Written June 18, 2012 . . hopefully posted sometime in the near future.

Greetings my fellow blog-goers!

I hope the weekend was enjoyable for all, I had a very busy one myself, seeing as my one “day off” consisted of being a domestic diva. Yes, its true. Contrary to popular belief, I can be quite the domestic individual when it comes time to be.

Sunday started off with coffee and bread for breakfast, eaten on the “front porch” as it was an absolutely stunning day. Then the work began, washing laundry by hand (using 3 different buckets and bar soap), I have a new found appreciation for washing machines, and will never again complain about doing laundry haha. I had a decent amount of clothes to wash, nothing compared to what I would have in the US though, so the whole process took about an hour and a half from washing/rinsing to hanging on the line to dry. Best part about Africa- my clothes were dry in less than 3 hours out on the line.

After clothes, it was time to clean the house, I broom-swept my entire room and then “polished” the floor with this wax stuff. Apparently its to make the floor a bit softer, seeing as my room is a cement cube with a window, and to protect it from dirt buildup? Who knows. I did as I was told, and my floor is lovely under bare feet. I can get the idea of protecting the floor, but the process was a pain – literally, I was on my hands and knees doing the Mr Miagi (spelling?) “wax on. . . wax off”. A thrilling way to spend another hour or so.

Then we proceeded to fill all of the water barrels for the week, there is a spigot in front of the house with a gauge on it that limits the water usage. I think the family pays per-month, as they do for electricity (we ran out of electricity for two days last week) but am not entirely sure.

After water was gathered, it was down to brass tacks- cookin’ up some nummies. I cooked the entire lunch meal, host mom simply oversaw to make sure I wouldn’t kill myself in the kitchen (did someone warn her ahead of time?). I made a coconut xima - splitting the coco, and scraping out the insides to use to strain water through, boiling that “coconut water” and adding the xima to cook. Num num num. Then I prepared a lovely salad of lettuce, tomato, onion and green pepper. Add in some oil, a bit of lemon juice and a touch of salt and boom – salad bonanza. (this was after soaking all of the veggies in water with a bit of bleach to clean them). All the while, I was grillin’ up some carne de vaca (beef) over the carvao (charcoal grill thing).  Host momma was impressed- as was I. And we sat down to feast together afterwards. A well deserved meal for all of the intensive labor we did in the AM.

I sat in the sun for a bit and read after lunch, but was soon interrupted by fellow volunteers asking if I wanted to play soccer- duhh. So we played for about 2 hours or so, some of the local kids getting involved. Basically it was my favorite part of the day. Playing soccer in Africa. Doesn’t get much better than that in my humble opinion.

Came home to dinner already in progress, so I took my bucket bath, and hung out with the kids around my house until dinner was ready. They help me practice vocabulary around the house, in the kitchen etc. Did I mention that no one in my house speaks a lick of English? Its truly quite funny sometimes when I attempt to explain my day, or where I’ve been, or where I’m going. The language is coming along.

I really have no choice with this language thing. Its essential to do any form of work here in Moz. So every night here I am with my note cards, dictionary and my “501 Portuguese verbs” book, trying to get it to stick in my brain. I’m slowly making progress. This week I’d say I’m at the level of a 5 year old or so. Haha!

Today was another long day- started off with language classes in the AM, went to the HUB for the visiting volunteers presentation, had lunch at the HUB (our families bring us lunch when we are there) then had a session about community mobilization, and then discussed some of the differences between Moz and America – beliefs, behaviors etc.

It was a very fulfilling day, very tiring – even though all we did was sit around and talk. You’d be surprised just how tiring that can get. But it was a gorgeous day, sunny and warm. I have an almost ripe avocado for tomorrow’s snack, and a banana for breakfast with my coffee. I’m rather excited to tackle another day of activities.

Until then I bid you all a fond farewell.

Your anxious for sleep (even though its barely 9pm) pal in Namaacha-

td

Written June 16, 2012. . . posted- sooner than you might think.

Well well well . . .here we are again!

I hope everyone had a marvelous Saturday, or those of you who braved pittsburgh’s south side I commend you, and hope you had a drink for me! My day was very complex, well, kinda.

The morning started off with our written language test at 7:30am. It was a total bust. I was feeling so confident about the progress I had made in the first two weeks, to be totally and completely stumped by a few small pieces of paper. Woof. Oh well, back to the starting blocks I suppose. I have made note cards, talk with my family every night, pay attention in class, do my homework etc. I really don’t know what else I could really do to get my language up to speed. I feel like I am just so far behind. Starting week 4, all of our lessons (technical included) are going to be tought in Portuguese. . . yikes. Hopefully in these next two weeks, I become as fluent as possible to be able to understand these rather important classes in the upcoming weeks. 

