Mozambique The Sequel (2)

The fish market in Maputo is where all the fresh catches are brought, including some live crustaceans. It is an area with dirt ground a tin roof and rows and rows of tables with the fresh catches. The ground is puddled with...blood...and...stuff....and scales, and there are rats. Still, for fish lovers this is the place to be. Through the fish market it an open area of restaurants, each with a kitchen waiting for people to take their freshly bought fish for preparation. We didn't exactly know how the system works, so we foolishly listened to the pushiest merchant/kitchen guy who took us to his kitchen. Other kitchen people came over and tried to take us to their places and pretty soon a fight broke out, threatening violence. In order to avoid bloodshed we quickly sat down at a table. Matt went and picked out two kinds of fish I'd never heard of and we ordered some plates of rice to go with it, having been assured that the rice was complimentary with the fish. We also ordered some drinks and tried to be patient but we were all pretty hungry. After being in a dry desert country seafood sounded like ambrosia and honey. Food of the gods, in other words. At one point Matt and Chris went to go inquire about how our food was coming along and we were invited to venture into the back of the restaurant (I use that term very loosely) and see the chef preparing the fish. It was very dark and sooty, with a huge barrel full of scales and guts, and our fish was being seared over and open fire. It was all very impressive.

When we finally got our food it was magnificent, and the rice was extremely tasty to match. We stuffed ourselves on fresh fish. After the meal things got complicated. The bill. It sucked. They tried to double charge us for our drinks and then they wanted to charge us for six plates of rice (there were three) even though we had been assured the rice was complimentary. I was not going to stand for this shit, so we got into a shouting match about it. Eventually the price was lowered to two plates of rice (or was it three?) and then the cost of fish preparation. It definitely left a sour taste in our mouths and was a sobering reminder that we were white tourists to be taken advantage of, not hungry restaurant goers in search of a good meal. TIA.

Going back through the now darkened and empty market place we saw some BIG rats. It was scary.

After dinner we decided to check out one of the local bars. It was a sports bar and looked more upscale and therefore less creepy. There were flatscreen TV's broadcasting the rugby world cup everywhere, so the boys were happy. We did some shots, including one called 'Pixie Dust' which involved tequila and absinthe. After the bar we went back and crashed into our beds at the Base. The next day we left in the morning for Xai Xai and Casa Ericka!

Mozambique Numero Uno

On Friday Mumsy left to go back home (a lot of flying involved) and I left for Mozambique. However, on Thursday night I left my purse with my waller, phone, and keys in the back of my friend Diana's car and I didn't realize it until I was standing in front of my door. Well luckily I had left a spare key with my friend Alexis, so I was able to get into my room. Once in I pulled my closet key out of it's hiding place and was able to access that stuff. Then, I completely panicked. I had no way to reach Diana and she had all my stuff. How could I go to Mozambique without my wallet? I barely slept and I just fussed and worried myself into a heap. By morning I remembered that Diana had once written down her phone number in my notebook, so I borrowed my friend Brooke's phone and called her. Diana dropped off my purse, and life continued. We had agreed to meet in the courtyard at 10 am, which was also the time the combi we hired was supposed to arrive. Because this is Africa, he arrived at 11.30 and had no directions or clear idea of our trip. He also had his girlfriend. Lesh and Tulu were their names, and despite a rocky start, they turned out to be pretty cool. It was a vacation for them too, and they were clearly in vacation mode. With the help of GPS we got under way and withint a half hour had arrived at the Botswana/South Africa border. Crossing was a pain in the neck, but we all got more stamps in our passports at least. Driving through South Africa was stunning- rolling hills and mountains, little towns nestled here and there, big cities, flat expanse of bush, and nice paved roads. It took us all day to drive through SA and we began to get worried that the border between SA and Mozambique would be closed before we got there. Because we started late we were more than a little irked with Lesh. As it turns out the Mozambique border is open 24/7 for the month of September only, so even though we arrrived around 11.30 we got through. As we were driving through the big gates there were security guards doing vehicle checks. We saw some guy open up the back of a van filled to bursting with supplies (there were a lot of vehicles like this) and hop in. The guard didn't notice him. TIA. We drove some more and finally arrived in Maputo around 2 am. The place we stayed at was called Base Backpackers and was a cozy little hostel. It had a small TV room, four dormitories, two bathrooms, a kitchen, a balcony, and a basement. We all trudged into the dormitory we were sharing and fell into bed immediately. Because there was no bedding provided other than sheets and a gross pillow, I was very glad of the sleeping bag mumsy had kindly bought for me before I left.
In the morning we discoverd a frenchman and bedbugs.

