Hello fans,
I’m supposed to be studying, since I have an exam tomorrow (!) but, of course, I am bored. So I thought I’d update on my preparations for this grand voyage.
As it turns out, Kingsly, the guy from Cameroon who was supposed to be part of our team, had to back out
due to complications with his university. So another Canadian, Sarah from Quebec, will be coming in his place. This means that Charles will be the only source of testosterone in the group, but I’m sure he’ll be fine!
When I was in Halifax a few weeks ago (to get fillings – awesome), I bought a big Arcteryx trekking backpack that I’ve been eyeing for a long time, so that was exciting. I came home to find water purifying drops and a treated mosquito net on my dresser, as well as a few Madagascar guidebooks (Mom has been busier than I have in terms of gearing up). I started reading the Lonely Planet guide and it definitely got me excited. They say that Madagascar is definitely not culturally similar to Africa, which isn’t entirely surprising, considering how unique everything about the island is. I did learn that I’m going to have to start eating meat again, so I’ve been easing into that – a little chicken here and there. They eat tons of seafood though, apparently amazing seafood, so I should probably dabble into that world before I leave as well. The last thing I need is a string of dietary complications in a foreign land. I decided not to get a rabies vaccination, based on the information I got from our trip’s organizer, who has never had one, even during her years of field work with the Red Cross and such. Also, it costs like $700 and involves one shot a day for 14 days, so I wouldn’t even really have time to do it now if I wanted to. I just won’t be petting any stray dogs.
Oh, I also thought I’d mention, for those of you who are new to the blog concept (ie Mom and Dad, mostly) you can leave comments on blog entries by clicking at the bottom right of the entry where it says “no comment” or “2 comments” or whatever. I’m not sure how often I’ll get to update this (if at all) while I’m over there, but just in case. And also, please assume that no news is good news. They’ll likely contact my family in the case of my abduction by pirates or anything like that!