After the test, we went to the HUB for our intro into PACA – Participatory Analysis for Community Action. We briefed over a few topics, just to get our feet wet, as one might say. Various tools used by health volunteers, ie; needs assessments, seasonal calendars, daily activity charts, community mapping etc. The fundamental paperwork/charts and activities a volunteer needs to do to get any form of actual community service work implemented.

It was good stuff. We even have a homework assignment to prove it “discuss with your homestay families information to create a map of your community, showing resources and facilities for health and health education”. I made a vain attempt to explain my assignment to my host mom this evening. I think it just made us both very confused. So we went back to talking about food, and things around the house. My vocab for domestic things is pretty good I have to say. Too bad I cant use it in everyday life in the health sector. Unless I’m talking about nutrition- then I could talk about food all day . . .hmmmm “lightbulb”

In addition to that coursework, we also have a weekly Trainee Directed Activity (TDA) which we are to complete every week, and turn into the technical trainer every Friday afternoon. This upcoming week is about water – “observe water, hygiene and nutrition practices in your house”. We are to document all of our observations and findings. Its kind of interesting to learn about where we get our drinking water, how its transported/stored, the type of bathroom facilities (if you want to call it that) we use, hygiene-related behavior, nutrition on a daily basis (I have explained again and again, the amount of carbs we are given every day is wayyyyyy too much).

I’ve actually started giving away my crackers to my younger siblings, and not taking rice or whatever carb is served with dinner. To have bread and cheese and instant coffee (yuck. I miss my French press) for breakfast, rice and some sort of topping (today was a tomato type sauce with onions and carrots, and a salad) and then dinner having either rice or xima. . . too much too much too much.  Thank goodness we walk everywhere and that I do yoga every night. I’m trying to work with my homestay family to be more aware of what is good to eat/what isn’t. Adding more protein, and veggies would be good for starters, and fruits after meals to curb any final cravings or that “empty feeling”. I have showed them a few times that one avocado is more than enough for my mid morning or mid afternoon snack (I do get both, which is nice).

I basically am 10 years old again. I wake up, homestay mom has breakfast ready for me, go to school, come home for lunch, go back to school, go play with friends after (some exercise, sometimes walking around, sometimes playing cards/games) come home, “help” with dinner, take a bath, write about the day, and go to bed with my kindle.

I cant express how routine this schedule is. Its going to be a drastic change to go from this, to being at site, with no real schedule (unless I’m with an NGO that is super organized).

Ok, so with that major digression, I get back to the various work we are doing in PCT. Language, daily homework for language, the TDA’s, the assignments for PACA, and a community practicum for all volunteers (sort of a test run with an NGO during training).

As I write this electronic journal entry, I am transferring pictures from camera to computer, and looking over my schedule for next week. A regular mulit-tasker. Look at me go.

Hopefully the pictures will be up sometime in the near future, but who knows really. The schedule for next week looks pretty interesting I must say. We have two new current volunteers coming to visit (every week someone comes to stay the week at the HUB, giving us a bit of insight into what’s to come).  We also have language classes every day, but not as extensive, more tech sessions about health practicum’s, food safety/basic nutrition, and next weekend we get to Permagarden. Woop! Lookout, my non-green thumb is about to see some serious action!

Today after classes some friends and I went to the local bar (had a diet coke) and played cards/talked about the week. It’s the one place in town where there is enough room for everyone to sit outside, and just decompress from the day. Not everyone drinks, and we aren’t there to get drunk, its just a great place to unwind and get to know one another. There are these amazing trees that line the “patio” where we sit, with these massive roots that intertwine one another.

Oh that’s the other thing I wanted to mention- just how beautiful this place is. The sunset every night is beautiful, the trees and various plants are incredible, not to mention the beautiful people I see every day. Seriously. Some of these individuals are just drop dead stunning. And the children- oh gosh, where do I even start with explaining how absolutely beautiful they are. I hope I can get my pictures uploaded for you all to see. Sometimes I just stop, look around, and take it all in.

The stars at night are by far my favorite thing about this place though. It is so incredible the amount of them one can see on any given night. In addition to a portion of the galaxy. I brush my teeth under them every night outside the house, and just gaze in total wonder. That’s something I will never forget – the way the sky looks when I brushed my teeth in Moz. Hahahah go figure it would be something like that.

 I will bid you all a fond farewell. I have some water with lemon (from the tree out back) waiting for me as I relax with my book before bed.

Ps- food discovery of the day, papaya from the tree out back, cut open - with some lemon squeezed over it. A phenomenal explosion of flavor that words would not do justice.

