Yesterday is gone, but today is here.....

Handing out formula to a mother and her child

Mother and Child ........ Triplets that Christa has been helping for some time

Mothers Lining up for soap/clothes.....more babies and mothers


Christa Counselling....

FOOOOOOOOD!

MORE FOOOOOOOD!!!!!!!!!!!!


FORMULA!

Sister and Brother Carrying Water from the pump... Notice the trail of water.. they had to keep walking a little while down and up the hills.

This is a new water meter that has been put in, but has not been turned on. They took out the old one and replaced it with this but the people cannot use it and have to walk to another pump that is a far distance from this one... New but not functional?????????

Today is Sunday, what most people call a day of rest. But to millions of people out there struggling to find food and water for their families it is anything but a day of rest. It becomes another day that is filled with hunger, another day filled with despair and sickness. It is not easy to sit here in my quiet guest house that is only less then 10 miles away from some of the worst poverty that inflicts this world. There is no welfare system here, let alone a viable excuse of why people are living in such conditions especially when you see ministers driving around in Mercedes Benzes and a second state house that could fund an entirely new health care system that would provide basic assistance to the majority of the people living in poverty here. The gold gates that guard such a place are there in vain: they represent the greed and inconsideration of the Namibian government that ignore the many social problems that plague their beautiful country. It is hard to sit here and witness what is actually happening on the ground and try to compromise it with the inactiveness of the government although the promise to try to reduce poverty and all that it entails (access to education, health care, work, water, food etc…) The misinformation rumoring around among the people who should have the exact facts straight in the first place is a travesty especially when it has to do with such life threatening issues such as access to water.
One thing that is hopeful (which is important to include) is how I have met two region council members that have close relationships with both Christa and Abigail. It is nice to know that there are some people that care and the bureaucracies that plague this government have not yet infiltrated everyone. At times, it is important to keep a professional demeanor when one is a government official, but it is also equally important to be able to sympathize with your people. If this cannot be done, one can get wrapped up in the perks that come along with such a job. That is why, I believe, that corruption is many times overlooked in this country (and in general). “I scratch your back you scratch mine.” Well, what happens when I don’t have the fingers to scratch your back?? I suppose you wouldn’t even look my way would you? So what then happens to the fingerless people of this country? They sit there and continue on with what the have, which is very little. And who is the one paying for this? The children who are suppose to have a free education (according the constitution), the mothers who can’t afford to pay the N$40 a month for their ARV treatment as well as the much needed food they need to take such meds and to stay healthy. Christa starts to pay out of pocket to keep her program alive and continues to go further into debt, while the MP drives around in their fancy car with the air conditioning on full blast never having to roll down the window to smell the urine and feces that fill the air when passing the informal settlements (if they even pass them in the first place). So when you have regional council members coming to see what is happening with such programs, it gives me a little flicker of hope that something can happen. It is good to have people on your side that can somehow have a slight influence on the policies decided from above. But, if the policy makers are content with their life then it is hard to get through to them the imperativeness of the situation, unless, if for an instance, they will step out of their comfort zone and maybe, just maybe, roll down their windows so that they can feel the reality of the situation and not continue to go through life comfortably cool.
Last week we did many things. We bought a lot of food for both programs as well as a bunch of formula for Mt. Sinai. The mission is strong and I got to see first hand the effect of Christa’s hard work and determination. The area surrounding the outside of her house was already filling up with mothers when we arrived at just before eight in the morning. Women and their children, babies as well as toddlers, lined up and waited for their files to be passed out to them. After they received their files, the children were weighed and it was recorded by the volunteers as the mothers moved forward to receive soap and clothes. After that another line was formed outside the door that entered in the house and I as well as a few other volunteers sat on Christa’s couches while the mother came, we stamped their membership cards and determined if they needed formula or a food parcel. This is when I wish that I knew all the languages of the world so that I could thoroughly talk with the mothers and see how they are doing. It is very apparent by experiencing this whole process why Christa needs an actual center. Yes it works out of her house, but if there were to be a center to go along with her mission then this wondrous program would have a center where women could go for counseling and what have you, rather than having to wait until the food and formula hand out is done so that there is a space for them and Christa to sit down and chat about any issues they are having. It is going to be a great day when there is finally a center where women can go ANY time for a safe place, for counseling, food, formula and whatever else they deem necessary-even just a place to hang out and chat with other mothers who are going through the same thing.

