Hot as HELL

Hi everyone. I am sitting here in Loyce's house trying to ignore the sweaty sticky mess that I am and its only noon here. It's been an interesting few days since I last wrote. Tuesday I spent the morning with Loyce running some of her errands and doing some of my own. I had wanted to purchase some khangas to take back to the US for my own use and for some gifts, so Loyce took me to this khanga market and I spent some time going through them. As I said earlier, each khanga has a kiswahili message writte on it - and its meant to be read and its kind of worn as a statement. So Loyce sat in the car as I perused and occasionally held up khangas for her to read and explain to me. I ended up buying 5 khangas in various blues and reds. I was happy with my purchases - but what Loyce didnt tell me was that all khangas are then cut in half - so basically I bought ten khangas . . . I took them to her tailor (she runs a draperie business) and he cut and sewed the loose ends - and now I have ten khangas. Then in the afternoon Frida - the Dar chapter Treasurer - sent a car for me and I met her at her office to discuss finances and bookkeeping, etc. We were together for about 4 hours, with her taking me to one of her businesses (she runs several canteens throughout the city at schools). Afterwards we met her son who she tried to set me up with - rather unsuccessfully. I had a nice time with Frida but there were some awkward moments - she had invited me to dinner but I knew that Loyce was expecting me - and its usually better not to get Loyce mad because she has a very strong personality. Frida was very sweet and bought me some fruit and then took me home. On Wednesday morning I had a really nice visit with Happiness. Happiness runs her own business - Happiness's House of Cakes. Its a small storefront but on a busy day she said she has 40 cake orders. I spent some time talking with her and going through her finances and am still brainstorming some ways to help her keep better track of her finances. Most of these women already keep track of their finances, but their organization is pretty poor. So there may be a record here, an order there, maybe a few records that were accidentally thrown out . . . Its amazing to me that they can be successful but in such disarray! Happiness took me out to lunch and then to a craft market where I made some purchases to take home. Afterwards we stopped back at her business and she gave me a cake to take home. Loyce and I had a piece of cake after dinner - and it was incredible. I don't know if its because I have not had the spoils of home in awhile or maybe just because her cake was so good - but it was amazing. I even had some milk with it because I had bought some milk a few days ago at the market. This was about as close as I have come to a USA dessert. This morning (Thursday) I have had a neat day so far. I went with Edina on a dala-dala to this huge market called Kariako. So, a dala-dala is a public bus, but its better compared to a VW van in the US. The entire back are seats and you can squeeze about 20-25 people into it, both sitting and standing. Its incredibly cheap, the price depends on where you are going. There is a guy who sits at the door and hangs out of it, letting the driver know where to stop by pounding on the side. These buses are typically very run down (can see the road through the floor in some places) and can be dangerous, but are overall a great easy way to travel. So we arrived at the market together and its this huge open building. Edina took my hand (so sweet) and took me downstairs. This was very interesting. So even in the stairs the air was heavy and sickening. The entire basement is this open market but they dont clean it often and food is all over the floor and so the air has this awful decomposing food smell. It took me a few minutes to adjust so it. Edina and I went around to all these stalls and about tons of food. Like seriously, pounds and pounds of food. I wish I could have understood Kiswahili so I could have heard a lot of the interactions, but my eyes and ears definitely took in a lot. We bought, literally, pounds and pounds of food. Then Edina paid someone to carry it out to the dala-dala and we headed home. Once we got off at our stop, Edina and I tried to carry it together but it was too heavy, so she put it on her head and off we walked . . .This evening we have a big TAWE chapter meeting so I am interested in how that will go. I have a number of things from Bev that I need to discuss with the individual members and some reminders for the chapter as a whole. PLUS I need to get some kind of organization plan together for Happiness before we leave for the meeting.
A few points:
Living with Loyce - It's been really nice staying with Loyce. She has a very domineering personality and I have had to learn to submit to her, but its an interesting relationship we have here. It's a house full of women - Loyce, myself, Edina and Loyce's niece. So walking around in khangas or seeing each other bare chested is not a big deal. Loyce and I have a lot of meals together and we usually talk. She can drive me crazy at times and I just have to swallow it, but other times when she is tired she is endearing and adorable. Tanzanians and especially Loyce have this way of throwing little like high pitched noises into their speech - as if they had just been surprised? It's hard to explain, but its adorable and when she does it I laugh so hard. Loyce has been very generous to house me and feed me. I have offered money for things and usually she declines. My meals always have some kind of protein, some kind of vegetable and some kind of starch. I have started to tell Edina what not to make. For breakfast she had been giving me two eggs, bread, a hot dog (as a sausage), tons of fruit, juice, tea, etc. So starting this week I have told her that I only want fruit and a piece of bread. She is starting to learn to feed me less, but last night I wasnt too surprised to find 3, yes 3, baked potatos on my plate. And Loyce is funny about eating too. She is trying to lose weight and so I'll be surrounded by all this food at dinner and she will have one small piece of chicken. But, typically, what happens is I start offering her a bit of this and a bit of that, and eventually she ends up with a majority of the food. All of these nuances of our relationship are funny and I enjoy spending time with her in this regard. I also love being with the girls, especially when Loyce is not home. We dont always understand each other, but they love when I take their picture and then show it to them, or watching me take my contacts in and out. Neither had ever seen contacts before. Sometimes in the morning they teach me a few kiswahili words that I practice and write in my book. At night we all watch television together, though I usually go off and read on my own. They have this program called Africa Magic and it is quite literally the worst program I have ever seen in my entire life. Watching it makes my head hurt because the acting is so bad, the stories are even worse, and to top it all the story lines are SO slow. As Loyce points out, its good for the girls because the show is in English, but otherwise, it makes me want to punch someone. So I usually watch for 15 minutes, start laughing and shaking my head, and then leave the room.
Men - I know I have said it before, but I really mean that it's odd to be white here. I stick out like a freaking sore thumb. Men are always just staring. I mean, I don't necessarily help it. I dress much more casually, but just as conservatively, as the Tanzanians. But I have given up doing anything with my hair and its usually a bit crazy. Plus I am relatively tall here. So whether its for those reasons or others, I always feel out of place and like Im being gawked at. So when I met another man and he asks me if I am married or if I would ever marry an African man, it definitely gets old - don't get me wrong, Im exaggerating a bit here, but its still annoying. So I met Frida's son and right away I have a knee-jerk reaction to roll my eyes. Frida asks for my phone number but asks me to give it to her son because 'her phone is broken.' And he asks where I am staying and if he can come visit - all of which I politely answer and smile. - but anywhere, it's like that everywhere. I have tried to talk to Loyce about it without possibly offending her or her culture - and she has just told me that no matter what, these people won't hurt me. In fact, she said that these people can't hurt me. As a foreigner they are just interested and fascinated. So that has helped keep me from being so annoyed.
Weather - okay, it is totally hot as hell here. I cant be sure if its more or less than Madagascar, but I think its more. I spend most of my day being sticky and hot. The heat is exhausting and I have much less energy here then I did in Madagascar. At night I try to time my bucket bath with my going to bed, otherwise I will be sweating again by the time I am asleep. I am lucky to have a fan in my room and sleep with the windows open, but all that really means is that hot air is swirling around my room. I've taken to sleeping with the least amount of clothes as possible while still being appropriate.
I hope everyone is doing well. Thanks to everyone for their comments and emails. Gus, just to let you know, Dar Es Salaam is an arabic name meaning Haven of Peace. I have seen more Muslim men and women here then anywhere else along my travels so far.
I also want to give a shout out to Jennifer Bandola for always leaving messages and encouraging me! I miss you! And to Tim who is coming to visit in about a month. I've had a number of funny conversations with him about his visit, trying to make sure he knows that the Africa here is very different from the Africa of Cape Town, South Africa. Cape Town is like europe c . . . and its been funny to review his packing list. So, Tim, be a minimailist . . and make sure you leave room to take back all of the stuff I have bought! If you are nice I'll give you a khanga!
Take care everyone.
Love,
Ann

