The packing is almost complete...

Lisa has been busy collecting items as she prepares for the adventure of a lifetime. She is about to depart on a 2 year assignment to Guinea, Africa for the Peace Corps. Her assignment: to provide help and support for small business development.

With a weight limit of 80 pounds, the task has been challenging for both mother and daughter. Christmas gifts looked quite different this year - journals, camping gear, batteries, wind-up flashlights, Teva sandals...light years away from the usual gadgets, games and fashions. The list provided by the Peace Corps lists dozens of items --surely, if we include them all, there is no way she'll stay within the 80 pound limit. Then there is the other problem of how she can possibly carry it all. I'll let you all know how it goes!

On January 10, Lisa will fly to Philadelphia for a 2-day orientation session with the Peace Corps. Then it is on to Africa, via Brussels, Belgium. She'll have 3 months of intensive training in country which will cover the basics of language (French --with multiple variations and dialects) health, and safety. She won't find out her final destination (city --specific job assignment) until sometime during her training.

Mail is not always reliable, thus the reason for establishing this blog to share information between Lisa and her family and friends. It is our hope that she will have occasional access to the internet and that this forum will be a place where she can quickly catch up on happenings at home, and share information with all of you.