This afternoon when I was heading out to the bathroom, I realized that many of my friends and family reading this blog have no clue what daily tasks are really like in Namaacha. P.S. tasks such as washing dishes and clothes are not as simple as turning on the wash machine or the dishwasher. I will explain some of the more basic tasks and hope that this entry also ends up in the hands of future Peace Corps volunteers heading to Mozambique.
Showering:
Where do I start? When I arrived in Namaacha, I had three buckets lined up in my room; one for laundry, one for showering, and one for bathroom emergencies.
Showering directions: in your room, wrap yourself in a capulana and throw your towel over your shoulders. Grab your bucket, soap, and shower sandals (shower sandals are ESSENTIAL). Fill bucket with water (I fill my bucket with two pitchers of regular water and one tea kettle of hot water) and take bucket out to the wash-house (a cement room with a step/stump in it). Place bucket of water on the step. Rinse, lather soap, rinse, and repeat as many times as needed until you feel sufficiently clean.
Helpful hint for females- bring dry shampoo unless you have the patience to wash your hair regularly. Also, I have found that if I'm washing my hair, I do not have water for anything else so I wash my hair on days with less sweat.
My mom is insistent that I take two showers a day and the warmer it gets here, the more pushy she is for a third mid-day shower. Instead of fighting her, I comply with her rule of two showers, but often times take a pseudo-shower. There are days when I will stand in the shower soaking my feet for ten minutes and other days where I will stand out there and brush my teeth. I have been called out a few times by my sister for not taking long enough showers on a few of my pseudo-shower days. Note to self: I will have to work on my acting skills over the next six weeks of training...
Laundry:
As I mentioned before, you get three buckets, one of which will be used for laundry. Gather three additional basins and fill each with water. Add soap to the first basin and wash your white clothes (if you were foolish enough to bring white clothes to Namaacha) followed by the dark clothes. After scrubbing clothes in the first basin, wring them out and transfer them to the next "rinse" basin. Rinse, wring, and transfer clothes to the last basin. Hang clothes inside out and let them hang outside on the line for only as long as needed (unless you want all of your clothes to look faded).
Helpful hints: heavy cotton clothes are so hard to get soap out, so wring their water out over the first soap basin to avoid getting soap in the rinse basins.
I should also mention, that after washing your clothes, you are expected to wash your shoes and sandals in your basins. To me, this is one of the funniest things in the world, because minutes after putting your clean shoes on, they are dirty again. We have a brush designated for shoe cleaning- I accidentally used that brush to clean my feet the first week here.
Animals:
Lizards in Mozambique are like squirrels in Wisconsin.
Chickens, turkeys, and ducks in Mozambique are like rabbits in Wisconsin- they are procreate like crazy!
Dogs in Mozambique are like wild wolves in Wisconsin (Mozambicans see one and run like mad).
The other night my youngest brother, Ricardo, went out to take a bath after dark. Since he was bathing after dark, he decided he would put his bucket alongside the house and not use the wash-house. Ten minutes after being outside he screamed and seconds later started yelling and crying. He made it into the house in a matter of seconds and managed to pee himself in the doorway.
My sister, Zaida, had a look of complete fear on her face. All I could think was "what in the world made Ricardo cry? He is the toughest seven year old ever- just last week he chased me around with a cockroach in his hands". Ricardo stood in shock for five minutes and finally told us that he had just seen a dog!! Mozambicans are DEATHLY terrified of dogs. Ricardo did not say a word for the rest of the night (which is a first for him). Even to this day, if you say the word dog he flinches and walks away with a painful look in his eyes.
Buying Phone Credit:
Buying phone credit makes me feel like I'm on a James Bond ultra-secret mission. Sellers (mostly teenage males) wear these fluorescent yellow vests with the MCel logo and line up on the main streets in Namaacha. Before picking my vendor (it is a buyers' market), I get my money and phone ready, because I want the process to go as fast as possible. I usually pick the vendor that is not making kissing noises at me and ask to buy 100 MT of credit. The second you start talking to one vendor, three more rush over and try to pull out the credit slip before the first vendor. The process after that is not as exciting- you type in a REALLY long code and verify you got credit before paying the vendor.
Buying credit makes me feel like such a secret agent. I started to buy credit just for the rush of the mission and not because I actually need it...
