On home soil...

Well, I am back on home soil!  I was very excited after multiple long plane rides to get back to my own house, bed and comforts.  I have been truly blessed with many great experience over the course of these 5 months: learning about new cultures and people and being stretched in my views of the world.
Going to South Africa is a biologists dream... so here are a few of my favourite pictures from my wildlife adventures.

In the largest tree in the world - Baobab tree, South Africa

Zebras in Kruger National Park, South Africa

Tortoise in Kruger National Park

Herd of 25 elephants at the watering hole, Kruger

Giraffe, Kruger

Buffalo, Kruger

Baboons, Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe 

Warthog, Hwange 

Wildebeast and Impala, Hwange

Lioness, Hwange

Hornbill, Hwange

Elephants on the Chobe River, Zimbabwe

Hippos in the Chobe River

White Rhinos, Rhino Sanctuary, Botswana

Rhinos and Ostriches at the watering hole, Botswana

Sunset over the Okavango Delta, Botswana

The big five: touring South Africa and Zimbabwe

 After leaving my host families a week and a half ago, I met my Mom and Uncle Gerry in Johannesburg.  I was excited to see people I knew and to have a chance to relax before our tour.
Our tour started in Kruger national park, I was happy to see new places in the park and new animals as well.   We saw many elephant, giraffe, warthog, zebras, buffalo, ostrich, impala, kudu and many more!
Our tour is focused on wildlife, so after two days in Kruger, we travelled to the Zimbabwe border, and after three hours of standing in lines on both sides we finally set off again. The next day we visited Great Zimbabwe, which was some old ruins.  They were entire stone walls with no mortor, just stone.  We also got to walk in the bush and saw a white rhino. The next day was at Maun national park where we saw amazing animals sightings: lions, elephants super close, jackels, wildebeast, hippos, crocs and sweet watering holes with loads of species in one place. It was unreal!  Really I am not doing this justice without some pics, so I'm going to update this when I get home next week and have some awesome shots.
We have seen the big five! Leopard, lion, rhino, buffalo and elephant...I did not expect to be so lucky!
It is such a blessing to see so much of God's creation in unspoilt habitat.  It is amazing to see all those animals I have been watching national geographic for!

Kruger National Park and the Big Tree

During the last two weekends I have been here, I have been taken around to different places to see some of the area by some of the people I have stayed with.
Last weekend, I went with Sonet and her family and we visited and stayed in Kruger National Park!  It was like my biology dream, to be able to see so many African animals in the wild, and so up close.  Within minutes of being in the park, we saw impalas and buffalo.  We were able to see giraffes in groups of 3 or more (which is unusual) and right beside the road.  We also saw a herd of about 25 elephants drinking water.  There were many calves there with them, as well as a set of twin calves.  It was spectacular.  We also saw worthogs, ostriches, crocodiles, springbok, tortoises, and even a cameleon on the road.  It was great to stay in the park and to be able to do some more familar things, like BBQ and play rummycub.  This weekend has been the highlight of my trip thus far!

The gate we entered by.

 

The previous weekend we drove all over Limpopo province and even went to the Zimbabwae border, saw the biggest tree in South Africa (they said the world?) and a lovely river.  It has been great to see so much of this northern territory in addition to experiencing both the Afrikaaner and African ways of life.  I have really appreciated being shown around to see so many things, and learn about this great

My pics looks similar to this one...we were so close!

place.  (p.s. I borrowed these pics from the internet!)

