Yes, I have to wear dresses.

I have received more materials from the PC in the past couple weeks. I have also started emailing back and forth with about 6 volunteers currently serving in Georgia. It is becoming quite real.

My Grandma helped me pick out some teaching supplies the other day. Taylor came with me to EMS to pick out a good backpack, and I went with Dana, Tim and Ray to buy some appropriate teaching attire. They got their share of laughs in as I attempted to pick out dresses, skirts and blouses for the summer-utterly ridiculous to see me in this clothing.

I read a blurb from current Georgian volunteers (G7's), they all strongly suggested that I learn the Georgian alphabet, and common phrases before arriving in Philly on the 13th. Apparently the language is nearly impossible and taking initiative now will help me during training...so I started to work on it. Learning Georgian = Frustration.

I am part of the 8th group to go to Georgia through the Peace Corps. It is the newest service destination for the PC, very exciting! My staging event is in Philadelphia, my flight is from New York to Istanbul, I have a 10 hour layover and then finally fly into Tbilisi, Georgia on June 16/17 depending.

There is an intense amount of information I could share but I will wait until I have something interesting to share!

Nakhvamdis! (Goodbye)

Preparation

I graduated and moved back home a few days after. Being home has been awesome because I am actually able to spend time with people! My whole life has been filled with work, work, work. So even when I am home I rarely see my family and friends as much as I would like. Having a few weeks to calm down at the end of my college career has been a blessing.

Now that I am all unpacked, the hard part begins! I have to prioritize all my things in an efficient way so that I have what I need for the next 27 months. Although I know I can have things sent to me, I hate to rely on that. I am a chronic under-packer. Usually that is fine - I feel like this time I might need to take a little more time to really think about what I bring with me.

It is really difficult to prepare for something I have no real knowledge of - it is a crap shoot. Hopefully I will be able to pack things that will keep me comfortable and happy! I am not really all that worried about it.

I already miss my friends at school a lot and New York SO MUCH! But I am very excited for this experience abroad. Talk about a new learning experience!!