Oye

 

I just got back from northern Swaziland today with the guys. A community development outfit was holding a farming workshop and we were invited to attend. It was an opportunity to meet with a moringa guy, Jon Nzira from South Africa and a chance for Alex and Abhi to see rural homesteads for the first time. Also, we had some trouble germinating the seeds here in Mbabane due to the altitude and cold so wanted to try at a friend's farm where it was warmer.

 

So, we traveled up to the area just north of Piggs Peak Wednesday straight to the farm. We immediately started building a small greenhouse to increase the temperature a bit more. Alex designed it on the fly and there was a lot of improvisation. It took us a day to build the first half. We chopped up some wooden stakes, secured them into the ground, tied a tarp over, and dug trenches to keep the sides down. It sounds easy and simple, but it was much more complicated and difficult. Ill attach some pictures of our greenhouse on this post.

 

Wednesday afternoon, we rushed to Vusumnotfo to catch the end of their workshop. One of the presenters was this guy, Jon Nzira from South Africa. He has been working with moringa for 15 years now and is currently doing it in Mpumalanga and Mozambique just across the Swazi borders on the western and northern sides, respectively. We talked with him for maybe an hour as he was in a rush to get back to Joburg. He gave us some excellent information on moringa's presence in southern Africa; how its being used, what the market is like, and the nuances of growing it in this region. My vision has been for moringa to ultimately become a local commodity sold at the bus ranks and small shops right alongside the bananas and oranges. Jon told me that this is already the case in South Africa (which is fantastic because it sets a precedence for demand and feasibility) and that moringa powder there is going for 5R (0.60USD) for just 2 tablespoons. That is serious income generation. That also means that market awareness is just next door and more easily be transferred to Swaziland.

 

On Thursday, Abhi and Alex went out with Moya Center and Vusumnotfo people as they went out for site visits for their joint permaculture project. This was their first exposure to true bush Swaziland. This region actually gets a fair amount of rain so its not nearly as bad off as the Lowveldt. But nevertheless, it is good to see how folks live. While they went out, I stayed at Vusumnotfo office to work on the official project proposal to be given to the government. My friend Kathy Gau, who has been doing community development for nearly 30 years now in Swaziland, had helped me prepare the document. That woman knows her stuff. She gave me great advice on our project and laid out pitfalls that many big-name ignorant organizations continue to make.

 

I should say that thanks to mentoring by teachers back home and here, my personal understanding, perspective, and judgement relative to international aid and development has been able to grow by leaps and bounds. Speaking with experienced NGO staff here, I can keep up in conversation and sometimes even offer constructive criticism (sometimes). To be sure, there is so much so much more to learn.

 

I was so intimidated. I was very nervous in telling them any details about our group and our project details. These are big name people; FAO, Save the Children, WHO, TechnoServe, Action Against Hunger, and so on. After discussing our proposal in depth with some close allies, it turned out we actually had a fair game plan that was sensitive to socioeconomic and cultural nuances. That makes me so proud, honestly. This proposal seems to be one of the few things in my life that I've gotten somewhat right :) Whoodathunk? Its amazing that nobody thinks we are a ridiculous bunch of crazies.

 

By Friday, we went back to farm to finish the other half of the greenhouse. Stayed the night and came back to Mbabane on Saturday with short stop in Manzini for Alex to pick up a guitar. The bus ride was 3.5 hours total.

 

Am just totally exhausted.

 

Something interesting, we've been picking up food mostly from street vendors and there's a slight difference in the food offered. In Mbabane, we get bananas, onions, potatoes, oranges, boiled maize (corn), grilled maize, grapefruits, peanuts, avocados, papaya, cornbread, and fat cake (I'll explain fat cakes in a moment). Up near Emkhuzweni in the north near the Mozambican border, they had all of the above minus avocados and papaya and plus taro and cassava and fish. Taro and cassava are traditional Swazi staple foods but have been neglected after the introduction of white maize (which is entirely inappropriate for dry climates). I don't know why taro and cassava was available there and not in Mbabane. The fish was a direct result of Mozambican influence and maybe even a Moz import.

