I believe I have officially become accustomed to African life. There are only two or three things that I feel like I need to blog about. The first is about my new family here in Botswana. The Mosetses (David, Charity, Obakeng, One, and Wabotlhe) have been going out of their way since I stepped foot on African soil to make me comfortable. It is not until Saturday, that I have felt so comfortable and welcomed in this country. I was asked to go to their house and make a traditional Setswana meal with Ms. Motsetse. When I went on Saturday, we immediately began boiling some Botswanan meat. She told me we were going to make nama which is meat in Setswana and bogobe which is almost like porridge. The trick to making traditional nama in Botswana is pounding the meat. Little did I know that when they say pounding, they literally mean pounding. I was given a bowl full of slabs of meat and a wooden spoon. It took me about 45 minutes to get the meat to break down. It almost looked like pulled pork. The cooking juices are then poured back into the meat and it is absolutely delicious. As for the porridge, I will spare everyone the details on how they make it. Just know it involves old porridge which they allow to sit in the sun for a few days and go sour. Anyway, in the long run, the meal turned out delicious. It also included some fried meat and some type of soup made from beef stock, potatoes, and onions.
The reason why I felt so comfortable during that time was because some family friends came into the house and when I was being introduced, I was introduced as their daughter. It is an honor here to be accepted into a family and I believe I have been. I was also told that I am a true Motswana because I know how to pound meat. Continuing on with being part of the family, both parents and the oldest son who is 14 helped me do my Setswana homework. It truly felt like I was at home in this house. Probably one of my favorite days yet.
Moving on to Sunday, we decided to hike back up Kgale Hill again. This time is was just me, Sean, Ronnie, and Grady. Needless to say we made it up MUUUCH faster than last time. In fact it took us about a third of the time. The catch was that it was so humid that I don't think I have ever worked up that much of a sweat in 20 minutes in my life. Once we got to the top though it was amazing because we just sat on the top of the hill/mountain for about 45 minutes. I had a lot of time to think and clear my head which I think helped me get over some stresses from last week a lot. We eventually headed down and found some more baboons. This time however, they were way more interesting. There was a family with somewhere around 10 babies playing. We stood and watched them run around with each and climb trees until the mother started to grunt at us. She was pretty big, I wasn't trying to play with her. After we made a quick pit stop to get some well deserved milkshakes and french fries, we headed home.
This is the second big thing that I wanted to write about. Last night, Sunday, I had the biggest reality check of my life. I went to turn the shower on and there was no water coming out. I had heard of this happening before but thought it was only in the undergraduate dorms. We are staying in graduate housing. When I asked my roommate what we do about it, she said we just wait. So, despite being disgustingly sweaty from hiking, I sat down to attempt to do some work. When I got hungry, I thought about making dinner and realized my options for cooking were severely limited considering the fact that I had absolutely no running water. I got around that issue fine by making some eggs but around 8pm (4 hours had passed at that point), I began to start getting irritated. I called the family but there was no answer so I asked a friend if I could shower at her flat. I eventually got there around 9 to find buckets everywhere. We thought that just meant the showers were not working (which is normal) but we realized there was only ONE faucet in the entire building which worked. I quickly filled up two water bottles then went to claim a shower. When I came back with my bucket to fill up, there was a line of three girls ahead of me. The first two went through with no problem but the girl in front of me was in the middle of filling up her bucket when the water pressure went from the already measly half pressure to slightly above a trickle. It came to be my turn so I put my bucket in the sink to wait. About 30 minutes in, my bucket was half full when the water cut out completely. I felt terrible for the people behind me but there was nothing anyone could do. I took my half a bucket full of water into the shower to attempt the impossible. I am so proud to say, however, that I was able to even wash my hair successfully!!! I never thought I could do it. At first I was so excited that I had done that and it felt SO good to be clean again but then I started thinking.
