real live peace corps volunteer.

Hello all!!! Today I finally got to be sworn in as a real live peace corps volunteer! it's great. I got to hold my right hand up and swear an oath and i was told I was a soldier for the USA. very exciting.

Tomorrow i start the voyage to my new home! I start on the train from rabat-marakesh then I stay the night in marakesh with my two region mates, mimi and sairah. after then i travel over the high atlas mountains by bus. I'm so excited to see the mountains of Morocco! It should be an interesting voyage, I might have to invest in some Dramamine. After a couple hours we should arrive in ourzazate! which is known for the amount of movies that are filmed there. If you've seen the movie babel- that's where it was shot, and that's my region! woot! Then my region mates that are already established in their sites are throwing a thanksgiving party! and it works out time wise that we can stop along the way before we get to our home site. I am very excited about having an thanksgiving party with the people i will be closest to geographically for the next two years. I am thankful (get it!) that it worked out so well, and i love thanksgiving so that's even better. After thanksgiving i have to go get my luggage a couple hours south in a city called zagora then i'm not entirely sure how to get to my home town from there. some combination of taxi's and inshallah's (god willing's). My stuff seems to have multiplied since i arrived here so my once modest looking two bags feels more like an unbearable weight. I cannot wait to get established somewhere and not deal with carting my life around on wheels or on my back.

speaking of which this voyage brings me to something i've been realizing lately. Once i get to my city, it will be the longest i will have been somewhere since college. and even then, in college you leave and go back every couple of months. this is the first time i'm actually LIVING somewhere. up until this point (since high school) i've been either going or coming, never staying. I've never had a regular coffee shop or a regular restaurant or known the neighbors, let alone worked or integrated into a community. the adventure i'm about to embark on is both daunting and exciting.

I HAVE A NEW ADDRESS!!!!

"name'' / maison des jeunes - casbah ait atta / n'kob -zagora province / 


Morocco / africa


Huzzah! that means all of you that i know have been DYING to send me care packages can now do so. here's something important about care packages though. Do not value anything at over 10 dollars on the customs sheet or i will be stacked with custom fees. more often then not packages will be opened, and if customs thinks my package is intended for resale they will also charge me, so if you send me swanky presents take them out of their original packaging and if you send something like electronics or something brand new and expensive then put it in a different box (tampon boxes are especially effective). the mail here seems to be pretty consistent and generally takes 2-4 weeks to arrive based on the letters i've received so far.

I have a small wish list, though it will probably change between now and when I get my own place.

at this point I have a wish list- this is a loose wish list, and feel free to use your creativity, but this is just things i thought of. honestly i have a lot of stuff here and this is just extra on top of what i already have.

-febreeze (this would be fantastic, imagine watching all your clothes by hand)
-toms/natural deodorant
-moisturizer  (the moisturizer here sucks and is expensive)
- Mix CDS! please i love getting new music
-pictures of you, pictures of life. anything to remind me of home, i realize that now that we all do digital pictures i don't have a lot of physical pictures of anyone and i don't know what my internet access will be like.
-anything to decorate my house with- you be the judge.
-essential oils! ( i would love these bzzef bzzef bzzef (a lot x3) they're multi purpose and I can use them for deodorant, perfume etc)
-mac and cheese
-cheddar cheese (dont send in the summer)
-velveeta
-junk food (specificaly cheese flavored items (notice a pattern, and remember that time i was a vegan), and honey bbq flavored items . my favorites are doritoes (cooler ranch) sun chips, munchies, honey bbq, ruffles)
-zip lock bags
-spices- specifically NOT cumin or pepper or salt or ginger but things like curry powder, garlic powder, italian seasonings, any mixed spices, curry paste, maybe some tasty hot sauce (ciracha, tobasco, something not too spicy with a good taste).
-condiments and premixed sauces, ketchup, bbq sauce, sweet and sour, anything really i love sauces! i'm looking forward to having a fridge filled with condiments.
-tupperware containers
-measuring cups
-kitchen supplies (veggie peelers, nice knives,  french press etc etc)
-sweet and sour sauce and sweet chilie sauce (to make guacamole specifically)
-PENS and School supplies! omg i would love your forever for pens. specifically sharpie pens and rsvp fine point black and then there's also my love for pilot pens. so nice black pens or colorful pens. no just blue pens. i hate blue pens. also just to preface i don't particularly need notebooks (unless it's a graph paper moleskin or graph paper anything) i'm in the world of graph paper and i'm
- Books of any kind (i'll have a lot of time so i'd love to have some extra stuff to read, and when i leave the upcoming peace corps volunteers will love the contributions to the library)
- Magazines (specifically outside or naturey type ones, national geographic, time, but i'm not picky i'll take anything whatsoever- because even though i'd like to think i don't like those gossip mags, we all do... let's be honest )
-lipton pasta and rice bags, think college. yummy. instant alfredo pasta? yes please
-luna bars and cliff bars
-granola bars
-dark chocolate, they don't have it here
-peanut butter (specifically crunchy and organic or almond butter or anything like that)
-snacks of any kind.
-capri cotton yoga pants (walmart works)
-black underwer or bike shorts
- also if anyone has a comfy oversized tshirt and baggy pants or big workout clothes that would be good to work out in that would be great. I didn't really bring anything that is culturally appropriate to work out in outside. as you all know women here cover up head to toe, so if i want to be known as the crazy american who walks and runs outside then i'd rather be the culturally appropriate crazy american walking and running outside.
-any cardigans. girls, if you are looking for a way to get rid of long sleeve cardigans do not give them to goodwill. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE give them to me. especially if they're long (past the butt) and lightweight. remember ladies i need to wear longs sleeves all the time, even when it's 120 degrees mid summer
-anything good for kids or kids books- any games, books, classroom supplies anything whatsoever.

but most of all i would just love and cherish letters- i understand shipping things is expensive- so whatever ya'll can do. I love getting letters and my life will totally slow down once i get to site and I love writing letters. i make no garuntee that they will be coherent or not rambly, but I will write you back. and let's be honest people, who doesn't enjoy getting mail? duh.

so yes. please send me mail. or emails if you don't have time. i love hearing from people, even if your life is mundane, find the joy in the small stuff and then tell me about it.

so yes. there's my current wish list. i hope you are all well and i will probably be off the grid for a little while specifically because of travel and being in a new place. I cannot wait to be in my new home, even though it's a little intimidating, i'm sure i can handle it, but this is definitely a new challenge.

i'm so excited to embark on this new adventure and i cannot wait to see this country, even if it is from the window of a bus or a train.