Sonia, our glamour goddess. I brought my camera out and took lots of pictures of everyone dressed in their best, which made it truly feel like a special occasion. About a half-hour later, we all walked to the FLM (Lutheran) Betesda church and stood outside while we awaited the arrival of the bride and groom. I passed the time by taking more pictures of everyone-- an activity that never fails to entertain, and about a half-hour later a silver Peugeot decorated with flowers pulled up in front of the church. Here comes the bride!

I shouldn't have been surprised at this, but my eyes began to water just like they normally would at a wedding back home. I am a serial wedding-crier, and I can't help it. This was at the same time both a regular wedding like you'd see in a America, but also not normal at all, because an occasion like this is truly special. These are people who hard incredibly hard and don't often have the chance to dress up in nice clothes and celebrate a special occasion. So when I saw beautiful Priscaline step out of the car, resplendent in a gorgeous white dress and veil, tears began to stream down my cheek because not only was this a wedding, but it was her wedding, her special day, and I was so happy that she got to experience a day of joyfulness of her own.

Her fiance, Ralahady, followed next, walking arm-in-arm with his regal-looking mother. At first I wondered to myself who this young man in a white suit was, but then it hit me that it was, in fact, the grooom. (Is this a sign of my advancing age?) And then the cute little groomsmen/ring bearers tromped in behind them-- little 5-year-old Totona, my neighbor, as well as another boy who I presume was Ralahady's relative. After the rest of the family entered the church the guests streamed in and took our seats. I sat with some of the children from my neighborhood and kept us cool in the sweltering church by using my paper fan. The wedding ceremony processed pretty much as it would in America, albeit in Malagasy instead of English, with one exception: the FLM Betesda church choir sang two beautiful hymns, which is something I've never seen before in a wedding. It was lovely and so fitting to this wedding, where it truly felt like the entire community was there to bless the union of Priscaline and Ralahady.

After the vows were taken and kisses were exchanged, the bride and groom walked out of the church, followed by their families, and formed a receiving line outside the exit. The main difference between an American and Malagasy receiving line is that here you do the customary one-two-three cheek kiss on every person on the line, so it takes a while to go through. Afterwards I met up with Madame Titine and we walked to the nearby Tropic Hotel for the reception.

I wasn't expecting much for the reception because these are not wealthy people, but I was duly impressed by the care that the hotel proprietor had taken to make this a special event. A large white tarp was draped over the open area south of the hotel building, forming a sort of tent, and underneath it were about 20 tables (borrowed from the middle school across the road), each bestowed with a tablecloth, bottles of soft drinks, and bowls of snacks. It took about an hour for the wedding party to finally arrive at the reception, at which point an emcee took to the microphone to make some speeches about the couple that I couldn't understand. Titine, our tablemates, and I all ate sambos and kaka pigeon while the speeches were being made, and then lined up to give our gifts to the couple and receive a piece of wedding cake. Malagasy tradition dictates that you give an envelope of cash as a wedding gift, and I silently worried that I hoped I'd included the right amount of money-- I didn't want to give too much and look ostentatious or wealthy, but I didn't want to give too little and look like a miser.

After giving our gifts and receiving cake, Titine and I walked home because it was getting late. It had been a 5-hour event and the sky was darkening. I was happy to be getting home, but I was also curious if there were other wedding events. There was no dancing and no alcohol served (probably the biggest difference from American weddings), though I'm not sure if that was indicative of all Malagasy weddings or just this particular family. But I walked home with a big smile on my face because I was so thrilled and so honored to be included in Priscaline and Ralahady's special day. Unlike American weddings where people gather from all over the country (or the globe), this felt more like the coming together of an entire community than a collection of various friends and relatives who don't know each other. Indeed, it really felt like everyone from Ampasy was there, and my inclusion was a watershed moment for me in terms of feeling like a true member of the community. I wasn't there as a special guest or token white person; rather I was included because I'm just a friendly person living in the neighborhood. And one of the main things I strive for in my Peace Corps service is to be seen as just that.

Money during Peace Corps service

This is second in a series of blog posts written specifically for incoming volunteers.

The question of money is a big one when it comes to the Peace Corps, especially if you’re like me and quit your nice, stable “real world” job in order to pack up and fly halfway across in the world in pursuit of world-changing and dream-chasing. Some of my biggest unknowns were how I would handle my financial affairs while I was away, and just how much money I would need to have saved in order to fully experience Madagascar and even some neighboring countries.  So with that, here’s some money-related information I wish I knew before coming here:

First, the basics: you won’t need to access money (and won’t actually be able to anyway) during the 2 month training period—which, looking back, I realize was actually kind of nice and liberating. While you’re living at homestay (first month) and while you’re living at the PCTC (second month), you will have all your meals provided for you and won’t really need to buy anything, except maybe for some snacks, a bar of soap, flip-flops, etc. For this kind of expense you get a weekly allotment of what Peace Corps calls “walk-around money”. Think of it as your weekly allowance from the Peace Corps. It’s enough for you to buy phone credit, occasional snacks/soda/beer, laundry soap, and other miscellaneous things during training. It’s also a good way to practice your Malagasy because you willl have to talk to different vendors while you buy things! It is pretty impossible to actually spend the entire amount each week, and my recommendation is to save as much of this as possible—trust me, you’ll be glad you did once you get to site. (A note about phones: every volunteer buys a local cell phone to use here, both for communicating with your family/friends back home, and for talking to people in-country. The way they did it for my stage was that during the first couple days of training, they took a list of who wanted a phone, and a PC employee bought us all phones and SIM cards in Tana. They deducted the cost from our first month’s living allowance, and I think they gave us the phones about 2 weeks in. So you can expect to have a local phone number which people can call you/text you on after about 2 weeks of training. You’ll be using a pay-as-you-go system, which is a culture shock if you’re used to all-inclusive plans. It is super expensive to call/text America, but it’s free to receive texts and calls, so have your family set your number up in Skype…. Which I think is around 40 cents a minute to Madagascar.)

