lazy days

I have officially been on vacation since December 1st. this is nuts.

our trip so far has gone off without too much trouble. we did navigate lesotho roads in a super small car. messed up the muffler and got a flat, but overall we did alright. at one point we had to get out and build a road. for serious. so we could pass. we got together an army of small boys and piled up rocks in a creek. when it rains up in those mountains, the roads are destroyed. and they aren't much to begin with.

lesotho was beautiful but we were pretty astonishingly unprepared for that part of the trip. first off, i bring my damn bug hut instead of a real tent. this is how used to living in the desert i am. i never even considered the possibility of rain. bug hut? not a tent. i'm a moron. plus, it was incredibly cold and we were supposed to camp. ended up grabbing some dorm beds so we wouldn't freeze to death.

sani pass is pretty incredible. let me see if i can post a picture: so, there it is. up there. when we first arrived we were in a cloud so we had no idea how gorgeous it was, but the next day it cleared up and it was a bit shocking. if you go down the pass on the south african side (it's right on the border between lesotho and south africa) you have to have a huge truck with 4 x 4 because the road is insane. gaps in the road that are a meter across, driving through rivers after rain, etc. one of the peaks near sani top is the second highest mountain in africa.

so now we're just in south africa. at the beach. these backpackers we've been staying in are super chill and a ton of fun. but in a few days we'll be in cape town to ring in the new year, and i can't complain about that.

i honestly have nothing to say. i'm pretty boring.

merry xmas.

xoxo.

this post is full of medical advice

peanut butter m&ms cure tonsillitis. but they must come to you in a glorious package lovingly put together by your mother in america and shipped to namibia. i'm not making this up.

it's tuesday, and i'm on the internet at telecom. this is possible because i have this wonderful new class schedule where i actually get BREAKS. i mean, i was done today by 9:00. not joking. now, not every day is like that, but i'm going to take what i get.

things are going well. i'm still in love with learners. so in love with them, in fact, that i voluntarily gave up an hour of my time each night to sit with them during study. because i MISS THEM. i sit outside and watch my clock and wait for them to be done. i mean, i know this will not last, but i am going to enjoy it while it does. i figured it will be a good time for me to help them with things outside of class. and force them to do their homework.

i do have tonsillitis, but i basically feel fine. and i got to go to the cool doctor from cape town. i don't know why anyone would move from cape town to bethanie but....to each his own.

i am feeling a bit like you all are slacking off on your e-mail updates. i need to know about life in the land of way way way way way too much! tell me about all of the choices you have! options! food coming out of your ears! sometimes i dream of food. last night i had weird dreams. kimmie and ben were in them and then theresa and i were doing the peace corps together and i think i ended up in luderitz. weird.

i thought i had things to say, but maybe not. i heart bethanie, even though i'm sweating like crazy right now. can you please write to me? i love it when you do. <3 <3 <3

hello world !

coming at you from the big city. someone scolded me last night for never updating this thing. i'm sorry friends. i live in NAMIBIA. bah, i know i've spoiled you with all the letters/e-mails/occasional phone calls for the lucky ones/facebook updates but it's not as exciting to keep sending stuff out and not really getting it back. i mean, you all are NOT good at long distance friendships. if any of you ever approach me for some advice on whether or not to enter into a long distance relationship, i think you know what my answer is going to be. NO. because you suck. well, i USED to be able to get online on my computer and update my blog, but it's acting up and SO you'll just have to settle for e-mails and facebook nonsense unless i'm outside of bethanie (like now). i want to upload some pictures but the computer is being a bit silly.

i'm here for a vsn meeting for the next couple of days, and i'll go back to bethanie on saturday. i'm already missing that place when i'm away, but i am a bit overwhelmed with the schoolwork aspect of everything. it's just super hard to know how to get started. because i don't want to screw it up!

speaking of screwing things up: i've fallen madly in love with a group of about 6 grade 5-7 boys at the hostel and i have already broken one of the rules i set up for myself to maintain sanity. aka letting them into my apartment. before i got to site i was thinking about how i should probably keep my flat off limits so i have my own space etc. WELL, then i arrive and they are so great and the learners are really my only friends and sometimes you just want people around ! so now we just hang out and listen to music and they read books and act adorable and tell me funny stories. it's great now but maybe won't be so great in a couple of months. i'll let you know.

alright, i'm going to make this picture thing happen no matter what.

things are going well so far i'd say. i have a lot of behavioral issues with my learners, but i'm hoping that once things really get going everything will settle down. it's funny how the kids drive me to the edge during the school day, but as soon as i get back to my flat i'm like, "man i want to hang out with the kids!"

so, i'll be back at site on saturday, and then school will go on for the next almost three months and be over near the end of april. and THEN it's windhoek for peace corps stuff and then CAPE TOWN with the lovely and talented meghan kathleen deere. kind of can't wait.

i have nothing excited to say!! i'm so sorry. so, i hope you'll enjoy these few pictures. the namibian sunset is self-explanatory. gorgeous. right outside my flat. i've come to realize that if i just walk outside around sunset each day, no matter what kind of day i've had, i realize that i can handle whatever comes my way. when you have something like that to look at EVERY night, things seem a bit...lighter. right? anyways, the other pictures are of my favorites.

i'll leave you with this: the day before i came to windhoek, my favorites came over and said "but miss. we don't want you to leave!" !!!!?!?!? I. LOVE. THEM.

