Week 1: kind of similar, but oh so different

Our first week has been quite the adventure. It takes SO much more time and energy to take care of stuff here. Bank accounts, getting physicals, buying fruit, trying to decide whether to flush your toilet paper....nothing is quite the same.

Sometimes, from far away, americanized things kind of look like how you would expect them to back at home. But then you look a little closer and it's kind of messed up.

The local "Starbuks" was having an "Annivsary"

At a local eatery, nice flowers for the table from far away...are actually fakey flowers in a Lay's potato chip can.

Who needs Kinko's when you can make copies at a little ladder window thingy?

Anyways...

M&J picked us up from the airport. They made a sign, in case we got lost. Good thinking. We stayed with them the first few days and are crazy grateful for their help in getting settled. Also makes it feel a lot more like home.

Turns out M&J live in the same apartment complex we visited briefly when we were here in 2007. Of all the places they could have lived, it was in the 1/2 mile square radius of familiarity we had in the entire city. Crazy.

Street vendors are selling yams everywhere this time of year. On one of our first days, M went with us to help us run errands and picked one up for us to share. Yum.

The same day, we met J at his work to grab lunch together. Sadly the picture didn't come out so well, but it's kind of mysterious.

And a very large snail at a street vendor. That's my finger. and M's. No we didn't eat it.

Say hello when you have a chance, we *should have internet (and skype) up in a few days.

cc