The whole next day we explored the city of Maputo. It is the capital of Moz, and located in the south of the coastal country. It is an exciting mixture of artsy, poor, high end, tropics, and Africa. Quite a change from dusty little Gabs! The people speak Portuguese and it is a lot more European than Gabs. However, no one in Mozambique knew what or where Botswana was...eventually Lesh ended up telling them it was in the States and people would nod and go along with it. Now the thing you need to know about Maputo (and Mozambique in general) is that the cops are very corrupt and will charge you for anything just so they can get a bribe. Lesh had to bribe his way out of a ticket for not wearing his seatbelt; he had been wearing it, and only took it off when the cops pulled us over and told him to. We were warned to always carry our passports with us, or run the risk of being thrown in jail.
Aside from all this, Maputo was gorgeous! We wandered around town, marveled at the site of a body of water, and explore the weekend craft market. Craft markets in Moz are much different than Bots (of course) and so all the items for sale were new and exciting. The merchants were pretty crazy though. We couldn't stand still without being surrounded by people insisting we buy things from them. Two or three of the merchants were so persitant that they followed us out of the market and down the street. We managed to shake off one who was selling a ugly wooden mobile, but another, with batique cloth, followed us all around the city! It was so rediculous! He only stopped when the cops pulled him over. We really hope they didn't end up beating him...
We ate lunch at cool little cafe overlooking some tennis courts in the park. We found it by following a colorful mosaic on a cement retaining wall. It was a good find. After lunch some of us had money problems to sort out. Only two of the six of us had remembered to call our banks and tell them we were travelling. No one would exchange pula for medicaish (the local currency) and so were stuck. Luckily one of us, Matt, had some US dollars to change, so he bought us time at an internet cafe where we used my unlimited skype calling to reach our banks and our families. It was a hassle, and took hours, but eventually it all got sorted out. With money in hand we got ready for dinner at the famous fish market. That, however, you will have to read about in my next post because I am running out of quota time for my blog. Until next time!

The Rest of Mom's Visit to Bots

It was still pretty early and we didn't want to end the day there, so after a refresher at UB we called a cab to take us to Riverwalk. Our plan was to get there, eat some Debonairs, and then catch an 8.15 movie, but apparently our cab driver had no idea where Vegas dorms are, so he was 40 minutes late. His name is Brenda and he is smarmy. We really don't like him. Anyway, when we got to Riverwalk it was getting close to movie time but we thought that we just might make ordering food, gobbling it up, and getting in. Well, food took longer and since we had ordered a large pizza it wasn't exactly like trying to sneak in a can of soda or a bag of chips. The lady at Debonairs helpfully sped up our order when we told her our dilemma. The fact of the matter was, though, that we would either have to sit down and eat and miss some of the movie, or find a way of sneaking a large pizza into the movie theatre. All three of us were game for the latter. Debonairs lady brought us a paper bag and helped us fold our piping hot and fresh pizza in two and stuff it in. In effect, we had created a big pizza sandwich, all of which was oozing greasy, cheesy goodness into Mom's new purse. We made it in though, and sat down and ate our pizza sandwich in the dark while enjoying our movie.

On Monday I went to my morning class, ARC, and then head right back to Innisfree. I had booked a safari trip at Mokolodi for mom and I in the afternoon and I wanted to make sure that we would get there on time. Batsi had said the best way to get there without having to walk to mile to the gate was via taxi, so we called our favorite driver. Mokolodi is a bit of a drive outside of the main city of Gabs, but the drive is very scenic. One can get a good sense of the Botswana countryside, which is all bush. After we arrived we only had to wait around for a short while until our vehicle and our guide arrived. There was just one other person on our safari tour, a Canadian businessman named Neil. It was a little odd to be riding as a tourist in the place I logged so many leaf raking hours. We saw a lot of great critters! Giraffes (they were very shy), antelope, wildebeest, a monitor lizard, ostriches, kudu, warthogs, Letoatsi my cheetah friend, and some of the stars of Mokolodi, a white rhino and her two month old calf. They came pretty close to the vehicle and we managed to get great photos. While we were watching the rhinos our guide parked the vehicle and passed out bags of chips and drinks. Mom and I both discovered the deliciousness that is Appletizer, otherwise known as sparkling apple juice. Yum! Still, after the excitement of the game drive and the heat of the day we decided to have another tasty meal...somehow the single bag of chips just didn't cut it. I had been talking up Equatorial Cafe so much so Mom suggested we go there. We did and shared a meal so that we would conveniently have room for the delicious ice cream over at Milky Lane. Good planning on our part, I say. After dinner we wanted to continue our night, but since we had just seen a movie the night before and there really wasn't anything to do at night in Gabs besides drink we decided to go back to UB and watch a movie in my room. I put on 'Death at a Funeral' because it's a classic and Mumsy hadn't seen it before. After the movie we said goodnight and so ended another exciting day in Africa.