 

It should be noted that people and things here don't travel much so there is not an even distribution of ideas. Because of this, seeing regional influences is very interesting. Seeing fish in the north sold at the bus rank means people like fish up there. Not seeing it in Mbabane suggests that people aren't a big fan of fish down here.

 

Okay, so the fat cake is basically a small unseasoned fried dough ball. It sounds kind of goofy, I know, but its totally delicious. Maybe its because we don't eat much greasy foods here so when we do, our taste buds just go wild for it. This week, we survived on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches (Alex and Abhi), taro/cassava/fatcake (me), oranges, bananas, and pears. Okay, Alex loves them fat cakes too.

 

Oye, estoy cansado...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Boys are Back

Just a couple days ago, I traveled to Joburg to pick up Alex and Abhi from Tambo airport. Had a big ol smile on my face when I saw my boys walking down the terminal with all their bags. Finally, my team is here and what a great feeling. Ive realized that Ive been working with them for so many years now that when we work separately, the project feels incomplete. Its wonderful to have colleagues to debate ideas with (emphasis on debate).

 

Made them dinner at the backpackers lodge and we left right away the next day for Swaziland. To save money, we used public transport (mini-bus). The mini-bus was packed with people; people sat on stools in the middle of the aisle! However, it was fast and it only cost 160 rand a person versus 400 rand per person on the backpackers bus. To be sure, given Joburg's reputation for being the murder capital of the world and recent escalation in violence with the "xenophobia attacks", we definitely took a calculated risk. But here at swaziAID, that's how we do.

 

I introduced them to the stesh boys (the guys hanging around the braai all day), taught them some elementary siSwati, showed them how to get around on the kombis, and toured around downtown Mbabane. We did a little work on the way; reserved the Emafini conference center for our first general conference for moringa trials in Swaz. We want to make sure that everyone has a clear idea of what we are going to do separately and together, what we will provide, and what kind of concerted action we can take to get the support of MOAC.

 

Yesterday, we went to Manzini to scout out the building and agricultural stores. We spend the day there and found pretty much all the materials we will need for setting up the plots; fencing, drip irrigation piping and heads, greenhouse building material, and all the tools. We found some good prices and will be able work with minimal costs but still make it all work well.

 

This coming week, we are setting up a low-cost simple greenhouse to start the moringa plants to seedlings. While we are not yet planting it on the ground, this is in preparation for MOAC's permission. Then we are heading up to Piggs Peak for a 3 day farming workshop hosted by Vusumnotfo. This will be Abhi and Alex's first trip to the bush and see the average rural Swazi farmer lives. This is a wonderful opportunity because it is the rural Swazi farmer that will benefit the most from moringa.

 

If you remember, we will be working with a rural women's group to produce and market some very nice handbags. We will apply what we have learned from Makers United to help them sell these hand-made bags. This is important for them because for most of them, it is their only source of income. The money earned from the sales put their children through primary school. Abhi, our business specialist, is going to spearhead this project.

In the pictures... two guys selling 2nd hand clothing from the US at the Joburg Wanderers station, of course, they were wearing an Ohio State jacket and an FSU jacket, unbelievable. and I was of course wearing my UF hat. Another picture is abhi trying out his new hemp at the hardware. also a stall at the Mbabane farmer's market.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Its getting really cold!

I have been in the Swaziland one and a half months now and the moringa project is going strong.

Within the last week, we have secured 2 more plots with mission groups in - and - . Both of these missions already have robust agricultural activities; this means that we wouldn't not worry about the day-to-day management and care for the trial plots.

Yesterday, I had a chance to go visit one of the farms, called New Life Children's Homes. The couple that started this farm-orphanage started down a similar path with as we did with swaziAID/Makers United which is one of internal self-sustainability. On this farm, there are currently 4 houses each home to about 7 children to total 28 of the most orphaned-orphans.