Bagias:
YUM! I got my first taste of a bagia sandwich on Tuesday and it was delicious. Bagias are fried bean patties (very similar to falafel). You put them on a fresh loaf of bread and enjoy your extremely cheap meal (it costs 13 MT which is approximately 43 cents). Since discovering them after Lena and Maria got one, I have been dreaming of a bagia sandwich (it has become an unhealthy obsession). I am constantly looking forward to the day when I can get my own sandwich!
Other Foods:
I have gotten off the hook pretty easy in regards to eating "strange" foods. The line, "Eu tenho medo" (I am scared) seems to work for almost everything. I have been using the line to get out of eating more chicken feet (I already accidentally ate one, and do not think I can stomach another just quite yet), chicken organs, fish head, and other mystery meats. Sadly, the line stopped working this week. My sister made fish curry for dinner and I was so excited for the curry, not the fish (we had mini-fish which are about as big as sardines). My mom was furious when I skipped the fish and asked why I did not take any. "Eu tenho medo", I responded. The line failed. She got up, put a fish on my plate, took the spine out, and told me to eat it. I am so disgusted by food with bones on/in it- does not matter what the food is, I will not eat it. I put on my brave face, and ate my fish, despite the numerous mini-bones still inside of him. I'm a changed woman!
For now, the hitchhiker's guide to Namaacha is ending. Typing blogs on my phone is causing severe arthritis. I have a busy next few weeks and am looking forward to site visits from November 5-10 (aka a vacation from lessons and teaching).
Ate logo!
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Monday, October 24, 2011
A Week In Review
Here are some highlights from this week.
Monday, October 17: Field trip to Mbuzini (pronounced "buz-ee-knee"). Today we traveled to Mbuzini, South Africa to honor the first president on Mozambique.
October 19, 2011 marks the 25th anniversary of Samora Machel's death. He stood for peace in a country of violence and ruins. We paid our respects to his legacy along with people from all over Mozambique and Africa.
Crossing the border was an interesting experience. Peace Corps volunteers alongside tons of Mozambicans entered South Africa in groups of 20. We were not allowed to leave the country until 13:00 when we were instructed to grab a mystery box lunch and wait for guards to clear us out of the country. Crossing the border was this overly/underly official process.
Tuesday, October 18: Cross-cultural cooking day. Today our language class gathered in my kitchen to commence our four and a half hour cross-cultural cooking lesson. Dylan, Sara, and I assisted our families in making a Mozambican dish, a green leaf curry with rice and xima (pronounced "she-mah").
Afterwards, Dylan, Sara, and I made tacos (a very "American" dish). Our families looked so upset when they found out we were making "salad sandwiches", but to my surprise, everyone loved the tacos. My mom asked me to make them again on Sunday for my siblings!
Today marked the day I killed another chicken. This was the first chicken I killed sozinha (alone). I was so surprised I worked up the courage to kill the chicken alone that I walked around the neighborhood and boasted of the job I had done. My mom walked taller the entire day and was especially proud of me!! I am hoping that she will stop bringing home chickens for me to kill now that I showed a proficiency in killing chickens (I will be tested on household proficiency tasks during week five of training).
Wednesday, October 19: Sick. I stayed in bed all day as a result of food poisoning. I am feeling much better now and looking back, I really appreciated the day off.
Thursday, October 20: Ngoma time. Ngoma time is time set aside for cross-cultural experiences. We taught our language teachers tons of American games (wheel-barrel races, three-legged races, the crab walk, etc.) and they loved it. Some volunteers even performed a line dance for the teachers. Ngoma time is a nice way to relax at the end of a long day.
Friday, October 20: De-braiding. With help from Lena and Marie, the project took about thirty minutes. All my hair can say is "BAM!". My hair fluffed out like a peacock showing off its feathers. While having braids was great, I am thoroughly enjoying having long locks of hair again.
Saturday, October 21: German bakery and Mozambican wedding. This morning, I wandered over to the German bakery for a snack in-between sessions. Yum! It is worth standing in line for the fresh bakery. I got two treats- one was a cookie sandwich with a jam filling and the other was a puff pastry with a jam filling and a bit of frosting. I'm not doing justice to either treat, but they were delicious.
