We Made It!

We are here in Mozambique and the amount of things we have done in the past 48 hours is astounding (I think it’s been that many hours anyway! Considering the strange sleeping and eating patterns these past couple of days, I’m not really sure. ) So we are sitting here in our beautiful hotel room in Maputo where we can take advantage of the internet for the next day until we head off to Namaacha (say “nah-mah-sha”) for training. Ok, let me give you a quick rundown of what’s occurred…We made it to the airport in great timing for our 9:30 flight to Philly for orientation. That would have been awesome except it didn’t make a difference because we ended up being FOUR hours delayed due to weather. Normally,  I would have been a nervous  wreck but I had one little pout and decided it was time to roll with PCs whole philosophy of practicing patience and flexibility and it actually worked! I was at peace with the fact that we sat on the tarmac for hours before taking off however, it still meant we were an hour late to our orientation session.  We were the very last people to walk into a room of fresh-faced, wide-eyed trainees who were intently listening to information about the PCs mission and goals. As we quietly took our seats to not interrupt, I felt kind of bummed that I didn’t get to be a part of the initial chatter and excitement of the group meeting in person for the first time. But my feelings have completely gone away as spending the last couple of days with everyone has actually felt like weeks. We already feel such great connections with everyone, really, the group is awesome and we are enjoying getting to know these people who will become our family over the next 27 months. Just a little statistics on the peeps- there are 51 of us total in the 17^th training class in Mozambique. Aside from Chris and I, there is only one other younger married couple. We are all in our 20s except for one person who is 32, and no retirees which is surprising! Everyone has a unique and impressive background and it’s so exciting that we get to be a part of this group! So back to the logistics...after the training session in Philly, we all went out to our last American meal and slept for an hour or two (or some decided staying out would be better! :)) before boarding the bus to NYC at 2:30 am.  We made it to NYC oh, I don’t know, like 6 hours before our flight, but it was great. It gave us another chance to chat with everyone. We got on our 15 hour flight to Johannesburg which surprisingly, was not nearly as bad as we thought it would be. It was basically a pattern of eat, watch movie, chat, and repeat. And PS- they served big, hot meals and they were quite delicious! Thanks South African Airlines for still providing free meals on planes! Once we landed in South Africa, we took a very short flight to Maputo and were all gitty with excitement when we landed in our new home.  However we did quickly get a taste of the hazards of being in a developing country.  Our larger carry-ons had to be put under the plane from Johannesburg to Maputo and many of us did not have those bags locked assuming we would be able to hold on to them the entire trip. Sure enough, many people found things to be missing once the bags reached Maputo, myself included. Two of my necklaces were taken, but I was lucky they did not take all my jewelry so I can still accessorize! Really though, I packed everything with the understanding that something may happen to it when I came here, so it is what it is and I know I can find similar looking jewelry here for a replacement. This was another situation where I realize I really am shifting my energies on what to focus on and get upset over.  I feel really bad for someone who got his entire wallet, including all of his cash, stolen and someone else whose sentimental jewelry was taken. And, it showed a great display in our group’s camaraderie as we all chipped in to add a few bucks to a cash pile for our friend whose wallet got taken thanks to a great idea from a fellow volunteer.  We finished today at the hotel with vaccinations and medical interviews and will convene tomorrow to meet more of the PC staff, the American Ambassador and discuss basic safety info and how to live with a host family.  It’s hard to believe we will be living here yet since we’ve been so sheltered in a beautiful ocean front hotel and provided with pretty good meals and surrounded by Americans.  We did get a dose of reality on our packed van ride from the airport to the hotel. 60 people in a van for 30 with few seatbelts and no apparent regard for traffic laws? No problem, welcome to Africa! But more than that, we saw so many different stories in action on the streets of Maputo. Children playing barefoot in the dirt outside of their homes, a boy walking his goat, pickup trucks weighed down with people, colorful skirts and fruits in the market. We were all in awe at what is now our reality.

Alright, so we are off to go see who is still out and about! Hopefully we will be able to get on here again sometime in the near future while training in Namaacha for the next 10 weeks. Can’t wait to fill you in when the true adventure begins!