I made it to Swaziland safely!!

I left Syracuse for Swaziland 10 whole days ago! Wow!! I cannot
believe it! The plane ride from JFK to Johannesburg, South Africa was
15 hours long. The flight was smooth and pretty uneventful, just
long. I came to Swaziland with 38 other Trainees (we don't become
official Volunteers until August) and I am pleased to tell you that
every single person I am with here is genuine and hard working. They
have all become great friends in a very short amount of time. Once
the plane landed, we all hopped on a bus for 10 more hours of travel,
which included a couple pee stops, crossing the border from SA to
Swaziland, and dinner at a hamburger restaurant. I don't know if this
is a Swazi thing or not, but this particular restaurant puts BBQ sauce
and French dressing(I think it was) on their hamburgers.. weird, no
ketchup or mustard in sight… how am I supposed to eat my chips(fries).
It was very clear when we crossed the border of SAfrica that we were
now in Swaziland. South Africa was mostly flat plains and very little
shrubbery. When we crossed the border into Swaziland, the first thing
we see is a big mountain and many more trees and plants. This country
is very beautiful!
The first couple of nights we stayed in the dorms of Ngwane Teacher's
College which is where much of our training sessions are held. It was
justlike beingin college again; they cooked us breakfast, lunch, and
dinner while we were in class all day. The food was different… a lot
of it good, and some of it not so good. A lot of beans, rice, and
corn porridge (looks like mashed potatoes and has no real taste… its
corn flour and water). The beans or meat that was served always had
a nice sauce to pour over the corn porridge or rice… very good!
The stars here are beautiful! We arrived to Ngwane at night and the
first thing I asked was for someone to show me the Southern Cross (the
southern hemisphere's North Star). I feel like I have looked at the
stars in NY from some pretty remote, dark places, but it cannot
compare to the stars I see now!
I just move into my homestay the other day. I will be here for the
next 2 months. My family lives on a the Babe's(father's) family's
homestead. I haven't figured out how many live here. There is about
5 houses, a ton of sheep, cows, chickens, and a rooster that wakes up
around 2:30a. The nuclear family I am with I aMake(mom), Babe(dad),
Bhuti(15yr old brother). My Make is great, super nice and helpful.
She speaks English! I will tell more about my homestead later, but I
got lucky! I have my own little house with electricity and the spigot
with running water is close by.
I am in very good spirits. I miss everyone a little bit, but not
really homesick yet.

Yay! Today is the day!  It is finally here!  Heading to Philly today for staging.  Getting all of those crazy vaccines tomorrow! And then headed to Swaziland Wednesday!
Packing sucks!  I am hoping that my bags aren't overweight...  I keep trying to take things out, but that never seems to help.  The weight just stays the same :( ... Hopefully won't have to leave anything at the airport!

Bags are packed!  Hopefully they don't weigh too much!

I am not expecting to have access to the internet for a couple weeks.  I will try to update this when I am able, so please be patient and check back periodically.

Thanks to everyone for all your support and well wishes!  I love you and will miss you!
<3 Kelly

I feel like a rockstar! Tons of Good Bye Celebrations!

6 days until I leave for Pre-Service Training!
I am beside myself with excitement! It still doesn't feel real that I am actually moving to Swaziland.  I don't know why I am not nervous about leaving to a third world country, but only about packing for it!

The last couple of weeks I have been spending in Syracuse, my hometown while preparing for departure, and the time has been going by way too fast!  I have been the center of attention, consumed way too much food and alcohol, received a surplus of hugs and well-wishes from all the most important people in my life!  You all have made me feel so special!  My life has been a huge party for the last couple of weeks, it has been great, but I think my sister is going to be happy when she finally gets to have a full night's sleep again!

