Hello everyone!
Sorry for the untimely posting on my part. Things have kind of been a whirlwind since the holidays.
Current location: Finland! A fun fact about Finland--they consume more milk than any other country in the world. And their population is a smidge more than 5 million, which is the size of greater Atlanta.
Six months ago today, I boarded a plane for South Africa. As I sat in the airport terminal, I felt of excited and nervous, unaware of what was ahead of me. What I have learned is that these feelings do not go away. I continue to experience both of them and that is what has been amazing about this journey. I am so thankful for the last 6 months. All of the teachers, children, schools, friends, and strangers that I have met. I cannot wait to see where the next 6 will lead!
So, to mark today, I went cross country skiing, a Finnish pasttime. Let me say something about the Finns, they are ROCKSTARS when it comes to handling the winter elements. Maybe it is because I grew up in Atlanta, a place where even the mention of a "wintry mix" (I still don't exactly understand what that means...) is enough to cancel school the following day. In Finland, they know how to deal with snow and ice, and it absolutely amazes me. Children play outside at school unless it is past -15 C (5 F). Like I said, these guys are rockstars. We got to the ski tracks (yes, tracks, I will explain) and were greeted with perfect, beautiful weather. I rented the skis and received a short lesson on the proper form. Since I have never cross country skied before, only downhill, I laughed for the first few minutes, unable to get the motion of picking up my heel figured out. Cross country skiing is like running, but with skis on your feet. As you move one foot forward, you propel yourself almost like you are skating and release your unattached heel. You can ski in two ways, either on tracks, which are indentations in the ground to keep your skis parallel, or you can skate (probably not correct vocabulary), which is making sweeping diagonal motions off to each side in order to move forward. It was a packed day at the ski tracks and the scenery was stunning. The routes went through the forest and along bodies of water that had iced over completely. It was so beautiful. It was so much fun and I can see why it is so popular here.
Maybe I will start training for a biathlon?
