Final Days in Gabs

Tomorrow morning at 5am we leave to get on the Intercape bus to leave Gaborone, Botswana. The past few days leading up to this have been filled with conflicting feelings and mixed emotions. Today was the final goodbye. We went to church in Old Naledi and picked up a group of kids that we have all come to know from Tlamelo/the Old Naledi Education Centre. Church wasn't outside today either, it was indoors in a trailer and it was a very nice service. The sermon was given by a man who was originally from the U.S. but has lived with his family in Africa for the past 10 years. It was also in English so it was easy for us to understand. During the walk to church and for most of the service I held my little girl Charity. It was a difficult realization that this would be the last time I would hold her and hug her. At the end of the church service the man who gave the sermon, his wife stood up and said a prayer for us. She prayed for us, what we have done here, and that with us going home would not be the end of our service. I lost it close after this. All the goodbyes began with people from the church and from Tlamelo.

Soon we walked the kids back home, played and all stood around not wanting to leave. When the subject of leaving finally came up, I think we all knew that we could never really be ready to leave or say goodbye. We just had to do it. The little kids, even though I wasn't as close to a lot of them because I worked with older kids, are still the hardest to say goodbye to. I think they understood that we were leaving, but it still hurts to go. Jack got asked by two of his little boys that hang on him, Tsaone and Tspiso, if they could come to America with him. I don't know how you say no to little 5 year olds that love you. I know it had to be very hard for Jack and for the others that worked in the preschool. These were their kids. They played, taught, laughed, and loved them. They are amazing kids, who couldn't love them?

This weekend I spent packing and tying up loose ends. We weren’t able to work at Tlamelo or the Old Naledi Education Centre all last week because of the student holiday, President's Day, and because Tlamelo gave the cooks the week off as well. We did go to Old Naledi a few days to help teachers that were at the school, say a final goodbye to them, type tests, and play with the kids we could. Not the ideal last week we wanted. It would have been great if we could have taught last week and worked at Tlamelo. I guess that is part of being flexible.

When I went in to help my teacher, Mma Julia, and the principle, Mmaphama, on Thursday with typing my teacher gave me a gift from her and Standard 5. It was so sweet. She gave me a beautiful glass coaster with an elephant on it and Botswana written on it. It was very thoughtful of her and the class. I wish the class could have been there to give me the gift as well, but I know that my goodbye with them was rushed due to the holiday. My poor teacher was is so sick too, she barely had a voice when she gave me the gift and told me that she has influenza. I don't know if it is the same as the flu back home, but she didn't sound or look too good. I hope she is better. Marinda also was given a gift by her class. It was a great moment and a sad one at the same time.

Earlier in the week we went to the Gaborone Museum and the Gaborone Damn to watch the sunset. The museum was wonderful. They had an art gallery and also the museum part with history about Botswana. It was nice to get some history and education - I guess with school I am used to it always being pushed on me. The Gaborone Damn was an amazing site. It was just water and land as far as you could see. Even though we couldn't do service work this past week - we tired to keep as busy as we could.

Friday we had a birthday here at UB for Pipiro - a little girl that we have all come to love - who turned 3. Meeka set it all up. It was a great party. They brought Pipiro, her brother Tsaone, and Charity all back to UB for the party. They watched Lady and the Tramp and Meeka made them lunch while we watched the movie and played with them. The party was great - they ate, had cake and ice cream, played at a park near by, and they even all got goody bags. Meeka gave Pipiro her gift - a doll - and because Tsaone (Jackson - his real name - coincidence) is Jack's little boy, Jack gave him a matching football jersey. It was the cutest thing.

Jack and Jackson (Tsaone) We learned his real name was Jackson - it is fate. Tootsi with her son Tsaone (Jackson). She is Pipiro's and Tsaone's mom.The Birthday Girl! Tsaone and Charity
It is really hard to leave here - it has become much more of a home then I could even imagine. One of my roommates told me this quote, "I left my family to live with strangers and now I am leaving my family to go back home." It couldn't be truer. It is a hard feeling to describe. I don't want to leave, I love teaching and I love the kids, but I am also excited for Cape Town and even more so, for home. My body is confused on whether to be happy or sad. Today I felt sad. It is never easy to say goodbye.

