The List

Well, we've turned it in now so it is all over but the shouting around here.  The list, of course, refers to the places that our family might move to in 4-7 months.  And, my friends, I will tell you that when they say "worldwide available", they mean it.  Over half of our list was in Africa -- places like Burundi, Djibouti and Niger.  Rounding out the list were some fairly obscure places in Eastern Europe, like Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Moldova.  A couple of danger posts topped off the fun -- Saudi Arabia and Tel Aviv.  While wild and truly adventurous, our list definitely had some gems on it.  Our top picks, in case you are interested, are Kiev, Ukraine; Beijing, China and Lusaka, Zambia.  There is no guarantee that we will get these places and the powers that be can certainly go further down our wish list, but those are the places that we feel would best suit our family's needs. For our family, the needs revolve mostly around the children and the fact they have to go to school.  Shocker, but Burundi and Djibouti do not have English-speaking schools, which knocked them pretty far down our bid list. Moldova doesn't have English schools either and I was sad to have to push it down on our list.  It actually sounds like one of the loveliest little places you've never heard of.

Now, the amazing thing about the foreign service is that families can and do live in places that aren't their top picks. Families will almost certainly encounter a posting or two along their path that they didn't find desirable.  I meet people on the playground every day headed off to Kazakhstan or Bangladesh.  Sometimes these places grow on people, sometimes people endure the places but find solace in a tight embassy community.  Most places have at least something that folks remember fondly when they move on to another locale. Given the news right now involving our diplomats abroad, I'm sure you can appreciate how difficult many of our posts can be.  U.S. diplomats serve in places that aren't terribly safe as well as places missing much of the infrastructure most Americans take for granted.  I can't tell you how brave and admirable I find many of Chris' colleagues as they prepare to head out to Egypt or Yemen or Pakistan or Iraq.  I'm equally in awe of all of the capable spouses I've met who've managed their families while their husband is on an unaccompanied tour or ones who feed and care for their families in places where they don't speak the language.  I mean, I'm fairly certain grocery shopping is its own unique experience in Cameroon or Suriname.

Anyways, in a week we will know where in the world we are headed.  Hopefully we end up somewhere in our top tier of picks, but I've been told by people experienced at this stuff that the important thing is knowing.  Knowing will enable us to start to plan and prepare and to visualize our lives in this new place.  For now, I'm passing the time shopping at Trader Joe's and Target. Stores that I will certainly miss when we head overseas. Oh, the kids picks if you are interested:  The boys both want to go to Beijing because the housing looks cool while Violet really wants Africa so we can see the animals.