To clarify, there are degrees of being an orphan. A child that has lost one parent (whether through death or desertion) is considered a single orphan. A child that has lost both parents is considered a double orphan. Even in the cases of double orphans, Africa's strong extended family networks will usually take in these orphans. However, there are some that, for whatever reason, doesn't have (or cannot find) an extended family are the most vulnerable children. These children just live out there somewhere. New Life Children's Homes focuses on these children.

Returning to the farm, each home is under the care of a Swazi house-mother who is essentially a surrogate mother. Nearly all the orphanages and children's hostels here use surrogate mothers as a way of keeping the family natural, ensure the passing on of Swazi culture, and keep the “foreigner” out of the picture as much as possible. This children's home is of course not cheap to maintain.

To ensure that these homes will not fall apart when the mission leaves or funding stops, they have a small but significant production of broccoli, cauliflower, beef, and free-range eggs to supply local supermarkets. They also have started a nursery that is providing local farmers with all sorts seedlings. All together, the current estimate is that the farm is 67% self-sustaining. That is something very difficult to achieve.

I will be visiting the other farm later this week and it will be also very interesting (for reasons that I cannot share just yet, however much I would like to).

Swaziland is one the few countries in the world that recognizes Taiwanese sovereignty meaning Swaziland and Taiwan are good friends. The Taiwanese have established a Taiwan Technical Mission here in Swaziland to provide permanent agricultural assistance. They have worked on many projects and ventures over the years and has a ton of experience. They are, of course, sanctioned by both governments and consequently has a direct line of communication with the head of the Ministry of Agriculture and Co-operatives. This pretty much means that whatever they work on, the government is more open to.

I met with the chief of the Taiwanese Tech Mission last week and presented the tree to him. He was professionally hesitant(meaning he doesn't take on without consideration, good thing) but was receptive. I gave him a number of documents on moringa, including one from a Taiwanese agricultural research institute, and left him to speak with his colleagues about helping us monitor the plots and/or hosting a plot on their on their own research farm. If this comes through, it would be one of the most important alliances we make in this venture.

Piggies at New Life Children's Homes.

Ish

 

 

Over the past week or so, I've been kind of down. There are some things back home thats just been stressing me out and driving me into the ground.

 

Just lined up some more meetings for this coming week. Will let you know how they go later this week.

 

Moved into a new house just a couple days ago. Its not in compound and not surrounded by razor fences; its in a purely Swazi neighborhood, out in the open, with a view of the mountains behind the front door.

 

Nothing too exciting now, but here are some pictures from the last post.

 

1. Here is the hill where the bus rolled all the way down the hill.

2. My pack waiting for the kombi from Cabrini Mission to Siphofeneni to get back to Mbabane.

3. Visited the touristy Cultural Village with a traditional dance troupe.

4. There were also a troupe of wild monkeys at the Cultural Village.  

5. The YH visit. This where the child-headed family of 8 lived.

6. One of plots that will be hosting the moringa trials. Standing with one of the Moya Center employees. He'll be helping keep the plot going.

 

 

 

 

Its a long one

Last week, I had a meeting with the non-profit Moya Center just 45 minutes away from the capital city Mbabane, where I stay. This group provides orphan care as well as gardening workshops. They have been working here for many years and is well-respected. They have agreed to partner with us on setting up a moringa trial plot in their area. The Malkerns Research Station is the primary agricultural research office of the government and is located very close to the Moya Center. Despite being in the Highveldt - Midveldt, this proximity makes it easier for monitoring by the Ministry of Agriculture's officers. This plot is within an NCP garden. NCP (Neighborhood Care Points) are places in the community where young children and elderly come together during the day for activities, education, gardening, and a bit of lunch. Some NCPs are quite successful while some are ineffective. I saw the NCP and plot today was very impressed by the balanced meal provided for the children and all the food and herbs they were growing from their garden. The Moya Center assists this NCP and has helped provide farming skills to the youngsters. All the gardening is done by the children! The soil is good and has a warm climate; the moringa will do well here.

