The List

As I fervently try to pack for this two-year adventure, I’ve become obsessed with packing lists. What did other volunteers bring? What did they not bring? What do they wish they’d have brought?

For the sake of everyone else who struggles, and those who are curious what I’ll be living with for the next two years, here’s what I’ve got:

Luggage:
North Face Base Camp Duffel (Large)
Kelty Coyote hiking backpack (4500 cu)
Jansport Backpack

Sleep:
Mountain Hardware Switch 20 sleeping bag
Pillow
Earplugs
Unisom
Melatonin

Kitchen:
GSI Outdoors Pinnacle Frypan–8in
Plastic Spatula
Measuring cups/spoons
Peeler
Can opener
Kitchen knife
Oven Mitt/Pot holder
Water bottle

Food:
Herbs&Spices
-Basil
-Black Pepper
-Oregano
-Thyme
-Cinnamon
-Nutmeg
-Stirfry seasoning
-Teriyaki seasoning
-Brown Mustard
Crystal Light flavor packets
Tuna packets
Nature Valley Granola bars
Godiva Dark Chocolate Squares
Stride Sweetmint gum (12packs)

Useful stuff:
Leatherman  knife
Index cards
Duct tape
Brunton Solo Battery Pack (charger) and batteries
Petzl Tikkina 2 Headlamp
Mini-mag Flashlight and bulbs
Scissors

Technology/media:
Dell Inspiron mini netbook
External hard drive (with movies)
Olympus digital camera
8G iPod Nano/armband
Earbuds (4)
Portable Speakers
Currency Converter (220/110v)

Pest Control:
Cat treats
Fly swatter

Health:
Eye drops
Resistance bands
Yoga mat
Enteric-coated peppermint oil

Hygiene:
Sea To Summit Tek Towel-Large (quick dry)
Venus razor/refill cartridges
Shampoo/Conditioner
Hair ties
 Face wash wipes (120) /SPF Face lotion
Deodorant (4)
Bath and Body Works body spray
Pumice/foot scrubber
Nail clippers
Tweezers
Floss/toothpaste/toothbrush
Q-tips/Cotton balls
Wet wipes
Tampons

Host family gifts:
Post cards
Fabric wall flags (2)
America Playing Cards
Suckers
Balloons
Deflated soccer ball

Entertainment:
Notebooks
Pens/Pencils
Crayons
Frisbee
Playing cards
Books
Seeds

Clothing:
Skirts (2)
Dress/Skirt convertible
Dress (hand sewn by my very dear friend)
Dress for staging/swearing-in
Fitted shirts (4)
T-shirts (3)
Linen Pants
Dry-wick Pants
Jeans
Yoga Capris (2)
Long-sleeve zip up (2)
Carhart Zip Hoodie
Underwear (14)
Socks (12)
Bras (2)
Sportsbra (3)

Rainwear:
North Face Resolve Waterproof Jacket
Umbrella

Footwear:
Chacos (ZX/2 Vibram Unaweep)
Chacos (Flip Ecotread)
Keen Pyronese waterproof hiking boots
Trail running shoes
Ballet flat dress shoes

Now.. I haven’t tried to actually pack all of this yet. I’ve got an 80-pound limit here. Some of the food may have to wait, and the kitchen stuff may need to be sent separate, but I’m hoping to spare the $45 mailing fee. Wish me luck!

Let’s Talk

I got a message from the Peace Corps office today, making this adventure all the more real. In addition to training information, there’s a section they wrote up especially for you. Here’s the gist of it:

Letters
The mail service in Ethiopia is not as efficient as the U.S. Postal Service.  It can take 3-4 weeks for letters from Ethiopia to get to the States.  And if I’m assigned to a small faraway village, it could take 1-2 months to reach you. If you date your letters to me (and number them) I can let you know how long it takes for me to get them.

Packages
These are not guaranteed to reach me, but current volunteers have said they haven’t had a problem. Don’t send anything too expensive. Electronics have extremely high custom taxes, so please don’t send any. Padded envelopes are often taxed less than boxes, if you can opt for those. Care packages will probably be a little piece of heaven, so thanks ahead of time. Here’s the address again:

Katie Olean, PCV
U.S. Peace Corps
P.O. Box 7788
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Also they said cash and checks are not recommended through the mail. (bummer.) If you send a postcard, please put it in an envelope. If you don’t, some postal worker will likely have a new picture for their wall. 

Phone Calls
To get some actual voice conversations, it’s possible to call my cell phone (number to come). However, there’s a part about how difficult it is to get through and you may need to call 5-10 times in a row, even if it says I’m “out of the service area.” There’s always Skype… although I haven’t given it a practice run yet. And who knows how internet will be.

The Fun Stuff
Then there was a little section on my possible “war stories,” by which they mean illness , lack of good food, isolation, etc. They assure you it’s never as bad as it sounds, and we have a doctor and physician’s assistant on staff in Addis Ababa. If it’s really bad, we’ll be medically evacuated to Kenya, South Africa or the United States. (Let’s not hope for that.)

So that’s about it. I love you all forever for reading this and sending me letters when I get there. I promise, I’ll write you all back. Two weeks to go!