Quick Update

I may not have posted a blog for quite a long time, but it doesn't mean I haven't been writing some! I've just posted the ones from the last few months. AND we got all the funding for the pre-school, so THANK YOU to everyone that donated, we really appreciate it. They're stockpiling the materials now and I'll post some photos when they start building :)

Trip of a Lifetime!

It’s July which means that it’s time for my last school break. I’ve traveled a lot since living here. I had visited (and stayed the night in) all 10 provinces in Moçambique. I also took my big Tanzania trip over Christmas and now that our visas have been figured out I’ve been able to visit Malawi a few times. I knew that this would be my last break and I was still missing out on traveling to Ilha de Moçambique (Mozambique Island) as well as Victoria Falls on the border of Zambia and Zimbabwe. Ilha is in the northern part of Moz, and Vic Falls is also a long trip but I decided that it would be possible to check both off my list with one big loop over our 2 week break, and luckily I had a few friends crazy enough to join me. To start off the vacation, my friend Emily was throwing a July 4th party for our region at her site (affectionately called “The Dombe”). She’s a 4 hour drive through the mountains to a site where she doesn’t have electricity. The real Peace Corps experience, for sure. After the open back chapa ride through the mountains (and 4 hours to go about 85km) I finally made it just in time for a BBQ complete with onion rings, beef cheeseburgers, hotdogs and beer. It was a great time. From there we made the trek up north. We hitch-hiked from Chimoio to Nampula city all in 1 day (15 hours and over 1,000km) for a total of 55 mts ($2) which really helped my budget. Then after one of the worst minibus rides of my time here (a woman leaned on me the entire way. My face was squished against her boob. And Emily was sitting about 4 feet away from me and I couldn’t see her even once for all the people that were on there) I finally made it to Ilha. Ilha is kind of a mini-Zanzibar and it was really fun. There are a lot of white stone buildings and big expanses of turquoise water. We stayed at a Ruby’s backpackers which had a beautiful rooftop lounge to hang out on. The island is about 3 km long and no more than 1 km wide so our first afternoon we walked around and got oriented, concluding the evening with crab gnocchi on an amazing rooftop restaurant. Then the next day it was all the tourist things—visiting the big fort at the Northern end of the island as well as the 1st church in Moz that the fort was built around; A heaping plate of fried calamari for lunch; concluding with a free bike tour of the entire island. I learned that the island was the first place to be called Mozambique, and is in fact where the name originated from. From there it was 4 days long travel days to reach Vic Falls. Day 1: Nampula to Mandimba via the train and a chapa at the end. Day 2: Mandimba to Lilongwe, Malawi (120km from my house). Day 3: Lilongwe to Lusaka, Zambia. Day 4: Lusaka to Livingstone, Zambia where the falls are located. It was exhausting, but totally worth it. At the falls the first day we just walked around the trails at the falls in wonder of all the water all around. The water hits the bottom with so much force that it literally rains up at you and you get soaked. AMAZING. Then Emily got accosted by a baboon that ripped (literally) through her purse (in hindsight hysterical—at the time terrifying) and we decided to take a little walk on the bridge that is the border of Zambia and Zimbabwe. Because of political instability, P.C. volunteers are forbidden from traveling into Zimbabwe except to view the falls. The extra visa costs were not in our budget, but they do let you go out to the bridge for free. Emily bungee-jumped and I documented the entire thing. No way was I doing that! Then it was back to Livingstone for 2 for 1 margaritas at a legit Mexican restaurant. My stomach has never been so happy . The next day I got up early for a game drive. There weren’t a lot of animals, but the ones we did see were very active and fun to watch. Then we ended the day with a sunset (booze) cruise along the Zambezi river that feeds the falls. All you can eat and drink with hippos all around, a great time. Then it was back to Lusaka where we watched a movie in a theater (with popcorn!) and found Dr. Pepper as well as legit tortilla chips for sale. PS, all after eating at Subway. It was glorious. Then back to Lilongwe for a night and back to my house the next. We stopped at Dedza pottery (on the border of Malawi 40km from my site) for cheesecake just to make the culinary experience complete. It was great, and now I’m looking forward to finishing up my year here and coming home in December. See you in about 4 months‼