When I got back from my sessions today, my mom informed me that her cousin (my second cousin) was getting married and we were going. Sadly, we missed the ceremony, but we made it to the reception. Mozambican weddings are WILD and full of singing and eating.
On our way to the reception, we saw the wedding party leave the church (I should note that Lena and I saw the truck stuffed with members of the wedding party swerving down the main road in Namaacha on our way to the bakery hours earlier). I thought we would get to the reception at the same time, because the wedding reception had to drive up the road about 100 meters before arriving and we had a bit farther to walk, but I was wrong! The wedding party took at least another hour and a half to arrive. When they arrived, the newlyweds were greeted by the entire community. After entering, the bride, groom, and either his or her mother and father cut the first piece of cake. The bride and groom ate their first piece together and then took their first drink together. Following that, the bride shared a piece of cake with the man (either his or her father) and then a drink, while the groom did likewise with the woman (either his or her mother). Finally the bride and groom were allowed to share a kiss.
Dinner started with everyone washing their hands and then making a mad dash for food. I'm not quite sure how my mom got our food in that dash, but I was thankful for it. The food was AMAZING. She only brought me a small sample, but we had rice, beans and a crushed peanut sauce, potatoes (two different ways), chicken, and bolachas (bolacha is cookie in Portuguese).
Following dinner, the couple received their presents. Groups of families sang and danced their way to the front table to drop off their presents to the couple. The gifts were given to the bride who then passed them to the groom who then passed them to the woman (either his or her mother) and then they were passed to the man (either his or her father) and then put into a pile. This was one of the most beautiful parts of the reception- the songs were full of blessings for the newlyweds. During presents, I was sent home by my mom (I had been at the reception for 7 hours and it was getting dark). Rumor has it, the party was just beginning!
Sunday, October 23: Day of rest? Today I slept in until 5:15 and stayed in bed until 6:30! My mom was shocked I stayed in bed so late, and as my mom in the US said, "she is going to think you are a princess"- my Mozambican mom definitely called me a princess.
After getting out of bed, I started my chores- sweeeping and mopping my room and the dining room. I did my laundry (by hand), finished my two lessons for this week, cooked tacos for lunch, and baked bolachas for Chris (my family's first volunteer who is visiting this week). I am glad they consider Sunday the day of rest- I would hate to do more work than I already did!
This upcoming week is going to be packed. I am teaching two chemistry lessons in Portuguese! We will also be traveling to a school in Matola to observe chemistry lessons. I am also looking forward to my mock LPI (language proficiency interview) and two permagardening sessions.
Ate logo!
Monday, October 17: Field trip to Mbuzini (pronounced "buz-ee-knee"). Today we traveled to Mbuzini, South Africa to honor the first president on Mozambique.
October 19, 2011 marks the 25th anniversary of Samora Machel's death. He stood for peace in a country of violence and ruins. We paid our respects to his legacy along with people from all over Mozambique and Africa.
Crossing the border was an interesting experience. Peace Corps volunteers alongside tons of Mozambicans entered South Africa in groups of 20. We were not allowed to leave the country until 13:00 when we were instructed to grab a mystery box lunch and wait for guards to clear us out of the country. Crossing the border was this overly/underly official process.
Tuesday, October 18: Cross-cultural cooking day. Today our language class gathered in my kitchen to commence our four and a half hour cross-cultural cooking lesson. Dylan, Sara, and I assisted our families in making a Mozambican dish, a green leaf curry with rice and xima (pronounced "she-mah").
Afterwards, Dylan, Sara, and I made tacos (a very "American" dish). Our families looked so upset when they found out we were making "salad sandwiches", but to my surprise, everyone loved the tacos. My mom asked me to make them again on Sunday for my siblings!
Today marked the day I killed another chicken. This was the first chicken I killed sozinha (alone). I was so surprised I worked up the courage to kill the chicken alone that I walked around the neighborhood and boasted of the job I had done. My mom walked taller the entire day and was especially proud of me!! I am hoping that she will stop bringing home chickens for me to kill now that I showed a proficiency in killing chickens (I will be tested on household proficiency tasks during week five of training).
Wednesday, October 19: Sick. I stayed in bed all day as a result of food poisoning. I am feeling much better now and looking back, I really appreciated the day off.
