I have now been in Africa for 6 weeks. When I first arrived I felt totally overwhelmed. Society here is very different, the roads are crazy, the odors attack the nose, and the noise is constant. I had no idea how anyone could live in these conditions. As I am approaching the end of my tour in the next few weeks, I am amazed how adaptable the human brain is. What was totally abnormal when I first arrived, no longer is odd. I still walk around with a heightened sense of my surroundings at all times, but I do not notice or pay attention to the things I did when I first arrived.
Dare I say it, life in Juba almost seems normal. Don’t get me wrong, I can hardly wait to step foot on Canadian soil, be apart of a clean and orderly society again. I dearly miss my family and feel like I missed out on a great summer even though it has been in the mid to high 30’c range since I arrived. I departed the day my daughter got out of school and I will return home hopefully a week before she returns to class. While growing up, the best part of the year to me was summer vacation. I truly hope we can cram a summers worth of memories into our heads in one week of holidays.
Even though I feel like I have adapted to Juba life, let me tell you I need a vacation! I work 7 days a week and extremely long days. I can hardly wait to cut the grass, wash the car, work on the boat, maybe build a shed and other assorted house projects. I might even visit the bank on my spare time so I can stand for only 5 minutes to withdrawal money, drive on the roads without being scared for my life and stop bribing security officials to get things done!
When I have a confirmed return date to Canada I will guarantee I will be letting everyone know!
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