Hey everyone!
Well, not a whole lot has happened since the last post. I haven't found any new bf's w/ the yellow jacket and I think I've figured out how to wear it! Haha.
Things are going pretty well. Good news is that the free internet is back! I finally came here and asked the guys at the company. Soo..for real, pictures will be coming soon! Hopefully I'll have this luck at my site!
Tomorrow I'm teaching again, this time on nutrition so hopefully all goes well. Russian is still kicking my butt but I think I'm doing better than I think. By the end of next week we have to have our proposals for the community project and summer camp. I'm pretty excited to be doing that work rather than teaching.
This past weekend we had a birthday party for my host mom. It was a good time. Also yesterday was another holiday in Ukraine. I don't know what it's called but everyone goes to the cemetary and has food and drink w/ their loved ones at their gravesites. So I went with my family and we were there for like 2 hours visiting family and friends' graves. It's also a tradition to leave candy and food at the grave site...this is all in vain because the gypsies come behind you and take the food and candy. That's a sad situation really. But anyways, it was a neat experience and I'm glad I got to go!
I've been hanging out a little more w/ people in my cluster/link group and I love it. The weekends are the only times we really have free (from lesson and homework) so it's awesome to get together and just chill. I have so much fun w/ these people and it really helps me to relax and feel like I'm having some sort of life here.
This Wednesday we're going to Kiev. Pretty stoked for that!
Well, I really don't have much else right now to update on. (Oh side note, the dance class down the hall is having using music that we use at my studio! Wow..I really miss it! What I wouldn't give to have a ballet class right now! Hopefully I can find someplace when I get to my site. I should prolly take the time by myself to dance and relax more, but I'm just not in the mental/emotional state right now. Dance is something that brings me joy, but it's difficult for me to dance when I'm stressed/unsure...etc, you get the point. Really, I should just do it becase it's good for me! )
Anyways...catch up soon. Love and miss everyone like crazy!
Love!
Monday, April 27, 2009
Saturday, April 18, 2009
My family is trying to pawn me off...
Hey!
So...yeah, I know it's been a while on the blog again. Actually I am keeping a really good 'journal' on my computer. But as some of you may know I've hit a bit of an internet SNAFU. See we did have access to free internet but they cut us off. I'm now at an internet cafe but I would really like to find someplace to use my own computer and then post my other entries.
But here's what's going on so far.
Completed the first two weeks and heading into the third. A lot of times it seems like I'll be here forever (which I've heard is normal feeling) but really thinking about it time is going rather quickly. We start teaching next week which is something I'm really nervous about bc I've never taught before; let alone in Russian! We are teaching a class on Healthy Lifestyles about not smoking to 7th graders. The good news is that I don't have to teach alone so I'm glad for that.
Other than that I'm doing ok. Language is still hard but I'm working at it and I definitly know more than when I came here so that's a step. Honestly sometimes I feel like I'm just not sure about this. Like I've def felt like wanting to go home a few times...but I do feel like there's a purpose to me being here and I'll find that out eventually. (hopefully sooner than later) I'm becoming slightly more comfortable as the days go by but for some reason the mornings are always the hardest for me and it's when I feel the loneliest.
This week I also managed to get food poisoning...apparently from the tomatoes. Since tomatoes are not in season it is not unusual for someone to get sick from eating them. I felt HORRIBLE! I had such bad stomach pains and you can imagine what else. But at least now I know what food poisoning is like so that if it happens when I'm at site on my own I'll know what to do. Basically just rest and try to get some fluids. I didn't feel so bad about getting sick when I learned that my host sister also was sick...so it wasn't just me being foreign.
My host family is still great. I've been getting into helping out around the house...last weekend I helped clean and stack wood and last night I helped to plant in the garden.
Tomorrow is Easter so I'll have a busy day! We are going to church at 5am! And I'm not sure what else happens during the day; last week Anna said something about going into the woods and having a picnic w/ my family's friends.