Today Monday, we will be going out into the settlments to wrap up our family interviews. After that we will determine who needs uniforms and school fees as well as food parcels and water cards (that is if we even get them!!). We will be buying these things this week.

I am very grateful for the continuation of donations pouring in,especially from friends of mine who should be focused on being able to survive themselves in the US when there is no afforable healthcare or benefits out there for recent college graduates! So thank you to those that continue to give, it means a lot not only to me but to the children and families that are benefitting.

we have one week left here and we are going to do as much as possible and everything we have been wanting to do but haven't gotten to yet in terms of places to go.

Cape town is going to be beautiful, but the bus ride there isn't.. hehe.. Hopefully we will get a good spot on the bus so we can rest and be ready to roll!

More to come on the week as it goes by!

Hope everyone is doing well and enjoying the sunshine!

Take care!

Much love to all,

Mary

getting things done

Two white ladies are walking down the street.
One stops and asks where she can get a nice glass of water?
“You have to go to the water pump and pay, then you can have a glass of water”, someone replys, “but you must have a card in order for the water to come out and on that card must be credit, otherwise, you will not get your nice glass of water”
The white lady says that she does not have a card and asks where she can obtain one.
“The municipality of course, but that is a far walk, you can take taxi if you have the money.”
Luckily the white lady has the $N7 to take the taxi to the municipality that is over a couple kilometers away.
When she arrives she sees lines out the door.
“How long have you been waiting?” the white lady asks the crowd.
“I have been here ALLL morning”, exclaims the African woman, “waiting in line. Even when they closed down the office so that the employees could go eat lunch, I waited… I am thirsty from the far walk here and I just want my card so that I can go home, shower and cook a nice meal for my family, but the lines are moving slowly because only two people are working.”
The white lady sits outside thinking about joining the long line so that she can finally get her nice glass of water.
But then she remembers, “I am white. Why am I waiting for this nice glass of water when I can go home, drink a nice glass of water from my tap, take a hot shower to get this dust off of me, and cook some spaghetti?”
She slowly turns around, remembers she another $7 for her taxi ride home and walks to the corner to hail a cab, leaving the crowd of Africans waiting for their water cards so they too, just like her, can enjoy a nice glass of water.