Tshikevha Christian school - Surrey Christian's sister school

It has been interesting to be in another school in South Africa. At this school there are about 1000 students from kindergarten to grade 12.  There are very large classes of about 40 in each grade, and the classrooms are smaller the at home in Canada. The classes are 30 minutes each, though a lot of them have two of the same back to back, so really they are 1 hour.  Students write a lot here, though they actually use the photocopier here at the school, so there is a little less copying from the board.  Like most students in the world, they don't enjoy this kind of activity, though this is what school is.  I can see why students frequently get in trouble here, as they are not allowed to talk, move out if their desks, or generally do more than copy down.  They are very strict here in their rules about uniform and dress, even hair.   They are not allowed to have corn rolls or any oh her fancy hair dues that may make them stand out from the crowd.  The reason for this is because they want the students all to be equal whether their parents are kings, or struggling to pay tuition. I even witnessed a teacher cutting some girls braided hair because it was too long!  Very different from Canada!
The students are expected to be self motivated, yet they are not given a lot of work to do.  I keep thinking about the information we learned about how school is adapted for girls...so true here.  So many boys are struggling to sit in their chairs, and try and write and read in this environment, it's no wonder that the girls are generally more successful.   Also the classrooms are very loud, another thing that makes it difficult for them to learn.  Today there were five teachers missing from school, so I went to the English classes to "babysit" the students.  They even call it babysitting, so it feels doomed to fail when the person gone gives you about 10 minutes of work for an hour and the students see this as free time.  They don't have subs here, fellow teachers usually watch the students for each other...I would not be very happy with my colleague if they left me with so little for them to do.  Let's just say it was not my favourite day and it made me miss my classes where I know everyone's name and the expectation for the class are set by me.  I did get a bunch of drawings and cards from the grade 4s though.
Though this school has more computer access for staff, I don't think that students have access to them.  Their science lab is also not really used, the science teacher said that it in too hard to be in there with 40 students and there are not really many resources. I haven't seen many classes outside yet, they have what's called life orientation instead of physical education.  Mostly it is book work, with one unit being a sports unit.  This was the most surprising to me, here they have a great field that the students can be on, but they only really use it after school on Thursdays for extra credit, where student can choose an activity they like ( drama, art, pe) to do and do that for an hour.  The physical education teacher in me is sad, as I want all kids to run and jump and play.
It has been good to be at our sister school here, and to build some relationships with some of the teachers as well.  The staff here are very kind and friendly.  There are more checks and balances here for the staff as far as administrator evaluating them and looking through lesson plans.  They were surprised to know that no one checks mine every week.  I am grateful that we are trusted as teachers, and that we are blessed with many resources including each other!

Gondolikhethwa School - school in rural South Africa

I have been spending my time going to different grades and classes observing and participating in different things that the classes are doing.  My hope was to be able to work with student one on one and maybe also help teachers with some curriculum development.  I tried to explain this to the principal and the science teacher and they did not understand what I meant. This was shocking to me, and left me a little thrown, as this is what I had emailed as my hope before I came.  So I had to adjust my expectations.
 However, at this school in South Africa they have a very prescribed curriculum, and at this school very little resources.  Most teachers do not like using the computer, in fact they are about to hand in their exams and they are allowed to hand them in hand written.  There is little to no internet access on the campus and the teachers follow the textbooks given to a T.  On the other hand, their textbooks are amazing, the science books are great, they have tons of activities that are hands on that students can do, there are just not resources to do them.  The students spend almost all of their class time copying from the board and answering questions and reviewing them.  Very teacher centred learning.  I feel a bit at a loss of what to share with these teachers as they are doing what they can within their resources.
That being said, the teachers here are excited about kids.  They love them.  I spent some time in a grade 3 class and they were very engaging, and age appropriate, students had time to play, think for themselves and be creative. So that is exciting to see.
Other great things that are happening here, I was able to attend a grade nine "seminar", about being a teenager.  So they went over, albeit briefly, physical, cognitive and social changes of this time.  I appreciated the openness in which the teacher conducted this time, and he was encouraging students to live holy lives.
I am trying to visit all of the classes before I leave.  I hope that over the next three -four school days I will be able to do that.
I am also interested to see the Tschikevha school,that is a partner school with Surrey Christian.  I am going there this week from Thursday to Wednesday.  It is about an hour away, and it will be interesting to see the differences.
The group that visited Langley Christian reported back to the school about Canada and schooling there.  It was interesting to see their reactions, they like that we had a lot of visuals, that students and teachers worked together to learn, not a teacher dominated place, that the internet was used for a resource and that there were a lot of practical courses like wood working and automotives.  They also though Canadian students were very disciplined and respected and loved their teachers a lot.  Langley Christian definitely took them all over the place and showed them many places in the lower mainland.
Some cultural things they noticed; they did not like that we ate so much raw food and that vegetables consisted of 90% of our diet.  Here they eat a lot of meat, and they don't understand when I don't want more, or when they offer me food and I say I am full, they don't understand this.  At lunch today, the office staff brought food they wanted to share with me, but they didn't tell me, and I had eaten my lunch already and was full.  I felt bad, not wanting to offend them, but I had to decline.  They made me take food to go with me for later.  I had to decide early on that I could not eat everything they put in front of me or I would be sick.  Don't get me wrong, the food is good, it's just in huge quantities.
Another cultural difference is they thought Canada was so clean.  Trash is definitely a problem here, though they burn garbage here, so they don't have container systems like we do.  The school is definitely trying to educate their student in this way of caring for the world, even collecting paper to be recycled. (It has to be brought to a depot- probably why people don't do it).   They have different grade pick up all the trash for the school grounds after lunch every day! Great that they are cleaning up, but it's an uphill battle against this cultural idea.
Hearing them talk about Canada on Friday made me miss it a lot! I do long for some of the comforts and people of home.  It has been an eye opening experience here so far, and I hope to learn more.

