And the First Stop is.......

Tbilisi, Georgia (country not the state).

Image from: http://highlander.ge/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/georgian-flag.jpg

It is such a relief that after months and months of being asked where we are moving to (and saying I don't know) or getting the eyebrow raise when I said I moving overseas and don't know where.....yeah.

To help you orient yourself, I found this map online:

Image from: http://williamellisdotorg.files.wordpress.com/2012/12/georgia-map.jpg?w=500&h=311

Now its time to plan......figure out kids clothes (how quickly will they grow and how much can I find on clearance based on the climate, which looks surprisingly similar to Charleston....except there are mountains full of snow close by to go play in during the winter!), food and toiletries we can't live without and don't want to pay an arm and a leg for (we are actually allotted 2500 lbs of said food and toiletries...called consumables, because they are so hard to find/expensive!).

Flag Day

So I sat in an auditorium waiting for the program to start.....finally, the standing room only auditorium quieted when the mike was turned on. Introductions of everyone on stage, a short speech by a member of the specialist class. And finally the part everyone was waiting on....a completely random mixed up presentation of flags.....I picked up on Richard's CDO (its the gov't, would you expect anything less...Career Development Officer) would stand before a IMS (information management specialist) flag was announced. \

So when she stood up, I hit record.....I apologize for the focus being on the head of couple in front of me...but I was filming with one hand and taking photos on my iPhone with the other....

And after all 95 flags were distributed (oh and Richard's was around flag #80...no stress.....it was over!

Richard was part of the 130th specialist class.....the number started around the 1950s.....so not too terribly many classes....this is an elite group of professionals!

Here is a shot of all the IMS people in Richard's class (less one guy who jetted early) with a statue of Ben Franklin on the FSI campus (looks a lot like a college campus).

Then it was off to Happy Hour to celebrate (or chase a 3 year old around in my case)!