Tomorrow we will leave for Cape Town and finally arrive there on Tuesday afternoon. We will stay there for 5 nights. Hopefully we still won't be too sad and can enjoy it. We plan to go to Robben Island, Cape Point and Cape of Good Hope. We want to climb Table Mountain but don't know if we can because we think it is closed for maintenance. Just seeing the beach will be amazing. Next Sunday night, the 3rd, we will be on an overnight bus ride back to Jo-burg and will fly towards home on August 4th. The next week will be quite the journey.

The Beginning to an End

They look much more serious than they are...

Today and yesterday are holidays here in Botswana - Presidents Day - and then for the rest of this week the schools are not in session, it is the student holiday. Sort of the student’s break off of school. So we had thought that we would be having our last day at the school this coming Friday. However, once we returned from Victoria Falls and received the news that the school is not only closed this Monday and Tuesday but for the whole week we were bummed.

Working outside in the sun to keep warm

Picture with the Std. 5 teacher, Mma Julia, and the school principle, Mmaphama
So last Friday was our last day in the classroom. As you can imagine it was a hard day, as most goodbyes are. Last week we worked everyday that we could in the classroom. However, it was not a normal week. The whole school was preparing for these big exams on the 28th. So the students and the teachers were cleaning out all the rooms and taking down posters in the classrooms to get it all ready for some 200 + students to come and take their exam. The exam is for Standard 7 students to see if they could move on from Std. 7 and into Form 1 (like high school). It is a big qualifying test and many students - not just those from Old Naledi - come and take the test here.

The other standards were also preparing for their end of term tests. So for our last week I spent a lot of time typing up tests for the teachers. There is only one computer that is shared and a printer. The school can not afford a copy machine, so once I have typed the test I have to print enough for all the students taking the test. All week I worked on getting pictures with my students. And getting pictures of them gardening, in the std. 5 plots and also getting a whole class picture. I did what I could, not all my students were ever there on one day, but I got some great pics to always remember them. And for them to always remember us. As a gift to them before I left I printed off pictures of me with each student. Thapelo - a boy in my class - has asked me for a photo of me every day for the past month and a half. So he was very excited. As they all were too, most have probably never had a photo of themselves. I have never seen 17 and 18 year old boys get so excited to have their picture taken and to strike a pose. It is amazing for them to then see the picture they just took on a digital camera.



So I gave them all pictures, a school supplies kit that had a ruler, pen, pencil, eraser, and pencil sharpener for each of them and then extra for the class, and then I brought in biscuits (cookies) for the class to share. It was a hard day to get through. My students were so wonderful. They were all so grateful for their gifts and all gave me a hug and sang me a song that had my name in it. I really grew close to a lot of my students, and if we had the time to stay longer I think I would even grow closer and learn more about them. I learned that one of my students - Thapelo (he likes to talk to me) - wakes up at 4am to get to school. He takes a 45 min bus ride to the bus/combi station, and then cannot afford a combi (3 pula - 50 cents) to Old Naledi so he walks there. And then does the whole trip again to get home. It is weird because I think out of everyone here I was the most hesitant to help in the classroom. I was so afraid that I would fail, that I wouldn't be able to teach and I would hurt the learning process more than helping it. But I ended up loving it! I loved getting to know all my students and hanging out with them. The last few days that I was there all of my students - and others - would come and sit and eat with me, Jayne and Marinda. It was wonderful to sit with them outside the classroom and talk about issues and things they enjoy. They love asking us questions about America and comparing or telling us about Botswana. It is amazing the pride that they have for Botswana - which all Batswana have for that matter. They are always telling us that Botswana is a peaceful country and that we do not fight, we talk. They add that Botswana is small - only 1.6 million people and if there is a problem they just talk about it. It is amazing to see the pride that they have in their country. And it is also well deserved.

I also exchanged addresses with they school and my teacher so the students and I can write to each other. I want to hear how they are always doing. Several students told me they had aspirations to skip Std. 6 and go straight to Std. 7. I don't know if that is possible, but I think some are smart enough and if they try real hard, maybe they can. I want to know what happens. It was a difficult day. Hard to imagine that it was coming to and end. Questions just kept going through my head. Did we do enough? Will they remember us? Did we have an impact on them? Should/Could we have done more? I suppose all typical questions when you leave something that is important to you.