Chillin' in My Khanga

Hi everyone. Not sure how far I will get on this post but I will continue to update it as I have time. I made it safely to Dar Es Salaam on Thursday late evening. When I had left you last I was spending the night in Nairobi by myself in a little dorm style room. That turned out to be a really good place and I ended up with the room to myself. I spent the rest of that day walking around Nairobi taking care of some business - getting some English books, going to the market to get snacks, and eating an early dinner so I could be in the hostel before dark. The night was amazing because the room I was sleeping in had this great breeze and for the first time in 3 1/2 weeks I was a little cool. Thursday morning (1/22) I had a 6:30am bus to Nairobi. My ticketing agent had told me to be at the station by 6:00 so I had planned to rise at 5:30, dress, repack and then walk to the station. WELL sometime during the night I had rolled over my phone and sent it into silent mode. So I just happened to wake up and see that someone was calling me. After I hung up the phone I noticed it was 6:08AM! I literally jumped out of bed. For some reason the night before I had resolved to pack AND sleep in the same clothes, something I never do. It turned out that the foresight helped save me from missing my bus. I literally threw a bar on, peed in the hole in the floor and grabbed my stuff and ran to the bus station. I was one of the last on the bus and felt very grimy, but I did not want to disappoint TAWE and miss the bus. On the bus I was lucky enough to have a seat mate who spoke English (Ismiel) and we kept each other company for the 17 hour bus ride. NOW, I know, you are thinking, 17 hours? No way. Well no shit. I was on the freaking bus for 17 hours. And imagine no food stops and very limited bathroom stops? And the bus had been advertised as the luxury bus with air conditioning and bathroom. Do you think the bus had any of those? Nope. So in case you cant tell, this was probably the first time I had been a little bitter on this trip. And I actually did the trip pretty well, surviving until 8:00pm when I heard it would be another 3 hours - it wasnt until then that I become a little annoyed . . . So not to dwell on the bus too much. I saw the entire landscape of Pare Mountains and Mt. Kilimanjaro, which I will see again in a few weeks when I return to Arusha. The only other noteworthy aspect of the trip was the Visa part. So when you arrive at the land border between Kenya and Tanzania, you have to actually exit the bus, disembark on the Kenya side and fill out paperwork, physically walk across the border into Tanzania and then apply for a Tanzanian visa. Well, of course, the 200 meter distance is filled with people looking to take your money. Luckly the bus driver had warned us ahead of time so we knew what the expect, but people were literally grabbing me trying to get me to pay them to 'cross the border.' Stuff like this happens all the time and I should get used to it, but it still frightens me and makes me mad. Once on the Tanzanian side it was a little bit of a fiasco to get a visa, but in the end I ended up with a good visa and the man gave me a deal - a multi entry visa where usually we should only get a single entry visa. Afterwards we got back on the bus and continued on. I will never do that journey again via bus . . . lessons learned. So luckily for me one of my TAWE greeters waited for me at the bus station for 3 hours just to make sure she was there when I arrived. That was an immense gesture and meant a lot to me because it is notoriously dangerous to be at the bus station alone at night. Sarah met me with her daughter and took me to my host home where Loyce lives. Loyce is a 50 year old woman who owns her own draperie business. Loyce was out of town on business but has a maid (yes!?) and just dropped me there for the night. On first impression I was very impressed with the home. VERY WESTERN. A cement home with a living room with a TV, sterio and several couches as well as a simple table for eating. I had my own bed room with a fan!!! YES A FAN and the windows had SCREENS!!! so there was a decent breeze. Funny but all of this stuff is so exciting now. The only part not western is the plumbing - basically she has no running water. The bathroom has a toilet and a sink, but its all kind of ceremonial. If you pour water down the sink it lands on your feet. But in a way I also love this. I havent sat down to use the toilet in five days. I use a bucket of water to flush the toilet. I use cups of water to wash my face and at night I use a bucket of water to shower. I have gotten pretty good at that and am down to using less than 1/2 a bucket per shower. I am also eating very well here, grateful that Loyce has taken into consideration my western tastes and does not feed me ugali at every meal. I eat almost 1 1/2 mangos per day along with tomatoes, eggs and fresh juices. I am being very spoiled here. On Friday afternoon, after a nice rest, several members of TAWE came over and we had a 4 hour meeting. I probably wont go too much into the activities of TAWE or how things are fairing with them since its not fair to them and probably not appropriate, but I definitely feel that I have a lot of work ahead of me and I am already questioning what I can accomplish. In the meantime I am keeping an open mind about these women and their lives. On Saturday Loyce's niece was having a visiting day at her girl so we took a picnic and drove out to meet here. It very a very lively place and there were tons of people visiting. Loyce is a huge networker and knows people EVERYWHERE. She is a very intersting character . . . On Sunday my appointment cancelled so Loyce took me to the beach. IT WAS AMAZING. We took this little boat out to this island and spent the entire day swimming in crystal clear water, eating fresh fish and snorkeling. I have some amazing pictures that I hope to post sometime in the future. We met some nice men too and they kept us good company. Then this morning I had a meeting in the morning with a pottery collective to learn about how to make pottery and what tools are available. One of my projects here is to work with a group of village women to see how they can produce better pottery to market to big buyers. It was an informative session and my next step is to go visit the village maybe next week and see how they are currently operating and to get a clay sample to the pottery collective so they can give better advice on what glazes and molds to use. In the afternoon I met with the chapter Treasurer and had a pretty unproductive day, but was able to see where she works and meet some nice people.
So I feel like I am leaving out a ton of detail, and I guess that I am. Its so hard to convey where I am and what Im doing. Its hot as well. Like super hot. I am the most casually dressed person that I meet. I dont have any nice clothes and everyone dresses very nicely here, even in the heat. One of my new favorite things are Khangas, hence the title. Khangas are traditional Tanzanian wear. They are basically thin towels that serve as dresses, skirts, wraps, bags, baby carriers, etc. They are multi functional and always have some kind of Swahili message written on them. They are meant to convey a message. Loyce and Edine (her maid) gave me one on my first night and I love wearing it around the house. When I come in at the end of the day I always take off my clothes and put it on. Its so comfortable and relaxing.
One note - I had a nice email from Mary DuPont about how lucky I have been, or how great of a guardian angel I have. I just wanted to completely agree with her and I hope it comes across how grateful I am for the amazing people I have met and the amazing experiences I have had. This is such a life changing and eye opening time for me and Im very happy with the person that I am here. I hope that I have the strength and grace to bring that person home.
I have to go now and will have more of an update later, but I hope everyone is doing well and enjoying life. Congrats to America for Barack Obama! I love you all!

