ONE MONTH!!!

 Me and Onthatile making cookies

 Kya and Chelsea baking/cooking away in my homestay kitchen!

 Finally a picture of Tshego and I!!!

 Sign from the National Museum in Gaborone..couldn't resist

 Me with Baby Tyler Duma Turk

 Afri-can music festival

Sclub7, the 7 buddies, best heptagon!! Great group at the music festival

 

Another week, another weekend and another blog post. Life is for sure settling in and the days are really flying by. Yet at the same time I feel like I’ve been here for ever and when I think back to all that I’ve done I understand why—I’ve been busy!!

This past week Tuesday I started my internship working with Thlamelo Trust in Old Naledi. It was basically just a day to learn how to get there, help in any way they need and observe. Although it was a rough start to the day (leaving two hours after planned) I was able to navigate my way to Old Naledi and got there in time to help make lunch for the kids. Thlamelo Trust in a non-profit that provides meals and a a place to stay for at risk youth in Old Naledi. Women from the community volunteer everyday to go to the school where the kids hang around and cook lunch. When I got there the ladies were in the middle of making dumplings for the kids so I hopped right into it. They had already prepared the dough and shaped them into half a softball size balls. All I really had to do was throw the dough balls into about an inch of water, cover the pan and wait for them to cook. Once they finished cooking, I used a fork to loosen them up from the pan and pulled them out. They were huge—I would say a Chicago size softball dumpling!!! Since the chicken and other meats needed time to cook still I went outside to play with all the kids that had gathered. Before I even sat down I had one girl come over and basically claim me by sitting on my lap and not letting go of my arms. Whenever someone came over to play with me she would push them away. Then a whole bunch of kids found my hair and pretty much played salon for the next hour. At one point I had five kids pulling on different sections of my hair. I ended up finding a stick in my hair the next day and a massive knot a day later. Once all the kids had finished eating and the dishes cleaned, I headed back to UB for volleyball practice. At this point I am going to go back next week to observe again and then brainstorm areas where I can actually make a difference and have an impact on the kids.

Wednesday was pretty ordinary except that after volleyball a lot of the international students headed out to George’s Pub and Grill for karaoke night. It was pretty fun as it was a little bar off the beaten path (and I mean really off the beaten path as there was nothing but a dirt road to get to it). It was cool to hang out at a local bar instead of one of the more well-known ex-pat ones. Not to mention the videos that played alongside the words on the TV screens were some of the funniest videos I’d ever seen. They were basically all from the 90s where scrunchies and baggy clothes were in and they ranged from a couple getting close with each other to some bear in the wilderness wandering over for food to shots of famous landmarks in Europe. Never did the video match up with the subject of the song but it did provide us with great laughs.

Thursday was the day I had been waiting for as after my classes, I skipped volleyball and two of my friends from CIEE , Kya and Chelsea, who live on campus came over to my homestay to cook dinner for my family. We had decided on BBQ chicken, vegetables and rice for dinner and oatmeal cookies for dessert. The whole process of bringing the girls home from UB to  buying groceries to cooking was great. My cousin Onthatile helped me make the oatmeal cookies (she mainly compiled the ingredients while I ate the dough) while Kya and Chelsea worked on the dinner portion. We had a great time chatting and cooking and an even better time eating. The whole family was there for dinner and everyone had a good time ragging on me about not cooking to sharing stories from home and from Batswana culture. My family really enjoyed the cookies and I can’t wait to make them again. My grandma even spoke to me in English tonight for the first time..”Julie…I want tea” which was my cue to get up and make her a cup of tea which scared me to pieces. I don’t even drink tea for myself and had no idea how she liked hers. Luckily Tshego was there to help me. Elt drove Kya and Chelsea back to UB and on the way shows up various malls and buildings around Gaborone. I love my personal tours around the city.

Friday was a big day for me as it was one of the first times I traveled by myself to new locations by the combi. In the morning I headed back to the Grand Palm which was the hotel we stayed in the first couple of days. I realized shortly after moving into my homestay that my TEVA flip flops were missing and began to call the Grand Palm with no success. Since it is heating up I realized just how much I miss my flip flops and decided just to head to the Grand Palm myself. Getting there was a lot easier than I thought and once there after waiting for some time, got my shoes! I think they were still under the bed in the room!!! This put me in a great mood. Got put in an even better mood when the combi I was taking from the hotel to Game City mall came within 15 minutes. Elt warned me that it could take up to an hour for that combi to come!!! SCORE!!! Then the mall was great. It was pretty empty since it was so early in the morning and I was able to leisurely wander throughout stores buying some toiletries and a birthday gift for Elt. Once my shopping extravaganza finished I headed over to UB to go the gym and spend some time in the library catching up on my emails and starting my application for the Peace Corps.

Now to this weekend and what a weekend it was!! It started early Saturday morning when CIEE sponsored a cultural excursion to the National Museum at Main Mall. The museum was, hm??, well semi interesting but not something that stands out as a must-see in Gaborone. There were some exhibits of the wildlife of the country as well as skulls and stones. After the museum we headed over to the Botswana Craft Exhibit to shop and eat lunch. Lunch was great and a pretty traditional Batswana meal. I had pap which is formed maize meal with morogo (wild Spinach in a peanuty sauce) and Seswaa which is shredded/pounded meat. 

