Kick Off

So I decided to get things started a little early to give everyone a chance to get used to the whole blogging thing (myself included). First time blogger here (aww), but also just slightly nervous, getting more nervous by the day and feeling the need to release some nervous energy.

Chances are if you're reading this, you already know that I'll be leaving in June for the Peace Corps. I fly to Atlanta June 18 for staging (more on that to follow) and leave a few days later with a group of other PCVs for Mauritania. Woohoo! At the moment, everything about this still feels very far removed. I'll be working (albeit part-time) through May 30, which gives me a couple weeks to get my act together before I leave.

I haven't done much in the way of preparation so far, but I did buy my first hippie skirt in China! First of all, if you didn't take the time to browse the link above (shame), you should know that Mauritania is a Muslim country. Needless to say, I'll be making a few wardrobe changes this summer, mostly involving ankle length skirts. Current volunteers have recommended having most of your skirts made after you arrive in Mauritania but bringing at least one or two to get yourself started. So, on my recent trip to China, I happened to stumble across an Indian store that sold exactly the sort of skirts I was hoping to find for my upcoming West African adventure. Go figure.

A little bit on China, since I know I haven't been the best at keeping people updated: I went to China for two weeks in April with a friend of mine, Nicole, from high school. Her brother lives in Beijing, and two friends of ours (also from high school) are teaching English in Shanghai. We spent a few days in Beijing visiting Seb, Nicole's brother, after which the three of us took a train to Xi'an (southwest of Beijing) to do some sight-seeing. Seb left us at that point, and Nicole and I went on to Shanghai to visit Julie and James. China was amazing, but it was even better to spend all that time with good friends, especially since I likely won't see them for a while.

Once I figure out how to post pictures on this thing, I'll put a few up from the trip. In the meantime, things are going to be a little crazy between now and when I leave, so there will be lots of fun things to post about. Hope you enjoy!