Over preparation / Intercultural effectiveness

With less than 24 hours before departure my packing is done, many goodbyes have already been said and I'm ready to head to Gaborone. The travel will take 40 hours and I'll be in Gaborone for 4 days before arriving at Mokolodi.

Earlier this week, I met Tammy Babcock over a beer. She is making a huge individual effort build a tank for water distribution in Cite Soleil, Haiti. (http://www.helptammyhelphaiti.com). She is driven, persistent and brave. I hope she is safe and productive in her upcoming trips. The best of luck with her adopted daughter and their eventual arrival to Canada.

My plan of hibernating in Canada went out the window when I went lake kite-skiing with Jesse and Don Stinson. You are harnessed in directly to the a huge kite and man does the wind pull. For anyone who has tried the 3m trainer kite, imagine a 12m kite pulling you down a frozen (?) lake. It was great to take in some Canadian nature, remember that winter is more than repressive snowbanks and cold wind.

I completed a course on intercultural effectiveness as part of the Students without Borders program. “An inter-culturally effective person lives contentedly and works successfully in another culture.” Sounds simple enough. No big deal ;)

My packing has been so extensive I feel over-prepared. It can be seen in the bulky, pricey and complete first aid kit packed in my luggage. With $300 worth of gauze and medication and anti-any-organism gels and creams, the first aid kit is suffocating my checked bag. For entertainment, around a dozen books and 150 Gb of shows and movies. Yep, lot of prep time.

Despite all preparation all I know is that life is going to be very different for the next few months. If anyone would like to get a hold of me, comment here or:
davecasson@gmail.com
Skype: dcasson85

Mokolodi Nature Reserve
Private Bag 0457
Gaborone, Botswana