a summer in botswana

No Good Words

2008-07-27T16:17:00.005+02:00

And now I'm here, on the day before I leave Botswana. It is almost completely unfathomable to me that I've been here 9 full weeks now, and that it's time to journey away. Spent the last week not doing our usual schedule because of the national holiday. The change in schedule was okay for the first couple days, but as Wednesday came we all really wanted to be with our kids and it just wasn't a very satisfying end to our time here.

Had a good week otherwise though, we explored the city a little more and did some last minute souvenir shopping, which was nice to get done. Went to the Botswana National Museum, which was really informative and set up well and just really neat to be able to see it. That same day we walked around the government areas, where Parliament is held and that whole area, which is a really pretty area of downtown Gaborone. (Lots of fountains!) We also visited the Gaborone Dam for a good sunset relaxation evening. It was good to have some group time up there, and a nice reflection time. Really beautiful to see the sunset from a different view. Friday , Meeka threw a birthday party for little Pepeiro at our flat, and so her and Danielle and I brought Pepeiro, Tsaone and Charity back for a day of birthday fun. First though, Danielle and I went with Pepeiro to get her hair done for her 3rd birthday (very special!) and then a stop off at the grocery store, which got us many looks walking around a busy store with three little African children in the cart. It was really good though. Spent a nice dinner out with Marinda, Leslie, Danielle and Jack last night, and then returned home to begin packing. I think I've really been really avoiding what kinds of feelings I've actually had for the past couple of weeks, and it's been easy to avoid with my team members because I think we're all kind of doing the same thing. It really hit me for real though last night, when my mom was talking to me and she was asking how I was feeling about leaving, and how I was going to cope when I got home, and all of the sudden I couldn't hold it all together anymore. Broke down a couple times to Danielle and Leslie and Marinda, but I realized that it felt better to talk about it, and also to realize that it was almost a good feeling to be able to have loved this place and these people so much that it hurts to leave. Which... is a weird thing, I know, but it's kind of the nature of my mind lately.

Got up early for church this morning, which in some ways I was dreading because I knew that it would be such a final goodbye for so many people in the community of Old Naledi. From the minute we arrived with all of our kids though, it was a perfect morning. Being in that church, dancing and singing along with the amazing worship made me feel so full and also light at the same time. It's a hard feeling to describe to be in this room with these people who have so much hope and are in some dire circumstances, but are pouring out their hearts to each other and to Him. Such a freeing, joyful time. Definitely had a few teary moments and near crying times during the service. A missionary family from the U.S. gave the message and then did a prayer over our team that was so perfect. And then came after church and the inevitable goodbyes. It was hard enough to say good bye to Champ and the other guys that lead the Tlamelo Project, because they were so kind in our entire time here and so grateful for us, no matter what we did. The guys saw us all crying and were so so sweet, and gave us so many kind words. Champ said to all of us as he was saying thank yous and goodbyes "You are leaving tomorrow? This time has flown that you have been here. Your time here has not been in vain." I really want to remember those words and that heart.

Marinda gave me her backpack from the summer to give to Bareng (she uses an old pasta bag for her books usually so this was good for her!) and I filled it with some clothes and other stuff that I didn't need to take back home. I also bought her a little Bible since she is very involved in the church and the youth devotions, and wrote her a letter with my address at the bottom and stuck it in the Bible. I had no good words to say to her, other than goodbye and that it hurt so badly to have to leave. We kept hugging and she held tight to my arm and side and hand the whole time before I had to leave, and I didn't want to let go. I, of course, was a pretty big mess throughout the whole goodbye, and as I turned away from her to leave, Leslie was watching Bareng turn away and told me that she was wiping tears from her face at the same time I was as we were walking away from each other. It just didn't seem so fair to me. I felt so amazing to have gotten to know her and for her to have gotten to know me, and want to be close to me, and yet I felt like I was deserting her and the other older girls. I hope they understand. She's 12, I know she probably does understand, but when I asked her why she was so sad, she told me "It is because you are leaving. I don't want you to leave."
As hard as today was, and as much as it hurt, it was a perfect ending to an incredible time. Danielle and I were talking and I'm not sure we would have proper closure with these relationships and the village if we weren't able to be there and be emotional visibly today.

I know it sounds cheesy, but my heart really did hurt. It hurt walking through the village for the last time, riding the combi out of there and all the way back to UB. Like I said earlier though, even though my words and my thoughts are completely jumbled right now and not quite processable yet, I have a joy inside that is coming from Him and I know it stems from the blessing of being here and being in these relationships and this place that has been nothing but perfect since we arrived. Leslie told me about half way through this summer that she had an older friend visit Africa who told her before she left that being here really does get in your heart, and a part of you stays here. I know that sounds pretty romantic and idealistic but the more I have been here, the more I feel it is true. It's something. It's everything that I've explained over the summer that has made me love it here beyond what I thought possible. It's not ever one moment in particular, but every experience added up together. I was trying to explain to myself today why I was so incredibly sad yet felt full, and it's only just being here that makes sense to me why I feel this way.

I know that the majority of this post makes no sense whatsoever, and I apologize. Maybe later I will have better words and sentences to describe, but today when it all is still fresh, this is all I can get out. I am excited for this next week in Cape Town, and excited to be home in a little over a week, but there is a little bit of a cloud hanging over both of those. It will be so strange to be in Cape Town, and also to be at home, and the adjustment to both will be a new experience. This summer has been perfect. I cannot believe I have been away for 9 weeks already... and that in those 9 weeks I've fallen so fast for a place and a people. As I wrote at the beginning of this trip, every day really was better than the last, and that's all I could have ever asked for.

Happy Birthdays, Sad Fridays

2008-07-19T15:41:00.012+02:00

After my longing for home on the 4th of July, my birthday kind of loomed in a little fear of how I would handle it so far from home again. However. I found yesterday that I was no where near wanting home as much as before, and my roommates and students and teachers made the day pretty-near perfect. It all started Wednesday evening when Meeka presented me with T-Bone steak and loaded mashed potatoes... wonderful. (I attempted to help with the potato peeling... but kind of failed pretty miserably so she told me to get out of the kitchen.)And she also gave me a scarf and helped me learn how to look normal in it... which was needed and great! Thursday morning (THE BIG DAY!) I woke up to Leslie having a large breakfast already freshly made for me, cheesy scrambled eggs, toast and wonderful hash brown potatoes. So good!! And so, so NICE!
We got to school where my students and teachers were SO incredibly nice and definitely made me feel special on my big day. One of the teachers bought me some chips, which was SO nice, and just so thoughtful. After school, Marinda and Leslie and I headed off to get some pictures printed for our kids, and then headed home to prepare for the big birthday evening. As Lessie worked on my cake (I was going to help...but I think all the roomies decided that with the cooking/baking skills I have displayed this summer so far it was probably best for me to stay far away) I showered and actually got to look like a normal 21-year old for once this entire summer! After a quick round of hearts, we headed out to dinner at Primi's, a way cool trendy (by trendy I mean it has really cool lights and bottles of yellow, red, blue and green dyed water all around that makes it feel way hip) Italian restaurant that was perfect for a birthday. We had to wait for a while to get seated, but I did some birthday dances and we all picked out our food so we'd be completely ready to go once we sat down! The whole group had wonderful food and it really was one of those wonderful evenings, warm and fuzzies all around. I was SO smiley and happy to have everyone around me, and it was just wonderful. I had a salmon pasta and it was INCREDIBLE, but I ate way too much... but it's my birthday, right?! : ) After dinner we came back home for cake and a possible movie, but we all were so full and worn out that bed won out over the movie. Before bed though I got to talk to a lot of family which was awesome and made the birthday that much better. I have INCREDIBLE caring and generous teammates and a wonderful family back home and it made my 21st birthday just perfect!!!

And then came yesterday. I think I knew it was coming, but it hit so hard, and I am so not ready to say goodbye to people I feel like I really just met. Even though we don't leave Botswana until July 28th, the schools are all out of session next week because Monday and Tuesday are national holidays, and then they take the rest of the week off as a mid-year break. We've been taking tons of pictures all week and trying to help as much as possible by typing test after test to prepare them all for their exams after the break. But it's just not enough. And I feel like so many of my kids just came out of their shells and started to have relationships with me. It's just so weird to say goodbye to people and places that you're really not sure you'll see again. Botswana, yes. I will be back. But these kids? I have no clue. The boys from my class were so incredibly wonderful all week, they hung close by during all of our breaks and really talked a lot to me, and a few gave pictures and drawings for my birthday and also because I was going away. One of the boys, Cornelius, gave me pictures of his mother yesterday for me to remember him by, because that's what he had to give. It was so much to give, really. And when I was getting ready to walk out of there, I just felt that weird combination of having to leave but being so on the verge of an emotional breakdown because it's just so strange.

The boys all gave me hugs and sang songs as I walked away, and the girls sent their well wishes, and I got addresses for all of them. So many of the kids said "I wish you to go well," or "I hope you will do good," and in their perfect broken English it was wonderful to hear and really caused me to melt. I want so badly, and I plan on it (HOLD ME TO THIS!!), to write them all letters at least once a month, and keep up with their lives. I spent a lot of my time here grading and revising their English compositions, and a lot of them were letters, so I figure this would be just furthering that! Except I won't revise any letters they write to me. : )

I just do really though, feel so blessed to have gotten to know these kids, and helped out wherever I was needed, even if I didn't end up doing anything huge, just the relationships and the conversations were hopefully enough to leave some kind of memory of me for them. I gave the class some pictures I'd taken of them and also some of them individually, and I plan on sending more back once I get home and can print off some more. I also gave each of them a packet of a ruler, pencil, pen, eraser and pencil sharpener, since those are the items they all seem to need EVERY day!! Definitely a reflective afternoon and ride back to UB after school got out.

So so strange. After almost eight full weeks of being here, it's really coming to a close, and this place more than any other one besides my REAL home has become an almost true home for me. And it's not about my flat here, or my bedroom or anything else really specifically. It's those kids, and the classroom. And the way they stayed pretty quiet at the beginning (except Tiny) and then came out and just had these incredible things to say and hilarious moments to share. The way that I really felt like we belonged there at the school, and the way that leaving today felt not so normal or okay. I don't know. A few weeks ago I was way more ready than right now to be back at home. And now I just am not sure that's what I want yet! I feel so comforted that I've gotten to this point here, because I think it is just SUCH a blessing and answer to so many prayers and questions, and I think I should just take that as it is. These people have established these relationships and this love for me, and to be here with that is incredible. To not want to leave a place that is half the world away from my home is pretty big for me I think. The love that every single person here has for each other and their country, and the pride they take in everything they do and all of the people they love is what is sticking with me most at this point. I want so badly to take that home with me. These people as a whole are like no others I have ever met.