On Tuesday morning I got a ride over to Innisfree from my friend Diana and she suggested that Mom and I check out Botswana Craft. It sounded like a great idea so we called a cab (Brenda, the smarmy one. Our usual guy wasn't working) and headed over. Botswana Craft is a building full of handmade crafts from all over Botswana. There is everything from San/Bushman jewelry made from ostrich egg shell beads, to wooden animal carvings, to biltong (which is basically beef jerkey), to postcards, to the beautiful handwoven baskets that are so famous around here. We took our time browsing and soon each of us had accumulated quite the pile. I found a lot of gifts for friends and family, as well as some pretty things for myself. Mom was really fascinated by the baskets and we looked through what felt like hundreds of them trying to find the prettiest pattern and the best weave. They came in all sizes, a range of shapes, and used beautiful earth tones. It turns out that in order to gather the ingredients needed for basketry the women make a three day trek into the wilderness and often come face to face with dangerous animals. In one instance, while crossing a rive with a group of women, one of them was bitten by a crocodile. Everyone fled except her sister who had the presence of mind to beat the croc on the head with an axe until it released her.

After made our numerous purchases were had worked up quite an appetite so we went to the little tea garden which adjoined the store for lunch and some cool drinks. The food and the service were excellent, and it was extremely pleasant to sit and catch a breeze and look at the gardens. Incidentally, it was the same place I had been to for a concert months before. We called our cab and went back to Innisfree after lunch and I, being a genious with a mind like a steel trap, left my phone in the back of the car. I discovered this when Mom and I wanted to order Debonairs for supper. Fortunately the front desk was able to call the driver and arrange for him to drop it off. We were also able to use the room phone to order a pizza. So I got my phone (Brenda, the smarmy, wheedled and tried to get more money out of us), we ate our food, and then we went back to Mokolodi for a night time game drive. We had had such a fantastic time on the day drive that we wanted to experience the other end of the spectrum too. This time it was just us and we were drastically under dressed for the chilly night. Our guide drove us slowly along and we were surprised to come upong a large male kudu right on the trail fairly early on. He was unconcerned about our vehicle and took him time ambling away. After that we didn't see much except for some thick knee birds, a couple of night jars, and some hares. We came across antelope and hartbeest eventually, and even saw a small herd of eland! Eland are rare in Mokolodi. Letoatsi was hiding for the night, but one of the resident hyenas was napping near the fence and so we got a good look at him. Most of the time we just saw glowing green eyes peering out at us from the bush. It was cold, so so cold. Nonetheless, we had a beautiful drive and were happy to see the stars in the clear night sky. Success!