Thursday, October 20: Ngoma time. Ngoma time is time set aside for cross-cultural experiences. We taught our language teachers tons of American games (wheel-barrel races, three-legged races, the crab walk, etc.) and they loved it. Some volunteers even performed a line dance for the teachers. Ngoma time is a nice way to relax at the end of a long day.
Friday, October 20: De-braiding. With help from Lena and Marie, the project took about thirty minutes. All my hair can say is "BAM!". My hair fluffed out like a peacock showing off its feathers. While having braids was great, I am thoroughly enjoying having long locks of hair again.
Saturday, October 21: German bakery and Mozambican wedding. This morning, I wandered over to the German bakery for a snack in-between sessions. Yum! It is worth standing in line for the fresh bakery. I got two treats- one was a cookie sandwich with a jam filling and the other was a puff pastry with a jam filling and a bit of frosting. I'm not doing justice to either treat, but they were delicious.
When I got back from my sessions today, my mom informed me that her cousin (my second cousin) was getting married and we were going. Sadly, we missed the ceremony, but we made it to the reception. Mozambican weddings are WILD and full of singing and eating.
On our way to the reception, we saw the wedding party leave the church (I should note that Lena and I saw the truck stuffed with members of the wedding party swerving down the main road in Namaacha on our way to the bakery hours earlier). I thought we would get to the reception at the same time, because the wedding reception had to drive up the road about 100 meters before arriving and we had a bit farther to walk, but I was wrong! The wedding party took at least another hour and a half to arrive. When they arrived, the newlyweds were greeted by the entire community. After entering, the bride, groom, and either his or her mother and father cut the first piece of cake. The bride and groom ate their first piece together and then took their first drink together. Following that, the bride shared a piece of cake with the man (either his or her father) and then a drink, while the groom did likewise with the woman (either his or her mother). Finally the bride and groom were allowed to share a kiss.
Dinner started with everyone washing their hands and then making a mad dash for food. I'm not quite sure how my mom got our food in that dash, but I was thankful for it. The food was AMAZING. She only brought me a small sample, but we had rice, beans and a crushed peanut sauce, potatoes (two different ways), chicken, and bolachas (bolacha is cookie in Portuguese).
Following dinner, the couple received their presents. Groups of families sang and danced their way to the front table to drop off their presents to the couple. The gifts were given to the bride who then passed them to the groom who then passed them to the woman (either his or her mother) and then they were passed to the man (either his or her father) and then put into a pile. This was one of the most beautiful parts of the reception- the songs were full of blessings for the newlyweds. During presents, I was sent home by my mom (I had been at the reception for 7 hours and it was getting dark). Rumor has it, the party was just beginning!
Sunday, October 23: Day of rest? Today I slept in until 5:15 and stayed in bed until 6:30! My mom was shocked I stayed in bed so late, and as my mom in the US said, "she is going to think you are a princess"- my Mozambican mom definitely called me a princess.
After getting out of bed, I started my chores- sweeeping and mopping my room and the dining room. I did my laundry (by hand), finished my two lessons for this week, cooked tacos for lunch, and baked bolachas for Chris (my family's first volunteer who is visiting this week). I am glad they consider Sunday the day of rest- I would hate to do more work than I already did!
This upcoming week is going to be packed. I am teaching two chemistry lessons in Portuguese! We will also be traveling to a school in Matola to observe chemistry lessons. I am also looking forward to my mock LPI (language proficiency interview) and two permagardening sessions.
Ate logo!
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Adventures in Namaacha
On Sunday, October 16 we got our first glimpse of a secondary school. As part of the Peace Corps 50th Anniversary celebration, the trainees and a member of their family cleaned the Secondary School of Namaacha. My assignment was to sweep the classrooms. I feel terrible and am ashamed that I ever complained about the old lecture halls in the chemistry building at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. These classrooms were litered with candy wrappers, bags of chips, and balls of paper. Some rooms were covered in layers of dust and dirt so thick that with every stroke of the broom a cloud of dust would shoot up and sufficate the room. I took some pictures because I do not think my words will do justice to the terrible conditions of these classrooms. (As I mentioned before, I will post pictures when I am in a city).
