Hey Everyone,
It’s that time. My last day is finally here. I’ve just checked my bags and got my boarding passes from the Air France office so I’m ready to go tonight. Peace Corps is taking me to the airport around 8pm and my flight leaves just before 11pm in theory. My nerves always get a little jittery when I’m flying but today I don’t feel it much. I guess a part of me is no longer stressed at the prospect of travel...I became very accustomed to delays, cancellations, missing connecting transport, breakdowns, etc all in another language. Plus, I’m fairly confident I won’t have to sleep in the side of the road or ride on a plane with no windows, seats, or roof…
I’m so tired of goodbyes and am very much looking forward to some much anticipated greetings!! I’ve tried to enjoy my last few days in Mali and not dwell on the goodbyes. To do this well, I ate well. And often. And a lot. I decided to go out with a bang and so this week has been really fun.
I took the Peace Corps shuttle down on Sunday and stayed at the volunteer house in Bamako most of the week with the exception of one night when I splurged to stay at a quaint hotel downtown. Date nights are hard to come by but Justin and I did it well this week. We had cocktails at happy hour and an appetizer then a delicious meal plus dessert…I haven’t had that much good food in a long time. Plus the ambiance was really nice.
The Bamako National Park was opened last year for the 50th anniversary of their Independence Day and Justin and I went back in January and decided to go again because it was so nice. We even went to the “expat grocery store” and bought cheese, salami, bread and wine for a picnic in the park. It felt so normal. It’s funny to see Malian couples being affectionate too. In Bamako things are different. In Sebanso (most any village) I spent two years and still don’t know who is married to whom because there are rarely moments of affection shared. In the park it almost felt a little scandalous seeing so many couples holding hands or out on dates.
Last night I went to Indian food with Justin and a few friends and after properly foundering on a delicious dinner I decided I had room for ice cream so went to my favorite ice cream shop (there are now 2 ice cream shops…talk about sustainable development!).
The work aspect of this past week was fairly stressful but totally manageable and each day was productive but never overwhelming. I was cleared medically, tested Advanced-Middle in my final language Exam, had an exit interview with my boss and the country director of Mali, turned in all my Peace Corps books and bike and medical equipment…man did I acquire a lot of stuff over two years. It was frustrating working around so many people’s schedules but it feels pretty great having everything done.
I’m getting excited now with the flight just a few hours away…it finally seems real that I’m actually going. I said goodbye to Justin this morning, he took a Peace Corps shuttle up to his place in Bandiagara. It was a really hard goodbye but we have a couple of busy weeks ahead of us and I suspect they will pass quickly for us both. I guess I’ll close for now. It’s been a fabulous 27 months. I hope you’ve enjoyed the letters home and tomorrow afternoon, I’ll finally be home.
Much love,
Cait