I have ONE more week in this country, and I plan on opening my eyes wider and wider to take in every single thing as much as possible so there will be no way that I may forget anything. Ah... it's way easier to leave home, knowing that I will be back to see my family and that place again, than to leave here, not knowing when I will again see any of my kids or teachers or this country.

The Falls and Finally Finding HIPPOS

2008-07-15T18:51:00.009+02:00

Sunsets, a wonder of the world, HIPPOS, elephants, safaris, bus rides... Zambia was wonderful. Again, it's probably best to do this day-by-day, and again, just as after the Delta, you may need a few days to read this... I'm sorry that I write way too much, I'm just so excited about all that we saw!!

Tuesday- Leslie, Marinda and I got up at 7am to go wait in line to buy tickets for our bus that was to leave at 8:30p that evening. After a HUGE fiasco involving line-cutters and people buying multiple tickets, we got literally three of the last five tickets on the entire bus. We were definitely EXTREMELY grateful for that and it is example ONE of this trip and how we were provided for so well. Spent the day preparing, packing...arrived back at the bus station around 4:30p to get our luggage on the bus. Apparently taking big huge comforters to Zambia to sell is QUITE the business, and there were about 50 of them to fit on this bus. Luckily our luggage got on, and we sat around until 9p when the bus finally left for Livingstone.

Wednesday- After a long night on the bus, we arrived at the border around 7a, where we spent three hours so all of the comforters could be approved by the border patrol... if I don't see another comforter for a while, I'll be okay. Arrived in Livingstone around 11a finally, and prayed again really hard that we would be able to get a place to stay for the evening, since we had to arrive a day early because of the bus scheduling. We got to Jollyboys and they had VERY few beds left, but were able to get us three beds for that evening. We were all so relieved... (We are SUCH good lil' backpackers!) God was so good again in providing for us there. Jollyboys was so cool and had such a world-traveler feel. They had a really awesome swimming pool, dorms, campsites, individual rooms, a restaurant/bar area and a super cool "chill area." We spent the afternoon and evening getting settled, journaling and stretching out after the long bus ride!

Thursday- Slept in pretty late, getting caught up on some missed rest! (Well, LES and I slept, Ms. Johnson actually enjoys those early mornings!!) We intended to spend a good amount of the day by the pool because the weather up in Livingstone was definitely warmer than we are used to here in Gabs, so we were definitely excited to relax and get some much-needed sun. Went to town though to get some breakfast and some kwacha (1 US Dollar = 3500 kwacha. So... we spent the weekend spending tens of thousands of kwacha, kiiinda felt like a high roller) from the ATM, and ended up spending about three hours at the open air market that sold so many awesome crafts and gifts, and wheeled and dealed with the locals. We also tried to figure out our bus ride home since we couldn't find any office or information about it where we had been dropped off (welcome to the transportation system...) and heard from a few people on the street that it left each day at FOUR IN THE MORNING... which seemed like our only option but not such an exciting one. Anyway, the girls and I got back to Jollyboys, showered and got ready for our much-anticipated Sunset Cruise down the mighty Zambezi river! We were so excited for the relaxing evening, a good dinner and a boat ride. Got dropped off at the river, and loaded the boat, where we met a husband and wife from San Francisco who are traveling before they start graduate school and a job- one in Africa and one in Switzerland. Also met a whole group of middle-aged South Africans, who are all traveling around Southern Africa together on motorcycles. Such a friendly group and we had some awesome conversations with both. The cruise was awesome, we saw our first HIPPOS, so I was definitely happy! Dinner was great, we got GRILLED chicken- kind of like summertime at home, so it was wonderful. The sunset was absolutely gorgeous... perfect.It was definitely one of those perfect evenings that topped off a perfect day... warm and fuzzy feelings all around. Ended up with some good journaling and reflecting and quiet time...WONDERFUL day.

Friday- Woke up, and Marinda and Leslie began the mental preparation for the event of the day...BUNGEEEEEEEING. Now... I think it's pretty fair to say that I was preparing myself mentally for this too, because although there was close to no way you could get me off of that ledge over the bridge, I was preparing to be the world's best cheerleader/spectator. We caught the shuttle to Vic Falls around 10a, and arrived for the girls' date with the bridge around 11a. They both had to go up to a check-in point, and I headed down the bridge that separates Zambia and Zimbabwe where the jumping-off takes place to get an idea of what my two extremely courageous friends were about to do to themselves. I stood there for quite a while until they arrived, and by the time they came down to prepare, I was the expert on how this jump worked, how they got back up afterwards... everything. So, like I said, I was still hoping to be some good support although I wasn't going to make it over the edge this time around. They both did WONDERFULLY, and it was awesome to watch and see their faces and reactions during and afterwards. For SURE check out their blogs for VIDEOS and more pictures, my photography skills were definitely tested during these jumps!! As excited and elated as they were, I never really regretted my decision NOT to jump, and was more than satisfied to watch. : )
After their jumps, we headed to the National Park that surrounds Victoria Falls. I don't think I had really done enough research or known enough about the falls... but it was absolutely perfectly incredible when we got in there. The first glimpse we got was from a ways away, but as soon as we got our rented ponchos and got right in front of those falls... I literally was speechless with how powerful and mighty and incredible this sight was. I really truly know now why it is one of the wonders of the world... so awesome, and pictures definitely cannot justify the sight. The sound was deafening, we were getting soaked the entire time because of the super intense spray from the falls, and none of us could wipe the smiles or wonderment off of our faces. Everything around the falls was extremely green which we hadn't seen for a while, and lush and wonderful... so beautiful. We hiked around the park for a while, found the spot where the falls begin, which was really cool to see kind of the calm before the huge huge drop. We also found the Boiling Pot, which was QUITE the hike from the top of the falls to the very bottom (involving some pretty intense rock climbing and creek crossing, so with all my wilderness skills, I was quite the expert... not), and the view from down there was incredible. You are sitting on these rocks, where the falls finally meet their river... so cool. All of the sights and sounds and smells and wonders of the day were definitely perfect, majestic, God moments... so incredible. Got back to Jollyboys and after the hike of the day we had a good meal in town, and then crashed pretty early. We met a lady this evening who was from Zimbabwe and was on her way back home to Harare, and it was a really cool experience to talk to her and get her point of view on the stuff going on there, especially since her family is back there and she is returning... definitely interesting.

Saturday- Awoke very early to catch our ride across the border back into Bots for the day to take a day safari at Chobe National Park, for which we were definitely pumped. After meeting the other people in our group (definitely one of the highlights of this trip was the HUGE awesome assortment of people that were staying at Jollyboys with us, so many people our age or just a few years older who are doing service work and traveling or just backpacking across Africa... so many awesome conversations and new things from these people!) we had a great breakfast at a lodge, and then loaded up and headed out to the park. We spent the morning in a safari vehicle driving around Chobe. We didn't see anything huge on this part, but some really cool impalas and kudu- which look like a cross between a zebra and a horse... pretty cool! It was funny, this guy in our group mentioned something which was so true, he was talking about how you grow up watching these super cool safaris on TV... and here we were, you know, just safari-ing through the bush in Africa, normal, right? ; )
In the afternoon, we boarded a boat for an afternoon river game cruise to see more animals... and this was where the elephants and hippo experiences got intense. Another guy on our trip from Malaysia faced his chair on the boat to look outward and not towards the table and said "Big screen TV, National Geographic SAFARI SPECIAL!" It was great! Anyway, because we were in a pontoon boat we were able to get super close to elephants and hippos and crocodiles and water buffalo, and it was incredible. The elephants especially were so huge and majestic and wonderful, definitely images and pictures I won't forget for quite some time! And of course there was an abundance of hippos which I couldn't have been happier about, ESPECIALLY since this time I felt in no danger sitting in this big boat, and we were able to get SO close to them... super cool. On the way home I was able to talk to a few girls from Ireland and it was so cool to compare our lives and see how we are all kind of living the same lives even though we are in two way different countries. AND I found out that out of the four girls in their group, two of them had turned 21 last week, and the other two were turning 21 this week, and SO AM I, so that was definitely a way cool similarity!! Headed to bed pretty early after meeting some more awesome 21-year olds from South Africa doing a "quick backpacking trip" around Southern Africa on their 3-week "Uni-break"... they were staying in our dorms with us and were so cool to talk to and listen to.

Sunday- Arrived at the bus stop around 3:45a (I wasn't the happiest camper in the world), waited until 4:30a when the bus showed up, I went up and asked if we could get on, and the driver told us it was full. So. We were told to go to this other bus, that could get us to the border, where we could hitchhike or catch a taxi to the nearest city in Botswana where we could get on one bus to take us to Francistown, and then another bus from there to Gabs... quite a more complicated journey than the one-way bus, but we were ready to trek it if it meant we could still get back to Gabs by evening. We headed to this other bus, which sat in the parking lot until around 5:30a when it left for the border. While we were sitting there waiting, I was seated next to a man from Zambia, who was probably in his mid-40s. We got to talking about his life, his family and his children, and the differences between Zambia and Botswana. It was a really cool conversation, and then we started talking more about my life and my family, and we started to talk about my faith and his, and it was a way cool conversation. He kept calling me his daughter, and was so kind and thoughtful in our conversations. At one point he asked why we were on this bus, why didn't we just get on the bus that goes straight to Gabs? I laughed and told him that we had tried but it was full, so we were just going to go with our Plan B. He told me that he would stay with us until we got to the bus station in Kasane so we wouldn't have to find a taxi or a ride alone, which in itself was a very nice offer. (He was headed to a town in Botswana that was past Gabs, where he was meeting his daughter who does mission work.) He also kind of off-handedly mentioned that he knew the driver of the Zambia-Gaborone bus, and I didn't think too much of it at the time... but God was working so much in our conversation and our meeting already. Once we arrived at the border, he stayed with us, helped us find a trustworthy guy to exchange our kwacha back to pula (1 pula = 515 kwacha), and we got in line for the immigration office. He left us at this point, and kind of indicated that he'd be back, but we didn't think much of it. Us girls were starting to get kind of stir-crazy waiting in this line forever and thinking about all the unknowns of the transportation ahead of us for the day, when a man walked up to us and asked if we were going to Gaborone. We replied that we were trying to, and he told us that he was one of the drivers for the one-way bus, and told us that our friend had talked to him and that they were going to squeeze us in the bus since we needed to get back, would that be okay? We all practically yelled in excitement, and he told me to get our luggage together and bring it over to the bus so he could pack it in. We no longer cared about the forever long line, and it was definitely another one of those perfect God moments of the week, one that to me is just undeniably Him providing completely for us. I saw my friend again later on the Botswana side of the border, and thanked him incredibly for his kindness and helpfulness in getting us on that bus. He said it was no problem, and I didn't see him again. Guardian angel for SURE. We got on the bus (YAY!!), where we weren't exactly expecting the best seats, since we were told it was full, but Les sat up at the front on the floor and Marinda and I ended up sitting on the floor for 8 hours by the bus toilet (kind of unpleasant, but we were so grateful to be on that bus it really wasn't that big of a deal) until we let people off at Francistown where we were lucky enough to get seats for the remaining 5 hours of the trip. Finally arrived back in Gabs, where I was SO excited to be 'home'- weird but it really truly does feel like home, I kind of can't imagine not coming back here again after we leave in a few short weeks. Took a hot shower and ate a good meal and crashed into bed.

