Hello everyone, sorry it has been so long since I last posted but here is a nice summary of what I've been up to the past 2 months....
For Christmas, myself and a few other volunteers in Manica province traveled to Tete. Helen, an education volunteer from my training group, lives in a very small town just north of the city called Mavudzi-Ponte. Helen's parents were visiting from the states so she invited us to celebrate the holiday with her family. The few days I spent in Tete we went hiking, explored her teeny-tiny town, enjoyed sunset beers by the river and helped cook some amazing food. Helen's site is just an hour from Tete City, (a magical town with falafel, indian food and hookah) but even with the city so close, her town is very small. There are a few small stores that sell basic items like rice, pasta and dried fish but there is no central market. We found tomatoes and cabbage one day and that was exciting...so visiting Helen's site and being able to compare it to my own made me even more grateful for my little mecca of a site with plenty of produce and its own little food truck. Not to mention Tete was SO HOT. Although we went hiking and explored town, most of the time was spent hanging out inside Helen's house, sitting in front of fans, and just relaxing. Everyone told me Tete was hot and now I know for sure...it's deadly. Still it was a great visit and I'm glad I finally got to see some of Tete!
A view of Helen's town...all of it!
A group shot from Christmas
Helen-if you're reading this thanks again for including us in celebrating the holidays with your family, it was a lot of fun :)
After Christmas I went back to Chimoio to celebrate new years with the new volunteers in Manica province. That was fun, sorry there's no pictures! hehe
Over the course of the next 2 weeks I visited other volunteers and colleagues in Manica.
I went to Sussendenga to visit my friend Taylor...he used to live in Sofala province but because of the political unrest in Sofala, Peace Corps moved him to a new site, conveniently located close to me! We pretty much just hung out, went on a small hike and drank delicious smoothies because Taylor has a blender!
So you can't tell but we went hiking up this small mountain/large hill and here's a picture from the top!
And here's a picture of Sussendenga, it's so green!!!!!
Thelma (my roommate!) and I also went to Manica town to visit my colleague and close friend, Bea. She has invited me to visit her countless times in Manica so because I had so much free time during the break I finally took her up on her invitation. Thelma and I met Bea in Manica town(a small, quint but bustling town with a few paved roads, restaurants/bars, banks and a random olympic-sized swimming pool). Bea told me she lived outside of town, which actually meant that we had to hike an hour outside uphill to her house in the side of the mountains. By the time we got to her home, Thelma and I were sunburned and dripping in sweat but Bea's family gave us a bowl of fresh mangoes to enjoy while we overlooked the beautiful view. It was totally worth it. Bea also said we were her first colleagues to ever come visit her at her home, which was kind of awesome; I could tell she was very happy to have some guests.
Bea sitting outside her home with her adorable little princess of a daughter, Eva.
I also spent a lot of time hanging in Chimoio with the new (and older) volunteers.
Wendy, Steven and I on a little hike.
And Telma and I finally got around to planting our garden! I forgot to take a picture of it though but lots of things are sprouting and we are SO EXCITED. Pictures of that will be coming soon...
After spending 2 straight months in Central with now work I went back to the south for my Mid-Service Conference and to visit other volunteers.
First, I went to Guija to visit Elisabetta and help her (along with a few other PCVs) paint a mural at the local hospital in Guija. (SEE NEXT BLOG POST FOR MORE PICTURES!) Aside from helping with the project it was really great to go back to Guija, and see my how my old site had changed and rebuilt itself after the flood. The roads may have been full of new potholes but the market was bustling, the hospital was busy and everyones houses/businesses were up and running. It was pretty amazing to see how easily the town had come back together, especially considering that Guija was cut off completely during the flood. Aid and supplies did eventually trickle in to help the people living there but the reconstruction effort there was much more community-led. Forca!
A preview of the mural I helped to paint in Guija---see my next blog post for more pictures!
My old neighbors in Guija. I was SO EXCITED to see them at their home and doing well. They bashfully posed for a family picture for me (sadly their oldest son, Jaime was at work so he's not included). Even their dog, REX, survived the flood :)
The local Health Center where Elisabetta works 2-3 days a week educating community members about HIV/Aids.
After my visit to Guija I went to Maputo for a week and attended my mid-service conference. It was great to see other kids from my group who I hadn't see in OVER A YEAR and catch up about work, secondary projects and what everyone else did over their holiday break!