Toodles

td

Written June 15, 2012

Posted – probably at some random hot spot in Namaacha, who knows when

Hello all you blog spectators! Welcome back!

I hope everyone is doing well back in the states, and don’t worry I’m holding up pretty well here myself.

Today was another jam-packed day of schooling – language lessons in the morning, followed by an “Introduction to the health system” here in Moz. Dr. Ema Chuva came to speak with us about the basic forms of public health care, how it ranges from district offices, to provincial to the central health program. Very interesting stuff, not to mention useful, as we are all Community Health Volunteers in this program.

Some crazy stats for you all to digest – there are 23.7 million people here in Moz. Of that number, 29.8% live in an urban setting, while the other 70.2% reside in the rural parts. The literacy rate is 50.4%.

This is when things start to get a bit shocking. . the infant mortality rate is 93/1000 and institutional birth rate is 58%.

There are three hospitals in this entire country. No I did not stutter. 3. That’s it. There are more hospitals in the “smallest big town” aka- Pittsburgh, than there are in this entire country, which is about 3 california’s stacked upon one another. Mind blown.

Again another number commin at ‘cha – in this entire country, there are 859 doctors. That’s one for every 26,000 people, if the doctor is actually practicing treatment. Oftentimes, the doctors are the ones running the show, organizing things, and therefore do not actually spend much time with patients. With that said, there are 5,397 nurses in Moz, that’s one for every 4,000 people, and again the skill level of the nurses vary as well. Last ratio I have for you, there are 2,461 physicians assistants, that’s 1 for every 9,000 people.

If you haven’t picked up the main theme of this post yet here it is – Moz is an amazing country, it needs help in the health sector in more ways than just funding. It needs the trained staff. Money (while helpful for sure) can only go so far, the manpower needed to utilize the things money can buy is what is most important.

Down to the nitty gritty-

Of the 23.7 million people here in Moz, about 1.4 million of them are infected with HIV/AIDS. 250,000 are children, 860,000 are women, and 552,000 are men. The life expectancy in this country is 42 years of age.

Leading causes of death – malaria, and hiv/aids.

As shocking as all of this information was to receive (and there was much more, that’s just a summarization) it also spurred many of us into an almost excitement-like mood. We are here. We are here to make a change. No matter how small or large, this is what we are here to do.

The basic idea for our projects in the two year span range from; promoting key health behaviors and practices, detecting community health problems and offer/work  to find possible solutions, and coordinate/carry out activities responding to community needs.

The idea of integration of HIV/AIDS services into the community, incorporation of new lab technology, expansion of a community adherence group (help to facilitate long-term patient retention) – are just some of the few things we discussed, and hopefully can accomplish.

Children and women are going to be a target audience that we will try to reach out to. They (just by numbers) are the ones that are most strongly affected. Hopefully I can get involved with an NGO, or even a secondary project that promotes the health and well-being of women and children. If even possible, tying in nutrition studies – sustainability and various educational seminars to promote empowerment of women. . . thinking big things here. But I am well aware of the way things work here, and know that the pace may be a bit slow (drastically slow in comparison to the way things move in the US) but that’s ok. I’m a go-with-the-flow kinda lady, I don’t need specific timeframes for things (as my mother cringes at the thought haha) It would be great to see some things get accomplished during my time here, but its an evolutionary process, start small- building blocks for the future generations, future volunteers etc.

Ok- enough of the advocate chat – I had a lovely day today. Got a great workout in this evening with some friends, some cardio and aerobics. I have been trying to do yoga every night before bed in my room, and next week, we are going to try to get people together to have a small yoga class. Along with the circuit stuff we did today (lean mean moz 18) look out.

Dinner was delicious- grilled frango (chicken) with a salad, and some xima, followed by a banana for dessert. Again – no complaints on the food here, so far, all experiences have been good!

With that lovely thought, I will say goodnight. I still have a bit of studying to get done before I snuggle up with my book in bed. Tomorrow is our first language test, and I am slightly nervous for that. But no matter how I do it’s a mark to see how far I’ve come with the language in two weeks, where my strengths are and weaknesses are. Keep ‘em crossed kiddies. I want to learn this language.

X’s and O’s from your studious and excited pal here in Mozambique

td

Written – June 14, 2012, posted – your guess is as good as mine.

Good evening all!

Well, its evening here, about 8:20ish to be somewhat precise. I had a lovely day today, and even managed to snag some internet for a bit to answer emails, post the previous blogs, and get a brief taste about what’s going on in good old America. Miss you all! Just not enough to come home haha.

