WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT SENDING ME MAIL OR VISITING GABON

LETTERS

Since I don't know what kind of internet access I'll have or how often I'll be able to check and send email, I'm looking forward to exchanging news the old-fashioned way...via snail mail! Gabon has a relatively reliable postal system, although it is not very rapid and its workers have gone on strike in the past.

Please don't worry if letters arrive months later or never arrive at all. In the past, missing and delayed letters to and from Africa have been attributed to everything from post offices randomly closing and stamps falling off, to severe flooding and wildebeast migrations. I will do my best to maintain regular correspondence, but I'm sure there will come times when events occur that are out of my control. Be patient and keep writing!

PACKAGES

I WILL be able to receive packages while in Gabon, but there are even more rules concerning them. As is the case in many developing nations, postal workers in Gabon may take great liberties with foreign packages, especially if they see that they're coming from America. They may open them and remove any items they fancy for themselves, or they may keep the entire package. I'm not saying this happens every time, or even that it will happen to me, but it is a possibility. Therefore, please adhere to the following:

VISITING

Since I'm not planning on returning to the US during my service, you have to cross the ocean if you want to see me! I am not allowed to have visitors during my three months of training or the first three months of service, so that means no galavanting with me before January 2004. However, anytime after that is fair game, though I only receive 2 vacation days for every month I work. Just start planning with me ahead of time and we can work on the nitty-gritty details together.