Chefe Syndrome

There is a well-known phenomenon here in Moz that I would like to discuss: Chefe (chief/boss) Syndrome. And yes, that’s with a capital C and a capital S. This happens to some Mozambicans when they get into a position of power: simply put, they let whatever control they have (big or small) go to their heads and make people under their control do ridiculous things. This can happen to teachers, border guards, policemen, or even (unfortunately) our school directors. My favorite example is the head guard at the Teacher Training institute where we live. His name is Manuel, not-so-affectionately referred to as “drunk guard” by my roommate and I (for obvious reasons). The classrooms, dorm buildings and teacher houses are all inside of a fence. This fence has only one gate where people can enter/exit. For “security purposes” the guards get to question anyone entering and ask where they’re going and what they’re going to do there. This is of course to avoid letting thieves in to rob the houses and the school. Never mind that the fence surrounding the entire place is only 6 feet tall, therefore any thief would simply need to jump the fence like all the neighborhood kids do. And there is ample fence to jump well out of site of the guard at the front gate. Manuel still feels the need to stop people at whim and refuse them entry. For example when my secondary students try to come to my house for help. He holds them at the gate and has someone bring me a message at my house and then I have to go to the gate and escort them. Right, Manuel, I’m sure that this young kid in a school uniform carrying only their English book is coming through the front gate to rob a house. That makes complete sense, grrrr. As much as it frustrates me, I have realized that in my second year of teaching I have a little Chefe Syndrome that comes out when I’m at school. At the end of every trimester they do the final test, and different professors are in charge of different rooms full of students taking the test (generally not the professor of that subject with that class of kids to avoid them “helping” the students). The job of the professor in the room is to make sure no one is cheating or using cheat sheets. The effectiveness of this system is questionable since there are some professors that don’t really care and let the kids cheat anyways. I, however, am a cheating nazi—and this is where my Chefe Syndrome rears its ugly head. I hate cheating here….and I do my darndest to stop it. They are ridiculous—it’s not just looking at other papers, it’s cheat sheets and passing notes as well. And they aren’t very good at hiding it, and a lot of the time they are cheating off someone else who doesn’t know the answer. One rule is if they have a scratch paper (and I don’t always let them) they must have an entire sheet. If not they will rip of small pieces to pass the answers along to their friends. I find myself randomly confiscating scratch paper that I believe was passed to them by a friend. I make kids get up and move and sit on the floor. I do this even suspecting that they are cheating…with Chefe syndrome there is no need of proof. If I think you’re cheating it’s probably because you are. If I do catch you with a cheat sheet I get out my big red pen and write “FRAUDE” all over your paper so that the professor will give them a 0. Then I laugh at you and say that you can leave the classroom now, it’s no use finishing your test. I could not have imagined acting this way when I arrived, but that’s how it must be done. One sign of weakness and you’re done for. Give in an inch, give in a mile was never more true. I will have to get this under control going back to America.