Today we got a lot done with Christa. We bought 60 things of formula and ordered another 360, because we cleared out their stock. We got her a new printer that can copy and fax as well as scan. This helps her immensely for she has to copy the mother and child’s birth certificates/id’s for her books. She also prints out a lot of proposals to pass out and this will help her a lot in alleviating the cost of copies. We also purchased about 45 sippy cups and tomorrow we will be purchasing more food for her hampers that she gives out to mothers and their children who are currently taking ARV’s.
Along the way we decided to stop and try to get our water cards that we will be supplying to mothers both at FHS and Mt. Sinai. When we went to the MAIN municipality offices in downtown Windhoek, they told us that they did not sell any there and to check with other local offices. They were anything but helpful in telling us some places to go so that we could obtain our cards. A water card is a big deal here, especially for people living in the settlements. Not only might they have to travel a distance to fetch a drum of water, they also have to pay each time. If they do not have a water card in the first place, a lot of times they are forced to either go without water, borrow a neighbors card (which sometimes the neighbor will charge a fee), or take from a communal tap that is often times shut off by the municipality due to insufficient community funds (people don’t pay). The card itself, without any credit on it costs around $N100. I have been told to fill a drum is about $N10. It is a lot cheaper to do it this way, than it is to take from a community tap where one if charged monthly. In both cases, it is up to the municipality if they want to shut it off for a day or two. One day as we were walking through Havana I took a picture of a woman filling her drum and another woman walked by yelling at us saying that yesterday the water was shut off and what is she suppose to do when that happens: “I have a family to feed and clothes to wash.” Water is a commodity here, and it is being rationed and limited in the areas where people need it most. It is no wonder HIV/AIDS runs rampant in these communities and people get sick and die so rapidly. Not only can are they trying to survive off of the little food they have each day, they also don’t have unlimited access to the one thing that ever human should and that is clean water.
So, needless to say, we were given the run around when trying to purchase water cards. Christa would have to purchase them, but even so she could only purchase one for herself and no one else. The people we wanted to purchase them for would need to come in, fill out paperwork, present an ID and an erf number (address). Thankfully, we have connections. We went to Phil at the Humans Right’s center right up the block from where we are staying and told him about what happened and showed him the pictures of the lines that we saw outside the Ombili municipality. He got on the phone, made a call to the person in charge of that municipality there, Isis, and demanded that she give us 50 water cards because it is a human right and we are an organization that is trying to give clean water to mothers who are going to feed their babies. The woman said she would get back to him tomorrow. I don’t know if she is going to follow through, but the fact that we had connections both troubles and pleased me all at the same time. What happens to those that don’t have the connections and continue to wait in those lines for their cards? What happens to those people that cannot afford that N$100 to buy a water card? What if someone doesn’t have an ID, or an permanent addresses to show? What would have we done if we didn’t have that connection with Phil? This is a very bureaucratic process for a person to be able to have access to water and I feel that a few profit off of the majority of people’s struggle to be able to live. Hopefully this will be resolved and the fact that we can pose as an organization helping people gain access to water (which is true) will benefit us so that we can actually help out 50 people not worry about how they can get water.
Gratitude List:

A toilet that flushes.
A toilet in my house that isn’t a hole in the ground outside.
Access to clean water that comes out of a tap from my house.
Long Hot Showers
The fact that my toilet water at home is probably cleaner than the water in the settlements here.
Ice.
Washing Machines
Electricity
My good health (knock on wood)
People that watch our backs here, making sure to tell us when to watch our stuff.
TOILET PAPER!!!!!!


Things that need changing:
More access to water
Better access to healthcare- one that is up to standards-update public hospitals.
More access to a good education. ( in theory it is suppose to be free of charge? But in practice???????)
HIV/Aids Education.. Rollout of free ARV’s
More Gov. involvement on the ground (slumber party for the MP’s in the settlements?)
Water Cards for All (free of charge for the card, charge for water?)

Happy Easter from Annie!

