The Hope of a Nation

With each day that passes in this far away village, thousands of miles of home, I am constantly learning new things about myself and my perceptions of the world. Although I am not close to the concrete jungle of NYC, the political quarrels of Washington, the celebrity lifestyle in LA, or the music scene in Miami, I reminded of these characteristics by my learners in my tiny town in north-eastern Namibia. Whether it be the New York City shirts and urban fashion they replicate, the “Obama for Africa” backpacks that most of them own, the famous actors and actresses they ask me about, or the Lil Wayne, Beyonce, or Usher songs they sing on the way to school, America seems to be a part of my and their vernacular a lot. While people in the states may be viewing a divided government, a high unemployment rate, and catfights on the tv, my learners see the true America, a beacon of hope, prosperity, and freedom.
Their desperation to come and live in America does not come purely from the vast wealth we may have, it comes from the sheer opportunity that America offers. We complain about a 9% unemployment rate, however Namibia skyrockets over 50%. In my village alone it is over 60%. When asked what they want to be when they grow up, most reply with the only viable jobs that are here: teachers, store owners, workers at posh hotels, or nurses. At their age, I was foaming at the mouth to be President of the United States, and before that it was an astronaut, a teacher, an archeologist, and an actor. We are fortunate to have that distinct quality to hope for a better day, because we have seen so many examples of it before.
As I try to walk home from school at 4 pm, I do not make it home till 6 pm, due to the trail of learners that want to ask me questions regarding slavery in America, why we have Alaska and Hawaii, why don’t we include Canada and Mexico in our Country, where do the famous people live, and what does our national anthem sound like. These inquiries typically end with them asking me to take them back to America or the surprising request for me to adopt one learner so he can be a citizen. This afternoon, I was asked the most thought provoking question that pressed me to write this blog entry: What is it like being American? I stood there, staring at him, and he waited on his toes for my answer. I offered a quick reply, then came home and thought about it some more. What is like being American? The first word was fortunate. I went to public school till grade 12, when many here only make it to grade 8. I made it to Boston University, when many can only dream about attending college. I traveled the world to Australia, Thailand, Ghana, Israel, Swaziland, and Namibia, when many of them have never even been to the city (Rundu) 2 hours away. I am guaranteed health care, when many here fail to see a doctor due to lack of accessibility. Finally, I enjoy the simple freedom to do as I please, to hope for something better, when many here have lost any sort of hope.
Ultimately, I understand how lucky we are to be from the United States of America, a nation that still offers hope to millions of people, even in this small village in north-eastern Namibia. We may disagree on how our country should be run or if we will remain a super-power over China, but I am proud to say that I from a country that offers hope to these 400 children at Divundu Combined School.

Now back to lesson planning, off to Windhoek (the capital) this weekend , for a meeting with my supervisor.

God Bless America

Peace
Scott

A Whirlwind of a Trip

Since I have not updated the blog in a while, I need to catch all of you up on my weekend trip to Victoria Falls. My village, Divundu, is at the beginning of the Caprivi Strip (google image it), so all cars heading from Namibia to Zambia, northern Botswana, or Zimbabwe must drive through my town. All of the other WorldTeach volunteers are in the Central-North of Namibia, so since a few wanted to see Victoria Falls, it worked out great that their bus had to stop in my town along the way. Although, I am in a prime location for traveling as I am in the vicinity of so many different countries, the problem lies in actually getting to places. There are no taxis, trains, or daily buses in the area, so the only way to get from place to place is hitchhiking. The other volunteers were taking a big bus, the Intercape, that begins in South Africa and travels to Victoria Falls two times a week, so this was a great opportunity for me to get out.

