Bonjour tout le monde! So I sit now in a Starbucks in historic Philadelphia, literally sucking up the last bit of American-ness I can before my 27 month jaunt to West Africa. (It tastes burnt and overprocessed if you were wondering.) Philadelphia itself almost seems worlds away from California: history on every block, modest homes that could fit 20 at a time in the McMansions of southern California, and, most importantly, the most friendly airport shuttle drivers. My driver knew the history of Philadelphia so well that I briefly considered that he might be a vampire from the era of William Penn, because as we all know vampires don't age (yes, I watch Twilight too much...). So one of the first sights I saw in Philadelphia was the London Coffee House, the history of which struck me as particularly ironic. While, Benin was once the center of the largest slave trade in West Africa, Philadelphia was once a slave port taking in thousands each year for almost a hundred years. The London Coffee House was not only a space for political and social meetings, but in keeping with the times, a place to inspect and auction off slaves arriving from Benin and elsewhere. So you can see the irony- today a group of Americans is making the opposite trip in an attempt to right the wrongs of that time and this, from the "scramble for Africa" and decades of colonialism to the multilateral trade agreements and structural adjustment programs of today (despite their good intentions). To be sure, corruption on behalf of African governments has kept Africa down itself, just as some Africans contributed to the slave trade by capturing and selling members of other ethnic groups in the 1700s. Obama recognized this on his recent trip to Ghana, making statements of responsibility ("The essential truth of democracy is that each nation determines its own destiny.") and hope (citing examples of Kenya, South Africa, and Zimbabwe, "Make no mistake: history is on the side of these brave Africans.") Interesting what to start off the trip! For the full text of the speech go here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/07/11/obama-ghana-speech-full-t_n_230009.html

Random thoughts: 

1) In the future, I promise not to make political blog posts because, let's be real, I get most of my news from Jon Stewart and Steven Colbert.

2) This is my first voyage into the world of blogging- have patience. The wit and detailed feel-like-you're-there nature of my usual travel stories seems to flow easier when I know that its a select few who will be reading them. This is the big time, my very own website. The pressure is on. And though I read New York Times and Huffington Post blogs of various natures regularly, I naturally think to look to Ms. Carrie Bradshaw for inspiration. So if I start ending my blog entries with "I couldn't help but wonder [insert profound thought]," call me out. 

3) You have the option of "following" my blog, but as far as I know it doesn't alert you as to new posts but is just a public declaration of your affinity for me and my blog. Recap: being a "follower" is not necessary but ups my stock.

4) Everyone has their various forms of preferred communication: AIM, facebook chat, G chat, email, Skype, etc. I love you all and want to keep in touch but it would be easier for me if you all got Skype accounts. Then we have the options of chatting, video chatting, and calling. My Skype account is thechangeyouwishtosee.

5) Almost all of my life I've been looking forward to the next big thing. I couldn't wait to be in high school when I was in 8th grade, couldn't wait to be 16 when I was 15, couldn't wait to leave for Peace Corps when I was in college, you get the point. Its comforting to have an established next step, but when you have something always looking forward to its almost as if you're willing time to pass quickly. My hope is that for this period of my life I don't concentrate on what happens when its over but rather on the here and now. So if I have no life plans when I get back in September 2011, I'm gonna need to couch surf with you people. kthxbye.