Happy Easter Everyone,
It was a quite a long day for us as everything is closed down for the holiday. Mary and I attended church in the morning and then the rest of the day has been free. This is good as we very much needed to rest after our big day yesterday. The Easter egg party at Hakahana was a success! We had a good turn-out, over 200 children came for the celebration. We supplied the food for the lunch that I suspect fed at least 250 if you include adults and volunteers. We had invited a group of nursing students from the Netherlands to help and I don’t know how we would have managed without them. When we arrived at 7:30, there was already a group of children waiting to get in the gates. If you can image we managed to keep them behind the gates until 9:oo!! We paid for a clown and a media system so that we could entertain the kids with music and a few Disney cartoons. The distraction was good as it took many hours to prepare the meal. The adults had fun hiding the plastic eggs outside(thanks Lynn) and the chocolate eggs indoors. Imagine trying to keep all those kids behind a gate for an hour and a half!!! My favorite part is opening the gates and watching them run!! We had the volunteers take the little ones by hand to help them find the eggs, and of course we kept some candy separate for the ones who came later. Hearing the children’s excitement and laughter was sooo wonderful.
The clown was fantastic and she had all the children mesmerized as she performed magic tricks. We were busy getting the lunch ready. We had cabbage salad, rice with soup, chicken, fat cakes, and we made two garbage cans full of Tang with added Vit. C tablets for the many colds that children seem to have. Mary and I had also popped 2 garbage bags full of popcorn! Each child was given a baggie with fruit rings and sweets to take with them.
The serving of the food was a bit chaotic and that’s putting it mildly! Two days before the party someone broke into the community center and took the burner we so desperately needed to prepare the food. We were able to borrow a 2 burner grill the morning of the party. We started cooking and preparing food immediately in the morning so that it would be ready by noon. When you have 200 starving children you don’t want to make them wait when they know that food is coming. It was an assembly line of women preparing and serving the food. We had to try and keep some sort of order otherwise you have children sneaking back for seconds when others have not had any. It reminds me of the movie “Oliver Twist”—‘please sir can I have somemore’! The behavior of hungry children is an experience that I can never forget. It was a shock to the volunteers that had never seen that before. Children act very naughty-they fight and grab for food. It is extremely difficult to maintain any kind of order. Many of these children are orphans and all live in extreme poverty. This was the only meal that they would eat today and they don’t know if there will be food for tomorrow. So they grab food and stuff it in their shirts or pockets so they will have some for later. I tried to explain this to the volunteers as they have not seen how these children are living. They have no manners and there is no please and thank-you’s—it’s just survival. The mothers are not much different as they are busy planning for any leftovers that they may have to feed their children for another day. How can we (Americans- Europeans) even imagine what their lives are like when we have never experienced hunger and starvation? What would any of us as mother’s do to feed our children if they were starving?
So Mary and I are now qualified to work at any soup kitchen in the US!! At the end of the day we shooed the children out of the center and cleaned up the enormous mess. Then we turned on the music, opened the gate and let them back in and we danced for the next 2 hours! Even the Ouma’s (grandmothers) danced!!! It was really a lovely day. Our goal for that day was that children would have full bellies, lots of fun, and a good memory that they could take with them and hopefully never forget!!! Thank you all for making this possible for the children.
God Bless and Happy Easter, Love Annie and Mary

Razz-ma-tazz
Water Station in Settlement
-Waterberg Park

Zebra

Foibe and Family
Assembly Line for feeding Kids
Annie and Family in Okahandja.

-Let em Loose!!!

-Our Hut at Penduka

We are back in the city. The stad.
Today we went to FHS to set up for tomorrow’s party. “Tomorrow is Christmas”, Ouma Cecelia blurted out in her best possible English. One lady stood in the kitchen/store room/office lopping pieces of dough into the boiling pot of oil to make fat cakes, while some ladies lined up to take turns grabbing clothes that a German lady donated. Finally Abigail just started handing things out and at one point threw piles of clothes out in the middle of the floor while they all rushed to grab what wasn’t already claimed. We both forgot our cameras, but it will be a sight that my memory will never forget. Someone’s old, used, raggedy clothes and shoes that were covered in dust were another woman’s new found treasures and fashion accessories. “Lelelelelelele” the women cried while dancing with joy. Little moments like these are what makes me happy for this life and the chance to be here and witness another culture and way of life. It has made me realize that one way of living is no better than the other. It is only what we are use to that makes us look at new ways of living in a strange way. As my father tells me: “you are criticizing, but you don’t know, take the time to know…” It is the concept of the “other”, if you are not familiar with someone or something, it is then a lot easier to dub it strange therefore foreign- this of course has justified a lot of things through history (slavery, wars, racism, sexism etc..) But just because someone goes about doing something another way, doesn’t mean it is wrong. It is just different and I believe that it is very important to keep an open mind through out life. If one is to also judge (which we ALL do), and not take a moment to learn something new, it is a great travesty to the world and for the individual. No matter how far or little one has to step out of their comfort zone to do so, one should take steps towards this whether small or large... Maybe talking to someone new, or learning how to cook a new international dish, or learning a new language or volunteering at a local shelter or immigration center. We all can learn something from one another as opposed to sitting silently in the distance and judging and assuming that this is what something is like. Baby steps to peace. I truly think that you will find out that we all have more in common in this world than one would think.

