Philadelphia

Well I made it to Philly!! After a sad goodbye and last minute frenzy
to lighten my bags I got on a plane heading east. On the shuttle to the
airport I met two girls in the same boat as me: strugglig with luggage
and nervous as ever. We checked into the hotel and found a place to
eat some Philly cheese steaks. After a little more down time we had to
check in with pc people and turn in some forms. We were given our per
diem and our old passport. Everyone who was there ( probably about 35
of us) headed to a bar for dinner and drinks.

It has been really great meeting everyone and hearing similar stories
about packing, the application process, and freaking out about leaving
for two years. There are a lot of folks from the east coast, but also
some from Texas and Washington.

This morning we woke up unneccesarily early and walked to a federal
building. Everyone had to get a yellow fever and an h1n1 shot. After
being poked a few of us decided to go see the liberty bell and
independence hall. Philly seems like a great town and the history here
is really interesting. Meetings start in about an hour so me and my
roomate are just hanging out in the room for a while.

I feel much more relaxed now and look forward to the next step. We
leave for jfk airport at 2 am for a 10:30 flight... Not sure what
we're leaving so early but oh well!!