Next weekend is Oksana's birthday so I'm sure we'll be having a party, etc. Hopefully this time I won't get hit on! On that note...I think my host family is trying to marry me off! Last week Papa had a friend over doing work or something and at dinner he asked me if I had a boyfriend, like back at home, and I told him no. Then he said (in broken English/Russian/gestured) that his friend could be my boyfriend. !!! I was like...hahaha...no. It was kinda akward but pretty funny. Then last night my host mom and sister bought me and gave me a new coat which was very nice of them. Now this coat is not something that I would normally buy in the US...I suspect they are trying to help me be more Ukrainian as well... This coat is a mid length trench coat, has multiple zippers in multiple places, has shoulder pads, and is BRIGHT yellow. So I tried it on and it is a little big but fits ok for the most part and I do really like the style. So mama and sister helped me to fix it and then told me that all the men will like me now - like in my new coat. For the record...I did not join PC Ukraine to find a boyfriend/husband! HAHA! But it's been a hilarious experience. And I am grateful for the jacket. Despite the bright color it's comfy, I have a scarf that matches so I can tone down a little, and at least I won't be hit by a car or marshrutka.
Love!
So...yeah, I know it's been a while on the blog again. Actually I am keeping a really good 'journal' on my computer. But as some of you may know I've hit a bit of an internet SNAFU. See we did have access to free internet but they cut us off. I'm now at an internet cafe but I would really like to find someplace to use my own computer and then post my other entries.
But here's what's going on so far.
Completed the first two weeks and heading into the third. A lot of times it seems like I'll be here forever (which I've heard is normal feeling) but really thinking about it time is going rather quickly. We start teaching next week which is something I'm really nervous about bc I've never taught before; let alone in Russian! We are teaching a class on Healthy Lifestyles about not smoking to 7th graders. The good news is that I don't have to teach alone so I'm glad for that.
Other than that I'm doing ok. Language is still hard but I'm working at it and I definitly know more than when I came here so that's a step. Honestly sometimes I feel like I'm just not sure about this. Like I've def felt like wanting to go home a few times...but I do feel like there's a purpose to me being here and I'll find that out eventually. (hopefully sooner than later) I'm becoming slightly more comfortable as the days go by but for some reason the mornings are always the hardest for me and it's when I feel the loneliest.
This week I also managed to get food poisoning...apparently from the tomatoes. Since tomatoes are not in season it is not unusual for someone to get sick from eating them. I felt HORRIBLE! I had such bad stomach pains and you can imagine what else. But at least now I know what food poisoning is like so that if it happens when I'm at site on my own I'll know what to do. Basically just rest and try to get some fluids. I didn't feel so bad about getting sick when I learned that my host sister also was sick...so it wasn't just me being foreign.
My host family is still great. I've been getting into helping out around the house...last weekend I helped clean and stack wood and last night I helped to plant in the garden.
Tomorrow is Easter so I'll have a busy day! We are going to church at 5am! And I'm not sure what else happens during the day; last week Anna said something about going into the woods and having a picnic w/ my family's friends.
Next weekend is Oksana's birthday so I'm sure we'll be having a party, etc. Hopefully this time I won't get hit on! On that note...I think my host family is trying to marry me off! Last week Papa had a friend over doing work or something and at dinner he asked me if I had a boyfriend, like back at home, and I told him no. Then he said (in broken English/Russian/gestured) that his friend could be my boyfriend. !!! I was like...hahaha...no. It was kinda akward but pretty funny. Then last night my host mom and sister bought me and gave me a new coat which was very nice of them. Now this coat is not something that I would normally buy in the US...I suspect they are trying to help me be more Ukrainian as well... This coat is a mid length trench coat, has multiple zippers in multiple places, has shoulder pads, and is BRIGHT yellow. So I tried it on and it is a little big but fits ok for the most part and I do really like the style. So mama and sister helped me to fix it and then told me that all the men will like me now - like in my new coat. For the record...I did not join PC Ukraine to find a boyfriend/husband! HAHA! But it's been a hilarious experience. And I am grateful for the jacket. Despite the bright color it's comfy, I have a scarf that matches so I can tone down a little, and at least I won't be hit by a car or marshrutka.
Love!
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
I found internet!
So I have finally found internet!
As you can see I have been keeping track of my adventures but now have been able to post on the blog. (This is seeming very personal and is akward for me to share so much...but it makes me feel better.) So...I have lots for you to catch up on.
As for right now, we visited our first school today and we visit another one, the one I will be working in, tomorrow. Russian language is totally kicking my butt right now. Anna says that by two months I'll be able to speak it. We shall see! :)
Da Svidanya!
Love!
