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]