Christmas on the Zambezi

 

December and January flew by without much time for me to even think that I was spending my first holiday away from my family and away from the country that I have always celebrated the festive season in.  The heat index staying at a steady 40 degrees Celsius contributed to the dissociation of living in Namibia during Christmas time when I am quite used to waking up to snow on Christmas morning.  Okay, so maybe that is a stretch (fine, a far stretch.. North Carolina does not have many white Christmases), but I cannot remember a time in my life when I had to use a fan to keep myself from sweating during present opening.  One of the few Christmas traditions that have remained in my family over its many incarnations through the years is also one of my absolute favorite.  For as long as I can remember, my Mom has had a styrofoam cone that we decorated with Hershey Kisses to make a small, colorful Christmas tree that lived on our countertop throughout November (yes, November is when decorations went up in our house) and only died when my brother and I had eaten all of the chocolate goodness off of the tree.  When my Mom asked me in early October if I was feeling sadness about not being home for Christmas, I told her that I would miss a lot of things about home.. The meals with all of my combined families, the lights that seemed to appear out of nowhere on many of the buildings in Charlotte, the singing bears at the mall in the center of the city that I went to see as a child, and her ability to turn a home into a classy and elegantly decorated house that I am only just beginning to appreciate.  True to her wonderful memory and her incredibly loving heart, I received a surprise package from her in early November that included everything I would need to be able to set up my own styrofoam/Hershey Kiss Christmas tree.  Not only was I able to have a small piece of home with me in my flat for the next month, but I got to show my site mate how to set it up and teach each other about our family traditions and the differences between a North Carolina and Texas holiday (turns out there are a lot, despite both being Southern states).  You made my holiday, Mom.

 

Giddy like a child while opening my Christmas decorations package!

 

Showing Taylor how to pin the Kisses onto the styrofoam – one gets pinned, one gets eaten.

 

Completed project!  I’m still waiting to take it down because i love looking at it.

 

So instead of focusing on how different things were for all of us this year and how we missed our families, we decided to use our time off to travel around Namibia and Zambia while cooking our way through all of the foods that we missed from the States.  My trip began with a stop up north in a village called Mpungu, about an hour and a half away from Rundu where I spent a few days relaxing on a homestead with one of my favorite people.  Experiencing the village life was incredibly refreshing and turned out to be just what I needed before our journey continued East across the northern province.

 

The perimeter of the homestead – fence made of beautiful wood, containing and protecting many individual homes inside.

 

Beautiful, serene golf course-esque Mpungu.  Bodies of water AND greenery?

 

 

The birthday girl in her new dress made by a Meme in the village.

 

I couldn’t leave you without food photos.. homemade pizza and AVOCADO, my long lost love.

 

After being spoiled immensely with good cooking and the restfulness that only the village could offer, we headed to our next destination to celebrate Christmas with two of my closest friends in Peace Corps.  Katima Mulilo is a gorgeous oasis that sticks out of the long finger of Namibia, close to the Zambian border and many wild animals.  The cooking marathon continued as another volunteer made copious amounts of homemade rosemary bread, flavored cream cheese dip and roasting an entire pig piece marinated in oranges and soy sauce for our Christmas Eve feast.  We balanced this food gorging session with practicing kick-ass yoga every day and holding horse pose for minutes at a time while yelling at the instructor on our video in between playing double solitaire and taking walks around the town.

 

 

The sky could not be more perfect than in Namibia at the water.  No crocodiles in sight.

 

 

Enjoying tea, coffee and the internet while the boys cook us a Christmas Eve feast.  Just how I like my gender norms – nonexistent.

 

 

Happy people, beautiful flowers and delicious food made by wonderful people.  Merry Christmas Eve!

 

 

As soon as we arrived over the border in Zambia, we decided that a trip to Victoria Falls was absolutely necessary on our first day in country.  The only thing that came before this important excursion was food, but that probably goes without saying now.  The pictures and the videos that I saw of one of the 7 natural wonders of the world simply did not do this magical place justice.  Even though we have been in a drought for the last three years, and the water was not nearly as strong as it is during the raining season, the falls did not disappoint in any way and we had a fantastic time being tourists and taking thousands of photos.

 

Victoria Falls in all of its beauty.  Happy to start checking off some of the Wonders of the World!

 

Wild baboons are starting to become a regular thing in my life.  At least these ones did not chase us.

 

Couldn’t think of better people to almost lose my hearing with.

