So I live in West Africa!

Written Tuesday, October 9th, but internet was down… better late then never!
Bonjour Tous Le Monde! I have been in Africa for 2 and a half weeks now and I love it! I’ll rewind a little for you all and I will try no to ramble!
I flew out of New York City, which was amazing because I had never been on the East coast. Although we didn’t go through Manhattan, I got to see the skyline and the Statue of Liberty. We also drove through Brooklyn and Queens. It was great! The most amazing thing happened on the plane to Paris. I was sitting next to an older woman from the US. We started chatting and she asked why we were all traveling together. “Oh we are going to Togo for the Peace Corps!” And as fate would have it, she was a PC Togo volunteer in the late 60’s! Amazing! I really felt like it was my Grandmother sitting next to me giving me the strength that I have needed and used thus far! She was wonderful and I’m going to try to stay in touch. It was a blessing and a perfect send off!
So we spent a busy 5 days in Lome, the capital city, doing administrative things like getting shots and learning how to treat our water. It was all a bit overwhelming but also really fun and exciting. It is really hot and humid here and I’m always really sweaty but so is everyone else so it’s more socially acceptable. I got to see the ocean and the Togolese beach. Although it was different from any other beach that I have been to, it was beautiful! There are lots of beautiful and kind people all around and the Peace Corps Staff and current volunteers are Amazing! They have been my saving grace on everything Peace Corps Togo!
We left the city on Wednesday the 26th (Happy B-day G) and traveled about an hour and a half to the North to our training village. The countryside is absolutely gorgeous! It is sooo green and so different from my Western stomping grounds. We arrived at our village around noon and were greeted by the most amazing celebration. I was moved to tears! There was traditional African singing, dancing and drumming and the villagers are so excited to have us here! We went to our schoolhouse where we will be training and had lunch and met our host families. I have a great Togolese family. I live with Mama Pauline, her daughter Shantall and her two children Fabrice 5 and Bienvenu 3! Our home is nice. We have electricity and my latrine (toilet) is ‘nice’. I have an outdoor shower as well with the best view of the mountain! Mount Agou, highest mountain in Togo! I really enjoy my bucket showers other than the occasional visiting spider. We live in the most beautiful village. It is right under the mountains and the vegetation is incredible.

French classes are going well. The language barrier is hard but full submersion is the best way to learn. I am really excited about the work that I will be doing. Girls Education and Empowerment is the perfect program for me and although it will be challenging, it will be very rewarding!

The communication thing is a bit harder than I imagined. The best way to stay in contact will have to be snail mail until I become more familiar with everything (Although I do love e-mail as well). It takes about 2 weeks for letters to get to me but it takes a bit longer to get mail from me. I will do my best to write a lot and update this blog when I get the chance. Happy Birthday to all who I have missed, Dad, Tony and Uncle Dave. I hope you all had a great day! I miss you all and hope everything in your lives is going well.

That’s all for now! Love and Peace