arrived in South Africa - First impressions

I have arrived safely in South Africa!  Well, it was a long journey, 2 days of travel with some help along the way from some friendly folks.  Arriving in Johannnesburg was a little intimidating, but the first step was to take the Guatrain to Pretoria.  The train is just like Europe!  They use the same system.  Coming out of the train station at night was a little different, there were no signs for taxis so I asked a guard if she knew where to go, and she called for me.  I know I paid too much, but i was happy to get to my hotel.  The lady at the hotel desk also helped me pay the taxi driver as I did not have any local currency yet. Anyway the hotel was good, small room, but since I only slept there overnight it was fine. The hotel had a shuttle to the bus station the next morning so they dropped me off.
I went to the first City to City Bus station and a fellow customer told me I was in the wrong line.  She helped me find the worker who directed me to the correctly line (not labeled) and I picked up my ticket to Louis Trichardt.  I then spent 15 minutes asking all the bus drivers if they were going to my location, they weren't and the busses were not labelled either.  I found the ticket guy again, and he told me my bus was not here yet, and where to wait.  I did ask the bus driver again to check though, and he looked out for me on the rest of the ride!
The bus was nice, no bathroom though, so we all got out at a big rest area with lots of washrooms.  Pretty clean for such a busy place. 5.5 hours later, we rolled up to the gas station drop off, and David the principal was there to pick me up.   We drove back to his house and had a pop and hotdog...with lettuce...I was thinking I hope the food is going to be better than this!
Then he took me to where I would be staying, with the Mango family.  There is Dakalo, she is a teacher at the school and her husband, Edward who is a polic officer.  They have 4 children. 2 in school, 2 working.
The speak a local dialect, which i have repeatedly asked about, but can't grasp.  Let's just say, I will know way more spanish than this language.
So far the Mango house is fairly westernized, they eat with a knife and fork, have hot water, but no shower.  I think I will be excited for one soon!  Their house is quite big and I am staying in their guest room.  There is a lock and key for the door, which is nice for security as I can lock it when we leave the house as well.  Just a little surprising to  me, as they also lock their rooms and then their outside doors as well.

So far, I have visited family members, watched terrible Nigerian soap movies, went to a "thanksgiving" party (thankful for I don't know, neither did Dakalo-- loads of food and people) run some errands - every where seems so busy!, and even hung out at the hair salon.  They don't speak much English with each other, so I have been the translating third wheel.  At the same time it could be much worse!

Sunday we went to a 5000 person church, where we had to sit behind the pastor because I am a special visitor... we tried to sit in the back, but no luck.  I had to stand up to be clapped for which is a little crazy.  The music and dancing was amazing, though the preaching was a lot of screaming!  (there was a translator, but his words got lost by the screaming preacher who continued too soon.) At the end of the sermon, everyone was invited to be blessed/donate their money.  I didn't really love how these were connected directly.  It was pretty hot in there, so I stayed sitting, I was feeling a little faint, and a little uncomfortable with the process of the pastor blessing 4000 people one at a time, and then an assistant following with the donation bucket.

unfortunately, these blog posts will be with out pictures as I am not on my computer or ipad, the internet is so slow, it would take too long to load as well...just picture it everyone!

So far, top impressions: people here are very kind and welcoming.  The mountains are beautiful and make it feel like home a little.  Food here, at least at the Mango's is fairly similar, though I passed on the chicken feet...but at the dried caterpillar.   I hope you are all well!