Many of the classrooms had no more than twenty desks or tables, but as we have heard time and time again, these classrooms sometimes seat over 100 students. (Students are forced to sit on the floor and others stand outside and listen to class through the windows). I can already tell that I will have a difficult time adjusting to this new school setting. I am fortunate enough to have attended schools that foster learning, creativity, and a community that supports every student and family. If all of the schools in Mozambique are as cold as the Secondary School of Namaacha it is no surprise that children skip school regularly and even drop out.
I am currently in the midst of cooking for my family and wished I would have selected another recipe. I am cooking chili, but so far my beans are overcooked and I am probably lacking some serious flavor. Luckily, I started cooking at 13:00 and have until 18:00 to finish the dish. That is five hours of flavor development!
As promised I have been writing down recipes. Over the course of the next few days I will work on converting measurements such as one pretty teacup of flour into meaningful measurements for people without the same pretty teacups as us. In regards to food and recipes, add bok choy to soup! We add bok choy to every dish and it ceases to amaze me. Also, add a little salt and chicken stock (approximately one cube) to the water while cooking rice.
Ate logo!
P.S. I finished making and eating dinner before posting this blog and I am proud to say dinner was a success!! My chili was such a hit that everyone took seconds and there are no leftovers (which is a bummer because I really wanted chili for lunch tomorrow). Looks like I will be cooking "American" food every weekend!
Many of the classrooms had no more than twenty desks or tables, but as we have heard time and time again, these classrooms sometimes seat over 100 students. (Students are forced to sit on the floor and others stand outside and listen to class through the windows). I can already tell that I will have a difficult time adjusting to this new school setting. I am fortunate enough to have attended schools that foster learning, creativity, and a community that supports every student and family. If all of the schools in Mozambique are as cold as the Secondary School of Namaacha it is no surprise that children skip school regularly and even drop out.
I am currently in the midst of cooking for my family and wished I would have selected another recipe. I am cooking chili, but so far my beans are overcooked and I am probably lacking some serious flavor. Luckily, I started cooking at 13:00 and have until 18:00 to finish the dish. That is five hours of flavor development!
As promised I have been writing down recipes. Over the course of the next few days I will work on converting measurements such as one pretty teacup of flour into meaningful measurements for people without the same pretty teacups as us. In regards to food and recipes, add bok choy to soup! We add bok choy to every dish and it ceases to amaze me. Also, add a little salt and chicken stock (approximately one cube) to the water while cooking rice.
Ate logo!
P.S. I finished making and eating dinner before posting this blog and I am proud to say dinner was a success!! My chili was such a hit that everyone took seconds and there are no leftovers (which is a bummer because I really wanted chili for lunch tomorrow). Looks like I will be cooking "American" food every weekend!
Adjusting
Life in Mozambique is different than life in the United States. 51 of us have been thrown into houses in Namaacha and asked to adopt a different lifestyle than our own. Being here for nearly two weeks has given me time to adjust and reflect.
Business Casual?:
Business casual in the United States generally means skirts or dress pants with a nice blouse for women and either khakis or dress pants with a polo for men. In Mozambique, business casual clothing follows different rules. Sandals are business casual for women if they have a form of BLING attached (bling = shiney object)! The bling rule continues to confuse me daily. I had to change shoes today because I
wore my strapy Tevas to language class. Days earlier my language teacher, Sonia, wore sandals that were on their last leg. According to Mozambique dress code rules, her sandals were acceptable because she had bling. Someone please send me a beadazzler so I can bling my shoes!
I should also mention that if you dare test the waters and wear sandals to class, your feet need to be spotless. Just a hint of dirt and you're no longer business casual. The catch is that Namaacha is famous for its red dirt. I scrubbed my feet with a rock for ten minutes today and my feet are still stained!
Water:
My family has no running water- not even a single pipe in their house. My sister fetches water at least twice a week and carriers a 45 pound jug on her head and a 15 pound jug in her hands each trip. On average, she takes three trips each time she restocks our water buckets. Last weekend I decided to make the trip for water with her. After filling our jugs she insisted that I carry the jug on my head, but I refused.
I was so scared that my neck would break with all of that weight. I carried a 45 pound jug in one hand and a 15 pound jug in the other. Long story short- I'm doing pushups every day in preparation for my
next trip to the water station.
