Gap Year part 1: Home

It's about a Gap Year. Going out of my comfort zone. Doing something new, something adventurous, and something meaningful. Which is why, unlike most people, I'm not in University this year. I figured when else can you take a year long break from your life? So I'm going to Africa instead.

Why sit in a classroom when you could be teaching instead? To be fair, I say this from the comfort of my favorite café in downtown Victoria, BC, which has always been home. Victoria that is, not the café. I want to be challenged, to "find myself".  It's time to leave my easy life behind for 6 months, and see the world. Which is why I have decided to volunteer with Lattitude Global Volunteering in Ghana. As soon as they gave a presentation in my grade 11 French Immersion Class at Vic High, I knew I wanted to do it. Ghana wasn't the original plan, but if you have an interview with Stuart, the program director, it doesn't take much for the idea of going to Ghana to stick in your mind. So, a year after my interview I'm ready to go! (Well, almost. There's the whole packing thing to be dealt with.)

I'm going to be teaching English and Creative Arts at Western Royal Montessori School in Sekondi, on the Western Coast of Ghana. I'll be there for 5 months with my roomie Maddi (from Kelowna, BC), living in a little pink house on the school property.

But first, here's a little bit about me and my previous 4 months or so, because they've turned out to be far more valuable than I thought. I basically just work all the time. I started at the UVic Bookstore for the September Rush, which was a huge score on my part because I was definitely the baby of the bunch there :) I met so many nice people, and ended up joining a rez intermurals soccer team thanks to a great co-worker. After the rush, I got asked to cover a few shifts at Finnerty's, the café downstairs, and ended up getting hired. I'm also working at Thrifty's in Fairfield Plaza, which kind of feels like a second home as I'm there so much. It's crazy busy all the time and I havn't had a single shift where I didn't see someone I know (although really, half the time it's my parents or Duane and Silvia :)) I have some pretty stellar customer stories, and the entire staff there is amazing.

Asides from working, the past few months have consisted of countless sleepovers with Nastja and Olivia, being a faux-student at UVic, meeting some great friends, and spending time with the fam. I've lost a lot of my shyness and feel like I'm more prepared (and finally financially ready. Volunteering is expensive.) to leave. And of course, lots of time spent preparing for my trip. Countless shots, paperwork, and getting supplies to bring along. But the thing that made the trip seem real? Meeting some of the other volunteers who will be going with me. I have a feeling they'll be like family to me, and they seem fantastic :)

So, one more thing about me. When I'm writing, I tend to ramble. A LOT. And I have very few travel journals that are complete, but I really will try to update this blog. So, whether you're family, a friend, parents of friends, a stranger, or a future volunteer, I'll try to fill you in on my adventures.

So I sit here, looking out at the rain, drinking my vanilla latte, and off to work in a few hours. In just under 3 weeks I'll be in an incredibly different environment, and I couldn't be more excited.