Once you finish training, you receive your monthly living allowance via direct deposit into a local bank account, and it’s up to you to go to your banking town monthly/twice-monthly/whenever to get money out. (This is another culture shock if you’re used to swiping your debit card for everything—this is pretty much an entirely cash-based country, except in major cities!) There are 3 main banks here in Mada: BFV-Societe Generale, Bank of Africa, and BNI. You will be assigned a bank by Peace Corps based on your site location, and you will be given an ATM card around when you get installed at site. (However, these are not like American debit cards that can be swiped like a credit card—you can only use them to take out money at an ATM, and only at your actual bank. So you can’t just pay a fee to use the BOA ATM with your BFV card, for example.) All of these 3 banks accept VISA debit cards as well, but only BNI accepts MasterCard debit cards, and BNI is more sparsely spread out than the other two banks. Additionally, their acceptance of MC is not reliable—I have yet to be able to use my USAA MC debit card, even though I am technically supposed to be able to. So if you are looking to have access to American money while you’re in Mada, make sure you have a VISA debit card.

The topic of accessing American money brings me to the thing that I wanted to address most in this blog post. As mentioned before, this is a big question I had before coming here, and I don’t think the information I got from a current PCV was very accurate, so I want to correct that for you guys. The volunteer who helpfully answered a lot of my questions pre-departure told me that I wouldn’t really need to dip into my American savings for anything while I was here, and that the Peace Corps living allowance would be enough for the lifestyle that most PCVs live. Wrong! My experience here has been that not just for me but almost all other volunteers, you need to dip into American money for vacations in-country, splurging in Tana, or other big expenditures. For example, I was a new volunteer (as opposed to replacing a volunteer) and so I moved into a house without any furniture. I ended up having to dip into some of my savings in order to buy some things for my home. I also have to dip into American money whenever I go on vacation in-country. I do save some of my living allowance every month for traveling, etc., but it is never quite enough, especially for holidays like New Year’s when you want to splurge a little bit. Some volunteers who live in the countryside save a lot because they spend practically nothing while at site-- everything is cheap and they don’t have cell phone/internet access, so there is no way they can possibly spend much money until they go into their banking town. However, I’m in a bigger town and have cell phone reception/3G, lots of good food options, and great frip shopping, so there are ample opportunities to spend money on phone and internet credit, food, clothes, etc, and therefore it is harder for me to save money.  So I want it to be known that it’s definitely possible for you to save money and not have to spend American money while you’re here, but it will be harder if you’re in a bigger town, or close to a big city. In general, when I just stay at site and live “normally” for a month, I never have a problem with money. But it’s when I’m spending time in Tana, or traveling in-country, it gets very expensive.

Some further explanation about Tana (aka Antananarivo, which is the capital): all of us volunteers joke that trips to Tana suck us dry. If you’re in a town close to Tana and end up going there frequently, you will find yourself spending a lot of money going out, taking taxis, etc. For example, a taxi at night will cost 10,000 Ariary (although you can split this with friends), and you’ll find yourself spending maybe 15,000 Ar for dinner, perhaps 20,000 Ar for drinks, and then before you know it, you’ve spend 50,000 Ar in one night. For me, that’s half of my food budget for a month. A former volunteer always told me that he’d go through his living allowance in 4 days in Tana. Of course, you don’t need to be going out and spending a ton if you’re in Tana; it’s easy enough to just hang out at the meva (PCV transit house), cook in the kitchen, and chill with friends. But you will often find yourself wanting a night out to celebrate a birthday, go out with your PCV friends, or just experience a bit of city life to get a break from life at site. Also, some PCVs are generously supported by their parents are all able to go out without much regard to budget. It gets difficult when you want to go out with friends and end up having to “keep up with the Joneses” and then spend a lot of money that you can’t afford. For me, I don’t receive support from my parents (other than care packages), and all of my savings were very hard-earned, so I personally can’t justify a lot of lavish nights out in the capital—I’d rather put that money towards traveling.

So then the question is, how much money do you need? The amount will vary for everyone, and I won’t tell you how much I saved, but I’d say that in general, it would be ideal to have about $1,500 to $2,000 set aside to see you through your 2 years of service. I know this is not possible for many people, but it will ensure that you can live comfortably and take some vacations in-country, as well as give you a cushion in case you run into any unforeseen expenses. If you want to travel outside of Madagascar during your service, plan on saving several thousand more. For example, a flight to South Africa is about $1,200 round trip (you’d think it would be cheaper because it’s so close, but it’s surprisingly not.) For traveling after you COS (close of service), be aware that you can take up to 1/3 of your readjustment allowance and put that towards your COS trip. So that’s how most PCVs finance their COS travels.

It is definitely possible to come here and live without having any American money to tap into, so please don’t read this and think that you won’t be able to come here and be a happy PCV if you don’t have money saved. But if you want to live only on your living allowance and be able to take vacations/go out in Tana, you will have to budget very carefully.

I know that the money thing can be a sensitive topic, so please do not interpret anything I’d said here as wanton disregard for the purpose of the Peace Corps and the fact that we are supposed to be living like local people, not rich expat aid workers. I merely wanted to give some honest information that I think would be helpful for incoming PCVs to know in advance, and present you with the reality of the situation you will face when you come here. Money can be a big issue for a lot of PCVs, and it leads to moral dilemmas for me because I constantly think about the fact that I am supposed to be living on a local level—but how can I be, if I am taking out American money to take a vacation over the holidays, and able to pay someone to wash my clothes? But on the other hand, if I have money saved to travel here, why shouldn’t I use it, and support tourism here? And if me paying my neighbor to do my laundry means that she gets to earn some extra money to feed her family, isn’t that a good thing? These are the type of puzzling issues that occur a lot, and you will just have to figure out how you feel most comfortable dealing with them. Anyway, once again I hope this information was helpful for those of you who are going to be new volunteers. (I realize it’s a little late in the game to be telling you how much money to save, but hopefully the August stage volunteers will see this!) 

Thoughts on Christmas

Note: I struggled with whether or not to write about this, but in the spirit of wanting to be as open and honest as possible about what my life is like here-- describing both hardships and triumphs-- I decided to go ahead and share this with you. Please do not interpret anything written as a personal attack or judgment on anyone.

Can it still be Christmas when it's 90 degrees out and you're sitting next to a palm tree instead of a pine tree? That's a question I had to ask myself as I prepared for my first Christmas away from family. I'd already experienced Christmas abroad before (Buenos Aires in 2010), but that was a trip with my family, so this year was still going to be an entirely new experience.