After a thoroughly filling meal, we all headed over to Tlokweng (a surrounding neighborhood of Gabs) for a baby shower for Sharon, Kyle’s wife (Kyle being the director of CIEE). However, the baby was born very premature and therefore the shower was taking place after little Tyler was already born. This was great because it meant that we got to see and hold little Tyler. He was knocked out the whole time and cooperated as we all passed him around. Along with the girls from CIEE a lot of Sharon’s family members and friends were there allowing us to talk with Batswana women about mothering ideologies in Bots. For example during the gift opening it was weird to me that Sharon sat while her cousins open the gifts and show her what people brought. The kids from CIEE pulled our money and bought them a baby tub, baby books, diapers and a whole array of goodies. We got them a small medical kit that included not only a baby thermometer but one of those bulbs used to clean the baby’s nose. The women had no idea what that was used for and said they do it the “African way” aka they use their mouths to suck the mucus from the baby’s nose and mouth. It grossed me out but to each his own!! Along with opening the gifts we played a bunch of games including musical chairs, blindly draw baby Tyler and a more vulgar one where you have to walk with a potato between your legs then drop it in a cup on the ground symbolizing the birth of the baby-bit too much for me. Overall the baby shower was a lot of fun and we had a great afternoon.

BUT the day wasn’t over yet. After returning to UB from the shower, CIEE provided transportation to an afri-can international musical festival. We were at first nervous to go because as we were headed towards the bus some international students we knew were returning from the festival because it was “so lame with no people-DO NOT GO.” But most of us had already paid for our tickets so took the plunge. They at first seemed right for as soon as we entered the bus we saw that on the drop down TV was a Celine Dion concert. Know I love Celine but she wasn’t really putting me in the mood for an upbeat, fun night. So I asked the driver if there was anything else and they instead put on African music videos. Some of the weirdest videos I’ve ever seen but the music was fun and upbeat. After driving for about 45 minutes we reached this “musical festival” which turned out to basically be a stage in the middle of a huge field with about 30 people making up the crowd. Yet this didn’t stop my great group of 7 from having the most amazing night. It was a great group of 7 and we all got along really well and danced the night away to some of the most upbeat and fun African music I’ve heard thus far. We danced with the locals under the stars to live music for hours! It was one of those moments where you go, “Yeah. I’m in a field, dancing with a bunch of Batswana under the most brilliant stars and moon in Africa-this is my life.” The only down side to the whole night was that on my way to the toilet (as they say here because no one knows what “bathroom” means) I stepped on the bush from hell. As I’m living in a desert environment,  many of the plants here are cacti or at least have basic characteristics of cacti including this one menacing tree/bush whose thorn type appendages literally look like toothpicks. Well I stepped on this bush and as I retracted my leg, these toothpicks dragged against my leg, ripping my skin as it went. Ouch! The only other downer of the night was getting home when my family was asleep and accidentally setting off the house alarm waking everyone up. Oh well, if this was the worst thing that happened then my life is pretty great right now!

Sunday was another great day as I had my first volleyball tournament. The bus carrying the girls was supposed to leave at 8  from campus but since I don’t live on campus I thought I would meet the girls at the venue around 8:30. Elt said he knew where we were playing and would take me and we would probably leave around 7:30. Well 7:30 rolls around and after finding Elt learned he needed to wash the car before he could come with me (washing cars is a huge thing that everyone does on the weekends because of the intense dust). At first I was freaking out but soon learned that the volleyball team hadn’t left campus and almost none of the girls had actually showed up yet. Well I got to the courts by 9:45, the team got there by 10:15 and the game didn’t start until 11. Africa time baby, Africa time. Although I started, I played terribly and became so overwhelmed; we were playing outside so had the sun to contend with, there were people all around yelling in another language and I was so aware that people were watching which usually doesn’t bother me but today really affected my play. Unfortunately since I played so poorly I was benched and had to watch the rest from the sidelines. I guess this just means I have to kick butt in practice to earn back my starting position! CHALLENGE ACCEPTED!!!

Once my game had finished, I watched the boys team play while Elt played basketball on a neighboring court. We then walked home and spent the rest of the afternoon chilling, doing some hw, taking short walks to Bonanza (local convenience store), etc. Not to mention watching a PSA by the oh so wonderful Batswana police on BTV. Every week or so the police put together a show with skits about how thieves try to con people in Botswana. It sounds like a good idea but it is some of the worst movie making I have ever seen and had to excuse myself to write this blog. This massive blog, I know!! However, lucky for you I know have nothing left to say and can barely keep my eyes open so I would like to say Go siame and good night!!!!

Third Week in Botswana

 Climbing up Kgale Hill

 View from the top of Kgale Hill

Another week has gone by so it’s guess it’s time for another Botswana update. Not much has really happened this week that warrants a long blog post but I shall give you some of the highlights.