love you all too i think about you ALL the time xxoxoxoxo

and i believe in the promised land

hello friends. writing from luderitz. posh corps aka brad's house. we just went to the nest hotel and had the swankiest buffet for N$95.00. (woah, worth it) we ate. a lot. and it was glorious. i think i ate 237 olives.
brad is now cleaning some sort of funk from the sink so it doesn't back up anymore. it's very...brown.
brad used to want to live in a hut. now he has a washing machine, carpet, futon, a couch, dining room table, t.v., spare bedroom and a backyard with his own personal mountain. what? i've officially decided to come to luderitz every chance i get. i'm still high from the buffet. please excuse me.
my phone charger has mysteriously gone missing. which is fine with me. we have highspeed wireless from the hotel.my brain is near-explosion. none of this should be happening!!
i ran into two of my learners yesterday while i was enjoying a hot cup o' joe at diaz coffee shop. they were being so cute! "yes, miss" "yes, miss". ad infinitum. i asked them what they had been doing over the holiday."just playing, miss". my heart melts. oh, and manfred was wearing mc hammer pants. casual.
we had a braai yesterday for kevin's host family, who stopped by on their way to cape town from okahandja. then weall went over to second lagoon and played in the sand/dipped our toes in/tried to avoid the jellyfish. i have somepretty ridiculous pictures. maybe i'll try and post some of them. i'll definitely be posting more in the next few days.
i hope everyone is well. the calendar tells me it is just about christmas. my brain is telling me otherwise. but i hope you are all safe and warm and happy. i certainly am.

it's going to be a strange night in keetmans

i officially have TWO visitors coming this summer, and this makes me endlessly happy.

my little sister (meghan, duh, most of you know her) will be studying abroad in cape town for the month of may, so
i'm going down there to hang out with her as much as possible for a week with some other volunteers (you know, just
some of the coolest out of the dirty 30), and THEN, when she's done at the beginning of june, i'm going to meet her
in keetmanshoop and take her with me bethanie, where we will chill namibian style and probably even make it up to
soussesvlei. *i just realized this is one long sentence. i'm not impressed with my writing. my leaners would be
disappointed. i'm ALWAYS scolding them for this.

THEN, hema is coming during august/sept break (between second and third term). i'm going to pick her up at the
airport, we're going to chill in bethanie for a bit, then go to soussesvlei and cape town. i mean, am i lucky girl,
or what?

things are good here in namibia. i've officially moved into my new apartment. yes my friends, i'm living on my own.
i made pasta and garlic green beans the other night. it made me feel like a real person again. no more eating
spoonfuls of peanut butter instead of dinner for me!

i've done quite a bit of cleaning and organizing and am really starting to feel like this place is my home.
however, the walls are slightly bare, so if you are even in the mood to send me some pictures, it would be greatly
appreciated. i have absolutely no pictures of my friends. any of you. and i'm pretty sure i have some. sometimes i
forget, and the namibians definitely think i have no friends. i'm okay with that.

i'm almost packed for my month long holiday away from bethanie. going to the farm tomorrow with my principal. it
should be fun, especially since he has two of the coolest dogs i've ever met. it's no bailey replacement, but it'll
do for now. i'm also 100% going to see some animal slaughtering, which is kind of exciting. as long as i don't have
to do it, i think i can observe and treat it like an educational experience. ooh, this is another reason i'm super
excited about living on my own: i have control over my meat intake. which means i'm going to crank it down to as
close to ZERO as possible. i think there will still be an occasional braai i'll be invited to or dinner at a
friend's house (assuming i actually make some friends), which means meat will happen, but i can handle an "every
now and then" situation. god, i'm going to BATHE in tofu if i ever make it back to the states. KIDDING. (about the
possibility of me not making it back, not the tofu thing. that is definitely happening. who's with me?)

one beautiful thing about taking over a flat with a long list of owners who were previous volunteers is the
bookshelf i have in my sitting room that is FULL of books. you know those granola-eating, tree huggers just love to
read and act all intellectual. nerds. there are around 50 books that i really want to read, not to mention around
20/30 more that i could read if sufficiently bored. i mean, i don't know. do i really want to become a twilight
freak? psh who am i kidding, i'm totally reading those books. and i'm excited about it. if i have a life-sized
cardboard cutout of edward in my flat by the time i leave, don't say i didn't warn you.

well, i'm going to bring this to a close. i've got a whole lot of nothing to attend to, and a ton of sitting around
and listening to music that needs my full attention. hey, it's a rough life.

UPDATE: i'm posting this blog a few days later while in keetmans. i was dropped off at central lodge and my ride drove off into the sunset. only after he was gone was i informed that central lodge (and EVERY other hotel in keetmans) was booked. minor panic attack. called my host mother's family in keetmans. they came and got me, thankfully. awkward night ahead.

greetings earthlings

wanted to sort of let you know about these pictures. the cute ones of jumping children are mostly grade 5, 6 and 7 boys hanging out by the school. so cute. the 4 super cute kids are my host sisters and host brothers. there are some pictures of the farm near bethanie and then maybe some pictures of the mr/miss bps pageant? not sure what i put on there. anyways, i hope you enjoy.

it's 7:30 on sunday morning in keetmanshoop. we're about to head out so we can try and catch a ride back to bethanie. we have to get out there early to increase our chances of finding a lift. it's been a great weekend. good food, good times. time to get back to my tiny little town and get ready for the last week of school (believe it!)

i'll be going on some adventures for the holidays, and i'm pretty excited about that. then, it's 2010 what up.

write me and tell me about your holiday times. i think it won't make me too sad because i don't feel like thanksgiving/christmas are real AT ALL. but i do miss you all. <3

THIS IS IT