Because I was worried about being lonely if I stayed in Vangaindrano for Christmas, I decided to take a vacation and head north to Diego Suarez, a beautiful beach town on the very northern tip of the island. About 17 other volunteers also came up to Diego, and it was an epic 3-day journey to get here, including a day-long brousse in which they had decided to squish 5 people into each row, but all the travel difficulty was worth it as we spent a magical Christmas Eve boating in the Mer d'Emeraude and snorkeling in the cerulean waters, and a luxurious Christmas Day splashing around a fancy hotel pool, splurging on a decadent lunch, and drinking vacation-worthy tropical drinks. I was pleasantly surprised to find that as much I wished I could be with my family back in Vermont, eating our traditional Christmas brunch of french toast, bacon and mimosas, I wasn't actually very homesick. Spending the holiday with my Peace Corps family was exactly what I wanted and needed, and even though we're all many thousands of miles away from home, we became each others' family. After our day at the pool we all went back to our hotels to shower and put on nice clothes, then went out to a local bar where we danced to a fantastic band was playing a set of both American pop songs and Malagasy music. The highlight of the night was when we all got up to sing along and cheer as one of my fellow Peace Corps volunteers belted out an amazing rendition of Adele's "Someone Like You". That moment cemented for me the epiphany I'd had earlier that day: that Christmas and Hanukkah are not about the gifts you give or receive; rather, they are about the people you spend them with. There is no way I could have been happier than I was that night, jubilantly dancing with my friends in a random bar on the tip of a tropical island. And even prior to Peace Corps, every passing holiday season that saw me another year older also saw me less and less interested in gifts being a part of the Christmas experience. I found myself thrilled to just be able to spend a day with my family eating good food, going for snowy hikes up a local mountain, and just being able to enjoy relaxing together. If anything, my feeling of contentment and happiness during this year's gift-less holiday was simply a natural progression of how my enjoyment of the holiday season has evolved. So after that wonderful moment of dancing and singing, when some people went back to the bar for another round, I decided to end the day on a high note and headed back to our hotel in a touk-touk (a motorized rickshaw cab).

But as happy as I was all Christmas day and night, I couldn't ignore a feeling of something bothering me deep down inside. It wasn't until I got back to an empty hotel room and began to process it that I fully understood what it was. One part of it is that Diego is one of cities here with the highest prevalence of sex tourism, and it's hard not to feel disgusted when you see lecherous old French men sitting with underage Malagasy prostitutes at the next table over. (Because really, is there anything sadder than being alone on Christmas and feeling the need to pay someone for companionship?) But it was something more than that that really got to me. While I was at the pool and the bar, I was using my phone to check Facebook and post holiday updates and greetings. Doing so allowed me to see many, many photos of people's Christmas trees overflowing with brightly wrapped gifts, and pictures of their children gleefully tearing open new toys, dolls, video games, iPads, and other symbols of a privileged Western existence. I was overwhelmed by the contrast to life here; floored by the sudden appearance of so much excess, so much unnecessary spending and consumerism. And, I was horrified to think of myself as a child who had been a part of this system, begging my parents for gifts that they very often indulged me in. And then I thought of the reverse side of the coin, how childhood is in Madagascar and other places with poverty so extreme that it's unfathomable. I thought of the kids in my neighborhood, who I can now affectionately call "my" kids because they stop by my house every day to play, and because they call out "Ay-mee-leeeeeee!" as I go to fetch water. I thought about sweet little Marinah, my new tag-along 8-year-old best friend, who delights in following me around and loves to use my colored pencils to draw pictures on scrap paper-- a common activity for American children, but an exciting luxury for kids here. I thought about little Liba with his bright smile, who loves to come over and flip through the picture books I have in my house for the kids; he can't read, but he happily looks at the pictures over and over, describing what he sees. I am fairly certain this is his first time ever seeing a book. And I thought about the countless other children who live near me, who maybe own one or two sets of threadbare clothes, and perhaps not even a pair of plastic flip-flops, but smile and play and run around joyfully just like kids are supposed to, even though they're probably always a little hungry and spend every night sleeping on a threadbare mattress that they share with the rest of their family. I can't give these kids money, but I give them fruit when I have it, a banana or mango here and there, and maybe some peanuts to try and make up for the some of the protein their diet is missing every day. They are ever grateful and gracious at any act of generosity. No parent ever has to remind these children to say thank you.

And so when I thought of "my" kids back in Vangaindrano, along with the majority of all the children in Madagascar, who want for so many basic things yet ask for so little, and then thought of the pictures I saw of waste, excess, consumerism, overconsumption-- all brought about in the name of a holiday that is supposed to celebrate peace and goodwill towards others, I broke down into uncontrollable sobs. I called my mom, tears streaming down my face as I tried to explain why I was so upset. No, I wasn't homesick, I said; this was something far different. Such a complex mix of feelings brews a storm of emotion that is hard to dissect and explain. I felt angry, guilty, helpless, heartbroken. For some reason little Liba stuck out in my mind, as I sobbed to my mother, he doesn't even own any shoes! Almost all of them are malnourished and can't afford to go to school-- how can I look at these pictures of wasted money spent on ridiculous things and not feel angry? But I can't solve the problem-- it's a broken system. Me buying things for the kids in my community won't fundamentally change anything, just as Americans not buying Christmas gifts for their kids won't change anything either. And who can fault them for wanting to shower their children with love and affection in the form of things that make them happy? Who doesn't respond to the glee in a child's face when they open up a gift? I am a generous person by nature and absolutely love to give gifts, although mostly of the homemade variety. So how can I change anything? All I know is that this Christmas, something changed in me, and I will never be able to look at the holiday the same way again. On a larger scale, I also hope this helps me become less of a materialistic person when I return to the US. And when I have kids, I hope to do something different with Christmas and Hanukkah, something that isn't centered around buying things. An idea came into my head yesterday as I was hiking through the beautiful natural rock formations of Tsingy Rouge, a park near Diego Suarez: I thought about how wonderful it would be to use the holiday season to travel every year and explore another corner of the world. There is so much beauty to be seen in the world, and if I am fortunate enough to have the money to explore it with people whom I love, I can think of no better way to honor the spirit of the holiday season.

I hope all of you back home have a joyous new year and are able to drink a toast to a happy and healthy 2013 with your friends and family. Love to you all, and Bon Année from Madagascar.

The Definitive Peace Corps Madagascar Packing List

Update 8/30/13: this post has become, by and large, my most popular one ever! I was amazed to look recently and see that it, alone, has garnered over 2000 pageviews. So thank you to everyone who has expressed their gratitude for the information I've given here, and I'm very glad that it has proved helpful for so many people. Recently I was contacted by a girl who'll be coming to Madagascar in the February 2014 stage, and she was wondering if I had any amendments or changes since it'd been over 8 months since I originally wrote this. So I've made a few small updates below to reflect things. The overall message stays the same, but there are a few items whose priority I wanted to emphasize (or de-emphasize.) Also, I've recently helped our country director with a project to update the 'Welcome Book' that goes to all invitees, and so one of my first tasks was to update the packing list contained therein. Although that packing list will definitely be more updated than previous iterations, it is still more generic and objective; my packing list below remains more subjective to my personal experience.