And... there you have it! Another novel... and again, there are more pictures at my Picasa site. It was an incredible trip all around, the highlights being seeing and fully experiencing the glory and AWESOMENESS of Victoria Falls, the way the we were so wonderfully provided for, and the incredible people we met and conversations and lives shared. And of course being able to spend a week with Marinda and Les!!! The only downfall was the LITERALLY forty-two bites I somehow got on ONE leg... why was I the only one who got so many?! Anyway though, I definitely missed our other half, but they had a wonderful time on the Zim side, check out their blogs for all of that extra info!! Three short weeks from TODAY and I will be arriving in Kansas City... cannot believe it and having so many mixed feelings, but I'll save all of that for another blog. Miss everyone, and thank you so much for your support and prayers, I know that I definitely felt so many of those this last week, just as I have the whole time. LOVE YOU ALL!!!

Hakuna Matata

2008-07-07T19:38:00.005+02:00

Been a full week since I've written here, and leaving tomorrow for another week of adventures, so thought I should check in!

All last week we were at Tlamelo and in the classroom. Another good week with the kids, I love love love talking with the older kids (I say kids, but most of them are around my age, even some older!) and joking with them and getting to know all of them better. The little ones are still amazing too, and holding and loving them is going well as always. On Thursday I was talking to my good friend Bareng (I've written about her before, she's 12 and comes to Tlamelo for lunch every day) and her friend Laralho, and Danielle and I decided it'd be fun for them to come visit us at UB for dinner and a movie on Saturday evening. They wanted to come see UB, and we wanted to be able to see these girls outside of just Tlamelo every day, so it was a great plan. I loved being able to have something new to do, and it was definitely a good change of pace to have those plans with the girls. Danielle and I were talking last week about how it can be kind of easy to fall into a routine here, seeing the same kids every day, and almost taking it for granted, and we just talked about how that is NOT how we want our last few weeks here to be, and this was just the perfect plan for fixing that.

Friday was by far my most homesick day here so far. I haven't dealt with homesickness at all this trip so far, which has just been a huge blessing and one of those things that can only be explained by being completely provided for by Him. Friday hit though, and all I wanted to do was be home, going to the parade, watching my dad and Sam and Joelo destroy things in the back yard, and go to my grandparents for a perfect night. The girls were wonderful with me though here, and we went out to dinner at the most American restaurant we could find, and it turned out fine. And Charlie shot off some fireworks for me via the phone, so that was a good taste of the day at least! When the 5th hit Saturday morning, I was extremely glad to have made it through my very very favorite day of the entire day that wasn't spent in the right country.

Saturday Leslie and Meeka and I headed out to Oodi to pick up the tapestries we had ordered earlier this summer from the Oodi Weavers- the community of women who weave these incredible works, it's all free trade stuff, it's awesome stuff! We all were very pleased with the final result, mine is a really gorgeous sky with lots of colors, and then some elephants on the savannah...I haven't seen any elephants here yet, but hopefully this will bring me good luck for spotting some soon!

Saturday afternoon we had been invited to the American Embassy Independence Day celebration, and we figured we had to attend. It was held at this beautiful outdoor courtyard, and there were a ton more people there than we had thought would be. A lot of families and children, which really got me thinking about how these families are living and making Botswana their home, maybe I could do it too? : ) There was a lot of red, white and blue at this party, and hot dogs and hamburgers...it was wonderful. I had Les take about a billion pictures of me with the red, white and blue balloons because I missed the traditional 4th pictures, so at least I'll have some record that I was in fact alive for July 4th, 2008.

We ran to the nearest combi stop after the party and I headed right back to UB to pick up Danielle to run out the door again to pick up our girls. They were waiting at the combi stop in Old Naledi for us when we arrived, so we got them and brought them back to our flat. The evening was wonderful, so so great, and the experience was so great. I loved being able to serve these girls in my home, and make them feel special and worthy for an evening...it was amazing. We served them our speciality (frozen fish cooked, rice, and veggies!), and they watched Lion King during dinner. They loved the movie I think, and especially loved the Hakuna Matata song, because they understood, it was really great. Afterwards I showed them pictures of my family and friends on my computer, and then all of the sudden these girls started to put on a show for D and I. They have incredible little voices that are so sweet and perfect and they had no shame singing to us in my small little room, it was so cool. Bareng started singing all by herself a song that had some incredible words to it, talking about Africa's healing time is now and realizing that God is in control of their future...it was so sweet. I haven't figured out how to post videos on here yet, but as soon as I do, those will be on here. We topped the night off with a taxi ride back to Old Naledi where we dropped the girls off, when the taxi driver proceeded to ask us "Where did you get them?" I don't think he understood why they were with us and we were just dropping them off, but the comment was pretty funny.

Sunday morning was church at Old Naledi again, and then to Riverwalk for lunch and a little shopping. Lazy Sunday afternoon again, which was great, and then back to school today. Later this afternoon we were all just relaxing in our rooms, and Danielle comes in to tell me that Meeka just saw Bareng and her friend outside of our flat through the windows. We didn't really understand, and then all of the sudden there was a knock at the door and the girls were at our front door! We had NO clue they were coming, and I felt horrible because we didn't really have anything to give them tonite...but turns out they walked the ENTIRE way from Old Naledi to UB (probably about an hour and a half walk) and somehow navigated through the UB campus to find our flat... it was such a surprise to us. We gave them some water and I let them listen to some music on my computer, but it was about 2 hours before the sun would go down, and D and I decided the best bet would be to let them know we didn't want them out after dark. They understood, and they were good sports about it all, but I think tomorrow we're going to have to tell them that we WILL have them over again sometime for dinner, but we'll have to figure out a set time for all of that because I don't want them to walk all that way again.

Tomorrow Leslie, Marinda and I are headed off to Zambia, which we are extrrrrremely excited about. We have to go early tomorrow to buy our bus tickets, and then we'll spend most of the day packing and getting our stuff ready. It's an overnight bus that leaves tomorrow around 8p, and we're not exactly sure when we'll arrive in Livingstone, but probably sometime Tuesday afternoon. We're staying at this really awesome backpackers, Jollyboys, and it's fully booked right now so there should be a ton of cool people to meet and hang out with. While we're there, we're doing a day safari in Chobe National Park, which is famous for it's elephants and other big game, so as always I am VERY excited for that. AND, we're in a safari truck this time, no canoe on the water, so hippos, HERE I COME! We're also of course seeing Victoria Falls too, and we have two full days to sightsee around that. Leslie and maybe Marinda are planning on bungee jumping over the falls, and I will be the best cheerleader ever for that...but not a participant I don't think. I would LOVE to be able to do it, but I'm pretty sure I could not get off of that platform without a few anxiety attacks. So, I will have MUCH to update on when we return next Monday at some point...stay tuned! Keep us in your prayers and thoughts...I miss everyone so much!!

Evading Hippos

2008-06-30T17:08:00.014+02:00

Just returned from an amazing "vacation" traveling weekend in Maun, Botswana at the Okavango Delta and the surrounding area...I think it may be easiest to do a day-by-day breakdown of this one! It's probably going to be pretty lengthy...but you can read one day at a time and not all at once if it's too much!

Wednesday: During the day, we ran errands to prepare for our trip, including an adventure-filled trek to find where we could get our visas renewed since they only gave us 30 days coming in. Finally half of us (we got separated because of taxi issues) ended up at the right place, a literal hole in the wall, where you pay somebody outside 2 pula to write a letter on a piece of notebook paper for you explaining why you hope the Botswana visa people will renew your visa. VERY strange. Got my letter, went inside, handed it to the lady, who proceeded to look at me and half-laugh and then ask me why I was there because I had 90 days on my visa. I thought that I got that originally, but the writing was hard to read on my passport and every single other person in our group got 30 days so I just assumed...but the adventure was well worth it all. After this fiasco, Danielle and I set off for one of the malls to pick up a few last minute things, eat some lunch, and then headed back home to pack and shower. Around 8pm we headed to the train station, where we had pre-booked our sleeper cabin train tickets. As most things here, the booking of the trains was very relaxed, and the 6 of us (Jack didn't come to the Delta with us) were under "Jayne Long & 5 others." So...that was interesting, but worked out fine. Les, Marinda, Danielle and I all were supposed to be in the same 4-person sleeper, but very unfortunately there turned out to be a wall in between, so D and I shared one side and the two other girls had the other side. That was kind of a bummer, but turned out we were pretty lame and ended up "sleeping" sooner than we thought. The extra $10 for this sleeper train thing was totally worth it though- I'm sure you could see Matt's blog for explanation of the "club car" tickets. Didn't sleep extremely well because of all the jerkiness and differing speeds throughout the night ride, but it was still really nice to lay down and stretch out.

Thursday: Arrived in Francistown around 7am, earlier than Danielle and I thought, as we were probably the last ones off of the train...oops. We walked through the city to the bus station, and waited only a bit for the bus to Maun, then boarded. This bus was alright for the first 5 hours, but the last 2 weren't so great...heat and cramped spaces, not awesome, but still, it was fine. We arrived in Maun around 3:30pm and caught taxis to Audi Camp. We arrived and were just so in love immediately with this place. We had three two-person tents with "bedding," which I thought may just be blankets, but it turned out to be cots and blankets, which was DEFINITELY great news. The tents were so great, and it was nice to be able to camp. This was the first time of the trip when Leslie and D and I realized ... "Hey guys, we're...camping...IN AFRICA." : ) We had many more of these moments throughout the weekend. (It reminded me of last summer when Jill and I would be doing anything in Europe and stop and look at each other and say..."Hey, just wanted to let you know, we're sitting on our hotel balcony...in Paris." Love those moments!) The bathroom/shower facilities were great, and I'm not supposed to talk about them too much because it will take a little bit of credibility out of our "camping in the wilderness" credentials, but HEY we still slept outside. This campsite also had a restaurant, bar, pool...it was amazing. It was definitely a plus when we realized during dinner this first night that we probably wouldn't have to hit up any grocery stores the whole trip, as we all had enough food for breakfasts, and our lunches were covered both days, great news! Ended up Thursday night getting pretty bundled up to go to bed, don't think we quite prepared ourselves enough for the freezing freezing freezing cold night, but we definitely knew better the next couple nights. It was so incredibly peaceful to be able to sleep pretty much outside (tent walls don't really count, do they?) and listen to the bugs and donkeys and goats and cows (they roam freely in this country...), it reminded me of camping trips at home, and I kept thinking how proud my dad and my uncles would be of me being such a camping pro this weekend.