Tomorrow we will work at Tlamelo and we will be there for the next 3 days here. They were also closed for the holiday, which is hard because that means that kids go without meals for several days. It is also hard because these next few days we are going to have to say our goodbyes all over again to all the kids at Tlamelo. I wonder if they will fully understand. I think that it is hard to tell a kid goodbye and leave when they may not understand and they wonder why we did not show up the next day. The next few days will be hard to swallow - hard to go through.

This coming weekend we will spend doing last minute stops, souvenir shopping and packing. Then Monday we will leave for Cape Town. We will be leaving Botswana for good, but hopefully not for forever. I think we all hope to someday be back here. It is hard not to fall in love with this country. Especially when you see the pride that people hold for it. I think that we will all leave a bit of our heart here.

Today we are off to a museum in Gabs and then maybe and picnic in the neat area where all the government buildings are.

On a very happy note - Jayne's Birthday was July 17th - 21st!!! WooHoo. We went out to Primis restaurant and had some great Italian food. It was a great time and I am sure a wonderful memory to have a birthday in Africa! HAPPY BIRTHDAY JAYNE!!!

Victoria Falls!!!

It has been about at a day since we returned to UB (University of Botswana) from Livingstone, Zambia. I had an amazing time at Victoria Falls. Marinda, Jayne and I all went up to Zambia together. We stayed at a backpackers called Jolly Boys which was quite relaxing. Livingstone was a great little town we found a nice little coffee shop and went to the craft market. While on our trip we went on a sunset cruise on the Zambezi River, I went bungi jumping!!!, we saw Vic Falls, and we also went on a day safari at Chobe Game Reserve. It was all amazing! It was also much warmer up there which was a nice change from Gabs. It gets so cold here at night and in the early morning. Here is how the Victoria Falls journey goes...

Tuesday July 8th

We had to buy our bus tickets to Zambia today. We learned that you can only buy the tickets for the Zambia Botswana Luxury Coach the morning of they day you want to take the bus. So we stand in line all morning in the cold and learn that many people are cutting us and many are buying tickets for others. We end up getting 3 of the last 5 tickets available! We left in the evening and again that meant standing in long lines just to get your luggage loaded on the bus. It turned out to be quite an ordeal. But we got on and all was well, and this was a straight shot into Livingstone. We didn't have to get on any other buses. It was in total about a 14 hour overnight bus ride, and 3 of those hours were spent crossing the border into Zambia. That itself was an ordeal as well. We had to depart Botswana and then walk across to the ferry and then take that and then go through Zambia borders and get our luggage checked. It took forever. Thankfully a young girl going to University helped us figure it all out. It was very confusing. That is something we were very grateful for during this trip; the help of others. It always seemed like someone was there to help right when we needed it.

Wednesday July 9th

We arrived in Livingstone!!! We spent the day getting checked in at Jolly Boys, setting our schedule and making all of our bookings. Jolly Boys was very relaxing. It had a beautiful pool and 'chill out' area. We stayed in the 16 person dorm the first night and then switched to the 8 person dorm for the next 3 nights. We got to meet some pretty neat people. We also figured out money. In Zambia they use the Zambia Kwacha which $1 is equal to 3,500 Kwacha. So it wasn't abnormal to see a price of 50,000 kwacha. Very weird for us to see - but not a strange price. It took us a good while to get a grasp of the money. I am taking home 50 kwacha bills because they are worth less than 1 cent - so they are just souvenirs. Funny fact too - coins aren't in use in Zambia currency any more because they have no value, so they are now sold as souvenirs in the market.

Thursday July 10th

Today we spent the day discovering Livingstone a little. We went to the Wonderbake coffee shop and got some real coffee (compared to instant, which is what we find in Gabs) and scones. We then ventured to the craft market. This is where we spent most of the afternoon. We browsed and shopped for neat souvenirs. It was really neat to see all the crafts. In the evening we went on a sunset cruise on the Zambezi River. It was gorgeous. And the best part is we finally got to see HIPPOS!!! and I didn't feel threatened at all - because we were in a big boat, not a mokoro. We also saw some crocs and elephants! The cruise was wonderful. We watched the sunset as we ate our dinner on the boat. They grilled chicken and sausage right on the boat. It was delicious.