This one goes out to all the future Peace Corps Madagascar volunteers who are busily preparing for their arrival in country! I remember being in your shoes and it’s crazy to think that here I am, almost one year later, and able to give you advice. Packing is certainly one of the most stressful aspects of preparing for service, because you think, “how the hell am I going to fit 2 years’ worth of stuff in 2 bags?” And the Peace Corps country handbook is certainly of no use. So I thought it’d be helpful to put together a massive blog post listing my suggestions of what to bring, and why. This will hopefully take care of a lot of your potential questions up front, but please feel free to message me or comment if you have a specific question, or if you don’t see something on this list and wonder if you should take it. (Caveat: because I am a girl, this is aimed at girls more than guys, but most of these suggestions also apply to men… except, you know, the parts about bringing skirts, bras, and tampons.)

The first thing to keep in mind is that as much as you’re freaking out about packing and having the exact right “things” to take with you (because trust me, I’ve been there—you’re talking to a reforming maximalist here), no amount of stuff will ever make it easy, and no one item will make the difference between having a great experience and a terrible one. The second thing is to keep in mind that even though 2 bags doesn’t sound like a lot, you will still have way more stuff than any of your Malagasy neighbors do. Having, say, 3 pairs of shoes to carry you for the next 2 years might not sound like a lot, but remember that most people you’ll be living amongst are lucky if they have one pair of shoes. It is very humbling.

With that said, I remember being in your exact position and feeling all-consumed by the packing project—don’t worry, it happened to all of us, and you’ll laugh about it when you’re at site and wearing the same thing 3 days in a row. It also didn’t help that I’d gotten my invitation a full 6 months before our departure, so I had way too much time to think about it! I spent a lot of time poring over other PCV blogs and obsessing over what everyone else brought/was bringing. So naturally, I overbought, and overpacked, and was frantically repacking and weighing my bags right up until I left for the airport. I don’t recommend this. I hope that my suggestions and advice below will help you avoid packing stress as much as possible but also help you arrive here in Madagascar well-equipped and excited to serve! NB: don't feel like it is essential to bring absolutely everything on this list, but this does give a pretty thorough review of things that are helpful and useful to have.

LUGGAGE

As you know by now, you are allowed to bring 2 checked bags as well as 2 small carry-on bags. Most people go with a large hiking backpack plus a large rolling duffel bag, and this is what I would recommend. However, if you don’t have a duffel bag but have a suitcase you want to bring, I’d just say to bring that. Don’t waste your money on something that you won’t use much once you get to Mada. However, definitely bring a large hiking backpack; this will come in handy when you’re traveling around the country. In general, focus your investment on the items that you’re going to be using daily or monthly here—not the things to get you from the US to Madagascar. When I was shopping for PC I spent money on a brand-new hiking backpack and large roller duffle, and I economized by bringing an old daypack from college. What I should have done is invested in a new, sturdy daypack and just used any old suitcase I had lying around as my second checked bag. The duffle doesn’t see a lot of action anymore now that I’m installed at site, but my daypack gets daily use, and it was destroyed after just a few months of biking around town and throwing it up top of the taxi-brousse.

A note about carry-ons: I remember there being some alarm amongst my stage because Peace Corps had warned us that we might be required to check our carry-on bags for the flight from Johannesburg to Tana. No one at PC could specifically say why, or if this was indeed true, and so naturally we were all freaking out that our carry-on bags containing valuables and electronics were going to be lost or smashed as checked bags. I am racking my brain trying to remember what actually happened with this on our flight: I think the issue is that the planes flying from Joburg to Mada are always really small, so the overhead bins can’t fit, say, rollaboard suitcases. I had a medium-sized backpack plus a purse, and I’m pretty sure that I was allowed to bring these on. (Amazing how little I remember from the trip over here!) But make sure your carry-ons have luggage locks, just in case you are forced to check them.

“Brousse bag”: my recommendation for one of your carry-on bags is a messenger bag or daypack that can hold your laptop, phone/headphones, a water bottle, sweatshirt/extra clothing layer, wallet, a book/Kindle, etc. This will become a good bag that you will take with you and hold on your lap when you travel on taxi-brousses (as opposed to having it strapped to the top.)

Large daypack: take one of these for your other carry-on bag-- they are good to have for short trips away from site. Get one on the bigger side rather than a bookbag-sized one-- something like this is ideal.

Roller duffle or small-ish rolling suitcase: don’t bring a massive suitcase; they are pretty impractical here and you’ll never use it. If you do bring a suitcase, make sure it’s on the smaller side; otherwise, it will be too cumbersome to ever use once you get here.

Hiking backpack: I use this whenever I go up to Tana or on a longer trip in-country. They can hold a lot, but they’re still easy to carry while walking around. A bunch of us have this Osprey pack. I would also recommend getting a rain cover for your pack, because if you're traveling on a taxi-brousse it will get strapped to the top and will often get wet if it's raining during your trip.

CLOTHING

Because this country is so massive, it is really impossible to pack the perfect types of clothing without knowing exactly where your site will be. And because you won’t know this until 1 month into training, my recommendation is to bring a basic assortment of things, and then once you get to site and figure out how you’ll want to be dressing on a daily basis, you can supplement by frip shopping or having people send things from home. For example, I had been reading the comments posted on the July 2011 PC Mada group’s Facebook page, so I had it drilled into my head that it would actually be very cold, and so I packed long underwear, gloves, a couple winter hats, and a bunch of long-sleeved shirts. Well it’s true that it may be cold in the highlands in the winter, but my training (March and April) wasn’t in the winter, so it never got that cold. And my site placement ended up being in the steamy Sud Est, where the most you’ll ever need is a long-sleeved shirt at night. Additionally, our (incredibly outdated) "official" Peace Corps packing list said that you have to wear long skirts and cover your shoulders, and that shorts are unacceptable. While that may be true in the highlands, it is much more casual in the Sud Est and other coastal areas, and I wear shorts and a t-shirt most days. (My neighbor also spends the daily siesta hanging out in a bra and lamba. Yeah, it’s pretty casual here!) I also can’t wear all the long skirts that I brought because I have to bike everywhere, so I have given most of them away.  But your town may be different, and you really won’t know until you get there.

