Arrival!

I'm Here! I made it to Dar, along with 46 other volunteers, last evening at around 8 pm local time. The flight were long enough, and I was glad to arrive. We all piled onto two buses, and after a 15 minute drive through streets lined with people, we made it to the compound. The compound is different than what I have expected, and I am not exactly sure how to describe it. It is nice but simple. It is run by a Catholic church, and has a hotel, dining hall, bank, internet cafe, and other stores located within it. I am in a single hotel room with running water (but no shower so I am getting used to bucket showers), electricity, a mosquito net, and a fan. It is quite humid and hot here, and I am told that this is about the coolest it gets in Dar. We had meetings for most of the day concerning community development, banking, and other topics to get us used to life here. We will start language training tomorrow, which I am looking forward to. I recieved a rabies shot today, and there are more vaccinations to come. I am taking malaria medication, which I will take every day while I am in Tanzania. Everyone has been extremely friendly so far. I will stay in this city until Tuesday, when we will travel to Morogoro. My half hour is expiring at the internet cafe, so I better run, but I am doing well, and I am looking forward to what will come in the next following weeks and months.

                                            Matthew

A Brief Introduction

As many of you know, I am leaving Monday, June 4th on a journey to Tanzania with the Peace Corps. After a brief staging event in Philadelphia, I will make my way to Tanzania by way of Johannesburg, South Africa. I will fly into Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania, where I will spend the first three days during orientation. Afterwards, I will travel to the city of Morogoro, where I will spend the following three months learning the language (Kiswahili), job training, and otherwise learning what is necessary to have a successful stay in Tanzania. I will live with a host family for these three months as I adjust to the way of life there. Finally, I will learn the location of my work site, where I will spend the next two years as I teach biology. There are many unknowns at this point, many of which relate to the frequency of communication. I will do my best to keep you all up to date on my experience. I would like to thank you all for your support, and I will try to give an update as soon as I can.

                                                 -Matthew