A Piece of Civilization

August 3, 2008

After living in the bush for a couple of months in a country that would never allow me to make a phone call or use my credit card or even dry my hair half the time, I made the decision that I was going to spend the weekend in Johannesburg. Johannesburg, or as most people refer to it, Jo’burg, is as close to modern civilization as you’re going to get in Africa. In Zimbabwe I was sleeping in a twin bed in a small room with a concrete floor and thatched roof. I would have cat called, “Anti-Christ” slip through my window and crawl in bed with me at night, an impala try to sneak in my room and steal my granola bars (those of you who know me know I didn’t mind this very much). I would take a shower outside in the freezing cold. At night I would sleep in half my wardrobe just to keep warm. This was a big adjustment for a high-maitance urban girl. So I thought I would treat myself to little bit a luxury. Nothing too fancy, I didn’t want to set myself back too far. I found myself a nice hotel/village not far from the airport. I had a mini-apartment complete with everything I was looking for… big bed, lounge, in-room internet service, desk, mini-kitchen and (drum roll, please) my own private BIG bathroom… Italian marble tiles, bathtub and walk-shower…HEAVEN! Guess what I did my first night? I order room service! A personal pizza with CHEESE, real CHEESE! I haven’t had cheese in almost two months! AND… A Coke Light! Hey, it’s not Diet Coke, but I’m night complaining. In my little piece of Heaven I was able to sort out my Visa card, book my flight to Uganda and make my hotel arrangements, finally talk to my Grandmother, Skype-talk with friends for close to an hour, fax documents to my mortgage company… basically everything I couldn’t do in Zimbabwe.

Now that I’m sorted out… Uganda here I come!