weekend of peace and quiet!

Had a wonderful weekend. Went camping at a place called Ngwempisi (still having trouble with the multiple consonant sounds). It’s a community tourist initiative where all the proceeds from the camp go into the local communities. The eco-camp is set in the mountains in this extremely rural part of Swaziland. There was no electricity but we did have running water.

All of the hikers/campers shared on big hut built along side the mountain. Everything used to build the hut was taken from the land – stone walls, local wood and so forth. One wall of the hut was the face of the mountain (rock), ¼ was wood/stone and the rest was all open concept. I could see the stars from the top of my bunk bed. The best part was the washroom. It had proper plumping and a shower but it was completely outside. You’d sit on the toilet and you could almost hang your feet over the side of the mountain. Despite the cold water it was the best shower I’ve ever had – I almost felt like I was in Japan again preparing for an onsen. It felt so nice just to relax and hear nothing but birds, wind in the trees, the river below and the occasional dog barking.

1. entrance to the hut
2. bathroom
3. moi

random writings

on the way to mozambique

I sometimes wish I could teleport what my eyes are seeing into your head. It’s the everyday little things that make life so interesting.
***
Walking to and from the konbi rank (minibus station) is always interesting. Even though this country has a population of less than 1,000,000 and Manzini less than 100,000, the konbi rank is a combination of bus fumes, mass crowds, vendors, drunks, business men/women, honking, sweat and unbelievable noise. As I walk there after work, I pass vendor after vendor (called hawkers) selling fruits, veggies, clothes, airtime for cell phones, shoes, candies, newspapers and so forth. The hawkers line both sides of the street, behind them are various shops and bakeries. In front of the hawkers are pedestrians trying to find space on the side walk. Beside the pedestrians are men resting on their cars with their car door open. There are no formal taxis here, just men with cars who take passengers wanting a ride. They greet me with “hey baby…need a taxi.” It drives me crazy. I’M NOT YOUR BABY!! On the other side of the ‘taxis’ is mixture of j-walkers, cars, buses and konbis. From 4-6pm it is virtually a standstill. I hope for the best every time I try and cross the street. I find my konbi, if I’m lucky it’s almost full and we don’t need to sit around waiting for it to fill up. If I’m unlucky I have to sit in the back row where they squeeze four passengers.
My drive takes about 20minutes. Getting out of the station is a nightmare. Konbi drivers are seriously the best drivers in the world. I have no idea how they manoeuvre in such tight conditions. Once we get out of the ‘city’ and into my hood we pass mud huts, barbed wire fields, cattle, chickens and dogs in the road, men selling corn being roasted in a big metal can, children playing with plastic bottles, a few shops and so forth. I love looking out the windows and always see something new.
***
I love feeling hungry and stepping outside my office. Do I buy from the fruit vendor? Do I want peaches, pears (the best ever), oranges, bananas or apples? Not in the mood for fruit….corn corn and more corn. Boiled or barbequed? I love it.
***
Dear African Woman: Please teach me to balance buckets of fruit on my head. How do you carry a baby on your back (wrapped in a towel), two pales of water in each hand and a bundle of something on your head? When you see me wearing pants do you really think that means I’m ‘easy’? How do you feel when your husband takes a second and third wife?
***
How hot is it? When the wind blows it feels like someone is pointing a hairdryer at me.

mozambique weekend get-a-way

leanne and susan in the back of a truck during one of our hitch hiking missions

boy getting ready to dance
Went to Maputo, Mozambique for the weekend and had a great time. We were there for just short of 48 hours but took full advantage of our time. We didn’t realize that Saturday was Maputo’s 120th ‘birthday’ and the city was in full throttle party mode by 5pm. We hit an outdoor festival/dance party and I’ve never seen so many people in my life. We were a little nervous at times but I couldn’t stop myself from dancing. The people there (especially the men) can DANCE. One gentleman and I had a serious dance off and when we finished we were surrounded by people cheering and wanting to join in. By 11 some of the girls I was with wanted to go however myself and another girl wanted to stay. Luckily two Afrikaans men who we met at the hostile offered to stay with us and act as our body guards. As much as I hated needing someone big and strong, I definitely felt safer. ‘Tube’ (because he looked like he had a tier around his stomach) told me later some Mozambiqian men were trying to buy me from him….for one beer!! Please! I was so offended. Lol

We visited a really remarkable art gallery where local artists had collected weapons from the recent civil war and made pieces of furniture and art from them. It was really interesting. I realized I know nothing about this country and need to do some research, especially because I plan on going back again.