At 6 am I joined the other volunteers on the bus and journeyed for 8 hours till we got to Livingstone, Zambia. Because of school on Monday, we had 24 hours to explore, enjoy, and complete everything we wanted to do. Once we arrived, we immediately got into a cab and went to the Falls. With my heart pounding, legs jittering, and eyes fixated out of the window, we could already see the mist from the falls over a kilometer away. After paying the entrance fee, we ran as fast as we could, then abruptly stopped as we all witnessed one of the seven wonders of the world. There are no words to describe how unbelievable, cool, fantastic, mind-boggling, incredible, and astonishing they are. We ran to each viewing station as the sun set all around us. By 6:00 pm we hopped into a cab, adrenaline still gushing from what we just saw, and quickly went back to the Hostel to get ready for dinner.

At the hostel, I bumped into an American and we had the usual conversation, “where are you from”, “what are you doing here”. Of course, I was thousands of miles from home, in the middle of southern Zambia and…she is a BU grad student with over 15 other students and professors from BU. Of course! I gave her my email, and some of the students might come towards Namibia later in the year and stop by my house. BU geography. I am surprised she wasn’t jewish and I didn’t go to camp or birthright with her.

Once changed, the four of us, took a taxi to the Royal Livingstone Hotel. A 5 star hotel set just a kilometer from the falls. I hadn’t eaten a ‘good’ meal in 2 months, so we all thought we’d splurge, and splurge we did. The place was one the nicest hotels. With gazpacho for an appetizer, Impala and porridge for an entrée, sorbet to clear the pallet, a chocolate dish for dessert, and 2 bottles a wine to accompany the dinner, I was definitely in a good state. During dinner, a Canadian man came up to us asking if we wanted to see a traditional Zambian cultural group perform. He started a non-profit that sponsors one, so it worked out great that he was able to drive us. Although we were enjoying the performance, all of us were ready to hit up the town of Livingstone. We asked the taxi to take us to the best club in town. At the bar, I instantly headed over to the whiskey. Four hours later, we were still enjoying the dancing, the music, and of course the drinks. 4 am came, and I was reliving my BU moments at Ts Pub and Jtree, but we ultimately decided to head home.

With only 2 hours of sleep, we awoke, and moved to our next stop, a helicopter tour. We boarded the helicopter nearby and none of us talked, we just had our eyes fixated out the window. I didn’t think it was possible to top the day before, but this took the prize. From above we could see everything, including elephants grazing right above the falls. Even though it was a short 15 minute ride, the image was captured in my head (and the 100 pictures I took). Afterwards, 2 of the girls did a zipline/bungy near the falls, but I decided to save my mom and dad the heart attack, and enjoy lunch and watch.

At 11 am, we hopped on the Intercape and by 7 pm I was back in the village, preparing for my lessons the next day. That was all done in 24 hours! It was an amazing trip, and luckily I will be back in 3 weeks to enjoy it with the parents.

Keep a look out for another blog post this week. Hope everyone is enjoying the heat in NYC!

Miss you all.

Peace,
Scott

90 Degrees + Packed Car + Baby + Dirt Road+4 hours = Not A Good Combo

If there is one situation where I know my life has drastically changed in a matter of two months, it is this one. Last Saturday, I traveled into Rundu (the big town), to get groceries, use the computers, and see some of my learners perform in a debate competition. I left my house at 5:30 am (freeing cold and darkness) to stand outside and wait, so that I could hitchhike into town. Once I got my ride and made it into civilization, I stumbled upon a great coffee place where I met another volunteer for much-needed eggs, sausage, fries, and coffee breakfast. No bagel, but definitely worth it. After only a few hours in town, I decided to head back home, as I don’t like relying that much on hitch hiking later in the day. Within a few minutes I was able to get into a Kombi (a small mini bus) that would take me directly to my house. Upon entering, I had no idea what I was getting into. The care quickly began to take on more and more people, belongings, and a lot more babies. Soon I was in the back row, my feet up to my chest with luggage on the ground, and a baby crying on my lap, with the mother holding her other baby. A ride, which is usually a 2-hour affair, was now 4 hours long, down a dirt road, and a non-working air conditioning. We stopped at the bank of a river, so half the car and get on small canoes and cross into Angola without going to the border post. I gawked at this crazy sight; I just sat there (baby in hand) laughing at how my life has taken such a different path from that of 2 months ago. Although the experience was painful and tiring, the only thing I could do was smile. I was never the most patient person, so for me to endure these hours felt good in my head.