 

Zambia was the next stop on our trip for a full day of rafting and having our bodies destroyed by the Zambezi river.  I’ve white water rafted many times in my life, but this was undoubtedly the most difficult and strenuous of all of my experiences.  We asked our guide to give us the hardest routes and he certainly did that for us – I think we spent half the time in the raft and half the time floating down the river after he tipped us over for the 5th time.  I don’t think I have ever enjoyed myself so much in a new country as much as I did in Livingstone – so many restaurant based NGOs, homemade gelato blocks from our hostel and the greatest accommodations that a Peace Corps volunteer can afford.  The best Christmas gift this year came from my Dad and DanaMom, who allowed me to take the rafting trip of a lifetime on lots of Class 5 rapids that left us beaten and sunburned like we have never been before.  Our only logical question was when can we do it again?

 

The beginning, when the adrenaline was pumping and we were still upright and in the raft.

 

Just before we hit this rapid, we asked our guide if we were going to tip the raft at any point in our trip..

 

 

This picture will live in infamy for as long as I have it.

 

 

Where we spent a good majority of the time – under the raft and under water.

 

 

Zebras outside of the hotel that we ate dinner at and reveled in our rafting pain.

 

 

With December and early January filling up my roster with travels to new places and experiences I will not forget, it only seemed right to finish off my holiday season with a three day hiking and camping trip to the highest point in Namibia.  Brandberg Mountain (Fire Mountain in Dutch, Daureb in Damara) is almost 3,000 meters above sea level and at one point in its history, was an an active volcano.  Many of the rock layers that can be seen on the mountain are present now because of the lava flow that trickled down slowly as the Earth cooled.  The mountain is now just that – a gorgeous miasma of color, a variety of rocks types and a plentitude of trees, including the baobab.  

A daunting task as our guide says “there is the path we will take, straight through the mountain” but a path is nowhere to be found..

 

The first day of our hike was absolutely one of the most difficult exertions of energy I have had in my life.  7 hours of climbing rocks with all four limbs, sweating in the heat of the Namibian summer and walking up 65 degree walls of shale with our 6 liters of water each in our hiking backpacks made for a challenge that we took on with all of our energy.  We were so relieved and exhausted when we made it to the camp spot that we dropped our packs and took a nap in the shade before heading down to the water holes to fill up and filter our bottles – a time consuming task in itself.  Although we were proud of ourselves and thrilled that we had experienced such incredible views on our way up, not much talking was done as we pitched our tents and fell asleep as the stars came out and the weather cooled down.  

Smiling through the sweat.

 

 

Gorgeous gold-flaked tree trunks all over the mountain.  Apparently called a Butter or Bottle Tree.. accents can make things difficult sometimes.

 

The view after many hours of hiking and being told that we have made it past the hardest part!

 

Our guide and blissful smiles.

 

The second day of our hike was just as long as our first one, but on much easier terrain and with the knowledge that we had made it past the most difficult part of our path.  We reached the summit of Könnigstein (King’s Stone) around 11 and ate our packed lunches of biltong (jerky of various animal origins), fruit and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.  I think we might have had a celebratory KIND bar to top off our success, as we took in the cool mountain breeze and signed the Guest Register kept in a stone enclave at the peak.

Cave paintings sprinkled themselves in throughout our journey back down to our campsite on our second full day, interspersed with a snack of fruit off of the traditional tree that our guide told us we should eat.  It felt like a very traditional way to live, in some senses, with hiking and eating being our main component of the day with an inevitable nap once we got back to the camp site.  Even though we only camped for a few days, it still established a rhythm for me where I listened to what my body needed more so than I normally would, taking breaks when it felt necessary and napping like I have never napped before.  Take away the busy work days and responsibilities of societal necessity and find out what it is that you truly crave, instead of what you think you want.  Even if it is only for a weekend.

A Quiver Tree on the edge of a cliff.

The hike back down felt so minuscule in comparison to what we had encountered on our way up to the camp spot two days earlier.  Although we were still sweating in the heat of the Namibian sun, we climbed down rock faces that previously forced us to question our motivations with ease and an ability to take in what incredible views we had.  The 65 degree shale walls that we trudged up two days prior, having to stop every few moments to catch our breath and lean forward even more to counter the debilitating angle, were scaled down with greater ease and a focus of not wearing away all of our knee cartilage and slipping on a piece of loose rock.

Details.

 

 

Amazing how life sustains itself even in the most extreme conditions.

 

 

Namibia’s landscape never ceases to amaze me.

Making it to the bottom of Brandberg Mountain has been one of my favorite moments since moving to Namibia 9 months ago.  Actually, I take that back – hiking the whole thing would definitely take its place.  I had some of the greatest hiking companions to give looks to when we were wondering how we were going to force our legs to keep moving, and to crack jokes at just the right time when we were starting to lose motivation.  It was a perfect way to begin 2016 and keep a perspective in mind that we are here in Namibia to put forth all of our efforts and experience all that this country has to offer.

