April 25th, 2012 
Emily 
My spouse and I are moving to Kenya for a few months this summer! He got a temporary assignment through his work, and we’ll be staying in Nairobi. We don’t know exactly when we are going, or how long we will be there, but I’m very excited.
Here’s what I’m looking forward to:
- visiting a new place
- traveling around Kenya/East Africa on weekends
- seeing the Wildebeest migration in the Masai Mara reserve
- living in a foreign country with my spouse (We met in a foreign country, but never lived together while we were there.)
- trying out travel writing
Here’s what I’m feeling nervous about:
- safety
- feeling isolated (This is compounded by the safety factor. I won’t be allowed to drive while we are there and will need to get a feel for things before I am comfortable traveling around alone.)
- getting sick (Hopefully this is unlikely, as Nairobi is malaria free and we will drink bottled water.)
- (In case you were wondering, my husband’s office will find us a place to stay while we are in Nairobi, so I’m thankful that I don’t have to feel nervous about that.)
While we are not moving permanently to Nairobi, we are staying a lot longer than a normal vacation. As a result, I’m discovering that it complicates things on this end.
Here’s my ever-growing To Do List:
- get a plane ticket (Using SkyMiles makes this so much more complicated.)
- get a visa (For the life of me, I cannot figure out how long a tourist visa is good for. Of course, the Kenyan Embassy website offers no clarity.)
- get immunized
- figure out what to do with our apartment (sublet? let it sit empty? move out?)
- sign up for paperless billing
- figure out what to do with the rest of the mail (It certainly won’t fit in our tiny apt. mailbox for months.)
- figure out what to do with our cars (Can they sit in the Georgia summer sun all summer?)
- visit my parents and the in-laws before we leave
- all the little stuff at the end (like emptying out the fridge/pantry and packing)
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Oh, my goodness, Kenya! How exciting is that, and scary at the same time. What an opportunity to let readers into your relocated world. I’m going to Paris for a month and my To DO list will look quite different from yours: subletting the house to the kids, lol.
Ohh, Paris, I’m jealous. I hear it’s gorgeous there in the summer. And lucky kids…staying at your house for a month!
Exciting! I bet once you get settled, it will be amazing!
I was wondering about the meaning of your blog name. . . .
A trailing spouse is the term that many companies use (or used to use) to describe someone who follows his or her spouse to a new location because of a work assignment. Now, it’s often considered to be disparaging, because of the “trailing” connotations. But I used it for the title of my blog because that’s how I feel sometimes; like I am trailing my husband. I just wanted to acknowledge that part of the experience. Sometimes I get these wonderful opportunities, like going to Kenya for several months, and other times, I have to make some sacrifices, like putting my career on hold.
Thanks for reading, I hope that explains it!
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