There are still a few guidelines that you should follow, however: no spaghetti strap tank tops, no short-shorts, and if you’re going to wear leggings, for god’s sake, at least wear a shirt long enough to cover your butt. You can get away with more fashion-y type things when you’re visiting Tana, so bring a few cute things that make you feel good when you wear them, but in general, think practicality. For any item you’re considering bringing, ask yourself these questions: how easy will this be to hand-wash in a plastic basin? How easily will mud splatters come out of this? Can I ride a bike in this? Does this need to be machine-dried to retain its shape? So in general, don’t bring anything white/light-colored. If you bring white t-shirts you will curse yourself every time you’re trying to scrub out the dirt. And if you’re an agriculture volunteer, remember that you’re going to be spending time working in fields, going camping/hiking, so be prepared with some clothes that you can dedicate to those activities. Most of all, I'd stress that it is not necessary (and in fact, it's foolish) to spend a lot of money on fancy technical/outdoor clothing. If you find yourself needing to buy clothing for PC, hit up Goodwill, Salvation Army, Old Navy, TJ Maxx, etc. Seriously, do NOT spend a lot of money on clothing for Peace Corps service. You will understand when you get there and settle in.

2 pairs jeans: skinny or straight-leg are probably best. Boot cut tend to drag in the dirt.

2-3 pairs pants or capris (black, khaki, olive, etc): dressy enough to wear in an office but able to be biked in. If you’re an ag volunteer, go for more work-type pants.

2-3 skirts, knee-length or longer: you may not end up wearing them very often, but it’s good to be prepared.

2-3 pairs shorts, mid-thigh or Bermuda-length: depending on your site you’ll either wear shorts all the time, or not at all. Still, you’ll want shorts for vacationing even if you’re placed in a conservative area.

1-2 pairs athletic shorts: see above. Also, it’s totally acceptable to go running in Mantasoa as well as many other towns, so bring workout clothes if you’re so inclined.

1-2 pairs sweatpants/leggings: for working out/lounging around/being comfortable on long brousse rides.

1-2 lightweight cotton button-front shirts: really good for areas that require you to cover your shoulders even when it’s hot out. I bought a few from Old Navy for super cheap, and I wear them all the time.

4-5 tank tops: again, no spaghetti straps!

4-5 t-shirts: dark-colored is best. I had fun bringing t-shirts from my favorite NYC places to remind me of home!

2-3 long sleeved shirts: it does get chilly at night, even in warm regions.

3-4 nicer shirts (sleeved) for going out, dressing up, etc: you’ll want something nice for Tana and special occasions.

1-2 cardigans: good for covering up when you want to be more conservative, or if it gets chilly.

1-2 sweatshirts/hoodies: a black zippered hoodie is one of the best things I brought with me.

3-4 dresses: bring at least 1 dressier dress that you can wear for swearing-in, but the others should be casual and comfortable, yet still “appropriate”, if that makes any sense. Think “easy care”, too—forget anything that requires ironing or dry-cleaning (obviously)!

Lightweight jacket/fleece: it will be cold sometimes in Mantasoa, as well as at your site if you’re placed in the highlands.

Rain jacket: get a good quality one—it’ll come in handy during the rainy season.

Light scarf: optional, but I brought one that I love for sentimental reasons. You will probably buy one of the beautiful silk scarves that are woven here in Mada.

1-2 baseball caps/other sun hat: whenever I don’t wear a hat, my neighbors ask me where my hat is. They’re terrified of the sunburns I might get. It’s essential for blocking out the intense sun here.

1-2 belts: extra-adjustable, if possible, to accommodate the oh-so-fun weight loss and gains.

2 pairs of pajama bottoms: one long and one short

1-2 bathing suits: this is not a place you’ll want to wear one of those bikinis that looks really cute but doesn’t stay on. The Indian Ocean waves are intense!

2-3 sports bras: good for biking and working out.

5-6 regular bras: go practical and comfortable, for obvious reasons.

20- 30 pairs of underwear: so, I know this sounds like a lot, but it’s good to have a bunch because hand washing really destroys your underwear.

10-15 pairs socks: grey is the best color to get—again, forget white! You may not need all 10-15 pairs, but they’re hard to find in country, and don’t take up a lot weight in your luggage.

SHOES

Almost every Peace Corps trainee arrives in country sporting a sparkling clean, brand-new pair of Chacos. But you will more than likely just wear flip-flops a lot of the time, because that’s what locals wear anyway. Still, Chacos or Tevas are really handy to have for walking or hiking excursions when you have to get your feet wet, or it’s too hot to deal with socks and shoes. TIP: hit up Poshmark.com to find gently used Chacos for about half the price of new ones. They last a long time to so it's really not necessary to purchase brand new ones for $100+. Use my referral code "dear_ann" (my Poshmark store name) for $10 off your first Poshmark purchase!

It’s good to bring a pair of lace-up hiking shoes in order to have something sturdy and close-toed, but you probably won’t wear them as often as you will Chacos, especially if your site ends up being on the coast. I brought like 20 pairs of socks with me, and now that I’m at site it’s pretty laughable, because I only wear socks and shoes about once a month. Also important to note: because Malagasy people are much smaller than Americans, it’s hard to find large women’s sizes in shoes. I wear a 9 ½ or 10, and when my Chacos got stolen (yep, that happened—someone swiped them from my yard) I had to call my brother, who was traveling in Europe before coming to visit me in Mada, and ask him to go shoe shopping for me.

1 pair Chacos/Tevas/Keens/other rugged outdoor sandals

1 pair hiking shoes

1 pair flip-flops for showering, etc. (you can buy more pairs at any market in Mada)

1 pair dressier shoes for going out/swearing-in ceremony

1 pair running shoes, if you want

1 pair of something fun (if space permits): Sperrys, Chuck Taylors, Rainbows, whatever makes you happy and fits your style! You do you.

Rain/garden boots: optional and up to you, but will come in handy when you're navigating muddy markets and working outside. If you're an agriculture volunteer, you might find them handy for yardwork and gardening projects. However, I would not waste space bringing rubber boots that will crack easily (as mine did). If you're going to take the space to pack them, get a pair of sturdier, part-neoprene garden boots such as Bogs. And remember, your Malagasy counterparts will almost certainly not have any fancy footwear when they work alongside you.