As you can see I have been keeping track of my adventures but now have been able to post on the blog. (This is seeming very personal and is akward for me to share so much...but it makes me feel better.) So...I have lots for you to catch up on.
As for right now, we visited our first school today and we visit another one, the one I will be working in, tomorrow. Russian language is totally kicking my butt right now. Anna says that by two months I'll be able to speak it. We shall see! :)
Da Svidanya!
Love!
April 6, 2009
Day Eight:
I’ve only been in Ukraine for two whole days; but on this Peace Corps adventure for a week now. It all started last Monday with a flight to Philly.
My thoughts after a week with the Peace Corps: I’m not really sure. I don’t have too many thoughts; or rather I have so many that it’s hard to decipher just one or two.
I am going to like mornings here at my host family. Everyone leaves at 7:30am for work and school while I have until at least 8:30 to leave for classes. I get about an hour to start my day and at least kind of collect my thoughts before starting the day. The biggest thing right now is trying to figure out if this is really what I want to be doing. I haven’t had any horrible days and the only thing I have to want for is internet access and more contact from home. But, all things considered, that is not bad at all! I got to speak with my parents again last night; we will be able to talk only on the weekends since that’s the only time that will work for both of us. I was hoping to speak with Aaron again last night, but I guess he was busy. I did get to check internet yesterday and he said he would try to call. I know he just wouldn’t call for no reason. I hope he can call me tonight.
As if I haven’t learned a lot of it already, I’m continuing to learn patience with myself. I’m still trying to adjust and the hardest thing is for me not to wish that I were somewhere else; perhaps with another host family, only because of the internet. (I think I found my one thing that is hard for me to deal with). ON the other hand, why shouldn’t other PCV s want to be with my host family? They are a lot of fun and I’ve already experienced a Ukrainian birthday party and picnic in the woods! But honestly, this is only a temporary thing, for in 3 months we will be heading to our sites. And then that is also only permanent as we have 2 years to stay there. I didn’t want to fall into a heavy routine right out of college, but I think that by the time I return home I will be ready for a routine, ready to settle down. We’ll see how I feel by the end of service!
I really like my host family. They are all so very nice and it will be so much better once I can get more Russian learned and can communicate better. I fear that they think I do not like them or am not friendly. I wouldn’t say that my first night here was full of conversation; I was still in shock and of course not sure what to say to them. I started on my own Ukrainian lessons back home, but then was told at the retreat to learn Russian…completely different for the most part.
OH, the first lesson I learned; don’t wear flats…at least not if you are going to spend the day walking the city. Your feet will be filthy by the end of the day.
I am still trying to work on my community mapping…it takes me about 5 minutes or so to get to town by bus; I have ridden it several times already, but I still do not really know the way. If I had to find it myself I most definitely could not. Well, I had better go and get ready for the day.
Love.
Day Eight:
I’ve only been in Ukraine for two whole days; but on this Peace Corps adventure for a week now. It all started last Monday with a flight to Philly.
My thoughts after a week with the Peace Corps: I’m not really sure. I don’t have too many thoughts; or rather I have so many that it’s hard to decipher just one or two.
I am going to like mornings here at my host family. Everyone leaves at 7:30am for work and school while I have until at least 8:30 to leave for classes. I get about an hour to start my day and at least kind of collect my thoughts before starting the day. The biggest thing right now is trying to figure out if this is really what I want to be doing. I haven’t had any horrible days and the only thing I have to want for is internet access and more contact from home. But, all things considered, that is not bad at all! I got to speak with my parents again last night; we will be able to talk only on the weekends since that’s the only time that will work for both of us. I was hoping to speak with Aaron again last night, but I guess he was busy. I did get to check internet yesterday and he said he would try to call. I know he just wouldn’t call for no reason. I hope he can call me tonight.
As if I haven’t learned a lot of it already, I’m continuing to learn patience with myself. I’m still trying to adjust and the hardest thing is for me not to wish that I were somewhere else; perhaps with another host family, only because of the internet. (I think I found my one thing that is hard for me to deal with). ON the other hand, why shouldn’t other PCV s want to be with my host family? They are a lot of fun and I’ve already experienced a Ukrainian birthday party and picnic in the woods! But honestly, this is only a temporary thing, for in 3 months we will be heading to our sites. And then that is also only permanent as we have 2 years to stay there. I didn’t want to fall into a heavy routine right out of college, but I think that by the time I return home I will be ready for a routine, ready to settle down. We’ll see how I feel by the end of service!