Pictures

So I just tried to post some pictures but its not possible with the connection at the internet cafe. I have arrived in Nairobi this morning and while I was at the airport I took care of rebooking my flight home which had been cancelled and exchanged some Kenyan shillings for Tanzanian shillings so that I arrive in Dar Es Salaam tomorrow with a decent amount of local currency. I took a cab and met Eliud in the city center where we had lunch and figured out where I should stay. We settled on a hotel near the bus station so that I can just walk tomorrow morning. Its an okay hotel but the only rooms left were dorm style rooms. They dont appear to busy so I may end up with my own room tonight, but in the meantime I am seriously hoping that all my bags are still on the bed when I return . . . My goal now is to just check mail and get some supplies for the ride tomorrow, i.e. bottled water and snacks and an ENGLISH book or two. After that I will probably spend the rest of the night in the hotel. Interesting to be back here and see the same city through a different set of eyes, kind of comparing it to Tana and adjusting a bit easier. Sarah called from Dar and is expecting my arrival and will meet me at the station, which is good since I get in after dark!

Thanks to my brother, Jen and Livvie for leaving such a nice comment . . . of course I look skinny in the picture, thats the only reason I posted it!

I love you guys and hopefully will have more of an opportunity to upload pictures once in Dar.

Leaving Madagascar

Hi everyone, it has been awhile since we last talked and I hope everyone is doing well. I arrived back in Tana last night after an amazing week of travel. When I last left you I was sitting in the internet café in Antsirabe feeling a little lonely because Marc and Mamy had just left me. Marc was an amazing and generous travel companion and it makes all the difference the world to be able to share experiences with other people. Wow…saying that I already feel like a new person.

