Boa Tarde!

I have been in Mozambique for about a day now and am completely in love and completely overwhelmed (in a good way). Staging in Philadelphia went really well and I met a bunch of wonderful people but it didn't do all that much to prepare us for actually being in country.  The 15 hour flight wasn't as bad as I thought it would be but then I was able to sleep for 11 or 12 hours of it. And if you haven't seen WALL-E yet, its wonderful. I bonded with that little robot somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean. My group (the second half of the alphabet) had a long layover in Johannesburg before our connection into Maputo and got lots of stares as we sprawled ourselves out surrounded by piles of backpacks and dufflebags.  We probably looked a little rough and ragged after our time in flight so I can't blame them.  The best news is that everyone's luggage made it with nothing damaged or lost. My half of the alphabet is staying at a hotel in the center of Maputo and we come over to the other half's hotel for training sessions.

Today we've gone over safety and security, water filtration and medical kits, gotten vaccines, met the ambassador and had our introductory language assessments.  There's a lot of information to absorb and my jetlagged mind is a bit stressed.  Overall though its been amazing. The food is great and the PC/Moz staff is forever helpful. We head out to our homestay in Namaacha on Saturday and will be there until December.  The training schedule looks intense between technical and language sessions but I can't wait to get started.

I don't know how internet access will be in Namaacha but I'll try to get on again soon to give more details and maybe add some pictures.

Miss you all!

My pre-trip to-do list

I’ve been making this mental list for a while and with my departure less than two weeks away I’ve been feeling pressured to get everything ready while still enjoying the people and places here. So in no particular order:

-Spend time with and say good-bye to everyone out East (that was a tough and very emotional task)



some of the VA family





It's an old picture, but we're together!



Don Lee Center Staff Spring '10



Getting excited for Harry Potter World



-Get all my belongings from 7 years on the east coast back to Colorado (roadtrip!)

-Spoil Tommy rotten! (I love that kid)

-Serious family time (an ongoing process)

-Pack for two years in Africa (Ha! Pretty sure I’ll be working on that one until I leave for the airport)

-Attend a couple of Broncos games (two down and one regular season game to go!)

-Apply for my special passport and visa (applications are practical and logical so I’m good there)

-Spend as much time as possible with my nieces and nephew (finally saw some soccer games)



Ashlee & Jesse in back with Luke, Emmah & Amelia (l-r)



-Learn a bit of Portuguese (Fale mais devagar. A phrase I need to get down now.)

-Consolidate the stuff I’m leaving behind to help my mom out during any future moves (Eh, it will come)

-Get up to the mountains a couple of times (Vail, Steamboat Springs, Rocky Mt. National Park, Estes Park)



A view from the top of Vail Mt.



-Eat at Chipotle at least once a week and drown myself in diet coke (finally an easy one)

-Make a little money (Or should I say “get a job I enjoy and meet some great new people”. Darn you Regis Bookstore!)

 -Mentally and emotionally prepare for some intense culture shock (I’m not even going to touch that one)



So I think I’m doing pretty good with my preparations.  My mom and I have done a lot of shopping this past week and are making a solid dent in the extensive list the PC Mozambique desk sent out.  I’m fairly certain the majority of my 80lbs of luggage will be toiletries and practical stuff rather than clothes. I’m bring like 10 pairs of shoes (which is really not me) but I’ve got all my bases covered plus some “comfort” shoes. Packing should be a fun process.

Side Note -  I’ve been asked a couple times what little things I need for this adventure, so much to my dismay I am including a list of such items: single serving drink mixes (crystal light, kool-aid, nestea, etc), AAA batteries, US postage stamps, dry spices or herb seeds, pictures of the familiar people/places/things I love.