Post-Brandberg Victory Photo.

As the new school year quickly unfolds, I am realizing now that this is the only full year I will have here in Namibia.  2016 will be spent solely in Khorixas, aside from the many travels I have planned and my family coming to visit me so we can explore this country together.  This is the year that I have to invest myself into my community, begin my Girl’s Club and TADAH Club (Teens Against Drugs Alcohol and HIV) and continue with my Cleaning Up Campaigns around town.  This is the year that I will start teaching yoga on the weekends to help bring awareness to the mind-body connection and when I will start a Youth Garden at my ministry where lifeskills and nutrition will meet discipline and hard work to reach a unified goal.  2016 is the year that I will always remember as being 100% Namibian.

Having a cute Kavango kitten always helps things along also.

 

 

Mulled Wine, the Capital City and a Leaking Pipe

 

December is usually a time for business, shopping and reflecting on the year’s outcomes for most people in the States.  I believe it is the opposite here, in many ways, as everyone slows the pace down in order to go back to their family farms and relax for most of the month.  The town becomes less crowded as you walk through it, less people are traveling in and out of my town (which makes transportation a bit tougher) and there is a quietness at my workplace that rivals Sunday mornings in a small town back in North Carolina where everything is closed because “Gawd did not work awn Sundayyy, yawwl!”  So here is a toast to this final month of 2015, which has seen both major improvements into the possibilities of 2016 in Khorixas and Namibia as well as a time for greater understanding of this beautiful, frustrating place.  Oh, and finding out that my favorite restaurant is not serving PIZZA.  Thank God for Delisha’s and all of the happiness it brings to people who just miss that college life sometimes.

 

The desperate mooing of the distanced cow could be heard from the beginning of town all the way to my flat where I was struggling to lock the metal door that perpetually harasses me, sometimes into a state of frenzied anguish, sometimes into a fit of laughter at how a Namibian door has managed to defeat me for the day.  I finally spring the lock closed into its stainless steel enclosure and toss my keys into my floral carry bag that has become one of the recognizing factors in my community of when I go into town to shop.  Its also a nice reminder of Bonaroo and the happy days I spent camping there with some wonderful people last summer, back before I ever though I would actually complete the Peace Corps application.  My walk towards town on my way to pick up produce usually involves passing the locally owned Craft shop (where local crafters can showcase their work for the tourists popping through on their way to Twyfelfontein), the Wambo mall (which consists of a shebeen and a barber shop) and two China shops (self explanatory, I believe), but today it encompassed another oft-seen sight throughout Namibia – a lost cow who appeared extremely anxious about her current situation.  I slowed my pace to watch the cow as she tilted her head back and forth at the four-way intersection, wondering which way the rest of her group went while intermittently mooing into the dead heat of the air surrounding her, hoping that her farm-mates would find her or give her some sort of direction to assist in her struggle.  She stands silently for a moment, tail drifting to the left and then to the right, her ears straining to hear any familiar sounds that might lead her towards the right path.  The nearly one ton animal gives one last, long, mournful moo in my direction before picking up speed and sprinting (well, as much as a cow can sprint) across the road and into the bush on the other side of town towards the location.  I stand motionless and wonder why I am so transfixed on this singular lost cow when I see animals who are missing their pack (mostly goats.. those damn things are loud when they are alone..) quite frequently.  Stray dogs abound, some feral cats can be found in areas with large concentrations of people and rubbish and farm animals seem to be infinite in my small town, wandering from patch of grass to the random trash pile where they peruse through, looking for the least plastic containing item to munch on before heading back to the farm.  So why has this one, cream colored cattle caught my attention?  I continue my heat stroke inducing walk towards our local “OK Value” grocery store, passing a few people I have not seen in a while since I was in the capital city for a week, and give them my greetings despite their varying levels of inebriation.  As I round the corner, passing another barber shop and our local petrol station, I smile to myself and shake my head at my connection to that poor lost cow.  I think most volunteers can relate to the feeling of being lost in a place that felt familiar only yesterday and has suddenly turned into a maze of confusion and frustration.  Khorixas has been my home for the last 6 months and most of the time, I feel very happy and encouraged to be here in this community, but there are certainly times when I drift farther away from the comfort that I have created for myself here.  Whether that is due to a particularly un-savory encounter with someone new or a leaking shower head that has slowly driven you mad for the last half of a year, it can take its toll on your mind and overall well-being without you even realizing that it has been chipping away at your happiness.  So what do you do about it?  Wait for someone else to fix the problem or take matters into your own hands and rely on the people who you have come to care for and who look out for you at every turn?  As one of my favorite fellow volunteers said recently in his blog – “put some water on that shit!” and use what resources you have in order to make this experience everything that it should be.