On Wednesday Mom came over in a cab to UB and hung out in my room on the computer while I did some much needed laundry and a few other tasks around campus. I bought her a papata so that she could experience the deliciousness! We decided to spend our morning and afternoon exploring the National Museum, which was conveniently located nearby. It's a free museum and has good exhibits (if a little dusty and worn) on the natural and social history of Botswana. There is a good bit on the ecology of modern Botswana as well. I have so far found two taxidermied hedgehogs there. They are Phin's cousins alright, but he is much more handsome. Outside there are a few of the round huts with thatched roofs called rondavals, well as a dried up pond. One drinking fountain completes the ensemble. We were disappointed not to be able to find the gift shop, and a little more disappointed that the art gallery was apparently closed, but we rallied gamely and walked over to Main Mall. Mother is a big fan of Alexander McCall Smith's No 1 Ladies series, so I took her to one of the places often written about in the books. Mma Remostwe, the main character, likes to sit at the President Hotel and drink tea, so that is exactly what we did...except we drank Appletizer and ate sandwiches instead. There was a big read sign reading “Mma Remostsww Tea Corner”. We were very pleased. The view looked out over the hustle and bustle of Main Mall; street vendors, music, shops, and crowds. It is a good place to people watch. We left lunch and went to join the throngs and made our way through the street, stopping occasionally. We decided to go back to Game City after this excursion and once there we were both parched from waiting in the scorching sun for a cab. Mumsy suggested getting a cold drink and we spotted a cool looking coffee shop on the second floor, so we headed up. It's called Mugg & Bean and we soon discovered that both the food and drinks are especially delicious. I got a surgary iced coffee drink, something I sorely missed, and mom got a fruity drink which was very creamy and full of chunks of real fruit. So good! When we sipped the last drops from our drinks we made our way to the theatre to see “Crazy Stupid Love”...again. I enjoyed every minute of it, and I think mom did too. The movie took us right up to dinner time, so we high tailed it back to Mugg & Bean for more tasty food. On the menu we saw that they had fajitas. This sounded good to us, so we ordered some to share and some more of the fruity shake. The waitress was very pleasant and took our order for “fa-jee-tas”. TIA. Just thinking about that dinner now makes me hungry! I wonder when I can go back and get more...Too bad mom won't be there too.

On Thursday I went over to Innisfree and we decided to head back to Riverwalk and take care of a few errands. We made the rounds to Pick n' Pay, Cape Union (Mom bought me a wonderful sleeping bag!), Woolworth's, Mr. Price, and Exclusive Books. We spent a long time and a lot of money in the book store. One of the books mom bought was Cry of the Kalahari by Mark and Delia Owns. I am currently reading it and loving every page. I highly recommend it if you are at all interested in the wildlife of Botswana/Africa! When we had finally exhausted the mall mom suggested oh-so-casually that we go back to Botswana Craft. Needless to say, I did not argue. We arrived happened to meet up with our favorite cabby right away (he was already at Riverwalk) and we happily made our way to Botswana Craft. I bought a pair of earrings I had been thinking about, and one or two more gifts. Mom enquired about the history and culture behind a beautiful wooden nativity she had bought there before. We again browsed the baskets, and this time we were armed with a book about them. After shopping we went back to the tea garden. Mom decided to go local and be brave and ordered oxtail soup. It was served with an enormous dumpling- larger than a baseball! We had some refreshing seasonal juice and were all in all quite pleased with ourselves. While waiting for a cab back we goofed around taking photos by the fighting zebra sculptures out front.

Back at Innisfree I collapsed face first on the bed and was asleep instantly. I hadn't realized how exhausted I was. After my little nap Mom and I made plans for our last evening together. We contacted my friend Diana to see if she wanted to have dinner with us and we agreed to meet her at an Indian restaurant at Riverwalk. Because we had some hours to kill we went back to our favorite place, the movie theatre, and saw 'Friend With Benefits' for the second time. Again, we liked it just as much the second time around. How can you go wrong with Justin Timberlake? When the movie was over we still had some time on our hands so we sat on the comfy couches outside of the theatre and chatted. Now I am all excited about the new Three Musketeers movie coming out. When we got bored of sitting we got up and very slowly took care of some window shopping. Woolworths is very entertaining for mom! Finally it was time for dinner and we went to Embassy, the Indian restaurant. The food there is always good and the menu has a lot of selection. Mom and I always decide to order several dishes and split them because it is just too hard to pick on. Plus, as Matt knows, I have abulia and can't make decisions. Diana joined us and together we ordered a magnificent feast! We also have very quality conversation and as dinner wore on I tried not to think about saying goodbye. That time came in the end, of course, and Diana helpfully gave us a ride to Innisfree. Mom and I hugged and said goodbye many times. I was annoyed that the security guard was hanging around creepily outside. When I left at last I asked him, “So, you watching me?” He said yes and started to say something else slimy, but I said, “No one cares, you're creepy,” and left. Diana gave me a ride home and that was that. Mom and I had a really fantastic week together and did so much it's all a whirlwind! I had to have her send me the notes she jotted down in her cool guinea fowl notebook just so that I could remember it all. African holidays with mom are the best!

