Jean Fleschute’s Journey
My year of Peace Corps medical non-clearance
And so it begins…Getting ready to set off…
Today, Tuesday, October 8, 2019, I’m sitting at Hobbs coffee shop in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, the town I’ve called home for more than 28 years. Tomorrow I set off on my journey, heading first to London to visit my long-time friends Frank and Cathy, and their family. I look forward to sharing the highlights of my adventures. I think I’ll be on the road for about a year, or whenever the desire or the designated funds run out. I’m beginning a new phase of my life, and I’m seeking adventure and change.
Although I had been accepted into the Peace Corps—pending legal and medical clearance—as a teacher of Spanish literacy in the Dominican Republic, less than six weeks before the August 2019 departure, the Peace Corps medical team would not grant me medical clearance, despite my doctors saying that I am in excellent health. No matter, I’ve shifted gears and have created my own map of cultural exchange, language learning, adventure, and a plan to dedicate some of my time by working in a teaching setting, hoping to make positive change in the world. That’s why I refer to this as my year of Peace Corps medical non-clearance.
Note: Entries are in reverse chronological order, and the text of each post begins with the date of the adventure. To receive notification of new postings, click on “Subscribe.” If you want to start at the beginning of my journey, here is my first post.
61. Ciao, Bella Italia
Sunday, January 26, 2020: Paola makes me a huge lunch—two big sandwiches of tomatoes, lettuce, and various cheeses crammed into ciabatta flats, an apple, some carrots, several plump Medjool dates, a bunch of Ringo vanilla cream cookies, and an entire bar of Lindt dark chocolate—for my long journey to the Milano airport. At the appointed…
60. One last hike on the Carso above Trieste
Saturday, January 25, 2020: Friend and hiking partner Roberto picks us up early Saturday morning, and we drive up the mountain above Trieste to the small village of Santa Croce (population 1,800), where Franca, another friend and fellow hiker, lives and has lived all of her life. We drive to the locale of Mt. Ermada…
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Jean's Journey 