Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Happy Holidays!

Happy 2009! Or as they say here, “Compliments for the New Year!” I hope that each and every one of you had a fun and festive holiday season enjoying friends, family, good food and spirits and maybe even some SNOW! I’m sorry that it has been a while since I was last in touch but I’m sure life was crazily swirling past all of you; so now that you have caught a breather, I’ll catch you up with the last month or 2 of life here in Botswana. First of all, let me say that it is now HOT, I mean really hot! I’ve been managing the heat pretty well, but then it just hits you one day when you are dressed in shorts and a tank top, preparing Thanksgiving dinner and dripping with sweat, that “Oh yea, I am in Africa!” It’s a far cry from my normal Thanksgiving skiing weekend . . . And even crazier is having this weather for Christmas! I feel pretty certain when I say that this is the first Birthday I have ever spent in my bathing suit, sipping margaritas and relaxing in an (outdoor) pool! But then again, it is the first birthday spent living in a sub-Saharan African country- so I’m guessing it shouldn’t be so surprising.

Way back when . . . I left off somewhere around the beginning of November . . . .

I spent a good portion of November meeting, discussing and planning with several teachers at the primary school and secondary school in hopes of expanding the schools’ programs and my service within the community. As I mentioned previously, we are hoping to incorporate health topics, life skills, English language, and culture. I am most excited about the culture part and am eager to get the pen pal program up and going. The teachers are excited about it also because they see how valuable it can be in developing English composition and comprehension as well as creating more globally and culturally aware students. Peace Corps actually has a program encouraging Volunteers in all countries to link with classes and teachers back in the States to facilitate this cultural exchange for young people in both America and other countries. Through this program, I am linked with Sara and her school and in addition, Ms. Iris and the students at Deer Park Elementary and even kids on Tanna Island from Tim’s Secondary School, hope to begin a correspondence with students here. We have also been working to complete the paperwork for the African Library Program. We already have our “Reading Room” but we are hoping to receive donations through this program to expand our resources and improve upon the “reading culture” that teachers are trying to create within the school. This is a rather long and drawn out process so hopefully I will be around to see these materials arrive in Semolale sometime before my service is through. . . hopefully!

When I wasn’t at the primary school, I was spending my time in Gobojango meeting with the GLOW girls a few more times before the end of the school term and making preparations with my local leader for the GLOW camp. Finally, the day came for our girls to head to the big city! The Gobojango girls were Gabs bound and as excited as could be! I have to admit, I was even excited---- what’s not to love about 10 days of non-stop, energy-filled, camp fun!?! This was truly a great experience bringing delegations of students from all of the country (boys and girls aged 12-18) to participate in discussions, lessons and activities to increase their level of education, self and social awareness, confidence in themselves and empowering them with the ability to make smart life decisions and influence their peers to do the same--- essentially to help develop these young people into LEADERS! The range of topics was broad and comprehensive, including: relationships (friendships & romantic), body changes, HIV & STIs, family, love, sex & dating, goals, values, leadership, human rights, gender based violence, discrimination, resource management, communication and others. They students participated in daily interactive sessions led by both Peace Corps and local delegation leaders (mostly teachers) and supplemented the lessons with fun activities such as talent shows, mock protests, team builders, scavenger hunts, camp fire . . . .
Overall, this was a great week! I realized just how much I missed camp life and how beneficial I believe these experiences are for young people, in any country or culture. It is especially valuable to children from these rural areas with little resources and opportunities to experience the world outside their home and all the life lessons and character development that occurs so naturally in these situations. Well, it is hard to recreate this experience with words, and in the name of brevity, I will conclude by saying that I hope and I feel confident that Camp GLOW made a memorable and lasting impact on many adolescents in Botswana. Hopefully, GLOW will spread and grow throughout communities as delegations return home and impart their newly gained knowledge and skills to others. I know our girls are psyched to start the new school term and have a lot of great ideas, enthusiasm and motivation! So I will keep you posted, as always!