 

The Ministry of Agriculture is naturally concerned about the ecological impact of introducing any foreign species, such as the moringa. Two trees have, recently been on the minds of the Swazis. The Australian wattle is a very fast growing and proliferative tree that has invaded the Highveldt. It has radically changed the ecosystem. While the environmentalists are concerned with the eco-impact, the average folks are quite glad that its here. They say it is very good and abundant firewood and is used in most housing and fencing. The other tree is the Jatropha tree. This tree has been imported and grown in large plantations by the D1 Oils company for bio-fuel production. The recent scandal is that the some farmers have tried using the poisonous seed-cake (left over from oil the oil press) as animal fodder.

 

As a consequence, the government has, understandably, become quite conservative about introducing anything else. Moringa, however, is known to be non-invasive and has never had any bad repute in the development community. We must convince the government that this tree will not cause any problems down the line. One of the possible key points is that if it is already growing here in Swaziland, than it would be not really importing something brand-new and unknown. I have been trying to find moringa in Swaziland and just heard by second-hand that there are some mature moringa trees in Swaziland somewhere. Somebody at the FAO supposedly knows where they are. I'll let you guys know how that goes.

 

These past few days I have been down in the Lowveldt around the Siphofeneni and Big Bend region attending fruitful meetings. I had a  chat with a local seed dealer in the Siphofeneni area who may be able to assist us with odds and ends. Also met the head farmer of the Tambuti Estates plantation. Tambuti Estates is a for-profit company with many many hundreds of acres of citrus and vegetables. We may set a trial plot on the plantation for benefit and exposure to the many farm-hands.

 

The most important meeting was, however, with the well-reputed Cabrini Mission. This Catholic mission provides a hostel and schooling for 150 orphans in addition to a regional clinic, home out-reach for TB and HIV/AIDS, supplementary food aid, and agricultural activities. They will be partnering with us first to conduct the trials on their land and continue later on for sharing moringa with families in the region. If it goes well, they talked about adding the moringa powder to their supplementary food packages. In addition to working with us on the moringa, I may be spending some time in their clinic observing and assisting.

 

On the way to the Cabrini Mission, the PCVs and I took an old mini-bus from Siphofeneni to St.Philips. This clay dirt road was terrible; just shakes and rattles the whole way through. The road was full of small gulleys where old rains have washed through. Half way through the 1 hour ride, the over-packed mini-bus broke down on top of this hill. One  of the PCVs sat in the very front seat above the engine. She had to get out for the driver to try to fix the vehicle. After waiting for 15 minutes for so, I squeezed out the window and walked out into the bush for a wiz. On the way back, I saw the bus moving in reverse and thought, "Fantastic, its fixed!" I kept walking and the bus kept rolling. I looked at the PCV who had gotten off the bus, she was cracking up! I looked the bus and realized that it was, in fact, NOT fixed. The brakes gave! It was just rolling down the hill with a bus full of passengers that included our friend! Luckily, there was no accident. After that, we just grabbed our bags and managed to hitch a ride with a passing truck (bakkie they call it here).

 

In Swaziland (and I think also in South Africa), the whites are pretty well-off relatively. The public transportation is taken primarily by the blacks. I have never seen a white (or any other foreigner) taking public transport or hitching rides. Basically, its just me and the PCVs. Yesterday, the PCV and I hitched a ride from Big Bend to Siphofeneni on the back of a truck with some blacks sitting on some massive tires. Afrikaaners (white Africans of Dutch descent) and tourists drove past us in disbelief. "Who are these loons??" The look on their faces told all.