I spent all afternoon on (1/14) Wednesday in the internet café working on my blog, responding to emails, checking my bank accounts and getting some general admin work behind me. In the afternoon I walked back to my hotel and stopped for lunch at a Chinese hotel – and had my first great experience with Chinese Malagasy food. A big thing here is Soupe de Chinoise which is just a large bowl of soup with dumplings and whatever else. It can be cheap as shit and filling, hence its popularity here. I ordered a vegetarian soupe and it was delicious, a really nice change from all the rice that is typically eaten with Malagasy food here. After lunch I walked back to my hotel and dodged pousse-pousse drivers by the hundreds. I don’t know if I have remarked on this before but many towns in the south of pousse-pousse drivers. A pousse-pousse is basically the same thing as a rickshaw and the drivers are incredibly annoying. I have to remind myself that they do it to make a living, and it’s a hard living to make, but they are so damn insistent and inefficient. Often times Marc and I would walk the entire length of wherever we were going and one or many pousse-pousse drivers would just trail behind us. It doesn’t matter how many times you say no, they will follow anyway… but I did find after Marc left that it was easier to get the drivers to leave me alone. Marc just has this super genuine quality about him and I could almost imagine him simultaneously turning down a pousse-pousse ride while inquiring about the driver’s family. And I think a lot of people can pick up on how kind he is so the drivers would never leave us alone. On the other hand, when I was finally alone I would just give a few NO MERCIS and keep walking and they would get the picture. During the afternoon there were heavy rains and I just stayed in my room and did some organizing – kept track of the places I had visited and counted my money and got payment together for Mamy. I think I took a short nap and just relaxed. As evening approached I took a look at my guide book for a place close by to eat, knowing I did not want to be too far away from the hotel once it got dark. I found this place called Le Triannon right down the road and set off. It was this hidden gorgeous French hotel run by a Frenchman who plays the keyboard and sings in the bar each night. He did not speak too much English but he could sing in English. I met a man named Phillipe from Senegal and we talked while I waited for the kitchen to open. I was a little wary at first because I was the only female in the place, but everyone was just really kind and interested in talking and making me laugh. I loved the owner/singer and had some of the best fish so far. By the time I left it was pouring again so I just walked home in the rain and enjoyed the quiet of the night.

On Thursday morning (1/15) Mamy came back and picked me up – something I was absolutely expecting, but nonetheless relieved to see him arrive. We settled up payment in the parking lot and then headed out for a long day of driving. The weather was beautiful and I settled into the routine of Mamy and Ann, as opposed to Mamy, Marc and Ann. We stopped outside of Ambrostra for lunch. I wasn’t really paying attention and just ordered whatever Mamy was having – which turned out to be chicken soup – which might sound normal but actually wasn’t. It’s water with a lot of chicken pieces boiled in it, including chicken stomach and pieces of chicken with skin and hair still on it. I swallowed my pride and a little throw up and tasted it. The broth was okay, the chicken not really my style. I offered my lunch to Mamy and just had the broth over rice …. definitely not my favorite lunch to date. Afterwards we set off driving again and made a few stops to pee on the road. Sometimes and hopefully behind a bush, other times not too much privacy. In the afternoon we stopped in Fianar so that I could completely book my flight from Toulear to Tana. The reservation had already been made by Anza so I just had to pay for it and get the ticket. It was interesting to be back in Fianar under the circumstances. I had just been there a week ago in a completely different state and a different perception of Madagascar. Amazing how things change. That night we arrived in Ambalavoa and checked into a hotel. Ambalavoa has a huge market and I sat outside and watch as they started to take everything down. It was an interesting sight and reminded me of Niger market days. While sitting outside I also met three Alaskans travelling together who I would have the pleasure of running into several times over the next few days. That night I ate alone and it was definitely a lonely night for me, but the Alaskans stopped over and brought me some cheese and crackers from the Benedictine church in Ambostra that Marc and I had also stopped at.

