12 days....when did that happen?

I haven't written in almost a month, but I'm not really surprised. I have a way of putting things off, for example, I still have not packed, and I leave in less than two weeks. Smart, Erin. Packing for both Borneo and UConn is the goal of the day, yet here I sit, writing on my nearly abandoned blog instead.
I think I've been avoiding writing because of my growing anxiety surrounding this whole trip. Three weeks isn't very long at all, but it's long enough to give me some stress. I had a lot of trouble falling asleep last night when I realized I'll be leaving NY next Sunday. What if I can't navigate through the airports? What if I hate everyone I'm working with? What if I hate being in the jungle? And what will I do when I feel overwhelmed by homesickness and just want to go home? Those are some worries among many others. As for the airports, there are people to help me, and unfortunately I might have to test some people's patience, but I can figure it out, I'm sure. I'm betting that I will not hate everyone I work with, as they will probably be very similar to me--adventurous animal lovers! If, by chance, I do hate them-I'll only be with them for three weeks, and I have dealt with some pretty horrible living conditions before (foreign college roommate, Cherry). If I hate being in the jungle, again, it's only three weeks, I'll live, and probably learn to love it by the end. And if I'm homesick, UConn, again, has forced me to deal with it, this time will be different though because I can't make any desperate phone calls. Maybe I'll be better off totally isolated, and not hearing people's voices--it would probably just make me miss them more!

Okay, it's 9:06 AM, time to get moving and packing! First I thought I'd post a couple emails regarding the trip. First, my flight schedule! Bad idea, maybe, but I don't think I'm going to share this blog with many people until after the trip ends, so then no stalkers can get me! =)

 AA  17 29 JUL JFK /SAN FRANCISCO DEP 7.40P – ARR 1105P      
 AA 6117 30 JUL  SAN FRANCISCO/ HONG KONG DEP 1.10A  - ARR 615A  31JUL             
OPERATED BY CATHAY PACIFIC AIRWAYS                             
 AA6109 31 JUL  HONG KONG/JAKARTA  DEP  920A  -ARR 105P      
OPERATED BY CATHAY PACIFIC AIRWAYS                             
 AA 6104  26 AUG JAKARTA/HONG KONG DEP 2.50P  ARR 8.40P      
OPERATED BY CATHAY PACIFIC AIRWAYS                             
 AA6124  27 AUG  HONG KONG/JF KENNEDY    DEP 12.30A  ARR 7.00A    
OPERATED BY CATHAY PACIFIC AIRWAYS 

Second is part of an email from our volunteer coordinator, regarding my group's time in Borneo!

Its a good size group with a couple of welcome volunteer returnees and I am excited to say we will get the chance to finish off the amazing start our team 1 made on a new release bridge at our satellite day release Camp Rendell. We will be finishing the ~200m of swamp bridge left to a patch of dry ground and hopefully building a much needed feeding platform for the ~30 orangutans that are housed in camp now. This sight is our newest daily release camp and is approximately 45 mins from the Main Care center. This means we will be living in what I like to think is somewhat isolated luxury. Be prepared for swampy walking, wielding hammers, saws, and chisels; bathing in a river, and sleeping in a year old Camp House. Electricity is generator only so flashlights and candles at night, but cell service is relatively reliable. We will be there for the length of the team, with the potential for limited days outside of camp so please be prepared to come with all you need.
We will also have the opportunity to work with one of our long term enrichment volunteers Wendy to do some improvements and make additions to the new and old sleeping cages at Camp Rendell. This work will likely be worked out as we are there and we will split into teams to work on this as well as the bridge building every day.
One thing to be aware of that some may not know is that you will all be arriving in Indonesia in the midst of Ramadan. This means that most of the country will be fasting during the day and only eating while the sun is down. For those of us not Muslim, we will be eating during the day while working (most of OFI's staff are Dayak and will be eating with us) however while you are traveling just be aware that most will not, and it is considered good practice to not be seen eating out in public during these days.
Also at near the end of our three weeks will be Idul Fitri a national holiday in which our Muslim carpenter staff will not be working. This holiday on the 19th lasts 2 days and involves a lot of eating after the fast and may mean that work will slow and we may even get a chance to participate in some of the festivities. As this is the first time Idul Fitri has fallen during a construction team, we will just have to do our best to work hard at the beginning and earn this break at the end! ;)

To finish of the post, here's a picture I thought was pretty funny that I found online when I typed in jungle explorer. She's got red hair and everything!