Mozambique is really different compared to other countries I’ve visited in the region. Hardly anyone spoke English and we didn’t speak any Portuguese. It made me feel like I was travelling again. We hitchhiked as often as possible cramming cars and filling the backs of trucks. Not to brag but I did do all the hitching! Next time I hope to hit the beaches as swim in the warm ocean water.

Did I mention we ate seafood all weekend long? I forgot how much I missed the smell of the ocean and the wonderful tastes of sea creatures.

orphans' kitchen

Why do I forget my camera every morning? I could kick myself. I swear I’m going to leave here with 5 photos.

I attended a meeting at a primary school yesterday. The school was exactly like something you’d see on one of those TV shows asking for donations for ‘poor’ Africa: cracked, faded chalkboards, wooden benches badly needing repair, window panes with the glass smashed out, a church in the yard that looked like it had been under a bomb attack and of the course the children - bare foot and wearing faded, ripped uniforms holding empty bowls as they waited for the first meal of the day (12:30pm). They were very interested in my being there. We shared a lot of smiles, high fives, ‘thumbs up’ signs and so forth.

It’s called an orphan’s kitchen because most of the students at the school are orphans. I was told many live in homes without adults. Most of their parents had died (I assume from HIV/AIDS but I’m not sure). Because they have no one to take care of them, the eldest child becomes the head of the household and raises his/her siblings. I asked if anyone visited the house to make sure they were ok but I was told probably not. This kitchen was their only source of food.

During the meeting a woman got up and asked for some help. She runs the orphans’ kitchen and had run into some problems. An international NGO based in Manzini had donated some maize. Maize is a staple food here. While she was happy with the donation she did not have the equipment nor the funds to process the maize (it can’t be eaten until it becomes mealy meal – sorry not sure of the technical production terms). When my translator told me this I couldn’t believe it! Is this a normal occurrence? Do NGOs not research where they are donating their goods? Did they know that the food was going to be completely useless until this woman could fundraise enough money to process the maize or get the equipment? Meanwhile I’m watching all of these children holding their bowls waiting for lunch and wondering when the current supply of mealy meal would be finished. I was on a mission – contact the NGO, find out what was going on and get this maize ready to be eaten!


I was speaking with my supervisor this morning and told her what had happened and that I needed to contact this NGO. She said next week I could go back to the school/kitchen with a field officer, pick up the maize, take it to a mill, have it ‘produced’ and take back to the kitchen! I couldn’t be happier. However now I’m worrying…..what will they do next time? Is my one time help really beneficial as it’s creating an unsustainable solution/dependence?

culture sharing

me, modo (host mom) and mpiwa

wawa (10) and mpiwa (6) making hallowe'en masks

Canadian culture to Swaziland!

I brought Hallowe’en to Japan and now I’ve brought it to Swaziland. Last week I went trick or treating with my host brothers and it was so much fun. Over the weekend I had purchased an art kit and some paper plates. All week long we made masks – cats, butterflies, spiderman, scary things and so forth. It was good to be able to bond with them. Susan, (another cci intern) lives down the road from me. She and Carolyn (another intern) went to Susan’s house after work while I went home to get the boys. To their confusion I made them carry their pillow cases (I did try to explain but it was lost in translation). Along the way to Susan’s house I taught them the Hallowe’en ‘chant’. They loved it (or at least the candy). Gazi, the 21 sister who lives with me, came along too. They were disappointed to learn that Hallowe’en is only once a year.

