So, in 6 weeks I'll be going to Albania to begin my second Peace Corps tour. It seems I should be a lot more excited but for some reason, I'm not. I'm more excited about leaving my job...enough said about that.
I've met a few people who will be travelling with me. We write or Skype and pretty much touch base on everything from my past experiences as a PCV to packing advice. I'm trying to be helpful as possible but until you actually walk the walk, the experience is unique to each of us.
On packing: I am taking a lot less than I did last time. A WHOLE lot less. A whole GIANT suitcase less. I won't be caught dragging around 3 bags in a country with potentially no escalators, elevators or even sidewalks. I learned once...never again. I have been trying to impart this info to the new volunteers but I know they won't heed my advice. They will pack everything they THINK they need, only to discover that they won't need even 1/2 of it. This is true for every PCV I have ever met.
So, the more that I see and hear about Albania the more I realize how lucky I am that the PC decided to send me there, rather than to Indonesia. The language is harder but I think that overall, life in Indonesia would have been a whole lot harder.
Really excited to follow your new overseas adventure, Jo! : )
ReplyDeleteThat's great advice about packing, but yep, seems like everyone has to learn it the hard way. My first trip outside the US- backpacking in Mexico- I took a monstrous backpack... something like 5600 cubic inches. Within 3 months, that behemoth was gone and I was down to three outfits and some lipgloss. Sadly I'd forgotten this lesson by the time I went on my study abroad years later, and went to Russia with so. much. luggage. Even an entire duffel bag of nothing but shoes for clubbing. Ugh! Now I try to be smarter about stuff, but it's still a struggle. Will you have time to do a packing post (ie, "What I'm bringing")?