Quick note from Italy

Not much time to write, only 10 minutes left on the card, which may come as a relief to the folks who just check out the site for pics. After a bit of an ordeal with overbooked and accidentally canceled tickets I made it to Italy in one piece and more or less on time. It is such a culture shock to be here. Great food, beautiful buildings, white people everywhere! The culture here is incredible and I had almost forgotten how much I love Europe. Why is there not a Peace Corps Tuscany? It is great catching up with my parents and a little weird knowing I will be back in Kenya for another year and a half before I know it. My project started picking up a bit as I was about to leave though. I got a bit worked up about how slow things are going and spoke to everyone in a meeting last week. Unbelievably, it actually helped. We successfully finished the sweet potato training by teaching another 65 farmers last Thursday and Friday, and the village boards are out in the field now. Thus, things are coming along a bit better than the last time I wrote. I actually realized how much I enjoy my site now that I am away and I am looking forward to getting back and watching things further develop.

So I will update again soon. I cannot believe how fast this Internet connection is! I have cards and a few small gifts to give my parents for some friends and family back home, so although I did not have enough money and packing space to get gifts for everyone some of you should be expecting packages soon. I will get the rest later!