I had all these plans to write about really interesting things on my blog in the last couple of days. But it has just not been possible. Luckily I have been able to upload a decent number of photos as that dosen't require much brain power.

I have stories about lychees season -staying up all night to harvest the lychees and get them to market on time, watching the sunrise two days in a row, shooting the rapids in a boat full of lychees, getting a kitten and hiking through the jungle. Public transportation - the number of people smashed into a 12 passenger van, having to keep your eyes closed the entire way because other wise it is just too scary. Projects I might be starting - a library, trainings on vegetable gardening, a boys camp. The mayoral election - vote steeling, and vote buying, fist fights and show downs.

Unfortunately all of these stories are going to have to wait until next time. When I arrived in Tamatave I discovered that my favorite internet cafe had closed for some unknown reason and now the only available internet is just god awful slow. Thus even though I spent all of Tuesday and Wednesday staring at a computer screen I was able to accomplish VERY LITTLE. And then I arrive here in Tana after an entire night on a bus. To say the least I am wipped out and am about to fall asleep at this keyboard. I have spent the entire day in Tana running around and not accomplishing much. Which is a perfectly normal situation to be in when you are in Tana but horribly frustrating non the less. I was not able to get the woman at the cell phone store to give me a strait answer on why it cost me three times as much to call the United States as it costs any of my friends. I got harassed by the bank guards and then walked for an hour in the scorching sun only to discover that the restaurant I was trying to go to was closed for Christmas.

I was able to buy my ticket to go to Majunga, Liz Melissa and I leave at 4 tomorrow. We will be meeting JoAnn, Sharon and Linus who are already there. It sounds like it is going to be a fantastic place to send Christmas I am just not looking forward to another 14 hrs in a Taxi Brousse. Before heading off to a tropical paradise to drink coconuts on the beach we are going to spend the morning playing with babies at one of the local orphanages.

Hopefully I will be able to send you all an update from Majunga if not I will be back again in January. So I am wishing you all a very very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Years. Enjoy the Holidays and know that you are all always in my thoughts.