That is what I continue to learn on a day to day basis. Everyone is just trying to survive; to get a piece of the pie. A taxi driver said to us yesterday “Life is hard, one person is up the other is down, there is rich and poor, nothing will never be fair.” This got me to thinking, because in my idealistic mind, I want there to be a world where everyone has pie and so they can share and not have to hoard. Here is a joke that I read in a book that I thought I should share with you: “What is the only thing that money can’t buy? Poverty.”
I struggle a lot with the fact that my life could house many families who live here-that is my material life thus far. The fact that I have frozen bread in my freezer (I’m sure someone would kill for it) that never gets eaten is the perfect example of the things I take for granted in my life. That is why I am so confused much of the time. Why hoard when there are so many people that need it more? I need to start making a list of resourceful things I can start doing. 1. Do I really NEED this or is it a want? I worked hard, so why shouldn’t I splurge a little?? This is just my thought process.

Holiday onMonday?

So it has been a holiday since thursday and today Monday, once again, is another holiday?? I suppose I am used to the american way of life of "gotta get back to work". SO many things are closed in town, including our favorite internet cafe that allows us to use our memory sticks. So no pictures or posts that we worked on during the long holiday weekend.
Saturday was the 2nd annual easter egg hunt at Family Hope Sanctuary. It was a crazy day I must say. The night before Annie and I got some things ready which included sitting in front of the stove and popping 2 full garbage bags of popcorn. When it came time to give them out, of course the kids ripped and ravaged the bag and most of it spilled on the ground outside, but this of course did not stop them from scooping it up. It was a task just to keep them outside the gate until we got all the eggs hidden (9am). Some kids were going aroudn the gates and trying to poke at the eggs to get an early start. After they all rushed in, many of themhording as much candy as possible, we all danced a little and then got everyone to sit down so that they could watch a movie on the projector we rented-tom and jerry, lion king etc.... This kept them calm until the clown came. Now that was a sight to remember. I have never seen those kids be more attentive than they were with the clown. Not even in school are all eyes on the teacher. SO it was a joy to see them laugh and be amazed, I have to give out many props to the clown for keeping those kids attention, a moment of peace. WHile this was all happening of course the kitchen was bustling to get things all ready and cooked. We had to get a braai to cook all the chicken. We had two huge bins of rice that they mixed with hotdogs, we cut cabbage for, im not kidding you, 2 hours to make cole slaw, had a huge pot of vooerworst stew and a bunch of fat cakes to pass out to curb their hunger whle we were getting all of this ready. Not to mention we went through two huge garage bins of juice. Of course the water coming from the leaky sink in the bathroom that has about 2 inches of standing water in it. It was a sight to watch all of this go down. We fed about 200 kids and some mothers. Everyone was trying so hard to wait patiently in their chairs while a buncho f volunteers passed out the food. After that was all over, the mothers roun3d up their containers (the ones that helped during the whoel thing) and took the rest of the food with them home for later. We gave the kids packs of these fruit loops type things and tried to sent them on their way.. many left but many also stayed which of course turned into a major dance party! We dance for a good 45 minutes and then finalyl got most people to leave.
Needless to say, we were EXHAUSTED by then time 2pm rolled around!

Another succesful easter egg hunt at FHS!
This week we are buckling down and getting things ready for the big hand out at Christa's on saturday. Once a month she does food parcels and formula and ther will be over 100 babies and their mothers, plus kids that will fill her house for their monthly stipends. now that will be a sight!!!
We have pictures of some of the kdis we will be sponsoring at FHS and we still need a good 5 more.
Spend Spend Spend will be the next two weeks themes!
Thanks for all your support and encouragement!
Take care,
Mary

Wa La La Po, Everyone!