 

Today, I am heading out the field with a Young Heroes officer to see them work and see their orphan families. This is the second time that I am going. The family that we visited the first time were in poor shape. The family of eight was headed by an 18 year old girl. Of the seven young children, three was her own. Some of them could go to school, some couldn't. The problem is that the government provides a set amount of money for each student's school fees but the the each school charges different amounts of money. The family lived in three small clay-mud and rock huts of about 6 ft by 10 ft. In Swaziland, there are houses and huts and these were most definitely huts. On that small homestead, there was a small plot where they grew an insufficient amount of maize. The youngest one had a bowl of large grasshoppers that would most definitely be cooked and eaten later on. I do not know the cultural context of that observation, but my impression is that the bowl of grasshoppers is a result of their hard times.

 

This coming generation of young Swazis are going to face a very difficult challenge. Even though the government has invested quite a bit of money in education, the lack of parents in many of the children's lives are wreaking havoc on the social fabric. Many parents have either passed away or have just abandoned their children. On a homestead, there were about seven children being cared for by a grandmother (gogo). School was out so they just played all day long outside. It seemed that they didn't have much interaction from their gogo. And this was a relatively well-off family. The children were well-fed and there were two big houses. Imagine the strain on such families if they were poor! The parent-child disjunct will result in loss of important intergenerational knowledge; most importantly, there will be the loss of subsistence farming skills.

 

During that visit, the fact hit me that these 8 children living in those mud huts would literally and simply starve but for the assistance of the WFP and YoungHeroes. In aid and development theory, there is a lot of talk about sustainability and long-term solutions. While those aspects are important, when its simply food or no food, its time to just give the man some freaking fish.

Will provide some pictures later. Saw something really disturbing today, am still digesting and trying to come to grips with it.

Visiting Friends

From my kombi into town, I saw my friends, Ruth and Rudy last week
walking down the street.

We first met in December when they were back in the US visiting at ECHO
(they are both ex-ECHO employees). We chatted about Swaziland for a
couple hours before they had to hit the road again. They gave me some
good perspectives on the way things are here.

Anyways, the schools were on break so Ruth and Rudy were in town doing
some shopping. They invited me to visit their home just 45 minutes east
of Mbabane and so I did.

Last Thursday, a PCV friend and I got a ride with a missionary and we
all headed out at around noon. In the afternoon, the girl from the
mission was trying to set up a soccer team with the local school girls.
She came out with 10 soccer balls slowly girls from around gathered to
play. The boys, whom had plenty of opportunities to play soccer, were
trying to get in on the fun but Rudy shooed them away. They were making
clear that this was just for the girls. If they decide to take this team
seriously, we have offered to sponsor them.

Gender inequality is a serious issue in this country. Constitutionally,
women have the legal rights of a minor. Of course, this is played out
differently in the country-side and in the city. In the city, the women
are more educated and demands more respect just by their abilities. The
business-woman who owns the Grifters lodge owns several other businesses
and is a Parliament member. The gender power distribution in the
government bureaucracy seems as balanced as it is back home; men still
have the highest rank, but women are not too far behind. For example,
the head of Forestry is a man, but his second in command is a confident
and capable woman.

That evening, Ruth showed us around the school and her garden where she
grew all sorts of fruits and vegetables. The guava was delicious. We
talked into the night about development, capacity building, attitude
change, and so on.

The next morning, Rudy took the PCV and I on a hike to a nearby
waterfall in the mountains. The walk ended up being about 3 hours
round-trip. It was a difficult with the steep hills and carrying of the
children. But, wow, it was absolutely beautiful. This secluded waterfall
fed three sequential rock pools before flowing into the bush. Looking
out away from the waterfall, we could see the entire valley. The travel
nurse back home had told me never to go swimming, but I couldn't resist.
Schistomiasis, here we come!