Shout outs to:
My Sister, Patty for letting me live with her, hosting a barbeque, road tripping to Buffalo, staying up late, and making my time left at home really special!
My girls: Sommer, Melissa, Allison, Maureen, and Julie.... and Kyle.  You are the best!!
My family and my Plymouth UCC family for a great send-off on Sunday.
My camping family and a beautiful day at Southwick Beach!  (I will try to remember about Itis)
Linda - I am so glad I made it out to Buffalo to see you and your family.  The memorial day parade was great, but now I have a sunburn, ouch!
Danielle and Shawn - Congrats and have a blast at your wedding!
And to everyone that I saw this past weekend that I forgot to mention: I really appreciate your support!

I am looking forward to one more week full of going away excitement!  Soon I will be blogging from Swaziland, but for the first couple months I will have very limited access to the internet and I will be super busy training and learning siSwati anyway, so be patient and stay tuned because I am about to begin the experience of a lifetime and I am excited to share my adventure with you all!

Going away party!

14 days until Staging!  These two weeks are going to fly by.

Yesterday was my going going away party.  It was great to see everyone.  I could feel your love, excitement, and support for me.  I am very lucky to have you all.  I appreciate all of your gifts, cards, and words of encouragement!!!

I had to show everyone where Swaziland is on the map.

Awesome cake! Yum!

Love spending time with my family before I leave!

Packing Madness!  Too much to pack, not enough time!!

My ticket for Staging is booked!

This morning I heard my computer chime, notifying me that I have a new e-mail.  It was the staging information from the Peace Corps!!!  Staging is being held in Philadelphia for a day full of ice breaker games and sore arms from all the vaccines we need to get.

My travel itinerary for the next month:
In 5 days.. Saturday 5/14 - Leaving NJ for Syracuse!
about 3 weeks in Syracuse.
June 6 @ 3:23p - Leaving Syracuse and arriving in Philadelphia @ 4:25p
June 8 @ 3:00a!!! Leave hotel for JFK airport .... idk why staging isn't held in NYC?
   plane leaves @ 11:25a for Swaziland
June 9 - Arriving in Swaziland!!!!
June 10 - CULTURE SHOCK!! lol

I am very grateful for the last 8 or so months I was able to spend with my mom and stepdad in New Jersey and also for all the people I met while living here, especially the Carnes family, all of my coworkers at the Gap, and the members of Parsippany UMC.  You have all touched my life!

I am looking forward to seeing all of my friends and family in Syracuse for the next couple weeks!

Pastor Jeff of Parsippany UMC gave me a beautiful
blessing and a prayer blanket for my PC journey!

Will and Kari Carnes - I will really miss you guys!

Counting down

30 days until I will be in Syracuse!  I will be spending the my last couple weeks in Syracuse with family and friends and all the packing that needs to be done.
About 50 days til I will be in Africa.  The countdown has begun.

Flip flops + Snow in March = Really Cold Toes!

How is it that time can go so fast and so slow at the same time?   The days seem to drag on, especially since  I have been mainly working closing shifts at night and spending my days checking and rechecking facebook, reading blogs, and studying siSwati.  Yet, at the same time June doesn't feel that far away.

Two weeks ago we had a mini-family reunion in Myrtle Beach, SC.  I was a fantastic vacation full of sun, sand, and shopping!  Can't get any better!  I bought a few dresses for my new wardrobe.  We laid on the beach and played in the ocean.  I even got a bit of a sun tan!  At night we all went swimming in the pool and jacuzzi.  I didn't want to leave!  I thought it was a good idea to only wear a t-shirt, some jeans, and flip-flops to the airport which wasn't so smart because since the ground was covered in snow when we got home to NJ.  I didn't want my vacation to be over so quickly, but that snow definitely brought me back to reality.

Last weekend we went to REI and got a sleeping bag and solar shower, among other things.  Definitely a cool store.  So at this point I feel like I am almost done shopping.  I have a new wardrobe, somewhere to sleep, and the ability to shower! That should cover it, right?  Now, I just have to hope it all its in my suitcases in 2 months!