We Have Arrived!

We have officially started our Peace Corps training! Before we left for Mozambique, we met in Philadelphia to discuss our expectations of the Peace Corps, and their expectations for us. It was a fun session, but the best part was being able to meet all of the other volunteers that are going to be training with us. Everyone has great stories, and they're super friendly. We even went out to dinner for our last night in the States with a small group; it was a blast.

After our last supper, we had to get up at 2 am to catch a bus to JFK airport in NYC. We didn't get back from dinner until about 10:30, so I decided to just stay up and try to sleep on the plane. The result of this decision was uncomfortable. I did get to sleep a little on the bus, but not more than an hour. We arrived at JFK at 5:30, two hours before we could even check in. I thought it would be best if I could stay awake until our plane left at 11:15.

Our flight boarded and left without incident. Our trip was estimated at 15 hours and 20 minutes, so we were all planning on sleeping as much as possible. Unfortunately, I was too excited to sleep, so instead I watched X-Men: First Class, Super 8, The Simpsons, Lie to Me, Black Swan, Rio, and Kung Fu Panda. I watched something like 12 hours of media during the flight. I spent the rest of the time talking to other volunteers, and taking a nap that lasted about 30 minutes. When our flight landed in Johannesburg after 14.5 hours in the air, I had been awake for about 45 hours with no more than 2 hours of sleep to keep me awake. I made it to the next plane ride, but as soon as we took off, I was fast asleep. Unfortunately, that plane ride was only an hour long, so I still did not have nearly enough sleep.

Our arrival in Maputo, Mozambique was very exciting. We got to see the landscape from the plane, which showed sparsely populated areas, large rivers, and the heavily-populated Maputo. We were immediately reminded that our belongings were no longer safe when some volunteers' bags arrived without all of their items. Some people had to check their carry on luggage because our plane was too small. When the bags were returned at the baggage claim area, two volunteers had had jewelery stolen, and one had all of his money stolen. I think it shocked most of us, and it definitely made me much more wary with my stuff.

The drive from the airport to the hotel was extremely interesting. Maputo was bustling with all sorts of people, many of them children. We saw Nelson Mandela's house from the street, which was cool. When we arrived at the Hotel Cardoso, we immediately unpacked and headed outside to check out the view.

We all thought it was quite spectacular. We didn't have much time to look, though, as we had to head inside for some buffet lunch. The food at this hotel is very good and very well-prepared, but it was Westernized.

After lunch, we started our staging, which includes getting vaccines, receiving information about what we would be doing for the next few days, and talking about the safety risks in Mozambique that we need to adjust to. We broke for dinner, and then went to sleep. We awoke this morning, and continued staging all day today. I am now in bed, and I need to sleep as much as I can. Tomorrow we are going to meet the families that will house us for our ten weeks of training! Boa noite!