Uncontrolled Burns:
People in my village are constantly burning their "gardens". My mom burns our garden at least once a week after sweeping our "lawn". For those of you without a bachelor of science in biological aspects of conservation I will explain the science behind burns (I need to practice my teaching skills before standing in front of classes of 100 students). The people here plant a root vegetable (in Costa Rica they refer to a similar plant as "the poor man's potato). The problem with planting the same crop in the same place year after year is that the crop drains the soil of the nutrients the crop needs to grow. By burning the surrounding area, the people are trying to replenish the nutrients without giving the soil a year to rest. The science behind the burn method is supported- burning successfully replenishes some of the nutrients the soil is lacking. The problem here is that the people have uncontrolled burns in severe heat. My neighbors started a fire and left (for reference, this fire was bigger than a typical Steve Macejkovic fire). The nearby houses are made of dried plant leaves. Smart idea? In my opinion, uncontrolled burns are a terrible idea no matter where you are, but maybe the people here know better than myself! Adjusting to clouds of smoke is on my list of things to do.
Greetings:
Similar to in the United States, greetings can be either formal or informal. Unlike in the United States, formal greetings get complicated here. From the time you wake up until 12, noon, you can say bom dia (good day). From 12, noon, until you go to bed you can say boa tarde (good afternoon). When you go to bed (and only when you are going to bed) you can say boa noite (good evening). Rumor has it, kids stare at clocks waiting for seconds to pass after 12, noon, so they can switch their greeting from bom dia to boa tarde!
Another custom in Mozambique is that you greet everyone you pass, even if you don't know them. When walking to class, I always give myself an few extra minutes because the neighbors are usually waiting outside their houses to greet me.
Life is going very well here. I was getting frustrated with what seemed like no progress in language class, but my language teacher had nothing but positive things to say about my progress. During tutoring I interviewed Sonia and then she interviewed me. The last question she asked was something along the line of, "how are your studies going?". I told her that learning Portuguese is much more difficult than I imagined and having a ten week deadline makes learning a language even more stressful. She stopped me in the middle of my sentence and said, "Anna, we are having a conversation in Portuguese and we haven't spoken a single word in English during this interview. That is amazing progress. In a week and a half you are able to have a conversation with someone entirely in Portuguese". While Sonia's obsevation was quite basic, it hit the spot. I realized that I really do know enough Portuguese to survive in Mozambique. I am excited to continue my studies and continue my steady progress! (I also just got a 99% on my paper about my family in the United States. I am so proud I am going to post it online because my family in Mozambique doesn't have a refrigerator to post it on).
Ate logo (until later)!
Business Casual?:
Business casual in the United States generally means skirts or dress pants with a nice blouse for women and either khakis or dress pants with a polo for men. In Mozambique, business casual clothing follows different rules. Sandals are business casual for women if they have a form of BLING attached (bling = shiney object)! The bling rule continues to confuse me daily. I had to change shoes today because I
wore my strapy Tevas to language class. Days earlier my language teacher, Sonia, wore sandals that were on their last leg. According to Mozambique dress code rules, her sandals were acceptable because she had bling. Someone please send me a beadazzler so I can bling my shoes!
I should also mention that if you dare test the waters and wear sandals to class, your feet need to be spotless. Just a hint of dirt and you're no longer business casual. The catch is that Namaacha is famous for its red dirt. I scrubbed my feet with a rock for ten minutes today and my feet are still stained!
Water:
My family has no running water- not even a single pipe in their house. My sister fetches water at least twice a week and carriers a 45 pound jug on her head and a 15 pound jug in her hands each trip. On average, she takes three trips each time she restocks our water buckets. Last weekend I decided to make the trip for water with her. After filling our jugs she insisted that I carry the jug on my head, but I refused.
I was so scared that my neck would break with all of that weight. I carried a 45 pound jug in one hand and a 15 pound jug in the other. Long story short- I'm doing pushups every day in preparation for my
next trip to the water station.
