Turkmenistan...update

Here I am, just shy of one month pre-departure. I just received my staging packet of information (the last oversized packet I will receive from Peace Corps - hopefully!). Staging is my training prior to leaving the U.S. and it will take place in Philadelphia a city I'm excited to return to. I am still excited/anxious/perplexed/etc. about leaving. I've been reading everything I can get my hands on about Peace Corps and remain eternally optimistic. I've been attempting to gather information to decrease the impact of "country shock" as Peace Corps so aptly puts it. According to the information I've aquired I can look forward to being surrounded by strangers between the time I board the plane in Milwaukee until I "make new friends". I can also expect to encounter at least one gastrointestinal illness which will lower my energy level and make me feel lonely. I believe, as an attempt to pre-empt that lonliness I have been sent various coincidental contacts. For example; a friend from high school has a friend from college who is already in Turkmenistan working as a Peace Corps Volunteer (PCV). And just a few minutes ago another friend from high school found out that a former roomate of hers from college is also going to Turkmenistan at the same time I am! Yay! I can feign a relationship! There will be someone who isn't a total stranger! I supose that is enough lamenting for today.

A few reminders about letters - and I would love to receive your letters! Letters take a long time to reach me so be aware that I may not respond as quickly as you may hope. Number your letters and/or packages - this will allow me to know if I'm missing a letter from you as well as how long the letters take to arrive to Turkmenistan. Finally, (for now) I will have very limited access to the internet (almost none during training) and therefore any updates on here will most likely be typed by my parents. So - thanks in advance mom and dad!

Peace Corps in Turkmenistan

I figured I should add some details about the country I'll be spending the next 2.25 years in to my blog. Turkmenistan is located north of Iran and Afghanistan and east of the Caspian Sea. It gained its independance from the former Soviet Union in 1991. The population is estimated at just over 5,000,000 and the country is about the size of California. Nearly 700,000 of those people live in Ashgabat, the capitol. It is a country where the national language and main cultural group is Turkman. The religion practiced by most residents is Islam. 4/5 ths of the country is a large desert. I'm slowly learning more and more and if you have questions feel free to ask! History of the country can be found on Wikipedia. It is fairly in depth for a country that many have not even heard of.