The week started out great with a Monday morning that was actually really productive. I was able to finalize my schedule meaning I was able to drop the classes I needed to. Usually this task would take hours and require me to find the secretary to get a form, fill out the form, drop it back off with the secretary hoping and praying she is still there and then return another time to pick up the print-out of my class schedule. But not this Monday. The man who is in charge of coordinating all the international students’ schedules was in the office, not too busy and was able to process my schedule and give me the print out right away!!! Then right away I was able to take the print out to the CIEE office (the program I’m traveling with) and scan a copy of it to email it back home. I accomplished all this within an hour which in Botswana in unheard of. So my final schedule consists of a CIEE Setswana Language Course, an internship, Nutrition and Sports Performance, Psychological Challenges of HIV/Aids, Novels in the Modern World and Media in Botswana. Plus it works out that I only have class Monday, Wednesday and Thursday allowing me to go to my internship all day Tuesday and Friday if I’d like.

Monday continued to be a fun day as after volleyball practice, some of the international students went to River Walk mall where there was half price ribs at one of the restaurants. They were pretty good-not as good as MiRancho but I did get a Savannah beer with dinner which is a beer from South Africa that tastes like hard apple cider.

Tuesday wasn’t anything major but on Wednesday I went with my program director and another student to Old Naledi where I will be doing my internship. Old Naledi is one of the most troubled areas in Gaborone and there I will be working with a community group that helps at-risk youth by providing them with free meals and keeping them away from trouble. I was only there for about an hour to check out the facilities and meet with the director there but the kids were swarming us as soon as we got out of the car. I mean they have their hands in your pockets, on your bodies, pulling on your hands…crazy. One kid spent like five minutes just looking at my hands pulling and pushing my wrist and fingers. I really don’t know exactly what he was doing but maybe seeing if my white hand worked the same as his black hand??? Other kids just wanted me to pick them up and swing them around in a circle. While another little girl tried teaching me a game similar to Ms. Mary Mack. Although it was a lot of fun it was also really overwhelming and an intense experience. However after seeing the kids and the site it looks as if I will be doing my internship there maybe designing a physical education or fitness program or something along those lines. As of right now it’s really all up in the air and up to me how I can help. Ideas are welcomed!!

Thursday and Friday were much of the same-gym, classes, volleyball and dinner. However, I did learn a new way to get home when it’s dark out. Usually to get home I take two combis: one from school to the station and then one from the station to the stop near my house. However, I learned that once I get to the station there is a combi at the bus rank that will get me even closer. Problem is the rank is on the other side of the mall. See here the station is located at RailPark Mall. On every side of the mall there are combis and taxis. Usually the two combis I have to take are located right next to each other but with this new combi route I found I have to walk to the other side which during the day isn’t a huge deal but at night can be a bit dangerous as I stand out. Luckily though when I come home from volleyball there are a couple of other kids who also walk through the mall so it isn’t too bad. Anyways, the whole point of this was that I found a new route home. I tried this route out for the first time on Wednesday night. So I get off the combi and still have about two blocks to walk in the dark when all of a sudden I hear someone shouting, “Hey, Hey.” I began to panic and picked up my speed hoping to get home soon. Just as I am picking up my speed I hear the person yell, “Hey Julie.” And then I realized it was my host brother yelling for me. But let me tell you before I realized it was Elt, my heart rate skyrocketed and I could have won an Olympic medal for my speed walking abilities. What a relief!!!

On Thursday I did finally start my Media In Botswana class where the professor was very keen on asking me about all the media in the US even though she lived there for 7 years. I guess I am now the resident expert on US communication which lucky enough for me I was in the CAP (Communication Arts Program) at Blair hopefully having taught me enough that I can at least pull off being an informed American citizen. On Friday I was able to secure an academic advisor for my internship, Professor Mitchell, my nutrition and sports performance professor. It was so cool because when I went to her office, I walked in as she was finishing her conversation with her family in South Africa and was speaking Afrikaans. I assumed since she is White that she only spoke English and Setswana after living in Bots for so many years. However after talking to her and Elt I learned that many white people in South Africa actually speak Afrikaans opening my eyes to a different culture. I’m learning so much not only about Batswana culture but about the cultures from the surrounding countries including South Africa, Zimbabwe, Swaziland, Lesotho, etc. There are so many international students at UB that I’ve been able to learn and absorb so much more than I originally thought even about countries other than the ones in Africa. There are kids here from Sweden, Finland, Norway, Canada, Germany, Japan, Austria, etc…now we actually refer to people based on their nationality (“The Mexicans are here” or “the Swedes are coming too).

Also on Friday I worked with some friends to plan our mid-semester break plans in the end of September. We are planning on going to Windhoek in Namibia then up to Swakapmund off to Zambia for Victoria Falls and then Kasani in Botswana to see Chobe Park. Hoping to go skydiving in Namibia and then bungee jumping in Vic Falls. Then in November I am planning on going to Mozambique and in December go to Cape Town right after the semester ends. Bank account is going to take a huge beating but hey, when else can I travel all over Southern Africa.

