The California (Africa!) Initiative: 15 days...

till the biggest thing in my life.

Last time I posted was when I just found out about Kenya. Since then I have been packing like a crazy person, and about my new African life I now know.. well, not much else. For legitimate reasons the Peace Corps does not give you much information about the next two years. Mainly because they don't know it either. This whole "no expectations" thing is really quite hard. I just keep telling myself I'll live, and yes, someone else has felt this way before.

Here's what I DO know so far:

On October 12 I take an early train ride into Philadelphia for what's called Staging, sort of a mini meet & greet and orientation. October 13th we take a bus to JFK and fly out that evening. We have a layover in Amsterdam and get in to Nairobi sometime the next day. My phone will definitely have stopped working by then and I will do the best I can to find internet once I get there. I will probably be getting a phone when I get there too.
We hang in Nairobi for a few days before heading south towards the Tanzania border to a town called Loitokitok, where our training will be. It is apparently 15 km from the summit of Mt. Kilimajaro, and supposedly a site to see. We will be there in Loitokitok for two months, taking crash courses in Kiswahili, cultural training, programmatic training (the educational part of it), and medical briefings. This is what's called Pre-Service Training (or PST).
About halfway through training is when we figure out what site we will be placed in, AKA what village we'll be in, what new local village language we'll have to start learning, and how close/far we might be from our fellow Peace Corps Volunteers (PCVs). So since they don't even know, there is no way for me to prepare either. Humph.

Along with all the packing I've been saying a lot of really tough goodbyes. REALLY tough goodbyes. I know I'll be back in two years, but a lot can happen in two years, and that's definitely a little scary. I know this is the experience of a lifetime and I'm going to have a new awesome world view and learn a lot and all that other cliche crap, but it's hard to see the good parts right now. All I can think about is how much I'm going to miss everyone. I'm currently in Massachusetts, sitting in my brother's dingy little TA office while he's at class. I'm not quite sure how I'm going to get along without him.

I think maybe some people might join the Peace Corps because they feel like they need to get out of America, or don't have much going here. I, however, am constantly reminded how many people care about me, and love me :) That's what's gonna keep me going I think.

I've been so overwhelmed by anxiety and anticipation and sad goodbyes that I tend to forget how excited I was when I first got the news. Every once in a while throughout the day I get those thoughts again, very brief and fleeting, but they're there. Though short, they are comforting, and reassuring, and reminding me 'I can do this.'

It's just that saying "See you in a few years" to the people I love the most, and actually meaning it, is surprisingly hard. WHO KNEW.

Anywho, here's what I think I know about sending mail, AKA presents:

Number any and all letters and/or packages as things can get lost in transit. Although this won't help track anything, it's a good reference for what's been received and what's not.
Write "Air Mail" AND "Par Avion" on all envelopes.
It may take anywhere from a few weeks to a few months for letters/packages to get to me, so don't get too worried if for some reason you don't hear from me for a long period at a time. I've heard just the thought of letters and packages on it's way is comforting :)
With packages, don't ever declare anything more than $15. Don't really say what's in it, especially if it's something expensive. This is because if someone thinks they want what's in my package, they have no problem opening it and taking it for themselves. Use vague descriptions like "Educational Materials" or say things that people don't care about, like napkins or toilet paper. You should also write religious things on packages, like "Jesus Saves," and "God loves you." Current volunteers say this is good because customs agents are less likely to open things that are religiously based.
Peace Corps Volunteers are allowed duty-free entry for packages for the first 90 days in Kenya. After that I'll have to pay duty charges, which are priced on the items in the package. Not sure how all that works, but once I'm there I'll try to send home info about things I might need.
Send anything other than letters and postcards in bubble-wrapped mailer things, because boxes are more likely to be opened, and less likely to reach me, wherever I might be.
Because of all this, don't send anything super valuable or irreplaceable, and don't write anything you wouldn't perhaps mind having some other Kenyans read. Although it doesn't happen on a frequent basis, it is possible that I might never receive things, or receive them re-packaged by customs/postal officials.
I am working on finding the first address I'll be at so that I can have packages when I get there. Just kidding :)

If you're at all worried about me, here's some links for family and friends to put you at ease (or perhaps escalate those worries):

- "Prepare Your Family and Friends" from the official Peace Corps website.

- Unofficial but very awesome collection of Peace Corps blogs

- and just a little something to watch when you haven't heard from me in a while :)

I know my URL is technically still the California Initiative, but it's way too much work to change it to something Africa related, so we're just gonna keep it the way it is.

In conclusion, I'll leave you with some pictures of the beautiful baby cousins I had to say goodbye to last week :(

Q-bug (Quincy) in her new apron daddy (cousin Jeff) got