So this morning started out with language, its coming along I suppose you could say. Our professors never speak to us in English, which can be sometimes confusing, while other times very beneficial because it is total and complete immersion. The only time we speak English is around one another, and during some programs on HUB days. We learn this language even if we don’t want to haha. Which I don’t know why someone wouldn’t, its kinda pivotal to any form of success in the upcoming years. Communication is a huge part of cultural immersion and integration- two things that will be very helpful and necessary.

So after language, we went up to the HUB where we had a visiting (currently serving) volunteer who told us a bit about his experience, the work he is doing at site, what his site is like, how he copes with things etc. . all very enlightening and a very positive message! Every time we meet and talk with current volunteers, it makes us all the more anxious to get to site and actually get going with work. But these baby steps are necessary. If I’m going to get anything accomplished here, I need to learn to talk to my Moz counterparts!

The next segment of our day was a brief interview into community development, what it means to us here in Moz, some things that we want to accomplish, the break down of budgets and funding, possible programs etc. Finally! Some info that isn’t about safety and security! These were the words that many of us were really looking forward to because it means that this is the real deal! The stuff we are here to do, and hopefully accomplish. 

“Sustainable, community based change through participatory, self-help initiatives leading to improved quality of life for poor individuals and families. – The beneficiaries are subjects, not objects in the development process.”

Then we broke for lunch, we went to our respective casas, I had xima (prounced shee-ma) which is basically grits, and some wonderful green leafy veggie thing called couve. Followed by a very tasty orange. Aside from the massive carbo-overload, everything here is pretty tasty. Most meats or fish are either put in a stew like thing, or are fried in some oil. Ive decided that ovens are kinda rare around here, as I haven’t seen many in my fellow trainee’s houses.

Then back to language (bored with my schedule yet?). Its not super thrilling to be sure, and it is always structured. Sundays are our free days, as we do have classes and technical training on Saturday’s. Last Sunday some fellow trainees and I hiked to the waterfalls here in Namaacha. What a glorious site! I have a great photo of 4 of us ladies in different yoga poses on the rocks of the waterfalls. I had an excellent morning of physical exercise, a bit of stretching, and then some great meditation time. It was finally a chance to soak in this incredible opportunity, realize whats going on, and kinda disengage for a moment or two. That’s the big thing here, just taking a moment to realize things, ponder, think, wonder etc. Growth of the mind.

After language, I went to scam some internet from a local hot spot – bingo! I was able to send off a few e-mails and update the blog, which was nice. Im really sorry for being so out of touch, and bad with updates, but the walk is about 15/20min from my house, and its unlikely that the internet will even work. I think about everyone often, and want to share my experiences here with you all, its just a bit difficult to put everything down on paper, and then get it online. I hope you understand. In addition, there really isn’t too much to report here, as this is still training and my days are pretty structured with language and skills training. Not exactly the thrilling things you all want to hear haha!

As I sit this evening, soaking my very dusty and dirty feet (I have no idea how anyone would expect to have clean feet here – I have yet to wear socks haha) I want to share a quote from earlier today that I found to be interesting:

“I am done with great things and big things, great institutions and big success, and I am for those tiny, invisible molecular moral forces that work from individual to individual, creeping through the crannies of the world like so many rootlets, or like the capillary oozing of water, yet which If you give them time, will rend the hardest monuments of man’s pride.”

With that, my warm (and now clean toes) bid you a very pleasant night.

Boa noite!

Your barefoot friend in Moz-

td

Written June 13, 2012 . . .posted- your guess is as good as mine.

Well here we are again. . . another long day of pre-service training. .

Today was HUB day, a time when all of the volunteers congregate at the “hub” a house/library/conference room type-thing, Moz style.  It also has a lovely yard/outdoor space where we usually eat lunch, and oftentimes put on small skits and whatnot.

So today’s first topic was about situations that may arise in our service here in Moz. Often times we will run through various scenarios just to bring some awareness to various possibilities that we may face here. Today focused a lot on people asking for money or to borrow things, or how to handle responding to more personal questions. People here can be very invasive about you and your life, how much money you make etc, simply because its in their nature, and they are curious about you as someone who is ‘different’. It was nice to run through some of these scenarios, as I’m sure they will be helpful throughout our 24 months here.

The second topic of the day was sexual assault- things to be aware of, things to look out for, and just an overall word of caution. We discussed the differences between what American men and women do when they want sex/when they do not, and what men and women in Moz do. It was a great laugh as none of us are really mature haha, but at the same time very informative and again, helpful for the upcoming two years. We also discussed the heavier subjects of rape, sexual assault and possible violence, a bit scary, but nevertheless, helpful.

