Leaving Africa? NEVER.

Hello world. Tomorrow I am "free", finished with the program here in Tanzania and once again released into the wild... be afraid, be very afraid... but now, at this moment, I am suffering from intensely mixed feelings, as Tanzania has definately become home to me and the folks that I've met are some of my best friends... yet at the same time, I'm heading off in about a week on an entirely new adventure in London. I am speaking Kiswahili better than I ever have, the people in town have begun to see me as more of a local than a foreigner (BROAD spectrum), and I'm really enjoying spending time with the other students and traveling around town and knowing in general what to expect. A lot of folks are heading out to Dar and Zanzibar this upcoming week before going home, but as I don't have enough time really I'm going to hang out around Arusha and go see my homstay mama, do some tourist shopping, and generally be a bum until about Tuesday. On Tuesday or Wednesday, I'm headed up to Nairobi and will spend a few days with Judy, my friend Helen's cousin, who I met when I was in Kenya for "the removal". And then comes Friday, when I board a plane and head to London, the most expensive place in the world, where I will have to remember to speak english; won't be able to talk to random people on the streets; won't be able to stare and point at anyone I want; will have to actually use public transportation on a schedule; can't pick my nose in public; will have access to a real toilet with real toilet paper at any time; and will need to find a job and place to live really fast. Not to mention will stop eating because: 1) I will most likely get sick after eating only african food for 4 months and 2) I won't understand having to pay more than $2 for a full meal. Which is going to be even more of a problem because the dollar is so bad against the pound right now... thanks Bush. If you can't yet tell, I am wicked excited :). Ooo, and I'm seeing Othello at the Globe Theatre the second night in town, which is going to be great!

So I joined this great online community/organization thingy called couchsurfers.org... and this is where if you are related to me in a motherly capacity you should tune out :). Its basically this network of people from all ages all around the world who open up their couches, floor space, spare rooms, etc to travelers coming through their areas for a few nights for FREE! Its a great way to meet new people, and to get an inside view on their city. Also, they have a great reference system where if you get a bad reference from someone who's stayed with you you get kicked off of the system, never to return... ANYWAY, needless to say, this has amounted in me looking for free housing in London rather than paying 14 pounds a night for teh hostel I'm looking at... and I've found it! I shan't tell you details, but this person seems quite reliable, has a spare room that I may even be able to rent out for the summer (maybe), and has a really good location for conducting a job search from. Yes, I realize that this is potentially dangerous, sketchy, questionable, ridiculous, and utterly absurd... but don't forget adventurous, fun, and bound to be a good story no matter what happens. ( and now is your chance to get out the comments you have about this idea... I told you not to read this mothers :))

So, to change the subject, in terms of my return to Africa, I'm already planning it :). I'm CONSIDERING applying for a research grant from Bucknell to come back and work with the organization I was working with in Dar (LEAT) and continue investigating the Usangu conflict, conducting in depth interviews and collecting more information. There is a chance, albeit minor, that I may try to do this as part of a senior thesis and come back over winter break...but if not, then potentially after I graduate next year (scary). I will be back in some capacity however, so that Africa doesn't miss me for too long!

Alright, thats enough to chew on for now. Be back in a few days :)