Friday: Woke up, showered EXTREMELY fast in the open-air showers, definitely pretty cold, but fine 5 minutes afterwards. Ate a quick breakfast, and headed off to our first adventure- horseback riding!
Now. I have limited experience on horses, as in, once a year on Memorial Day at my great Uncle and Aunt's, being led by my Papa, who I trusted completely, on horses that I thought were pretty trustworthy, and one excursion on a pony (yes, with two girls on it, so not too scary) at a girl's retreat at Bettina's parents' farm YEARS ago. All that to say, I was excited about this trip, but a little bit apprehensive. We arrived, and were assigned our horses, mine was named Kwena, Setswana for crocodile- which I just shrugged off at the time. He seemed like a pretty good horse, except I was warned to not let any other horse get too close to his backside because he likes to kick. Not too comforting news when I'm already nervous, but still...I was okay. Danielle and Marinda did an amazing job of comforting me and I was definitely laughing the first few minutes while being quite nervous at the same time. Once we took off, Les and I stayed way towards the back, and after we did our first "trot," Les asked me "Hey, Jayne, remember that Full House when Michelle falls off her horse and-" "YES, LESLIE THAT'S ALL THAT'S BEEN GOING THROUGH MY MIND." All I could really picture was this horse taking off and me not knowing what to do, and in that case, I'd decided I may just jump off, but wasn't so sure how that'd go. So. I was quietly nervous for the first half hour of so. But our guide, Kila, or as he told us "Sticky Buns" (a nickname to say how well he can stay on horses) was so incredibly kind to me and stayed with me if I was ever nervous, helped me learn how to trot, and comforted me completely. We rode through the bush for about an hour and a half or so, and saw some cool plants, cows, donkeys (which Kila tried to convince us were deadly lions), and just beautiful open spaces. We stopped for a great little picnic lunch, and by this time I was feeling more and more comfortable with my horse. As we went to get back on the horses, I realized Kwena had spent our lunchtime in the nearby pond just wading around, which explained the crocodile namesake. After we'd been on our horses for about 15 minutes after lunch, the water arrived. At the beginning of this trip, they had told us we would be going through water, so we may need to hold our cameras up, but I don't think any of us anticipated just HOW deep this water would be. Our guide went first and all the way across so he could stand and take some pictures of all of us crossing. Now Kwena, being SO fond of water, was very eager to take me in, and that he did. I was soaked from waist-down by the time I emerged this first water-excursion. It was great though, and for sure had all of us laughing and smiling really big, and I definitely felt by this time I trusted my horse. After this, the more experienced riders (AKA the non-scaredy cats) took off in a canter/gallop and Kila got me up to a canter for a few seconds, which I was pretty proud of! : ) He then stopped me pretty abruptly to show me an eagle so my pride was short-lived, but oh well. We then hit another river to cross, which turned out to be even DEEPER, and this time I emerged pretty soaked from the chest-down. Again though, it was all part of the ride, and so much fun, and kept us cool until we were picked up and taken back to camp! : ) We spent the rest of the afternoon back at Audi completely relaxing by the pool, reading, and talking. Much needed relaxation va-cay time! This night I wore THREE pairs of pants and a few shirts and a jacket, so I felt a little warmer!

Saturday: Woke even earlier this morning to head off for our all-day Mokoro trip. Rode for 2 hours in an open-air safari vehicle where my face was almost close to freezing off because of the wind. I kept my face covered for the first hour or so by a blanket to attempt to block out the wind...but no such luck. The sun finally started to warm us and we saw some zebras and other wildlife on our way to the river, and that was so fun to just see them out in the open. Once we arrived at the river, we met our guides, three guys from the local village that are "polers" by profession, and have been doing this for years. Mokoros are canoe-like boats that are made from hollowed out trees and basically sit RIGHT on the water with about an inch from the top of the boat to the water. We got in, and took off, and it was so pretty. The poler moves you through the water by using a large stick- a pole - to push through the mud and reeds, and the path of water is pretty thin in between all of the extremely high grass. The sun was so gorgeous on the water though, and it definitely warmed us pretty fast. We were on the water for about 2 hours, then arrived at a camp site, where we left our jackets and bags and went on a "bush walk." We didn't see much during this walk, but we did see some more zebras, up pretty close this time, and also some elephant bones that were gigantic, and were only a year or so old. We didn't make it to the hippo pond, which I was kind of disappointed in at the time, but it was okay because we were all pretty warm and hungry. We headed back to the campsite, where we ate our sandwiches and fruit. After this, we got back on the Mokoros to head back to our drop-off site.
Okay. The whole time we've been here I've been quite intrigued by hippos. I'm not quite sure why, but I just want to see them, and always ask if we can see them. It's kind of what my team members always laugh at me about, me and my hippo fascination. I know they kill more people in Africa than any other animal, but hey, I thought it'd be pretty cool to see them- don't ask why. (And the week before I left home, Charlie and Emma and I saw the hippos at the Topeka Zoo and they don't do much except lay down and since then I've just really wanted to see them in the wild here.) So. We're on the Mokoros, this time it's Leslie and I with the funny poler and we're leading the way of the three mokoros, and we're just going along pretty well, having a good ol' time. All of the sudden our poler stops and the two mokoros behind us stop abruptly too. We hear this pretty big sloshing footstep noise about 10 feet ahead of us in the reeds. At this point I think my heart sped up to like 50 times what it normally is, and not exactly because I was excited. I look back at our poler, who looks at Les and I and says "I think it might be the hippos." I ask, "is that bad?" And he nods at me. I'm scared out of my MIND, and Leslie and I start whispering to each other about how we don't want to die by hippo attack, and what do we do, and we're holding each other for dear life (okay, she's definitely holding me more than I'm holding her, but she was scared too). We look back and Danielle and Marinda have the biggest smiles on their face and tell us excitedly they are so happy to be so close to hippos, and they hope we can see them! Les and I turned around and didn't say a word to those two. Finally after a few minutes of silence, our poler takes off (remember, we're first in line, so first meal for the hippos about 5 feet away at this point, just hidden behind the tall reeds) and Leslie and I are still holding each other for dear life, turning our heads away from where we heard the sound, scrunching our eyes shut as if maybe this will keep us alive. D and Marinda still thought we were hilarious for how scared we were, and D managed to snap a pic of us holding each other and averting our eyes. We finally made it about 5 minutes away and my heart slowed down. Les told me later she could feel my heart beating throughout my entire body, and we laughed pretty hard once we OUT of the water about how scared we were...but decided that YES, we definitely want to see hippos, but NOT when we are sitting in THEIR water with absolutely no where to go. Les said all she could think was the headline back home reading "SIX KSU STUDENTS EATEN BY HIPPOS" and Jack having to go back to Kansas explaining that the hippos got the rest of us. I have to mention too, that our poler thought it was absolutely hilarious how terrified we were, and thought it was great to keep reminding us later about the hippos.
Along the way though, AFTER the hippo incident, Les all of the sudden gasped and we looked over at a clearing in the reeds, and about 30 feet from us there was a giraffe just eating in the trees. It was so incredible, we weren't in a park or a zoo or anything, it was just a huge huge giraffe out in the wild. When the other two boats pulled up, it ran away, and that was an incredible sight to see too, this huge animal galloping away...so cool. We never saw elephants, but we saw a palm tree over the reeds probably about 50 feet away that was shaking pretty hard at the top, and our polers told us that was because the elephants were shaking it to get the fruit down from the top...so that was cool! All in all, it was an awesome day, and it was cool to be so close to the wildlife, and on the water like we were, which was absolutely gorgeous. Spent the evening at Audi again, (I'm telling you, we were pretty obsessed with this place) had an amazing dinner and packed up our stuff for the early morning. This night I stayed very warm because the sun I had gotten on my face and arms was radiating throughout my blankets keeping me toasty!

Sunday: Got on the morning bus back to Francistown, had a much less crowded ride, and had some good quality reflection, journaling and quiet time. Listened to some good music and just sat and thought for a long time, which was really nice. We arrived in F-Town at about 2:30pm, realized we had about 6 hours until the train left, sat around and played cards for a few hours, read a little, and relaxed. Danielle and Matt and I headed down to the station around 5:30pm to stand in line to book tickets, thinking it'd be an hour at the most, and then we could eat before we boarded, but turned out we didn't get out of line until around 8pm. It worked out perfect though, we had time to eat, and had plenty of time to catch our train. Slept better this time, definitely.

Monday: Arrived in Gabs at about 5:45am this morning, we all groggily jumped off the train, and caught a taxi back here to UB. It took me a while to fall asleep, so I checked emails, got to talk to Charlie for the first time in a couple weeks, but I was asleep by 7, and stayed that way until about 10. It's just been a day of relaxing, unpacking, reorganizing, and getting excited to go back to our projects. The vacation weekend was incredible, and was such a fun time getting to spend it with each other, and energizing for all of us. I came back with amazing memories, great pictures, and a pretty good start on a tan for the summer! And I think we all are super excited to go back to our kids tomorrow, which is a great feeling.

And...if you haven't had enough after this five-hour read, you can definitely check out my picture site for more pics, there are some great ones of the delta, and also check out Danielle's blog for videos of our trip and also of the kids. Love you all and miss you all like crazy, my only wish for a change of this past weekend was to be able to share it with my family, but we'll all just have to come back here. ; ) Sounds fine to me...

Our Dear Friend Billy

2008-06-24T19:44:00.005+02:00

Still enjoying every second here, adventures and mishaps and happiness and not so great things too. I've been thinking a lot lately about where we're at and why I'm here, and especially what my reason is for being at the school and Tlamelo. Before we arrived here in my mind I guess I thought that I would really have liked to be able to do something medical or at least healthcare related. But the fact is, the more I'm here and working each day in the school of at Tlamelo, I realize that the relationships I'm forming there with the students and children are probably things I would have missed working in a healthcare environment, and the influence they are having on me and that I am maybe having on them is something I would not exchange for anything. I'm starting to appreciate the routine more, and feeling like God has really put me in this place and those projects for a reason, if for anything to teach ME lessons about life and loving and serving, and hopefully I'm serving and giving something to my students and kids each day too. I talked to one of my best friends from home last night, Rachel, and our talk really helped me to put all of this into perspective (although she probably didn't realize it!) and for that I am so grateful. Thank you to everybody back home for all of your prayers and thoughts, I think that I am definitely feeling them each day and that I am being protected and comforted and hopefully led in each step.