The other big “work project” consuming much of my time during this month was World AIDS Day. I had told you that I was attending weekly meetings as part of the planning committee, but now it was crunch time! This means I spent days in Phikwe, furiously coloring, making posters, creating pamphlets, blowing up balloons, making displays and art projects--- and all of those things I always imagined myself doing post nursing school, haha! It was like an art show/ science fair rolled into one—I know my parents would be so proud! But in all seriousness, the day turned out to be a huge success. A group of “local” PCVs, along with some assistance from the Semolale youth, manned an educational tent on December 1st at the National Commemoration. Our activities included a “True or False Dart Game”, “Do it in the Dark”- a kind of blindfolded, condom demonstration and a serious of multiple choice questions rewarding participants with ever-popular “disweetsi” (candy!). Our tent was a madhouse from beginning to end! I guess that’s a good thing, confirming that we were able to attract a varied audience and impart valuable information to them in a fun and interesting way. What an exhaustingly, wonderful day!

Aside from my “official” work-related projects, I had many, what I like to call, “cultural” projects. Seems how 2 out of 3 of Peace Corps’s official goals involve me absorbing this culture that I am immersed in while sharing a bit of my culture with those I live and work with, I find this to be a perfectly reasonable—possibly even, essential-- use of my time. I can say that when I leave this place in a year and a half, it will be this experiences that I will remember and carry with me the longest. One of my most memorable days so far was “garden day”. It all happened rather unexpectedly. So I’ve had this great idea since arriving of creating this wonderful, community garden to produce nutritious veggies, community unity and recreation, etc. etc. however, once I arrived in Semolale, I found that a community garden already existed at our clinic. So then I thought “Well, I’ll just get involved in that garden.” But that didn’t exactly plan out either, so I basicallyfiled that whole idea somewhere in the far reaches of my mind and didn’t think much of it . . . until, one day I came out of my house after my lunch break and my mom calls me over, “Gorata! Gorata! Look, I am gyming!” (This is my 60 something year old host mother with pitch fork in hand- unearthing our entire yard. Oh, and “gyming” is what she calls when I go jogging, but I think it basically means any kind of physical activity) So low and behold, she is turning our yard into a vegetable garden! Excitedly, I run inside my house and grab my bag of seeds, that my American grandmother has sent me, and show them to my mom. Well, she is so excited that she runs next door to get the grandkids, starts sending the little ones to fetch people from all over the village to come help us. Even my father, who had been very sick up until now, gets up and starts digging small seed beds with the grandkids. Next thing you know, our yard is the Grand Central Station of Semolale! People of all ages were coming by to get their hands in the action or just to spectate and admire our hard work. So in the end, I wound up with my “community garden” after all!

With the odd weather and the busyness of my schedule, I barely noticed the holiday season sneak up on me. Since the span between Thanksgiving and New Years is probably my favorite time of year, I couldn’t let a little climate alteration and cultural differences stop my celebration! Instead, I decided to share in some of my favorite traditions with my new friends and family. One such way I did this was by hosting my own Thanksgiving dinner for my family and co-workers at the clinic. Of course some adaptations had to be made, but the general idea was still conveyed. We prepared traditional Setswana chickens (including the acquisition, slaughtering and butchering of—which is no fun or easy task!) instead of turkey along with butternuts (prepared just like mom’s sweet potatoes), mashed potatoes and don’t forget the pumpkin pie! Everyone joined around a big family table clad in construction paper Pilgrim hats and Indian headdresses as we each took a turn saying what we were thankful for this year. My close friend from the clinic helped me with every step of the preparations and helped to explain and translate the history of the First American Thanksgiving. Everyone felt very honored to be included in my tradition and I was truly grateful for their full and enthusiastic participation in my American holiday in Botswana.

The following weekend (Thanksgiving weekend) our Peace Corps Thanksgiving Dinner was held in Mahalapye. People poured in from all over the country, which was great to see some people for the first time since training. A handful of us came in a few days ahead to assist with the endless hours of cooking, baking and preparing for the big feast. Like I said earlier--- the day was HOT! The “Cooking Committee” slaved away inside the inferno of a kitchen but in the end, produced a glorious Thanksgiving spread- complete with cranberry sauce and Grandmom’s chocolate pie! Definitely a memorable Thanksgiving!

