Friday, January 26, 2007

24 days and counting!

7:18 am...that is the scheduled departure time for my flight leaving Appleton on the 18th of February(going to have to get up pretty early!). After a short lay-over in Chicago, I should arrive in D.C. near 12noon. Check in for staging is around 2pm.
I'm still going through the same range of emotions...excited one minute, and then anxious the next, and sad to be so far away from friends and family the minute after that. All of the preparation has kept me pretty busy though. I am starting to pack up things that I won't be using for the next couple years. Also, the PC has given us some resources to look over in our "toolkit". The language lessons are interesting, and should help a lot!
In addition, many of the volunteers in my group have been e-mailing back and forth. It's been a nice way to make sure I am taking the appropriate steps in preparing, and they have also been a great source for further information! They all sound like wonderful people, and I can't wait to meet them at staging.
We have also gotten our travel itinerary for when we leave the U.S. We have a 15+ hour non-stop flight from D.C. to Johannesburg. We will stay there the night, and then take off for our final destination around 8am the next day.
As the time keeps getting shorter, I feel like I have more and more things to do, people to see, and tasks to accomplish! Guess I better get going!

Monday, January 8, 2007

More waiting...

Well, on November 28th, I was officially invited to join the Peace Corps in Madagascar, and since then I've done a lot of waiting...again. Recently I learned that my orientation will be held in Georgetown, Washington D.C. and that on the way over to Madagascar we will spend a night in Johannesburg, South Africa. I'm currently waiting on my travel packet, which will allow me to set up my travel plans and then I will know exactly where I will fly out of. I can't wait to meet other individuals who have been going through the same range of emotions regarding departure! I will be sure to keep you all posted as I learn more!