Happy birthday today to my mother! I love you!
Yesterday, I was not too busy to post anything...in fact, quite the opposite. I felt that nothing had happened all day that I could write about. But yesterday evening, I had quite a good time. My friend in the Alumni/Development office took another exchange student (Aaron) and me out to dinner. We went to an Indian place, and then went to an Italian place next door for dessert.
I checked out Books 3 and 4 of the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency books from the school library yesterday. I'm hoping to get them read this weekend. Apparently the author visits MaP each year - hopefully I'll be here to see him!
Tomorrow, I have a service project, visiting Camphill, a residence, school, and community for children and adults with disabilities, at 8 o'clock in the morning. Following that I'll be going to Jessica's house. I'm glad that I'll be getting a change from the cafeteria food!
Yesterday in my homeroom class, I was surprised to read on a poster that Botswana's life expectancy rate was only 33 years. I asked my roommate whether this was true, and she too was incredulous. I checked the CIA World Factbook for verification, and unearthed some interesting figures. According to the CIA World Factbook for Botswana, the life expectany is about 50 years. Higher, but still rather low. Only 3.9% of the population is over 65 years old, compared to 12.7% of the United States. One major reason for Botswana's low life expectancy is a high prevalence of HIV/AIDS. In 2003, 37.3% of the adult population was infected with HIV - 350,000 people. Yet because Botswana's total population is so low, the U.S. with a 0.6% prevalence rate actually has more than twice as many people living with HIV. Yet despite these rather depressing figures, Botswana has a literacy rate of 81.2%, with the literacy rate of females a few tenths of a percent higher than that of males. Their economy is growing - despite an unemployment rate of 24%, some of whom I assume are subsistence farmers.
Off to be lonely some more...oh well. Perhaps I will run into some friends on the way back to the dorm.
23 May 2008
21 May 2008
The Random Invitation
"I'd like to introduce you to somebody," said the staff member who had picked me up at the airport one week ago. Eager to meet a kind, helpful teacher or mentor, I followed her. But outside, a blonde-haired girl, also in Form 5, stood there.
After telling me her name, the woman said, "She has invited you to her house for the weekend."
My first thought: We haven't even met before!! I have no idea who she is!! Eek!
My second thought: Who coerced her into this? What teenager invites a random girl to their house without some adult involved?
So today, I will try sitting with different people at dinner; I will try to visit someone in their room, and actually work up the courage to knock on their door; and I will look towards my weekend engagement with hope and excitement, rather than worry and fear.
20 May 2008
Photos by a Foreigner
Below: taken at Heathrow airport, while reclining in a curvy red couch during my 9-hr layover. 
Above: my first glimpse of Africa! Flying from Heathrow to Johannesburg overnight, morning dawned as we flew over Botswana, where I captured this lovely sunrise.
Below: Welcome to Maru-a-Pula! A mural gracing the first wall you see as you drive in past the gate. This sculpture/mural is only a couple of years old.
Above, the girls' boarding house - GBH. Not too glamorous, but comfortable enough.
Below, the cafeteria. Each day there is a vegetarian option, but, surprisingly to me, considering the growing season in Africa, hardly any fruit. Perhaps a continual water shortage has something to do with the lack of fruit...
Above: The front of Maitisong, the cultural center of Gaborone located at MaP. Unfortunately, the stage decorations from the arangetram are gone. I sat in the "pit".
Below: the upper portion of Maitisong.
Above: Exterior view of the library.
Below: Interior of the library.
Above: The marimba room.
Below: The bass marimba...note the huge gourd resonators!
Above: The lead soprano marimba, which I have been playing most. I had my first lesson with the marimba teacher today, and learned a lot - although whether I will remember it tomorrow is questionable!
Above: my first glimpse of Africa! Flying from Heathrow to Johannesburg overnight, morning dawned as we flew over Botswana, where I captured this lovely sunrise.Below: Welcome to Maru-a-Pula! A mural gracing the first wall you see as you drive in past the gate. This sculpture/mural is only a couple of years old.
Above, the girls' boarding house - GBH. Not too glamorous, but comfortable enough.Below, the cafeteria. Each day there is a vegetarian option, but, surprisingly to me, considering the growing season in Africa, hardly any fruit. Perhaps a continual water shortage has something to do with the lack of fruit...
Above: The front of Maitisong, the cultural center of Gaborone located at MaP. Unfortunately, the stage decorations from the arangetram are gone. I sat in the "pit".Below: the upper portion of Maitisong.
Above: Exterior view of the library.Below: Interior of the library.
Above: The marimba room.Below: The bass marimba...note the huge gourd resonators!
