Being a Peace Corps Volunteer can be very trying. Living in
a developing country has its challenges. I think it is important to remember
the things that make you love your service. Here, I’ve created a list of 30
things I love about my service in Botswana.
1. The Okavango Delta. We live in an amazing place. The Okavango Delta is one of the most pristine inland deltas in the world. It is home to abundant wildlife and unique cultures.
2. Elephants. These are my favorite animals. It is incredible to see them in person. They are intelligent and majestic animals.
3. Learning Setswana and Simbukushu. These languages are nothing like English, nor anything like each other. Very difficult to learn, but once you have a few phrases, people will open up to you in a way they don’t for passing tourists.
4. Hippos grunting at night. We live right next to a floodplain where two very vocal hippos reside. It is so much fun to hear them “talking” once the sun starts setting. Sometimes we hear them splashing around at night and if we are very lucky we can see them!
5. The sun and moon rising over the Okavango River. This is something I will never get tired of. The huge red African sun rising over papyrus in the morning is spectacular. Equally beautiful is the full moon rising over the river as a variety of birds sing and flit about.
6. Baskets. The baskets in our region are said to be the most beautiful in the whole African continent. I have a serious obsession with the amazing baskets found here.
8. Tea time. This is one of the best parts of the British influence in Botswana. I have become obsessed with tea. It’s so lovely to drink tea, eat rusks and relax in the mid-morning.
9. Traditional foraging. This is something I learned last year. There are so many fruits and other plants that you can eat in Botswana. It’s a lot of fun!
10. Kids who are eager to learn. The school system here doesn’t really challenge kids. It’s fun to work with them and inspire them to critically think. They are eager for something other than Rote memorization.
11. My fellow PCVs. Our group is pretty amazing. We each have something unique to offer to this experience. I’ve enjoyed making friends from all over the US. Each PCV has a strong desire to serve others – you can’t ask for a better group of people!
12. Seswa, pap and madombi. These are the best traditional foods, in my opinion. Seswa is like shredded beef, pap is a maize meal that is plain but so nice to eat with a good dish and madombi are huge dumplings.
13. Working with female farmers in Samochima. This is the best project at Pabalelo Trust. We are working with 40 women to improve agricultural practices. These women are some of the strongest people I’ve ever met. They are the sole caregivers of their children, provide all of the food for their families and work incredibly hard. They are an inspiration!
15. Kids. The kids here are so imaginative. They can create toys or games out of anything. It reminds me that kids don't need a lot to be happy. The kids are also very curious. Sometimes when I’m at the grocery store, kids will walk by me just to lightly touch my arm or hair.
16. My projects at Pabalelo Trust. I truly believe in the mission of Pabalelo Trust. The organic gardening work is right up my alley, conservation agriculture will have a huge impact on food security in the region and I get to create an environmental education program. Who could ask for more?
17. Koisan languages. These are some of the oldest languages from the oldest tribes in the world. They are incredibly difficult to learn since they have lots of clicks. It’s so fun to hear people speaking these unique languages.
18. Hitch-hiking. I’m sure this one makes my family back home nervous, but it’s totally okay! I love hitching around Botswana. It’s not as reliable as buses (we just waited 3 hours for a ride this weekend), but is so much faster. Plus, you meet some really interesting people.
19. The rainy season. Botswana is dry. Like really dry. Most of the country is covered by the Kahlahari Desert and everything is brown and crunchy most of the year. I’ve never loved rain as much as I do here. So many people rely on the rains for their crops, so I think it’s good that we have this experience of craving rain. When the rains come, it’s amazing. Everything turns lush and instantly everyone feels more optimistic.
20. Seasonal fruits. I love the fact that I can only get mangoes or monkey fruit during their season. This makes us appreciate these fruits so much more (and gorge ourselves on them when they are here!). I think it’s important for all of us from areas of continuous abundance to learn to appreciate food.
21. Spending so much time with Matt. My husband is my best friend. I am so happy we can spend so much time together and share this amazing experience.
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| I mean, who doesn't want to hang out with this guy? |
22. Reading. I have plenty of time to read here. Things move at a snail’s pace, so I bring a book everywhere. My Kindle has sped up my reading since I have a book at my fingertips once I finish another book. So far, I’ve read about 35 books and look forward to reading more. I’m an omnivore when it comes to reading, so I read all sorts of books. My favorites so far have been “Contact,” “The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle,” “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian,” and “Lolita.”
23. The night sky. The population of Botswana and Namibia is incredibly small. This means there is very little light pollution at night. This makes for an awesome sky. I love to spend time during the new moon just staring at the sky.
24. Millipedes and other bugs! I love bugs, always have. I love seeing species that are new to me. My favorites are millipedes, gold tortoise beetles and wall crab spiders.
27. Baby carrying and breast feeding mothers. When we took care of our niece, we carried her in all sorts of baby carriers. It was so nice to have a child that close to you. Here, baby carrying is the norm. Women use one or two pieces of fabric to secure their babies on their backs. They do this while also carrying lots of stuff on their heads. Impressive! Breastfeeding is also the norm here. It is not unusual to see women pulling out their breasts to feed their hungry children anywhere. Hopefully the US will be this comfortable with breastfeeding soon!
28. Teaching kids in the US about Botswana. I have connected with two 6th grade classes, a Girl Scout troop and a kindergarten class. I answer questions about Botswana – they are interested in how people live, the food we eat, and (of course) the animals. I think our biggest impact as PCVs is broadening the world view of our family and friends back home. Not everyone can travel to a developing country, so we can help them understand what it’s like in other places. Having a global view of our place here on Earth is incredibly important. The more we understand that people are the same everywhere, the more likely we are to treat everyone with kindness and love.
29. Living in Africa is pretty awesome! We are doing something that’s pretty cool. We will live in Africa for 2 years! Most Americans can’t do this, so we are incredibly lucky. We get to experience the lives of others, the challenges that families around the world face, and see amazing things.
30. Serving others. This is the main reason we chose to serve in the Peace Corps. We were inspired by the projects of returned PCVs and wanted to use our skills to help others. Matt is building computer skills of his clinic staff. I’m working with volunteers to decrease the taboo around periods and help women and girls manage their cycles. Matt is working with PCVs in Northern Botswana to decrease malaria. We are both increasing food security with our work at Pabalelo Trust. We have frank discussions with people about reproductive health and healthy relationships. There is no way to measure the results of the work we do, but I truly hope we have a positive impact on the communities we serve.
