My First Days in Africa!

I'm finally in Togo! It was crazy to get off the plane and realize that. I just kept thinking about how long I'd waited to come here and it was hard to believe I was finally here! The flights out here were brutal. We left Philadelphia Friday afternoon for our 7 hour flight for Paris, but I couldn't get a wink of sleep (largely because my seat for some reason didn't recline; Eric, I thought you'd find that ironic and funny). By the time we got to Charles de Gaulle airport, we were all exhausted, but we had a 4 hour layover until our next 6ish hour flight to Togo (I finally fell asleep on that flight). We arrived in Togo Saturday evening (just as the sun was setting) and had to wait in this small room in the tiny airport until all of our luggage was retrieved. We then all loaded onto these trucks that took us to our hostel, where we are and will be staying until this upcoming Wednesday, when we will be moving out to meet and live with our host families (for 3 months).
The last few days have been so busy and exhausting, but the Peace Corps staff has taken such good care of us! A local family cooks amazing food for us here at the hostel - and I don't think anyone's gotten sick yet because the cooking staff was specially trained on how to clean the food for us. I know some people were interested in what I'd be eating: for breakfast so far, I've had eggs with green and red peppers in it and pancakes with honey; for lunch we usually have some kind of salad and maybe couscous; and dinner is usually some kind of pasta with spicy sauce and some kind of meat (chicken or beef). It has all been really good. The Peace Corps staff has also been driving us everywhere - which is a real privilege because most people in Lome walk or ride their motos; very few people seem to drive. Sometimes I feel very self conscious about it when I see locals looking at us as we drive by. But we've met some current volunteers and they all say that we just get this special treatment during our staging to help us adjust, and after this, we're on our own! :) Everyone we've met in the village has been so nice; a lot of people welcome us when we walk by (and others just yell "Yovo!" meaning "foreigner/white" in a non-derogative way).

(below are pictures of the porch at our hostel, and of my bed and mosquito net [I don't even need a sheet over me to sleep here because it's so hot; I also wake up to roosters crowing every morning at 5 which is kind of neat)




Every day we've been getting shots to prepare us for life out in our villages. I've gotten 3 so far; my left arm is so sore I can barely lift it! We'll be getting more tomorrow too. Today we got training on how to handwash our own laundry, how to take bucket showers, and how to use the "latrines", or 'toilets', which will basically be pits in the ground (here at the hostel, we've had a flushable toilet, but we put all the used toilet paper in a bin on the side, which later gets burned). We learn a little bit more day by day, and it's all making me really excited to head out on our own! Yesterday we also took individual oral French exams; we will be placed into a French class that corresponds with our level in a couple days. Oh, AND we got assigned our bikes and helmets, which we will be getting delivered to our villages later this week (I CANNOT wait)! Tonight we had dinner at our country director's house here in Lome (our country director was one of the first Togo volunteers ever back in the 60s!) and we got to meet the Ambassador from the U.S. to Togo who is currently residing here in the city. It's all so cool and surreal.

I apologize that I haven't been able to write personal emails yet! I am only getting internet now because I'm borrowing someone's computer and am sitting on the top of the roof of our hostel where there is a very weak signal. I really have no idea when I'll be able to access internet next. It may be weeks - but I have no idea yet. I may be getting a cell phone in the next couple days in which case I might be able to get incoming calls for free, but it is still unclear if I'll even have reception in the area where I'll be staying beginning Wednesday night. I will do my best to keep in touch though! In the meantime, please send snail mail! I at least wanted to post information online that everyone could access for now. I miss you all so much but am also having a really exciting time! All of us trainees are becoming really close too, so it's kind of like I have my own family here!

AND I'M OFF

After a million trips to Target and a week of packing, somehow I fit all of my luggage (well not all - I ended up having to leave some things behind) into my two suitcases which weighed in perfectly at 80 lbs (the Peace Corps limit). Then after hyperventilating over whether or not I would make my flight while sitting in traffic on the freeway this morning at 6:30 AM, by the grace of the HOV 2-passenger lane, I made it to the airport just in time to realize that my plane had been delayed anyways. But, all worked out OK. After a tearful goodbye to my parents, I happened to spot another potential Peace Corps volunteer (who I recognized by witnessing her own tearful goodbye to her parents and by the Chaco's sandals and massive backpack) who I ended up meeting and chatting with at the terminal. Sharing the Peace Corps experience (even at these early stages) truly proved itself to be reason enough for instant bonding!
I am now in Philadelphia, where I will be attending orientation for the next 3 days. On Friday I will leave for Togo! From now until then, I will be getting to know the 28-ish other volunteers (serving in either Health or Business programs) who will be going to Togo as well. Everyone seems a little nervous but overall very excited!

Below is a picture of my training class on our last day of training in the States. (click on it to enlarge)