And now for the adventure of the weekend...I should have blogged this when it all first happened, because it was way fresher in my mind on Saturday evening, but I will do as best as I can to give you the full story!
On Saturday morning at 7am we all 7 met at the front gate of the University. Teacher Shirley, one of the pre-school teachers from our school was taking all of us plus Ana and Jessica (the two girls from KSU who are back again this year but on their own this time) to Gamadubu, a village about an hour and a half outside of Gaborone. We arrived at her tiny little truck (see below...) only to realize there were nine of us, plus three more to fit. We squeezed nine of us into the back of the truck...and it was definitely a TIGHT fit. But an adventure, nonetheless.

Once we arrived at Gamadubu, we began to chop vegetables (this day I learned how to chop cabbage, every day it's something new!) and get kind of acquainted with this particular feeding project. Teacher Shirley started this project 5 years ago after she met a boy on the side of the road who told her about the plight of the children in Gamadubu. She decided that something needed to be done, and since then, she has continued each Saturday to serve the children in this village, most of them who are sponsored, and there are 137 children that attend each week. It was so cool to be able to visit another feeding project and help out wherever we were needed, and also to see these new children and a village that was definitely very primitive even compared to Old Naledi.

The interesting part started about 5 minutes after we arrived however. Teacher Shirley announced to us that herself and a man that helps her with the project were giving us a goat. A live goat...that would soon turn not so alive. We all kind of looked at each other, realizing that this is a huge gift and a major sign of respect and honor, but definitely not of the type we are used to back home. But, as we've done so many times so far this trip, we decided to just go with the flow. About an hour later a few boys came up with a goat on a lead, tied it to a tree, and left it there for a few hours. After it seemed like maybe our friend Billy (we named him, which turned out to be not such a good idea, because I think it fostered some attachment to the poor thing) had defied death, all of the sudden a few of the older boys of the village called Matt and Jack over and announced it was time for Billy to meet his end. Jack felt way too squeamish to be involved, and even though the deed is supposed to be for the males of the village, Leslie and Marinda and I decided to take a peek at the proceedings. And...it was just as we thought it would be I guess. They killed our Billy, cut him into pieces and then literally hung him out to dry. And so we have dinner for quite a few days in our freezer. DEFINITELY an experience I will never forget.

Amidst the rest of the day, a chicken was also killed (Marinda did that deed, it was great), we rode on an "African taxi"- a donkey pulled cart-, learned how to make papata- a Botswana flat bread-, played with some precious amazing children, met some incredible women, watched a gorgeous sunset, and squeezed back into the truck, this time with an one extra human, a not so alive goat (now packed into an extra plastic bag that a comforter had originally been in...) and a not so alive chicken. All in all, the day was not one that will probably ever be forgotton, and experiences that were amazing.

Sunday morning we finally made it to church, after discovering it had kind of been right under our noses the whole time. We were a little early to Old Naledi, so we decided to go see what little kids we could round up and take them with us. We went to a house or area of houses that is right by the Tlamelo Project, where we know a bunch of our little ones live. We got there and were met with open arms from the parents, who quickly gathered all of their kids and washed their faces, changed their clothes, and handed them over. We actually gathered quite a few more than we were expecting, and it was the best thing walking through the village to church, just the 5 of us Americans each holding one or two of our little kids and the others holding our hands. I really wish I had a picture but I think the mental one will last quite a while. Church was good, it lasted quite a while, but it was really nice to be back in that environment and also to have the new experience of church here. We attended The Open Baptist church, which is the one that sponsors Tlamelo, so a lot of the ladies we work with in the kitchen were there, along with more of the kids we see everyday, so that was really neat too. The rest of Sunday was extremely lazy, which was very nice. We took naps, lounged around, and talked to family. I also got to talk to Jill for the first time in a month (we usually talk about every day during the school year so I think I've definitely been on withdrawal!) and we had so many laughs and stories and adventures to share...SO great. : )

The last couple days have been working at the school and the project and getting prepared for our weekend travels! Tomorrow during the day we are going to renew our visas, as they only gave us 30day visas when we entered a month ago. (CRAZY that we've been here a month.) Then at 8pm we are headed to the train station, where we get all aboard at 9:30 to leave for Francistown. We think that train ride is about 7 hours, and Marinda, Danielle, Leslie and I got the sleeper cabin for the four of us so that will be very fun...time for some pillow talk! From Francistown we board a bus to take us to Maun, where we should arrive sometime in late afternoon on Thursday. Travel, like most things around here, is pretty laid back, so the times of departure and arrival aren't exactly set but we're confident we'll arrive even if we do have a few adventures along the way. ; ) Friday we have a horseback ride planned all day around the Okavango Delta, and then Saturday is the all-day Mokoro trip through the Delta. I'm sure I'll have many stories and pictures to share when we get back! Sunday we begin our journey back, and we should arrive home at the UB sometime early Monday morning. I'm so excited for this trip, please keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we embark on yet another adventure!!

Personal Body Guards

2008-06-20T19:07:00.005+02:00

It's the end of another crazy, hilarious, perfect week here and I still cannot believe how fast this time is flying. This week was good, I spent a few days in the classroom, which I am loving more and more each time I'm there. I'm loving getting to know my kids more and more, and also talking to my teacher during the downtime (which there is a ton of in my classroom!). There are a few kids in the class that are total spitfires, and a few really really great students, so it really reminds me of home in those ways! In the classroom, I usually teach the math and science lessons, and grade their work and then help grade and assign English work for the day. Tiny, the spunkiest one of them all, is always telling me that I should teach Setswana to them, and I think she just wants me to look really dumb in front of the class! I am definitely getting some big ol' arm muscles from all of the writing on the board that I'm doing! They only have about one or two textbooks for each class, and so most of what their notes are I have to write up on the board so that they can have it to study for or learn from later. I've taken a few pictures of my classroom, and Les took some of her's, but every time I get my camera out it's a pretty big distraction so I'm trying to limit that to a minimum!

My time at The Tlamelo Project has really been great this week too. More time in the kitchen, but even more so I am starting to really enjoy the kids and their emerging personalities that we are getting to know so well. They are starting to know and recognize us and get all of our names, and it's so cool to show up and have them all yell hello to you. I have a few that I am really enjoying getting to know, one of them is Bareng, she is a 12-year-old who is so incredibly smart and is such a sweet, quiet spirited, caring girl...I've told everyone already that I'm bringing her home. She told me yesterday that now I can be her mother...so I think that a mother needs to bring her daughter home, right? : ) I just love talking to these girls and listening to them talk about their lives, their schools and their families, I would love to visit them at their homes some time. Bareng really wants to come visit me at the University here because she hopes to attend here when she is older, and so I am going to try to figure out how to work that out, because I would love to do something like that for her. In addition to that, my group has been talking about how cool it would be to figure out something or some day trip sort of thing to get some of these kids from Tlamelo out doing something fun and exciting. They don't really do field trips because there isn't much funding, and we thought it would be so cool if we could take them out to Mokolodi (the game reserve we visited a few weeks ago) for a safari...I'm not sure if it'd work out, but stay posted for that!

Today we all attended a football (soccer) game that the boys from our school (Naledi Education Centre) were playing in, and although I had to leave before the game actually started, it was a great experience. These kids don't have a coach, and I'm not sure from where they got their uniforms, but they just were having such a great time playing and having a team of their own. It's boys aged 13-19 or so, and it's so neat to watch them all together. I guess after Leslie and I left they repeatedly asked Jack to be their coach, and we all think he should take on the job for the remainder of the summer! : )
As Leslie and I were leaving to go to the train station to inquire about tickets, the boys were practicing before their game started and they stopped us before we got off the field. They were SO concerned with Leslie and I walking out with just the two of us. They checked Leslie's bag and said she may be okay because there were no valuables in her bag, but then they looked in mine and saw my camera and money and decided amongst themselves that we would not be safe walking to the Combi stop on our own. It was so incredibly sweet, these guys were so concerned, and Les and I saw no problem because the stop was pretty close but apparently, as they kept telling us, "there are many thiefs around here, you two girls cannot walk by yourself!" They told us they would get some other boys who weren't warming up to walk us to the Combi stop, and ran off. Les and I are trying not to crack up at this point because we think it is so so sweet and cute, but sure enough, they come back with three boys in tow (one only about 8, another about 14, and another 13 or 14 year old) and they take their job SO seriously, grabbing both Leslie and I's hands and leading us to the Combi stop. The whole walk, they keep talking about how they need to be our police and protect us, and Les and I are grinning ear to ear. Once we get to the Combi stop, they hail the Combi for us, and then hold our hands until we step on there, watch us to our seats, and tell the driver we need to go to the station. We are rolling in laughter and flattery as we get on, and everyone already on the Combi is laughing and smiling too. It was a perfect, hilarious, wonderfully typical Botswana scene.

We've gotten all of our travel plans figured out, and we all are SO excited for what is coming up. Next week we head to the Okavango Delta, which is an overnight train ride and a bus ride away from Gaborone, and we couldn't be more excited for being there. We're staying at Audi Camp (click here) and have a Mokoro (hollowed out canoe things...) trip planned and a horseback day trip also to see all of the wildlife in the area. I'll post more about those plans and the trips later- I always try to keep these blogs kind of brief and they always end up being about fifty thousand pages long so again I apologize...

I'd Definitely Say It's a Mountain...

2008-06-16T19:36:00.009+02:00

At the start of another week, I cannot believe that we are into our FOURTH week here, it doesn't seem right at all! Please don't make me leave?!

I know I'm halfway across the world, but I cannot help but mention the crazy weather and sad news from back home and our campus from last week. Thursday morning we all got word of a crazy tornado hitting Manhattan and our K-State campus pretty hard...and it's been hard for us to hear of that and not be able to do anything to help right now. A neighborhood in Manhattan lost 30 homes that were literally leveled to the ground with only the foundations remaining, and the area around campus and several buildings on campus had severe damage ($20 million just at KSU alone!!)- it seems so surreal that it actually hit Manhattan. Sitting with Danielle on Thursday evening, we were just talking about how when it sunk in that the tornado actually hit our school, it really made us sad...that's our home and we love it so much and we can't do anything to help right now. I think we all realize though that there will still be plenty of clean-up work to do when we get back, and we are all just extremely thankful that no one was hurt in the huge storm. Our thoughts are definitely with anyone there who is cleaning up and rebuilding. (For pictures of the storm and the damage, click here.)

