And so it begins. . .

I am about to leave for the airport in Winnipeg.  In fact I have about 7 minutes to write this post before the shuttle gets here so I must be quick.


I somehow managed to get everything done that I wanted to today, including a last minute haircut after having flashbacks of washing my long hair in a bucket in India.  I didn't get much cut off, just a trim, but hopefully it will be a bit more manageable for whatever the washing situation presents.

As I leave for this trip I have been reflecting on trips of days past.  How India or Haiti has never really left me. . . An image, seeing someone walk across the street in a sari, the laughter of children. . . just a few of the little things that I have come across in the past that have transported me back to lands across the sea.  Stories that have never left me, the little girl who came up to me in Haiti and told me she loved me after having just met me 5 minutes prior, or the two little boys in India who were attending a wedding at the hotel I was staying at the night before I returned to Canada, who shyly came up to me and gave me a heart shaped balloon and then took off giggling.

This being my 3rd trip with eMi, I now know that these trips are hard in certain ways.  Coming home and integrating back into Canadian culture is challanging and leaving behind the deep friendships that develop so quickly is hard.

Also some of the funnier stories.  Usually when people find out I'm an engineer I get one of a few reactions.  The most common is the raised eyebrow look followed by "Really?"  I have also been asked "Are you sure you are old enough to be an engineer?" or "you don't look like an engineer."  When I was coming home from Haiti I shared an airport shuttle in Florida with a couple from Toronto.  When they found out I was an engineer the man asked "You mean, like a real engineer?"  I said yes, but next time I think I will say "Well that's actually just what I tell people, in real life I'm a ninja"

Well I must be going.  Next update will be from Uganda.  I can't wait to share all my experiences. . .