Then lunch break, where I had “carne de vaca” and some rice, with an orange. Yum yum yum. We sit outside in the sun (an attempt to warm up) while we eat, and it is a really nice time. I had a chance to delve into the book “the fever” a bit more, finding it to be truly fascinating. Perhaps this adventure and my experiences will lead me into a health related career. . . .hmmm. The possibilities are truly endless. (as an American, I know I can actually say that)

Enough about school. It’s a long tiresome day, and writing about it is making my eyes droop even further – did I mention its 8pm here and I’m just about ready for bed? Pathetic.

My language with my family seems to be coming along, the daily test for me is dinner time, how well I can communicate with them about my day, asking about theirs, talking about tomorrow, all while smiling and chowing down on the delicious nummies. Tonight it was xima (grits for lack of better description) peixe in a sort of peanut sauce (fish) and a ‘salad’ of tomato, cucumber and onion with some lemon juice. No complaints here about the food. And to date, no GI problems with my barriga (belly). Here’s hoping that luck continues.

So as I sit here in my chilly room – no insulation, concrete walls and floor with a screen window haha – staring at a dead cockroach in the corner (mental note- sweep tomorrow) I’m truly satisfied with another day here in beautiful Moz.

I had my moments today of feeling low and disconnected from what this whole thing is about, which I tend to feel at least once a day, but I have yet to go to bed truly upset about being here. I hope I never do. Coming home to this family, while it can be a bit overwhelming because of the amount of people here, the small children (there are two under the age of 3) and the lack of anything truly familiar, is still the best blessing in disguise. Love, compassion, and family translate over all languages. Its incredible that these perfect strangers have taken me in, fed me, given me a place to sleep, and make sure that I take at least one bath a day. In America, would we ever find something quite like this, without expecting anything in return?

They are giving me an insight into what it is like to live, breathe, and eat I this country. Something I could never truly gain if I was immediately on my own. My family is very smart, witty, caring, great cooks, etc. The list goes on. My only frustration is that I cant truly communicate with them just how happy I am to be here.

Tomorrow is another day though.

Oh! Side note- I had an avocado today from the tree that grows in my backyard. Be jealous.

Later dolls-

td

Written June 12, 2012. . . Posted – whenever I find internet.

Another day, another dollar… well minus the dollar here in Moz. We use Meticais (pronounced met-ee-keish) – exchange rate abour 28/29 to 1 USD, and the last time I checked, I’m not really in this for the money haha. Either way, another day has passed here in the beautiful land of Moz. Today’s activities included language class, cooking, dancing, tomar-ing my banho, and reading. Basically how I’m going to spend the next two years of my life lol.

The morning started out early, 6am like usual. I boiled water to wash my face/brush my teeth, got dressed for classes, and ate breakfast of pao (bread) and queijo (cheese) and of course a bit of café- which is really really bad because its powder coffee. . . but it does in a pinch.

After breakfast, language classes began, this week the class is being held in my casa (pronounced ca-za) so I didn’t have to walk very far, unlike last week, when I had a nice 15/20 min walk to my friends house. It was a difficult morning of language consumption. . . I get frustrated at myself for not picking up the language as quickly as I would like, all the while, kicking myself for not being super studious about it before I came. Yes I did use Rosetta Stone before my arrival (its brilliant, I suggest it to anyone) but not to the extent that I should have. I try to use it on my computer some nights here, but the majority of the time, by the time I retire to my room for the night I have absolutely no desire to listen or speak any more Portuguese haha!

Class usually runs from 7/730 am until 330/4pm, with a break from 12-1:30 for lunch. Mornings are chilly here, so we are always bundled up in our coats, and sometimes two pairs of pants (guilty as charged). But after lunch the layers are pealed off and we usually sit out in the sun for the remainder of the classes. Today’s lesson was about the environment, we worked on various vocabulary used to describe our surroundings, problems caused by pollution, and in return what the pollution does to our bodies as humans. It was all very interesting, and it began to tie in the language with the upcoming health-related work I hope to be doing here in Moz.

I have started reading a wonderful book in the evenings (aside from 50 shades of grey that is) one that Oma gave me – “the fever” by sonia shah. Incredible stuff to mentally digest I tell ya. All the while making me flinch even more every time I hear the shrill drone of a pesky mosquito. Yes I am taking malaria medicine – doxycycl 100. So far the drug has given me no intense side-affects, aside from some intense (but not bad) dreams. I still am not super thrilled about taking a potent medicine on a daily basis, but if it helps to prevent malaria, than by all means let me at it.