 

Mooing Mama cow, this one goes out to you – I hope you found your friends and some water as well.  This drought has not been easy on the farm animals, which I believe is representative in my leaking shower saga.  While some places in the United States recently encountered debilitating and damaging floods, most of Namibia has been suffering (I think in this case, unlike most, this word is applicable) with a three year long drought that has severely affected people’s farm land, animals and ultimately, their livelihood.  It seems so unfair and inequitable that some parts of the world are overly abundant, to the point of destruction in many cases, and others are gravely deprived of the simple resources that are necessary for life to continue on, much like the protruding bones on cows that I have seen and the constant leaking of my shower that reminds me how easy it is to get caught up in the perceived importance of priorities.  All aspects and situations are real in their frustrations and complications, despite their oppositional interactions.

 

So, here is a cute photo of some kids who came to my second Cleaning Up Campaign in a different part of Khorixas.  Showing the community that all parts of the town are important.

 

 

It is great to see the turnout of the cleaning campaigns as being mostly youth based, since they are the ones who will carry on the importance of a healthy environment into the future to their friends and families who are not as aware of the education available.  At least, one can hope.

 

So lets see, since the last time I updated the blog, I have celebrated a few birthdays (American style, with a homemade cake and all)..

 

 

.. I have explored some new areas of my town that are often over-looked when it comes to applying resources that we have available..

 

 

.. We opened my site-mate’s care package where a huge jar of Nutella exploded during transit (thank you, NamPost, for ever being the bane of our existence) and we still ate a lot of it anyway..

 

 

.. We created a new Thanksgiving tradition, including grilled chicken, jalapeno garlic mashed potatoes, My Cousin Vinny and feeding stray Ministry of Youth cats..

 

 

.. Had a Friendsgiving full of homemade mulled wine, bacon and green beans, TWO PIES, even more chicken.. and IPAs, that sweet, sweet nectar of the Gods..

 

 

.. My flat has come close to flooding on a few occasions thanks to a leaking shower head and a lack of understanding of how plumbing works..

 

 

.. and I got creative on how I wanted to solve this problem, for myself, with the help of two scavengers who have been at this DIY Peace Corps game for far longer than I have (props, Taylor and Emmy)..

 

Whittling down an old hose pipe to connect to my shower tap so that the water flows out of the window instead of into my flat.

 

.. saw the final product of my pocket knife saga on Wednesday morning finally pay off.. NO MORE LEAKING SHOWER! ..

 

 

.. 132 Peace Corps volunteers in Namibia came to the capital city to celebrate 25 years of Peace Corps service that coincides with 25 years of Independence in Namibia..

 

We got to dress fancy and see some of our trainers from Okahandja.

 

.. we got to hang out at a beautiful hotel for the week of the All Volunteer conference and meet a lot of new volunteers from all over the country..

 

 

.. and of course, witnessed more of the most breathtaking sunsets that Namibia has to offer.  One of my favorite parts of being in this country.

 

 

In all, I would say that I have spent too much time recently focusing on the frustrating factors that will inevitably inhabit all of our lives at some point throughout our service.  I waited for others to make a change or take responsibility for a problem that I was perfectly capable of handling on my own, while learning to ask for help from the right people.  Sometimes the most important part of the process is finding out who you can rely on in a place that does not always feel like home the way you used to know it, and sometimes that is realizing that you need to feel a bit more connected to home.  In this case, it was both, and I am forever thankful for the new friends I have made here in Namibia as well as the ones back in the States who have sent me words of love, reminders of good times, and anything that comes in my mailbox.  Who would have thought that my least favorite place in Khorixas would bring some of the greatest happiness to a small metal box behind a line of memes waiting for their pension?

 

 

Cleaning Up Campaign and Three Months at Site

Welcome back to my life in Namibia!  I am alive and well, despite my lack of updates in the last month or so.  In many ways, I am grateful for the break because I feel that I have been investing myself more fully into my community and staying busy with the present as opposed to thinking about life back in the States, friends and family that can preoccupy the mind easily.  Needless to say, I am excited to let you all know what has been going on with my time that has kept me away from the norm and updating the world on these small town shenanigans.

Trick bikes for PCVs in Khorixas? What could be better?

Peace Corps is really great about reimbursements for necessary items that they do not provide for us in our stipends, including an allowance for the purchase of a bicycle.  As the weather turns hotter and more unbearable, we knew that we had to get a move on the bike search since we are not allowed to drive cars during our service.  My sitemate and I asked around and found out that one of our friends has been restoring old bikes and was selling them pretty cheaply – so despite him warning us that they were trick bikes that most of the guys in town ride around, we took a gamble and went to acquire our new mode of transportation.  I’m sure we are going to stand out even more now in our small town, but it will be worth every moment that I am able to feel the breeze on my face instead of just the harsh sun beating down on me.  Freedom on two wheels never felt so good.