In my classes, I am continuing along the lesson plans and trying to prepare my learners for their end of term national exam in August. In my English classes, I gave them a test out of 50 points on verb tenses. The grades were…absolutely awful, and I probably failed 75% of the class. However, I have gained enough trust with my learners that they simply informed me that most did not study (mostly because they are not used to taking ‘real’ exams throughout the term). Therefore, I decided to have another test this week, in which I would average the two grades together, to boost up their grades. After school, I offered tutoring sessions and surprisingly I have learners staying for 3 or more hours after school eager to learn more. Their enthusiasm and constant quest for knowledge, makes me excited to go to school each day.

Being a teacher has also allowed me to interact with the learners on a personal level. Each day I will have a line of kids outside my house, asking me how I am and if I need any help with anything. Unfortunately, this perk also comes with a downside. This morning, I was handed a piece of paper during class and was asked to help inform a learner that her father had just passed away in the hospital. The girl is about 15 years old, and I was supposed to perform the daunting and heart wrenching task of telling her that her father had died. It was not easy for me, and I do not think I have experienced anything like that in my life. It was a rough day, and I hope I never have to do anything like that ever again.

After school, I am a still running with a few kids and we will have an official running club set up in the coming weeks. Namibia Marathon 2010 (#college shirts again). I have now become a regular around the town, and I have learned how to have basic conversations in Mbukushu (which makes everyone laugh and scream). They love it! At night, I attend evening study, which I have made into a time where I just joke around, bring some music, and try to make the kids laugh (which is pretty easy, if I say anything in Mbukushu, they crack up).

This weekend I am off to Victoria Falls, one of the 7-world wonders- on the border of Zimbabwe and Zambia, with three other volunteers. At the beginning of August, I am off to capital of Namibia again for a check-in with some WorldTeach volunteers. Deb and Dean are set to invade Namibia August 19, and I can’t wait to finally how this amazing experience with my parents. After that comes, Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, Durban, and Johannesburg South Africa. Great line up coming up.

As some of you heard, I will only be turning on my blackberry every once in a while, email me whenever you get a chance, I love hearing news from the states. Check out some new pics on fbook too.

Peace,

Scott

Do you know Chris Brown and Jay-Z?

Do you know Chris Brown and Jay-Z?

With over one month of my stay in complete, I still cannot get over how fast is going. In 5 weeks, I have already had the adventure of a lifetime, and I can’t imagine what else is in store for me for these next 5 months.

I am finally getting settled with my teaching in both my social studies and my English classes. In my 5th grade social studies class, we are learning about water conservation and rainfall, so they are currently making posters to hang around school to save and conserve water. In my 6th grade social studies class, we are leaning about democracy, so for that I am having them go through the process of electing a class president (speeches, nominating, choosing a vice president, campaigning, and voting). In my 7th grade social studies class, we are learning about population distribution, so I am using the world map to explain the different populations of the world and reiterate how small Namibia is (2 million people- 2nd most least dense country). In my English classes, we just finished up verb tenses (simple and continuous past, present, and future) and they will have their first exam with me on Thursday. I told them in class that they can come to me with any problems that don’t involve class, and now I have slowly become the school unofficial guidance councilor (haha I have students coming to me about home issues, pregnancy, disease, boyfriend, girlfriend, life in America, etc). I wasn’t expecting all of that, but it is actually fulfilling and fun helping them with their problems outside of school.

