We've arrived!

After staying the night near JFK in a closet called "Best Western", we left very early in the AM for the airport by Hotel Van; instructed to get there 3 1/2 hrs before the flight was due to leave, we stood in line at SAS waiting for the agents to be ready to check people in. The process of security and other preliminaries was rapid, and much less intrusive than PWM, where I was treated like an opium king, being swabbed relentlessly. We were done by 0830h, with only 2 hrs to wait for our flight. The SAS flight was great, but long. The pilot kept emphasizing how long the trip was, trying to psych out the passengers. He succeeded. However, we had Ambien. However, it had no effect!!
The airport in JoBurg was fine, and there were no hangups. Lunch was very expensive, given the poor exchange rate given at the register for US$.
We were met at the airport by a lovely Motswana man who came from the same town as all the presidents of the country. I started calling him Mr. President, to his amusement.
The Pilane Court, where we are housed, is ideal for our needs. It is close to the hospital, has computers, WIFI, a pool, excellent faculty housing, and not too many inhabitants. There are 4 med students and 2 medical residents, all from Penn, upstairs. As usual, it's a small world. One of the residents, Kathryn, is the daughter of Rita Watson, a NJ cardiologist who was a resident when I was at Penn. More on this later, when her parents visit later this month.
Tomorrow is orientation, cell phone rental, contact with the Philips distributor, money changing, and food shopping. We are both well and happy and none the worse for wear after the excellent trip to this country.