I really like my host family. They are all so very nice and it will be so much better once I can get more Russian learned and can communicate better. I fear that they think I do not like them or am not friendly. I wouldn’t say that my first night here was full of conversation; I was still in shock and of course not sure what to say to them. I started on my own Ukrainian lessons back home, but then was told at the retreat to learn Russian…completely different for the most part.
OH, the first lesson I learned; don’t wear flats…at least not if you are going to spend the day walking the city. Your feet will be filthy by the end of the day.
I am still trying to work on my community mapping…it takes me about 5 minutes or so to get to town by bus; I have ridden it several times already, but I still do not really know the way. If I had to find it myself I most definitely could not. Well, I had better go and get ready for the day.
Love.
Day Six:
Today was a good day. I got up about 9am…at my own waking! J It’s been a while since I’ve been able to sleep in! We had breakfast which consisted of mashed potatoes, fish, pork patties from the night before, some mix of peas, egg, ham, mayo…I don’t know what it was but it’s really good, and to top it off we had tea and chocolates. I’m not a very big breakfast eater so it was hard for me to get all of it down. But it was so good!
After breakfast I help set the table for Anna’s birthday party and she helped me with my Russian. I met with my cluster group for community mapping. Katya took us around Fastiv and showed us certain main points: the market, post office, police, administration building, train station, bus stops, how to get to and from her apt and our homes, etc. We all were able to exchange our dollars for UAH and make our first purchase (beverage) in one of the stores.
We also got to meet our TCF whom we will meet with for technical training. We all were also able to get cell phones. YES!!!!!!! Communication is the one thing I’ve been dying to have! Since I don’t have internet at my home, we can get it closer to in town, I needed a way to get in contact at least w/ my parents and Aaron. (This was all successful. After many texts and email help from Bob, my fellow PCV, my parents and Aaron were able to call me and talk for about 20 mins. What a great boost!)
I plan on hanging out w/ Bob tomorrow to send a few emails, update my face book, and update my blog. We also have to work on our community mapping project. We have an assignment for Tuesday to draw a map of Fastiv complete with directions on how to get around, including how to get home.
As I said before, tonight was Anna’s birthday party. I took the bus home from Katya’s apartment…scary at first, but I think I’ll be ready to go on Monday!
We had lots of food for dinner and some wine. Everyone makes a toast to the birthday girl. I even gave a toast, but it was in English. My Russian is basically non-existent at this time since I’ve only been working on it for 3 days. (Today we got all of our language materials. That is such a relief! Now I’ll have to get crackin’ and hit the language books.)
After dinner I went with Anna’s friends down to the river to hang out. They took lots of pictures and when we got back to her house we had the birthday cake. Remember the one I made the night before? Yep, that’s the one they cut! It was delicious! It was made out of some kind of thin wafer cake, a cream filling with pecans sprinkled, and chocolate topping; layered cake.
I met Anna’s grandma, friends, boyfriend, etc. A couple of her friends spoke a little English so they were asking me about myself and America. I showed them pictures of my family and friends. (Yes Dad, they all said that you are a cowboy! …I told them yes. J )
Love!
Today was a good day. I got up about 9am…at my own waking! J It’s been a while since I’ve been able to sleep in! We had breakfast which consisted of mashed potatoes, fish, pork patties from the night before, some mix of peas, egg, ham, mayo…I don’t know what it was but it’s really good, and to top it off we had tea and chocolates. I’m not a very big breakfast eater so it was hard for me to get all of it down. But it was so good!
After breakfast I help set the table for Anna’s birthday party and she helped me with my Russian. I met with my cluster group for community mapping. Katya took us around Fastiv and showed us certain main points: the market, post office, police, administration building, train station, bus stops, how to get to and from her apt and our homes, etc. We all were able to exchange our dollars for UAH and make our first purchase (beverage) in one of the stores.
We also got to meet our TCF whom we will meet with for technical training. We all were also able to get cell phones. YES!!!!!!! Communication is the one thing I’ve been dying to have! Since I don’t have internet at my home, we can get it closer to in town, I needed a way to get in contact at least w/ my parents and Aaron. (This was all successful. After many texts and email help from Bob, my fellow PCV, my parents and Aaron were able to call me and talk for about 20 mins. What a great boost!)
