Welcome to Africa

My friend Steve sent along this picture last night as we both struggled mightily to find something, anything to do other than grade another final paper (I've watched the first third of a documentary on the recording of King of Blue, although I think that actually qualifies as time very well spent).  Steve snapped this as the Pemba Airport with me in the process of saying, "welcome to Africa." As I discussed in a post the other day it was only after we passed through Dar Es Salaam and landed in Pemba that many of the students realized that they were truly in Africa.

Oh, and I suppose I should note that this is picture is associated with another realization.  When it arrived via email my first thought was that I should send it on to my Mom because she would think it was funny.  It was one of those moments that everyone goes through where you suddenly "remember" that a loved one is gone.

And in the background you can see the plane that ferried my portion of the student crew out to Pemba; it was the bigger of the two planes.  One of the students had never even been on a plane until we left Boston.  You can imagine what her response to this flight was.  As my student Tara (who had never left the country before, but now wants to go to India with me next year) said to Steve as the plane took off, "Is it OK if I pray?"