A New BotsMama

I hav finally escaped from the lodge with its American amenities and large swimming pool into the village of Molepolole, where I use an outhouse and take bucket baths, but can walk to KFC. Go figure. I'm at an internet cafe and don't have much time left (and the connection is verrrry slow), but I'll try to run through the events of the last couple days. Wednesday was a full day of training, full of Setswana lessons and vaccines, and ending with a fancy dinner with the American ambassador to Botswana and the filming of a music video. Yes, that's right, our lodge was the filming location of Slyzer's newest music video. Slyzer, in case you were wondering, is one of the most popular musicians here. Every kid knows her name. It was crazy. Thursday was our last day of training at the lodge, and we of course ended it with a celebration in the hotel bar (don't worry, we didn't get too crazy). It's amazing how close we've gotten as a group in such a short time. It sounds weird,but now that we're all living apart with different families, I'll be looking forward to our long days of training classes together.
Yesterday was one of the strangest, most exciting days of my life. We checked out of the hotel early, and met in a hall in Molepolole, where the ceremoy to match us with our host families took place. There was a LOT of singing and praying and ululating (look it up), and at the end, we all had new Bots-mamas (and dads and siblings and grandparents and cousins and so forth). When I got to my new home, I was immediately integrated into the family,and cooked dinner and washed dishes with my new 12 year old sister. I was introduced to the concepts of bucket baths and using an outhouse, which I'll talk more about later. Everyone went to sleep early,and I was left in my new room wondering what the heck I've gotten myself into. However, everyone has been very nice and welcoming, and I am much more optimistic today. And Africa is beautiful. I'll post some photos when I can (which will most likely be in 2 months when I get my laptop back).
Ok, time is up. I'll try to get back on soon!