See how Joan Vassos is preparing to embark on a new journey to love in the upcoming debut season of The Golden Bachelorette.
Joan Vassos is getting ready to give dating on reality TV another try.
After vying for Gerry Turner’s love on The Golden Bachelor last year, the 61-year-old will take center stage on The Golden Bachelorette. And she just shared insight into her mindset ahead of jetting off to California to meet her suitors.
“I am getting ready to leave tomorrow,” Joan said in a video shared to her Instagram June 12, which shows her sitting on the floor of a bedroom between partially filled suitcases. “I’m packing and it’s a disaster here ’cause I have no idea what to bring ’cause I don’t know what any of the dates are.”
And luckily her baby grandson was on-hand to provide some assistance. “Maverick is back there, helping me pack,” she continued. “He’s learning how to crawl and I think by the time I get back in seven weeks, he’s going to know, and I’m going to miss it.”
She continued, “This is all a little bittersweet because I’m leaving my family for seven weeks and that’s a little scary. But, you know, in the end, I could come back and maybe have the love of my life and someone to share my great life with.”
When it comes to looking ahead at her Golden Bachelorette journey, Joan is coming prepared for any scenario thrown her way.
“I’m a little embarrassed but look, I have an entire suitcase full of shoes,” she explained. “I have no idea what the weather is like in California at this time of year, so I’m bringing a huge variety of clothes. I’m going to admit to you that I actually have three full suitcases, which is ridiculous.”
Despite the reluctance to be away from her family in Maryland for nearly two months, Joan added that she won’t be fully away from them as they will join her for “a couple days and shoot some promos.”
“I’m so proud of them,” she gushed, “and it gives me a couple more days with them.”
In the caption of her post, Joan expressed her feelings about her upcoming new adventure. “Excited, nervous, and overpacked… but, mostly ready to get this golden journey started,” she wrote. “Feeling all the feels as I pack up to start my next chapter at the Bachelor Mansion.”
Joan continued, “I’ve never been this vulnerable and grateful at the same time, I’m thankful to have the most supportive friends, family and viewers a golden girl could ask for. I’m not sure what this journey holds, but if it’s anything like my suitcase, it’s sure to be FULL of surprises! Here I go…”
ABC announced Joan as the lead of The Golden Bachelorette in May, more than five months after the finale of the debut season of The Golden Bachelor. While she was a frontrunner on the series, she ultimately walked away from the show to be with her daughter who had recently given birth.
“Things go wrong, and even if everything went right, you need your mom,” Joan said in a confessional. “My family will always be first.”
She later wrote on her Instagram Stories Oct. 12. “It’s a privilege to be a mom to four amazing kids and a grandmother (they call me Jojo) to two beautiful grandchildren. But once a mom, always a mom and sometimes the timing doesn’t work out with finding love.”
Joan added that “everyone at home is doing great” and expressed hope that “one day I will get the chance at love again.”
That that chance is coming sooner than she may have expected. The Golden Bachelorette premieres this fall and will air Wednesdays on ABC.