Above: The lead soprano marimba, which I have been playing most. I had my first lesson with the marimba teacher today, and learned a lot - although whether I will remember it tomorrow is questionable!
Some Interesting Information...
I have unearthed a few things about Botswana in a myriad of conversations. The new president is generally viewed in a positive light. He is relatively young, and trying to fix a few of Botswana's problems. One main issue is deaths due to drunk driving. "Botswana is a country of drunks," people joke. So President Khama cut the hours that bars are allowed to be open in half. "Botswana is a slacker country," people say. So he is also going to try to speed up various government processes.
I have also become a bit disillusioned regarding certain aspects. "My house was burgled once," said one girl, "We called them, and the police showed up two hours later." The law enforcement obviously lacks. Some of the laws are a bit, well, wrong - or one in particular. In Botswana, according to the students I've talked to, practicing homosexuality is illegal. So the good news about California now allowing gay marriage was overshadowed, at least for me, by the realization that many countries are not nearly as lucky as the United States, at least in my view.
Today, a woman spoke to us at our brief morning school meeting about an organization she runs which distributes clothes and other items to orphans in Botswana. Another sad realization: the sheer number of orphans, many of whose parents died of AIDS or who are HIV positive themselves, living in destitution in Botswana.
Enough about current events...Now a post with some lovely photos!!
I have also become a bit disillusioned regarding certain aspects. "My house was burgled once," said one girl, "We called them, and the police showed up two hours later." The law enforcement obviously lacks. Some of the laws are a bit, well, wrong - or one in particular. In Botswana, according to the students I've talked to, practicing homosexuality is illegal. So the good news about California now allowing gay marriage was overshadowed, at least for me, by the realization that many countries are not nearly as lucky as the United States, at least in my view.
Today, a woman spoke to us at our brief morning school meeting about an organization she runs which distributes clothes and other items to orphans in Botswana. Another sad realization: the sheer number of orphans, many of whose parents died of AIDS or who are HIV positive themselves, living in destitution in Botswana.
Enough about current events...Now a post with some lovely photos!!
19 May 2008
All Quiet...at MaP, at least
The Deerfield bubble, I believe, does not just apply to Deerfield.
I am finding it even more difficult to keep up with current events here at MaP than at home. But I have managed to check a bit on Africa via BBC.com, and have discovered: that in Zimbabwe, Mr. Tsvangirai has not returned to his country to begin a campaign for president in a run-off against Mr. Mugabe; in Mozambique, police will now be required to follow a fitness regimen; and terrifyingly, in South Africa, vicious attacks, including fire, vandalism, rape, beatings, and other violence, have been carried out against many foreigners residing in the country - especially focused upon the estimated 3 million Zimbabweans who have fled to Johannesburg and other parts of South Africa.
Many people here in Botswana have a relatively negative view of South Africa; yes, they might go to some of the good colleges which do exist there, but in general it is viewed as an unsafe, dangerous place to visit. Zimbabwe has become a bit of a...not a joke, but a counter-character. Jokingly, one teacher said, "I am now from Zambia. I used to be from Zimbabwe but I have relocated." Obviously this man can't change where he was born, but the embarrassment or disappointment about Zimbabwe is pretty widespread.
But submitting to the bubble effect, I'm hoping to go out and take some photographs this afternoon. I'll be sure to post them when I get the chance!
I am finding it even more difficult to keep up with current events here at MaP than at home. But I have managed to check a bit on Africa via BBC.com, and have discovered: that in Zimbabwe, Mr. Tsvangirai has not returned to his country to begin a campaign for president in a run-off against Mr. Mugabe; in Mozambique, police will now be required to follow a fitness regimen; and terrifyingly, in South Africa, vicious attacks, including fire, vandalism, rape, beatings, and other violence, have been carried out against many foreigners residing in the country - especially focused upon the estimated 3 million Zimbabweans who have fled to Johannesburg and other parts of South Africa.
Many people here in Botswana have a relatively negative view of South Africa; yes, they might go to some of the good colleges which do exist there, but in general it is viewed as an unsafe, dangerous place to visit. Zimbabwe has become a bit of a...not a joke, but a counter-character. Jokingly, one teacher said, "I am now from Zambia. I used to be from Zimbabwe but I have relocated." Obviously this man can't change where he was born, but the embarrassment or disappointment about Zimbabwe is pretty widespread.
But submitting to the bubble effect, I'm hoping to go out and take some photographs this afternoon. I'll be sure to post them when I get the chance!
18 May 2008
Arangetram
Who would've guessed that I'd be introduced to Indian and Hindu culture in Gaborone?!
