Departure: 5 Days!

The departure date keeps drawing nearer and nearer. I know that this is what usually happens with time, but I can't believe that it is coming up so soon! So, before that time comes, I want to ensure that I adequately cover the steps I took in preparation for this magnificent adventure.

I found out in mid-March that I was selected for the internship, and have been preparing ever since. Previous University of Toronto interns, including both Victoria and Juanita, have been an invaluable source of information in my preparation. Without them, I would have arrived in Johannesburg with a suitcase full of shorts (it's winter in Africa) and uncertainty.

Also, since I am an American student studying in Toronto, I faced a few unexpected challenges that I may not have encountered otherwise.

I would organize (because that's what information professionals do!) my pre-departure process into three categories:

1.) Visa
2.) Medical
3.) Other stuff

Visa:
The South African High Commission requires visitors to South Africa who are staying over 90 days to obtain a visa. All of the requirements, which can be found on the Toronto consulate's website, are straightforward and easily obtainable. For example, obtaining a Canadian police certificate demands only a trip to the Metro Toronto Police Headquarters and a week to process/ship. However, as an American citizen, I also needed to obtain an American police certificate. This process requires a mailed request and fingerprints to the FBI in West Virginia. The processing time was 13 weeks. So, roughly 3 months. This unfortunately ruled out a 90+ day stay for me. Fortunately, the Foundation approved an 89 day stay. I will now be staying in South Africa on a general tourist visa, obtained upon arrival in Johannesburg.

One more thing: you need 2 blank passport pages upon arrival in South Africa. One is for the arrival stamp and one is for departure. My passport had the required 2 pages. More specifically, I had 3. Obviously I am in fine shape to arrive in South Africa on May 6, but since my motto is 'always prepared,' I decided to get additional pages during my brief stay in the United States rather than wait to visit the U.S. consulate in Johannesburg. Today I made an appointment at the Detroit passport agency and dropped off my passport for pick-up on Monday. So, although it is difficult to get a get a police certificate quickly, it's nice to know that there is a face-to-face option to get passport pages added or to get a new, shiny passport quickly.

Medical:
I visited the travel clinic about a month ago. The doctor explained the type of vaccinations I needed for the area that I was going to live in (Johannesburg) and any additional medications needed for travel elsewhere. For Johannesburg, the doctor urged me to ensure I was up-to-date on all general vaccines, including DTaP (diptheria, tetanus, pertussis), and that I had received a recent Polio booster. He also recommended the Hepatitis A vaccine. I opted to also get the typhoid vaccine.

Since some areas of South Africa are malarious (ie: Kruger Park), the doctor advised me to get malaria medication...just in case I visited these areas. He also prescribed medications for another common ailment: traveler's diarrhea. These were optional, of course.

I chose to be overcautious by purchasing all of the 'optional' medication, because, as I said, I like to be prepared.

**Please keep in mind that the I am not prescribing the above as medical advice. Definitely visit a travel clinic before any visit to Africa.

Other Stuff:
This section is pretty much a hodgepodge of stuff that fits nowhere else.

Weather - Thanks to conversations with the lovely Victoria, I learned that May until August are winter months in Africa. Although an African winter does not equal snow and ice, it also does not equal sun and shorts. I am bringing a wool jacket and gloves for the cool mornings.

Banking - Canadian and American banks generally allow 4-8 digit PIN numbers on debit and credit cards. However, the accepted number in South Africa is 4-5 numbers. The UofT Safety Abroad seminar alerted me to this fact, and I adjusted my numbers accordingly.

For now, that is all I can think of.

Until next time,

-Lindsay