TOILETRIES & MEDICAL SUPPLIES

When the Peace Corps doctors give you your medical kit on your second day in-country, you’ll get the following items: pain relievers, Pepto-Bismol and anti-diarrheals, antacid, cold and allergy medicine, lip balm, cough drops, first aid stuff like band-aids and antibiotic ointment, sunblock (SPF 30), condoms, eye drops, bug spray plus anti-itch cream for when you do inevitably get bitten, and other fun things for dealing with ailments you never knew existed (parasy, anyone?) This is, of course, in addition to the always-enjoyable malaria prophylaxis regimen and barrage of vaccines. You can also request the following items from the medical unit when you are preparing to move to site: multivitamins, moisturizing lotion, tampons/pads, as well as refills of what you may have already run out of.

So, don’t bother stocking up on any of this stuff, as I mistakenly did. Just bring enough of whatever you like to get you from your house to Madagascar (good to have some stuff for the plane, etc.) The only exception is to bring anything you know that you specifically need (maybe the only thing that works for you when you get a cold is DayQuil), and other OTC items that Peace Corps doesn’t give you (I brought some sleeping pills, which were helpful for the long plane ride here as well as sleepless nights at site.)

For toiletry items, plan on bringing enough to get you through 2 months of training, and then when you’re on your way to site during installation, you will most likely have time to shop in Tana to replace anything.  You can get pretty much everything you need at Jumbo and ShopRite, and they even have a lot of western brands, but be forewarned, they’ll be expensive. I did some serious “extreme couponing” while I was bored at home waiting to go to Peace Corps, and stocked up on a lot of stuff for cheap that my mom has been sending me throughout service, so that is another option too. (But remember that it costs $60 to mail a USPS medium-sized flatrate box!)

Shampoo/conditioner: also bring a couple travel-sized bottles, too, for refilling when you go on short trips.

Face wash

Soap

Razor and blades

Baby wipes/face wipes: good for homestay and also at site if your water is far away

Body lotion

Deodorant

Any specific vitamins you like: I brought acidophilus and fish oil.

Lip balm with SPF

Toothbrush and toothpaste

Dry shampoo: I only wash my hair every 2-3 days because I have to fetch water to bathe, so I use this on the in-between days.

Hairbrush and comb

Manicure set
Hair scissors: DIY haircuts are the way to go here.

Pumice stone/foot file: your feet will take a beating here!

Some basic makeup: you probably won’t wear much on a daily basis, but it’s fun to be girly every so often, usually when you’re out in Tana or having a party at the PCTC!

A few fun nail polish colors: I thought I’d go full Peace Corps and never do my nails, but it’s fun every so often.

Small bottle of your favorite perfume, if you like: for special occasions

Face sunblock, pimple cream, and whatever else you regularly use on your skin: I am super fair-skinned, so my splurge is strong French sunblock for my face: LaRoche-Posay SPF 60. Gotta protect against skin cancer!

Small quantity of tampons/pads: to get you through training—after that, you can request them from the medical office.

Hand wipes/hand sanitizer: I always have these in my purse for when I’m traveling around and can’t wash my hands.
3 months of prescription medication: if you give the info to Peace Corps, they will take care of all your refills after that.
3 pairs glasses and plenty of contacts, if you wear them: the PC medical office does not want you to wear contacts while you're here, because you're at increased risk of infections and other complications. We heard a horror story about a girl who flouted this rule and wore contacts at site, but then she developed serious eye problems... and when she went to the doctors, they told her that if she had waited just one more day, she could have gone blind. So, it's not really worth the risk. Most of my friends who wear glasses/contacts wear their glasses when they're at site/without running water, and use contacts when they're in Tana/Fianar and able to be more hygienic. So if you wear contacts, plan on them being for "special occasions" here. I had Lasik surgery a couple years ago so I didn't have to deal with contacts here, and it has been great-- so if you're reading this and not going to Peace Corps for a little while and have the time/money to invest in Lasik, it will most definitely make your life easier. 

You will obviously not be able to bring a 2 years’ supply of items that are harder to find in Madagascar (i.e. baby wipes), so those things I ask for on my care package wishlist.

ELECTRONICS

PCVs here describe Madagascar as the place where electronics come to die. Whether from the humidity, unreliable electrical current, or theft, plan on whatever you bring going away, some way or another, during your 2 years of service. (For example, my iPod got stolen out of our bungalow during a post-IST vacation.) Insurance is definitely recommended! But don’t fret, there are ways of getting replacements if something dies or gets stolen: although it’s not advisable to mail electronics here, there is a well-established fomba (custom) of people’s family members who visit Mada bringing replacement electronics in their carry-on luggage! Update November 2013: after a very wet river trip in which all of our bags were splashed to no end, I thought it would be prudent to emphasize the importance of waterproof bags. I can't stress this enough so I will say it again: WATERPROOF, WATERPROOF, WATERPROOF! This would include camera/iPod/iPad/iPhone cases, general dry bags for electronics, stuff sacks for sleeping bags, and anything else that you would want to avoid getting wet.

Kindle: I never wanted to use a Kindle when I was in the US, but I am so happy having one here: I have over 100 books loaded on it, and it’s great for traveling. Plus the battery lasts a long time, and you can put PDFs on it, so it’s good for technical reading. (Note: once you get here, many PCVs have folders full of hundreds of unlocked Kindle books that you can load onto your Kindle, which is really awesome.)

Small laptop, power cord, plus extra power cord: I would highly recommend bringing a computer, and also bringing a backup power cord just in case yours fries or gets lost. Two people from my stage don’t have computers and it makes things annoying when you have to do your quarterly volunteer report or other PC business. Plus, you’ll want to use it for watching TV/movies. Originally I was recommending to people that they bring netbooks, but apparently those are hard to find now that everyone is gravitating towards tablets. Tablets are tricky because you'll want it to have a USB port and lots of hard drive space. A lot of people in the newer stages have brought iPads, but personally I don't think that it's the best use of money if you're buying something new to bring here. There is no “cloud” here, and not having a USB port will be frustrating because you won’t be able to use a thumb drive or USB modem to get online. If you do bring an iPad, make sure to get the USB attachment for it.

Extra laptop battery (if you have the space/money): not essential but helpful if you don’t have electricity at site, or to replace your original battery if it dies.

iPod, USB cord, plus one extra USB cord: makes brousse rides and noisy neighbors tolerable. Good to have an extra cord in case you lose one.

3 pairs of headphones: because they’ll inevitably break, and if you’re like me, you’d cry if you couldn’t listen to music on a long brousse ride.

iPod speakers: USB powered is best, because then you don’t need to deal with batteries.

