The frenzy of bidding season

Our bid list is out! This time around there will be no fancy flag day ceremonies. We were simply emailed a list of available positions for second tour officers, and told to rank them in the order of our choosing.

We have two weeks to research the posts, then we submit to our CDO and receive our assignment two weeks later. Sounds easy enough. As I read through our list (full transparency- there was an initial panic when i saw the locations) we were flooded with a range of emotions and questions- Do we have another tour in us? Can we go somewhere THAT cold? Can we go somewhere THAT hot? Where IS THAT city?

Panic turned to acceptance and soon we were using the new AI chatbot app GENIE to construct rap songs and poems on each location. I highly recommend this tactic- It lightened the mood while simultaneously pumping us up.

This is a short post because bidding is all consuming, and taking every ounce of our energy and thoughts, but in other news we had another visitor! My dear friend and colleague who I met in A-100 orientation last year (Fun fact she is also from the bay area!) was in Uganda for a visit and stopped by Buja to say hello. It was so great having her, and made me realize how special these friendships are that we will form over the years.

Crazy to think that in a little over two weeks we will know exactly where we are headed next. Stay tuned to see where this adventure is going to take us and I have a TDY (temporary duty- essentially when you go to work at another embassy) coming up as well! Exciting times.

Portrait of mom and dad thanks to Chotu.

More artsy pics from Chotu

Rounding out the post with some Afro beats straight from Bujumbura!