Our First Weekend

It finally feels like we are in Africa! I was preparing myself for another Central Asia-type of experience where everything was so difficult and different at first. However, I have been amazed by our rather smooth transition. While we haven't had time to really get to know or experience the culture yet, on the surface Gaborone seems similar to many American cities. For example, the supermarkets are just like ours. We can even buy pampers....for less!! There are lots of restaruants including fast food and pizza places that deliver! There are shopping malls, movie theaters, car dealerships, exercise facilities, etc. English is spoken, however, it will take some time adjusting to the accents.

We took a long walk around our neighborhood this afternoon. We discovered that our street is called "President's Drive" because we actually live on the street of Botswana's President!! There are several emabassies on our street as well. Needless to say, there is LOTS of security in our neighborhood. We also came upon an International Primary School on our walk as well as the headquarters for the Red Cross. (For those of you who don't know, before teaching, I worked for the Red Cross - both in DC and Central Asia). I will probably explore job opportunities at both places. Sure would be nice to walk work!!

Anyhow, back to feeling like we are actually in Africa! Yesterday we had breakfast at the Sanitas Tea Garden. It's a huge nursery with a little restaurant and incredible playground. As we were leaving our table, I was suddenly distracted by the most incredible music. We didn't know where exactly it was coming from, so we decided to follow it. As we followed the path that winds through the fruit-tree section of the nursery, the music was getting louder. We turned the corner to find a wedding ceremony taking place. There were other eavesdroppers, so we decided to stay for a few minutes. The congregation was small - but they were all singing and it was something incredible. Finally, I feel like we are in Africa!