The part that bothered me the most about all this is that this is the way people live every day. I have been so privileged my whole life to be able to turn the faucet on and have clean water. Yesterday taught me just how precious water really is in life. I was so thirsty and could think about nothing else. I have no idea how people in Africa or anywhere are able to live daily lives like that. My friend was saying that it is normal on this continent to simply run out of water or electricity. They have adapted to these issues but it makes me angry knowing if I were to go home right now, people are wasting water left and right. People are filling tubs to take baths, people are allowing the water to run while they brush their teeth or just dump water bottles out to fill them up with alcohol in the case of many college students. I know that we should be able to enjoy what we have access to but I cannot help to think about all of the people who just won't have a drop of water to drink today. I have heard so many talks and taken many classes that talk about how precious our resources are but yesterday and into today (18 hours later while there is still no water to be found) have taught me more than I could ever learn in a classroom. We are lucky right now that it is raining so we can fill buckets and pots from the rain water and boil it to have some form of water but that too will stop eventually. Hopefully, the situation is resolved soon enough and life goes back to normal but I hope to whatever power anyone believes in, that maybe one day these situations can be changed for good. It is my hopes that Americans can be the start to that change seeing as we have so much power to influence people and places, especially those of the developing world. So, anyone who reads this, please...please think about the water you use today and try your best to conserve as much as possible. It honestly will make a difference.
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Finally the big 2-1...
This week has by far been the best week I have spent here. Last time I posted, I don't believe I had done much beyond sit in classes with no professors and be bored in my room. Last Friday, the 14th, I had a fairly large adventure that was traveling in a combi myself. One of my friends, Gerrica, lives on the other side of Gaborone, near a mall called Game City. In order to get there, I must take a combi to Station which is just a massive bus station in the middle of the city and then catch a different combi to Game City. The first ride went well and I found a girl who was extremely nice and walked my all the way to my next combi so I didn't get lost. Once I got onto that combi, however, all hell broke loose! I was all the way in the back against the window so there was no way I was getting out. That was fine at first except for when a man opened the door of the combi and began yelling in Setswana. Now, I believe I am doing a fairly good job at learning Setswana but when an entire van full of people screaming Setswana presents itself, I have no idea what's being said. Typically it doesn't bother me when I can't understand conversations but that was a different story. So anyway, we eventually got going after about 20 minutes of sheer chaos. Eventually I reached my stop and made it to Game City alive but it was definitely an adventure.
The big day however, was SATURDAY!!! I was extremely hesitant to spend my 21st birthday in Africa because it didn't really seem like it would mean much let alone not being with my friends and family from home was going to be hard. Luckily I have an amazing group of people with me here in Gaborone. It was also a good time because my friend Grady was turning 21 the same night. We started the day with going to the main mall and I bought a wooden hippo which I am super pumped about. He will be my new study buddy. :-) I am going to post a few pictures later of the crafts in the mall. The night then was spent have a few drinks at dinner with about 14 people. We went from there to a club called fashion lounge and danced the night away. It was not what I would have expected but was certainly a wonderful way to spend my birthday. Sunday was also pretty fun because I went on my first game drive. I went with the family which is semi-hosting me here. Their names are David and Charity Motsetse. They are extremely welcoming and helpful. Anyway, David picked me up from campus and we drove with two of their children, one being 4 the other being 6 months and saw all kinds of animals. Half of them I have never seen nor heard of before. We did see a baby monkey and baby warthogs which were funny. It was crazy to think that this is where those animals actually belong. The most disappointing thing to me was that when I saw a zebra in it's natural habitat, it didn't look normal. I hate that I am so used to seeing them in zoos that they now look out of place in the real world.
The birthday kids.
As as for the rest of the days after that, they were not too exciting but classes are finally going which is awesome. I was getting sick of going to class and not learning anything. Funny thing is that the professors are not what I thought they'd be. My prof for Politics of Poverty is extremely biased against whites which makes class interesting. I have never been in a class where I have not only been the minority but also the one who is portrayed as the wrong-doer. It is very interesting to see how others think of Americans but at the same time it is frustrating because not everyone in the US are like that. I want to sit everyone down and explain individually how the world is not as it seems on TV. I'm hoping that I can change some people's opinions so that they do not generalize. The most hope that I see for this country and improving its status as both a economic and political jewel for Africa as it is considered now is for the youth to take over. The president of Botswana is imposing many constraints on the people in the hopes of sparking action in the people but I do not see it working. The elderly continue to have unprotected sex with multiple partners and choose not to use the advancements which are available. The younger generation here are much more responsive to the liberal ideas which I think are needed in order to make some needed change. It's amazing to me that wives here are still expected to allow their husbands to sleep with other women as long as they come back to their own house at the end of the night. No wonder why HIV/AIDS is so prevalent. The girls my age seem to be defying that though so I am hoping that will make a difference.