Walalapo Everyone,
We are back from the north. One word to describe the north-HOT! It was at least 110 degrees and no shade to be found. Unfortunately, I didn’t fair well. My poor skin baked in the hot sun. We were closer to the equator, so north means hot!!!!! We took three of our friends with us, Foibe and baby Gift, and my nurse friend, Charlotte. It was a long and beautiful drive. When we reached Ovamboland, Charlotte said we are now in the land of ‘freedom of movement’. I soon understood what she meant. Cows, goats, and donkeys are free to roam wherever—which meant they were often in the middle of the road!
We brought Foibe and Gift home to her parents and it was quite an experience. The Ovambo people live very simply. Their homes are so unique. They live in a series of clay and stone huts with thatched roofs. Families all live together, with separate huts for sleeping quarters, cooking, and eating. Imagine your dining room is a large hut where you gather with All of your family to sit in the white sand and share a meal! They also have a separate hut for the mahungu. They are people of the mahungu—that is their way of life. There are fields and fields of mahungu—like our corn fields! They will harvest the mahungu in another month, however, they do this by hand (no machines). We drove through this gravel road and children came out all over from within the fields. Mary said, ‘look it’s the children of the mahungu’!!
We gifted two families along the way. My friends from the Netherlands had asked me to stop and visit a family they knew who had lost a son to a heart problem last year. They were very happy to see us and we left them with much food and school supplies for their many children. We also brought food and gifts to Foibe’s family. I had bought 2 small flashlights that I gave to her father and it was like watching a child at Xmas with a new toy! I watched these families delight in simple things that we never think twice about-like having a blanket or scarves for the women.
When we headed for home we took the long way through Etosha park. We saw giraffe, jaguars, springbuck and many other wild animals. We stayed in a very nice place overnight. Charlotte and Foibe were so excited and thrilled about our place. They both said this was their honeymoon! Foibe was so cute-she walked around our room singing and dancing with the baby. She kept thanking me and saying she would never be able to stay at such a beautiful place if it hadn’t been for Mary and I. It made me want to cry to think that this is an experience of a lifetime for her.
Foibe is breastfeeding her baby as most Ovambo mothers do. It is such a cultural thing that the breast is wipped out anywhere, anytime when babies are hungry. At dinner that night, I was a bit concerned as we dined in a room full of Germans and I knew that Foibe would need to feed the baby. When she took out her breast Charlotte said, “you must cover the breast-you don’t want to show these people your African beauties”! I damn near choked on my dinner, it was so funny!!!
We were unable to find the Norwegian woman running the orphanage, I think I confused the name of the town. We had a lovely few days and I hated to take Foibe and Gift back home to their zinc shack in the informal settlement. Back to the realities of life here in Windhoek. Mary and I are staying at Penduka on the outskirts of town for 3 days until we go back to Rivendell. I like it here – Penduka is a place run by women and children, an empowerment center. We are staying in an Ovambo hut, not quite as primitive as up north as we have a bathroom and electricity. At least it is nice to know that our money is going to a good cause. They also operate a textile business and we can hear the woman sing as they are sewing. They make beautiful linens, pottery, and jewelry.
Mary and I have talked about how different our lives have been since we have arrived. The little things in life that we take for granted, like food, water, shelter. We don’t flush the toilet until necessary—we shower differently-rinse-turn off water-soap up-rinse-make it quick and don’t shower everyday. Water is so important here and it can’t be wasted. We are not ‘starving’-we are ‘hungry’- and 2 meals a day is more then most people get here. We wear our clothes more then once and we wash them out by hand and hang them to dry. My Grandma would be proud!
Friday we move back to Rivendell and back into the center of the city. We will head out to Hakahana and clean up the area around the school and get ready for our big Easter egg hunt/party on Saturday. We haven’t decided yet what language we will hear Easter service in- English, Oshivambo. Damara, or Nama.
Next week will be a major shopping experience as we will be buying food, clothes, shoes, and school uniforms. We are also meeting with my friend Phil from the Human Rights Watch to talk about what can be done about the children at the dump site—at least make people aware of what is happening. Much to do and will keep you informed. Thank you all for your prayers and support. God bless you all during this Holy week. Love Always Annie

Spring Break 07- ROOOAD TRIP!