Other than the tornado news, last week ended really well. I spent Thursday and Friday just at Tlamelo, not at the school, and worked in the kitchen more, cutting meat and veggies, and learning the Rachael Ray way to cut onions! : ) Leslie made me start running with her last Thursday after we got back here to UB and we've been keeping it up most every day. It's nice to have that bit of routine from home, and I think it's helping me back into a normal rhythm of stress/thought release, which if you know me, I need to let a few of the five billion thoughts in my head out once in a while!! I never really run with anyone back home, just my iPod, and it's been great to have Leslie with me pushing me and not letting me stop. The weather has been incredible too, around 4pm when we run it's about 70 degrees and the sun isn't too hot, and of course the humidity here is nothing, so it's not reminding me of home at all!! We have a nice little route though and she talks of expanding it, but that's for next week maybe...

Anyway, Saturday some of us decided to try to find the village of Thalmaga which is well-known for the handcrafted pottery and markets. We set off for the bus rank, which like the Combi station, is just six or so streets full of buses that aren't in any particular order and have no real schedule for arrival or departure. We are DEFINITELY learning to be flexible through public transportation systems alone!! We got to the bus rank and waited for about an hour where we thought we should be. When our bus never showed up, we decided to head for BotswanaCraft, a local shop that sells a TON of Botswana-made arts and pottery and jewelry and about a billion other things. It was an awesome store, and I am definitely planning to return towards the end of the trip to find some great souvenirs and gifts. After that trip, we came back and napped for a while, which has gotten to be quite the trend around here. : ) Saturday night a few of us went out to dinner at an Italian (they have about every kind of food here except Mexican and local food) restaurant that was really fun and had a really cool environment.

Sunday we attempted again to get to church, but as we still don't have directions and are a little wary of getting lost for the billionth time, we vowed to try harder next week to find directions and get there! I'm really excited to go because most of the kids from Tlamelo attend this church, and I think it'll be really neat to see them in a different environment.

Sunday afternoon Luke, the guy from Canada who works at Tlamelo one day a week, and his friend Graham took our entire group on a "hike." This hike turned out to MUCH more, more like a climb for sure. It was so much fun though, and such a great experience for our group. The "hill" we climbed up was QUITE a bit taller and steeper than it looked, and I really think it was a mountain, but that's just me. ; ) Such a work out though, and so much fun with those two guys and our whole group. And the view from the top...amazing. (It's called Kgale Hill and it's pretty much in the city still, and things have just built around it. ) Half of the view was the city of Gaborone, and the other half of the view was of the game reserves and the Gaborone Dam and the lake around it, so it was incredible. I did my first "photo stitch" for an attempt at a panoramic view of the sights, and it's not great, but it was cool to be able to capture so much of the view. We were so far up and in these huge boulders that were stacked at the top of the hill...it was incredible when we made it to the top. The heights convinced Leslie further that she's definitely bungee jumping at Victoria Falls and convinced me further that I am for sure NOT going to take that plunge...

Today started another week at the school, and I am not quite loving the extremely early and chilly mornings, but starting to enjoy my students more and more and hope that I can get to know them further as the summer goes on. I am really starting to feel a routine here and enjoying that feeling. I know very soon it will be thrown off by our travelling, but as for now, it's very nice and relaxing. I'm on my fourth book of the trip now, and looking desperately for a cheap American book store to buy some more. I am SO enjoying that aspect of the evening downtime!! Things are still great here, and I am attempting to slow our time down as much as possible...can't believe we only have FIFTY days left in Africa...

Partly Cloudy

2008-06-11T17:51:00.010+02:00

The last few days have been interesting. Definitely the feeling has changed for quite a few of us I think, and it is still an incredible thing to be here, but the outlook and perspectives have been altered. Talking with the girls last night though, I think we kind of knew this would come at some point, that there would be a time in this journey that all of the sudden it wouldn't be so "sunshine and butterflies" all the time...but now that it's hit, we're feeling it, and adjusting to the other side of being here.

I've been teaching in the Standard 6 classroom for the past few days, and it has been an incredible and insightful experience. The teachers, the students...the more I am in the classroom, the more I feel like I am let into their lives and their realities. And all of the sudden it's not such a high anymore. Still perfect, still nothing I would ever change in being here, but just maybe not such the emotional high anymore.

95% of the people in the village we are working in are HIV/AIDS positive. 95%. And the more we hear their stories, that statistic almost seems the least of their problems.

Playing with the kids every day like we have been for the past week or so has been great, but talking with the other girls last night, I think it is really easy for us to walk into Tlamelo each day, spend 5 hours cooking and playing with the kids and seeing them smile, and feel good about the kids without actually knowing their realities.

On top of getting more stories from the kids in my classroom, today after lunch and clean-up Champ, the director of the Tlamelo Project, took us on a walk around the village. He explained to us that he and the other leaders of Tlamelo (5 or 6 young guys, in their mid 20s) make these home visits every few days and pray with and support the citizens of the village, and the families and parents of the kids they serve each day. (So, so cool.) We met with one lady in particular who has been going through some incredible hardships, nothing any of us can imagine going through, and yet she sat and talked with us with a peace and a hope that seemed unexplainable. Champ translated a little bit to us, but mostly we sat and listened to her speak in Setswana, getting understanding from her expressions and the manner in which she talked. Jack and Meeka and Marinda offered some words of encouragement to this woman and Champ translated, and that was so awesome of them to be able to give something in that way. At the end, one of the Tlamelo leaders prayed for her and it was so incredibly powerful... Walking out of there we were all pretty somber but as we continued our walk I was thinking about how Champ just kept talking about how to her, there is a light at the end of this road, and he was telling us about the hope that she has, when this woman should logically have little reason to hope. And...if she is having all of these devastating things happening to her and her family and yet she still has a hope and a peace beyond understanding... ah. Just completely put so, so many things into perspective. Amazing. I am so thankful we had the opportunity to visit these people and walk around the village.

So. Things have been getting a lot more real here. My Grandpa Gordon told me the week before I left that this summer would be wonderful and horrible, and not that any of what we have gone through has been horrible, but I think I am starting to see that side of things here. But seeing that and being in those experiences is not making me want to leave and or making for a horrible trip, it's just a different side of the experience, a necessary one I think. The feeling I feel is a little bit raw, like we've seen the life of these people and now it's time to actually feel a little of what their every day is like, and not just see smiles for a couple hours.

We've been here for two full weeks now, and I am still having the time of my life...and wouldn't trade this time and place and service for anything ever. I am grateful that things are changing, and the reality of this world and this city is setting in, and that is perfect. Only makes us want to get out there more... for me today it started feeling like helping just one person, or doing just one thing isn't going to change these lives that are so down, and yet, that is a pretty defeated outlook! This place and these people are beyond words amazing, and I won't leave feeling down. We're here to serve in whatever way we are needed and however we can best be put to work, that's where we'll be. Be here, and live here, and serve here. I love this life...still.

And...I'm still staying forever. ; )

Fire Fire Fire!

2008-06-09T18:14:00.005+02:00

Short version recap of the past few days: Lost in the city, wonderful kids, cleaned up a field, boys got electrocuted, started an electrical fire, Danielle fell in a trash pit, blackout night, Oodi Weavers, Bull 'n' Bush, attempt to go to church, relaxing day laying around, lost in the city again, movie time...start all over again.

I love living life here.

Friday morning us girls had an appointment at the women's shelter, showed up via taxi (aka didn't really know where we were), were told that no one was there to meet with us, they had no phone to call for another taxi, attempted to find a taxi, got taken to the wrong combi station. No worries though, we navigated quite well and again, the people in the city never cease to be the friendliest ones in the world. We finally arrived at Tlamelo, where we spent another day loving and running with lots and lots of kids, and also chopping up lots of raw raw meat for the lunch of the day (my cooking skills are becoming superb haha). After we were done with Tlamelo, Champ took us to a field that will be the site of the new offices of The Tlamelo Project, and we cleaned up a lot of trash that was there. With 7 of us, it didn't take long at all. They put all of the trash into a big pit which Danielle kind of slid into and lost a flip flop, but no worries, it was returned!! When we were pretty much finished, the guys went to try to get this pole out of the ground that was in the middle of the field. The four of them pulling on it all of the sudden jumped back really fast and kind of yelled...turns out the pole was connected to the electrical line which was not turned off as they thought it was!! They tried again to get it out of the ground (boys boys boys...) and got a little shock again and quit. We then were ready to move on when Champ realized there was a smaaaalll electrical fire going on at the electrical pole right around the corner that was presumably set by us. Oops!! No harm done though, just a little bit of scary-ness for a while, but it burned itself out and the electricity company came soon enough. Champ then took us to visit The Tlamelo gardens that they have started, where they will attempt to grow all of their own food for the lunches they serve, and maybe have the kids help out with the garden? I'm not quite sure about that. It seems so cool, and it is a pretty big plot of land, so hopefully it will work out pretty well. We're going to probably do some gardening there when they need us to in the next couple weeks or so.

Friday night was Black Out night again, except this time the Black Out lasted from 6p-9p which was a little too long for our likings. It was fun though, we all played hearts, had some great convo and enjoyed being here...

Saturday we went out to Oodi, a village outside of Gaborone. There is a community of women there that run a business called Oodi Weavers, where they support themselves fully by weaving these beautiful tapestries and wall hangings. It was a great trip, and we all ended up buying something, mostly because the work is so incredible, but I also just really like the idea and concept of the business.

Saturday evening we all went out to a really fun and cute restaurant called Bull 'n' Bush, and had a nice dinner and dessert...very nice to relax and hang out all together at a nice restaurant. I remember a moment that evening and I just sat there and realized I still can't believe this is where I am...and that it's just so much more amazing than I could have ever imagined.

Yesterday we attempted to get to the Old Naledi church, but couldn't figure out transportation in time. Hopefully next week we'll have it figured out, because I'd really like to check it out soon. We ended up having a very relaxing day around here, played hearts and read. We went to a movie last night here (our Sunday night ritual now!) and then came back and relaxed some more. A great Sunday...

