And we're off!

Well everyone, I'm off to Malawi here in a few hours.  Staging was quite a fun time, especially meeting al the great people that I'll be going to Africa with.  It looks like we have a fun mix of people from across the states and from different backgrounds.  I look forward to getting to know everyone more!

Last supper with mom and dad included crab, clams, and oysters.  What a delight!  Such a great time to be able to spend with them.  I'm so fortunate to have the option to have them out here to see me off.  It means so much that they have made the effort, and have been able to meet other volunteers I will be spending my next 2+ years with.  As people say, 80% of life is showing up!  Making an effort means a lot :)

I wont have internet access for at least two months, so written letters will be so much appreciated.  I will definitely write you back, IF you make your return address legible.  I don't have everyones address, so please help me out with that :)  Also, I thought of a fun "game" that might be fun for some of you (it may not be everyone's style, thus I say "some of you" ;)).  I collected charms as a child but haven't been so diligent about it over the years in college.  Thus I ask you all to send me a charm (i.e. that you can put on a chain necklace/bracelet) of something that represents you (hobby, the state you live in, etc.).  This way I can have a little piece of all of you back home with me in Malawi :}

My best to you all.  Thank you, everyone, for all of your support.  Please know that my blog is an update for everyone, as emailing people individually may be next to impossible while I am there.  But please know that at some point I will retrieve all your emails and will be so happy to be thought of.  Again, thank you all.  Here I go, Into The....Warm Heart of Africa.

Crew, minus 2 that didn't arrive due to weather

....yep, we're normal!

Staging and Snow

Wow, it's really here isn't it?  I arrived in Philadelphia today for staging, which starts tomorrow.  Why is it always that when you're preparing for a big trip THAT is when TSA thinks they need to check everything and be stingy?  Who knows...but it's always those times where I'm not quite in the mood for dealing with it all that they decide to enforce the "3oz containers."  If it fits in a quart size bag, shouldn't it be fine?  All of Europe thinks so...Denver, eh, not so much.  Needless to say mom, dad, and I made it to Philly in one piece (with mom's famously delicious tuna fish sandwiches for lunch...I bet our seat neighbors loved us for that one!).  Phil (one of the other volunteers in our group) and I were scheduled to fly out of Denver on the same flight, so it was great to meet up again.  Arrived in one piece with all my bags, so first leg of trip successfully completed!

Went to have a delicious Philly Cheese Steak with "Wiz" for dinner with mom and dad.  I'm really "stocking up" for my arrival in Malawi with the food change.  "No, this isn't baby fat.  It is, indeed, my layer of fat to buffer me for a few months in Africa, thank you very much!"  But dinner was great, and a lot of fun to spend more time with mom and dad.  Dad has helped me quite a bit getting the more legal/financial stuff sorted out for me before I leave.  He's extremely knowledgeable in that arena, especially when I'm looking at a sheet I'm supposed to fill out and thinking "now where do I color?"  Without his help, I'd have turned all my important papers into airplanes.  Thanks papa!  Couldn't have done it without you :)

Hopefully in the morning the three of us will head out and see the Liberty Bell and wander around the city before meeting up with some volunteers and family for lunch before the PC stuff starts.  My staging schedule for tomorrow is as follows:

• 1.00 - Registration
• 2.00 - 7.00 - Briefings and information

We had a few people not arrive today in Philly due to the snow, so we'll see how that plays out with the briefings and information tomorrow.  It's funny though, because the snow wasn't bad (practically nonexistent) in the city when we arrived yet majority of the flights were canceled.  At any rate, ha, I hope this isn't one of those "hey!  We want your autograph!" which turns into signing my life away ;)  What an adventure that lies before me!  Starting to buckle the seat belt for this roller coaster that's about to depart.  Hands in the air, woohoo!

Bring it on!

I know it sounds corny when people say "I can't believe it's already here!" or "How did time go by so fast?!"  But I cant help but think and feel a combination of these (and everything) else right now.  Two full days await me here in Denver before I head out to Philly for PC staging and it's unbelievable to try and wrap my brain around it.  I'm not sure when it all will hit me, but I can rest assured I will have tissues or a sleeve to blow my nose into.

Last minute packing has gotten me a bit overwhelmed.  But thank goodness my mother had been on me day after day for weeks to buy all the things I need/want, try packing my bags, testing out the solar charger, and more.  Without her push, I'd probably be sitting here pulling my hair out and going nuts.  She is so much more mentally organized that I am and I've so appreciated her help.  Her help allowed me to have most of my things ready two weeks before my departure (see my previous post...this was mentally confusing!) which allowed me to visit both of my grandmothers on the west coast, a wonderful close to my time in the states.  If you ever have a chance to meet my mother, consider yourself lucky.

I have been officially presented the "Hang on!  Life is an adventure!" card for these next days, weeks, months, and years.  I am, of course, in control of my attitude towards my time as well as volunteering while in Malawi.  Struggles are inevitable, and I hope I have the strength and courage to continue to see the positive that will come out of every situation.  Through my travels this fall/winter I discovered something extremely enlightening, and encouraging in the same breath: when things are getting tough and you think you can't push yourself any further...keep pushing, because the biggest reward is right over the hill.  I've found right when I feel like giving up, if I try just a bit harder then I am handsomely rewarded.  Life's greatest rewards do not come without great struggles.  Bring it on, universe!

Are we there yet?!

I'm sitting at 2 weeks to the day that I hop on a plane to head out to Philly for staging.  I'm pretty well finished putting things together that I think I might want for the next 27 months of my life.  Being this organized this ahead of time doesn't happen for me very often.  Thanks to my mother asking every day "so what's on your 'to do' list today?"  Yes, sometimes I want to just spend the day looking at the beautiful Colorado Rockies, but it sure is nice to feel like I have this much accomplished more than 2 days before my departure.  (Yes yes...thanks mom).

