Arrival

HI!

Just wanted you all to know that I arrived safely to Cape Verde...After more than 40 hours of travel!

The hardest part of the trip was in Denver, believe it or not. I had too much weight, and they were going to charge me $400, but I ended up putting some stuff in a box and only paying a $250 "extra bag" fee. I barely made my flight to DC with all forms I had to fill out. No problem on the Senegal leg, thank goodness. The South African Airway flight was half full, and I had a seat to myself. Watched the movie "Angels and Demons". Was met by the Embassy expediter and taken to my boss' house in Dakar for a few hours of rest before my ongoing flight to Praia.

Upon arrival to this charming island, I was given an extremely warm welcome by the folks at the US Embassy and Peace Corps. First impressions: very friendly people, beautiful coastline, HOT (but with island breezes), Mediterranean in character, lots of new construction, much greener than I expected (due to it being the end of rainy season). It definitely does not feel like Africa - much more of a combination between Portugal, Brazil, and the Caribbean.

I'm currently staying at a hotel because my apartment isn't ready yet. Over the weekend, I attended a reception to celebrate one of Cape Verde's towns being designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Also traveled to the interior of the country (in the Ambassador's private car!) for a Peace Corps swearing-in ceremony.

Today I have meetings at the Embassy to discuss safety & security and my future work projects. I will also investigate the possibility of buying a scooter to get around. My curriculum development/teacher training work at the university will hopefully start next week. In the meantime, I plan to keep busy moving into my new apartment and learning a few essential phrases in Portuguese & Creole.

I'm still a bit jet-lagged, but happy to be here finally.

I'll post another entry soon (with photos!),

Daniel