On Friday morning (1/16) Mamy and I left the hotel around 7:15 and went to the Ambalavoa paper factory. They weren’t really open yet but I still had a great time. The women make the paper by hand, starting with stripping wood down, boiling it over an open fire, mashing it by hand into a paste, spreading the paste over a permeable board, then submerging the board in water and letting the water slowly drain. The paste then dries like a glue. While its still tacky, the women press flower petals and grasses onto the paper to make designs and the finally put the boards in the sun to dry. It’s a very labor intensive process but the outcome is stunning. I had them open the shop and I bought some paper. This was a really neat thing to watch. The community run park that has beautiful mountains, caves and lemurs. I took a two-hour walk and did some climbing. I also saw a ton of lemurs and almost thought one was going to attack me when it leaped onto the tree right in front of me. They were being very playful and it was a lot of fun to watch them go from tree to tree. I also ran into the Alaskans and had a nice chat with them on the top of this huge steep rock. They have been travelling for 6 months and have 6 more months of travel. They quit their jobs in Alaska and just set out on this trip, first in Asia, now Africa and later Europe. They were really nice people. After Anja Mamy and I set out for Isalo, or rather the little village near Isalo. We drove 4 hours and the scenerary was beautiful. There is a definite change in scenerary between the Fianar/north and the south. The north has a ton of green and is more rainforest in appearance while the south is dry and similar in appearance to Colorado. BUT the cloud cover is still amazing. When we arrived in Isalo we went directly into the village to arrange for the tour the next morning. I met Daniel my guide and settled on a ½ day hike that included cascades, canyons and some natural pools. Afterwards we checked into the hotel, which was kind of outside of the village but had a nice pool. It was considerably more expensive than any of the hotels that we had stayed in, but I later learned the hotels have a monopoly there since all the people come to see Isalo and must stay in one of the 3 hotels. I was the only person staying at the entire 30 bungalow hotel and it was kind of spooky. The hotel ran on solar power and so electricity did not turn on until 6pm. In the afternoon a huge storm came through and made everything dark, so rather than sit in my room in the dark I sat outside and watched it approach. Ive remarked on this before but storms are pretty cool here. The clouds are normally amazing but with the storms everything is magnified. You can see the rain in villages many kilometers away and just watch as it comes. Sometimes it looks so close but can take over an hour to arrive – but when it does it is crazy. Afterwards the sunsets are also amazing, so I just sat on my porch on the ground and watched. I was feeling lonely and listened to my iPod for a little while. I am grateful to have that because it reminds me of home, but I try as much as possible to not use it. I like to be here and have all of my senses here, if that makes sense. In the evening I had dinner with Mamy and settled in for bed, tucking my mosquito net around the bed and lying completely flat trying not to sweat.

In the morning (1/17) Mamy and I left the hotel around 6:50 and went into town to meet Daniel. Mamy does not have a 4WD vehicle so he drove us part way and then we hiked into the park over dirt roads. The park from the outside is pretty amazing, very much like Colorado with huge mountains and very beautiful. It took us like 25 minutes to reach the park and included a few walks through streams and past women bathing and washing clothes in the water. Once in the park we headed directly up to the cascades. It was a very strenuous hike but we were lucky that the clouds were heavy and it was still pretty cool. We had a lot of steep up-hills and river-walking on rocks and through water. The cascade was stunning and I promptly took my clothes off and went swimming in the clean water. It was such a treat to feel the cool water and to go swimming. We stayed there for about 25 minutes and then I got out, got dressed and we continued on up through the canyon. There I saw a lot of neat plants, some lemurs, a sifaka from afar and an amazing view. After that we hiked down to the blue and black natural pools. I again swam in the blue pool and enjoyed the break. On the way out we ran into a group of sifakas, which are pretty rare, and lemurs. I also took a hard fall and cut open my leg and right hand. I was kind of concerned about the bleeding but there wasn’t much I could do but walk out of there and clean it later. Afterwards we hiked back into town and I all but collapsed with exhaustion. I had a nice lunch in the village and then Mamy and I were back on the road again heading to Toulear. We went through some very dangerous villages that are mining communities with huge disparities in wealth. Mamy locked the doors and put all the windows up and we just went straight through. We also went through a ton of POOR villages outside of Toulear. It still boggles my mind, but some of these villages are absolutely in the middle of nowhere and grow little food. Most people have to walk inbetween villages which can be far and we always come across these people in the middle of nowhere and its like – how did you get here, where are you going, and what are you doing!? We reached Toulear around 6 after a few picture detours and stories of the surrounding villages. Perhaps more on that later. We checked into this new hotel and I ran into the Alaskans again. They had just eaten so I went upstairs thinking about another meal alone. I wandered out onto my balcony and found that Diane, one of the Alaskans, was rooming right next to me. We started walking and she offered to walk with me to have dinner so I didn’t have to go alone. We had a wonderful time talking and it was SO nice to have someone to go out with. Afterwards we watched the sunset and retired to our rooms and I think neither of us slept because of the heat.