Friday July 11th

The Big Day... Bungi Jumping! July 11th, at 11am, 111meters... the 3rd highest Bungi in the world and one of the 7 natural wonders of the world. The jump is from the bridge that connects Zimbabwe and Zambia above the Zambezi River. I did it and surprisingly I was quite calm. Marinda and I both bungied in the morning. Jayne was our photographer and cheerleader - and she did a darn good job. Marinda and I stayed very calm throughout the whole day. My first feeling of fear came when we walked onto the bridge and I saw what we would be jumping down towards. Below was the rushing water from the Victoria Falls. It was breathtaking yet frightening to realize I would be jumping into it. By the time it was my turn to jump I was only left with excitement. I had been watching others jump and I was psyched. I couldn't wait to jump off of that platform! Once they got me all ready it was time to jump - it all happened so fast that I didn't have much time to think about it and then ... 5-4-3-2-1 BUNGI!!! and I was off. I made sure that I kept my eyes open - it was an amazing view. I wasn't always sure which way I was looking but it was still awesome to see.

After being ecstatic about jumping and then watching Marinda jump, we ventured over to the see the Falls close up. The Falls were amazing. We got to see them from three different angles; at the top watching the water fall, from the back seeing where the water comes from before it falls, and also from the bottom - once the water falls. Also known as the boiling pot. The Falls were breathtaking - neither words nor pictures can describe how amazing they are - you feel the mist from the falls hitting you and hear the rushing of the water over the falls, it was gorgeous. One of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. We rented ponchos and walked around through the national park capturing what we could with our cameras and standing in awe of what we couldn’t. The falls were so great and big that they create a sort of an upward rain/mist that comes from below where the water hits the bottom. It was so vast, endless and powerful.

The boiling pot was a wonderful view of the falls and also a good hike. It was a hike downward from the top of the falls to the very bottom. We had to get through rocks, streams and even baboons - they were everywhere! Yes monkeys all around us - within inches of me at one point. Finally we got to the bottom - with some help. Again help just came through when we needed it. We probably would have stopped way before we actually got to the boiling pot to see the amazing view. Once we got down there we could see the falls, the first rapids, and the bridge that we bungied off of. It was quite the hike up as well - but well worth it for the view.
We finished the night off by going to a great little restaurant in Livingstone. It was called The Rite Pub and Grill. I had chicken and it was delicious and displayed very uniquely.

Saturday July 12th

Today we went to Chobe Game Reserve, which is actually in Botswana, so we had to go through the whole border crossing again. Chobe is known for its elephants - it has the most. Once we arrived there they treated us to a great breakfast and then we got on the open safari vehicle. We spent the morning on the safari vehicle for the game drive. We saw more hippos, impala, kudu, lots of crocs, birds and some elephants from afar. Being on the safari vehicles is very neat in itself. The several times that we have ridden on them we have also just taken them out on the road. In fact when we returned to Zambia at the end of the day they took us to the border in the safari vehicle - like no big deal. I always think that if someone saw this vehicle around town back home they would be shocked! In the afternoon we went on a safari boat cruise. This was wonderful because not only did we get a wonderful lunch on the boat while cruising through the Chobe waters, but we also got to see a lot more animals and very close up. We saw more elephants, hippos, water buffalo, and more crocs. It was amazing how close we could see the animals. Most of them hung out in this grassy island area and we could get very close to them. From the water we could see the vastness and openness of Chobe - it was huge. You could really spend weeks out there and still not see it all. We wish we could have seen a loin - that was the only let down for me. But it was still amazing and the food was wonderful (you know me ;).

When we returned to Jolly Boys after our long day the power was out again (it was out Thursday night after our sunset cruise too). We have really gotten used to the iffy power situation. It has become a normal occurrence to just come home and not have power - or have an odd outage. It doesn't happen too often, but when it does I am not surprised - even back at UB. It worked out well for us though, because we went to bed very early. We had to get up at 2:45am to catch our bus home - which was an adventure of its own.