Between Thanksgiving and the next quickly approaching holiday, World AIDS Day and GLOW Camp were squeezed in. By the time I returned from GLOW Camp, Christmas had arrived in Semolale-- in the form of boxes and cards and goodies from all of you lovely people back home! A box even made its way from Vanuatu (and intact!) Thanks to everyone for all of the gifts, cards and warm wishes for Christmas and my birthday! You definitely made my holidays brighter and helped to get me in the Christmas spirit! Which I must say, spurred a frenzied holiday decorating and baking spree. My house dripped with red and green and silver and gold, in addition to any kind of snowy image I could find, and of course, lots of homemade snowflakes! My nieces and I decorated a tree in our yard while singing Christmas carols and followed up with a cookie baking marathon! Then to top it off, I prepared small holiday goodie bags and Christmas cards and got to play Santa Claus, delivering them all over Semolale, Gobojango, Mabolwe and Bobonong. This is not traditionally done in Botswana culture so just seeing everyone’s smiles and receiving their hugs and deep appreciation at such a small gesture, made my Christmas very merry!

For the holidays themselves, I was gathered with several other friends from Peace Corps. My heart was really torn because I wanted to spend Christmas both in Semolale, experiencing the holidays from a Botswana cultural standpoint along with friends and family there, as well as, with my fellow PCVs who share the same American traditions that make the season really seem like Christmas. But all of you who know me, know I couldn’t turn down the opportunity to explore a new part of the country . . . so off to Kasane it was!

On the way up we stopped in Nata, which is one of the crossroads of the country but only having a population of approx. 5,000. However, it does give visitors access to the Makalakgadi Salt Pans, which fill with water each year as the rains begin and attracts thousands of species of bird and other animals. So we camped at the Bird Sanctuary and made it our meeting point since we were gathering from all different areas within the country. We took a 2 hour hike out to the pans that actually resembled a beach as we approached them with small sand dunes and “sea” grasses along the way. We were also treated to spectacular sunsets over the vast skyline each evening. The next day we hitched rides up to Kasane, which is the town directly outside Chobe National Park and creating a headquarters for most safari companies and lodges catering to the many tourists who visit the area since Chobe boasts one of the largest populations of elephants in the world and other Big 5 Game. This is where Mother Nature decided to let the skies rain down on us as soon as we set up camp. That first night resembled a traditional Bandell camping trip with huddled, wet bodies trying desperately to avoid the relentless lakes, rivers and pools accumulating inside their tents. The rain did offer a nice change and relief from the heat but slightly hampered our plans for sunbathing, swimming, hiking, river exploring, etc. Hence the birth of the “Kasane Krawl”. Basically we figured that we as were in a town hosting several nice resorts and since we are all fans of both eating and drinking, we would so some “research” on the different resorts while ordering an appetizer and cocktail at each stop along the circuit. Christmas day was unlike any other. It started out just the same, waking up at 5 AM, but this year instead of gathering around the Christmas tree, we were off on our 3 hour game drive! This isn’t exactly the best season for seeing wildlife since the rain creates more foliage thus inhibiting the views, and the animals don’t have to travel to the watering holes as often. But we were able to see kudu, impala, elephants, lions prints, warthogs, hyenas, jackals, baboons, tons of cool birds and just like Michelle’s favorite song, I got a hippopotamus for Christmas (actually a whole bunch of them!) That evening we embarked on our sunset river (booze) cruise where we were able to again spot many different animals and a gorgeous sunset. To top off the evening, a few of us prepared a little “Christmas pageant” to entertain our friends, and yes video footage will be available at a later date so you all can have a good laugh as well!