In the morning (1/18) a driver came and took Mamy and I to Ifaty. It’s a 1 ½ hour drive from Toulear through dirt road that sometimes get washed out if there is too much rain. It was an interesting drive and we went through a ton of villages. So I had gone through the guidebook and selected a hotel, the same one I thought Marc had gone to. Mamy and I had decided that he would probably just leave me in Ifaty and the driver would return the next morning and take me to the airport. So I gave the hotel the OK and Mamy and left .. and then I started hating the hotel. My bungalow was far from the water, it was dark with no electricity; the room had been dirty when I entered, and the hotel was secluded from all the rest. I went down to the beach and was thinking about what to do when a friend guide that Mamy had called came down to visit. I think his name was Bobi? So turns out he does boat tours and snorkeling and that sounded good to me so we arranged for something later in the afternoon. I mentioned that I was looking for the Alaskans and he offered to walk me into town to see what I could find. I never did find them, but I found a much better area with more people and food choices and better rooms. I ended up walking for about 1 ½ hours on the beach and then went back to my hotel, packed up my stuff and walked it all down to the new place. Now, I know that the pictures of my luggage didn’t seem like a lot, but walking with it all through the sand barefoot in 90+ degree temps was pretty stupid. BUT also good exercise and I definitely got familiarized with the beach! I settled into the hotel and realized that I was truly in paradise. Seriously, STUNNING. The Indian Ocean in the Mozambique Channel is this emerald green and you can see straight down. I got into the water – with about 10 naked kids and we went swimming. Around 2 Bobi came back and we got into this boat, similar to the picture here but it also had a sail. Completely makeshift and totally awesome. We went very far out from land and I just jumped into the water and went snorkeling for about an hour. This was probably one of the most amazing things I have done so far. I saw fish straight out of National Geographic and would dive down and swim alongside. It was so incredible. The boat ride was also amazing – I love water and the beach but it was my first sailing trip and I was hooked. We took the boat back to my first hotel where I grabbed and paid for laundry I had left and then dumped it in the boat and headed back north to the village. I know I don’t have a ton of detail on this whole blog because I have a lot to cover; but it was GREAT. I took a long walk with Bobi through the village and that was nice too, to go where I normally couldn’t go alone. I went swimming again and watched the sunset before I ate and went to bed. I posted a picture of the sunset in the previous blog.

The next morning (1/19) I was up at 6:30 and went swimming and repacked before I was picked up by the driver and taken to the airport. The flight was good back to Tana. Hoby and Solofo met me at the airport and took me to my hotel, even helped me find a hotel with CNN so I could watch the inauguration today. We met later for dinner and it was nice to have people to talk to. Last night I spent a lot of time battling mosquitoes and finally fell asleep with the lights and my glasses on.

So that brings me to today. I had a wonderful massage this morning, about 15 dollars for this crazy full body oil massage. Interesting experience, I was expected to be completely naked and just undressed right in front of the maussesse. It was a neat thing and then I just headed to the internet café, which is where I am now. I am meeting Solofo later to practice his English and then some Peace Corps Volunteers so they can watch the inauguration in my hotel room. Tomorrow Mamy takes me to the airport and I leave Madagascar.

So a few things to remark on – the inauguration. I’m sure its exciting to be in the USA and be a part of this, but its also very exciting to be outside the USA and see how excited the rest of the world is for us. I think this is a wonderfully historic day, not just because Obama is black, but because so many people in the world believe in him.

I am so thankful for all the support that I have received; I love to read the comments and go through my emails. The love and support is overwhelming.

Ive added pictures to this post and the previous one, so don’t miss those.

Finally, I leave Madagascar tomorrow and I am sad to go. This has been an incredible trip. It started out rocky and things were tough but I made it through each step alone and with the help of many people. I can’t wait to be able to share the rest of my stories and experiences with all of you. Veloma for now.

Tiako bey iniano.

Ann