Here at last!

We arrived late last night after a slight delay out of Amsterdam. It was dark so the drive to our homebase in the city of Moshi was uneventful, but our driver (Peter) pointed out the clouds that were hovering over Mt. Kilimanjaro. I did make note of the numerous bars and lounges along the main road we drove along, out of place in the mental image I had created prior to my arrival. Since most of us had been traveling 20 or more hours, they pushed back breakfast an hour to 8am. Both breakfast and lunch were suprisingly reminscent of the cuisine in Belize, with fresh fruit a staple at every meal. I won't complain, because the fresh avocado is apparently served with most every meal! We spent the morning in Moshi, which was a relatively short drive. It was very clear that agriculture was the biggest industry in the country, with corn fields and other crops lining the bumpy road. The city was not overly crowded since it is Sunday, but we still were immediately approached and surrounded by eager street vendors looking to make money off the obvious out-of-towners. We visited a small market where local artists and sculpters displayed their work, but I decided that I would wait to make any purchases. We stopped at a food market, and while the group walked around a few of us used the time to purchase a cell phone to communicate with friends here as well as home (I can now get incoming calls!). I know most of you won't be suprised that I was one of the few in the group to buy a phone! I was suprised to see that many of the people spoke some English, and although rather broken, we were still able to communicate with most of the people we encountered. More importantly, however, it made me want to learn Swahili. Thankfully we will have our first lesson tomorrow morning!

It was apparent that poverty is rampant here and most rely on agriculture to support themselves, but I am eager to explore the surrounding areas more to get a better grasp on their lifestyle. The next few days will be spent at the homebase getting to know one another, the culture, and the people we will be working for. I will hopefully post again in a few days, but until then feel free to send some emails! Hope all is well back home...