Today I got up early and went with Marinda to the Old Naledi school, to see if they could use me in any of the classrooms. They immediately put me to work in Standard 6, the second highest level in the primary school there. I don't quite understand the school system here yet, but I am sure I will learn soon. I really like the teacher I am working with, and the kids in my class seem great. I ended up teaching some math this morning and writing a science test AND I brought home some compositions to grade...so I think my work is cut out for me! (My mom will be so proud...!) I really like being in the school there, and hanging out there all day. Their school goes from 7:50am to 1pm, so after school gets out I will go hang out with the younger kids at Tlamelo and have a perfect day!

Hope this catches everyone up...sorry I've taken forever to blog all of this. I miss every single person back home and would love to hear from you. Hope you all are enjoying the pictures and everything...thank you again for everything!!

Every Day Better than the Last

2008-06-05T17:38:00.008+02:00

Things here...just keep getting better and better. If you don't want mushy (Danielle...) stop reading now! : ) I still can't pinpoint exactly what it is that is making this place so easy and perfect and fun and alive, but I do know that I am so at peace with being here and things everyday are great. An adventure, and a crazy and chaotic one, but perfect. Everyone here, really, everyone is so helpful and friendly and nice and I think that has a ton to do with the comfort I feel here. The entire city is a friendly community and even sitting on the Combis in the morning, every person who gets on greets you and smiles, and I still am getting used to that level of joy. It is a perfect peace, and even though we still haven't nailed down where and what we will be doing day in and day out, it is not bothering me, and we are still serving wherever we are each day, even though it's not a consistent location yet. So...again. Thank you to everyone back home supporting and praying and backing me up in being here, because I know that is a huge part of how great this trip is so far, and I am so incredibly grateful for that. But...what I think I'm really trying to say here is, Mom, Dad, family, Charlie, Bffs? Can I just stay for a few more years? I'll come home eventually...
Tuesday we had orientation here at the University in the morning and then did laundry/lounged in the afternoon. It was a nice day, but I started feeling kind of stir-crazy again and ready to get out into the city again by Tuesday evening.
Wednesday we spent the day at Tlamelo again, this time doing more work in the kitchen and more time with kids. My roommates and Charlie will be so proud to hear that I peeled some potatoes AND cut (chopped? I dunno.) them! AND did dishes!! So, I think it is well-known that was definitely a well-accomplished day for me. Also, we spent more time getting to know the kids, ran around with them, held them, and talked. I really enjoy being able to talk with the older kids (the 8-13 year olds) and getting more of a picture of their lives and their days. I would really like to go on some home visits with Matata or any of the other directors to visit these kids' homes and see their worlds. After making the dinner we spent some time with the littlest kids who had just been let out of school and were SO adorable with their little backpacks on. Then some of the older ones arrived, and they had a group gathering under the tree before lunch. The leader of the kids asked for one of the people in our group to do a Bible story for the kids, and somehow I got thrown into that one and did a VERY brief version of David and Goliath. I was so embarrassed because I'm pretty sure these kids knew the story way better than me already. Jack and Leslie acted out the story for me though, so that was nice! (one of the pictures shows this little play we put on!) After it was over I apologized to their leader for my story being not so great, and he said "oh, it was fine, just very short." : ) I'll know better next time. Then it was lunch time, and Jack helped all the kids wash their hands and I attempted to keep order in the hand-washing line. Apparently, it's quite the thing to be able to get your hands washed first. Who knew?!
Today Matt and I decided to tag along with one of his roommates, Michael, to the Holy Cross Hospice to see if they were in need of any volunteers. This however entailed leaving UB at 7am, which was QUITE early for me. It was okay though, I was excited for the opportunity to visit. It was FREEZING this morning, but we walked from the Combi station to the Hospice and then stood outside for a while waiting to talk to an administrator. It turns out that they would like us to submit a resume and a letter letting them know our specific interests and areas of experience, so that they can match us, and I'm not even sure they are in dire need of volunteers right now, as it seemed to be quite the place to help out early this morning. But I enjoyed seeing it, and meeting the people there, so no problem getting up early. After that Matt and I ventured back to UB and left again around 10am with another of his roommates, David, who is a law student at Penn and is here doing an internship with the Ministry of Justice. His ride didn't show up this morning though, so he decided to come along with us to Tlamelo, and that was great.
We ended up getting on the WAY wrong combi though (if I haven't mentioned before, there is no route map or anything for these things, and the "station" is basically like a couple streets that are packed with combis and you are expected to figure out which one goes where you would like to go...) and ended up riding it for about 50 minutes until we got back to the station, and finally got on the right one to get to Tlamelo. The long ride was great though, gave us a chance to see another area of the city or outskirts, and it was nice getting to know David.
Once we arrived, it was another day of cooking and playing with kids. I met Luke, a guy from Canada, who is a coordinator for a missions organization here. He works out of his office on Thursdays and volunteers at Tlamelo. He's probably like 28 or so, and it just seems so cool that he's moved here and serves and works...sounds like the life to me! (Again...sorry mom!!) Tlamelo has started a rugby team with the kids under 13 and they were able to take their rugby team to England a month ago for a huge tournament, which I think had to have been just an amazing experience for these children. Today a few of the older boys and Luke were throwing the rugby ball (is that what it is called?) around, and I attempted to learn how to throw it. Luke taught me one way, and the boys taught me another, but I didn't get it either way, so I ended up looking dumb and having them laugh, but they were all good sports about it, so I definitely enjoyed myself!! Anyway, I am starting to feel more at home there at the Tlamelo Project. I also kind of feel like after the third day of being there I am recognizing more kids, and maybe they are recognizing me, and it is SO great to have someone to look forward to going back to, and I feel good that they can have us there on a somewhat consistent basis.
Matt talked with Charity (our contact at UB) again when we returned home and she has set up a meeting for us tomorrow with a women's shelter, and so I think a few of us girls are going to go tour and visit over there, so I am excited for that opportunity. At this point, I just am really enjoying visiting as many different organizations as possible to figure out how their businesses run and what specific things they do and are in need of. It's so interesting!! Charity had also set up quite a few more appointments and contacts, so the next half week or so should be filled with those, and I will keep everyone updated.
I am SO sorry my blogs always seem to be so incredibly long, please forgive me and definitely feel free to skip over any parts that may bore you!! : ) Thank you to EVERYONE again for the support and love backing me up...miss everyone, and cannot wait to share this incredible amazing experience in person when I get home.

PS: If you want to see more pictures, you are more than welcome to visit my Picasa WebAlbum at http://picasaweb.google.com/jayneaubreylong

You don't need this, I can take it?

2008-06-02T19:46:00.007+02:00

AH! I've been looking forward to today, and getting started with our service exploration for a while now and now that the day is coming to an end, I couldn't have asked for a better experience.
This morning we took a taxi to our first appointment at Mokolodi Game Reserve, which is right outside of Gaborone. We got there and met with Peter, and man who is from Massachusetts, but came to Botswana 31 years ago through the Peace Corps and has stayed ever since. He started out the morning by showing us his Barack Obama for Pres shirts which we all enjoyed!! We then got a quick tour around the Education Centre which hosts schoolchildren of all ages for day trips or overnight trips, and they teach them a lot about conservation and wildlife. I really loved the mission and focus of the education they provide and think maybe they've got this whole "go green" thing down! After the tour we went on a safari! Okay...well not exactly a real safari...but a ride in one of those open truck things with benches! We drove around a portion of this game reserve and the tour lasted about an hour and a half. The scenery itself was just gorgeous and none of my pictures can do it justice. It still was so weird to be sitting in that truck and think "I'm in Africa...in the desert with the animals!" We saw a variety of wildlife, including warthogs (which Jack and Matt were extremely excited about), impalas, many ostriches (which are HUGE!!) , cheetahs, wild horses, different kinds of monkeys or baboons...many others but I can't remember. Right before I left to come over here, someone told me that hippos kill more people in Africa each year than any other year combined...I shared this with my grandma and scared her...but I just thought that was such a weird statistic! But today we went to a part of the reserve that is a river, and the guides told us that two hippos and one crocodile live there...but we had no sightings. No worries! I kiiinda wish I could have seen them though!! : ) We're going to return on Thursday to help them with a class that they are teaching to pre-schoolers and see where we can fit into their organization best. After all of that we decided to go back to a mall that was kind of close to the reserve and have some lunch before our next appointment.
Our next meeting was at the Tlamelo Project, a feeding project for all children in a village called Old Naledi, that is kind of inside Gaborone, and kind of on the outskirts. Old Naledi is a huge village, and it is pretty much enclosed from the rest of the city, but it is definitely a more destitute area than the rest of Gaborone. Walking in there though was kind of cool, because everyone seems to know each other and it is a huge community.
We found the Tlamelo Project, and the second we walked in the gates about 50 kids came over and immediately one literally jumped into my arms. When that happened, I just felt like...this is where we are and why we're here! It was so exciting! We just played with the kids for about 20 minutes while we waited for the director, Champ, to arrive, and it was great. They all kept coming up and the older ones who know English would ask various questions and it was SO amazing being able to interact with these kids. They kept asking our names, and trying to pronounce them, and it got easier for them to spell them out in the sand so they could see what our names looked like and then call us their version. Mine is apparently Jayney, which is fine as Danielle and Les are calling me that anyway now!! The younger ones didn't really know English yet, but they just wanted to be held, or to hold your hand or to get on your back or on your shoulders. They loved all of our watches and kept trying to take mine off saying, "You don't need this, you can get a new one, I'll take it for you..."! I think Jack taught the boy on his back to grab my hair so that was an adventure! I walked out of that place looking rough, but NO problem!! : )
When Champ arrived, he sat us down and talked to us a little about Tlamelo, explaining to us that it feeds about 170 children each day from Old Naledi, and they come to Tlamelo after they get out of their school, which is just down the road. Tlamelo gives them a good meal (which for many and most of the kids is their only real meal for the day) and also gives small lessons, has a few volunteers that meet almost daily with each child to talk to them and consult with them, and they play sports and games with these kids. He just kept saying that we are so welcome there and they are so grateful to us for coming, and I felt so great about being in this place. He told us to be at home, not just feel at home, but to "be at home" with these kids, and do what we want to love and help them and to serve them...it's so incredibly exciting!! That's such the way that I've felt the whole time we've been here...not to feel at home, but to be at home, and it was just great to hear that from Champ, just further reinforces the kindness and attitude of the people of Botswana.
As we left Tlamelo the kids stayed attached to us and we told them we'd see them Wednesday when we are going to return. I can not WAIT to get back there. Kids are kids everywhere, but these kids seem incredibly happy and enthusiastic and just simple. I'm so excited to see where this leads us and the work that is being prepared for us.
We also conquered the Combi system today (public transportation! - little white vans that pack like 18 people in!) and it wasn't as scary as I thought, but it definitely helped that Jack and Marinda and Les and Meeka had a little precursor the other day!! I feel so comfortable here...and I still can't pinpoint it, but am so glad that this is where I am and what I'm doing and who I'm with. Each day just gives me more excitement and I can't wait for the next day, and I think I'm really enjoying that kind of living.

