Expat Elections

In honor of the recent presidential election nearly every Peace Corps volunteer in Swaziland journeyed to Mbabane to be w/ fellow Americans. Group 6 rented out a backpacker's hostile . Because of the time difference election night became an all night party. We ordered pizza, made red and blue pancakes, and used lots of American slang.
Swazis are huge Obama fans. I've been asked several times who I'd be voting for. Most Swazis responded by asking me why I'd support Senator Obama. They thought that my being white was an automatic vote for John McCain. The Swazi Times predicted a win for Obama nearly a week in advance, based on opinion polls of Swazi locals.
Living abroad has given me a new love and respect for the American democracy. It was moving to be a part of that process, even on the other side of the world. It seemed as if PC Swaziland unanimously supported Barack Obama (if anyone voted Republican, they were too afraid to say). One of the highlights of the evening was spending it with Americans from all parts of the country. If your home state went blue then you had to stand up while everyone applauded. If you home state went red, you'd get a pat on the back and group condolences. Barack Obama was declared the winner at 6 in the morning. We were especially amused by his mention of Americans around the world tuning in, even if they were huddled around a third-world short-wave radio. Admittedly, we were huddled around a third-world satellite TV w/ CNN.
The next day another volunteer and I were walking back to the bus rank when a car pulled up next to us w/ the window rolled down. Bracing ourselves for a marriage proposal we looked over. The driver simply waved and yelled "Yay Obama!"