My friend described India's population explosion: She lives in Broadhurst, a section of Gaborone, which has about twenty thousand residents; she says that a similar sized area in India would contain the entire population of Botswana - 1.8 million people! In response to this crowding, many Indian people have moved to Gaborone in the past 10-15 years.
Last night, I attended an arangetram at Maitisong, a cultural theatre of Gaborone located on campus at Maru-a-Pula. Many Indian girls study Indian classical dance, a type of dance involving quick foot movements, intricate poses, and delibrate hand and wrist positions. The arangetram is the culminating performance of years of study, a girl's first solo performance. Last night, the graduate demonstrated three types of dance - Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi are the two names which I can remember. In kuchipudi, the girl dances on a round disk (plate), placing her feet on the raise rims and using quick lower body movements to move forwards, backwards, and in circles. The whole evening was very impressive! The arangetram started at about 6:30, and the evening drew to a close at 9:45. The dancer was active for probably about 1 1/2 or 2 hours - what stamina! We had an intermission in which dinner was served. The Indian community in Gaborone is vegetarian, so my excitement at encountering WONDERFUL vegetarian, ethnic Indian food was unmeasurable! We were served boxes with samosas, vegetable cutlets, sandwiches with some type of a green, curry-ish spread, and some type of sweet. To drink I tried some lichi juice - incredible! I'll have to pick some up next time I go to the mall. The dance was incredible - said a "guest speaker" (a friend of the family asked to talk for a few minutes about the girl and her dancing), "I am proud to be Indian, to be from the country where this wonderful form of classical dance originated." (A random side note: this professor was clapped off the stage after talking for 25 minutes...he said, "And now I will finish..." and the crowd erupted in applause. He waited for it to die down, and continued, "And now I will finish with some comments on mudra [the hand positions]..." and the crowd once again interrupted with ample applause. The poor verbose man finally got the message and, with a brief "thank you," retreated from the stage.)
The entire night - free of cost - was incredible. The stage was bedecked with gold and white painted backgrounds, and incense and oil lamps burned in one corner underneath a statue of the Hindu god of dance, scattered with flower petals. One of my Indian friends looked incredibly beautiful dressed in a red and pink half-sari.
I can't wait to talk to my friends more on Monday (they are day students so won't be on campus today) and learn more about Hindu-ism and Indian culture.
My friend described India's population explosion: She lives in Broadhurst, a section of Gaborone, which has about twenty thousand residents; she says that a similar sized area in India would contain the entire population of Botswana - 1.8 million people! In response to this crowding, many Indian people have moved to Gaborone in the past 10-15 years.
Last night, I attended an arangetram at Maitisong, a cultural theatre of Gaborone located on campus at Maru-a-Pula. Many Indian girls study Indian classical dance, a type of dance involving quick foot movements, intricate poses, and delibrate hand and wrist positions. The arangetram is the culminating performance of years of study, a girl's first solo performance. Last night, the graduate demonstrated three types of dance - Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi are the two names which I can remember. In kuchipudi, the girl dances on a round disk (plate), placing her feet on the raise rims and using quick lower body movements to move forwards, backwards, and in circles. The whole evening was very impressive! The arangetram started at about 6:30, and the evening drew to a close at 9:45. The dancer was active for probably about 1 1/2 or 2 hours - what stamina! We had an intermission in which dinner was served. The Indian community in Gaborone is vegetarian, so my excitement at encountering WONDERFUL vegetarian, ethnic Indian food was unmeasurable! We were served boxes with samosas, vegetable cutlets, sandwiches with some type of a green, curry-ish spread, and some type of sweet. To drink I tried some lichi juice - incredible! I'll have to pick some up next time I go to the mall. The dance was incredible - said a "guest speaker" (a friend of the family asked to talk for a few minutes about the girl and her dancing), "I am proud to be Indian, to be from the country where this wonderful form of classical dance originated." (A random side note: this professor was clapped off the stage after talking for 25 minutes...he said, "And now I will finish..." and the crowd erupted in applause. He waited for it to die down, and continued, "And now I will finish with some comments on mudra [the hand positions]..." and the crowd once again interrupted with ample applause. The poor verbose man finally got the message and, with a brief "thank you," retreated from the stage.)
The entire night - free of cost - was incredible. The stage was bedecked with gold and white painted backgrounds, and incense and oil lamps burned in one corner underneath a statue of the Hindu god of dance, scattered with flower petals. One of my Indian friends looked incredibly beautiful dressed in a red and pink half-sari.
I can't wait to talk to my friends more on Monday (they are day students so won't be on campus today) and learn more about Hindu-ism and Indian culture.
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