Uncontrolled Burns:
People in my village are constantly burning their "gardens". My mom burns our garden at least once a week after sweeping our "lawn". For those of you without a bachelor of science in biological aspects of conservation I will explain the science behind burns (I need to practice my teaching skills before standing in front of classes of 100 students). The people here plant a root vegetable (in Costa Rica they refer to a similar plant as "the poor man's potato). The problem with planting the same crop in the same place year after year is that the crop drains the soil of the nutrients the crop needs to grow. By burning the surrounding area, the people are trying to replenish the nutrients without giving the soil a year to rest. The science behind the burn method is supported- burning successfully replenishes some of the nutrients the soil is lacking. The problem here is that the people have uncontrolled burns in severe heat. My neighbors started a fire and left (for reference, this fire was bigger than a typical Steve Macejkovic fire). The nearby houses are made of dried plant leaves. Smart idea? In my opinion, uncontrolled burns are a terrible idea no matter where you are, but maybe the people here know better than myself! Adjusting to clouds of smoke is on my list of things to do.
Greetings:
Similar to in the United States, greetings can be either formal or informal. Unlike in the United States, formal greetings get complicated here. From the time you wake up until 12, noon, you can say bom dia (good day). From 12, noon, until you go to bed you can say boa tarde (good afternoon). When you go to bed (and only when you are going to bed) you can say boa noite (good evening). Rumor has it, kids stare at clocks waiting for seconds to pass after 12, noon, so they can switch their greeting from bom dia to boa tarde!
Another custom in Mozambique is that you greet everyone you pass, even if you don't know them. When walking to class, I always give myself an few extra minutes because the neighbors are usually waiting outside their houses to greet me.
Life is going very well here. I was getting frustrated with what seemed like no progress in language class, but my language teacher had nothing but positive things to say about my progress. During tutoring I interviewed Sonia and then she interviewed me. The last question she asked was something along the line of, "how are your studies going?". I told her that learning Portuguese is much more difficult than I imagined and having a ten week deadline makes learning a language even more stressful. She stopped me in the middle of my sentence and said, "Anna, we are having a conversation in Portuguese and we haven't spoken a single word in English during this interview. That is amazing progress. In a week and a half you are able to have a conversation with someone entirely in Portuguese". While Sonia's obsevation was quite basic, it hit the spot. I realized that I really do know enough Portuguese to survive in Mozambique. I am excited to continue my studies and continue my steady progress! (I also just got a 99% on my paper about my family in the United States. I am so proud I am going to post it online because my family in Mozambique doesn't have a refrigerator to post it on).
Ate logo (until later)!
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Greeting from Namaacha!
Hello! I am happy to announce that I am loving life in Namaacha.
I am currently living with a host family. I have a mother, Suzana, two brothers, Fernando and Ricardo, and one sister, Zaida. My mother is the first of two wives, so the father of my siblings is never here. It is fairly common for men to have two wives- especially in Namaacha because many of the men from the village work in the mines in South Africa. The men will have two families- one in each country!
We live in a cement house and I have my own room with electricity (aka one lightbulb and no outlets). Across from our house we have three more buildings- a kitchen, a bathroom, and a shower. Our kitchen has a "two-burner" charcoal grill that my mom does all of the cooking and baking on (she even baked a cake and biscots on it this week).
I usually wake up by 5 am (our neighbors start blasting their stereos at 5:30- so if the roosters and chickens haven't already waken me, the stereo will). Every other day I sweep and mop my room, the hallway, and the kitchen before showering. (Showering in Mozambiqur consists of filling a bucket with a mix of boiling water and regular water and pouring that over your body. I take two bucket showers a day and don't mind them at all). After my shower I eat and either go to class or to Peace Corps informational sessions. I am learning Portuguese pouco a pouco (little by little). Having a background in Spanish has made it much easier to understand Portuguese, but spekaing is a different
story!
My first week in Namaacha has been full of new experiences and adventures. On my first night with my host family, I watched my brother kill a chicken (the experience was rather gross). After watching him kill a chicken I was handed the knife and asked to kill the other one. To my surprise, I managed to gather the courage to kill the chicken with a knife no sharper than a butter knife. The job did not stop there- I also had to de-feather the chicken and slice him into pieces. My mom used every last piece of the chicken and made a braid from the intestines (the intestines were probably my dinner later that week). I also ate a chicken foot my first week in Namaacha. To be honest, I had no clue I was eating a chicken foot until I got to the toes.
