Some random updates

Sorry for the posting lapse, but I’ve been luxuriating on Cape Cod with my family and good friend Amanda for the past week.

A few updates, with more detailed posts coming soon:

• I just started reading Anna Reid’s Borderland: A Journey into the History of Ukraine, and it’s pretty fascinating. I’m only one chapter in, but have already learned about the whole early history of Ukraine. The only downside to the book is that it was published in 1997, only 5 years after Ukrainian independence, so the current stuff she talks about isn’t all that current.

• Peace Corps/Ukraine emailed us — Groups 39 and 40, departing in September — a list of current TEFL Volunteers in Ukraine. I’ve started contacting some of them with my crazy questions about packing, teaching English for the first time, being a woman in Ukraine, and more. One of the women I emailed directed me to the next exciting bullet point…

• …a Facebook group entitled: “Peace Corps Ukraine – Groups 39 & 40.” Perfect! I’ve joined the group and am starting to “meet” some fellow Group 39-ers. Very exciting — everyone has such different and interesting backgrounds and I can’t wait to meet them all in person.

• I just ordered The English Language Teacher’s Handbook: How to Teach Large Classes With Few Resources. Looks like a valuable investment so I can learn how to teach my native language. And if it turns out to be a terrible book, that’s okay because I bought it used on Amazon for a total of $5.55!

Okay, now back to vacationing and reading my TEFL Home Prep Manual so I can take a test on it before Pre-Service Training. More later!

[Countdown to Departure: 42 days]