It's that time of year again

Every July in America, about 80 people who complete the long and grueling application process to join the Peace Corps begin to get their invitation letters to come to Kazakhstan. They have the rest of the summer to get their lives in order, settle their affairs, and prepare to live for 2 years in a country drastically different from their own. Excitement ensues. And nervousness. And anxiety. They want to know everything they can about what to bring, what to wear, what to learn, and how to live. And why not? Joining the Peace Corps is kind of a big deal.

They are not the only people who are excited. Every July in Kazakhstan, about 100 Peace Corps Volunteers begin to get really stoked for these new future volunteers to come. For some, the excitement means that they’ll be able to leave their organizations and schools to go back to America, knowing that someone else will proudly carry on and build upon the work they have started. For others, the excitement comes with the hope that they will gain a “sitemate”: a fellow volunteer that lives (relatively) close whom you can collaborate on projects, have fun, and generally be awesome together. Others are excited just to be excited. They all want to help the new people along as much as possible, because they were in the same place one, sometimes two years before and they know how it feels. And why not? Being in the Peace Corps is kind of a big deal.

So these two groups, the prospective volunteers in America and current volunteers in Kazakhstan begin to reach out to one another. With the presence of the internet, this has become easier than ever. There are message boards, Facebook groups, blogs, and Google-knows-what-else .

For awhile I’ve been fielding about 2-3 emails a week from prospective volunteers. While I love talking to prospective volunteers, I’ve started to wonder why I haven’t blogged more on topics that would directly interest them. So, I’ve decided that my next three blog posts will focus on the top three questions I’ve received so far from people that will soon come to Kazakhstan:

· What should I bring?

· What should I know before I go?

· Any other advice?

As always, my opinions are only one person, just one volunteer that lives in Kazakhstan, and should be taken as such, and nothing more. However, if anyone has any questions and wishes to discuss anything in more detail feel free to contact me at kyle.charles17@gmail.com. I dislike message boards and Facebook, but I love email.