After a fun volleyball practice Friday night where the girls have taken the time to teach me phrases such as “I will beat you” and “I will kick you” (their choice of phrases to teach us) I came home and spent the evening hanging out with Elt watching TV and the movie, Drumline.

Good thing I had a relaxing Friday because Saturday and Sunday were jam packed with activities. Saturday afternoon the CIEE kids traveled to Old Naledi to work with some of the kids that I will be working with during my internship. Every Saturday all the kids from the neighborhood are welcome to come and participate in prayer and games. They basically set up the kids in a square, each side is a team and they play games assigning each team points for winning or being the most spirited. During one of the games, one kid from each team has to run the perimeter of the square one time then race to the center of the square and grab a bottle filled with sand. During another instead of grabbing the bottle, they take balls made out of wads of paper and have to hit the bottle. I even participated in one round coming in second (slipped on the dirt that we were playing on). This afternoon was by far my most favorite for so many reasons. It was amazing to watch the kids come to life with just an old bottle and pieces of paper. The resourcefulness and imagination is so inspiring and I wish people at home could see how much fun a bottle could be instead of spending so much money on extravagant toys and playgrounds. It was also such a great afternoon because of the spirit and joy of these kids. They don’t really receive a lot of attention especially from a bunch of white kids. Simply smiling and saying hello to them made them smile and giggle. Watching us dance with them and speak Setswana ignited even more giggles. I had one girl, Winney, who just became attached to me, literally. She somehow would climb herself up my body and hang on. At one point I was sitting on the ground, had one two year old on one knee, Whinney (probably 6) on the other and then a 6 month old baby somewhere in the middle. Meanwhile I had another kid sitting next to me stroking my arm and legs, maybe trying to wash away the white, not really sure. Playing with the kids brought as much joy to me as it brought to them. When I was leaving the little 2 year old was walking behind me all the way to the car…it broke my heart. There aren’t really words to describe how great it is to play with kids who have gone through a lot and yet are so loving and joyful.

After leaving the kids we headed to RiverWalk for dinner at Spurs and then went out to Bull and Bush, a favorite ex-pat bar in Gaborone. It was really fun at the bar because of the great mix of people who were there. There were a lot of international students but I also ran into some fellow Americans, Boston and Texas. I then participated in a dance circle made up of all Batswana. Dancing with them was one of those moments where you are like, “Yeah I’m in Africa, in a bar, dancing with a bunch of locals, this is my life!”

Within a couple of hours it was Sunday and time for the next adventure: climbing Kgale Hill. This was another high, literally. It takes about an hour and a half to climb ot the top of the hill and it’s not that easy of a road either. Very rocky, very steep, very long but oh my was it worth it. Some of the pictures are from the view from the top. It was spectacular. You can see all of Gaborone and the surrounding districts. It is definitely something I want to do again and hopefully at sunset which is supposed to be spectacular. I don’t know how much more spectacular it could have been. It rivals the views at Denali in Alaska!

The night ended great by coming home and going for a walk with Tshego around the neighborhood. It was fun because I haven’t really explored my own neighborhood yet-Block 9. She pointed out some of the well-known thieves of the neighborhood, that was scary and couples park. Apparently that’s where the couples go to meet because here in Bots people who are dating don’t tell their parents. Every relationship is kept secret until the proposal in which cases sometimes the uncle of the groom talks to the parents of the groom and then talks to the family members of the bride. Very different system!  Anyways, am running on very little sleep but wanted to write one more post when I had the time. Thanks for reading!!!

I was going to post this last night (Sunday) but the internet was being iffy. So  here is a brief overview of Monday. You don’t really need to know everything every day but today the highlight was my first Setswana Language class. Luckily my grandma here has been saying Setswana greetings to me everyday and my host brother Elt has been so helpful with pronouncing everything. However, to give you all a flare of what I am trying to learn I’ll write out a song of greetings that we learned today. Now remember, the g sounds like h with the back of the throat/Jewish sounding, there is a lot of tsh and tl which has been the hardest. Here is the song:

Dumela (said 8 times)

O tsogile jang (~how did you sleep)

Ke Tsogile sentle (~I slept well)

Wena O tsogile Jeng ( ~how did you sleep)

Leina la gago ke mang (what is your name)

O tswan kae (where do you come from)

Wena o tswa kae (where do you come from)

Ke tswa kwa America (I am from America)

O tswa kae USA (where in the US are you from)

Trying to learn it and speak with Elt a lot because not only do I want to learn the language but am going to have two oral exams and the only way to do well is to practice all the time. I am so lucky to have a homestay and be exposed to the language so much here at my house. Anyways, that was the highlight of my Monday along with coming home with Elt after volleyball and helping him clean up the kitchen. I am really lucky that Elt and I get along so well and that he works at UB! Alright folks, Go siame (it’s okay but also a way to say good bye) and boroko (good night)!!!

Me outside the cave paintings during our cultural excursion weekend

Giraffe cave paintings

Outside Livingston's tree

View from the mouth of the Kobokwe's Cave

Local children's group performing traditional dances and songs

an IMPALA

a wildebeest

warthogs: cutest, ugliest little creatures

Kudu

Hyena!!!