Anyway, unfortunately, my big plans of going to the clinic this week were also a bust. The rainy season has wrecked havoc across Gaborone while flooding roads and delaying traffic so my ride never got to campus. I'm hoping that next week things will work out better. The plan is to go on Tuesdays from 7:30am-12pm to the Broadhursrt 2 clinic. I am hoping to catch a lot of good information but I was told that the focus of my observations this semester will be sanitation and hygiene. Considering the fact that most bathrooms do not have toilet paper OR soap...I think there will be plenty of stuff to see.
A few fun facts that I am just remembering off the top of my head are that a kitten was born around our building this week so a baby black cat is running around (adorable) and I was asked by someone if I would like to trade shirts because he liked me Gatorade shirt (I said no). Also, I taught my roommates what stir-fry is and have made several Motswana experience the joy that is chocolate chip cookies and snickerdoodles. The final interesting thing which I believe might have been my worst decision since being in Gabs was trying a caterpillar. They are called something different here but basically it is a cooked up caterpillar about 2 inches in length. My roommate asked if I wanted to try one and not wanting to offend...I did. I think I have brushed my teeth 4 times since this afternoon. I am proud of myself for trying it but I am definitely not a fan although I know many people are including international students.
Life here has gotten a lot more comfortable and I find it easier to get through the day without being homesick. We have our first weekend of volunteering at an orphanage this weekend where we will be swimming with the kids. Speaking of swimming, I went swimming today in an outdoor. I went swimming in JANUARY in an outdoor pool. Strange strange feeling. Also, we are thinking of going to Victoria Falls next weekend which would be awesome so let's keep our fingers crossed. Only issue is the money but HEY!! When's the next time I'll be in Africa?!?! (hopefully not too long.. ;-) )
Crafts at Main Mall...all hand made.
Gaborone Game Reserve
One(ohney) and I
The big day however, was SATURDAY!!! I was extremely hesitant to spend my 21st birthday in Africa because it didn't really seem like it would mean much let alone not being with my friends and family from home was going to be hard. Luckily I have an amazing group of people with me here in Gaborone. It was also a good time because my friend Grady was turning 21 the same night. We started the day with going to the main mall and I bought a wooden hippo which I am super pumped about. He will be my new study buddy. :-) I am going to post a few pictures later of the crafts in the mall. The night then was spent have a few drinks at dinner with about 14 people. We went from there to a club called fashion lounge and danced the night away. It was not what I would have expected but was certainly a wonderful way to spend my birthday. Sunday was also pretty fun because I went on my first game drive. I went with the family which is semi-hosting me here. Their names are David and Charity Motsetse. They are extremely welcoming and helpful. Anyway, David picked me up from campus and we drove with two of their children, one being 4 the other being 6 months and saw all kinds of animals. Half of them I have never seen nor heard of before. We did see a baby monkey and baby warthogs which were funny. It was crazy to think that this is where those animals actually belong. The most disappointing thing to me was that when I saw a zebra in it's natural habitat, it didn't look normal. I hate that I am so used to seeing them in zoos that they now look out of place in the real world.
As as for the rest of the days after that, they were not too exciting but classes are finally going which is awesome. I was getting sick of going to class and not learning anything. Funny thing is that the professors are not what I thought they'd be. My prof for Politics of Poverty is extremely biased against whites which makes class interesting. I have never been in a class where I have not only been the minority but also the one who is portrayed as the wrong-doer. It is very interesting to see how others think of Americans but at the same time it is frustrating because not everyone in the US are like that. I want to sit everyone down and explain individually how the world is not as it seems on TV. I'm hoping that I can change some people's opinions so that they do not generalize. The most hope that I see for this country and improving its status as both a economic and political jewel for Africa as it is considered now is for the youth to take over. The president of Botswana is imposing many constraints on the people in the hopes of sparking action in the people but I do not see it working. The elderly continue to have unprotected sex with multiple partners and choose not to use the advancements which are available. The younger generation here are much more responsive to the liberal ideas which I think are needed in order to make some needed change. It's amazing to me that wives here are still expected to allow their husbands to sleep with other women as long as they come back to their own house at the end of the night. No wonder why HIV/AIDS is so prevalent. The girls my age seem to be defying that though so I am hoping that will make a difference.
