WOW!

I made it to Sumbawanga. After about 23 hours in a bus/car we are finally here! The drive was not too bad, really. We went through Mkumi National Park on the way. Don't worry, I saw a ton of elephants, giraffes, zebras, monkeys, antelopes ... etc. It was so great! Our bus driver was a little crazy. Reminded me a lot of India.

The Tanzanian countryside was so interesting to watch. We passed many houses made of sticks and mud. People here really live with the bare essentials. They have a roof over their head, 4 walls, and food (sometimes). I couldn't help but think about the huge different between their lives and the lives of many living in the US. The song "New York" came on and I thought back to the completely opposite images one would see in New York. It makes me sad to think that some people in this world don't even have clean water or health care, while others are living in luxury and have so much money they don't know what to do with all of it. Being here really makes me realize how much I have and how little I really need to be happy. I hope I can pass this onto my kids someday.

Yesterday I was able to go to Laela (the place where I'll be teaching) for the first time. HOLY COW. Here is part of my journal entry from that day:

"When we finally arrived at Laela I had so many emotions running through me. I was very intimidated, first off, because I am the first white person EVER to live in their village. The village is tiny. It is in the middle of no-where, and has on main road that is about equal to 5 blocks long. I got so many stares from people as we drove into down. Secondly, I felt extremely nervous. My entire trip so far has been spent with James and Dan (James's roommate). James knows/is friends with everyone, so I was nervous to finally arrive at Laela because I had to come to grips with the fact that I won't be with James the whole time. It was the first time I actually realized I'd be alone. The people I met today are the people I'm going to be living with for the next 6 months. It was both nerve-wracking and exciting. As hard as it will be to not have James around, I am very glad that I will be in a different location. I will be able to create friendships on my own. I will be forced to break out of my comfort zone and meet new people. It is very exciting."

So there you have it - my immediate thoughts about Laela! After we left Laela we made out way to Sumbawanga. It took a little over an hour drive to get there (not bad). The drive was beautiful. Mountains everywhere, green landscape ... it was great. On that car ride James, Dan and I had a great discussion about how I was feeling about the next six months. Mom - James will take great care of me, don't worry. :) He told me to make sure to call him if I need anything or if I have any problems. It's so nice to have such a great friend here!

I'll be here in Sumbawanga for the next 2 weeks. I will be visiting/meeting people. and taking Swahili lessons (hopefully). I will start teaching in 2 weeks. I will be teaching Form 1 English (about 14 year olds). Should be great!!

Ok that is all for now! Hope everything is going well back home!! Much love.

Oh, one more thing. I got a cell phone here in Tanzania. My number is (+)0752536938! Feel free to text me if you want! (I think it works .. but you might want to check to see how much it costs, I'm sure it's more expensive than a normal text). Otherwise, apparently it's pretty cheap to call through skype as well. I don't know how that works either, but it'd be worth a shot!