It’s been a while since my last post so thought it was time to write up new one about the last week and a half. A lot has happened ranging from seeing giraffes to being kicked out of two classes. Here are some of the highlights of the my second week of school and third week in the country! Thanks for all the comments and for your thoughts—I appreciate it more than you know!  Sidenote-Here are some pictures but I am putting most of them up on facebook. Friend me if you want to see them: Jules Brice. Sidenote #2: please excuse any typos or grammar problems as I am exhausted and my eyes are burning as it is so dry here!!!

Monday morning rolls up and I get up for my 8am Abnormal Psychology class which means getting up at 6:15 to get on the combis by 7 to get to campus by 7:45. I show up for abnormal psyc only for my professor to inform me that she just learned that I am unable to take the class because it was restricted to students in a certain bio-psyc program. This means that I had to find a replacement class that both fit in my schedule, was semi interesting and was open to all students. However, unlike UMD and other American universities where you can simply add/drop classes online , UB is a completely different story. It first entails finding a class that would work in your schedule which in itself is a huge pain in the butt. There is a course catalogue (over 200 pages) listing all the courses. Once you find one you like you then have to look in a completely other packet to see if the course code is listed where you will then find the time and perhaps the room number. (It’s common for the time table to be wrong or for professors to show up and choose a different meeting time for the class which is impossible to know about unless you are there as nothing is online). Now that you have your classes picked out, you have to somehow find the building that houses the department for that class and get a professor and secretary of the department to sign your add form. Problem with this is that professors run on Africa time meaning that the time listed on their office door saying when they are available is virtually useless and instead it’s hit or miss if they are there. Anyways, needless to say I was less than excited when I found out that I would have to go through this entire process. In the end I added three psyc classes, planned on going to all of them and then would drop the two that were least interesting. The day didn’t get any better in the afternoon when I waited around all day for a 2pm class where the professor didn’t even show up.

Tuesday morning rolls around and again I have an 8am: Women In Literature in Botswana. Well, got kicked out of this class too. Professor shows up and calls me out. “Ms. Brice, welcome to our country. Unfortunately I do not think this class if for you as many of the books are in Setswana that you will not understand.” Back to running around campus getting new classes approved. However later that day as I was venting to a friend learned that club volleyball was starting up and practices were held everyday at 5 at the outdoor courts. And I mean outdoor courts as in it looks like a basketball court so when you dive your knees are wrecked—that will teach me to move my feet.

Wednesday rolled around. I attended a million classes trying to figure out which ones I wanted-all of which were really interesting and exciting. Then two of my friends and I headed over to play volleyball.  This ended up being a lot of fun and the girls were so welcoming, trying to talk in English the whole time, learning our names, yelling when we did something well.  Just like in the US, volleyball players in Botswana love to cheer and high-five, yell and jump up and down. That night I became part of the club volleyball team. Only problem was trying to get home. We had to call a cab because by the time practice ended it was too dark to take a combi (basically 7pm). But the gate out of campus was locked so I had to climb over the gate that prevents cars from coming into campus. I’m sure it won’t be the last time I have to jump a gate/fence here is Bots.

Thursday was much of the same-lucky that I had all my classes and was able to narrow down my class schedule. Attended volleyball and had a really great time as I was able to set during our scrimmage. Friday I didn’t have class but went to UB anyways to work out and run some errands around campus. However, by the time I finished working out most of my friends were done with class so I figured my errands could wait and instead walked to Main Mall (basically a strip mall with street vendors) to buy cakes for two of my friends birthdays to celebrate at a program meeting we had that night.  I spent the night on campus Friday night because the following morning any international student who wanted could participate in a weekend cultural excursion trip. However, the fun started even before we left for the trip as we tried to squish as many people as possible into a small dorm room. This meant two people sharing a twin bed, three people on the floor and the other ones breaking into empty dorm rooms to steal the beds in there! Crazy!!!

Bright and early Saturday morning we headed out for our weekend adventure. And when I say bright and early I mean that all the international students showed up right at 8 while the chaperones and bus driver showed up at 8:45. After ensuring we had the fifty or so students on the bus (and I mean the chaperones asking, “Hey are there 50 or so people on this bus? Yes, good, let’s go”). The first stop was to the Bahurutshe Cultural Lodge where we had the best breakfast yet. It included wonderful scrambled eggs, a less processed version of corned beef hash, papatha which is like thick naan bread and a legwinya which is going to be the death of me. Legwinyas or fat cakes are basically just fried dough. They are sold all over and are basically pure goodness.  The lodge is basically the Batswana Williamsburg where, for lack of a better word, reenactments of traditional Batswana culture are performed.

After overstuffing myself we headed over to see some cave paintings. There were ancient paintings of antelopes, giraffes, trees and symbols. There was also a cave where it was said that the pregnant wife of the chief of the surrounding village hid during the wars to protect the unborn heir of the tribe.

