A New Friend

This is my friend Gabriel. He is a Damara man living in Tsumeb. He stays at the local old age home. I first met him in December when we were training here. We spent a day with the old folks that month, sang songs and stuff. When I returned in January Gabriel came to Meameno Center to visit me. We have had some good conversations. His English is surprisingly good for a man his age. Most of the older folks here don’t speak English. They grew up learning Afrikaans, as well as their mother tongue.

I told Gabriel we would be planting some fruit tree saplings at the center. We want to sell them to create some income for our HIV/AIDS support group. Well, he showed up the next week with a mango sapling for us. What a kind thing to do. On Saturday, I visited him and others at the old folks home. I brought them a big bag of oranges. Gabriel was happy to see me. It’s really something how the old folks light up when they get visitors. It seems it was like that in the states too. I’m sure many of them still have family that visits from time to time, but I don’t think that’s the same as a friend or even a stranger. I kind of wish I had done it more back home. I bet some of our old folks have great stories to tell. I never really got to talk to my grandpas who were in WWII. They died when I was very young. It would be something to know more about their war stories, or anybody else’s for that matter. I’m becoming more interested in history lately. I guess I’m just saying we should take advantage of the time we have with our elders while they’re still around. I’m making my parents write life stories for me, even though they’re still a couple of spring chickens. They’ve just started and I’ve already learned so much I didn’t know about them! I think they’re enjoying the process too.

If anybody is planning to send me a package soon, here are some ideas:
-Gabriel could use a pair of sneakers size 9-10. Any condition is fine.
-Gabriel is also looking for a pen pal if anybody wants to write him. E-mail me if you’re interested and I can get you his address. Or send it to me and I'll get it to him.
-Things for Meameno Center: markers (any kind), sticky gunk (to hang posters, etc), a dictionary, small dry erase board, pencils and sharpener, pens, clipboard
-Sweet & Salty Nut granola bars, M&Ms, crunch&munch
-Pictures (any)
-Book about gardening (like for dummies cause I aint dun it before)

Please remember these are not dire needs, just ideas. You can send something tomorrow or in 9 months. It’s all good. My address is in the left column. I really appreciate the things you have already sent me. The letters and notes mean the world to me. Any day I get mail is a good day. Thanks a bunch!!!

I finally played basketball last night. The first five minutes were a blast. Then I remembered how much running full court basketball requires. Actually my body reminded me. I thought I was going to hyperventilate. I had to stop running. I pretty much just stayed back and played defense. Eventually, I got a second wind and rejoined the offense. They have an interesting system of play. We play first team to two baskets wins. Then the losing team subs in one or two players from the sidelines. The game never really stops, you just get new players on the court. It probably would’ve been better if I was on the losing team and got to sit out a little. Unfortunately, I was playing with the star of the high school team. The guy never missed, especially from the three-point line. And he was unselfish, passed to us more than he shot. I was impressed. I thought I would be in all kinds of pain today, but I actually feel pretty good. I escaped with just one purple toenail. I got it fighting for a rebound with somebody a little bigger than me, imagine that. He came down with the ball, and I came down with a smashed foot.

Speaking of injuries, I was in a car accident on Friday. I’m totally fine. It was on the way to Windhoek. The car in front of us stopped for some baboons. They stopped in the middle of Namibia’s busiest highway over a blind hill. TOURISTS! Our driver had no time to react and plowed into them. Nobody was badly injured, just scrapes and bruises. Now onto the reason I was headed there…

Back in December I applied for VSN (Volunteer Support Network). It’s a Peace Corps program designed to support volunteers throughout Namibia (Members pictured here). I was invited to join last month, and we had our training in Windhoek last weekend. I’m pretty excited about it. Volunteers experience a wide variety of emotions and if they need somebody to talk to then they can contact VSN. We’re certainly not qualified counsellors, just a resource of peer support. It's a combination of Group 26 and 27 volunteers. I also had to include this picture of a Windhoek coffee shop. Nice decor eh? And the name... Snob Coffee. How appropriate! Mom, we'll definitely have to make a turn at Snob Coffee when you visit in July.

People are people so why should it be…

Easter Weekend in Swakop was very nice. The water had to be the warmest ocean water I’ve swam in. My last experience swimming in the Atlantic was on the coast of Maine, you might imagine how cold that was (I’m sure my father remembers). There is certainly something therapeutic about the ocean. The weekend was relaxing, fun and cheap. Would you believe I spent less than $150 U.S. on the whole trip? There were quite a few volunteers that decided to spend the long weekend there. It was really nice to reunite with some of them. Here’s a picture of Nick, Roshn, Milan and I. The four of us were roommates during training. You may be able to see the shipwreck in between us. This ship is beached just south of Swakopmund. The story behind it is a little funny. 30km south of Swakopmund is Walvis Bay. It is Namibia’s major fishing port. Apparently the crew of this ship was elated with the haul of fish they had just brought in. They docked in Walvis Bay and went into town to celebrate. When they went back the boat was gone. TIN (This is Namibia).
While I’m getting along well with other Peace Corps volunteers, I’ve found friendships a little more difficult to come by with Namibians. This is not to say they are unfriendly. It’s quite the contrary, and I get along fine with just about everybody. The issue is I haven’t made the efforts to integrate further into their lives. In Namibian culture people do not invite you to their homes, or into their social lives. It is up to me to make that happen. I’m supposed to just go and visit people when I feel like it. Anyone you visit is supposed to invite you in, give you a cooldrink and maybe something to eat. What an intrusion right? I like the custom but it has been hard to muster up the courage to try it out. It certainly happens at our house. You never know exactly how many people you might be cooking dinner for. We always try to make a little extra. I’ve decided to try a couple easier avenues first. I may join a local theatre group. I went to one of their meetings this week. It would be fun to learn drama the Namibian way. Some of the members are already my regular colleagues, so it’s quite comfortable. I also know a couple guys who play basketball a few nights a week. I told them I’d like to come along. I’m looking forward to playing some hoops. It’s been a while, and I hear these guys are good. I may get laughed at, but I’m learning that’s not such a bad thing. Let’s face it, I stick out here. I talk different. I act different. I do things a different way. Lots of times it makes people laugh. Somehow that makes me feel accepted. I think Namibians just like to laugh. They seem to do it a lot.