After school is over, I help out with afternoon study, in which they are supposed to do homework and study their notes. Usually afterwards, I go to the petrol station in town and get the newspaper (The Namibian), and read it over a Fanta. Its always great doing this because I can catch up on some news and I get to see everyone in town. Next, I head over to the local bar to catch up on the World Cup games. The Ghana game last week was absolutely insane. All the kids crowded around a small TV at the hostel at school and I trekked to the bar to watch with 50+ people going crazy for Ghana. It was a tough battle, and everyone thought they were going to win, so it was very disappointing at the end. People were sad for a day, and then they were already back to supporting another team.

By 6, I make dinner in my house. This has been everyone’s main question to me. What have I been eating? Unlike my trips to Ghana and Swaziland, I now have full control of what I make for my meals, so I will not be coming back 30 pounds ligher. Therefore, at the grocery store I buy pasta, canned vegetables, fruit, cheese, sliced meat, and splurge on Doritos, cereal, and cookies. I have bread and butter in the morning, an apple for snack, a chicken or ham sandwich for lunch, and pasta with sauce and veggies for dinner. The difference is I make everything and I can only go grocery shopping once a week by hitchhiking on Saturday morning 200km. So it is definitely an adventure each day. There are MANY times I wish I could just order for delivery a large pizza with pepperoni, but a grilled cheese is fine for now. Finally, by 8 pm I am absolutely exhausted and I am usually struggling to keep me eyes open (I get up each morning at 5 am).

This past weekend I met some Americans in Rundu (the town 200km away) for lunch and in the town I saw about 30 Americans. The peace corp volunteers were having a big celebration for July 4th. On Sunday, it was back to reality, and I washed my clothes (by hand in a bucket!), lesson planned for the week, and hung out with some friends. I now have a ‘crew’ of some of the younger teachers at the school and even some of the 10th grade students (some are 18,19, and 20, as most learners in Namibia fail grades multiple times). I went for a 10k with a few friends and stopped at an unbelievable nearby waterfall, seeing huts, traditional homesteads, people leaving church, and of course goats, cows, and dogs along the way.

As for the title of the entry, almost everyday I will have a learner come up to me and ask me- Is Jay-Z cool in person? Is Beyonce nice to you? How many times have you hung out with Rihanna? Do you know Angelina Jolie? Well since I hang out with all of them, it was easy to answer. Hah. Most only know about America through movies or songs, so they all assume that these are average Americans who could be your friends. You could imagine how disappointed they were when I had to tell them that it is nearly impossible to hang out with these celebrities, and the coolest celebrity I met was Will.I.am enroute to the bathroom in Boston.

Hope everyone had a great 4th. Keep me updated on your lives, I love reading emails from all of you. Currently planning my Debbie and Dean’s trip to Africa now, followed by backpacking trip around South Africa in early September.

Peace, Scott

From Mukuwa to Mr. Scott

Well I finally transferred from being the Mukuwa of Divundu to being Mr. Scott, Social Studies and English teacher. I began my tenure as a teacher last Monday with three 8th grade English classes and three 8th grade physical science classes. While both classes have complete and very thorough syllabi, sample lesson plans, and sample assessments, the school lacks any capacity to effectively carry out a class successful. I began my English class, by speaking and the kids just glaring back at me. According to the syllabus, they should be reading a novel, reading poems, and giving oral presentations. In actuality, they barely know how to carry out a full conversation. In my physical science class, I examined the well-written syllabus with delight, then I asked for the textbook. Indeed, they did have a textbook, however it consisted of doing labs with chemicals, experiments with test tubes, and measuring with a scale…all of which we did not have any.

Despite this, I knew when I coming here that it would be a challenge. So, I rolled up my sleeves and began teaching. In English, I had the students write a letters to me, so I could assess their level. Surprisingly, each one wrote very intimate letters and took their time describing their life. From AIDS, to lack a food, to working in the farm after school, to losing a parent to TB, Malaria, or another illness, these kids have really been through a lot. Currently, we working on simple sentence structures, but I am trying to make the class fun. Today we listened to Michael Jackson (their favorite artist) and I gave them lyrics to the songs and they circled/underlined the verbs, the adjectives, the prepositions, the nouns, and subjects. The day before we read an article on the World Cup in the Namibian newspaper. I think I am finally making headway with them. Ultimately, they had an opening for a 5th, 6th, and 7th grade social studies teacher, so immediately switched from physical science to social studies. Now I am beginning to develop lesson plans for the rest of my months here to make the classes fun and interesting.