After Mid-Service I went to Inhambane to visit Mary, a good friend who used to live an hour north of me but now lives in Inhambane City...conveniently just 20k from one of the most beautiful beaches in all of Mozambique.
Tofu Beach + a Manica = The perfect way to end my summer vacation.
Mary and I at the beach!
I also went to Homoine for a few days to visit my good friend Cheyeanne (and meet her new roomie Erin!) It was fun hanging out, exploring her site and meeting her friends. I even helped her and Erin pick out a new cat!
After traveling in Inhambane I went to Macia for a night to watch the super bowl. I stayed with Mike and Marisa, both 18-ers who I had become friends with when I used to live in the south (before moving sites!) There were a bunch of other PCVs visiting for the little super bowl festa and it was just great to see old friends and catch up! We hung a sheet over their fence and set up a projector, and then all pitched in for phone/internet credit so we could stream the game. It was like being at the drive-in theatres...minus having a car. Marisa also cooked up a ton of delicious food for us to enjoy. So we all stayed up and watched the game, and as the sun was rising (around 5:30 AM) we all finally went to bed. It was a really fun night.
So much good food...wings, corn dogs, hummus, guac, chips, MAC AND CHEESE, and veggie chilli. We were clearly spoiled.
Our "drive in" theatre projection!
After visiting friends in Macia I went to Namaacha to visit my host family and that trip was so awesome! Since visiting last year in January, my mae has started a new job working at a water bottling company outside of town. This new job means she finally has a real income, and with her new money she's done a lot to help support her family. She installed a faucet outside the house so her and her children no loner have to walk to the pump two days a week to cart water (instead they get what they need each morning from their own spicket). She also had a new room added onto the house, which she's using as an indoor kitchen, but will eventually turn into a bedroom for her son, so once he's older he doesn't have to share a room with his younger sister. She also bought new school uniforms and all the necessary textbooks for her kids for school this year AND is attending night classes herself so she can finally get her certificate and finish secondary school. It was just so incredible to see her using her money so wisely and making an effort to invest in her children's future. Aside from changes to the house, just catching up and hanging out with my family was great. I always enjoy my time in Namaacha and always leave the town wishing I had more time to stay and and hangout. Thankfully, I'll see my family again in August.
My host fam posing in front of the delicouse dinner we cooked together.
Cleiton and Yusara covering their new textbooks for school so they won't get damaged.
Cleiton and Yusara all ready for school, don't they look so cute!
My family's home...the room all the way on the right is the new addition that my mae added and you can see the new water spicket as well in the front ride side of the house. The veranda is also new!
I finished my three and a half week trip in the South by taking the Foreign Service Exam in Maputo with a few other PCVs. Aside from not studying too much (it's difficult to study when you're in Africa!) the test was actually really fun. Maybe I just really miss school but doing something academic again was just plain awesome. If anyone has questions about the exam shoot me an email, I'd love to tell you more about it!
Now I'm back at site, and school has started and things are already so busy! I started teaching last week, I've got five ninth-grade classes this year, which means I have around 250 kids for the year...good luck learning all those names right? I've only had a week and a half of lessons but already teaching seems SO MUCH EASIER. It's amazing how much you can learn in just one year of working in the classroom. Aside from actual lessons I'm super excited to get my English club up and running, and start a JUNTOS group at school. I'm also in charge of organizing science fair for all the schools in Manica province so, unlike last year, I should be pretty busy. Also, because school has start, that means all my students (and friends!) are back in town...so Thelma and I never have free/quiet time because people are seriously always visiting us! It's still raining a lot but that doesn't stop the visitors...they just run up to our house, wait on our porch and pedir to come inside to visit.
Bea's kids, Eva and Panash came to visit while we were cooking dinner so we entertained them with coloring books...
Bea and Sophia's empragada's and niece. Rosylde, Anna and Marium.
And this is just what a typical afternoon/night looks like. Students (and our neighbors/colleagues) hanging out, practice English and telling stories...I'm not kidding when I say this happens every single day.
Needless to say, after a nice long 3 month summer break, it's great to be back in Vanduzi, teaching and keeping busy with school!
Look forward to my next blog post, which will be about the mural I helped with in Guija!
Ate ja!