I plan on hanging out w/ Bob tomorrow to send a few emails, update my face book, and update my blog. We also have to work on our community mapping project. We have an assignment for Tuesday to draw a map of Fastiv complete with directions on how to get around, including how to get home.
As I said before, tonight was Anna’s birthday party. I took the bus home from Katya’s apartment…scary at first, but I think I’ll be ready to go on Monday!
We had lots of food for dinner and some wine. Everyone makes a toast to the birthday girl. I even gave a toast, but it was in English. My Russian is basically non-existent at this time since I’ve only been working on it for 3 days. (Today we got all of our language materials. That is such a relief! Now I’ll have to get crackin’ and hit the language books.)
After dinner I went with Anna’s friends down to the river to hang out. They took lots of pictures and when we got back to her house we had the birthday cake. Remember the one I made the night before? Yep, that’s the one they cut! It was delicious! It was made out of some kind of thin wafer cake, a cream filling with pecans sprinkled, and chocolate topping; layered cake.
I met Anna’s grandma, friends, boyfriend, etc. A couple of her friends spoke a little English so they were asking me about myself and America. I showed them pictures of my family and friends. (Yes Dad, they all said that you are a cowboy! …I told them yes. J )
Love!
Days Three through Five:
I’ve been a major slacker. Really, just been major stuff on my mind and really freaked out. So we finally arrived in Kiev after a long plane ride from the US to Frankfurt to Kiev. We walked off the plan and across the plane field.
Many PC staff members were there to greet us. Going through customs was not as big of a deal as I thought it would be. They just checked the passport and visa…not really the baggage. We loaded buses and headed for our Arrival Retreat. I was so very nervous on the way to the retreat.
The ‘oh crap what have I dones’ had already set in the minute I set foot on the plane to Kiev. They intensified when we landed, and were still going strong on the bus. I had the chance to speak to another fellow PCT on the way so I was able to feel a little bit better.
I think some people are not really thinking that we are here to stay for a while. Welp…I guess I’m one of the lucky ones because I’m definitely feeling it!
Once we arrived at the retreat, Soviet Resort, we unloaded the buses and truck, put our checked baggage into the storage area and then headed to our rooms. The rooms were two people, twin beads, showers, and toilets included. That was a nice thing! Also it was really nice that we had very hot water for our showers. The resort that we stayed at is popular in the area, a lot of citizens come there just to get away from work and everyday life for a while. I brought a brochure home, so those of you reading this that I will see, well I’ll have to show it to you so you have a better idea of the place.
That first night we had a special dinner. Some of the PC staff members put on a traditional welcome for us as well. We did not have any activities scheduled for that night so we just headed back to the rooms and hung out with some people for a while.
I didn’t sleep well at all that first night. I kept thinking that I had just made a terrible mistake. My heart was racing and it was hard to breathe let alone sleep.
The next day, day four, we started out with a town hall meeting followed by our first language lesson. I’m learning Russian by the way. Surprise!!!!!! Haha! We had several other meetings that day, including intro to Youth Development projects, etc. Oh, we also got our shots! Later on that night we had some fun activities, several of us went to the ‘disco’ that was held in the dining hall. Well, turns out the night before there were a lot of the local people there, but not that second night. So it was just a few of us PCTs cutting loose.
I slept much better the second night. No interruptions. We had a couple additional meetings the next day and then we left at 2pm for our training sites. We are staying in Lastiv, in the Kiev Oblast. It’s seems to be a nice little town. Well, not too little. We are going to take a tour tomorrow.
I met my host family of course, and I am half way to moving in all of my stuff. I am living with a mom, dad, and sister. The sister, Ana, is 16 and we are celebrating her birthday tomorrow. I helped to make her birthday cake after dinner.
Well, we were told that we would have internet access in this town. I don’t have internet here at this house, which sucks, so hopefully I will be able to go into town. I have to figure out some way to get in touch with my family and friends. It has been almost a week since I’ve talked to anyone! I was starting to feel better and more confident about my PC service, but if I have no way of contacting and staying in touch with my loved ones, I don’t know if it’s really worth it for me.