In the past week or so I've felt extremely confident and ready to dive in to Malawi.  I know it'll be quite a wake up call once I arrive there and more challenging than anything I'm anticipating.  I'll be honest to say I've gone through cycles of "woooohoooo!!" and "holy crap, am I crazy?!"  And quite glad to say I have embraced them all and moved through the emotions.  (Ha, how do you avoid them when you don't sleep through the nights and it shows when mom comes in in the morning and my blanket is half off the bed and I'm sleeping diagonal?!)  Now I'm ready!

I'm doing my best not to adopt the whole "can't wait to leave!" attitude.  From past experience I have found that doing so causes me to miss out on time spent with people as well as fun and new experiences.  February 25th will come eventually, regardless of how much or little I want it to.  In the mean time I will do my best to enjoy the following (and already do!): Watching my friends dance Blues and Lindy Hop while smiling inside to see the joy it brings them; unlimited sushi (when mom and dad pay, of course); warm running water; driving to places I want to go at my leisure; freezer for ice cream; grocery stores with lots of varieties; birthday cake; macaroni and cheese...  Ok, I'm going to stop now because I'm getting hungry.  But you get the point.  The 25th will come soon enough!

Mail? Yes Please!

I am assuming all of my fans will be wanting to send me lots of letters and packages full of yummy goodies, right?!  I sure hope so ;)  I've done some reading on other peoples' bogs about sending letters/packages and thought it'd be best to share it with all of you.

• Be sure to write "Air Mail" or "Par Avion" on the letter/package
• Letters ($0.98) take 2-3 weeks; packages 6-9 weeks (for airmail)
• When sending letters, please date and number them.  Sometimes things do get lost in the mail and it would be nice to know if I have missed one of your letters
• It is best to put letters and packages in padded envelopes, as envelopes then are treated more like letters
• Super important!  If you do send a package please do not declare anything more than 15 USD.  Otherwise I have to pay a hefty duty tax on the value (and sometimes the contents), and I don't get paid much :)
• If you send a postcard, please put the card in an envelope to send it.  Post offices here have been rumored to put the "pretty picture" on the wall, thus never actually being delivered.  Thanks :)
• Requests: powered cheese packets, spices for cooking, beef jerky, protein bars, crystal light, Reeses PB cups, Hershey kisses (they travel well!), Starburst and anything else you can imagine me enjoying

For important or valuable items I would suggest sending with DHL or FedEx.  Address the package to:

Mary Kuhlke, PCV

c/o U.S. Peace Corps Malawi

Area 4 Plot 70

Across from Oilcom Depot

Lilongwe

Malawi, AFRICA

*You will also need to include the Peace Corps/Malawi phone number on the package, 265-1-757-157

Any and all letters and package will be most appreciated.  Don't be shy about sending chocolate.  I will lick the melted bag if necessary!  I will respond as much as possible :)  Thank you every one for your support!

If you are trying to figure out some good things to send, check out this blog post.  Thanks!

Also, write your return address clearly (or include it in the letter).  If I can't read it, I can't write you back!   

What's all this about Malawi?

Being that all of this information about Malawi is new to me, I thought I would post it so you all have a little bit of an idea of where I will be living for the next 27 months.  Enjoy!

Geography

• Land size of Malawi is about equal to that of Pennsylvania (seems appropriate our staging is there then!)
• Lake Malawi (aka. Lake Nyasa) is about the size of Vermont
• Climate is subtropical (rainy season November-May, dry season May-November)
• Terrain consists of plateaus, highlands, and valleys
• Current environmental issues: deforestation, land degradation, water pollution from agricultural runoff, siltation of spawning grounds (endangers fish population)

Population

• 15,028,757
• Life expectancy for males and females is right around 50 years old
• 11.9% adults living with HIV/AIDS
• Nationality: Malwians
• Religion: 79.9% Christian, 12.8% Muslim

Government

• Multiparty Democracy
• Capital is Lilongwe (centrally located in the country)
• Time difference is UTC+2, or 9 hours ahead of Mountain time
• Declared independence on July 6, 1964

Economy

• Agricultural products: tobacco, sugarcane, cotton, tea, corn, potatoes, cassava (tapioca), sorghum (a type of grain), pulses (a type of seed rich in protein), groundnuts, macadamia nuts, cattle, goats
• Industry: tobacco, tea, sugar, sawmill products, cement, consumer goods

Transportation

• 32 airports, 6 with paved runways (ha!  No excuses to not come and visit!)
• Railways: 797km
• Roadways: 15,451km (lots of hitch hiking to be done)
• Ports: Chipoka, Monkey Bay (this sounds fun), Nkhata Bay, Nkhotakota, Chilumba

So there ya go!  Some quick info for you all about Malawi and where yours truly will be spending quite a bit of time these next few years. You can also go here to learn even more than you ever wanted to know about Malawi ;)  

So much to do!

Time keeps ticking, and it's officially 3 weeks before I am on a plane to Philly for my staging.  I'm definitely excited, but feeling a bit spread thin between packing, seeing family and friends, and giving myself some of my own "bubble" time.  So I'm feeling a bit warn out at the moment, but trying to keep things moving a long and not get behind on stuff I want to get done.  It always seems there's just another thing to add to the list!  I'm beginning to wonder if I'm over stressing myself or simply trying to prepare as best I can (in that case I'd be happy once I got to Malawi and did all of this stuff).  As one of my brothers said "It's as if you are preparing yourself for a 2 year camping trip."  Ha, and with that, how do you not over think things?  Ahhh well, doing what I can.  Most definitely excited to go, but I wish I had everything packed already so I didn't have to worry about it all anymore!