VOLUNTEER BLOG 1: MY ARRIVAL IN MADAGASCAR (July 25, 2019)
Yes! It has finally happened! After months of organizing, learning the language, training physically, and preparing gear, my voyage to Madagascar has begun! This is the first in a series of volunteer blogs chronicling my sojourn as a volunteer research assistant for the Madagascar Biodiversity Partnership (MBP).
Entering the Country
I arrived in the country at about 11:00 PM (local time, so about 4:00 PM EST) on July 23rd, after a sequence of Air France flights from Boston to Paris to Antananarivo (the capital of Madagascar). An immense, sinuous line awaited me at the airport once I disembarked, snaking between customs, visa checking, health inspection, and passport inspection, all before baggage claim. I had resigned myself to tedious hours of bureaucracy, when an airport official came up to me in the line and asked if I was Sam. “Oui. Etes-vous Monsieur Sedy?” I asked. The volunteer handbook had told me of a Mr. Sedy, friendly to MBP. It was indeed he, and I soon learned of his inest…
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