Going onto the local Community Radio Station to be interviewed by some amazing DJs.

The main thing that has kept me the most busy these past few weeks was the planning of a Cleaning Up Campaign that my sitemate and I organized together with Town Council.  Environmental Education and helping people understand the importance of a clean town has always been an interest of mine, but never has it held such significance till I moved here.  The amount of rubbish and litter that pollutes this beautiful town is astounding and became a top priority for me to bring to light to this community.  There is still a very heavy sense of living in the present moment here without much regard for the future, as the mindset has not had a chance to grow as much as is necessary to understand the impact that a lack of planning can have.  So instead of becoming frustrated with the way that things are and have been for a long time, we decided to take the initiative in organizing an educational day for the youth and figureheads followed by going out into the town to collect trash.  This event was the first one that I have played a lead role in, taking care of the logistical factors like writing proposals, collecting materials (trash bags and a donation of cool drink for the volunteers), making announcements on the local radio stations and posting flyers up in the important locations.  It turned out to be something I really enjoyed doing (able to be in control of a project?  organizing and making things function?  count me in!) but absolutely exhausting at the same time.  Making sure that all of the stakeholders were on the same page with content and timing for the day of the event (Africa Time is a real thing, y’all.. thanks for preparing me so well for lateness, Dad) meant spending a lot of time on my phone as well as doing my main job at the Ministry of Youth.  With two weeks of planning time, we managed to pull off a pretty successful event where about 120 people from the local schools, Police Station, Ministry of Education and Junior Town Council showed up to participate in our Keep Khorixas Beautiful campaign.

A view from the stage as the CEO of the Town Council gave the Welcoming Remarks.

The first part of the campaign consisted of educational speeches from a few community members, including a social worker from the Ministry of Health and an environmental educator who works at the Ministry of Youth with me.  The second part consisted of going out into the community nearby the Youth Hall and picking up rubbish for about an hour, almost using up all the bags that were donated by Town Council.  This was a huge success in my mind because the community mobilized together in order to make a small, but important change while hopefully taking the education we gave them into their own lives and telling others about what they learned.  It all comes back to sustainability with Peace Corps and we are going to try to do these campaigns once a month until that aspect has been achieved.  Once everyone understands why preservation of their town and environment is so important, the campaigns will become obsolete – at least, that is my dream for the future.

Troops assembling in the fight against rubbish.

During our time of planning our Cleaning Up Campaign, I was also involved in teaching a week of Health classes at one of our combined schools in town.  My sitemate and I planned different lessons and topics for each of the days, covering Anatomy and Physiology, reproductive education and sexual health.  I have always greatly respected teachers and how hard they work, even just to maintain a classroom environment, but my understanding of just how difficult that can be became so much clearer after spending 6 hours a day with these learners.  In order to be able to teach an entire lesson in 40 minute increments becomes incrementally more impossible the more excited the kids get about the lesson at hand.  Classroom rules and punishments became our best friends as we made it very clear what our expectations were of these Grade 6 and 7 learners.

How often do you get to draw male and female anatomy on a chalkboard?

Despite some moments of frustration, these kids were pretty well behaved for having to talk about sex topics for a week.  They learn to fear HIV/AIDS from such an early age, but do not have the basic comprehension of how their own bodies work or the virus composition itself.  It really gave me a better glimpse of how important it is to start at the basics and work up from there, creating a solid foundation for them to better themselves in the future and pass along their education to their families and friends.  I’ve read a few different statistics on the percentages, but around 70% of Namibia’s population consists of Youth (which is generally categorized from 16-35 here).  This is a huge majority of the country that is vulnerable to many of the issues that currently face young people today, including poverty, unemployment and prevalent diseases.  If we can start the education process at a young age and empower the Youth to take matters into their own hands, the necessary education will continue to be taught to future generations while creating a sustainable knowledge basis.

Feeding the Americans a funky Namibian fruit to watch our reactions.. a favorite learner activity.

Post-Clean Up Campaign Fun Day at the Combined school. Donkey cart rides and ice cream were the best rewards we could think of.

Things finally slowed down this past week after the teaching gig ended and the Clean Up Campaign turned out successfully.  I did a lot of relaxing and reorganizing that evolved into making glasses out of empty bottles with my site mates – making something that I could have paid money for out of something that we already had lying around?  Repurposed activities are my favorite kind.  The glasses actually turned out pretty nicely for only using acetone, yarn and matches and now we have reminders of our times spent drinking ciders in Namibia.  Plus, no one lost any fingers or eyebrows in our attempts at perfection.  If y’all want to try this at home, I’ll post the link that we followed.  Save yourselves some money and make beverage holders out of your favorite empty drinks!

