July 15, 2002

I am officially back on Cape Verdean soil as of 3 a.m. this morning. After a series of long flights, Barcelona-Lisbon-Sal-Praia, I am here. Such culture shock. Spain started breaking me back into life in the 'developed' world with croissants smothered in chocolate, televisions in subways, street musicians, sales at department stores, ethnic restaurants galore, etc. The Conference was greater than my wildest imagination. Although I feel that I only absorbed or took advantage of about 1/10th of what was offered, I still feel like I gained a lot.

More than anything, I was amazed by the generosity of others and the resounding human spirit in each person I met. There were many times when I needed urgent help, and, although stressed or anxious in that exact moment, an angel always arrived. Let me tell you about a few of those times. By the last day of the Conference, I had run out of Euros and my Brazilian roommate, her group of medical friends (from all over Brazil), and I decided to all go out for a delicious paella. I assumed I would be able to pay by credit card, but the machine was down at the restaurant. I used half of my international phone card to call my VISA card to find out my PIN number to withdraw $ from an ATM. The banks were already closed because it was 5 p.m. After waiting 20 minutes on hold for a VISA rep., I was told that PIN numbers couldn't be accessed over the phone. By the time I made my way back to the restaurant from the phone booth, everyone had already chipped in and paid for me.

Later that day, I was to meet my Spanish friend from when I studied in Spain during high school. I threw coins into the phone to reach her because it was 7 p.m., and the party we were going to that night started at 9 p.m. I spent 45 minutes on 3 different phones trying to reach her, but the signal was always busy. This Canadian woman was lingering and offered for me to use her phone card. When I called, the call went immediately through. Within 3 minutes, I had used up her card, and she refused any money I offered her, stating that it has happened to her in the past and she always tries to help people out. I told her I would 'pay it forward,' like in the movie, and she loved that idea. She wrote down her phone number and told me that if I ever had any problem, I could call her for help.

The very next day, I was shopping in the largest department store in the country called 'El Corte Ingles,' looking for gifts, of course. I was supposed to be catching a train at 1 p.m. an hour south to Tarragona, where I lived during 1993-94 as an AFS exchange student (my first trip abroad). I still had no Euros, and had been using my credit card to make purchases. Sales representatives had told me to go to three different floors to look for the exchange counter, but, with no luck, I was quickly running out of time to get money for the train ticket. Meanwhile, my friend Marta's family (close friend from when I was an exchange student) was cooking up a nice meal that I was going to be late for.

In panic, I randomly stopped this businessman to ask for directions to the exchange counter with only 15 minutes until the train left 3 blocks away. In essence, I was screwed. He said he would help me and then began to run all over that floor with me. I said I was really stressed because it left in 10 minutes and I had to get to Tarragona. Typical Elektra, I had given him too much information, but it worked to my benefit. He said he was driving south to Tarragona right then and could drop me off. I normally would not have taken a ride from a complete stranger, but I really trusted him ¨C call it intution at its best. He was very polite and caring in his actions. I was still uneasy about the whole idea, but it seemed best. He even changed my $20. US for 20 Euros, which eliminated the need for the exchange counter.

When we reached his car in the garage, it was a Mercedes, which, somehow, made me feel safer. Once in the car, he called his wife to say that he would be running late for lunch and that his wife and daughter should go ahead and eat. That also made me feel better because he said he was doing a favor for a friend and would explain later, i.e. giving me a ride. Then he suggested I call Marta and get directions to her house, so that he could drop me off. They exchanged brief words in Catalan, and off we went.

When we were driving, he was quite quiet. He seemed somber, and then proceeded to tell me the following. "I do not normally give strangers rides, but I will tell you why I did. Yesterday, a partner at my firm passed away from cancer. He was from Holland and was heavily involved in philanthropy, especially helping the indigenous people of the Amazon basin in Brazil. When I saw you so lost, I felt that he would have offered you a ride, had it been him in the store." As he told me more about this man who had died, I was astounded at how much we had in common, despite our 40 year age difference. It made me tear up at the thought that people could be so nice and do such unexpected kind acts for others. He made me promise to email him some photos of Cape Verde, and I told him I would 'pay the favor forward.' We talked in length about his seven year old daughter, and he said he hoped she would be like me when she was older and travel. He wanted her to see what the world was really like.

These are a few of the many examples of how people reached out to help me during my stay in Spain. Part of me wondered how I would pay these people back, and then I realized that what comes around goes around, and maybe this was partially my own kindness coming back to me.

As for what happened on the MTV show, I didn't get to ask Clinton a question in the actual 1 hour show, but afterwards we taped a one hour on-line forum where Clinton sat in the middle with all of us around him. It was a more candid discussion with Clinton, and I feel more indicative of what the youth wanted to ask him. I slipped in my question near the end, and he was delighted to hear that I was a Peace Corps volunteer in Cape Verde. He basically skipped over answering my complicated question, but addressed how volunteers can use their experience to help with the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

I got to shake his hand a few times, and at the end, he walked right up to me and said, "Thank you for your service! So, where are you from?" The entire time he was staring at my breasts because I was wearing this tight baby blue top. He did the same thing when I asked him my question. I was in awe that his advisors and PR people hadn¡¯t already told him to NEVER make eye contact only with a woman's breasts. Seems like such an obvious thing to avoid doing to improve your reputation. I wish I had remembered to ask for a photo, but he was in such a rush to leave and my camera was stored in this room of the studio by the request of MTV. I later regretted it, thinking it would have been great for the worldwide Peace Corps magazine. I did however manage to get a photo on Rupert Everett's lap (see Conference link in photo gallery for the photo).

To find out when the show airs near you, check this site. www.staying-alive.org/ I believe there is a live webcast of the 2nd half tomorrow, Tuesday the 16th. That should include the part where I asked him a question.

[End Note: When I went to Tarragona for 2 days, one night, I had a great time seeing old friends. The ocean was bluer and clearer than I ever remembered, like the beaches on Boa Vista in Cape Verde. I attended my guitar friend's surprise bachelorette party. She was soooo shocked to see me there that it drew some attention away from the actual celebration of her impending wedding, which made a few of her friends jealous. Most importantly, she loved me for coming.]