Headlamp: essential!!!! Not a bad idea to bring 2, just in case. I keep one at home and one in my travel bag for when I go to my banking town, go visit other PCVs, etc.

Batteries: I use AAA the most because my headlamp and speakers take them.

Rechargeable batteries and solar charger: good so that you don’t need to deal with throwing away batteries. Also, the Chinese-made batteries available in Mada are really bad quality.

A ton of USB thumb drives: you will be using these constantly for swapping media, grabbing files, etc.
Shortwave radio: optional because you can buy one in-country, but the ones you can buy in the US are much nicer, and the programmable presets are nice to have.

Travel alarm clock: I brought an LL Bean one that I really like.

1-2 external hard drives: go as big as you can (at least 1TB), for backing up your laptop as well as getting media. If you bring 2, they both don’t need to be 1TB. I have one old one that I use just for backing up my laptop, and never remove from my house; the other one I take with me when visiting other PCVs so we can swap media. I have La Cie brand hard drives but don’t really like them—I think Western Digital’s are better. NOTE: when you set up your hard drive, make sure to format it (FAT 32?) so that it can be used on both Mac and PC computers. This will make it easier to share media with people even if they have a different type of computer than you do.

A bunch of adapters: they’re really cheap on Amazon; bring 5-10 just to have lots of backups in case they break. The outlets here are the same as Europe. NB: an adapter (which adapts a plug) is not the same as a converter (which converts the actual current). You will almost never ever need a converter here, because all of your electronic chargers should have built-in converters, so don't waste the packing space with one.

2-3 small flashlights: very handy. It’s always good to keep a small flashlight in your purse, too.

Solar charger for USB items? This is up to you, since you might have electricity at site but won’t know it until you get here. Chances are, though, that if you're a health or agriculture volunteer, you will not have electricity. I brought a Solio charger that charges USB items like iPods, but I do have electricity so I never use it.  Also, you can buy some pretty decent solar chargers/lights here in country (either Tough Stuff or Solarland), but not all of them have the ability to charge USB things.

Solar light: it’s good to bring one of these because they don’t take up much room, and you’ll be happy to have it. I brought a really cool light from LuminAid, which I recommend. They are designed to pack up really small, so they won’t take up a lot of luggage space. Even though I have electricity in my house, I use it in my ladosy (outdoor shower hut.)

Camera, sturdy case, battery charger, and cords: I decided to invest in a good camera before coming here, and I am glad I did. I have a Nikon Coolpix P7100, which is not a DSLR but is a step up from a basic point and shoot. A few of my friends have the Canon PowerShot SX2600HS (20x zoom and 12.1 megapixels), and I really like that camera-- it takes a great photos and has a lot of nice features for a point and shoot. I brought an extra camera battery just in case, but I haven’t needed it yet. A few volunteers have really nice DSLRs, which are awesome if you are a photography nut—this country is Disneyland for photographers. Oh, and I brought a tripod but haven’t used it once. If you’re super in photography you might want to bring one.

Unlocked iPhone, if you have one: iPhones are great to have for accessing the internet at sites where it's not practical to use a computer. You can put a Telma or Orange SIM card in it and pay for credit to use their internet plans. For people who can’t access the internet at site, they are very, very useful for getting online when in banking towns, etc. For me, I can get online at site (via a USB modem), so I primarily use my iPhone when traveling. I wouldn’t buy one specifically to bring here, but if you have an old one, or someone wants to give you one, it’s worth bringing.

OTHER STUFF

Small photo album with pictures of home, family, and friends: this is great for when you get to homestay and need something to talk about. Right before I went to homestay I worked with a language trainer and put little post-it tags on each picture, with the Malagasy words for “mother”, “brother”, etc.—this was super helpful on day 1 when my Gasy was still nonexistent, so I’d recommend doing this to any trainees.

Gifts for your host family: I brought maple syrup (I’m from Vermont) plus some toys for the kids. Unfortunately my host sisters ended up being 12 and 16, and so everything I brought was too young for them. So look for stuff that is age-generic. Some ideas: Silly Bandz bracelets, temporary tattoos, hair elastics, markers/pens/notebooks (they love American school supplies here), playing cards, a soccer ball (with pump), nail polish, etc. And, Justin Bieber is HUGE here so if you find a Biebs notebook/school folder/poster/whatever, there is a good chance that someone in your host family will be thrilled. Also, photos are really treasured here, because no one has a camera, and they’re expensive by Malagasy standards to print. So, bring a small empty photo album and you can have Peace Corps print some pics for you to fill up the album with. It makes a really nice gift at the end of training.

Madagascar guidebook: I recommend the Bradt guide over Lonely Planet. Hilary Bradt, who started the company, was a tour guide in Madagascar for 25 years and is an expert on the country. This guidebook is much more thorough and in-depth than Lonely Planet. Plus, the recent Lonely Planet update is really neglectful and pretends that the entire southeast region does not exist. Not ok!

Malagasy/English dictionary: I recommend buying the dictionary that is available at Lulu.com (or whatever the URL is.) I bought one of these and use it a lot. Peace Corps will give you a small dictionary, but it’s super outdated and lacks a lot of words. I also brough a small French/English dictionary that I happened to have, and this has been useful as well. Even though our main language of communication is Malagasy, a lot of my work documents are in French, and sometimes email communication within my counterpart agency is in French. (I studied French in college so I’m pretty able to understand it, but there are some words that I’ve forgotten.)
Sturdy pocket-sized notebook: like a Moleskine-brand one. This will become a good language learning tool because you can carry it around with you and write down new words that you learn.

A few snacks: good for those first few weeks of training when you’re longing for American food!

A few notebooks: lined paper is impossible to find here (it’s only graph paper), so I liked having a few real notebooks for taking notes in during training, as well as for writing letters.

Pens: Gasy pens are notoriously bad. Raid the office supply closet before you leave, if you can. J

1-2 journals: I filled up an entire journal just during training! Now I write a little less frequently, but I still try to journal at least once a week. Also, if you are like me, you’ll get about 5 of them as going-away presents.

Drink packets: some people really hate the taste of water—if you’re one of them, bring a lot of drink packets. I don’t mind water, and never really drank juice or soda in the US, but these are good for adding a little variety (and also mixing with rum for a cheap cocktail!)

Small sewing kit: bring a few extra spools of thread, too.

Leatherman tool and folding utility/pocket knife: because you never know when you’re going to want to cut up a pineapple. Or cut off a tree branch. Or open up a box.