Fire!

http://www.artofmanliness.com/2014/02/19/how-to-make-a-drinking-glass-from-a-bottle/

Horses grazing at one of the primary schools. I am still afraid to pet them, despite my ever growing desire.

I have been slowly coming to terms with the ending of the Namibian honeymoon phase that I felt during my first four months of living on this continent.  I felt such an affiliation with my new culture and the excitement of living in a new country that when these feelings slowly began to drop off, it was difficult to accept.  Instead of understanding that this is a normal process that most PCVs go through (staff prepared us for this with many, many powerpoint presentations and I still felt like I somehow failed in my service) I began to dwell on the physical and mental exhaustion of the everyday life here.  It can become tiring quickly when I know that I have to prepare myself for the potential conversations in a foreign language that people in the community will want to have or the other random encounters that are bound to happen.  I have never found myself so drained from doing such simple tasks as going into town for groceries, as there is the constant trail of thought in the back of my mind that whispers questions of cultural sensitivity, appropriate behavior and bringing new light to topics of health.  I’ve always been a person with lots of available energy to spread myself across many different groups of people and events while lacking patience when others did not share the same energy.  I am learning that the multi-tasking, as great as it is to help accomplish tasks, does not always yield the greatest outputs.  More recently, I have found that the more time I give to myself to read, do yoga or go for runs, the better off I am the next day or when an important event or meeting comes up.  It is truly all about stocking up the reserves, including going to the local rest camp for drinks by the pool once in a while.  We may have unintentionally ended up in a newlywed couple’s photos and videos.

Damara weddings come to us for the party.

I don’t often get to eat green vegetables here, either due to their lack of availability in our grocery store or the inflated cost when they are here.  So when one of my co-workers passed through a neighboring town on her way back home, she stopped to bring me back some spinach and cabbage.  It is common that when you go out of town for something, you bring back small gifts for your friends from wherever you were visiting.  Why would my gift not be something of the food variety?  An easy dinner after a long day that would have otherwise gone to a KIND bar or CLIF bar from a care package.

And a random food photo. Popcorn cooked in coconut oil with sea salt (a DanaMom special) and spinach, onion and apple (a Christine special).

It seems as the weather gets hotter, the wind picks up here a lot as well.  This brings some relief from the strength of the sun, but also kicks up so much dust that the power lines get knocked out frequently.  Our power went out three days during the last week and succeeded in blowing sand and dust into every open window that served as ventilation.  It made me really appreciate how fortunate I am to have simple things like electricity and running water on a daily basis, especially when it came to making coffee one morning with no power.  The perfect excuse to go relax at the lodge nearby and drink coffee and tea in the shade of the trees.  We even met an Australian couple traveling through Africa that afternoon who invited us to dinner – one of the best I have had in a long time.  Kudu steaks, meatballs, chicken kebabs, vanilla cake with custard for desert.. this was a weekend of appreciating the timing of events and the wonderful people that you meet in different circumstances.  The world is a small place full of good people who come along at the right time if you are willing to trust in the universe and where you need to be.

The local lodge ostrich who hangs out and gets fed leftover popcorn while we drink coffee during a power outage.

Life Cycles and Returning to Intentions

Walking or running through the location always creates such a juxtaposition of challenging visual experiences for me.  Sometimes you see a dog or two in a passing bakkie, poking their heads and tongues out of the window in all their glory, reminding you how small the world is and how animals act instinctually  no matter what continent they live on.  It gives me hope that one day people will be able to act similarly, seeing the uniqueness of each culture but never failing to see the humanity in us all that binds us to one another.  We all like to stick our heads out a window once in a while, right?  I finally ate donkey, one of the staple foods here in Damaraland, recently and found a puppy to share the time and scraps with.  I think this was the first time I have held a puppy since coming to Namibia and it did my heart so much good.

Puppies and donkey meat – the recipe for an excellent lunch date.

