Goodbye Term 1, hello Victoria Falls

Namibia received record rainfall this year.  This article was on cnn.com (I also posted a link on my facebook page a few weeks ago):

Record flooding has affected half a million Namibians, Red Cross says

Heavy rains that began early in January in northern central Namibia have reached staggering proportions, with 80 people drowned and half a million others affected directly or indirectly, officials said.
President Hifikepunye Pohamba declared a national emergency in all six northern regions on March 28.
The affected region is in the Cuvelai Basin, which drains southern Angola via a complex of streams that typically result in an annual flood called the efundja, which is named for the fish that spawn in spring.
This year's efundja has resulted in the wettest year since systematic measurements started in 1891, with rainfall in affected areas nearly double the normal average.
Government figures cite 263 school closures, with a total of 320 affected, leaving 114,000 schoolchildren shut out of their classrooms.
Up to 40 health clinics are under water, and more than 100 health mobile outreach points have been made inaccessible as a result of damage to roads and bridges, according to the World Health Organization.
In addition, roads, bridges, homes and staple crops in all six northern and northeastern regions in Namibia have been destroyed, according to UNICEF.
They represent some of the country's poorest areas.
The Red Cross Society of Namibia estimates that 500,000 people have been affected, with the densely populated central-northern regions -- Omusati, Oshona and Ohangwena -- hit worst.
But other areas are also threatened, as rivers -- including the Zambezi -- drain southern and central Angola. Forecasters predict areas like Caprivi, which is about 500 kilometers (310 miles) east, may experience more flooding by next week.
About 40,000 people have been displaced, some 10,000 of whom have been accommodated in 68 camps set up by the government, officials said.
The death toll is expected to rise as water-borne diseases, mainly malaria, are predicted to spread.
The Red Cross and the U.N.'s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs are appealing for help, and the U.S. government and some European countries have made donations. OCHA said in its southern Africa flood and cyclone report, published Wednesday, that 2011 marks the third consecutive year of heavy rains in the region. The result is that the water table has risen and that "flood water levels are unlikely to recede for the next three to six months."
More rain is expected.


Peace Corps relocated volunteers located in the affected areas to stay with volunteers in the south.  We hosted 4 relocated volunteers, all from Group 32 (Martin’s group); it started out that they would only be relocated for 2 weeks, but they ended up being with us for 3 weeks and change.  I really enjoyed having them; most of us who hosted were a little apprehensive about having volunteers for so long, but the group that stayed with us was great. 

The end of the term has passed uneventfully.  Not having a register class, or having to enter marks of my own, made things pretty easy for me.  That’s not to say I wasn’t ridiculously busy; I just wasn’t busy in the way I was last year at the end of the term, running around like a headless hen.  I’ve been updating the school’s computers in preparation for computer classes this coming term.  The process of  updating computers using only one internet connection has been time consuming, and I usually can’t do much without being interrupted or beckoned to another part of the building.  One of the shining moments of this term: my counterpart has started using Microsoft Excel all by herself.  Considering she couldn’t really do anything on computer when i got to my school at the end of 2009, and remembering that computers aren’t as popular here and most people don’t have them in their homes yet, it’s pretty great that she’s doing as much as she is independently.  We even started using formulas in some of her marksheets.  It’s pretty exciting stuff for me. The last day of school was a funny day; the learners come to school to collect their reports, but they come and go when they want.  With the exception of one other volunteer, every other PCV either wasn’t required to go to school on the last day, or was out of school by 10 am.  Me? There till 12 because a staff meeting had been scheduled for 10. Sigh. At least they fed us before the meeting, and I had a fun weekend to look forward to.

Even though the end of my term wasn’t super stressful, I was definitely ready for a holiday.  After the last day of school, I was able to spend a few days with my best friend here in Namibia – it was really what I needed. We did some interneting, listened to endless hours of music (and watched YouTube videos! Whoa), did some skyping, and had a very tasty taco night with some Namibians, PCVs, and a couchsurfer. I then travelled to Windhoek to meet up with a Group 31 health PCV to travel to Victoria Falls, Zambia side.  (The Zambezi river runs between Zambia and Zimbabwe at the falls.) 

We got into Livingstone, Zambia on Sunday night, after a hugely successful day hiking, and managed to find and get to Livingstone’s Indian Restaurant before it closed.  The place is tiny and kind of hidden at the back of a lodge; nonetheless, it was the best Indian food I’ve had for years, maybe ever.  Even better than being delicious? Being cheap. 