The school day is from 6:50 am to 1:00 pm, then the students have an hour break for a very mini lunch, then they afternoon study, where they sit in their class and do their homework and study. Around 3:30 pm I am beat, so I head over to the village bar (it’s no Mantra, Jtree, or Brass Monkey), to watch the world cup games and have an afternoon beer (Windhoek Lager is the Namibian beer- tastes like rolling rock).

On Friday night, a few 10th graders (could be anywhere from 16-21 years old) and me organized an extravaganza night. I bought balloons, apples, and lots of rice. We did bobbing for apples, a dance competition, a singing competition, and a food eating competition (wish it could have been beer pong and flip cup, ha but they were too young). I asked the principal if they could stay up till midnight, and with permission, everything went to plan! All day they are yelled at by their teachers for not performing and at night they suffer in boredom without anything to do besides soccer or talk to one another, so this was definitely an escape. I worked it out with the staff that we can hopefully do this every other Friday. Should be fun.

Other than that, the teachers and students have been amazing towards me. On Sunday, one of the teachers friends had a car so they took me all around the Divundu area. Since I live on a beautiful river, there are 4 star lodges, where the white South Africans/Namibians come up for holiday. They drove us to one, where we got a beer and watched the sunrset and viewed hippos splashing in the water. To top it off we crossed the border into Botswana, which is 10km from my house. Along the way I saw warthogs, Kudu, Spingbok, and herds of zebras. Unbelievable!! I wish I could share this experience with all of you, or if I could just show you my daily life. It’s amazing!

Hope all is well, keep me updated on your lives.

Miss you all

Scott

Mukuwa! Mukuwa!

After my two weeks of orientation, I finally made it to my village of Divundu. On Tuesday, a Ministry of Education vehicle picked up me and the other semester volunteer at 8 am and we set out for our VERY long journey. We would first travel to Rundu, the major’ city in the Kavango region, then part ways. I am 2 hours to the west of Rundu and she is 1 hour to the east of Rundu. The ride up was….barren. Once we were 10k outside the capital, the scenery was desert, then mountains, then desert again. At Rundu, I hopped in a new car and headed towards Divundu in the darkness. I knew I was leaving civilization when we were forced to go very slow due to cattle, donkeys, goats, and dogs crossing the road.
At my village it was nearly impossible to see anything. I was brought to my house by one of the teachers. I am living in a teachers house right behind the school. It is a cement house with a bathroom, a ‘kitchen’ (no refrigerator or stove- just hotplates), and three bedrooms. Two other female teachers and the niece of one with 2 children occupy the two other bedrooms. My room is small box with a locker in it.
Wednesday was the ‘Day for the African Child’, which honors the rights granted to all children. The students had off that day but they performed traditional dances and gave speeches. We were told that the Minister of Education would come and give a speech to our school, so we waited…and waited…and waited (in the blazing sun!). Yet, he did not show up. After school, one of the teachers invited me over for dinner and to show me around the village. The school, which I will be teaching at, is a combined school, in which it has grades 1-10 and the students live at the school. The village is on the Okavango River, a beautiful river dividing Angola and Namibia, and has hippos and crocs. The town has a petrol station and a market, and spread out huts, where the people live. 90% of the population here are subsistence farmers.
On Thursday, I woke up early to travel into Rundu to get my tax id number so I would be able to get paid. Getting into Rundu is a bit of adventure as the only way to get there is by hitch hiking. While this may seem like suicide in the states, it is extremely normal here as it is the only real mode of transport in the rural areas. Therefore, I put my hand up and hitchhiked in car with 4 other people inside. On the way home, I did the same thing, kinda cool and I will definitely be meeting some interesting characters through it. At night, the power went out in the village, so I was stuck using my flashlight and trying to fill out paperwork at the same time.
On Friday and Saturday I attended a big cultural competition at the local Youth Center. 15 schools from the nearby area all came to showcase their traditional dancing. The first day I thought I could walk there, and 6k later, I was burnt and exhausted. My learners (students), all acted out traditional stories and performed dances in costume. It was great! I also got to meet a peace corp volunteer who has been working there for 1.5 years. Good to see another American nearby!
As for the name of this entry, Mukuwa. The people in my village speak a language called Mbukushu. In that language mukuwa means white man. Since it is VERY rare for a white person to be in the village, whenever I walk by people will whisper mukuwa, or kids will scream it. Not offensively, just out of curiosity, and ha because it is true, I am the only white person for miles.
The principal is out on leave till Monday, so I will not begin teaching till Tuesday but it looks like I will be teaching 5-7th grader Social Studies, and upper level English.