We also traveled to Livingston’s tree which is this massive, wide, fig tree that the locals used to come to for shade though now it’s a protected national treasure. Livingston was a Scottish missionary who introduced Christianity and brought Western medicine to the country. We then traveled to Livingston’s living quarters , Kolobeng, and checked out the site of his home and clinic. As well as the graveyard where his daughter and two adventurers are buried and saw the site of the first church in Botswana built in the 1850s (please keep in mind that this is just what I got from the guide but he spoke barely louder than a whisper with a pretty thick accent,

After another great meal back at the lodge we headed out again to visit Kobokwe’s Cave. Kobokwe was a man who committed a crime and was sentenced to death. He managed to escape and made his way to the cave and legend says he never came out making people fear the cave. However, Livingston did the impossible and spent a night in the cave making many of the Bakwena people support Livingston and convert to Christianity.  The cave itself was cool but even better was the views from the top of the hill as the cave is built into the rockwall of the hill/baby mountain.

Later that night we learned about the chores and tasks of men and women from the village which including grinding flour with a rock and using cow dung to clean/protect the floors, It also included watching a young dance group perform traditional dances of Botswana.

Hoping for a relaxing sleep we headed to bed in either our huts or tents. However, even though I headed to bed early I ended up staying late helping my friend take out her weave that she had put in last week. Never did I ever think I would be in a hut in Botswana, freezing my butt off, listening to people drumming outside as I removed fake hair from my friend. But there is a first for everything!!! Going to bed early or late didn’t make a difference as I didn’t sleep at all anyways. They gave us huge thick blankets which at first I thought was an overkill then realized was not going to be enough. Botswana gets freezing cold at night especially since it’s the winter season and it is snowing in South Africa. I tried huddling in a ball all night but it was no use especially since these huts basically just keep in the cold and the door was half open the whole night (it was one of those doors that is cut in half so the top half was open all night allowing for a “nice” cross breeze).

Although the following morning was just as cold I was excited because we were going to the Mokolodi Game Reserve where I was finally going to get to see what Americans think is Africa!!! It was awesome!!!! From our jeep we got to see Kudu (spelling??? Basically large deer looking animals), impalas (antelope-type deer), wildebeest, warthogs (cutest ugliest things ever), giraffes, zebras, hippos, a hyena, ostriches. We were also treated to a Brush Brai which is basically a barbecue with a lot of meat! Once back at the home base we were able to walk around their reptile exhibit where I got to see a variety of dangerous snakes, owls and turtles. Overall it was a really great afternoon.

I’ve given a pretty detailed account of my life here in Gabs over the past week but have failed to mention how up and down life is here. One minute I’m over the moon and so happy to be here then the next I can be having a panic attack feeling trapped. It’s not easy studying abroad in Africa and there’s a reason it’s not a popular study abroad destination. It’s hard being the only American in class and have people speaking in a completely different language around you. In all honesty, it can at times be very lonely and you can only be pushed out of your comfort zone ever so far. It’s difficult when people come up to you and right away want to be your friend simply because you are an American and always wondering whether or not you can trust them. There is no doubt that people are very friendly in this country but there is always the shimmer of doubt that people can’t be trusted especially in a country where white=rich. 

Walking to the combis every morning I’ve done a lot of thinking about why I came to Botswana??  Gaborone is not the most picturesque city and there isn’t a whole lot to do besides going to the malls. I’m still trying to answer that question but everyday I gain a piece to the solution. Last weekend it was having that small baby hold my hand and look straight into my eyes fascinated with my white skin. Today it was on the game reserve ride when we reached the top of the hill and I saw the vast landscape and beauty of a country so different. It was the real life version of my destressing mechanism when I am home. When stressed I always use google earth to look at the world forcing me step back and realize how small my stress is in the grand scheme of things. Today I did just this as I stared out over Botswana. There are too many beautiful, huge things in the world to worry about such little problems.

First Weekend in Gaborone!

 Elt and I hanging out at the basketball courts at the UB campus

 View from the top of the Masa (mornings) hotel...Gabs is definitely a developing city

 Me with Richard, Chelsea and Anthony and the Coca Cola Cup

 Chain cowboys that run around Gaborone

The main street that parallels by house--cows (and goats) basically just chill on the side of the road

 

Well I’ve survived a week at my homestay and continue to experience a rollercoaster of emotions and highs and lows as my time continues.

I had two classes on Thursday: Women’s Literature in Botswana and Media in Botswana. But I’m not sure you can call them classes if only three people showed up and no professors??? No mathata (no worries).  The missing professor allowed me to come home early where I found my host sister asleep on the couch. I joined her napping on and off throughout the evening and watching some of Desperate Housewives that Tshego has on DVD. A new addition to the household, Ontathile, a cousin who is staying here for a month made dinner which was great. It was the first time I had game meat which is basically any animal that is killed at the cattle post that they serve up.  They take the meat and basically turn it into jerkey to be stored. When it’s time to eat they usually heat it up and serve it with rice and vegetables. Now I know Americans are overweight and experiencing a range of health problems but I am shocked that not more Batswana are as well. The amount of salt they put on everything is ridiculous; mounds and mounds of salt is pored on everything from vegetables to rice to eggs.