The railroad in the North(it wasn't compelte the last time I was here)
Stuffed in a cab with Christi and Pandu
-The sunset on the farm










Traditional Ovambo Hut - Massive tree
Under a mosquito net










Ndapandula & Pandu .......... Preying Mantus.................Huge Rooster!




-mahangu storage.. Makondjo,christi and Pandu. Makondjo playing around wearing a traditional ovambo womans dress


Martha waiting for taxi... Me and the Moon (picture doesn't do justice)


Kuku Anna

kuku annas farm... mahahngu... field

Foibe and baby.. foibe in traditions dress
Giraffe in Etosha.............Girls Playing In Puddle

John and Makondjo

Children of the Mahangu...Ewilili(spider)


Fina sewing dresses to sell at the open market
-Picture by Pandu (sandals and Chicken)




Family in Havana 2 ( father Present)

The week…….

Friday we left Windhoek to embark on a journey that would take us over 1200 kilometers to the northern part of Namibia as far as Oshikati and back to the city center once again. Along the way we encountered many people, animals, bugs and the hot sun all in our little white Toyota tazz, which is similar to a geo metro but just a little bigger. Charlotte, Annie, Foibe, her 3 month old baby Mansona (Gift) and I stuffed our belongings like sardines in the little tazz and were on our way by 10am with a radio/cd player that only worked about 30 mins our whole trip. First stop, Okahandja, to drop off food and school supplies to the family that the girls Annie knows from Holland helped while they were here. The sun was hot while we pulled up to their house and started to unload the supplies. One of the milks we bought had split open on the way up and it was only on the way home, a couple hours outside of Windhoek, when we finally put two and two together about what was making the car smell so bad for our entire trip. After we delivered such gifts, we made our way to the famous wood Market of Okahandja. “Madam, come take a look into my shop. Free Touch, I’ll give you good price, just take a look”. I quickly realized that the female hawkers initially gave us better prices and were easier to bargain with than that of the male sellers. It was interested to see who would offer what prices for similar items. 150 from one person, 40 from another- I suppose they thought it was easy to sucker us tourists into paying three fold for a product. Of course, it is important to support local traders, but there should be a medium where both buyer and seller and happy with the end amount. It is a technique that takes some skill, and it helped immensely to have sharp Charlotte with us who is a pro at bargaining. After getting sick of all the heckling, we decided it was time to hit the road so we would make it to Waterberg Park before sunset. No radio once again. Silence followed by a little singing here and there, followed by laughter and little cries here and there from Gift who slept most of the way due to the relaxing hum of the car on the paved road. The drive into Waterberg was fantastic- my first plateau ever! I have heard about them in 4th grade geology and figured that they were flat on top hence “plateau” but it is very beautiful to see in person! We arrived in the late afternoon and after settling in our nice bungalow, Annie and I went for a walk on the trails and saw the great vastness of Namibia and Waterberg Park. Along the way we saw termite hills, big black dung beetles, and an array of winged insects, birds and animals. We realized after walking all the way down, we would then have to walk all the way back up. Needless to say we took a nice water break when we got back to our house. While at dinner we heard the chatter of the beetles in the background and finally had to move inside at the end for they were flying all around us, swooping down in our faces. Imagine a June bug and then times that by ten! Creeeeepy!
The next morning (the day of my birth) we made our way to Otjiwarango where we finally purchases a radio with a tape player. The shopping center was flooded with people because it was the end of the month, which is when most people get paid. We stopped on our way home back to Windhoek again to return our radio that had a busted antenna and radio dial and the center compared to the last time we were there was a ghost town, this time semi-filled with kuku’s (grandmas) collecting their pension (N300=$45) and going grocery shopping. From Otjiwarango we made the trip to Oniipa, Ondangwa. We passed through a checkpoint and entered the free range north where animals are free to move all over the place, including across the roads. Eyes were open for