Schoolwork and Mumsy's Visit, Part 1

Nose to the Books:

Since Mother is coming to stay on Friday for the week, and since the week after that is the trip to Mozambique I am trying to get as much work done this week as possible. I don't foresee too much time spent on homework in the future. My Arc class has an important paper coming up and Batsi dropped a 5-8 page paper full of interviews and cultural research (scary!) on us. Have I mentioned that Jerk Face McGee is a completely worthless teacher? He was spinning some more ridiculous notions about things, so I made a face. He decided to then launch into an attack on the U.S. saying things like, “Completely twisted and back handed politicians. A dirty history of shame. A scare on our country's history.” Whoa, slow down there Mr. Insecurities, aren't you the one who never stops talking about the U.S. and Britain? Give me an example of a country whose politics aren't back handed and twisted. A scar on your country's history? Hmm...if I remember correctly it's the British who used you as a protectorate, ignored you, and then threw you away because of your apparent uselessness. Hmmmmm.

Anyway, today I left campus in the morning to get some passport photos and get paperwork from the Mozambique embassy for our trip. Along the way we were walking through a field when Jamie stops and says, “Elephants.” We were all confused for half a minute before we saw them. Two circus elephants peacefully munching on some hay next to their trailer. Nearby was a trailer made up of about six cages, each with two lionesses chowing on chunks of meat. There were two white lionesses as well and they were quite a sight. Behind the lion trailer was a similar trailer but filled with tigers. Only one tiger per cage, and the reason for that was they were already snarling and lunging at each other. It was pretty terrifying. I am against circuses because of their inhumane animal practices, but I have to admit the sight of all these animals just sitting in a field (or a cage) was impressive. So now I have seen my first elephants and lions in Africa. Too bad I couldn't rescue them.

Mom's Visit- 16.9.11

Picked Mumsy up from Sir Seretse Khama airport on Friday evening. The cab I called turned out to have a pretty cool driver, so that's a number to keep. I got to the airport about an hour and a half early; partly because I was excited and partly because I wanted to be absolutely sure not to miss her arrival. I ended up reading my Henry VII library book, which was boring, for a while. Then I wandered the tiny airport. Her flight arrival time from Joburg was pushed further and further back. Eventually I ended up at the terminal bar drinking a Savanna Dry to kill time. One flight got on, but it was from Francistown. A young Irish woman came to the bar and ordered a beer, so I struck up conversation with her for lack of anything else to do. We chatted pleasantly (she is from Dublin, is working in Gabs, has been here for a year) until Mom's flight actually did arrive. Mom, as it turns out, made a friend on the plane. Her new friend is a probably-diplomat with three children- a son not much older than me, and two young daughters. She and her son are from Bots, but lived in the States for about 20 years and now they are back. Apparently the son, Femi, misses the States, and so we exchanged numbers so that we could gather our US friends and hang out in the future.

We left the airport and got a cab back to Mom's hotel, Innisfree Apartments. The room is comfortable, clean, and has a great view of the backyard full of palm trees, grass, jasmine, and a small pool. It pretty much looks like Florida. After we dropped her bags off we went right to Riverwalk for a late dinner. The only place still open was Linga Longa and we got the last food orders in before the kitchen closed. The food was good, the people were noisy, and we were tired so after dinner Mom went back to Innisfree and I went to UB.

The next day, Saturday, we got up early and I met her at the hotel to walk to Riverwalk and check out the weekend craft market. Mom bought a gorgeous hand crafted bag right away (which was to prove very useful in all our adventures) and I got some trinkets for friends and a cool cloth map of Africa in the 1590's. After that is was off to UB for Mom's first visit to my tiny (yet cozy) dorm room and some classic UB food for lunch. Mumsy took a short nap and I worked some on homework. Amanda and Megan came by briefly to introduce themselves because that's how cool they are. When we were done at UB we took another cab to Game City for dinner and a movie. Only it ended up being a movie (Crazy, Stupid, Love) and then dinner. We ate at a cool Portuguese restaurant. Who knew there was one of those in Gabs? After dinner it was back to Innisfree and UB.

