I think it's gonna be a long, long, time...

Dear Readers,

I said goodbye to Petropavlovsk on Tuesday, the 25th. The emotional toll of saying goodbye to friends, fellow volunteers, and my students was heavy. It was raining when I left, and a friend told me that Mother Nature was crying about my departure as well. Following my last 31 hour train ride, in Kazakhstan at least, I arrived in Almaty. I'm now going through the Peace Corps' Close of Service process (paperwork, giving stool samples, etc.). It's crazy to think that my service is coming to an end. There were times that it went by really slowly, but these past two months have flown by.
After a few days here, doing paperwork and visiting friends and my old host family, I'll board a plane bound for Russia on November 1st. My dad and I will meet in Moscow at the airport, then fly immediately to Vladivostok to begin our trip on the Trans-Siberian Railroad, on through to Mongolia, and then further south into China. Following seven weeks of travel, we'll land in Boston on December 21st. I'm overjoyed to go back to the U.S.; the land of bagels, Mexican food, English speakers, and free speech, where I haven't been for more than two years. However, the thought of leaving here and not knowing when, if ever, I will return has been sad to think about.
I've moved several times in my adult life, but most of those places are easy enough to get back to. The possibility always remained that I would go back and visit friends and favorite haunts. I have both of those things here in Petropavlovsk, but the likelihood of coming back and the logistics make leaving here seem very permanent and final.
My students and colleagues at the orphanage kept asking when I would go back to America. I told them that I would leave them on October 25th. They told me I should come back, but if I don't they'll write me and maybe one day visit me in America. I hope that comes true. Of all the things I will miss in Kazakhstan, it is the people that I will miss most.
I have been really busy these last few months, and have been bad about updating this blog. As I got used to life here, it was harder to find topics to write about. Also, blogs are blocked here and it was difficult to gain access sometimes. Excuses aside, I hope you have enjoyed reading my posts, and maybe I will include some updates from our trip. Thanks for reading and hope to see you stateside soon!

I'll leave you with a list of things I will miss and things I'm looking forward to.

Things I will miss:
- the craziness of public transportation
- speaking Russian all of the time
- local friends and Peace Corps Volunteers
- being a celebrity, just because I'm American
- Russian food/Uighur food

Things I'm looking forward to:
- being able to drive myself places
- speaking English
- family and friends
- blending in
- real vegetarian food!