BotswanaHere are some of the pictures from Botswana, as well as a pseudo-journal so I don't have to rewrite an e-mail a bunch of times - it'll be easiest to simply have a virtual photo album that everyone can look at than to e-mail pictures individually.I will update this as I take more. Jump to page: Index Page Botswana 1 Botswana 2Botswana 3 Botswana 4 Botswana 5 Botswana 6 Botswana 7 Botswana 8 Botswana 9 Botswana 10 Botswana 11 Botswana 12 Botswana 13 Botswana 14 Botswana 15 Botswana 16 Botswana 17 Botswana 18 Vermont 1 Vermont 2 Vermont 3 Vermont 4 Botswana 2 - 19 Botswana 2 - 20 Botswana 2 - 21 Botswana 2- 22 Botswana 2 -23 Botswana 2 - 24 Botswana 2 - 25 7/30/03 Dumelang! So it's been about two weeks since I arrived here, and I only just set up this web page yesterday (I got the idea looking back at the old Topper site and the page Anne and I used to maintain). I have yet to upload any pictures (mainly because my computer gives me icky error messages every time I try to). So - here's the quick version of the last two weeks, and I expect I'll update this about once a week from now on (create another "entry" if you will). July 14th - left bright and early, after staying up all night, and actually felt fairly awake. Not nearly as panicked as I was expecting - I even kicked my parents out of the airport a little earlier than was probably necessary (just so they'd leave me alone). The plane ride over was a horror - but what do you expect from a 17-hour flight? Oh, and it was filled with mission students. No, my soul has not been saved, and I almost sent myself straight to hell by throttling the woman behind me that was sure the reason her literacy program ("so they can read the bible") in Zambia was having problems (no decent infrastructure, no real other basic education, the presence of a bunch of Tennessean missionaries?) because Satan had arrayed his forces against her. I kid you not, she used pretty much exactly those words. Arrived Tuesday afternoon, got a bit of a tour of the clinic that I'm working in. Fell asleep (no sleeping when there a bunch of missionaries around - they might try to save my soul while I'm not looking!) Went to an orphanage the next day and spent a while playing with children. Basically spent the rest of the week sleeping. Then - my first real work week here - turns out that Monday and Tuesday are national holidays. Oh well. I found the local Hash (the Kalahari Hash House Harriers) and managed to get taken along to their afternoon run and then Bring & Braai (barbeque). Lots of dirty old men who's wives kept asking me to lift up my shirt so they could see my tattoo and belly button piercing, which would be followed every time by shouts of "oooh!" and "Wait! I didn't see!" Working at the clinic the rest of the week was interesting - I spend most of my mornings down stairs in the waiting room with the kids that come through. I don't generally speak Setswana (and they don't speak English) so most of my interaction with them is limited to stuffed animals going "booga booga booga" (which does tend to send them shrieking around the room with glee) and passing out pages from coloring books and crayons. Afternoons - are quiet. I started trying to set up an oral history project (yay, here comes another IRB form), still an ongoing process. Had my first real crisis "I want to come home!" on Thursday afternoon, but managed to kick my ass out of it and try to head for the orphanage we'd gone to the previous week. Requires getting to the bus station via combi (the local "equivalent" to busses) - I managed to do that - get on the bus to Lobatse - I did that, and then get off at Otse. That's where I failed. It's about a 40 minute ride, and I dozed off early on. Felt like only fifteen minutes, but when I woke up I asked the man sitting next to me. "Did we pass Otse?" "No, no, two stops further." Got off two stops further. And it sure looked a lot like Otse. A whole lot like Otse. Enough that I walked into the village about 45 minutes before I finally figured out that it wasn't Otse. Damn. This weekend - an NYU law student that works across the street from the clinic rented a car from the airport, and took the three Baylor people that are still here out with him. We drove around a bit, stopped at the local game park (Mokolodi) and found this guy who does amazing wire sculpture. I want to bring some back - but there's no way I'll get it on the plane. Continued driving (stopping every once in a while for the random donkey or goat in the road) to a town called Manyana, which is supposed to have rock paintings (giraffes etc). We found the place they are, but it turned out the man working there was on his two hour lunch break. It had just started. So, no rock paintings. Continued to Kanye, where we had a pretty decent lunch (my first salad since I arrived here), and then went exploring. Africans (or at least the Tswana) give directions by waving their hands in the general vicinity of the place you want to go and saying "That way." We got these so-called directions to the local gorge, which was supposed to be worth seeing (pictures soon to come). We parked where we were told to and headed out. Long walk - we just headed toward what maybe kind of looked like it might be a gorge. Walking on the back paths in the village really made me feel like I was back in Nepal. Definite smoky, burning garbage smell (not unpleasant) that's in the air in every developing country. Random cow pats just sitting everywhere. Dusty trail, these weird bushes/trees with sharp thorns (they're about an inch and a half long and white). Made it to the gorge! at least, 30 minutes later. I was worried that our car was going to get locked in the school area, but we got back before 5:00 and got out safely. Drove back to Gabs (Gaborone for the uninitiated). That night - went out dancing. There was a party for a local USAID woman who's leaving the country. One of the Hashers stopped by our place to invite us along. This is after the great pizza adventure that culminated (the second time it was delivered) in a chicken, pineapple, green pepper and something else indecipherable pizza. All we wanted was cheese with mushrooms! But, the dancing was good (and the beer was free - though there is a brand here that's 3.5% alcohol... can you imagine? 7-proof?) and all in all the day was a success. This week at work - I pitched my oral history idea to the Prof (Dr. Anabwani, the guy in charge here), and had it approved. Found out I actually will be getting money from Baylor for my health insurance (thank god). And spent a lot more time playing with the children downstairs (and taking some vital signs, height and weight, to prep them for their appt with the doctors). Now - it's Wednesday at 4:21. This is officially the latest I've been at work. All the nurses still in the building are playing Solitaire on their computers. One of the two other med students (the only one still at work) seems to have a web page called "counter strike paintball" open. And he's playing pinball on the computer. Well, nice to know I'm not the only useless one here, right? Plans to find Setswana lessons soon! Anyway, love to everyone at home and I'll continue this as I have time. On-on!
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the front of my house
This is the house that Baylor rents from Flying Mission. It's one of two where they put us up. |
my backyard
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Children in Otse
I took this while walking through a village called Otse to get to the orphanage (Dula Sentle - which means "Living Well") Where I've been working. |