Sunday I got up early again and scooped up Mom and we caught a taxi to the bus rank. Just FYI, do NOT take Smiley Cabs if you are in Gabs because they way overcharge. They suck. The cab fiasco over, we got on one of the buses to Mochudi and were pleasantly surprised when it didn't fill with people, so we were able to sit comfortably. The ride was shorter than usual and we arrived in Mochudi ahead of schedule. We got on a route 7 cab almost immediately and what with one thing and another we ended up in front of Mogorosi Shop and my host family's house an hour early. Oops. When we walked through the gate into the yard we were greeted by my host mother and sister, who were busy hurrying around and getting things ready. Mom and I made introductions and then went out back so that I could introduce her to the pups. Sepiso informed me that they had sold the larger of the two white pups to a family in Remotswe. I hope he does alright! He seems very young to leave Mama Dog, but life is tougher for a pup her than at home.

After visiting with the dogs we visited with the family. We distributed the gifts and everyone seemed pretty pleased. Granny tried on her scarf and seemed pleasantly surprised that we had brought her something. Sepiso immediately put on one of the pairs of earrings and some of the blue nail polish. Lesedi tried on his shirts and gave us hugs. Lone toted her unicorn pillow pet around, and host mom came out of the kitchen to thank us for her kitchen accoutrement. Lunch was ready about 45 minutes later and it turned out to be a pretty rich spread. My host family pulled out all the stops, including using the nicest dishes and chair covers. We ate while watching some BTV, per usual, and then I helped Sepiso to clear away the dishes. I had a bit of a Nam flashback to doing dishes all the week before by candle light. Luckily this time I didn't actually have to wash anything. After the dishes were gone and we had sat for a bit host mom brought out the crowning glory of food on Mochudi; the trifle. I was so pleased! Mom and I discussed possibly making it at Christmas time. I took photos of it, so check out those on facebook and beware of your mouth watering.

We left about half an hour after the trifle and host mom and Sepiso put us on a combi to the bus stop. Mom's first combi ride! We didn't have to wait long at the bus stop, but it was hot and there was no shade. Luckily, Mom had her trusty umbrella with her, so there was some relief. The ride back to Gabs was very hot and we were on a bus circa the 1950's. I caught a small nap until we arrived in Gabs and got out at the bus rank. It took us no time at all the catch a combi back to UB.

Mochudi Part Deux

Other Things:

I spotted the coolest pair of shoes! They are built a bit like Puma's, but the outer shell is a silky pale green with ruffles, and the shoe laces are the same green but made of velvet. They were so pretty I almost drooled! Also, this morning (Thursday) I saw a gecko come out of a crack in the wall of my house in Mochudi. Instead of creepy centipedes they have cute little geckos! My sister Sepiso said that geckos were icky and that she wouldn't be able to sleep if she saw one in her room. Oh well.

More On Mochudi:

I am back from Mochudi now and I am happy to have my own space again in my room at UB. Although right now, as usual, my roommate has a loud pack of friends taking over. I will miss the giant bathtub, candlelit baths, puppies, home cooked meals, and people who aren't noisy rude friends of my roommate.

Most of the week I feel like I spent in commute! I got up Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday at 5 am in order to get to the bus stop at 6.30 and class by 8 or 9 am. The buses are cramped, but in the morning it is blissful to zone out and watch the countryside go by. I got off at Main Mall, which is a very interesting place to be, and either walked or caught a combi to UB. Wednesday morning I was 10 minutes late to my PR &Advertising class, which by the way hasn't met for the past month and is now being taken over by Jerk Face McGee, and the door was locked. The other 10 or students with me all tried knocking on the door for a while. No response. We slipped a note under the door asking to please let us in. No response. Jerk Face was on a power trip again. His class, when I went again on this past Monday, was solidly two hours of worthless facts about famous people in the U.S. and poor information on the Ivy League and criticisms of WWII. So worthless.

Anyway, Thursday was my last day of class for the week, so I was quite excited to sleep in on Friday morning. For breakfast we had soft porridge, which is porridge with creamy milk and sugar mixed in. Not the dread sour porridge, which is porridge with sour milk chunks mixed together. My host mom invited me to come to a funeral with her on Friday and I agreed. Funerals here in Botswana can take all week and there are many parts. There is a lot of food, a lot of people, and a lot of socializing. On Friday we reached the home around noon and set up chairs in the shade. There we sat for approximately five hours, being fed plates of food every so often. As with everywhere in Botswana the fare was sorghum porridge/corn meal, beef liver, and sauce. There was the also the grisly equivalent of two dead cows hanging from a tree in the yard. The hides of the cows were taken out and hosed down, then rolled up and left in a heap which looked disturbingly like a sleeping animal. Here the meat is not cooked or frozen right away, but left in the tree all day. It was still there when we let around dark.