Sunday July 13th

We woke up at 2:45am and called the taxi to take us to our bus which was arriving from Lusaka at Livingstone at 4am. This is the bus that goes straight to Gaborone, the one we took to get there, so it is the easiest. Once the bus comes we learn that it is full. We then learn about a bus that leaves within the next hour to Kazungula - the Zambia Botswana border. So we get on that and arrive at the border at 6am - still very dark. Although on the bus, Jayne sat next to a nice man that said he might be able to get us on the bus that goes to Gaborone - he said he knew the driver. Again, someone there to help us when we needed it. So as we were standing in line at the Zambia border a man came up to us from the bus we wanted and asked if we were going to Gabs and said he could get us on the bus. We were thrilled. Our alternative was to get a taxi to Kasane, then a bus from Kasane to Francistown, then another bus or the train from Francistown to Gabs. It was great to get on the bus that went all the way to Gabs. After 3 hours of going through the border again we get on the bus and learn that it is still full - we are sitting on the floor. I sat on the steps to get on the bus between the gear shifter and a woman’s feet that occasionally hit me in the head. It was very dusty and dirty from all the foot traffic of getting on and off the bus. Jayne and Marinda sat on the floor squished in the middle of the bus by a toilet that didn't work but still smelled. We sat here for the next 7 hours until Francistown. Luckily I met a very nice man next to me - Humphrey - who let me sit in his seat for about an hour. He was very kind and nice to talk to. There was an amazing moment while we sat on the floor - the bus had to slow down so some elephants could cross the street! It was amazing to just see elephants cross the road right in front of us. We really are in Africa! That still amazes me at times. Once we got to Francistown enough people got off the bus that we all got a seat for the rest of the 5 hours back to Gabs. We were so happy to be back at UB in our nice beds. It was great to get clean after being on the dirty bus floor for hours and to eat a warm good meal. We all slept very well that night.

Overall Victoria Falls was an amazing trip and adventure. It is still great to be back in Gabs at UB as well. I think that is one of my favorite things about trips too - you get excited to go home - and home is at UB here. It is hard to believe that in exactly 3 weeks we will be home - our real home. It is flying by. I am very excited to get home and see all of my friends and family. I know it will be hard to leave here too. I know that this experience will always be apart of me and I will miss being here as well, just like I miss home now.

Update!

Tomorrow I will leave to Livingstone, Zambia to see Victoria Falls along with Jayne and Marinda. It had been awhile since I have blogged and acutally wrote something so I thought I should update because I know I will have tons to talk about when I return from the Falls.

The past week has been good, it has flown by. We spent our time at Tlamelo and in the classroom. I am loving working in Standard 5. I know that I say it all the time, but the kids really are so amazing. Getting up in the very very cold early morning is difficult but by the time I am in in the classroom with the kids I am loving it! Today was another great day in the classroom. Which was nice becuase I won't be back there for a week.

It was a great day, but my my greatest fear in the classroom happend as well: the teacher left and put me in charge to teach for the rest of the day. I am okay with helping teach and teaching math - a subject I get - but I don't know the lesson plans (if there are any) what to teach next, what the kids have already learned or anything. My role is sort of to give indivudial help and attention to the students, possilby teach math, and then to mark (grade) their work. However, today I taught it all. I showed up to the classroom and the teacher told me that she had to go home to get something and then go to the bank. She told me to teach them the next topic in their Religion, mark their math, and then do their English assignment with them! So today I wrote notes about Buddhism and how is started, graded math homework, and helped all the students read in partners and answer questions. It was quite the challenge to teach them about Buddhism. Since the school can only afford limited books, I write directly from the book onto the chalk board - it takes awhile. Then I taught them about the notes - in this case Buddhism. It makes it difficult, becuase I don't know that much about Buddhism, but on top of that the notes are all in English and the students are still practicing to read and comprehend in English. I spent a lot of the lesson just explaining what certian words meant - like palace, corpse, meditate, nirvana.... yes all those words where in the lesson. None of them knew what a palace was - when I told them that it was a very very big house, like a castle or a mansion, one boy, Jecks, asked me if it was as big as the classroom. It really shows where these kids come from; the classroom to them would be a very very big house - a palace.

