It's very strange to sit at your computer at home and think that in 48 hours you'll be collecting your suitcase at the airport of a small country in southern Africa. It's even stranger to know that you won't be back in Wales until August!

Tomorrow evening (Sunday 13th January, 2008) I'll be flying from London Heathrow to Johannesburg airport and then on to Maseru, the capital of Lesotho. After a few days in Maseru, I'll be going to my new hometown - Mafeteng - where I will teach at Sekoati Primary School.

I'll fly over France and Spain, then over Africa, almost from top to bottom!

Lesotho is a small country in southern Africa, completely land-locked by South Africa.

Mafeteng is in the west of Lesotho, not far from the border with South Africa.

I want to use this blog to tell you about life in Lesotho and share my experiences. I hope that you will be able to use it to ask me questions about Lesotho as well. I've never kept a blog before so please let me know if there's anything you think I should add or change and I'll do my best!

At the moment I don't really know a lot about the country. I've done some research and I've talked to other people who have been there, but I don't think you can really know what a country is like until you've been there yourself. I'm sure it will be exciting but difficult at times, too. A lot of things will be new and different, but I also expect that I'll be surprised by what's the same!

Do you think there will be more similarities or differences between life in Wales and life in Lesotho?

What do you think will be the same? What do you think will be different?

Here are some of the things that I've already found out about Lesotho:

• 1.8 million people live in Lesotho. The population of Wales is 2.9 million. This means that the population of Lesotho is about a third smaller than that of Wales.


• The land area of Lesotho is 30,355 sq km (11,720 sq miles); the land area of Wales is 20,779 sq km (8,022 sq miles). This means that Lesotho is about a third bigger than Wales.


• Lesotho has two official languages: Sesotho and English. Children are taught in English from early on in primary school - imagine what learning maths in French or science in Spanish would be like for you!
  
• The life expectancy in Lesotho is 34 years. In the UK it is 79. (These figures come form UNICEF.)


• It is estimated by UNICEF that 23.3% of the population of Lesotho over the age of 15 has HIV - the virus that can develop into AIDS. This virus can be treated - IF people can get the medication. However, it CANNOT BE CURED.


• You can get more information about Lesotho from http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/lesotho_statistics.html.

On a lighter note...

• Lesotho is a mountainous country. The lowest point in Lesotho is the highest lowest point in the world. (Can you work that one out?!)
  
• Lesotho’s football team is currently ranked 154th in the world – out of 200!
  

Well, I have to go and finish my packing now, but here's a question for you...

Imagine you are going away for six months to a country with a very hot summer and a very cold winter. You know you can buy some things out there (clothes, toiletries) but you're not quite sure what. You have to pack everything you think you might need - but you can't take more than 20kg! WHAT WOULD YOU PACK?