In addition to the drug, I sleep under a lovely forest green mosquito net. It is not hanging gently from the ceiling as one may imagine, instead it is in almost a cube form around my bed. On move in day here in Naamacha I gestured to my Mae that I needed to hang the net, however my ceiling is probably 12 feet above the floor, and is a pure tin roof. . . hanging the net wasn’t really an option. So instead, we found some random pieces of wood, and tied them to the bed posts (did I mention I have a full size bed, but a twin size mattress?) creating sort of a four-poster bed – Moz style. I then draped the netting over said posts, and it brushes the floor of my room (which is very spacious and most times very chilly) leaving me with a bed-cube type thing.

But I digress. . . After class I helped to make dinner, which for the life of me cant remember the name of as I type now. It was a very simple, yet filling and satisfying dinner. Tomato, onion, carrot, green pepper, a green leafy veggie similar to kale, a bit of salt, and beans (kidney I think). Start with some oil in the big pot on the carvao (charcoal stove-like thing) let that heat up, add in the onions, some fresh garlic and a bit of salt, let those cook up. . .add in diced tomato a few minutes later. . . a few minutes more add in the green leafy veggies, let simmer for a bit (adding a smidge of water). Then toss in the boat load of beans, the carrots and green pepper and let simmer for maybe 15 min or so. Do that while keeping an eye on the white rice cooking in the pot next to that, and boom- a dinner fit for a volunteer and her family. Yes I cooked it all, and yes, they were quite impressed. Although I did need help cutting up the veggies and such, as the women here do not use cutting boards, instead cut into the palm of their left hand. I’m getting better at it as the days go, but the fear of mutilation is still in the forefront of my mind.

As things were simmering or when the rice was done I heated water for my bath, took that along with my trusty flashlight to the “casa de banho” as it gets dark here around 530ish. Took my bath (a glorious feeling after a long day) and then had dinner with my family. Dinner conversation is starting to pick up as the language gets better. . . my proficiency is that of a 2 year old now I’d say. . . not too shabby for two weeks.

I obviously have my down moments here in Moz. It is tough to be surrounded by a language that is totally different from your own. I miss my family and friends, the normalcy of American life (the convenience of a shower and water pressure, my bed, driving a car etc) but also know that this adventure is going to be that of a lifetime. And for that, I wouldn’t give up my bucket baths, or watching my kid sisters sing and dance while I’m cooking, for anything.

Already in my experiences in this country, no matter how bad the day one is having, the most simple things – a child’s laughter, cooking with your older sister, listening to your Mae tell stories from work – are the reasons why I am here. To learn about these fantastic people, their culture and way of living, with hope of imparting some knowledge to make it just a bit safer, healthier and with that, longer and happier.

Until next time.

Your tired, yet happy- daughter, granddaughter, niece, friend, etc

td

Killing chickens, taking bucket baths, using a latrine, and learning to speak Portuguese!

(written on Monday June 11, 2012) Posted- whenever I finally get the internet to work.

Welcome to my first few weeks in Moz! It has been a whirlwind adventure of trying to catch on to the language, figuring out the currency, figuring out the time (they use military time here) – again, thanks mom for having a work schedule that taught me at a young age what it is-  all while learning to cook on a carvao (a charcoal “fire” for cooking), trying to talk to my family in caveman Portuguese, and having my time totally eaten up by classes and information sessions.

Internet is totally hit or miss in Namaacha, so I am sorry about my lack of communication. I posted my phone number on my facebook wall, if you buy an international calling card and shoot me a “hello” that would be wonderful.

I had a really nice convo with Sara yesterday (thanks love, it was nice to hear your voice) and a quick one with Poppa Bear. Gosh it was amazing to hear your voice Dad. I miss you.

OK- so the nitty gritty. I am living in Naamacha Mozambique, which is right on the border of Swaziland and South Africa. It is a beautiful little village set in the mountains, so it is a bit cold here (should have packed more pants and jackets) ohh well. My very first day, I met my host mother (a minha mae, in Portuguese) named Lina. She is a tiny woman who runs the show. Her profession, aside from running the house, is an activist for HIV/AIDS. She (from what I have gathered) gives food and medicine to those who are HIV positive. She is an incredible woman who doesn’t take any crap, helps we with my language, and is teaching me how to cook.

I also live with about 9 or so other people at one time. During weekends (fins-de-semanas) the number varies, as there are others who reside here. Honestly I am still trying to figure out the entire family dynamic, but on an average day, its me, mom and dad (who is crippled, and I don’t really know why yet) my older sister, who acts like a suto-mom, my two other sisters 20 & 16, and two adorable little babies who are about 2 or so.

I have a fairly routine schedule, school from 7am until 3/4pm. Depending if I have tutoring afterwards. That leaves about a half hour to do some stuff with friends like yoga in the HUB (the local place where we go for training days) go for a walk, or come home to “tomar banho” – take my bath, in a bucket of course, to be explained later, the help with dinner do my homework (TPC) and then basically go to sleep. It’s a fairly rigid schedule, so the other trainees and I try to get together after classes to just decompress from hours upon hours of Portuguese being bored into our heads.