I am learning tons from my family! I help my mother cook every night and have been picking up small tricks here and there. I will try to post a curry recipe soon, but translating is very difficult becuase my mother knows the names for ingredients in Shangana (the local language) and not in Portuguese. If anyone can tell me what mandioquiera is I will be one step closer to an amazing curry recipe.
The weather here is great, but very unpredictable. One day it is cold, the next day it pours, and then the day after that it is scorching hot. We are moving into the rainy season which means hot days and tons of bugs. I have made peace with the mystery bugs that hang out in my room, but the second they move from the window to the ground they are dead meat! This morning I was greeted by a lizard in the bathroom. I seriously thought about making him a house pet because lizards=less
bugs.
Please forgive any spelling errors- I am writing this blog on my phone.
PS I should have the internet on my phone for one month so I will try to post as often as possible. Sadly, the internet here is very slow so posting pictures will have to wait until I go to a city.
Ate logo (until later)!
I am currently living with a host family. I have a mother, Suzana, two brothers, Fernando and Ricardo, and one sister, Zaida. My mother is the first of two wives, so the father of my siblings is never here. It is fairly common for men to have two wives- especially in Namaacha because many of the men from the village work in the mines in South Africa. The men will have two families- one in each country!
We live in a cement house and I have my own room with electricity (aka one lightbulb and no outlets). Across from our house we have three more buildings- a kitchen, a bathroom, and a shower. Our kitchen has a "two-burner" charcoal grill that my mom does all of the cooking and baking on (she even baked a cake and biscots on it this week).
I usually wake up by 5 am (our neighbors start blasting their stereos at 5:30- so if the roosters and chickens haven't already waken me, the stereo will). Every other day I sweep and mop my room, the hallway, and the kitchen before showering. (Showering in Mozambiqur consists of filling a bucket with a mix of boiling water and regular water and pouring that over your body. I take two bucket showers a day and don't mind them at all). After my shower I eat and either go to class or to Peace Corps informational sessions. I am learning Portuguese pouco a pouco (little by little). Having a background in Spanish has made it much easier to understand Portuguese, but spekaing is a different
story!
My first week in Namaacha has been full of new experiences and adventures. On my first night with my host family, I watched my brother kill a chicken (the experience was rather gross). After watching him kill a chicken I was handed the knife and asked to kill the other one. To my surprise, I managed to gather the courage to kill the chicken with a knife no sharper than a butter knife. The job did not stop there- I also had to de-feather the chicken and slice him into pieces. My mom used every last piece of the chicken and made a braid from the intestines (the intestines were probably my dinner later that week). I also ate a chicken foot my first week in Namaacha. To be honest, I had no clue I was eating a chicken foot until I got to the toes.
I am learning tons from my family! I help my mother cook every night and have been picking up small tricks here and there. I will try to post a curry recipe soon, but translating is very difficult becuase my mother knows the names for ingredients in Shangana (the local language) and not in Portuguese. If anyone can tell me what mandioquiera is I will be one step closer to an amazing curry recipe.
The weather here is great, but very unpredictable. One day it is cold, the next day it pours, and then the day after that it is scorching hot. We are moving into the rainy season which means hot days and tons of bugs. I have made peace with the mystery bugs that hang out in my room, but the second they move from the window to the ground they are dead meat! This morning I was greeted by a lizard in the bathroom. I seriously thought about making him a house pet because lizards=less
bugs.
Please forgive any spelling errors- I am writing this blog on my phone.
PS I should have the internet on my phone for one month so I will try to post as often as possible. Sadly, the internet here is very slow so posting pictures will have to wait until I go to a city.
Ate logo (until later)!
Monday, October 10, 2011
The life in Mozambique
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| This is the view from our hotel in Maputo, Mozambique. Off to the right along the coast is downtown Maputo which looks very similar to New York's busy downtown with tons of buildings |
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| Loading my luggage into the car the night before I left for Mozambique. Please don't be fooled by the picture- the luggage was very HEAVY. |
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| The packing room before organizing my clothes into piles of "love it", "like it", and "hate it". Thanks to my mom, the fashionista, packing went smoother than expected. Thank you mom! |
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| Another view from the hotel in Mozambique. |
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| The 17th group of peace corps Mozambique. |
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