Anyway, unfortunately, my big plans of going to the clinic this week were also a bust. The rainy season has wrecked havoc across Gaborone while flooding roads and delaying traffic so my ride never got to campus. I'm hoping that next week things will work out better. The plan is to go on Tuesdays from 7:30am-12pm to the Broadhursrt 2 clinic. I am hoping to catch a lot of good information but I was told that the focus of my observations this semester will be sanitation and hygiene. Considering the fact that most bathrooms do not have toilet paper OR soap...I think there will be plenty of stuff to see.
A few fun facts that I am just remembering off the top of my head are that a kitten was born around our building this week so a baby black cat is running around (adorable) and I was asked by someone if I would like to trade shirts because he liked me Gatorade shirt (I said no). Also, I taught my roommates what stir-fry is and have made several Motswana experience the joy that is chocolate chip cookies and snickerdoodles. The final interesting thing which I believe might have been my worst decision since being in Gabs was trying a caterpillar. They are called something different here but basically it is a cooked up caterpillar about 2 inches in length. My roommate asked if I wanted to try one and not wanting to offend...I did. I think I have brushed my teeth 4 times since this afternoon. I am proud of myself for trying it but I am definitely not a fan although I know many people are including international students.
Life here has gotten a lot more comfortable and I find it easier to get through the day without being homesick. We have our first weekend of volunteering at an orphanage this weekend where we will be swimming with the kids. Speaking of swimming, I went swimming today in an outdoor. I went swimming in JANUARY in an outdoor pool. Strange strange feeling. Also, we are thinking of going to Victoria Falls next weekend which would be awesome so let's keep our fingers crossed. Only issue is the money but HEY!! When's the next time I'll be in Africa?!?! (hopefully not too long.. ;-) )
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Life as a UB Student
Dumelang,
As some of you may know, this was our first week of classes. The funny thing is I have only had one class thus far. While I understand that the first week is syllabus week, it still strikes me as odd that neither students or professors show up to class. My first class on the first day, I arrived to a gated classroom (obviously no attempts whatsoever to have class). The second class the professor did not show up and the third I had to miss for a meeting. Tuesday, I went to my only class of the day which consisted of 6 people, 4 of which are international. We ended up going to the prof's office and ASKING him to come speak with us (he was sorting papers). When he did come we got a piece of paper and he said he'd explain more Thursday. This is craziness. I have already dropped two courses so I am now taking Politics of Poverty in Southern Africa, Demographic Aspects of the HIV/AIDS Epidemic, and Traditional and Alternative Medical Systems. Don't worry though! My semester won't be that easy. I have three other CIEE specific courses and two of which I am the ONLY student. The public health track is going to be a bit intimidating since I will be doing all work alone but I am excited to start going into clinics.
As for the social life which I have experienced thus far, its a whole lot of hanging out. Every single night the student bar has been absolutely packed. Last night we stood for almost an hour talking to two random people we met. The students are constantly wanting to talk to us and find out where we are from, what we expected to see in Africa and how we are liking it. Yet again, the people prove to be extremely friendly but MAN...they LOOOVE to talk. They all assume we Americans land in Africa and expect to see people riding elephants and everything. I try my best to tell them that not everyone thinks that but it is definitely the way Africa is portrayed.
I have also gone to the shopping areas several times in the past day. It's strange how much their merchandise is like the US. Honestly, sometimes I feel like I am at home. There are still the crazy girls who were 4 inch heels to walk around the city and the guys who think they are thugs. I also met a Fulbright Scholar who has been here several months so he was explaining to me the different quirks about Gabs.