My host mom noticed how glazed over I looked (everyone was speaking in Setswana, so there was really nothing for me to do) and invited me to come help the other young women cook vast tubs of dough into papatas and fat cakes. Mmm, delicious! There were three of four HUGE metal tubs full of dough, and one team of women was in charge of shaping the dough balls. Another team, myself included, shaped the dough balls into the appropriate papata shape. Then we placed them on iron cooking “stoves”, which really looked more like woks, over hot coals and waited for them to bake. So I was busy doing that for a while, and then a large group of people left to retrieve the body (always referred to as a corpse) from the mortuary. When they returned the coffin was carried inside and everybody sang. Then we sat and several people spoke. Again, it was all in Setswana so I am not sure what they said, but it seemed very similar to a standard eulogy.

Then it was time for dinner. Then, home at last. My host mom managed to fill a Tupperware bin full of papatas and fat cakes for me; in the morning these had all been eaten before I even got to them. A bitter disappointment.

Saturday my host mom got up at 4.45 am and returned for the final part of the funeral, which was the actual burial. I was not asked to go along this time, so I was able to sleep later. I got up and had a tasty breakfast and then...sat around for a while. I asked my sister Sepiso if there was anything in Mochudi that I could sight see, or at least check out. She said no. I later found out that this was not true- some CIEE kids got to go rock climbing, swimming, attend a festival, and other no doubt fabulous activities. Instead, around noon, Sepiso took Lone and I to the shops, which turned out to be a small strip mall next to the gas station and combi stop which was a hubub for activity. There was a Spar (hooray!), some hardware stores, a Chinese clothing store, and a few other miscellaneous places. We mostly sat around while Sepiso visited with friends. Then we went grocery shopping I was happy to get my hands on my latest food obsession, yogurt.

When we got home I walked across the road to my favorite little shop, Mogorosi, and bought Lesedi, Sepiso, and myself some cold Fanta's in glass bottle. I favor grape, myself, and I bought a pineapple and an orange for the others. Then, after a lunch of chips (fries) and Fanta I decided that it was high time for a nap. The heat of the day is a good time to hide from the sun and do absolutely nothing. When I woke up I had a text saying that my friend Grant was having a bonfire and his family was cooking a braai. A braai, in case I haven't mentioned it before, is like a barbeque. It basically means, everyone come over, we have an abundance of food and chibuku! Okay, I exaggerate here, most people won't touch Chibuku with a ten foot pole. It is, after all, sorghum fermented with yeast and poured into a milk carton and sold without shame for the bargain price of P5. Yep, that's less than $1 for a whole carton. The real challenge comes when you try to choke down a whole glass. Some CIEE-ers are getting quite good at it and will finish a whole carton. It takes a lot of Chibuku to actually feel the alcoholic effects, however. There was dancing (mostly enjoyed by the little kids who were Grant's host siblings) and we even made s'mores. They were comprised of regular marshmallows, heavenly Cadbury milk chocolate, and tea biscuits, which means buttery cookies. I think these were an improvement on the usual graham crackers and Hershey's.

When it was time to go I texted Sepiso and asked how I was supposed to get home. In order to get to the bonfire in the first place I had to take a taxi to the combi pick up, and then get on a combi to the police station, and walk a short distance from there. Sepiso texted me back to call her friend Bico. I did, and he said he was already waiting for me. Alright-very-well-so, I found him sitting in a school bus, waiting to pick me up. It turns out he was very talkative and friendly and dropped me off right in front of my house, free of charge. Yay for Sepiso's connections!

Sunday morning and afternoon I helped my host mom and sister cook a big lunch and make the most delicious custard desert. It was a layer of custard, sprinkeled with a layer or crushed cookies, topped with cream, then a layer of jello, and repeated about four times. Oh yes, just think about that. I sincerely hope they make it again when mom and I go visit on Sunday.

After the big meal it was time for goodbyes (I spent a lot of time with the dogs) and then Sepiso and Lone and I got a cap to where the bus was waiting to take all the CIEE-ers back to Gabs.

So that's my story.

