I can't believe it's been a MONTH since I posted. In one more month, it will be May 25th, five days before my 24th birthday, and seven days before staging begins for the Peace Corps. We got our staging information today: we will first meet in Philadelphia and then fly over to Quito together as a group on June 2nd. Getting the staging information, after not hearing from the PC for a few months, makes the process feel so much more real. In a week, we get our tickets and our hotel information for staging, and then poof! We go. There is hardly any waiting time left.
Since my internship is ending this week, I've resolved to get most of the stuff I need to bring in the next few weeks. I'm currently contemplating whether I should bring my beautiful two year old Mac with me. What do you think...is it too risky to bring, or would it be useful to have?
My list for this week is:
-Figure out the Chaco discount and get Chacos, ASAP.
-Get a shortwave radio.
-Buy Ecuador-appropriate shorts (though I will bring a pair of my beloved Soffes, if only to wear them in the house).
-Buy a robe (one of my Peruvian friends constantly wears a robe over her pajamas- this could be a Roxana-thing or a South American thing, but it couldn't hurt to have. It is better than awkwardly walking around in a short towel in front of my host family).
-Figure out whether or not to bring a backpacking backpack (Eagle Creek has a PC discount, woohoo! I love these discounts).
Maryland weather (and the general East Coast weather) has been hugely strange for the past couple of months. On Friday, I shivered my way through the streets of DC, suffering the brutal cold and gusty winds of U Street for the redemption of a chili half-smoke from Ben's Chili Bowl. Today, it is 85 and MUGGY, and I'm indoors avoiding it. Currently parked in the living room with the pups, enjoying as much air conditioning as possible before June.