On the way there, three little children followed us and ended up joining
us at the waterfall. While Rudy was chatting with them, I noticed that
the smallest had a chunk of flesh missing from his thigh. The one inch
diameter gape looked like a bite of sorts. They said it was a snake bite
from the day before. It was very deep and it was starting to get
infected; the child had a mild fever and swollen upper leg. There was a
black thing in it, he said it was his mother's muti (medicine). We
walked him back home and talked to his mother about the seriousness of
the injury. However, none of us were confident that she would take him
to the hospital. This kid really needed oral and topical anti-biotics.
Not knowing what to do next, we hiked back with the agreement that Rudy
would come check on the kid a couple days later.

That was a very frustrating experience. The obvious and nagging thought
was and is, "If only I had the training..." I could, with difficulty,
muster up the resources systemically address issues like that but the
medical training... that's just not something I can pull off just by
determination and creativity. Right now, that child is up in the
mountains with his other six brother and sisters in a mud house. Alive
and well, I hope.

I want to say to him in siSwati, "Buthi, I'll be back and, next time,
I'll be ready."

Quickie

I had a couple unofficial meetings with the Ministry of Ag now. They are
somewhat supportive but suspicious. Everybody keeps asking me why I am
in Swaziland, what organization I am from. Everyone is so used to people
coming from some NGO or another, that they get confused when I say I am
not really with any big NGO.

Theres a company called D1 Oils that planted many many jatropha
trees for biofuel production. This is a for-profit venture and very
large scale. There have been some controversies regarding this project
and this has created, I think, this mood of suspicion.

But, no worries. We will assuage any suspicions by showing that we
are 1. doing small scale trials, 2. open to monitoring by all
stakeholders, and 3. putting these trees under ownership of the
community and local NGOs (we are not taking any profits or other benefits).

Things are progressing well, I think. There are some things to worry
about, but its headed in the right direction for sure.

I met Ruth and Rudy in Mbabane just a couple days ago. They are
teaching and living up north of Mbabane. They are also alumni of the
ECHO internship program so they are familiar with agricultural work
(including moringa). They invited me out to see their farm up north
tomorrow. Ill be staying out there for a day or two days. They offered
to act as a nursery for future moringa propagation (produce seedlings)
which is very nice.

Today, I met with Polly, the PCV that is producing and selling
handbags with her women's support group. In 6 days, she will show me
their products. We can definitely apply the things we learned with MKU
to help with along with this.

There are these little girls forming a soccer team by where Ruth and
Rudy live. I said that we can get jerseys (shirts) done and sponsor
them. swaziAID sponsored girls soccer team, its gotta be done.

TGIF

Tonight is my last night at Waterford. They have been very kind and hospitable; things would have hairier they didn't let stay here.

Im moving to a house tomorrow. There is a family going on vacation and I'll be housesitting for them for the next month. Haven't seen the house yet, but it is in a nice neighborhood (Queensgate) within a quick walk to town where all the offices are. 

There isn't much to update. Still waiting on meetings. Attached are a couple more pictures of the Waterford cottage where I was staying and Grifter's Lodge. There is one of the road dividing non-irrigation and irrigation (sugarcane owned by wealthy folks). Finally, one of some kids playing checkers with a cardboard box with hand-drawn squares and bottlecaps. Awesome. 

1.5 weeks in the Swaz

Umjani!

I got into Mbabane, Swaziland on April 5th but have had problems with
getting a good internet connection. Got that issue fixed now and
should be having more regular updates from now on.

The first coupe nights in Mbabane, I stayed at Grifter's backpackers
lodge. The night I got there, I walked in the door and saw a bunch of
Americans watching TV. They appeared to be backpacking travelers like
any other, but it turned out that they were actually PeaceCorp
Volunteers (PCVs). Apparently, Grifters is where all the PCVs come in
for R+R. They spend most of the time in the rural areas, aka "the
bush", living with Swazi families on their homesteads. The time that
they spend at Grifters with each other, they unload and go wild. There
are a total of 35 of them right now in different parts of the country.

When I started speaking with them, they of course asked me what I was
doing in Swaziland. The conversation went something like this, "I'm
working on a pilot program for this nutritious plant in the
Lowveldt..."