Ok, sooooo bucket baths. Let’s have a quick chat about these babies; possibly the most liberating thing I have done thus far in my experience as a trainee. Because my language skills are those of a caveman, and I am unaccustomed to the cooking methods here in Moz (hell, I’m unaccustomed to cooking in the states) I basically have the status of a 3year old. So the act of being alone with my basia (bucket/basin) of warm water, my bar of soap, and face wash in our outside “casa de banho” is a lovely time for self reflection, and silence. I have a large basin that I first fill part way with cold water, add in some boiling water from the carvao, and you are good to go. I have a small plastic measuring cup, for lack of better words, that I use to pour water where I please. Then I suds it up with my lovely bar of antibacterial soap, and rinse in the same method used originally. It can get rather chilly, and somewhat creepy when I’m “tomar-ing my banho” at night, which happens more often than not because the sun sets at 5:30pm our time. So I take my “lanterna” or flashlight as us GI’s like to call it, and make the best of a somewhat strange bathing situation.

The toilet (or pit latrine) is located on the opposite wall. I am lucky enough to have a western toilet placed over the pit, so I have somewhere semi-decent to rest my laurels during those lovely private moments. But as there are many children running around my casa, there is sometimes an interruption, cutting “me” time short. Its all in good heart though.

My family here is very welcoming. Mae was in Maputo last night for her cousin’s wedding, and she still called before bed to make sure I had eaten supper, and of course, taken my bath. Being clean here is super important. I cant stress that enough. My mae was in a slight tizzy when I first explained to her that one bath a day would suffice, she was insistent that I take two a day, if not more. But I politely told her that it was just too cold in the morning to take a bath, and that if I took it before dinner/bed I really wasn’t getting dirty. She finally came around, and I am down to one bath a day, but part of me still feels she disapproves. Oh well, can’t win ‘em all.

So I’ve explained bath time, I’ve briefly explained school and classes – language classes are held in the various homes of volunteers. We have been broken up into smaller groups depending on skill and aptitude (I think I am in the slow-learner group) and we rotate between the houses in said groups depending on the weeks and size of homes. All other technical training happens in the Hub, and our mae’s bring us lunches.

Oh- that’s the other thing. The amount of food here- holllyyy sheesh. Whoever grew up hearing the phrase “finish your dinner, there are starving children in Africa” has clearly never been to Naamacha. In my backyard alone, we have two avacado trees, a grove of bananna trees, a lemon tree, and mango trees. Meals usually consist of some sort of carboydrate (rice, pasta or xima – grits for lack of better words) some sort of protein (fish, goat or chicken) and some vegetable. Tonight, we had xima and something called Couve, sort of a mushy version of collard greens. But its made with coconut milk so it is super savory and delish. No complaints here on the food. And as of yet, no serious indigestion problems (fingers crossed). I’m attempting to build up a bit of an immune system to the water and food here, by slowly incorporating it into my meals and daily habits. Ie- brushing my teeth with just boiled water, eating fruits like apples etc. In order to drink the water here, it must first be boiled and then filtered. Or one could filter the water and then add a few drops of bleach. Personally the idea of ingesting bleach is not appealing, so I stick with the boil-filter method. It just takes a bit longer because you must wait until the water is cool to filter it, or else the rubber washers melt and problems arise.

There have been so many more goings-on here, including killing a chicken (yep, I did it) and daily peaks and pits. There is not enough time in the world for me to describe every single bit of the lifestyle here, and although it is different, and I have had my moments of “holy shit what am I doing here” this is beyond what I had anticipated and or expected. Which is good. The surprise and welcome challenge is incredible. And its only week two of training.

I cant imagine what is to come in these next few weeks- well that’s a lie, I have a detailed itinerary (mom, you would love it haha). But in respect to personal gain/growth and experiences, the future is unknown.

This Friday, we have interviews for site-placements. These are going to be ongoing throughout training, to really get a handle on us as individuals, and where we would be best suited for the 24 month duration of service. What do I want/where do I want to go? – not a darn clue. In week 6 of training we go on “site visits” so that will hopefully help me get some idea of the possibilities. 

Welp- that’s all for now folks.

I hope everyone is safe and sound, enjoying the summer livin of good ‘ol US of A. I miss it for sure. . . just not enough to come home lol ;-)

Until later.

Your (somewhat) dutiful pen-pal in Naamacha, Mozambique.

td

Today's blog - a lesson on "how to take a shower"and many other valuable suggestions for homestay.

one of the most basic ideas and concepts in the states. . . .a rapid deviation of what happens here in Moz.