cows, goats, donkeys, guinea fowl and dogs- “freedom of movement” as Charlotte said. It got hotter and hotter the more north we got. Annie’s arm got tan on the ride up and on the way down she had to sit on the other side of the car in order to even out such color. As we got closer to Oniipa, the Ondunga tree, which resembles a palm tree, started to spring up and I knew we were not far from our destination. When we reached the Lutheran Guest House I called my family that I stayed with and told them I was here. Later, the would tell me next time to give them more notice ( I called them a week ahead of time) so that they can prepare gifts for me and my family as well as food. I told that they everything was perfect, the fact that they welcomed me back into their home was good enough. Before I went off to stay with Martha, we dropped Foibe off at her parents, driving back into the villages and barely making it through the brush. When we finally reached her house, which was undetectable because there was no roads leading past it (we took the back way) we just had dodged the two gaping holes in the ground. Foibe’s family lives in the tradition Ovambo huts with a bunch of other family members. We got a picture of four generations of women-Gift, Foibe, Meme and Kuku (who was at least 90). She made sure we knew that she bore Foibe’s Father. We gave them gifts and they offered us a huge plate of traditional sweets (dried fruit). It was great to be back in the area and to see the traditional way of living once again. It is completely different than the urban center we came from for many reasons, one being the wide open spaces, the other being the nuclear families that all live together on the farms. There are a lot of issues that surround rural vs. urban living. Many people move from the North trying to find jobs in the city; young people are not content with the simplicity that the norther rural areas offer- often feeling they need money to support not only their families but also their material needs. It is quite a contrast between my brother, Makondjo, who has never been to the city and is very pleasant and considerate (he actually ironed Pandu’s and Christi’s uniforms for Martha as well as did the dishes after we ate) and the other guys that live here in the city, many of whom have come to Windhoek to find work and end up living in informal settlements worse off than before moving. The thing is, although many would consider the city to be livelier, they comprise their lives for a little material wealth, a lot of the times contracting HIV. Furthermore, many men will lead double lives- one family in the city and one family in the north. While we were out in the community doing family interviews many women expressed that the father’s went back to the North. Yet, it is a double standard because when we talked to some women in the North, some of them said that the fathers were in the city (or another city around Namibia) working. So what exists is this vacuum where fathers are absent, working in any city other than the one where their family exists. Only once out of all the interviews did we actually meet the Father of one of the children. Back to the family stay: it is a shame that I couldn’t stay longer, because it is so peaceful and relaxing- granted I didn’t have to do any house work (although I offered to do dishes and what not). All day Sunday I played with the children and we went for walks and they pointed out the oshivambo names for things and were telling me about the animals and trees. We ended up at the old farm that I stayed at the first time-this time I stayed with Martha in her new house that had electricity, running water (a kitchen sink and indoor bathroom). Kuku Annas farm has grown over the years, bigger trees, more housing and many more chickens. It was good to be back once again and see all the wonderful people that I had spent time with before. It was sad to leave and Christi cried all morning before she had to go to school and we actually had to drag her out to the taxi that brought her to school. We drove through etosha on the way home and stayed at this great guest house and then we got back to the city wed..One coudl write forever about the differences between rural and urban areas and all that it entails (economics, culture....)

That is it for now (am out of time and will write more later) make sure to check out annies post below!

This week we haev the easter party on sat.

Love you all and thank you everyone for the kind birthday messages!

It was great a day that I spent on the road adn with my family in the North!

Take care everyone.

peace

mary