In the Rrural Communities...

Molo!!! Unjani? Ndiphililie.!:) That’s how far my Xhosa has gotten. Man it’s a hard language!

Three weeks have passed now, seems so much longer and shorter at the same time. Have been some long days doing nothing (when I start reading articles and manuals and taking notes I don’t have a test on, than I’m bored. Maybe you can borrow me “Ona Fyr” Iva? ;), and some fun days with lots of great people. Work in the schools is going slow, and holidays and rain have not helped!
But I’m being patience, and on Tuesday I finally had my first whole day in a school. Started at 8.am with Volleyball for grade 7. 60 students, two balls and one court. A bit different from volleyball with Ola at NIH! But the kids were great so it worked out fine! :) I then did two sessions with two Youth Leads groups before soccer training with a boys community team in the afternoon. So that’s how my day can look like, but no days are the same, and if it rains you do nothing, if it’s cold you don’t do any sports. So I play soccer in the streets with the kids, read and I am now on episode 20 of Grey’s Anatomy :)

Today I went to another school. I was sitting in the Principals office. He had found a paraffin heather for me, and some kids came with some matches. We have one at the house so I thought I knew how to light it. Well, I didn’t so there were really big flames coming from it and I didn’t know what to do. Luckily some grade 9 students came and helped me get it outside. They worked on it for an hour before they managed to kill the flames, but the heater was broken. The Prinicipals office was covered in smoke and it smelled really bad. Good first impression from the stupid foreign Girl!!!...:)

I have also started to play football for a girl team here. Think the plan is to help out with training as well, but they are very well organised and have two coaches, so I just bring some equipment and play with them. Went to Mthatha; city about an hour west of Mt.F, on Saturday and played a match against a university team there. A lot of people there, including Frank (another SCORE volunteer). Great to see a familiar face and to share experiences and frustrations with someone. We won the game 3-2. I scored one, one assist and was named woman of the match! Not bad!:)

So I’m starting to get use to the (semi)-Rrrural life in South Africa. The food is still good, except the cows head they served me, and the chicken I watch them kill and cock before serving me and the father the liver! Gina, you would have had a problem here my friendJ
The chickens don’t wake me up at 4 am anymore, it’s more like 5.30, and then at 6 am the radio is turned on with the volume on max, and stays on till 6 pm. I don’t mind listening to the radio, but it’s in Xhosa so I don’t understand much. Same with the TV. The only program I watch is Generations, and I bet all of the Volunteers in SA do the sameJ It’s SA version of Hotel Cæsar, you will love it Ann-C:) So there is only three things I really miss:
- a shower (there is only a bath here)
- Seeing the News in English or Norwegian(I don’t know what’s going on in the World)
- A couch ( Tv is in the kitchen so that’s were we sit all afternoon)


In two weeks I’ll be going to Cape Town with the other Norwegians. It’s with NIH so we will be at the University there for a week attending lectures ect. Really excited about seeing everybody again and taking a showerJ Will post some pic then, because the internet here is just to slow.

So life is good, have no regrets and no homesickness. But I still miss you all.
I hope you are doing fine, and good luck with your studies, work, travelling and keep me updated!:)

Best of Wishes, Nolita