I didn’t have class on Friday so spent the morning finishing unpacking, taking a nice warm shower and making breakfast in a nice, big empty house. However, I soon got bored so headed over to UB (University of Botswana) to meet up with some friends. To get to UB I usually take to combis (pronounced like hair-comb with ee at the end); number 7 to get to the bus station then number 4 to get to UB. But, all the 7s were full so thought I would try a 4. The whole time I was on the combi I was nervous and sweating as I had no real idea where it was taking me except that I would end up at the station eventually and I did. But this is no bus station like the US. The station or bus rail is at RailPark Mall and there are about 6-8 different loading and unloading docks spaced throughout all entrances and areas of the mall. So this combi dropped me off at a place I had never even seen. Luckily I asked this nice woman who then asked two teenagers to show me to the other side of the mall where I could catch the Tlokweng 4 which would take me to UB.

Once at UB I met up with some friends and we walked down to Main Mall but not before of course getting lost and heading in the completely opposite direction. Main Mall is along the lines of an outdoor market where different vendors line up and sell overpriced, knock-off souvenirs==fun to walk around. We were starving so decided to eat at Chicken Licken which I had seen advertised on TV. Although the chicken really wasn’t that bad, it was expensive for not a lot of food. My friends and I then headed over to the National Museum but as soon as we got there a huge school group was entering so we decided to sit and wait outside. That wait ended up being about 2-3 hours as we just enjoyed sitting and chatting so much that we never felt the need to go inside. Once it got dark, my friends headed home while I walked back to UB where I was going to meet up with Elt to watch his basketball game.

It was a really cool experience to go to the basketball game as it was not something that  was sponsored by some organization for my entertainment but was just a local league which locals coming to watch meaning I was the only white person, kinda sticking out but hey, the whole point of coming to Botswana was to get out of my comfort zone. After some time, some of my American friends came and all four of us watched the basketball games . Unfortunately, Elt didn’t have his uniform so he was unable to play but it was still a lot of fun. AND I took a cab home for the first time. It’s a little bit shady how it works: you call a guy who comes in his car to pick you up and drop you off with a fee ranging from 20 to 50 pula (mine of course is 50).  This brings up the hardest part about being in Botswana: how to know when you are being taken advantage of. Many cab drivers and vendors realize that I don’t know much about pricing and therefore capitalize on my naivety. However, this guy I met named Shatiso said that cabs should never cost over 50 pula so that’s a start!

I really had no idea what I was going to do Saturday but ended up having a really awesome day. I hung out in the morning then around 11, Elt and I left to run around town. He thought his basketball game was at noon but it turned out not to be until 12 so since we had time to kill we ran errands and ran around g-city. I was able to meet a couple of his family members as we had to drop off and pick up stuff in Block 6, phase 2 and Mogoditshane which turned out to be really fun. Elt was my personal tour guide pointing out different places and meeting his cousins and brothers allowed me to see how other Batswana live. There was this new hotel that was just built so Elt and I decided to explore which was a lot of fun. Our philosophy was if the door was open we were allowed to go through it. This led us onto the roofs of two buildings, multiple hotel room floors, restaurants and shops. After the hotel we went over to Square Mart which is a large shopping area and African Mall. It was great to see some places that are not as popular or well-known. We then picked up my friend Anthony from UB (not after arguing about directions once on campus and betting dinner at Nandos) and headed to Gaborone Sun, a nicer hotel, to see if we could explore this one as well. We weren’t able to find the roof but we did see a lot of rooms and the pond and pool. After this wonderful “tour” Elt dropped Anthony and I off back at campus so we could meet up with some friends to walk over to RiverWalk mall to see Dark Knight finally.

At RiverWalk I was able to buy Batswana cheetos which are  called Knick Knacks and made from Maize, a really popular product here. Dark Knight worked this time except for a couple of sound glitches here and there. After the movie we headed out to Primi, an Italian restaurant. Eating out here is similar to the US except when it comes to tip. No one I have talked to has given me the same answer, some have said 1 pula, others said 5%, who knows!!!!!

Sunday was another eventful day. In the morning I lounged around and walked with Tshego to Bonanza which is basically a convenience store to buy some bread. Then I just hung out with Tshego as she made lunch for her grandmother. Around 12:30 I headed over to UB to watch the finals of the Coca-Cola Cup Champsionship between the Gaborone United and some black and white team. This was so much fun. The soccer is no where near the level back in the states, especially UMD, GO TERPS!!! I’ve never seen a slower moving soccer game. I mean they started late, of course, it’s Africa, and the players were speedy but there were so many fouls and injuries and injuries took forever to clear the field. Plus the medic bag was just a small cooler=crazy. But the atmosphere was great. People were decked out dressed as who knows what. Then there was entertainment in the beginning with young boys dancing and moving their bodies in ways I didn’t know was possible (check out the video if it loads). There were vu-vu-zelas and more Coke logos than I have ever seen before. At one point a group of chain-banging cowboys walked through. Apparently the cowboys are all over Gabs and an attraction I actually read about in my guidebook. If that wasn’t weird enough, I had to leave early in order to get back to my homestay before it got too dark and could not leave. They literally locked all the gates and told us we had to wait until the game was over. It took over 10 minutes for a security guard to find the key to let us out!!!

