Sunday, September 6, 2009

Jess v. The Suitcase

I've been very busy packing this week. My bedroom looks like a war was fought amongst the clothes and many pairs of boots. I'm afraid my suitcases are the casualties. I'm only allowed 100 lbs. That may seem like enough, but trust me, a girl needs more then just 2 suitcases for a 27 month trip! My mom and I are trying to work under these restrictions, but it is stressing me out. Not to mention that fact that all of my wardrobe consisted of attire better suited for the tropics. Updating has become spendy. :-( But I think I have everything I'll need. I'm pretty bummed about the 'no packages' rule during Pre-Service Training (PST). I can't even begin to express how important mail is during Peace Corps. Mom once wrote to me about picking out new curtains & I found it the most interesting news I'd ever read. I don't really care about the content...boring is great! It's NORMAL! Trust me, normalcy takes on a whole new meaning when you're away from the familiar. So I'm begging for letters. Please, send them. They are greatly appreciated.

I fly out of Portland, OR on September 24. My PC Staging will be in Philadelphia, PA. There we'll discuss safety concerns before leaving the following day (Sept. 26) for JFK airport in New York. And then we fly to Frankfurt, Germany and from there Kyiv, Ukraine. We'll have a 2-3 day orientation where we meet the PC Ukraine staff and learn survival tips about the language and culture. And from there, I leave with some of my batch mates for my training city--wherever that may be. I will not know this information until the last day of orientation. PST lasts 3 months. I am sworn in as a Volunteer on December 8, 2009. For now, I am considered a Peace Corps Trainee. :-) Looking forward to being a PCV once again. And looking forward to the next couple of years in Ukraine. It will be fabulous!

Life SO rocks!!!

More to follow...


ukraine1