Pre~Departure Procedures

Well the time has arrived. It is t minus 12 hours until boarding and I cannot sleep a wink. The past twenty four hours have been a whirlwind and it seems as though I am still very caught up in the swirl. Everything about this trip seems different than anything I have ever done before. I feel like I am more off on my own than when I had lived in Spain for four months, though the number of people I knew and could depend on was by far fewer and more distant. Maybe it is the fact that there is a slight element of danger in the lands I am going to, or maybe it is the fact that its four countries in three months, or maybe that on the other end of this study tour there is an internship waiting for me involving my activist passion. I am not really sure! I just know that this trip is mine, and that it is going to be life changing! Even now as I type these thoughts at four a.m. I can see flashes of all the images covered in class, on the news, in books and dreams, passing through mind and the excitement and butterflies just overwhelm me.

As I sit here, I can’t help but recount the last two days. It’s hard to think of all that one needs to pack when you will be gone for three months, and in two totally different environments no less. I am so relieved that I sent a suitcase with my clothing for Russia ahead of me to Moscow with an Uncle. I really can’t recall what I packed in there per say, but I know that it is much more business oriented. My internship with the International Organization of Migration in Moscow will be very much a 9 to 5 office work type of thing, though the work I will be doing will well make up for its seeming mundane regularity. The issues arise much more so with finding things to wear in Uzbekistan and Tajikistan. One must have modest clothing that is lightweight and that covers the shoulders, with a head scarf always readily available to enter into sacred spaces and such. Wednesday I spent the entire day shopping and buying linen based clothing. Old Navy and Loehmans turned out to be great finds in buying reasonably priced linen pants and shirts. I highly recommend looking in these stores if traveling to areas that are quite dusty, with dry hot summers, and require modest dress. I made three lists, with all of the items I needed, this included electronics, books, supplies, clothing, toiletries, medication, and any extraneous items I might need. This tends to be a perfect way of keeping track of everything I need and will need to pack once the trip is over. Once all of my items were attained, all that was left was making it fit into a medium sized suitcase, a book bag, and a messenger bag. No easy task, but not impossible!

On Thursday I spent the day with friends and family. I won’t be seeing them for quite a while. It’s going to be a long time away and with the countries I am going to, everyone is just a little bit worried. “Stay Safe!” has been the buzz phrase on everyone’s lips. I am not that concerned, I can’t say I ever was. The adventure of it definitely trumps the danger, and its inherent unpredictability makes it that much more appealing to me. Still spending time with my family and friends is also very important for me. I am going to miss them terribly and having them here the past few days to support me and be concerned for me makes me feel connected and safe.

Yesterday, after having dinner with my cousin and close friend, I returned home to have my mother inform me that the polio outbreak in Tajikistan spread to Russia and that Russia is taking strict precautionary measures to prevent the spread of the virus. This means that at customs, anyone flying in from Tajikistan will have to be vaccinated upon entrance. Well, that was a wonderful shocker! I really didn’t want to be vaccinated upon entrance into Russia. I can just imagine the lines and the chaos I will have to go through to get in. I quickly scrambled Friday morning for my family doctor’s phone number and told him about my polio situation. He was quick to advise me to get an updated polio vaccine because the drops you get as a kid may not be potent enough for an area with exposure in the virus and that I could get it done in the office that same day. So I made an appointment, got my shot, and made sure I got an official letter, stamped, and signed, saying I had the vaccine and that it was not necessary for me to get another one. I am very adamant that I do not have to get the vaccine at customs! I only hope that Russian customs control will find the document official enough to let me pass through. There will be some explaining to do I am sure.

After that was all settled, the remainder of the day was spent packing until the Flyers game at 7:30 pm, when my extended family was to join us for a final goodbye and hockey bonanza! It was great! The Flyers made history by being one of only 6 teams to make it to the semi finals in the playoffs with such a great come back, and that was proven in the game, when they came back from losing 3 to 0 to winning 4 to 3! We all had pizza., shouted at the t.v., yelled at each other and the dogs, and finally everyone gave me the “Ekka ( my Azeri name) be careful over there. Don’t do anything crazy. Stay with the group, be safe. Have fun!” It was a great way to spend the night before the trip. Now if only I could fall asleep!

Before I finish this blog, I thought it might be useful to put up an itinerary of the trip. This may be the last time I can blog for a while until we get settled. So here it is:

May 16 ~ Istanbul , Turkey
May 17 to 19 ~ Tashkent, Uzbekistan
May 20 ~ Khiva, Uzbekistan
May 21 ~ Ayaz Kala, Uzbekistan
May 22 to 24 ~ Bukhara, Uzbekistan
May 25 to 27 ~ Samarkand, Uzbekistan
May 28 ~ Penjikent, Uzbekistan
May 29 ~ Fann Mountains
May 30 ~ En route to Dushanbe
May 31 to June 3 ~ Dushanbe, Tajikistan
June 3 to August 5th ~ Moscow, Russia

Well that’s all for today! The next time I will be blogging, Global Gypsy will be in Central Asia!

Khoda hafez!