Well, I made it! It definitely felt like I never would, but I did. 36 hours of straight traveling feels every second as long as it sounds. But 5 plane rides later, I made it to Durban, South Africa last night. Although the many, MANY plane rides were long, they went relatively smoothly. The only really noteworthy pieces being that African flights not only provide you with meals, but also a free open bar, poor little Patricia got food poisoning on one of the flights, and all of our luggage made it safely here.
When we arrived at Durban, a group of Interstudy staff members were there to meet us along with 3 of the 4 other Interstudy students. (Interstudy is the study abroad program I went through—for those of you who have no idea what I’m talking about.) We all piled into a van and headed back to my new college campus. The kicker though, was that the power was out over the whole campus. Soo… I was lead via a very small flashlight into my dorm building and up to my room.
Seeing as it was rather pointless for us to try to settle into a place we could not see, the 5 of us students, the Interstudy Durban program leader Anita, and our mentor Ebby went to grab a drink in a part of town that was lit. We went to this BEAUTIFUL outdoor Morocon-style restaurant that had a live band playing. I got a drink called a Dark Israli which was an icecream and mint liquor mix and tasted a lot like a Grasshopper. It was a lot of fun getting to know everyone at the restaurant (which, may I add was OUTDOORS! –I can’t even remember the last time my cold little Minnesotan self could do such a thing.) Anita is very friendly and fun and laughs a lot, and Ebby is HILARIOUS.
By the time we had finished the power had returned on campus, and the final Interstudy student arrived. We headed back and got to see our rooms in the light. The boys and girls are in separate dorms here, although they are not strict about visiting. We all have our own rooms which is nice, and the dorm itself is pretty cute.
I woke up around 6:30 this morning, though I think I will be able to adjust to the time pretty well. The view from my dorm is so beautiful and I can’t wait to see campus in the daylight. Today we are going to the bank to set up accounts, and then to a shopping center to pick up anything we need. Ebby, our mentor, is trying to get us V.I.P sections for a bar/ club tonight, so we will see where that leads.
I am just so excited to be here and I think I am going to love it. I think I should start getting ready for the day now, but I will keep you all posted on what life here is like.
I will post some pictures soon! :)