We’re staying at a Jollyboys Backpackers here in Livingston, where there happens to be a large number of Group 32ers running around, too.  Thankfully most of them are cool, and it’s been fun to hang out with them and get to know them a little better.

I’m sleeping in my tent instead of in the dorm rooms – camping is cheaper, and it’s nice to spread out in my tent.  The dorms rooms are also way smellier than my tent.  I’m all set up underneath some palm trees, with my hammock hanging between 2 of them.  I have a nice, secluded set up that I can retreat to at the end of the day. 

Monday evening we went on a sunset cruise on the Zambezi (we saw crocs and hippos!), and yesterday I went to the falls.  Some people say that they’re nicer from the Zimbabwe side, but they’re pretty great from the Zambia side, too.  There’s been so much rain in Southern Africa this year and the river is so high that it’s hard to see the falls for all the mist.  The trails around the falls get very close, and being that close is like being in torrential downpours.  There’s a healthy baboon population inside the park, and there were a couple moments when we felt like we were running the baboon gauntlet – one time we were cornered by a large male on one side of us on the trail and 2 smaller baboons on the other side; we decided to back off the trail and let the big guy pass, which he did, then jumped into the tree just next to us.  People inside the park foolishly feed them sometimes, and the baboons know that if you open your bag, you might have food inside.  One of the other PCVs did just this and was charged by a baboon. 

Tuesday evening we rounded off an already amazing day with another trip for Indian food.

Wednesday morning we visited the market in Livingstone, rumored to have cheap shitenges (large pieces of colorful fabric that the women wrap around them here).  Shitenges are multipurpose, serving as wall hangings, wraps, towels, blankets, tablecoverings, and scarves.  In Namibia, they’re N$20 – N$30 (US$3 – US$4.50).  Here, they were rumored to be around N$15 at a market far away from the backpackers we’re staying at.  So yesterday morning we went in search of these cheap shitenges.  What we found was a large, open market similar to those in Latin America, selling clothes, vegetables, kitchen items, meat, shoes, beans and ground nuts…  I’d been wondering how people live in Livingstone, because the grocery store are much more expensive than in Namibia – but this market is where the local people shop.  And unlike the other markets in Livingstone, there weren’t other white people around.  Also unlike the other markets in Livingstone, the vendors didn’t harass us as we walked around.  We found a shitenge stand being run by 2 small boys who spoke fantastic English.  There were shitenges all over the floor and one of the boys was in the process of cutting them to the proper length; we kind of wanted to dive in and small in the sea of shitenges.  We were also approached by a lady who saw us shopping for shitenges and offered to make clothes out of them – for us, pants and skirts.  Turns out that she also speaks French – a drastic difference from Namibia, where people only speak their mother tongues and English and/or Afrikaans.  

The remainder of Wednesday was spent lazing around (although I managed to lose my sunglasses, which I’m pretty bummed about), reading, etc….

Yesterday morning we went back to the market to retrieve our clothes early in the morning. Most of the 32ers who are here were planning to either bunji, swing (50ft swing) or zip line into/across the Zambezi gorge from the bridge going into Zimbabwe; we were planning to go and watch, so we wanted to get to the market as early as possible.  The 31er I’m travelling with has commissioned pants from one of the tailors; me, a traditional skirt and a pair of pants.  They were unfortunately not finished when we got there.  We did manage to buy more shitenges, though, before heading back to town.  We ended up not going back to watch the bunji/swing/zip extravaganza.  Instead, I ate a nice lunch, napped in my hammock, and sat by the pool.  I went back to the open market in the afternoon and picked up my clothes.  I’m really excited about my traditional skirt. And my pants. 
‘
Today, we’re preparing to head back to Nam. I’m doing wash, and we’re eating as much of our food as possible to compensate for all the shitenges we bought (we can either carry food, or shitenges, but not both).  Tomorrow it’s back to Katima, and southward from there.  Since coming to Zambia, I’ve lost my sunglasses AND broken my phone.  Once we get back to Namibia, I’ll be able to buy a new phone.  It’ll be nice to feel connected again.  From Katima, I’ll travel back through Rundu, and then south to Windhoek and back east to Gobabis. 

Even though I’d rather be putzing around Namibia with my Dad and Rose, my last-minute alternative holiday has been really nice.  If only I’d had big rocks to climb, too. :)

As always, thanks for reading.