Molepolole

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Things have certainly settled down since the first week. We are getting into the groove of life in Botswana and, more specifically, the University of Botswana (UB). Daily activities seem less hectic and crazy. A trip to the mall to go grocery shopping, for example, can be accomplished with a friend or two, instead of a battalion of Americans. As program-sanctioned trips have become less, a few students have planned a trip to Serowe this weekend to visit a rhino preserve and do some hiking. I have been forgetting to take my camera out and about, so I will include some more pictures from activities I detailed earlier.

Some activities that have monopolized our time lately include: somehow trying to look less clueless, going to the favorite Gaborone nightspots/UB get-togethers, attending class, cooking, dealing with administrative issues (acquiring i.d. cards, access cards, photocopy cards, library privileges, etc.—maybe I will write up some of these dilemmas for a “spoof” post : ), going to (new) malls (grocery stores are at malls), meeting new and interesting people around campus (people continue to be friendly and inquisitive), trying to join clubs/get involved with volunteer activities.

[Sarah, JJ & Lidsay posing in front of Mochudi (I think)]

Classes have become more important at UB, so I’ll give a run-down of those for some interesting tidbits as of late. One interesting tidbit is that education is provided for free. In fact, students get a stipend of 1700 Pula / month to attend. Also, many students take EIGHT classes per semester. This seems to be common, or at least manageable, because readings for UB classes are pretty light.

Politics and Society in Contemporary Africa (Soc 426) – “Soc” is pronounced “Sock”, unlike “Sosh” in the states. This class is taught by Dr. Monageng Mogalakwe, a 50-something gem of a guy. He seems super-smart. The first day of class, we wrote down one conception we have of African politics and he categorized them into three categories on the board: Good, Bad & Neutral. As a class, we came up with 6 positive associations, 24 negative associations and 8 neutral associations. The professor put “colonialism” into the “neutral” category, which I thought was weird. Then, during a discussion afterwards, a young woman said that she thought it should be in the “positive” category by the logic that it was evil but necessary. That really surprised me. Also, I wrote “Structural Adjustment Programs”, and it went under the “positive” category. So I would say that I have a busy semester of understanding Batswana conceptions of racial/political issues ahead of me. I’m pretty jazzed : )

[The footprint of Matsieng, the creator, and a small animal footprint (like a cat) by the big toe. There is a rich legend about the spot where the Tswana creator emerged from the earth.]

Setswana – This class is a total mess. It’s taught by 3 different women. The schedule is still totally up in the air, and they all have different teaching styles. We have learned a bit about nouns, a bit about conversation, and a bit about culture and history. In general, we have just received a lot of random vocabulary. We chose Setswana names and I wanted to be Matsieng. This was not recommended, so you may address me as Molepolole (Mow-lay-po-low-lay). It is a city near Gaborone, but my professor said I could pick it as a name. The word of the week is “Bophirimatsatsi”, which means “West”. The “ph” sound is just a hard “p” – [Bo-pee-ree-ma-tsa-tsi].

Globalization and Southern Africa – This is the ACM course taught by Dr. Kim Lanegran from Coe College. So far, there seems to be way more material than we have time to cover in class. The lectures are good, and the reading is very thorough. There is a rich history to southern Africa. When I reflect on my High School education on Africa, I don’t remember anything (and it’s not because I wasn’t paying attention). I’m very glad to be in this class to fill the huge gap left by Bophirimatatsi education in history.

Independent Study – I am super pumped about this class. I will be researching traditional housing in Botswana. Specifically, I am interested in the possible sociological ramifications of a shift from traditional/”vernacular” housing to “modern” housing. I am pumped because I’m going to go out and interview (real!) people about their houses and conceptions of modernization instead of just reading about it in a library. So far I have met the author of the incredible book, “Decorated Homes in Botswana” (super-eccentric guy), and the author of a 1998 honours project on women & traditional housing. They have both been totally haphazard run-ins. I think this serendipitous run-in phenomenon is the flip-side of the “Botswana time” phenomenon. In other words, the head of the department of architecture might miss your 12:00 meeting (he didn’t), but you might run into the foremost expert on traditional housing at 12:30 (if you hang out in the right spot). It’s possible, at least.

[A power strip in a traditional roundavel Tswana home – Coincidence, or globalization image of the year?]

Surreal moment of the week: a sports-shop saleswoman singing an entire Sheryl Crow song while showing me their various swim-caps.

UB moment of the week: After about a month, we have been able to rent a basketball to play with. It is deflated, and so we go to the maintenance building to get it inflated. We are at the wrong building, and someone redirects us to the correct building. The power is out (cutbacks from South Africa), so a maintenance guy starts a gas-engine air pressure tank to inflate it for us. There is no valve on the end, so he sticks a pen in the end of the hose. That doesn’t work, so he tries a different pen. To improve the seal, he jams the pen into the basketball and consequently shoves the rubber basketball valve into the ball itself. Also, we had originally gone to rent tennis equipment which they don’t have. We might stick with swimming after all. : P

Great conversation of the week: With my temporary roommates from Zimbabwe. They are professors in education. First, I take a side in their jocular debate regarding Zimbabwean pedagogy. It eventually leads to a detailed discussion of history and politics in Southern Africa. We also talk extensively about vernacular architecture, the traditional way of life, and changing cultural trends.

[Your favourite dorkus malorkus in front of Livingstone’s Tree]

Week 1

[Picture Left: From the beginning, Botswana had different ideas about the Protectorate]

I have been in Botswana since January 5^th, 2008. That puts me at ten days, and it has been a pretty good adventure so far. I definitely experienced cultural euphoria & I think I am still riding out the coattails of that. Botswana is a very friendly country and locals are happy to meet foreigners (we kinda stick out here—we are a mostly white group). If I give people so much as a “dumela ra, o tsogile jang?” (hello sir, how are you?), I can usually get a conversation going & people are very interested in people from da U.S.A.

So far, we have: been given a basic driving tour of Gabarone; visited a traditional Tswana home for dinner and dancing; slept in a traditional Tswana village (complete with dancing, mud huts (sweet!), traditional food, and a campfire); visited the Gabarone museum; taken a driving safari around the Mokolodi Game Reserve (zebras, elephants, giraffes, etc.); visited some cave paintings; toured the place where Tswana believe the creator emerged from the earth; hung out at the student bar; been to the Gabarone malls several times; met locals as well as other international students; received impromptu tours of the national and university sports facilities; been to a national club soccer game; visited a Tswana traditional court (Kgotla); washed laundry by hand; and eaten mopani worms. This is just to name a couple things, and they are surely out of order. This is just to give a quick update until my classes get in full swing. I will be taking a course in South African Cultures, Setswana, Globalization, and an independent study (probably on traditional housing, or activism at UB – the University of Botswana).

[Picture below: mopani worms ("pani" for short)-- these are very popular snacks]

A couple cultural notes include: “Botswana time” is an almost universally agreed upon phenomenon. There is not much (or any, as far as I can tell) rushing, or concern over tardiness. If you are late, it is more important to greet and talk with someone you know (for as long as it takes), than it is to be on time. When you shake someone’s hand, you hold their hand until the greeting is over, and often well-into the conversation itself. Public transportation is on a 15-passenger van with as many people piled in as possible. You can get to most places for less than 50 cents USD, but there is no map & you might need to take 2 “combis” (kom-beez).

I would like to randomly conclude with some of the memorable names of people I have met so far (locals only): Charity, Scrooge, Kutti, Morena, Joseph, Molls, and Pretty.

[Picture Left: beautiful Botswana at dusk]