For my birthday, I was able to submerge my body in the Zambezi river during a white water rafting trip—and submerge is an understatement seems how the first rapid was almost catastrophic including a dislocated shoulder and 3 near drownings! But we survived and continued on for 24 subsequent rapids along the most beautiful scenery from inside the gorge with cascades and waterfalls all around. The environment was almost tropical like a rainforest, such a dramatic change from the brown dust of Semolale and most of Botswana. Victoria Falls was breath-taking! We had just enough rain to fill the falls without overflowing them which would create too much mist making the falls not visible. We even got to splash around a bit at the top of the falls in the river feeding down to the gorge. At some point you’ll get the full details but hopefully this offers a small snap shot of my holiday season across the Atlantic. I definitely missed being home and sharing the holidays with all of you, but it was without a doubt a memorable way to celebrate!

So now, I am returning home, happy and excited to jump in to 2009! It took a few days to switch gears, but by the end of this week everything was in full swing. I’m always afraid that after a brief absence of mine from the village, that everything we were working towards previously, will have fallen apart or be at a standstill. (It’s like a min-test to see how sustainable things will be once I leave for good so that maybe by 2010, something will have really taken root and become established.) However, about mid-week I was contacted by partners I’m working with in the schools and youth group, to give me an update on the progress they’ve made while I was gone! Amazing! I almost couldn’t believe it, but I must say that it definitely helped boost my motivation and give me a more optimistic attitude towards January and 2009!

Oh! And we have 2 new puppies at our house, which are absolutely adorable! One is black and tan, he’s named Snickers and the other is a smattering of browns (and all kinds of trouble!) and her name is Little Rascal. Not only are their coats totally different, but so are their demeanors. It’s hard to image that they are from the same litter! Hopefully, I’ll have pictures to share soon. So it’s the best of both worlds, I get cute little puppies to play with and keep me company, but they aren’t really my responsibility so I don’t have to be tied down or feel guilty if I leave my village for a few days.

Wishing you all health and happiness for the New Year! May 2009 bring you great peace and joy! I love you all and miss you greatly!

Morning Commute

It occurred to me the other day as I was dodging mud pits and worrying about being late for morning report at the clinic that some things never change no matter where you are in the world. “Morning commute” can always have an element of stress, and usually always winds up with me being late! So obviously it’s not the same problems but in its own way it can be like African rush hour. You know how you have to time leaving your house just right or you will just hit too much traffic along the way? There are just too many other vehicles out on the road! Well instead of this traffic involving staring at the bumper of the car in front of you, here it just means that I run in to everybody and their brother on my short little walk to the clinic, each requiring at least a quick “Dumela! O tsogile? Ke teng! Go Siame” but it’s not always that easy . . . sometime you’ll find yourself held by the hand or wrist and walking in a completely different direction than you intended, chatting about who knows what in a language you don’t really understand. Depending on how many of these encounters you have, it can easily mean a 30 minute delay, despite any attempt of yours to cut the conversation short and move along.

Now when the weather is inclement, well that adds a whole new dimension to the commute! Usually people just forget how to drive in the rain or there are so many accidents on the road you have to take detour after detour, inevitably arriving in apology for your unintentional tardiness. Seems how there’s only about 10 cars in Semolale, accidents aren’t really the issue here. But road conditions . . . now that’s a different story. If we are lucky enough to have gotten a nice, earth soaking rain the night before, it has turned pretty much every footpath and “road” into a mud pit that could potentially swallow you whole if you don’t navigate it just right. So now, I’m like the car that forgot how to drive in the rain because I am inching along, choosing each step carefully trying to avoid the obvious sink holes and looking desperately for the driest piece of earth to step on. This probably can be observed by onlookers as some kind of psychotic jumping bean dance of mine, but a girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do! Once I make it through the first valley of mud and up to the main road, I must now resort to the long, tar-road detour, as opposed to my usual short cut that now resembles Lake Semolale more than anything remotely considered a “path”. (And the truly amazing thing is that I seem to be the only one experiencing such difficulties. These other ladies are so accustomed to this terrain and ever-changing conditions that they can manage to arrive without a speck of mud anywhere--- and in heels! I don’t think any amount of time here would improve my situation that dramatically, but I gotta hand it to them!)