I’m starting to think that the PiA office is going to start calling me the problem child of the summer.

That sounds like a bold claim, but I’m sure I’m already that kid. You know, the one who had to play phone tag with Tina until her flight iteranary got worked out. The one who couldn’t get a visa with the rest of the group because her passport was going to expire too early. The one that missed the deadline for the first blog post (oops).

I’m working through it all one step at a time. My flights have been booked, I’m writing a post now, my new passport came in the mail last Friday (valid until 2022!), and I’m heading into DC tomorrow to go to the Chinese embassy. I’m still a little worried (and sorry for making more trouble for Cameron and Eliot), but I’m confident everything will work out. It always does.

After my trip into DC tomorrow, the next thing on my to-do list is starting to pack…or, starting to plan to pack. Knowing me, I’ll leave most of the packing for the night of the 19th, and it will be a little stressful, but it will get done. (I can just sleep on the plane, right?) Cameron and Eliot gave us a packing list, which should make things somewhat easier, but I’m still a little concerned about the 40 pound limit. Or, maybe, more than that, I’m just worried I won’t have enough room, regardless of the weight limit. All of us have to bring along 12 pairs of sunglasses to Jishou, and I don’t want them to get broken, so packing them might be a little challenging. After that, my next order of business is to pack a deflated rugby ball. I had been toying with the idea for a little bit, but hadn’t really decided to bring it along until I spoke with Anastasia (who also played rugby at Princeton!!) during the orientation weekend. (If my parents are reading this, I bet they’re both groaning and thinking something along the lines of “our daughter was supposed to write a post about China, and she managed to start talking about rugby. Again.” In my defense, I heard that there is a sports club, and figured I could introduce something new!)

Anyway, as the 20th grows closer, I’m growing more impatient for all the adventures I know are coming my way. WildChina. Battling with bugs. Getting by without knowing any Chinese. Trying new food. And, most importantly, teaching!

Bring it on.

– Kelsey