First in Country

First day in Niger. It's hot. And humid. And lizards everywhere. But overall totally awesome. I slept under the skies last night with only a mosquito net between me and the African night. 'Slept' is maybe a little strong since I didn't do much more than doze for 10 hours. New surroundings are always tricky and I can't wait for the night when I don't wake up once to the noise of the desert night. Roosters, crickets, donkeys, goats prayer call and people shouting will certainly take some time getting used to. As by a miracle, all volunteers arrived safely in Niamey as did all luggage! Quite extraordinary apparently since AirFrance is known for loosing stuff in transit. Exiting the airport we were greeted by a hoard of current volunteers holding a big welcome sign with all our names and passing out warm bottles of water. At the time I didn't appreciate that water much but since the water at our training site in Hamdallaye is cleaned with iodine, I'll take warm but pure tasting water any day and I'm currently devouring the last of my bottled water. It took 45 minutes to come to our training camp which really is like a mini village much resembling the sites of children's summer camps. We have a dining hall, an infirmary, bathrooms (with running water) and several huts for classes to be taught in. I can't wait to start learning a local language but still don't know if that will be Hausa or Zarma. If it is Zarma I will most likely be closer to Niamey which makes for easier visits and travel but it also means that I could never use my African language after Peace Corps. Hausa is spoken in Nigeria as well as the majority of Niger. I am a little worried about not having a clear preference but I think I'll leave it to the Peace Corps staff to place me where they think I belong. After setting up our mosquito nets and retrieving our luggage we gathered for brief introductions and a couple announcements. Dinner was surprisingly delicious consisting of pasta, a meat stew and salad. People started going to bed shortly after dark which falls around 8pm. Today is superbusy. Thus far we have taken a tour of the camp site, met the country director who seems firm but fair and are about to be introduced to the culture of Niger by means of a Culture Fair. Even though this blog entry won't be posted for a couple weeks, I have promised a certain someone to keep a close journal of events and I never break a promise. Today is my brother's birthday. Happy Birthday Andreas! I already gave you a present but hope you are doing good in California and that you will have a fun and productive rest of the summer.