Pictures of a Summer

2008-05-31T21:29:00.003+02:00

I'm uploading all my pictures (which...aren't very good because I'm not a great photog...but my camera is GREAT- thank you dad!!!) to a Picasa WebAlbum and in case whoever reads this would want to see them here is the link. Enjoy!!

http://picasaweb.google.com/jayneaubreylong

He used to drink like his mother, but now he drinks like his father...

2008-05-31T17:20:00.005+02:00

Today we went to a Zebra's soccer game! That's the Botswana National 'football' team, and it was such a blast. So much of a cultural thing, and we all enjoyed ourselves so much. So far before today we have just been at the mall and doing a little bit of walking around a limited area of the city, but today was just so much of what I feel like this area is about. And it was so much fun and excitement and new things. I LOVE IT HERE!!! It's so weird...I was nervous for so many of the months leading up to this trip, and so far, I've had such a peace about where I am and what we're doing. I am so happy to be here and really feel like I'm at home and comfortable with my surroundings and our team and the people here. I keep telling myself to take it one day at a time (some great advice I've received from MANY people as I tend to love to look at the future!) and enjoy each second because the life we are living here is unlike any we may ever have again.
We made some quick friends at the game, and they were so friendly and helpful and sweet. (Danielle has pictures of our new friends on her blog.) They came and sat with us and said they thought since we were Americans we would not talk to them, but we were so excited to have new friends! : ) Everyone here is very outward about how they feel, personal space is kind of non-existent and I think we all are adjusting and I know Danielle and I are feeling at home in this environment! At one point during the game I looked up and around myself and couldn't believe how incredibly LUCKY I am to be able to LIVE in this place for ten weeks...I know I keep saying that, but I still feel like it's a dream that we are here and living and about to be working...SO great.
Anyway, the title of my blog comes from a little incident from the game, there were some older men sitting behind us and one of them just kept talking to me and not really making sense or saying much I could understand. I didn't want to be rude so I would try to listen to him, but it was just kind of hard to understand and I didn't know what to do. This just proved to be a testament to how great the people here are though, because within a few minutes of this guy talking to me, the other people around us and our new friends kind of pushed this guy back and said "Enjoy the game, don't listen to him, don't worry." And our new friend Lucas said something to the guy and then told me, "He likes beer too much, don't worry. He used to drink like his mother, but now he drinks like his father." We thought that was great!! I hope this story doesn't freak out my parents or my grandparents...don't worry at all! Our surroundings were VERY safe and I never felt scared or anything, I just couldn't understand, and yet still it was just part of the whole experience. ; )
As far as the game, no one ended up scoring and now Botswana has to travel in a week to go play Madagascar again but this time IN Madagascar. Lucas and Hope (a guy) said that this was "the worst game we have ever seen!" They were quite disappointed. I felt like such a soccer buff and knew that my bff Rach would be so proud of me enjoying a professional soccer game. ; )Right as we were leaving our friends told us to be careful on the way out because everyone would try to step on us, which we also found very funny! ; ) Anyway...it was a great day, and a great experience, and the National Stadium is right across the street from the University so we plan on hopefully attending the games in the future. I cannot wait to continue this summer...IT IS SO GREAT HERE!!! I'm off to a dinner of Ramen noodles...haha JUST like at home. And we've all decided we need to start holding each other accountable in drinking lots of water because although it is "winter" here, the sun is so bright and warm and we've been drinking quite a bit of Coke Light and not a lot of water. So...at least four glasses a day it is!!
Hope everyone is having a beautiful Saturday, and I'd love to know how you all are doing. Email me if you would like, I would love it. Thank you again for all of the incredible support!!!

Finally HERE!

2008-05-31T01:05:00.011+02:00

We’re here!! Our travels went so incredibly smoothly, and after THREE full days of plane rides and taxi drives and bus rides we are finally at our real destination. The first flight from KC to Detroit was short and kind of bumpy, but I survived…good thing Danielle and Matt were sitting next to me reassuring me while I was curled up in my seat during all the turbulence. Turns out I’m kind of a nervous flier! : ) Our flight from Detroit to Amsterdam was fine, it didn’t seem 8 hours, which was nice, and it was for the majority turbulence free, so I definitely enjoyed that. I didn’t sleep much then, because I felt like I’d definitely want to sleep during the ELEVEN hour flight to Johannesburg. We were in the Amsterdam airport for about 3 hours during our layover, and it was kind of nice to be in a somewhat familiar place! Being that close really made me want to leave the airport and go out into the city again, but it wouldn’t be the same without my Jilly. We played some cards during the layover, and prepared ourselves for the long flight. Our preparation definitely included taking some Tylenol PM so we could sleep and not just sit there for 11 hours. Anyway, we finally boarded, and it was one of those GIANT 747s and I’ve never been on one of those before, so that was fun!! I slept basically that WHOLE flight which was kind of nice, because I don’t remember much and because of that it didn’t seem very long.

We arrived in Johannesburg around 9:10 Tuesday evening, converted some dollars into South African rand, and then were in route to our Backpackers Lodge for the night. Our first adventure of the trip happened when our taxi driver was basically being pulled over for about 10 minutes and finally stopped and let the police approach him. Turns out the lights on the trailer were out, and he didn’t stop to fix them, but it was kind of a weird 20 minutes! We got to the Backpacker’s Lodge, where we stayed in a dorm like setting, ,and all seven of us were able to stay together, so that was nice. It was very basic, but worked for $10 a night! AND there were working showers! (Fun Fact: South Africa and all of Southern Africa are experiencing power outages right now because of problems with the power company, so we had about half hour outage there, and we are being told to expect outages here at the University every so often, and specifically on Friday afternoons.) Anyway, We spent Tuesday night at the Backpacker’s and found some food the next morning at a gas station, waited for a taxi (that didn’t get pulled over!) and then arrived at the bus station. We arrived here in Gaborone, Botswana Wednesday night around 8pm after an 8-hour bus ride from Johannesburg. We were all so glad to be here, and it was so nice to actually settle in and be in our rooms that we’ll be living in for the next EIGHT weeks. (Crazy!)

Below are pictures of our flat, which is just so nice, and we are so lucky to be able to stay here. These are the graduate flats at the University of Botswana, and so far I think we are all just SO excited to be here at UB and the staff and students are so extremely friendly and helpful in getting us all settled in. It’s been so, so great!

Yesterday we had a busy day of meetings with UB staff and security and shopping! We first met with the International Students office, which was so nice, because they were all so friendly, and Charity, a worker in the office, is going to contact some volunteer sites for us so we have a UB reference behind our efforts to serve in this community. We all felt so great about that, and I know I feel a lot less stress having that at least on the way to having our projects. We went to Riverwalk, a giant outdoor shopping mall with so much. Ana and Jessica, two girls who came to Botswana last year with K-State, came back again to do individual service work, and they’ve been great so far in helping us learn some ropes on how to get around and figure things out. We walked to Riverwalk with them, which was about a 20 minute walk, and then ate lunch with them too. After lunch, we went to a home store to buy some bedding and bath stuff, and then to a grocery store to get some food for ourselves. Us girls are all staying in the same flat, so that’s nice because we were able to just buy a group food supply and then split it all up among the five of us. We bought a HUGE amount of food for only like $100 dollars, which was about $20 a person, which was GREAT!! ; ) After all of that we came back to the flat and just relaxed as we’re all exhausted. I don’t think we’ve exactly adjusted to this time thing yet, but I’m sure we will in the next few days. So far things have gone great, and it’s just such a blessing that everything has gone so smoothly.

And NOW we have our internet back, so that is great great news! Tomorrow we are going to a qualifier game for the 2010 World Cup between the Botswana Zebras and Madagascar! I will try to update periodically but as we've learned so far, our connection is real sketchy (good Botswana word so far!) so we'll see. BUT we all are alive and very well, and I miss all of you very very much. I am so so excited for our appointments with local organizations on Monday, and will be sure to let you all know how those visits go. Thank you to everyone so far for all of your support and prayers, and I am so grateful for all of my family and friends backing us from back home. It is just so so surreal to be in this place that we have spent the last six months preparing ourselves mentally and logically and emotionally for this...and so crazy. So far, it's gone wonderfully and just great and I couldn't have asked for anything better. The people here are so incredibly friendly and the culture is so welcoming, and I cannot wait to be further immersed and living in this place. (It is ABSOLUTELY crazy to think that we are LIVING here for 10 weeks...in AFRICA!!) So THANK YOU again for all of the support, it means so much and just has made such a difference so far. Anyway...love you all! Keep in touch!!!

Still So Much to Do!!

2008-05-23T08:02:00.005+02:00

Three full days left before we leave...and I am in NO way ready to get on that plane and leave the country for 10 weeks. Mentally and emotionally I am definitely getting there, and a lot more so than I thought I would be, but in terms of getting things together and packing to leave...I am SO not ready!! The next three days will definitely be packed full though, and I am hoping that along with getting all the packing done (I HATE packing, and definitely procrastinate quite a bit with it...) I will be able to spend as much time as possible with my family and some close friends.

I'm not sure if many of you know our itinerary yet for the first few days, so here it is! We leave KCI around 1:30pm on Monday, the 26th, and we'll fly to Detroit from there. We then leave Detroit for Amsterdam at 5:30pm on the 26th, and we'll get into Amsterdam at 7:35am (Amsterdam time-7 hours ahead of Kansas time!). At this point I think we'll all be quiiiiite tired, but we'll leave the Amsterdam airport at 10:30am and arrive in Johannesburg, South Africa at 9:10pm. And if we're not mistaken, they're in the same time zone...which means, YES, that is an 11 hour flight! Oh well, pleeeenty of bonding time, right?! ; ) When we get into Jo-burg we're going to stay at the Backpackers Ritz that evening, and then we'll be leaving the next day, May 28th, at 1:00pm on an Intercape bus for Gaborone, which we'll hopefully arrive in around 9pm that evening. So...that definitely makes for a VERY packed two days, but it is definitely a blessing that we'll be able to stay in Jo-burg and maybe get some okay sleep that first night, and I am sure we will all be crashing as soon as we get into our flats at the University on the night of the 28th!!

I just am so so excited to see what this summer holds, and even though there are definitely times when I can't imagine being gone from home and normalcy and my family and friends for 10 entire weeks, I know this can only be good, and my time in Gaborone and Botswana will be incredible. My team is INCREDIBLE, and I just can't wait to see where we'll all end up working and serving this summer.