Arrival

I'm finally here. I arrived in Fort Dauphin on Sunday morning after a stopover in Tana. It was raining. And a bit cold. Did this distract from my excitement? Of course not. I was picked up from the airport and driven to the house I am staying in. During a brief lull in the rain I dashed out to explore the area a little. Fortunately this is the house that most new people stay in on arrival, meaning the lady next to the nearest shop seemed to find my lack of Malagasy language and complete clueless-ness as endearing, funny and somewhat expected. With much sign language and laughter I managed to get a couple of supplies. I spent the afternoon having a damp walk around town with two of the Azafady team, followed by dinner with many more of them. Everyone here is so friendly and welcoming.

Yesterday we headed down to the beach, along with the rest of Fort Dauphin! It was a public holiday, traditionally marked by a beach picnic. As I followed Jo-Jo down the bank towards the sand I looked over the bay, across the blue waters, below the blue sky, mountains in between, and quietly said "I live here".

Today I am in the office and the work begins. My brain feels so full of information that if I tilt it to one side I'm afraid it may fall out of my ears. I have realised just how much there is to learn and I can't wait.