Miss all of you.

-The Mukuwa of Divundu

Ame Yame Scott (My name is Scott in MBushuku, my language)

For the past 2 weeks, I have been in Windhoek, Namibia (the capital) at a backpackers hostel for orientation. Each morning and afternoon we have ‘class’ with our field director to discuss the culture of Namibia, take a lesson on the language of the people I will be living with, and tour downtown Windhoek.
The city itself is pretty developed, with a few malls, KFC, hospitals, markets, nice hotels, all over the area. This past Wednesday we went to witness the racial and economic divide that still exists in Namibia. We first visited a former settlement/township called Katutura, which was set up by the Apartheid regime to keep blacks separate from whites. Even though it is 20 years since Namibia gained independence from South Africa, the area has changed very little. Home to a majority of the Windhoek residents with over 120,000 people; the houses consist of tin shacks, little electricity, and little water. We stopped off a local market where I was able to eat meat cooked on a bbq and dried caterpillars (yum). Next we traveled not more than 10 minutes to the hills over-looking the city. Comparatively, this area was mostly all white, had huge mansions, gated communities, nice restaurants, and BMWs, Lexus, and Range Rovers scattering the streets. Pretty shocking that in such a short distance, two very different worlds exist.
At night, we went to a Herero Tribe (a tribe in the North) Restaurant in Katutura. All the volunteers were greeted with goat heads, in which most of us ate the tongue, the skin, the ear, and the eyes (including me!). We ended dinner by drinking a traditional drink, aka sour milk and dancing with people at the restaurant.
On Friday, with the start of the World Cup, a few volunteers and I went to the mall to pick up some last minute items. Everyone was blowing horns, painted in South African colors, and music was blasting. Later in the day we went to a local bar to watch the Mexico v. South Africa game. Watching it with South Africans, Namibians, and other foreigners was unbelievable. The enthusiasm is contagious. The next night we went to another traditional restaurant, with food consisting of porridge, caterpillars, chicken, and spinach. Even this tiny restaurant set up a projector to watch the USA vs. England game. Amazing!
Now I am awaiting the next part of my journey. I will depart on Tuesday morning for Divundu, Namibia, a 12 hour car ride north of Windhoek. This will be my home for the next six months, as I will be teaching English class at Divundu Combined School to multiple grades. I will be living right on the Okavango River, which separates Namibia and Angola, O, and by the way, it is FILLED with hippos and crocodiles. The closest ‘big’ town is 2 hours away and Victoria Falls (one of the world’s seven wonders), is a 7 hour car ride. So, basically…I am far far away from everything. But, I am looking forward to this experience very much, and can’t wait to share it with all of you.

NEXT STOP: Divundu, Namibia

Keep me updated on all of your lives- skarrel10@gmail.com

-Scott