“It is against this backdrop that I have made the difficult decision to temporarily suspend all Peace Corps operations globally and evacuate all of our Volunteers. As COVID-19 continues to spread and international travel becomes more and more challenging by the day, we are acting now to safeguard your well-being and prevent a situation where Volunteers are unable to leave their host countries.”

Today was my last day at site. I packed up everything I wanted to take back to the USA and left the rest behind. The lock for my door “disappeared” while I was getting ready to leave. So, both doors, of my two rooms, are currently unlocked. I’m not really worried. I forgot to lock my bedroom door, when I was away all last week for medical and nothing was taken.

I left my compound with a suitcase, duffel bag, Peace Corps water filter, and a tote. My little host brother helped with the water filter. I only made it to the end of our little road. I was about to give up and send my host brother for a vehicle, to take me the short distance to the main road.

“Ms. KJ!” I heard the screams and looked up, from the rocky road that I was trying to drag my three bags across. A gang of children ran over to me, fought over who would get to carry my belongings, and made quick work of getting my items to the main road.

Now, due to this upcoming evacuation, there’s a major pause, in my daily Peace Corps volunteer routine. Later this week, I will return to the USA. It’s been three years, after serving in Armenia (2017/19) and Ethiopia (2019/20).

The adventure “always” continues. Sometimes, just not in the way you planned. … GGT