And then there is the inevitable sadness factor of some of the animal’s living conditions.  To see a small dog, whose ribs are protruding profoundly from its boney body, sleepily napping in front of a corrugated metal shack brings initial first world thoughts of anger and judgement.  I come from a place of privilege where owning a dog is a choice and many people abuse this right by not taking care of their animals in the proper and respectful way by chaining them up outside or training them to be aggressive.  After spending a few years volunteering at the Humane Society back home and seeing the worst of animal violence, I have to say that human beings can be atrocious examples of what it means to be a dominant species at the top of the food chain.  I carry these knee-jerk reactions and judgements with me based on these experiences, though I know that they do not always apply, especially here in Namibia.  What starts out as “How can this family let that dog starve so blatantly?  The kids and chickens are running around the yard playing – they clearly have enough food to go around.  Why would they own a dog if they cannot take care of it?” after some thought turns into “That dog is sleeping in front of this house because it has learned that this is the family who gives it scraps and meat bones when other people kick at it or throw rocks.  This family probably did not choose to own the dog the same way that we do back in the U.S, but the dog chose to remain with a kind group of people who feed it the little bit of extra that they have.”  It brings to mind one of the stories in the Bible that I heard about in childhood sermons in Roman Catholic Church (thanks, Mom) about donations to the church and the difference between giving all you have and simply giving a large tithe because you are wealthy.  This is what many families here believe in – such an abundance of community and sharing with the person next to you, regardless if you know them well or not.  The dog that gets the scraps of meat from the family that is donating all that they have is much more meaningful than the bowl of organic dog food that a dog back in the United States has.  In order to not butcher it, I’ll just put the direct quote below.

Mark 12:41-44

“And he sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”

How do you cite the Bible appropriately that would make an English teacher proud?  I feel all of my schooling and education coming forth right now asking me to give a citation for the quotation above, but I can’t say that is something I have ever done.  I am living in a mostly Christian country right now and have been feeling compelled to become more open-minded to the doctrine here in order to understand the mindset of the people I am surrounded by daily.  Reasoning behind people’s motivations and behaviors has always been fascinating to me, as many times there is not an exact logic behind a feeling or decision – this furthers my personal belief in the need for an emotional side of human consciousness that is sometimes unexplainable, but is just as valuable to listen to as practicality.  It ties directly into intuition and the value that I have placed upon my own, ensuring that I trust myself to make the right decisions.  This is especially important in a new environment and culture when everything feels unfamiliar and fresh, but I still experience those gut impulses which help to guide my actions in a safe way.  Do I take this car of tourists when I am hiking from one town to another?  Do I trust that people in the world have mostly good intentions and are willing to do the right things?  It is beginning to help guide and challenge my ways of thinking that have become so ingrained from living in the United States for 23 years.  We are taught early on to never accept things from strangers (especially candy), to never go to someone’s house without getting to know them first and certainly do not take a drink from a stranger.  These measures are, of course, put into place for good reason and caution is certainly an important part of growing up in a healthy and safe way in the States.  But, so much is different here in Namibia, especially when it comes to social norms and cues, that it becomes important to make sure you are adapting to the culture as well as maintaining your personal boundaries and limitations.  In the Damara culture, you do accept food and snacks from colleagues that you do not know (especially sweets) because everything is shared here.  In order to become, and feel like, a part of the work place or a family, sometimes you take a piece of candy that you would not have normally eaten.  You also go to people’s houses who you might not know that well, either because they are friends of your friends or they stop you on the gravel road as you are running past and invite you in for tea with their grandmother.  Turning down an offer to have a drink bought for you here is sometimes seen as an insult to the purchaser, so the decision becomes a cultural paradigm that intersects with your own decisions and choices that you make for your well-being.  It is an interesting, but important, learning curve to balance.

Speaking of drinks, my site mate and I had the opportunity to go out into the community of Donkerhoek yesterday with the Health Extension Workers from the hospital.  This is a make-shift location of corrugated metal homes behind The Location where some of the most poverty-stricken in Khorixas live with no latrines, high unemployment rates and sometimes no water from the few taps available.  The HEWs go into the communities every day, checking on the homes they are assigned to, making sure that ARVs are being taken and the people with TB are coming to the hospital for their treatments.  They hold community meetings under “The Meeting Tree” and create home-made hand washing stations called “tippy-taps” right outside of people’s homes so that sanitation can slowly start to become more of a priority.  Children as young as 8 hang out in the center of the community, selling the homemade liquor made by their parents.  This process is dangerous for the home where the old oil drums slowly cook the alcohol, as the HEWs told us that if a match was lit near the fumes coming off of the barrels, an explosion was very probable.  I felt like I was back in my home state, watching moonshine being made and hoping that there was not a meth lab nearby.

One of our very funny escorts through Donkerhoek, show casing the recycled bottles the brew is put in.

I debated purchasing a bottle, you know, to support the local economy and what not, but saw the ingredients and thought better of it.

One of the women who had a Tippy-Tap built in her yard, demonstrating the hand washing techniques that the HEWs taught her. She was so proud to be able to teach others in her community and happy that her children would get cleaner food now.