A couple of the boys - Thapelo and Jecks especially - have both told me that they really want to learn how to read and speak English correctly. They have asked me to sit down and help them. I tell them that the best way to learn is to practice - keep reading. So today I had Jecks sit with me and read me the notes that he took. I could see how learning could be very difficult for many of these kids. They are having difficulties with reading the notes... comprehsion and understanding are not top priority with them - reading it is. I hope to sit with them more often and give them personall attention to help them read. They really want to learn - it will probably take some time outside of class for them, but I know they are craving indivudal attention. For the English assignment I had Jack come in and help me. It was a partner assignment and one kids, Tebogo, didn't have a partner. It was really nice to have him help. Since my class is mostly boys they all really like Jack - they talk football together. The students did partner reading and I tried to partner students that could help eachother read. Some of the kids are amazing, like MooSix, he is an amazing reader and could really help the students as well.

As you can tell I really like the classroom - and my students. They make me smile and laugh so often. I want to bring in my camera to get more pictures of them, but it is such a distraction in class. Ocasionaly I see some of my students out around in Gaborone, like at the combi station and they always come up to me to say Hi. It is a great feeling - today we ran into MooSix before school at the station.

The past week has been filled with great times as well. Since we arrrived back at UB from Maun on Monday we didn't go to Old Naledi until Tuesday. Which was acutally a holiday here, Sir Seretse Khama (their first president)Day, so Tlamelo and the Old Naledi Education Centre was closed. So we gave away our lunches to the kids we did see, since they were not going to eat that day, and came back to UB. Wednesday and Thursday I taught in the classroom and then Friday we all worked at Tlamelo. I know we still have a few weeks with the kids, but I can already tell how much I am going to miss them. Heck, I miss them on the weekends! And we even see most of them at church!

Friday we were all pretty down, missing the 4th back home. I know that Jack and I had a hard time with it. Since it is such a huge celebration at the lake and we had never missed it, it was weird being away. I think this was a day that we were all a little home sick - I was. My mom took some great pictures of the lake festivities and of all our freinds - so at least we were there in spirit! To celebrate here me and some of the others went out to eat at the Riverwalk Mall. We at at Spurs (?) and I had a ground beef burger vs. minced beef, which is what they have everywhere here, so it was quite the celebration!

On Saturday we did end up going to a little $th of july celebration put on by the U.S. Emabssy. It was at a primary school near by and it was really nice. It was just like a cookout with hotdogs and hamburgers. They had red, which and blue everywhere and fun stuff for kids to do. It felt like we were back home - somewhat. It was really nice to see all the other people living here from the U.S. and amazing to see how many kids were there. Makes me wonder how long people have been here, and what they are doing. We were late there so we didn't have much time besides for eating. We also went out to Oodi Weavers in Oodi Saterday morning. We picked up out tapistries and they are amazing. Mine is a lanscape with the sun and elephants. It will be a great way to always look back on my summer in Bots.

Three of us went to the open baptist church in Old Naledi on Sunday. In the past we have all gone and picked up little kids in the village to go to church with us, but today we were running late. Church was nice, even though it is just outside on the ground with plastic chairs and between to trailors it is wonderful to be outside with the big African Sun and hearing all the wonderful harmonizing songs. The sermon was actually given my a man from the U.S. He was there visiting and they let him be the guest pastor. After church we went to Riverwalk for lunch and some shopping... nothing too exciting, but it was a nice relaxing day.

Tomorrow I leave to Zambia on the overnight bus. We have to wake up real early tomorrow to go and buy our tickets. It should be an amazing experince - I can't wait!!! Our trip is acually being extended one day because our bus couldn't leave when we wanted it to so we have to look for accomidation for one extra night. We have planned a day trip into Chobe Game Reserve. It is known for its elephants - the Chobe elephants - so we should see some good game. We will have a drive safai in the morning and then a afternoon cruise with dinner. We will also have at least two days to explore Victoria Falls and Livingstone and then one of the days I will be bungi jumping! I will try and upload some video. We are staying at Jolly Boys in Zambia.

Look forward to hearing all about Victoria Falls... I know I will have a ton to write about and too many pictures!