Here’s a few initial observations from our first days in country:
- The humidity is intense and the sun is STRONG here
- Sun rises around 6:30am and sets around 6:30pm, so we live on an earlier schedule here
- We feel exhausted a lot of the time
- No air conditioner. We really love ceiling fans now!
- The landscape is incredibly beautiful and it intermingles with extreme poverty
- Separating trash into 4 buckets of compost, burnable, diapers, metal/glass, takes some getting used too. It’s like being forced to be “green”, but who wants to be green when you can hardly avoid maggots sprouting up in the compost after like a day??
- The grocery store is surprisingly like home. I say that VERY loosely. But you can find way more than I expected.
- That being said, you can never be sure when they’ll have it! It always changes! and…
- Food is very expensive here!!! Makes sense that people here have gardens/fish/etc
- Most things need to be made from scratch (out of necessity + cost) BUT of all things you can get Masamaan Curry in a can and it tastes AWESOME! Most stores here have a full out Asian cooking section too.
- If I want to get laundry done here, I have to get up early to wash it so it has time to dry on the line. Things here mold really easily.
- Flour and rice go in the freezer right away to kill any bugs/eggs inside, and most food needs to go in the fridge after being opened to keep bugs out!
- We want to drink water. All the time!!
- Local people are very friendly, almost anyone is happy to strike up a conversation with you anytime!
- The kids love it here, but get so sweaty and dirty! I didn’t know a kid could sweat so much! (Nora)
- It’s so great for the them to be around lots of kids!
- We spend so much time outside and I love that! Our house is so full of light and the windows are always open!
- Lots of bugs and critters to catch. Nora wants them all and asks to “keep them forever”
- There is so much to learn about culture. So much. It’s hard knowing we just have to jump in and make mistakes sometimes!
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