But I digress.

Today started off with handing over one of my bags to the PC for storage during the PST (pre-service training). Then a lovely breakfast of fruit, yogurt and toast (instant coffee unfortunately).

Afterwards we went to the conference room here at the compound where we had a programming session and introduction to some of the various health projects that we would be participating in. That was all very informative and helpful. We met (again) the PCMO staff, peace corps medical office, and had some helpful medical information. IE; what to do in an emergency, what constitutes an emergency, basic scenarios and how to handle them, what is all provided for us in our medical kit, how to take our malaria medicine etc. Lots of information given in a quick amount of time. I am really happy that I have a small background in health safety from lifeguarding and parents that have used various homeopathic remedies throughout my life. (thank you mom and dad) We also learned about water treatment, which is something we will have to do everyday in order to drink water and cook. We will have a water filter at each of our homes which we will keep and use throughout the 2 year service.

Then a small break for lunch (yum) and back to the conference room for more information. (exhausting)

This session was a basic overview of what to expect during PST. What to expect in the first 5 weeks; intensive language training, with a slightly reduced emphasis on technical training. Whereas the last 4-5 weeks will be mostly focused on technical training and a slight emphasis on language.

After that, there was an orientation to our homestay. . . both informative and somewhat reassuring, while at the same time hilarious. We discussed everything from how to greet people (handshakes, kisses etc), to the fact that it is your responsibility to wash your own underwear when it is laundry day. We discussed showering, eating, using the bathroom (for girls we had a special session about feminine hygiene) and had some great laughs about it all.

Tonight we are celebrating a fellow volunteers birthday, maybe going for a swim at the pool here at the compound.

Tomorrow we have breakfast and then head off to Namaacha to meet our host families! From what I am reading, I have a mom (52) a dad (54) and two younger sisters (18 & 16). I am really really looking forward to having these people change my life, and I theirs!

"Go in search of people, begin with what they know, build on what they have, and when the task is done, the people will say 'we have built it ourselves'"

The next post may be a while. . . stay tuned for some funny adventures with the family!

Good evening! (well it is evening here in Moz) approx 6:45pm

Today was an eventful one! Lots of information given at the Peace Corps HQ, some shots, lunch, a medical evaluation, and a language interview. . . Learning the language is going to be an interesting experience, one that I am looking forward to with slight trepidation, but with confidence that I will pick it up without too much struggle.

So! My last post about my assumed flight schedule was totally wrong! haha joke's on me!

We did leave the hotel at 2am, to drive to JFK (a 2hour journey) to arrive at the airport around 4ish, all well and dandy, we missed any traffic and were VERY early for check-in. So we napped on the floor of an airport until 7:30 when the desk opened. . . Did I mention our flight didnt depart until 11:30? In essence it was a true example of what is to come in these next two years haha. The flight was wonderful, I had set my watch to Moz time as soon as I boarded, and tried to eat/sleep according to the local time here. Easier said than done, but a Tylenol PM helps in a pinch. The food was good, and it was a very smooth 17 hour flight (non-stop) to Jo-berg South Africa.

International transfer went well, we had arrived at 730am(ish) and our flight did not depart for Maputo until 1:50. So yet another day of lounging around. Did some exploring in the airport, met some nice people, had a coffee (blah blah blah)

Flight to Maputo was wonderful, again, no problems there. Getting through customs was a breeze, and all 31 PCV's had their luggage come through without a problem! No locks broken, nothing missing. .. Almost unheard of from what people have said.

ok.. so here's where things get funny- we were told that someone would be waiting at the airport for us outside of baggage claim/customs. . . .nope. not the case.

We decided to wait about 30min or so, just in case they were running late or something. No one showed up, so we called Carl the country director, and thank goodness we did! They werent expecting us until today!! Crisis averted though, and we all made it to the compound next to the PC headquarters where we will be until Sunday morning.

This is where we are briefed on what to expect, safety and security etc, given more shots, malaria meds (I was prescribed doxy), our language exam etc.

Tomorrow morning we drop our 2year bag off, to see after our 10week training. So my evening, after dinner with everyone, will be spent re-packing bags in accordance to what i will need for 3 months vs the 2 year stay.

We were given our medical kit today, chock full of wonderful stuff that I didnt even think to pack haha! The only thing I am regretting is not getting a watch that is a bit more durable, as mine is a "dressier" one. Eh. . .live and learn.

The group I am with is beyond fantastic. Some truly intelligent people. I know I will learn a lot from said persons, and can only hope to gain understanding and compassion for this beautiful country.

There is so much more that I wish to write, however I am running late for dinner- so I will say Boa Noite! (goodnight)