It is overwhelming to see so many basic needs in one place.  How do you decide what thing should be focused on first?  One person’s need is bound to be different from another’s – who says what is the most important aspect for a community?  I am glad that there are people like the HEWs who have a better idea of what the first steps are and have already implemented some projects.

This past weekend I had planned to travel up North with my sitemates for a Trade Fair that was taking place and meet some of the other volunteers who have been up there for a while.  Timing and planning in Namibia is a very, very different concept and things mostly do not end up going as planned.  This was one of those situations as our ride fell through last minute, meaning that we would have to pay a pretty good amount of money to travel if we went.  So instead, I opted for a weekend in Khorixas wandering around and seeing the town in a new light.  I am glad that I made this decision as it helped me feel more integrated into my community and allowed me to meet more people who I feel more compatible with in terms of friendships.

My new best friend in Khorixas – only two years old but can out-dance anyone, especially me. But I guess that is not saying much.

On Saturday I went to one of my co-worker’s homes for a poige, which is basically a term for a barbeque in a big black pot that is common cookware in Namibia.  You throw in whatever you have at home (always including meat, which is the staple food here) with vegetables, rice and spices, cooking it over an open fire for a few hours.  It turns into a delicious concoction very similar to the stew I have been making about once a week.  I am a big fan of minimalization, especially when it comes to cooking on a small stove with a lack of utensils.  Anything I can throw into one pot and be done with, I am all for it.  While we were waiting for the food, we were entertained by Kai, the two year old dancing prodigy.  I have a few videos of him that I will have to send out in an email, as this website does not allow you to upload into blog posts.  The sense of community bonding and “everyone is family” mindset never ceases to amaze me, as 5 or 6 people who had not been there all day showed up just as the food was being served.  I’m beginning to think that there is some sort of sixth sense you acquire the longer you stay in Namibia that allows you to know exactly where to be in order to receive a plate.

This week has been full of puppies and animals. This little cutie followed me around for a while thinking I was its Mom.

We were feeling really adventurous this week in our culinary experiences.  There is a new sit down restraunt (this is a big deal here, folks) close by to where I live in town that always has delicious food and is upping their game daily.  They have a beautiful display case that is decorated with pieces of fruit and candles – their business strategy is slowly winning the town over as it is becoming a popular lunch spot.  They have unique options for purchase, like an entire half of a pig head.  Or for those who just don’t think they can handle that much pork, you can pick from the 12 or so pig ears that 6 pigs donated recently in different sizes and forms.  My site mate decided this was going to happen for her lunch, so of course I got to take part in the meal as we share everything in Africa.  The taste was great, but the cartilage was a bit much on the crunchy side with the rubbery texture of the little bit of meat on the ear.  Sorry Poppa Mike, but I don’t think I would rank this on the top of my list of pig parts.  I bet you could show them a thing or two about the butchering business, though!

Trying pig ear for the first time. Poppa Mike, you would be proud!

On Sunday, we made tentative plans to drive out to a town a few kilometers from Khorixas and go swimming – something that I forgot how much I love and how quickly I got excited about the prospect of being in water.  After a long morning and afternoon of this excursion not coming to fruition, we decide to picnic at the base of one of the biggest hills in our town and then hike up to the highest point for a splendid view of the mountains nearby.  Totally worth the steep walk up the rocky terrain in flip-flops to catch the sun setting and see my town from a different perspective.  Sometimes that’s all it takes, just a switch up from the usual things that you see to gain a new appreciation for the environment you find yourself in.

When a trip to a neighboring town to go swim in a dam doesn’t work out, you hike to “Paradise”.

Seeing a rose growing for the first time in Namibia serves as a reminder of the little things that make us happy.

I hope that wherever you are in the world, you are happy and healthy as you are reading this.  I think of all of my family and friends often and sometimes that is the hardest part of being so far away.  As happy as I am to be doing this work and experience this beautiful country, I miss the people who much of my identity was tied to.  I guess that is part of the biggest work I am doing here, though, is to peel back the layers of who I am with other people and truly be alone in this.  This is the only way to find the core of who I am and make decisions purely based on what I want in this new environment that challenges me in ways that I have never been challenged before.  Despite the things I am missing, I am creating a new way of being for myself and doing exactly what I have wanted to do, the only thing I have been sure about in my life, for as long as I can remember.

I leave you with a quote from The Translator, the latest book I have checked out from the Public Library across from my place of work.  I read this autobiography at just the right time when I was feeling a bit overwhelmed with the prospects I have set for myself and the first real time that I questioned “what on Earth am I even doing here?!”

“What can you do?  You make friends, of course, and do what you can.”

Of course.  Of course that is all you can do sometimes and that is plenty enough sometimes.  What more is there to life than that?