Last week we had a sports day to raise money for Megan and her purse project (see previous entries). One of the events was ultimate frisbee. I was so surprised to learn that the Swazis and Aussies had never played frisbee before! It was such a fun match although I became very competitive…..it was shocking, I yelled at an 11 year old girl “10 second rule 10 second rule!” I am now trying to organize a weekly ultimate frisbee session.

Totally unrelated….it’s sooooooooo hot. I really can’t describe it. I think yesterday was the hottest day I’ve ever experienced. Luckily I heard the good news that December is the hottest month. I can’t even imagine what it’ll be like. I am enjoying my heat rash though. Very sexy.

SHG

I had a really interesting day at work yesterday and of course I didn’t have my camera! I must remember to bring it with me because I never know what I’ll see. I think I mentioned in a past post that while Imbita works in some ways as a micro credit agency (with a focus on savings) I didn’t understand how it helped the really really poor. Yesterday I learnt about a whole other division within Imbita that I wasn’t aware of, the division that helps the really really poor.

They have a program called Self Help Groups (SHG). This program is set up to help those who aren’t able to save enough by themselves in order to be eligible for a loan. Basically SHGs consist of a minimum of 10 rural women who pool a weekly savings together. They are then able to borrow money from the pool they have collected. Once (or if) they reach a certain level, they can open a bank account a start a proper account. If they do not have an account, each member holds onto the money for one week, until the next weekly meeting where they pass on the money and chairperson responsibilities to someone else. These groups teach leadership, budgeting and decision making skills.

Most groups ask each member to save between E1 and E2 each week (roughly $0.02). For some even E1 is too much however we met one group who were able to save E7. The women then devise a system for how the money can be loaned. Most work on a priority/number system. At each meeting they see if anyone has an emergency (i.e. illness) and needs to borrow the money. If not, they go in sequence; if number 5 received a loan last week they see if #6 needs one, if not #7 and so forth. They also collect loan payments (with interest rates decided by the group) and the weekly contribution.

We visited 3 groups yesterday. I thought I had visited rural Swaziland before but I swear I have never seen such remote ‘communities’ in my life. I felt like we came from such different worlds and I’m not sure if I’d ever be able to live in an area like that (especially after visiting the ‘toilet’). One group was particularly talkative and with through my translator (i.e. co-worker) I was able to ask them many questions. I asked how they had benefited from the loans. The women described how they were able to pay for school fees, buy cooking utensils, materials for sewing and so forth. One woman had been living in a home made from sticks and stones. She had purchased supplies for making cement and was currently making bricks to build a new home. It was so interesting. AND I COULDN’T TAKE PHOTOS!! The women could not speak highly enough about this program and how it had made their lives better. Some stated that first they were sceptical but couldn’t believe the results. The meetings were all held under a big tree in the middle of the dusty land. Currently my work doesn’t have any involvement with SHGs but I’m going to try and work in a project with them. Am I really leaving in a few months? So much I want to do and experience.

You know you are getting accustomed to Swaziland when....

Signs you are getting accustomed to living in Swaziland

1. Getting up at 5:30am to wash you underwear (so it can dry in the sun while you are at work) is as much a part of your routine as brushing your teeth.

2. Cockroaches while still scary and gross, no longer surprise you.

3. You no longer expect drivers to stop for red lights, stop signs or crosswalks. You cross the street anytime it seems safe.

4. You are surprised to hear music that is NOT gospel.

5. Instant coffee with powdered milk = good coffee.

6. You greet other woman by calling them mother or sister.

7. You automatically put on a skirt if you are going to a rural area.

8. You start saying things like “bru”, “is it?” and “just now”
A:“I slept terribly last night.” B: “Is it?”
A: “I will meet you at the store.” B: “I’m coming just now.”

9. Your booty is not so big.

10. If you see a driver flashing his hazard lights you know there are cattle on the road. (there are cattle EVERYWHERE here).