Last Day in the States for Four Months!

Privet! (Hello!) Today is my last day in the United States for about four months. I fly out tomorrow morning at 7:40 from Salt Lake City. I'll have a layover in Houston, TX, a layover in Frankfurt, Germany, and then I'll land in Moscow at about 4:20PM on the 29th. Moscow is 10 hours ahead of MST. I'm a bit confused on how that plays into the timing, but I'll keep you updated as to when I arrive. It's crazy (mind blowing even) to think that I'll be in Russia in a couple of days! I'll let you know a little bit about what I'll be doing for the next four months. I'm a Head Teacher, so I will training and supervising three girls: Ally, Whitney, and Shelley. I will be training, coaching and evaluating them as teachers. I will write reports for the ILP office and work as a liaison/ambassador between ILP and the host school. As I've heard, we will be living in a guesthouse about a minute away from our school, the Captains school. As I only have three teachers, our school should be on the smaller side: ILP rules state that classes should have no more than eight students per teacher in the primary school. We will be working with the younger students, those with little to no English skills. It's the same age I taught in China, and my favorite age to teach! We will be eating most meals at the school, and we will receive money from the school for the other meals. I've received emails from local Church leaders, including the Bishop of the International Branch, and Brother and Sister Naegle, who are the CES missionaries in Moscow. The Naegles have offered to help us find the right metro stops to take to get to Church. It will be nice to be able to actually attend "real" Church, instead of over Skype like I did in China. I will return to the States on December 19th. I believe, to me it'll be the 20th but to you it will be the 19th. If you want to know what the future's like, feel free to ask. :P Today, I have a few tasks to complete and few things to purchase, but then I will be set for my next adventure! I would love to answer any questions you may have or anything like that! I love you all! Love always, Jillian

I am currently staying with the Escalantes, who are family friends of several years, in Orem, UT. Today, I completed my first day of Head Teacher training for ILP; last week, I attended volunteer training. It has all gone well and I’ve learned so much, which is why I feel like my head may explode from being so full. I will have so many new responsibilities as Head Teacher, such as acting as an administrator/liaison with the host school in Moscow, a training facilitator and advisor for the volunteer teachers, and administrator for the ILP office back in Orem. I’m kinda like the mama bear. I received the profiles of my three teachers: Whitney Priestley, Michelle Perkins, and Ally Sandoval. I’m quite relieved my group is so small, actually. It will be easier to take care of them and handle situations for and with them. Training has been very helpful in calming me. It’s a lot of responsibility, but I appreciate having an idea of what I’m actually supposed to be doing.

Latest on Russia

It's been a long time since I last posted, but I thought I should update you all on my latest adventure. If, for some reason, you aren't aware of it, I'm traveling to Moscow, Russia at the end of August to work as a Head Teacher for International Language Programs. It's the same program that took me to China, I've just been promoted. Yay! I recently received my flight itinerary. I fly out from Salt Lake City on August 28th to Houston, Texas, then from Houston to Frankfurt, Germany, and on to Moscow. I completed my first of four days of training today, and it went very well. I'm super excited yet super nervous for this adventure. I can't wait to go international again! Part of me simply wishes it wasn't to a mafia/communist-run country. But, such is my lot in life. Come what may, and love it!