Hongera Obama!!!

I'm sooooo excited!!!! We've been partying all day today (yes, that means we started drinking at about 6:45am- oops! but don't worry, not too much, just a little extra celebratory-ness for the morning). We were supposed to be picked up at 6am to go to a hotel bar to watch the election happenings, but it got a bit delayed and we didn't make it until about 6:45 and the election was called at 7:03 our time.

So basically we had just gotten there and settled down to watch the action, we saw that Obama had taken Virginia, and then the signal for the TV went out and it started raining super hard. However, some people got phone calls and texts and some people brought their computers and got free internet, so we found out quickly he had won. A bit disappointing that it was so anti-climatic, but we were very excited anyway!

Luckily, the power came back on just before Obama's acceptance speech so we were able to watch that even though we missed McCain's concession. Despite the fact that it was super hot and humid in there, I had the chills for about half an hour straight. Even now, I just got the chills thinking about it despite the intense heat here! It's so amazing that the hope of his campaign reached people, that so many people went out to vote, and that we have our first black president- so cool! This is some serious history that we will remember and I can’t believe I experienced it in Africa, in the country next door to his father’s.

I can't wait to see what he does once he gets into office. He has a lot to live up to in office, but if anyone can do it, he can. I think he has the right mind and the right personality to change politics around and make a big difference in many people’s lives. Plus he’ll have a Democratic Congress to help the government be productive, more efficient, and more modern. At least I think he’s boosted morale and from what it looked like on the news, the economy is already starting to get better with the hope of Obama taking office in just a couple of months.

The Peace Corps Volunteers and Trainees are all really excited about this- talk about celebration! Tears, chills, hugs, shots, cheers… we had it all this morning. What an awesome day. And as for Tanzania, people here are also incredibly happy. I haven’t heard of one person here who wanted McCain to win, probably partially because Obama has African roots but I think they all realize he would be a great president of the US for America and for the world as a whole. I think pretty much the whole world is celebrating this victory right now; it will change the image America has gained in the past few years into a much more positive, revered view of our country. Awesome!