"Oh, you're the TREE GUY!"

One the PCV had emailed me right before I left the US with great
interest in the project. Over the course of those couple days, I spoke
to many of the PCVs about the project and several were interested in
getting involved. The PeaceCorp country director also seems to be open
to a joint venture. I am officially meeting with her this coming
Monday to discuss this. Fingers crossed.

Between then and now, I have met with many contacts and making good
progress. I don't want to bore you with too many details. There's been
downer meetings and upper meetings. The prospective greatest challenge
is to convince the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives (MOAC) to
give us a permit to run the trials.

However, I should brag a little about the place where I am staying.
the UWC Waterford-Kamhlaba school has put me up in their volunteers
cottage. I have a room and private bathroom. The school is located on
top of a mountain and when I am making Rooibas (bush tea) in the
morning, I look over the entire valley and city of Mbabane. It is
incredibly beautiful day and night. I climbed the cliff behind my
house with a PCV (see picture).

The people here are generally down to earth and very nice. Strangers
are addressed as "bu-tee", "sisi", "ma-ke","ba-ke" which means
brother, sister, mother, and father respectively. The pace of life is
very slowed down here and there's not the feel of rush as back at
home. It may be just due to my learning curve, but it takes me 2 days
to do here what I do in one morning in the US. The reason is that
things are just not as efficient; internet access, public
transportation, and other services. Communication is by text message
(0.80E = 0.10USD) and phone calls (2.20E/min = 0.27USD/min). Those
kinds of charges crimp up the coordination and teleconferencing.
Business seems to be done mostly face to face (which I like).

This last weekend, I went out to the Lowveldt to watch a PCV workshop
conducted with a rural women's support group. It was held in a small
concrete building and we had more than 20 men and women in attendance.
The Swazi health educators discussed HIV truths and myths. The
educators would read out a statement and the women would step right or
step left to indicate true or false. After the health portion, they
showed the women how to make fabric softener and fruits jam. This can
be made and sold for a small income. After the workshops, we all made
a nice chicken stew, carrot gravy, and rice lunch. It was delicious
and we shared it among all of us and also some neighborhood children.

will have more pictures parati next time :)

Pikchas

Good morning! it is 11:10am here in Joburg and 5:10am in the East Coast
states. I have taken some pictures from my outings and just wanted to
share.

1. The mall has an ice skating rink year-round!
2. The supermarket is just like the ones at home.
3. The hostel where I am staying until Saturday morning.
4. The owner driving me, the British couple, and the little girl
Jacqueline to the mall.

Foot is on the Ground

I just got into Johannesburg this afternoon. The weather is wonderful;
its like mid-Fall in Florida. The dirt is red, people smell like people,
and everybody is very friendly.

The hostel Im staying at is large but still very homey. It is owned by a
white and black couple and they have a little six year old girl named
Jacqueline. She made me go tree climbing with her and play around the
house in the big backyard; green grass, pool, and even a little straw
hut for fun. As I am typing this, there is the UK couple playing with
Jackie (the little girl), a girl who is the vice-captain of the Canadian
underwater hockey team here for world championship talking with two guys
going to the Zambia to build a hostel. There is also 2 New Yorkers
hangin somewhere around the house.

Here in Joburg, everything looks fairly modern. The owner took me and a
British young couple to the local mall to shop for food and random
necessities. Red dirt dusted the roads and sidewalks. As we were
driving, people just got off work and were all walking home. Walking! A
novel concept! There is a large nuclear powerplant just a couple miles
away and car-dealerships lining the road.

Ill post some pictures of everything in the morning.

Bike-A-Thon Ends :)

Successfully trekked from Gainesville to St. Augustine.

Rain: check,
Freezing Cold: check,
Big Semi's: check,
Wind : check,
Endless Hills : check,
10 Flat Tires: check.

first time ever

blooooog