Keychain bottle opener: trust me on this one.
2-3 bandanas: endlessly useful. I am currently using one to mop sweat off of my forehead. Ah, summer in sub-Saharan Africa!

1-2 canvas bags for market shopping: something I wish I had brought, because I have tons of them lying around at home.
Small purse with a cross-body strap: for going out.
Money belt?: I brought one but don't really use it much. Still, it's not a bad idea to have one for when you're in Tana or if you travel somewhere with tons of pickpockets.

Sunglasses: my eyes are really sun-sensitive and I’d die without them, so I brought 4 pairs. Don’t bring anything super-expensive, but also don’t bring any super cheap that will break in a day. Hit up TJ Maxx or Marshalls.

Markers: you’ll be making a lot of flip charts, especially during training! I brought a set of colored Sharpies, which are awesome.

1-2 water bottles: bring a Nalgene bottle because you’ll always be measuring out your water in liters. Also good to bring another bottle with a smaller mouth, so you can drink out of it while riding in a taxi-brousse!

Small, sturdy umbrella: the umbrellas here are of pretty bad quality. I have also never seen a small portable one for sale—they’re always massive.

2 packs of playing cards: great for relieving boredeom. Also handy for those first few days of homestay when your language skills are still bad—you can play a minimal-language game like Uno or Go Fish.

A few books: there will be lots of opportunities to trade books with other PCVs, as well as take them from the communal shelves at the mevas. Most PCVs aim to read 100 books during their service!

Crafty/hobby stuff to keep you happy: such as, thread for making friendship bracelets, colored pencils/watercolors, yarn and knitting needles-- whatever you like! I brought some glue sticks so that I could do a bit of scrapbooking, plus calligraphy pens and paper.

Dry bag: for keeping electronics dry when traveling. I got caught in the rain one time and my iPod happened to be in my backpack, which unfortunately got totally soaked and made my iPod go on the fritz.

4-5 pairs ear plugs: you think you’ll be living in some quiet countryside town, but then you realize that roosters start crowing at 4:30 AM.

NOT NEEDED TILL SITE

I sent myself a box of stuff that I knew I didn’t need immediately, and it was all helpful but definitely not essential.

Pictures/decorations for your house: because I knew about my placement 6 months ahead of departure, I spent that time collecting cool pictures, art, postcards, and flyers from my favorite NYC restaurants and bars to put up on my walls, to make my house feel homey and remind me of good memories from the US. I also printed out “bon voyage/good luck" emails from friends and coworkers, and bought a lot of photo prints from Snapfish, so I have photos of friends and family all over my house. Whenever other PCVs come to my house, they compliment my decorations and pictures—it really makes a difference in making my house feel home-y.

Double-sized sheets: have these sent to you at the PCTC so you’ll have something to put on your bed on your first night at site! Get a dark-colored or patterned set that won’t get stained or dirty as easily.

Towel: like sheets, you can probably find a frip towel at site, but it’ll be good to have a towel when you first get to site. Get one that’s dark colored and not super thick, because you’ll be air-drying it!

Pillow: pillows in this country are terrible—they are made of small bits of foam stuffed inside a pillowcase. I had my mom send me my favorite pillow and it made a huge difference in how well I sleep. You might be able to bring this on the plane in addition to your 2 carry-on bags—some girl in my stage got away with this, but I’m not sure of the rules.

Duct tape: endlessly useful!
2-3 good quality locks (key or combination): good to have for anything you'll need to lock outdoors, such as your kabone, your gate, etc. All the locks you can buy in this country rust like crazy when they are used outdoors. Luggage locks are good to use for the lockers at the meva (transit house), but they aren't really sturdy enough for outdoor use.

Plastic food storage containers: you can buy them at Jumbo, but they’re somewhat expensive.

Seeds: if you want to plant a garden at site!

Flea collars or anti-flea drops: if you plan to get a cat. (Which I highly recommend if you are as rat-phobic as I am!) I use the drops on my cat because the local kids always stole her flea collars.

Gardening/work gloves: especially if you’re an ag volunteer! But I use mine a lot for yard work. Get the kind that are partially rubberized because there are some extremely spiky plants here.

Kitchen stuff: vegetable peeler (you’ll be cooking a lot of carrots—this will make it easier), measuring cups/spoons, spatula, and if you’re a kitchen geek like me, a good chef’s knife and a Microplane. With the exception of the last 2 items, you can find all of these at Goodwill/Salvation Army or the dollar store.

Quick dry bath towel: really handy for traveling or staying the night with other PCVs.

Sleeping bag and/or travel sheet: for camping, sleeping over at other PCV houses, etc. Get one that packs up really small. Mine is too bulky so I never bring it anywhere, which sort of negates the purpose of having a sleeping bag. I do, however, take my travel sheet all the time when I travel. It doesn’t take up much room, and it has come in handy when I have to stay in a “hotel” that doesn’t seem to have ever washed the sheets. NB: make sure to get a waterproof stuff sack/dry bag for your sleeping bag!

Bungee cords: for strapping things to your bike. I’ve never seen these for sale here.

Hammock with mosquito net, plus some good rope and carabiners for hanging it: optional, but these are really cool for traveling to other PCV houses, and if your site ends up being in a hot region but without electricity—if you can’t use a fan, it’s much cooler to sleep in a hammock than a bed. Most PCVs have the Byer of Main “Moskito” hammock, or a Hennessy Hammock. I don’t have one and I’m fine without it, but it would be nice for traveling.

THINGS YOU DON’T NEED

Crazy mosquito gear like head nets, etc. for the most part your mosquito problems will be encountered in your home, around sundown. You won’t be trekking in the jungle through clouds of bugs.
Bike gear: Peace Corps will give you a helmet, lock, bike tool, and pump when you get your bike, plus you can get a rack, bell, bottle cage, bar ends, chain lube, saddlebags, and other accessories by request. However, if you're seriously into biking, and have some bike shorts or other specific clothing, you will probably want to bring them.

Medical supplies, sunblock, bug spray, etc: as mentioned previously, Peace Corps gives you all that.

Expensive outdoor/technical clothing. you’re joining the Peace Corps, not going on safari. I remember during training we were all amazed by how chic and well-dressed one of our volunteer trainers was. She shocked us all by saying that she came to Mada with a suitcase full of like, fishing shirts—and then ditched them all once she a) figured out how people really dress, and b) discovered the wonders of frip shopping!

Fellow PCVs, did I miss anything? Let me know in the comments if you think I did!