August 22, 2016

Well, that was THE most exhausting series of plane rides I hope to ever endure. The flight to Ethiopia was well beyond my estimated 10 hours. Very comfortable flight, I will say; Lots of food and such. I didn't sleep well though... Dealing with the Ethiopian airport was a smooth process, despite what some of my worst bouts of pre-trip anxiety had me convinced of. I really anticipated the worst. That being said, it was the worst airport I've ever experienced. Such a jumble cluster of confusion. But I WILL say- their system freakin' works! Haha, I didn't even get a single chance to panic. I kept wondering why I was so calm. But again, I was maybe too tired to panic. To board the plane I had to get on a shuttle that took us out to the tarmac. Which means I felt like Kylie Jenner walking up the stairs to board the aircraft. This flight was the scariest for me. But low and behold, we landed safely. The Malawian airport has a shuttle, but most of us just walked into the airport. There were no terminals or little tunnels connecting to the building- everyone just walked or rode over to the front of the airport. I was nervous when I got off the plane because I wasn't sure if the stop was MY stop... The plane was also going to another city directly after. Ha, but apparently it was the correct city! Then, I spoke to a Malawian boy who had just graduated business college in California and was finally returning to Malawi for good. He said he wants to help rid his country of corruption and poverty. Very sweet boy. I'm so glad I already had my visa... The line for visas was DISASTROUS. Mass confusion. A very unorganized queue, and I'm too short to that mess. So, thanks to the Malawian Embassy!

Mystery solved- a man was waiting for me with my name on a piece of paper! Like in the movies! And the other girl he was picking up had her name on the paper too... But whatever. Turns out, there are only two people taking this class! Which is brilliant!! We all rode to the Centre together, it took about 30 minutes. It's on the edge of town, so I haven't gotten to see the city yet. 

When we arrived, we were given a brief tour of the facility. Very brief. But we saw a lot. This place is WAY bigger than I expected. I was so exhausted when I arrived that I could barely process anything that was happening. 

Oh, and here is a note I wrote while on the long flight to Ethiopia-

"The woman beside me just woke me up to tell me how good the cake was. I wasn't upset after I tried the cake. She told me (after I asked) that she was from Uganda. I said I was heading to Malawi. "I hope next time you come to Uganda." After that, comma splice, I gazed passed her out the window and wasn't even scared of how high we were. This was after we passed Halifax. I wonder if I could sail from Boston to Halifax, btw."

I'm uploading these all a day late. For instance, I met a 1/2 blind lion today, but I have to explain that tomorrow.