Finially made it home

Yesterday I arrived at the town which will be home for the next two years. I had a grand welcomiong from the chief and a few of his notables. They even whipped out a camera to take a picture of me with the chief and in front of my house. There is another volunteer living about 3KM away from me who came over to greet me as well. She told me that I should feel honored because she never got a welcming like I did. But I am the first voluteer for my village.

My house is quite African. It has a thatched roof and cement walls. It is round and is divided into two with a cement wall. It is quite small but it will do. The thatched roof keeps in much cooler than tin roof which is nice but it also attracts more bugs and mice. I have already seen three really big spiders. I am getting used to them being around. My family is building me another stucture which will be my kitchen. The way it is set up now I have little to no way to prevent bugs and mice that might be attracted to my food from getting into to my sleeping area. So maybe by the time I get back to post in Decemeber it will be done.

After speaking to my counterpart, it looks like I am going to have a lot of work to do for the next two years. He wants me to do a lot with HIV/AIDS but he said there are also a lot of problems with the other areas of my job like malnurtition, malaria and sanitation. My counterpart also works for an organization for people who have amputated limbs. They do also do work within the arts to gain profit. I was told they make clothing and bags, so I might be buying a lot from them.

Health is still fine. The heat up here isnt as bad as in the south because there is less humidity. There is an internet cafe with a fast connection only ten minutes away. Market is close by as well. I think I am going to be set. To quote the movie Annie, I think Im gonna like it here!