Moving to Libreville

Looking forLooking for American Ex-pats living in Libreville, Gabon. My husband and I will be moving there in the next few months...he an architect working for The Prince Charles Foundation with Bechtel, me director of an NGO working in Vietnam. Would love to hear your impressions of life in Libreville, both the up and downsides, the best areas to live in, is it necessary to take French lessons as soon as I get there, do people use drivers or drive themselves around, how about housekeepers/ cooks, is this common for ex-pats? Is it possible to do any type of volunteer work since I won't have a work visa? Our children are grown and won't be coming with us, but our little dog is and I would love any info on traveling to Gabon with her and wonder if it's relatively safe for small dogs there? Is it possible to do my own food marketing or necessary to have a cook do it with me and in general how is the food, pharmacies, etc.?