Mochudi Days

Mochudi

Starting on Saturday 9/3 all the CIEE students were taken to spend a week with host families in Mochudi, a “village” which is 45,ooo people strong. It takes about two and half hours to commute from Gabs to Mochudi. The income level goes from very poor to rich and everything in between. Batsi selected our families for us (of course) and he scattered us both around the village and in terms of the income level of our families. We are expected to live not as guests, but as actual members of the family and help out with chores and so forth,

I think I ended up in a pretty good place. I have a mother, a granny (whom I never interact with. To tell the truth, she is a bit scary and stays in her room), a 28 year old sister, a 15 year old brother, and a 5 year old niece. They live in a nice house, which consists of a main house where most of the family lives, and a back house where mom and I stay, and a bathroom attached to the back house. The bathroom has a gigantic tub and HOT WATER! The hot water from the tub is also what the rest of the household uses for washing dishes. There are also two sheds, one of which is home to three tiny two week old terrier puppies. They are so cute! I can't even handle it most of the time. They are just learning to walk, and since they are so new they spend most of their time sleeping in a heap wherever Mama Dog decides to stash them. I need to think of names.

Besides Mama Dog, there is another small white dog with long curly fur and a cheery disposition. His name is Fundi and he is chained up all the time. He's not dangerous, he just goes berserk with joy whenever anyone comes near. There is a third adult dog who is much larger and is a mixed breed. He/she looks similar to a German Shepard/Australian Shepard mix and is very pretty and very shy. This dog is more aloof where as the others are centered around the house. Yesterday evening I went to the shop right across the street from my house with my brother, Lesedi, and I bought a can of dog food for them. In Botswana dogs are not pets, so they stay outside, are very dirty, and don't get a lot to eat. I thought I would give them an extra treat. Mama Dog especially needs extra food and a rich diet since she has three pups to feed. Lesedi, who is uncharacteristically fond of dogs for a Batswana, helped me dish out the treats. He is always the one who gathers table scaps and leftovers for the dogs.

My sister, Sapiso, is mainly in charge of helping me out. She cooks and takes care of her 5 year old, Lone, in addition to doing her own thing. In the morning she makes me breakfast and sends me to school with a lunch. She helps me get around and she sent me to church on Sunday with Lesedi and Lone. Church, by the way, was a very interesting experience. My sister Sepiso lent me a head scarf so that I was properly covered as all women are expected to cover their heads. I walked with Lsedi and Lone the ten or so minutes it took to get there. It was a medium sized building with a wing for senior and important women, a wing for men, and a wing for everyone else, namely young women and children. Lone went and squirmed with the little kids, Lesedi went with the boys, and I sat on a bench amongst a group of girls my age who were all wearing the “church uniform”. All the men and women who were members had a conservative blue and white outfit that matched. I say members because this is my best guess as to why most people had on matching outfits and some didn't. The whole service was conducted in Setswana and there was a lot of singing. I pickout the Joy to the World tune, as well as Clementine. A man would be preaching, and at any given moment one of two of the women would decide that it was time for a song and so they would start to sing, which prompted everyone else to stand up, start singing, and clap. Sometimes less than a minute would elapse between song interruptions. The service was still going strong at 2 hours and 45 minutes when Lesedi came and got me and told me we were going home. Lone was already outside.

I spent the rest of the weekend watching Botswana TV and eating. So far this week the majority of my time has been spent commuting, I think. I get up at five or six am in order to catch a bus to Gabs and get onto campus on time. Monday morning Sapiso put me on a cab to the bus stop, where I met up with Megan (another CIEE-er) and her host sister. We were supposed to be waiting for a bus to Gabs, but her sister flagged down a car and put us into it. Before I knew it I had officially hitched a ride in a car with several other commuters. We made record time into Gabs for only P10 (the same price as the bus) but we had also broken a cardinal rule of Batsi's. Oops. The car dropped us off in the outskirts of the city where we caught a combi to Main Mall. From there we made the aquaintance with another American, a lady in the Peace Corps who hailed from none other but Green Bay, WI. She pointed the way to UB for us, so we walked the rest of the way.

Tuesday was a little smoother, but I walked to the bus stop just as the sun was coming up. It was cold, and I was alone this time. I got on an actual bus, and later on a bunch more of us CIEE kids got on. I took the bus to Main Mall and got out and walked again. Now it's Tuesday afternoon and I think I have to navigate back to Mochudi on my own. Yesterday I caught a combi to the station, got on a bus to Mochudi, then in Mochudi I got on another combi to my house. Yep, that's a solid sweaty and cramped 2.5 hours of transit all for the bargain price of P16.60.