COS

It’s been an eventful few weeks. At the end of April, we had our COS (close of service) conference to prepare for our return to the states. And of course, since it’s Peace Corps, they also gave us tons of paperwork to complete before we leave. We also found out that our post-service health care package is so bad that it doesn’t even qualify for minimum coverage under the new Affordable Care Act. So basically we’ll be fined if we use it for more than six months – the same as if we had no coverage at all! Wow, thanks Peace Corps.

We flew to Chuuk, one of the other states in the Federated States of Micronesia. Along with several outer atolls, Chuuk is comprised of a group of islands in a large lagoon. Dozens of Japanese ships were bombed and sank in the lagoon during WWII, making Chuuk a popular diving destination today.

Flying in over Chuuk Lagoon



A half-sunken ship, although I have no idea what era it's from. I took
this picture while kayaking. I'm not dive-certified, plus I'm way too scared
to dive, as cool as it would have been to see the ships.

The highlight of the conference (aside from the food, hot showers, comfortable hotel rooms…) was seeing all the volunteers from the other islands. We hadn’t all seen each other for a year, so it was a good time. J

The original M78 gang on the day we arrived in Pohnpei (June 2012)

The remaining volunteers at COS, plus some PC staff

I’ll be officially COS-ing on August 7. Leaving Pohnpei brings up a whole flood of conflicting emotions, so for now I’m just shutting out the sadness and focusing on the excitement for what lies ahead. I plan to travel for a week and return to America on August 14. Then in September I’ll start grad school at the University of Washington’s Evans School for Public Affairs. It’ll be a quick turnaround, but I’m glad to have a post-Peace Corps plan!