Bonsoir du Burkina Faso!

I can hardly believe it, but I am HERE! I made it safely and fairly on-time on Monday night. It was an interesting plane ride… Not much sleep and a little nauseous for some of it. I actually had a 7hr layover in Paris, so I met a friend of a friend and got to see a few sights!! It was really great and a nice break from the airport. Customs was… interesting. We got off the plane to intense heat and stood in line in a little room (tons of us- actually a large flight) for over a half hour. People seemed to be getting through quickly though, so I thought it would be easy… Unfortunately the officer at customs would not hand back my passport and I couldn’t understand what he was saying in French about the problem with it. Soo he finished the last three people behind me while I stood there nervous as ever, and then I said “Ne comprend pas!” The problem was that I had filled a couple of the sections out either wrong (only one I think) or he couldn’t read my little English handwriting. After that fun adventure and being the only one left in there, I went out to get my bags and lo and behold, the big Rubbermaid of donations for the orphanage was missing. I was led into a room (kind of scary!) and sat down at a desk with a man at the computer. He only spoke French and we attempted a conversation of trying to figure out what the problem was. Thankfully Leanne from SIM found me and helped with the end. Despite the toughness of it, I was pretty proud of myself for getting through the conversations and remembering even a tiny bit of French.

There is so much else to tell!! I’ve still been fighting the nauseousness- possibly from malaria pills? The first night and day and a half were kind of tough. Believe it or not, I had the thoughts of “what in the world am I doing here- am I crazy? Is this really where God wants me?” Quite a bit of comfort came though, when I was able to check my email yesterday afternoon and received a few from friends who had been through the same sort of culture shock- the assured me (without even knowing that the very thoughts were going through my head) that it was completely normal. Yesterday afternoon I also met some of the girls living here at the SIM compound, so that definitely helped cure my loneliness a little.

What else… My Rubbermaid came in yesterday- Praise God!.. Sleeping under a mosquito net isn’t so bad actually- it make me feel safe from the bugs and other visitors (though haven’t seen too many yet). My bathroom is interesting- the shower is right in the room- literally! I shower next to the toilet and sink. It’s cold, but feels great with the hot weather. Oh, did I mention that it is HOT!?! I’m getting used to the feeling of constantly sweating and smelling too. Right now I have my own room (with a fan!! I don’t use it too much though because I don’t want to use a lot of electricity) but tonight another woman will be coming in and sharing the room, and tomorrow someone else will move in. They’ll both be leaving by Monday though.

Interesting things to share… Gechos are everywhere. Actually, they make good pets though because they eat all the bugs! I heard this loud noise all around us last night and the night before- sounded like the chains on a swing squeaking- I asked one of the girls if they were crickets or bugs or something, and she said “oh no, they’re bats..” Ahh!! I started my French class today- it was actually a lot better than I thought because it’s starting to come back to me. Maybe I’ll start writing my blogs in French :). Our three hour lesson was outside under this little thatch roof with a big old blackboard. Throughout our lesson, a rooster wandered in and out and would crow throughout- so surreal!! I actually walked back by myself though, which made me feel very independent and already acclimating a little into the culture. I was able to greet the people I passed, and oh my goodness the children are precious! The food has been good so far- different SIM missionaries volunteer to cook for the new missionaries for the first three days, so I’ve been in the homes of a few so far! Soon I’ll have to cook for myself though- eek!

I probably have a lot more I could write, but figure I should keep this one short. I will be here in Ouaga for the next week, but then heading to Yako and less internet access. I’ll update again before going, and hopefully post some pictures!! Thank you SO much for your prayers the past few days- I know God’s been looking out for me :) A bientot and talk to you soon!

A servant for Him,
~Liz