I guess the last thing to mention about life as a UB student is soccer. Every night, soccer is played int he tennis courts. Its nice because there is always something to do. I played the other night (not well...I'm used to playing 5 year olds at camp and being awesome). It was definitely made real that we were playing street soccer when a guy most likely broke his nose but waited just long enough for it to stop bleeding so he could come back and play. Again...craziness.
Well, I guess I should be going since I have to watch my clothes on the drying line. Yes, I hand washed my clothing. I'm still thinking of home every day and trying not to get homesick but Facebook is not helping. Anyway, go siame (goodbye)!
Michele
As some of you may know, this was our first week of classes. The funny thing is I have only had one class thus far. While I understand that the first week is syllabus week, it still strikes me as odd that neither students or professors show up to class. My first class on the first day, I arrived to a gated classroom (obviously no attempts whatsoever to have class). The second class the professor did not show up and the third I had to miss for a meeting. Tuesday, I went to my only class of the day which consisted of 6 people, 4 of which are international. We ended up going to the prof's office and ASKING him to come speak with us (he was sorting papers). When he did come we got a piece of paper and he said he'd explain more Thursday. This is craziness. I have already dropped two courses so I am now taking Politics of Poverty in Southern Africa, Demographic Aspects of the HIV/AIDS Epidemic, and Traditional and Alternative Medical Systems. Don't worry though! My semester won't be that easy. I have three other CIEE specific courses and two of which I am the ONLY student. The public health track is going to be a bit intimidating since I will be doing all work alone but I am excited to start going into clinics.
As for the social life which I have experienced thus far, its a whole lot of hanging out. Every single night the student bar has been absolutely packed. Last night we stood for almost an hour talking to two random people we met. The students are constantly wanting to talk to us and find out where we are from, what we expected to see in Africa and how we are liking it. Yet again, the people prove to be extremely friendly but MAN...they LOOOVE to talk. They all assume we Americans land in Africa and expect to see people riding elephants and everything. I try my best to tell them that not everyone thinks that but it is definitely the way Africa is portrayed.
I have also gone to the shopping areas several times in the past day. It's strange how much their merchandise is like the US. Honestly, sometimes I feel like I am at home. There are still the crazy girls who were 4 inch heels to walk around the city and the guys who think they are thugs. I also met a Fulbright Scholar who has been here several months so he was explaining to me the different quirks about Gabs.
I guess the last thing to mention about life as a UB student is soccer. Every night, soccer is played int he tennis courts. Its nice because there is always something to do. I played the other night (not well...I'm used to playing 5 year olds at camp and being awesome). It was definitely made real that we were playing street soccer when a guy most likely broke his nose but waited just long enough for it to stop bleeding so he could come back and play. Again...craziness.
Well, I guess I should be going since I have to watch my clothes on the drying line. Yes, I hand washed my clothing. I'm still thinking of home every day and trying not to get homesick but Facebook is not helping. Anyway, go siame (goodbye)!
Michele
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Dumelang Friends!!!
My apologies for the delay in posting but yesterday was the first time I'd had internet since I got here. All is well so far though!! We miraculously made all three flights on time despite fog delays in JFK, a turtle being on the plane which delayed us in Dubai, and severe wheather delays in Joburg . The flights were not too terrible but it was deffinitely nice to have both feet on th ground in Gaborone. As for my past week here, we haven't been doing too much. We got in very late on Monday so that day was shot and then Tuesday was filled with lectures given by staff of UB (University of Botswana). They basically explained the differences between the teaching styles of US profs and Botswana prof. I also found out that I was accepted to do the public health track offered by the study abroad program!!! That's awesome because that was my whole reason for coming to UB. :-) This will involve working in some near by clinics and most likely dealing with the HIV/AIDS issue at hand here in Africa.
After all of the boring stuff was done, we finally left the hotel and went into city center. Batsi (the program director) gave us a scavenger hunt to do for the day while traveling around on combis (buses), taxis, and cabs. It was ungodly hot, however, so all 12 of us ended up calling it quits around 4:30. We got some Botswanan pizza which was actually quite good, some cider, and headed back towards home.
