Goodbye Germany, Hello Namibia!

There I sat alone at Gate 41. Five minutes earlier, I was marching in a polonaise with Mama, Papa, Franzi, and Johanna, singing "wenn et trömmelche jeht", in front of the security check. Thank you to you, Beate, and Wolfgang for the beautiful farewell, which was much easier for me than the very tearful goodbye 4 years ago when I went to Australia. Of course, I had to hold back some tears when I read your heartwarming letters, but it's not possible to go without them completely 😊 40 minutes late at 23:50, the Eurowings plane that was supposed to take me to Namibia finally took off. After several attempts to find a comfortable sleeping position, I surprisingly fell asleep quickly. Unfortunately, I was woken up at 1:30 for dinner, which was anything but delicious, so I only ate two dry slices of bread. After a few hours of less restful sleep, I opened the window blind and let a few bright rays of light into the plane. The sky was still quite cloudy, but after a short time, I had a good view of the endless expanse of Namibia. Nothing, nothing, and nothing again, just as you would imagine the country. Apart from the Etosha Pan, many shrubs, and gravel roads that looked like they were drawn with a ruler, there wasn't much to see. But it was fantastic to fly over this land. I was very grateful for my window seat.

After I arrived and recovered from the first heat stroke, I changed clothes in the bathroom, withdrew some cash from the ATM, and waited for Shaun, who picked me up. He owns the house where we live. It is located in a very poor area of Windhoek and is surrounded by corrugated iron huts and small houses. Currently, there are 18 Norwegians and 11 Germans living in our "Wadadee House", but that is constantly changing. So far, the groups are still somewhat divided by nationality, so I have only gotten to know the Germans more closely. But they are all very nice.

I have a very nice roommate who also studies special education in Cologne. But we have never met there.

For African standards, the house is upscale but still very simply furnished. But we have running water, electricity, and "normal" sanitary facilities 😊

Yesterday, Sheila, a local who also helps out here, went shopping with me, which overwhelmed me a bit because the currency is still very unfamiliar to me and I had to think about whether things are expensive or cheap and I didn't have any idea yet what I would need.

Here, you can take a taxi anywhere, and it usually costs $10 per trip, which is about 70 cents. Everyone in the house takes care of their own meals, but occasionally we also cook together.

After shopping, I briefly visited one of the kindergartens where two of the volunteers work, and I also visited Sheila's home. She herself lives with many children in a very small hut. The people, especially the children, are all so open and helpful. The children come straight towards you, want to be hugged, and want to play with you even if they don't know you yet. So many impressions all at once, which I have to process first. But I have plenty of time for that..

Anyway, I'm doing well so far, and I'll be in touch in the coming days. I have to start working for the first time on Monday. I'm already very excited.

Sending you all my best regards,

Your Namibian girl 🇳🇦❤️

P.S. More photos to follow