However, I’m glad it took this .long because it allowed me to get on a combi and sit next to the cutest little baby, probably around 6 months old. She became enthralled by me probably because I was the only white person she had ever seen. She held onto my finger the entire ride and kept trying to touch my face and put her hands in my mouth. It was the cutest thing and added to my great afternoon.

Once home I had dinner with Tshego and Ontathile, then drove with Elt to get some gas in the car and drove to my host mom’s office as she needed to get her passport that she left there because she is going to Zimbabwe this week for work. We then all watched the Botswana runner take 4^th place in the 400meter Olympic race which is unfortunate as Botswana has never won a medal. This probably explains why the Olympics aren’t that big of a deal here. A lot of people are watching them on Botswana TV but the only sports they show are track and athletics/field, swimming and boxing, weight lifting if you are lucky!

Anyways, I’ve rambled on enough for this post. But I survived my first weekend and hopefully will have professors show up this week. Wish me luck and hope all is well at home!!!

First Day of School!! Holla!!!!!

 The view from my hotel room that we stayed in the first couple of nights. Grand Palm!

 First day of school at UB!!!

Dusk in Gaborone--right outside River Walk Mall

Hello, hello everyone. I know that I just posted last night but today was too crazy and ridiculous to not write at least a short post about my time. I am using this blog as a sort of diary so please feel free to skim it.

Last night was nice as I cooked dinner with my host brother, Elt making the very traditional Batswana pap which is basically thick maize. This is served alongside of some meat in a stew or sauce and some greens on the side. I had to get up early for a 7am class so tried to go to bed early as we were going to leave at 6:30.

Well, at 6 my host mom comes knocking on my door asking if I was ready. Ready??? I wasn’t even up yet. So I scrambled around and we were out the house by 6:15ish which worked out perfectly as I got lost walking to my first class. I knew where the building was but saw some ladies cutting through a construction area and thought it was a short cut. Turns out it wasn’t and had to awkwardly walk myself past many construction workers as I edged out of the zone. I then made it to my class only to discover that I was the only person there, no teacher, no other students, nada! Since there was another class I was interested in taking at that time I raced to another building where I made it just in time for abnormal psyc. It turns out it is going to be a very small class, only around 7 people and is taught by an American from Washington, DC. Small world!!!

After the 15 minute abnormal psyc class was over, I had until 4 pm for my next class so hung out on campus. Actually helped some Batswana students with registration, haha, and then ended up walking with a friend to the mall. Once getting back I thought I should try to figure out why the morning class was cancelled and spent over half an hour looking for the Physical Ed department in Block 102. Block 102 doesn’t exist!!! After finally finding the department, it was a mad house!!! Both secretaries had no idea where and what classes were being held and whether international students could take them, etc!!! I had to ask the other students where the classes were held and I was told that the reason there was no class in the morning was because it took place at the UB stadium!!

Things didn’t get better after lunch when I went on a wild goose chase to find the gym. Turns out it is located in the National Stadium that is closed for renovations which doesn’t really make any sense, but I found it!! I also went to the Student Rec Services to figure out when volleyball starts and was told that I just show up and to find the schedule I’d have to go somewhere else! Basically the school sends you from one building to the next.

Finally 4 oclock came around when I went to my last class of the day: Nutrition and Sports Performance. This class rocked!!!  The class was a huge lecture with about 200 students and the professor was from South Africa. She is a no-nonsense, straight talking professor and after class even gave me her phone number, invited me over for dinner and gave me advice on where to travel in South Africa. I don’t even care about the class but want to hang out with her.

Things got better from here as after class my registration was complete and a copy of my schedule was printed meaning I could use this to get my student ID which I could then use to go to the library, set up my internet and get my life as a UB student started=goal for tomorrow!

After classes were finally over a lot of kids were heading back over to the mall for Dark Knight so I decided to go ahead and go back to where I had been 10 hours earlier. Even this was crazy as we are getting into the movie and within a half hour, the power to the mall/cinema goes out!! Needless to say we didn’t finish watching it.

After sharing my crazy day with some other CIEE students I learned that I actually lucked out. Most people showed up for class, sat with a couple other students and the professor never showed up. One person went into a classroom that was scheduled for both Chem and Environmental Science. Another person was trying to get her internet fixed and had to bounce between buildings even being told to go to a room that ended up being a bathroom. But this is how Botswana is. Everything will get done but there are no strict deadlines and there is no real order for them—they happen when they happen. Life is too short to move at such a fast pace and not spend the time stopping and talking. And boy do Batswana love to talk. I was just walking to class and out of nowhere some guy comes up and strikes up a conversation. I’m sitting in lecture in a row basically by myself when someone comes and sits directly next to me and introduces himself. People are friendly and appreciate their time with others-a lesson that I think is important for all of us!