And just in case this isn't already evident: 'the views expressed in this blog are not representative of the United States Government or the U.S. Peace Corps but are my personal expressions and experiences" :)

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

T-34 days!

That's it. I got it. I finally received that last piece of information. The last piece I've told my friends and family members time and time again to wait to congratulate me until I have in my grasp.... my staging email!

Up until this point it's been over a year of vague "nominations" and wishy-washy "acceptances." I held off any celebratory toasts or pats on the back as best I could (knocking on wood when they were unavoidable) because until I had a concrete ticket in my hand I did not believe I was in the clear. (And don't get me wrong, I'm NOT yet in the clear.... where's my wood to knock on?) Anyways, now I at least have proof that (a) it wasn't a fluke Welcome Package I received in the mail 6 months ago, (b) they haven't since lost my application and forgotten I exist, and (c) my name is included somewhere on an detailed itinerary for staging that will begin exactly 5 weeks from yesterday.

Meaning that in 5 weeks from today I'll be cramming  last-minute medical shots, legal forms, and US-related-activities in Philadelphia.

And 5 weeks from tomorrow I'll be boarding a plane to Africa. (Where's that damn wood again??)

Included in some of the PDF attachments is a "Peace Corps/Mozambique Letter for Family & Friends" (any family & friends interested in reading how infrequently I'll be able to contact you and why you should disregard my future rants, let me know and I'll send you it :) Anyways, one super useful tidbit of information: a future mailing address! I'll probably end up getting a local post office box but in the meantime...

letters, packages (padded letters are preferred over boxes), etc can be sent to the headquarters address:


Emily Varanay, PCV
Corpo da Paz/U. S. Peace Corps
C.P. 4398
Maputo,
MOZAMBIQUE

and lightweight/ important/ or DHL items can be sent to this address:

Emily Varanay
Peace Corps/ Mozambique
Avenida do Zimbabwe, 345. P.O. Box 4398
Maputo, Mozambique
258-21-499-082

Care packages are always welcome, though they do recommend not sending anything of value since there's no guarantee it'll actually get to me (and numbering letters! :) 


On the home-front, I finished up work (managed to go through my despedida without tears, don't ask me how), have 2 more weeks of finals (last one due Thursday the 10th), move up to CT morning of the 12th, visiting VA, MA, and NY for a few days here and there, and then STAGING!!! 

But now it's bed time so I can wake up bright and early tomorrow morning to start another 20page paper due next week ... 

-emily

Friday, April 6, 2012

clock is ticking.... slowly

So a week from today is my last day of work, then finals in school, then move up to CT and visit my favorite people in New England, then.... assuming all goes to plan... I leave.

It's funny, people keep asking if I'm scared or nervous, what I expect to eat, if I plan to date, why I don't update my blog more regularly, etc. The thing is, the life this blog was created to document hasn't begun yet. All I can think of is how intangibly far away my trip still is... assuming of course that I leave on the expected date, that they don't decide to revoke my invitation, that all of the 1,001 things that can and very well may go wrong don't.

Right now I'm focused on wrapping up work at the IDB, on finding the last shreds of motivation to focus and write my final papers and projects for my Master's degree, on my friend's baby shower :) , on my friends' birthdays, on several friends' graduations from undergrad and grad schools, on spending as much time as humanly possible with the people I love down here in DC, on scheduling when I'll be able to visit the people I love in NYC and Boston, and (of course) on my family. There's still so much left to be done here that daydreaming about my trip seems like a waste of time!

'course, check back in another 6 weeks when I'm finishing up packing my bags and I'm sure my tone will change ;)

xoxo
em