Alicia is Adjusting

I've been in the Gambia for over four months now, the time sure is flying by. In my short time living in a developing nation, I've observed things i never before took the time to notice:
-I understand the cycles of the moon.
-i know where the stars are suppose to be in the sky when i sit down for dinner
-i use less than 10 gallons of water a day; this includes drinking, bathing, cooking, and doing dishes (on laundry day i use 15)
-i can tell you within about 10 minutes of when the sun will rise and when it will set
of course there are many more, but i can't think of them right now....so more to come at a later date.

I have realized that I haven't told ya'll much about things here. It's amazing how fast human beings can adapt to their surroundings.
-When I wake up freezing in the morning, i look at my thermometer it reads “78*F”
-a fifteen passanger van should hold at LEAST 28 people. Not to mention there should be at least one goat or sheep tied to the top of the luggage rack. And forget about seatbelts, they don't exist. Also waiting for transport should take at least half an hour if not two hours.
-i have a fence around my yard, it's made of grass and sticks
-i have a dog, her name is dixie, (beacause of linguistic differences, most of my friends here say 'discie'). Dixie sits when commanded and this is a considered an amazing thing b/c training a dog is unheard of. So i just let her run around where she wants and it is totally socially acceptable.
-i'm not at all worried when i see a six year old carrying a machete
-i can only send one email in an hour if i want to use the internet. (i have a friend updating my blog for me b/c i cannot get the page to load)
-eating a sandwich wouldn't be as good if it didn't come wrapped in an old Dutch newspaper or covered in MSG. (one day, i had a sandwich wrapped in a target add...it was the highlight of my week)
-a greeting should take a minimum of 5 minutes (not an exaggeration)
-i constantly chase sheep, goats, and chickens from my porch

only one last thing before i go, i'm sure many of you are interested in contacting me. So here is my info:

Alicia Macmanus, PCV
US Peace Corps
PO Box 582
Banjul, The Gambia
West Africa

my cell number: 734-5225, the country code is 220

it's free for me to receive calls, but really expensive to make them, so if you wanna call me, just get a calling card specific to west africa, i don't know where to get them, but i have been told they are available.

And if you want to send me a package here are some things i would always love to get (any one or combo of these would be more than appreciated): starbucks coffee, gatorade mix, protein bars, beef jerkey, reading materials (books, magazines, newspaper clipping, sunday comics), chocolate (go to walmart on the february 15^th and buy a bunch of on sale m&m's and such).

Ok, time on the internet is up. Hope all is well in the US of A!