For now I am sticking it out. Tomorrow I will talk with my LCF about communication with people back home. Our Country Director gave us the best advise I have heard for PC. She said, “give it ten days in a row. If ten days in a row are bad, then you should reconsider.”
I miss everyone so much!
Love
I’ve been a major slacker. Really, just been major stuff on my mind and really freaked out. So we finally arrived in Kiev after a long plane ride from the US to Frankfurt to Kiev. We walked off the plan and across the plane field.
Many PC staff members were there to greet us. Going through customs was not as big of a deal as I thought it would be. They just checked the passport and visa…not really the baggage. We loaded buses and headed for our Arrival Retreat. I was so very nervous on the way to the retreat.
The ‘oh crap what have I dones’ had already set in the minute I set foot on the plane to Kiev. They intensified when we landed, and were still going strong on the bus. I had the chance to speak to another fellow PCT on the way so I was able to feel a little bit better.
I think some people are not really thinking that we are here to stay for a while. Welp…I guess I’m one of the lucky ones because I’m definitely feeling it!
Once we arrived at the retreat, Soviet Resort, we unloaded the buses and truck, put our checked baggage into the storage area and then headed to our rooms. The rooms were two people, twin beads, showers, and toilets included. That was a nice thing! Also it was really nice that we had very hot water for our showers. The resort that we stayed at is popular in the area, a lot of citizens come there just to get away from work and everyday life for a while. I brought a brochure home, so those of you reading this that I will see, well I’ll have to show it to you so you have a better idea of the place.
That first night we had a special dinner. Some of the PC staff members put on a traditional welcome for us as well. We did not have any activities scheduled for that night so we just headed back to the rooms and hung out with some people for a while.
I didn’t sleep well at all that first night. I kept thinking that I had just made a terrible mistake. My heart was racing and it was hard to breathe let alone sleep.
The next day, day four, we started out with a town hall meeting followed by our first language lesson. I’m learning Russian by the way. Surprise!!!!!! Haha! We had several other meetings that day, including intro to Youth Development projects, etc. Oh, we also got our shots! Later on that night we had some fun activities, several of us went to the ‘disco’ that was held in the dining hall. Well, turns out the night before there were a lot of the local people there, but not that second night. So it was just a few of us PCTs cutting loose.
I slept much better the second night. No interruptions. We had a couple additional meetings the next day and then we left at 2pm for our training sites. We are staying in Lastiv, in the Kiev Oblast. It’s seems to be a nice little town. Well, not too little. We are going to take a tour tomorrow.
I met my host family of course, and I am half way to moving in all of my stuff. I am living with a mom, dad, and sister. The sister, Ana, is 16 and we are celebrating her birthday tomorrow. I helped to make her birthday cake after dinner.
Well, we were told that we would have internet access in this town. I don’t have internet here at this house, which sucks, so hopefully I will be able to go into town. I have to figure out some way to get in touch with my family and friends. It has been almost a week since I’ve talked to anyone! I was starting to feel better and more confident about my PC service, but if I have no way of contacting and staying in touch with my loved ones, I don’t know if it’s really worth it for me.
For now I am sticking it out. Tomorrow I will talk with my LCF about communication with people back home. Our Country Director gave us the best advise I have heard for PC. She said, “give it ten days in a row. If ten days in a row are bad, then you should reconsider.”
I miss everyone so much!
Love
March 31, 2009
Day Two:
Woke up late. My room mate set two alarms but neither one went off. Fortunately we had a random alarm set for 6am. We had to be down in the lobby to leave for New York at 6:30. I was supposed to meet some girls for Starbucks at 6, but I totally missed that since I had to get ready and get everything together.
Down to the lobby. Paid for the bell hop and bus help. Gathered with our bus groups and tied purple string to our luggage; a Peace Corps tradition. We waited around for about 20 minutes and started to load the bus. My luggage is SOOOO heavy! I totally cannot wait until I am able to unpack. Took about a two hour bus ride to New York, JFK Airport. It was the first time I’ve seen the New York skyline…it was really cool. I definitely would like to visit NYC in the future.
