A few weeks ago, we attended a grant writing workshop with SAREP in Maun. It was a really interesting workshop and we were able to help NGOs in the Delta write up some in-kind grants. After the four day training, we headed to Gaborone (Gabs) for a week and a half long training with the Peace Corps. It was so wonderful to see everyone again, even if that meant we had to sit through some not-so interesting sessions. We stayed in a great hotel called Oasis Motel that served us delicious food, had a pool and the most amazing hot showers ever.
The trip down to Gabs was excruciatingly long. From Shakawe to Maun, it's a 6 1/2 hour bus ride, with three veterinary fences where we have to stop, take out our bags and dip our shoes in a solution to prevent the spread of foot and mouth disease. We stay the night in Maun, then take a 10 1/2 hour bus ride to Gabs. It is too long of a trip for us, so we hope we don't have to go to Gabs more than once or twice per year.
Since we've been back in Shakawe, we have been busy dealing with housing issues. It's too complicated to go into in detail, but we had a hard week or two dealing with these issues. Luckily, some things seem to be falling into place. The volunteers in the upper delta still don't have any furniture, which is frustrating. It seems like the people who are responsible for our housing and furniture have done absolutely nothing for the past three months. It is extremely frustrating. But, as Peace Corps Volunteers we are very patient, although our patience is faltering. We really want these issues resolved so we can finally go on a vacation!
Last week, Bridgette attended a really interesting conservation agriculture training "overseas." By overseas, I mean on the eastern side of the Okavango river. Overseas is very rural and remote, you can only get there by ferry (which doesn't always run) and the road is just sand. Once we crossed the ferry, we still had 3 hours to go on very bad, sandy roads with lots of elephants. The area has about 15,000 elephants, which means there is a lot of human-elephant conflict. Just two weeks ago, a woman was killed by a matriarch of a breeding herd. Although some people are killed by elephants, the biggest issue is crop damage. The workshop was hosted by the Okavango Elephants and People Research Project (www.oeprp.org.uk). Their interest in conservation agriculture stems from the fact that yields are doubled compared to traditional farming, so people need to protect a smaller plot. The workshop itself was really informative and it was great to see so many farmers engaged. At first they were skeptical, but by the end of the week they were ready to try some new farming techniques. For me, it was important for me to learn how people actually farm. Basically, they burn their fields, throw seeds, then plow the entire field. Not very effective and it kills the soil after years of this practice. On a personal level, it was great to see so much wildlife. I saw elephants everyday, heard hyenas make a kill one night and heard lions roaring a few nights. Luckily, I was in a camp enclosed by an electric fence!
