You never realize just how big the world is until you step off of the airplane and go from a place that had a foot or so of snow and landed somewhere that is a dry heat. When I say heat, I mean 90 to 100 degree weather where it was a struggle to walk from the plane to the airport terminal because it was hard to breathe. I made it though! The people in the airport were very nice. I was a bit confused about paperwork, but the women who was helping me talked to me about Bernie Sanders, so I felt very welcomed. All the signs were in Afrikaans as well as English, so there were no troubles there either.

I did begin to feel like Dorothy once Cappy (my taxi driver) picked me up. I had some confusion with withdrawing money from the ATM in the proper currency (I wanted Namibian dollars and freaked out a bit when I got RAND, even though they are both accepted and equal the same amount). I pushed through though, no matter the amount of people in line behind me. I am not in Kansas anymore. After, we walked to the vehicle, and I thought he was joking when he told me that I was entering the car on the wrong side. THEIR DRIVER SEAT AND PASSENGER SEAT ARE SWITCHED. THEY DRIVE ON THE LEFT SIDE OF THE ROAD! I am not in Kansas anymore. If that did not really show me that I was no longer in the United States, a baboon was trying to cross the road (yes, a baboon), and Cappy just honked at it like it was a deer. I freaked out just a bit.

The drive was very long, but rewarding. I keep remembering moments where I fell asleep in the car and woke up to be on the wrong side of the road, being so confused and scared because it seemed like cars were coming at us.

Once I arrived at CCF, I was exhausted. I was immediately greeted by everyone though, so it felt very welcoming. The work here has a very stiff organization to it, so it is fairly easy to pick up the tasks, and learning about the people you work with (from France, Germany, the Netherlands, Namibia, and other parts of Africa) as well as the animals you work with and the people you help, it is truly amazing and rewarding.

Here are the things I miss about home: Jimmy, family, coffee, and WI-FI that works. Yes, the connection here goes out all the time whenever we get a good rain. Rain here is a blessing because then it is cooler, but at the same time, it is a curse because the WI-FI goes out for days.

If you have any questions, please look through the photographs and captions I have taken and written out for you. There are also videos of cheetahs running! It may take a while for me to upload them, but just you wait!

Please enjoy and leave comments below!