New Norms

So, living here for such a long time, I eventually got used to the funny (to me) things happening around me in my new culture. I eventually didn’t even know what to blog about nor did I continue writing in my diary. Now, with my COS (Close of Service) date coming quickly, I’ve started to notice things with nostalgia that I forgot I used to find weird: • Small children (like 2 years old) riding in front of the adult driving a motorcycle. • Giant spider webs with all sorts of furry and crazy colored spiders, many times a group of 20 spiders or so in a giant network of webs up in the tree branches • Shaming people into treating me fairly by any means necessary. I have literally argued with a conductor (the guy who charges for rides in public transport) in Malawi about how much he was charging me. In the argument I called him a racist as well as a thief. I feel like in the states I could really offend someone • My beers come in half liter bottles • Young children (like, just learning to walk children) wandering freely down the street. Not only wandering, but chewing on plastic bags and/or playing with giant knives. To quote a friend “there is nothing that defines ‘freedom’ like an African child” • An uncanny ability to make kids start crying or shocking crying kids into silence just by my appearance (why is her hair yellow and her skin white!?!?!!!) • Water is a major stressor in my life—how are we going to flush the toilet today? • All of my TV viewing (a major part of my life in the states) is done via downloads and is entirely dependent on other’s abilities to get it for me • I only talk to my family every 2 weeks • This is as close as I’ll get to being famous. Everyone knows who I am, and little children shout my name in the streets, random people want pictures with me, etc. • I can tell my students to do anything and they’ll do it without question. “Hey! Here’s the money, go get me some cookies” and they do it with pleasure. As well as carrying my bags at anytime, offering me a banana, etc. • It is possible to live without running water • I am completely dependent on public transport or the goodwill of people that will give me a ride (I’ve grown to prefer hitchhiking) And all of this happens on the left side of the road. • I walk about 2 miles a day. • I can full on ignore people without giving anything away. Any shout of “hey baby!!” or “Muzungo! (white person!)” and it looks like you’re yelling at a deaf and blind person. If you’re right beside me at a bar or something I literally move my head to avoid any eye contact. • Cranes frequent my yard. Like those big white cranes that you see on Nat Geo • I love the ridiculous questions trainees ask. “Do they have fridges in Africa?” Yes, yes they do. • Meat and dairy products are a luxury usually to be had at large group gatherings or special events (like a birthday) • Public breastfeeding. Even in my classroom…um hm • Livestock on public transport. Chickens, roosters, goats, and once even a pig

COS-ing

I have an end date….there is a light at the end of this tunnel (although without the connotation of it being a bad experience). It’s strange to suddenly be at the end of my service. I COS (close of service) on December the 6th, one of the last of my group and almost 2 years to the day of swearing in to become a volunteer. I’m starting to notice all of those little things that fascinated or alarmed me when I first arrived—the music, the dancing, even xima (a not-very-appetizing corn flour paste). I’m trying to take in the everyday little things that I’ll miss. What I will miss the most is definitely my kids (students). They have been such a blessing and I really enjoy them. I didn’t think that I would get so attached. Recently, one was killed in a freak accident (he got hit by a car just walking down the main street in town) and I was a wreck for 2 days. For all of the corruption and dumb politics that I see in this country that are harming it, they give me a hope for the future.

Help!

Alright, I know that I've become seriously lazy in posting blogs, but I just get busy. This post is to ask for your help in leaving our mark here in Africa. The previous volunteer that my roommate replaced got a grant to help start a pre-school which is rare in Africa) and now Arielle (my roommate) has written another grant to help that preschool expand. Please follow the link bellow and read the description, then donate. Every little bit is appreciated. The deadline to get the money is September 6th, and if we get it before then I can see the buildings go up while I'm still here. Please help with whatever you can, and spread the word!! And any concerns or questions please feel free to contact me (mandy_moore_13@yahoo.com) The website is: https://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=donate.contribute.projDetail&projdesc=640-032 Or, you can find the project on www.peacecorps.gov/donate and search project number 640-032

Rage in the ATM line...

Even if I lived in Africa for 5 years, I don’t think that I will ever get used to the incompetence I see at the ATM. First of all, my villa recently removed my banks ATM, which means that there is only 1 usable ATM in the entire town. Fabulous. This means ONE ATM for probably around 10,000 people (honestly not sure, just a guestimate). And all these people get paid around the same time every month, myself included. Imagine arriving at the ATM with about 10 people in front of you. In Africa this would mean about 2 hours of waiting. They are big believers in “hold my spot” so that even if there are 10 people in front of you, there could be 10 more technically in front of you, only at the moment they are sitting in the shade or running to the bakery. Ugh. Then people that don’t want to wait give their cards and PINs to other people in front of you. So each of the 20 people in front of you in line are using 2-3 cards each. It’s a nightmare. Plus, they’re not as advanced in technology as the U.S. which means, at times, massive confusion. I have experienced around 3 or 4 times where everyone is just standing in line waiting for the machine to be loaded with more money. Turns out the machine isn’t out of money, the person who said that actually had no money in their account so they think that the machine is out when really they are the ones out of luck. Ugh. This is not an ideal situation, especially right before the weekend and you want to have a birthday party. Just had to get it out there.