A Better Day

I woke up this morning and made a list. I thought I’d be direct about what I needed to get for myself (toilet paper, money, internet access, more time on my cell phone, do my laundry) and what I wanted to do (browse a supermarket for American food to share with my host family, shop in the markets for gifts upon returning home, visit the local library)….I needed a new day, and this was my approach to a fresh start.
Turns out that was a remarkably brilliant plan. I’m not always so direct about what I want to do, but it was well received by my host-mom and she has since suggested I make a list for every day.

Anyway…Here’s what I did today…in list order:

1)Shower

2)Eat Breakfast

3)Clean Room

4)Download TIME magazine onto my Kindle with a subscription fee of less than $2/mo. And it works perfectly!

5)Catch a daladala bus (public transportation….more details to follow) for less than 50 cents into town to go to the Vodacom store.

6)Go to the Vodacom store and argue for an hour before finally getting a 3 month unlimited internet plan for 162,000 tz shillings (~ $124…….my excuses for not uploading pics are dwindling….although the connection is now a lot slower than it was before I purchased an unlimited plan…..)

7)Go to the bank

8)Go to the supermarket and buy pancakes and syrup and mac and cheese!

9)Go to the post office to figure out that it costs 27,000 TZ shillings (about $20 bucks)to ship 1 kg back to the US and 7 – 10 business days…..

10)Went to the market to buy 4 lovely Kangas with 4 beautiful sayings on them….(more details to follow)

11)Skyped my parents with my sister and tried to convince them to come visit me over the next school break….

12)Made BOTH pancakes and mac and cheese for dinner with my sister

13)Shower

14)Blogging

15)Reading my Time Magazine

16)Lala Salama……good night……