The next two days were not quite so interesting because we had to do the regular orientation with all the other international students from other programs. Apparently CIEE is one of the best run programs becaus we were all way more prepared than the other students. The best part about those two days was meeting people from all ovr the world. I met a girl from Ghana, one from Swaziland, a guy from France and one from Germany, and many more from all over the US. The orientation made me appreciate my small group here, we have grown pretty close in the past week.
Finally, our first weekend was filled with moving into our dorms which are in Graduate Village, shopping for room essentials (including the much needed phone), amazing dinners, meeting local students, and most recently, hiking a mountain!! That was pretty awesome. I hope to be able to put pictures up soon. We were about 110 km at the top and had some amazing views including BABOONS!!!! Probably the coolest thing was watching a storm roll in and seeing the rain falling on certain parts of the city at certain times. That was probably the scarest thing too because the storms here are generally accompanied by thunder and lightening.
Speaking of the storms in Botswana, it was very funny the first day to see every one pull an umbrella out on a gorgeous sunny day but thy all use them as protection from th sun as well as rain. (I've started to get in that habit as well) As for the people here, they are all so nice and welcoming. I love that you can walk up to someone, introduce yourself and they will want to talk to you and get to know you. I had a nice dinner last night with two of the boys from my program and some Batswana we met in the dinning hall. Turns out one of the is in med school in Durban and the other is the president of the medical students association at UB. Connections come from EVERYWHERE!
Life is Botswana moves slow and is definitely different than the US but that's exactly what I was looking for in my study abroad experince. The registration system for the school is currently down so we can't get into classes for tomorrow but around here, it's ok...everything will work out in due time. Not much has really made me homesick yet except for the thunderstorms which make me wish I could be sitting on my porch with my puppy like old times. Hopefully the semester keeps me busy enough to stay away from homesickness. Well, its time to shower and get ready for dinner and prepare for my first week of classes!!
Until next week,
Michele
After all of the boring stuff was done, we finally left the hotel and went into city center. Batsi (the program director) gave us a scavenger hunt to do for the day while traveling around on combis (buses), taxis, and cabs. It was ungodly hot, however, so all 12 of us ended up calling it quits around 4:30. We got some Botswanan pizza which was actually quite good, some cider, and headed back towards home.
The next two days were not quite so interesting because we had to do the regular orientation with all the other international students from other programs. Apparently CIEE is one of the best run programs becaus we were all way more prepared than the other students. The best part about those two days was meeting people from all ovr the world. I met a girl from Ghana, one from Swaziland, a guy from France and one from Germany, and many more from all over the US. The orientation made me appreciate my small group here, we have grown pretty close in the past week.
Finally, our first weekend was filled with moving into our dorms which are in Graduate Village, shopping for room essentials (including the much needed phone), amazing dinners, meeting local students, and most recently, hiking a mountain!! That was pretty awesome. I hope to be able to put pictures up soon. We were about 110 km at the top and had some amazing views including BABOONS!!!! Probably the coolest thing was watching a storm roll in and seeing the rain falling on certain parts of the city at certain times. That was probably the scarest thing too because the storms here are generally accompanied by thunder and lightening.
Speaking of the storms in Botswana, it was very funny the first day to see every one pull an umbrella out on a gorgeous sunny day but thy all use them as protection from th sun as well as rain. (I've started to get in that habit as well) As for the people here, they are all so nice and welcoming. I love that you can walk up to someone, introduce yourself and they will want to talk to you and get to know you. I had a nice dinner last night with two of the boys from my program and some Batswana we met in the dinning hall. Turns out one of the is in med school in Durban and the other is the president of the medical students association at UB. Connections come from EVERYWHERE!
Life is Botswana moves slow and is definitely different than the US but that's exactly what I was looking for in my study abroad experince. The registration system for the school is currently down so we can't get into classes for tomorrow but around here, it's ok...everything will work out in due time. Not much has really made me homesick yet except for the thunderstorms which make me wish I could be sitting on my porch with my puppy like old times. Hopefully the semester keeps me busy enough to stay away from homesickness. Well, its time to shower and get ready for dinner and prepare for my first week of classes!!
Until next week,
Michele
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