Author Archives: Richard Reilly

Day Three

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I am officially wrapping up Day 3 of 800 on my Peace Corps adventure.  I am starting a new method of blogging.  In this method, I write my updates in a word document…and upload them whenever the internet decides to work.  Sound like a plan?  Good.  Anyway, this will be the first night since Saturday that I have been able to get a true full night’s sleep.  I think I may just faint right now.  Sleep sounds so glorious.

The flight and bus rides went smoothly.  I converted my money over just a few hours ago at 8.17 Dirham per American dollar.  To put that in perspective, we went to a café a little bit later.  I got a pastry for 5 Dirham and my friend got a coffee for 5 Dirham.  The exchange rate is going to heavily favor us.  It’s kinda nice not to worry about buying little things like food.  I can afford it.  At least for now.

We have one week left in Rabat before we break apart into small language groups.  This is going to be a crazy week full of meeting a bunch of people, getting a bunch of shots, learning basic Arabic, and survival skills.  Emotionally I have been all over the place—from wondering why I decided to do this one moment to sitting back and relaxing the next.  This week in Rabat will be a good way to test the waters.

 

Live from Philly

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The plane ride went smoothly.  When I got to Philadelphia International Airport, I met up with the four others from Colorado.  We split a fun ride into the heart of Philly.  I immediately dropped off my bags and went to orientation.  Fives hours of orientations while hungry and tired…At least I got to meet a lot of new people.  This has been a great start.  Although I still feel like the anti-social one.  That is kind of how I work though.

We leave the hotel at 9:00am tomorrow morning.  We immediatly get on a bus for JFK airport.  The 8 hour flight will bring us into Casablanca overnight.  Then, it’s straight to Rabat–the capital of Morocco.  It is going to be a long day of traveling.  But all I know is: 1 Day Down.  799 to go.

66 Hours Out

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I have entered my last weekend in America.  Come very early Monday morning (as in 3:30am), I will wake up at drive down to Denver International Airport with my parents.  These final few hours in town are now a fun mixture of final preparations and goodbyes.  I’ve already said goodbye to all my friends.  I’m hoping to watch a couple movies with my parents this weekend.  “The Impossible” and “Zero Dark Thirty.”  Other than that, I am working my way through the final ten items on my to-do list.  I hope to finish with time to spare so I can relax a little on Sunday and get to bed early.

I am going to continue uploading a mixture of old writing and new writing in the months to come.  By the end of 2013, this website should be a good archieve of all my writing.  For today, I have one of the first prose pieces I ever wrote.  I was fourteen years old.  I knew I was experiencing weird changes, but I still thought I was unique and–to be honest–superior.  This piece is fascinating for me to read, but it’s tone is strange to me.  Let me know what you think.

Where is the Pain?