We got to JFK pretty early. We had a two and a half hour wait until we could check in. In the meantime we got breakfast and hung out. During this time we had a bit of a freak-out with the luggage allowance situation. We were told by Peace Corps that we could have two checked pieces of luggage at 50 lbs each, and one carry on, no weight restrictions, and one personal item. Well, one of my fellow PCVs was speaking with an airline worker and was told that we were allowed the two checked bags at 50lbs exactly, we could not go over, and a checked bag of only 10lbs. So, everyone was frantically trying to get their carry on luggage weight down so that they wouldn’t have to check their bags. The charge for additional weight and/or checking a third bag is $200.00. Meanwhile one of the girls here called our country director from staging and asked if he could talk to the airline, since we’re PC and all. Turns out that he was able to smooth things out with the airline and no one was charged for anything. (I didn’t even have my checked bags weighed.)
We waited around for another hour and half before boarding, spending time eating lunch and hanging out some more. Then we loaded the plane for Frankfurt. I have an aisle seat. Thank goodness! The seats are kinda hard and there is a crying child next to me. Well sometimes he cries, but for the most part I guess he’s pretty quiet.
Dinner was served. Choice of chicken and mushrooms or pasta. I hate mushrooms! I had pasta with tomato sauce, Caesar Salad, bread, cheese, some dessert cheese cake thing, and a glass of red wine.
This flight is totally full to the brim. A few seats are left open, but not many. My seat mate had to move due to lack of space…which of coarse created more space for me. Right now an in flight movie is going, “The Secret Life of Bees” I think is the title. I’m totally not interested. So I’ve been reading my Economist and visiting. I’m getting slightly sleepy, but not too much. At home it’s 7pm. In Frankfurt it’s 2am. This time change is realllllly gonna suck. We’ll have another 5 hr layover in Frankfurt before we head to Kiev. They will be serving us breakfast on the plane as well…wonder what that will be.
Love!
Day Two:
Woke up late. My room mate set two alarms but neither one went off. Fortunately we had a random alarm set for 6am. We had to be down in the lobby to leave for New York at 6:30. I was supposed to meet some girls for Starbucks at 6, but I totally missed that since I had to get ready and get everything together.
Down to the lobby. Paid for the bell hop and bus help. Gathered with our bus groups and tied purple string to our luggage; a Peace Corps tradition. We waited around for about 20 minutes and started to load the bus. My luggage is SOOOO heavy! I totally cannot wait until I am able to unpack. Took about a two hour bus ride to New York, JFK Airport. It was the first time I’ve seen the New York skyline…it was really cool. I definitely would like to visit NYC in the future.
We got to JFK pretty early. We had a two and a half hour wait until we could check in. In the meantime we got breakfast and hung out. During this time we had a bit of a freak-out with the luggage allowance situation. We were told by Peace Corps that we could have two checked pieces of luggage at 50 lbs each, and one carry on, no weight restrictions, and one personal item. Well, one of my fellow PCVs was speaking with an airline worker and was told that we were allowed the two checked bags at 50lbs exactly, we could not go over, and a checked bag of only 10lbs. So, everyone was frantically trying to get their carry on luggage weight down so that they wouldn’t have to check their bags. The charge for additional weight and/or checking a third bag is $200.00. Meanwhile one of the girls here called our country director from staging and asked if he could talk to the airline, since we’re PC and all. Turns out that he was able to smooth things out with the airline and no one was charged for anything. (I didn’t even have my checked bags weighed.)
We waited around for another hour and half before boarding, spending time eating lunch and hanging out some more. Then we loaded the plane for Frankfurt. I have an aisle seat. Thank goodness! The seats are kinda hard and there is a crying child next to me. Well sometimes he cries, but for the most part I guess he’s pretty quiet.
Dinner was served. Choice of chicken and mushrooms or pasta. I hate mushrooms! I had pasta with tomato sauce, Caesar Salad, bread, cheese, some dessert cheese cake thing, and a glass of red wine.
This flight is totally full to the brim. A few seats are left open, but not many. My seat mate had to move due to lack of space…which of coarse created more space for me. Right now an in flight movie is going, “The Secret Life of Bees” I think is the title. I’m totally not interested. So I’ve been reading my Economist and visiting. I’m getting slightly sleepy, but not too much. At home it’s 7pm. In Frankfurt it’s 2am. This time change is realllllly gonna suck. We’ll have another 5 hr layover in Frankfurt before we head to Kiev. They will be serving us breakfast on the plane as well…wonder what that will be.
Love!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)