Caught in the Rain

2nd Aug. 2009 (How it is written in Swaziland DD/MM/YY)

Oh do I have some fun stories for you guys! This has been quite the eventful week, where should I begin my tale? Well, the one that is freshest in my mind is the story of how Darryn/Zodwa became stuck in Kate’s pit latrine just before 7am this morning while it was pouring/hailing/lightening. Rewind- 12hours!
My family invited myself and Kate to a cultural event last night. Our Gogo (grandmother) was holding an all-night vigil service for her “cleansing”. She had been in mourning for her dead husband for two years, wearing black clothes, and last night was the celebration of the end of this period. I was told to be ready to leave at 9pm so we could be there by 10pm when it was suppose to start. Not yet being used to “Swazi time” I was in the house, blanket and warm clothes on, ready to go at 9pm sharp… we left at 10pm and the vigil didn’t actually start until 11:15pm! Remember as the clock ticks during this story that Kate and I ran ~45min at 6am this morning, had a full day of school/placement excitement, and are use to a normal bedtime being around 8:30pm... if coffee is involved… maybe. :-P So as people file into this purple and white striped graduation party/circus tent on my Gogo’s homestead, Kate and I plopped into the plastic chairs hoping and praying that no one would want us to use our exhausted/brain-fried siSwati… fat chance.
We were escorted by a sisi I had not met until that day around to multiple extended family members and friends scattered amongst the busily cooking/preparing women (the men were sitting and chatting separately). We were quite startled to find Kate’s Make in a separate hut with multiple mutilated cow parts butchered and hung on the walls! This cultural adventure was getting started off with a bang! The ceremony finally began with a Zionist church congregation (Gogo and Mkhulu were Zionist), coming in dressed in bright green, blue and white outfits, singing. Then the pastor would preach and awhile later another Zionist congregation (same colors, different outfits) would come in singing. This happened 4 or 5 times. Mostly Zionist congregations, but a troop of bright yellow and green Jericho believers came in around 12:30pm. All in all, I want to say around 150 people were packed into this tent, women on one side men on the other, and most sitting on the ground.
Kate and I sang the only word we knew, “Halleluiah” in one song/chant, and got up and sway “danced” at another song, but were mostly just observers trying not to nod-off. At some point it started raining. I had already cleared it with my family that we would probably not be staying ‘til 7am, when it was suppose to get over. We stayed semi-conscious until around 1am and then asked my sisi if it was a good opportunity to quietly leave. For safety, a few siblings walked Kate and I to her hut. To let them get back to their celebration quicker, I spent the night on Kate’s grass-mat, so they would not have to walk me all the way back to my house. Luckily for us, it was only drizzling at this point.
Just before 7am our bladders acted as an alarm clock. I was the second to run out to Kate’s pit latrine. Somehow I timed it just right, so while I was out there it REALLY started pouring! And then small pieces of hail came down. I could see all of this through the six inch space between the roof and wall of the pit latrine structure, if I stood on my toes. I was stuck. It was a beautiful storm, but not quite the same as watching it from a window in a warm house. A bit colder, wetter, and stinky-er. :-/ I stayed out there for about 5-10minutes, until I could hear the slightest let up in the sheets of rain on the corrugated tin roof and made a dash for it. Insta-soak. No matter though… thanks to the rain, I have been able to put off my laundry and write this exciting account of Saturday night shenanigans in Swaziland. But alas, the sun is back out and the laundry is calling…. Until next time, enjoy your water-proof bathroom. :-P

Same Day 5:12pm
My laundry is finally finished! I could use a wonderful back massage right about now. :-P Instead of getting an amazing back massage, I am boiling some water to make rice. Many people have commented or alluded to the growing worry that I am not able to cook for myself (both Swazi and American). I would like to assure everyone that I am doing very well in the kitchen, thank you! Except for poaching eggs, I am awful at poaching eggs! That is being added to my two year goals: save lives, integrate into a new culture, learn a new language, run a ½ marathon, successfully poach an egg. All very lofty indeed. :-P
On with my stories! Since I started with the most recent, we will work our way back through the week. Yesterday, we found out where we will be located for the two years!! I am going to be living in Ekuphumleni “Eh-goo-poom-leh-nee” which is in the Shiselweni “Shih-sell-weh-nee” region. It is located in the southern most part of Swaziland. I have a picture of my house. It is a cylindrical, one room, thatched roof, cutie. The door frame, and possibly inside, is painted neon green (Scoob- perfect for you!). I guess there is a clinic nearby, but it is pretty set back from a main road. With public transport, it sounds like it will take about 6 hours to get to the capital city and thus the PC Office. I would love to tell you guys more, but I just don’t know anything else yet. I travel there on Sat. (Aug. 8th), and then I will have so much more to tell!! Everything thing I hear, though, is positive, and I am in love with it already! FYI: If I translated it correctly Ekuphumleni means “the place of rest”. Hahaha! Ms. Type A personality, goal oriented, semi-workaholic, busybody is sent to “the place of rest” to work for two years. God certainly has a grasp on irony.
Jumping back into my blogging time machine, last Monday and Tuesday was our field trip! We went to Mbabane first to pick up our cell phones. Mine is nifty, but for some reason the Swazi network will not let me call anyone in the 231 area code. They can call me though. For anyone who does not live in northern Michigan, that covers almost ALL of my family and a ton of friends!!! Very very frustrating. My mother does have my number now, so give her a ring/email to get it (for security reasons I don’t wish to post it).
After cell phones we went to the national museum. It was small and cute. From there we went to, what is now, one of my favorite places in Swaziland! There is a cultural village (very much for tourists, but who cares?) where we walked through traditional huts, had a very entertaining guide, and then saw a traditional dance team perform. It was awesome! At the same location we walked down a path to a very beautiful waterfall. Many pictures were taken. Our travels then landed us in a national game park, but sadly it was almost dark so we could not see many animals. We enjoyed a blazing bon fire, some beverages, and I opted to see some more cultural dancing performed by the park rangers. At this performance I was pulled up to learn the basic moves (mostly stomping in rhythm), among many others, and I had a blast!
The following day I woke early to scout out some animals near our dorms and found some impala and zebras. There were supposedly hippos at this park, but sadly we did not have the time to find them (again, thinking of you Shelby). Back in Piggs Peak, we toured a regional hospital. It was teeny-tiny in comparison to hospitals in the US and struggling, like the entire healthcare system, to combat HIV/AIDS and its aftermath.
***My typing was just interrupted by my bhuti (brother) knocking at my door and offering my Make’s beef stew. Told you everyone is worried about me eating. Needless to say, I am now eating beef stew with my rice, even though I am not a beef fan. :-P ***
After the hospital, we went back to our training center for lunch and a debriefing session. That was the end to our fun field trip. It was wonderful seeing a bit more of the country. Since my permanent site is so far away (literally the polar opposite end) from where we are now, I will be seeing much more of the country within the week!
On that note, I should close this very long-winded, multi-story, blog entry, and eat my food. :-) Again, thanks everyone for the thoughts, prayers, and letters. You all are such a blessing to me, even so far away. Huge hugs!
Zodwa/Darryn