Changing Countries

I am finding it a lot harder to get time to blog than I thought I would.

I am hoping that after we settle in a bit, it will be easier.

There is so much to do starting over in a new country! Learning how to shop as the stores, brand names, and products are different. Learning how to drive on the left side of the road and the right side of the car. Mercy, that's been interesting. The first time I tried, I kept turning on the windshield wipers to turn as they were on opposite sides with the turn signals in the States. Intersections are the hardest. By default, I look left first and need to look right. Turning is different too. Think about it.

We are adapting to the noises, smells, and customs as well. The house we are living in is fantastic but only available for two months so we have begun searching for a house. We are borrowing a car from the Rentons until we can get our own.

Getting a bank account and mobile phone contract has been the most difficult. Because of the crime, the government has cracked down on both of these industries. We have had to gather a lot of documents: three month of bank statements, proof of residency in the USA, proof of residency here, including the passport, utility bill, and signature of the landlord (and ours lives in Congo!), personal passport, visitors visa, work contract including proof of income, and a letter from our USA bank stating we are in good standing.

We finally compiled everything and got to the bank yesterday. Now that the account will be opened, we can begin to look for a car. It is amazing how many things are dependent upon each other!

There are a lot of other differences. We call things by different names. Here are a few...

USA - stoplight SA - robot

USA - the trunk SA - the boot (of a car)

USA - "hello" SA - "howzit"

USA - "goodbye" SA - "cheers"

A common expression here is, "shame." It means, too bad. The Pocta family has put a friendly wager on who will say it first. It is tempting.

The one thing we are all finding ourselves doing already is imitating the inflections as we speak. When we speak in the USA, we end most of our sentences with a lower intonation. In SA, they use a lot more intonation "up and down" and end a lot of sentences higher. It is a bit hard to describe. Beth says it is more melodic. It is amazing how quickly you find yourself doing it!

Our bodies are still adjusting to the elevation here (over a mile high), the bacteria in the food and water which is different and can lead to stomach ailment, the seven hour time difference, and the dryer climate. It has only been eight days though. Time will heal.

All in all, we are doing great. Hannah and Maddy are finishing their first week of school. They are adjusting to wearing uniforms and having some different subjects. All of the kids here learn Afrikaans. It is a variation of Dutch that is common here. There are actually twelve official languages here. Many of the teens I have spoken with speak five languages each. The girls are finding themselves ahead in math and behind in science. Maybe I can convince them to write a post of their experience.

I am really eager to write about the ministry and the people here. There is already so much to say. I will try to get another post up this weekend.