Happy Saturday everyone!

Well, we’ve made it through an entire week, and then some.  I’m sure there will be days ahead where I feel homesick, bored, or claustrophobic, but so far am happy to report that we’re having fun and enjoying being here in Congo.

I mention “claustrophobic” because our independent movement is limited to the concession that the company “rents” from the government, a large area but with navigable roads only stretching about 30 miles or so.  Seb has a company truck (which I’m not allowed to drive), but if we want to leave the concession, we have to hire a driver through the company.  Or we can fly on the charter plane on Mondays or Fridays, if there’s room.  Either way, the only place we can really go is Lubumbashi.  From there we can fly somewhere else, but it generally requires going to Johannesburg first.  So, let’s just say that “vacations” away from the concession are going to require more than a weekend, and a lot of planning ahead!

Last Sunday we drove around the concession, where I was happy to discover some villages right outside our camp.  Here’s a tiny one of just a few grass huts.

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Happy Friday, family and friends!

Sébastien and I arrived in our new home in Fungurume, Democratic Republic of Congo, on Wednesday afternoon.  Only this morning did I find both internet access and a power adapter at the same time, so I can finally sit down and write an update.

Arriving in Johannesburg on Tuesday after the 15-hour flight from Atlanta was quite a relief.  We stayed in a nice hotel near the airport, had a fabulous dinner at a huge buffet, and got up early the next morning for our 3-hour flight on South African Airways to Lubumbashi.  The flight was packed with mostly businessmen, including a large Chinese contingent and many South Africans and Australians, and I have yet to figure out what brings so many professional people to this place.  The country has no major business going on besides mining, so I guess all these suits are involved in some type of mining negotiation??  Most negotiations involve the government, so I would think they’d be more interested in traveling to Kinshasa, the capital.  I suggested to Seb that maybe these people were transferring planes, and he laughed and said, “There are no transfers here.”  There were also three middle-aged white ladies all dressed up, huge Gucci and Coach purses included, speaking Portuguese and acting like they were heading to a beach vacation.  Hmm.  There were only a couple of plain-looking young ladies traveling alone.  In my imagination they were relief workers, Peace Corps types, the only story that really makes sense.  I wanted to walk up and down the aisles of our plane and ask everyone what their stories were, why the heck were THEY traveling to Lubumbashi. Continue reading →