Nicaragua: big and small things that I have learned here

In Nicaragua, I have been able to learn a lot about missionaries and their families, and how they live out their faith through serving another country.  I have been blessed to learn a few things, some not so serious...many may seem obvious to you, but for me some were surprising:

1. Community.  The missionaries here have really created a community of support for each other, that I think is unique.  The Nehemiah Centre bases its identity on this, but it is a great glimpse into God's kingdom to see people of different denominations working together, learning from each other and playing together. I think that the biggest way that this is seen is through the sharing of meals together.  Every Monday night, the Loftsgard family hosts a dinner for anyone who wants to come (and replies to the email).  They share their space and generosity of spirit with the whole community.  Not only that, there are nights every week to get together and play sports (basketball, volleyball, ultimate) and for people to fellowship that way. There is a feeling of small town here in a big city.

2. Missionaries don't have to live in poor conditions.  I know for myself, I envisioned that missionaries are all people that live in poor conditions so that they can spread the gospel...and I know that some people are living that way, but it's definitely not for everyone.  In fact, I have always thought this is one of the unfair things about being a missionary; not only do you have to usually move away from your family and comforts of home, but you also have to live in possibly lowly conditions.  One of the things that I have been able to do here was visit a lot of different people's homes and see how through wealth of resources, people and communities can also be served.  Though I don't think that the mission field is for me, it is nice to know that people are having some of the comforts of home as well.

3. Missionaries struggle with their faith.  In the last couple weeks at International Christian Fellowship (ICF), there has been a sermon series on spiritual formation.  I have really appreciated hearing from different missionaries about how they don't have it all together.  As a Christian community, it is good to admit our short comings, I know I am bad at that, and so serve others.  It is a comfort to me that all people are constantly working out their faith.

4. Earthquakes can be a part of regular life.   Okay, so I know that we are suppose to be afraid of the "big" one, but earthquakes that I have experienced here have been a lot of shaking, and some concern, but mostly exciting.  In fact, some people had to keep a glass of water near by so that they could distinguish between earthquakes and their imagination.  While I have the advantage of living in a fairly stable house, the general population of Nicaragua does not, and I understand why the people here are very worried.  In fact, schools are cancelled this week, due to earthquake tremors, until the earth settles down a little.

5. Ebooks.  Until coming here, I have not used the Surrey Public Library ebook system, and now I am addicted!  I brought 2 paperbacks and besides that my SPL has been keeping me in good books the entire time I have been here.  I also was happy to find a lot of people are big readers here, and it has been great trading titles with them!

6. Swimming every day is good for your soul.  It is also a good way to cool off in hot, hot, hot Nicaragua.  I had the advantage of coming home everyday from volunteering at school to an empty pool.  There is something so relaxing and freeing in swimming some laps everyday, and submerging in the water.

7. SolRx is the best sunscreen ever.  I found this type of sunscreen in Hawaii a few years back, and I ordered it online before coming here.  It is a dry sunscreen that has to be washed off with soap and water, but I choose toxins over rays!

8. Communication with home, no matter how small is important.   I have really appreciated those people who have commented on my blog, Facebook or written an email to see how I was doing. Even though its only a little time, its nice to feel connected to home!  I can see now why people supporting missionaries through prayer, emails, letters can be so important.

9. Local food is the way to go, but sometimes you just need some good chocolate.   Nicaragua has some great fruits and vegetables, as well as a lot of rice and beans.  I have really enjoyed the local pineapple, mango and avocado and do not look forward to the mealier versions of home.  On the same note, sometimes you just need some good north american made chocolate to get you through the day.

10. Growing up as a woman in Nicaragua is really hard.  I know that I am suppose to say all the things that I love about Nicaragua as I put on my rose coloured classes before going home...but the group that I do not envy here are the women of Nicaragua.  These women work hard at home, serving their families as well as some also work outside of the home.  People rejoice in boys being born, not girls.  Women in general are subjected to catcalls as they walk down the streets.   This is not an ego boost, maybe particularly to a North American who was taught that her value did not lie in her appearance...what are the Nicaraguan girls learning from this? On the bright side, things are changing, generations of women are bringing up boys to view women differently.

11. There is beauty everywhere.  You just have to open your eyes to see it, every day.  Despite it being the end of the dry season here, Nicaragua is a beautiful place.  A huge variety of biomes and cities, there is much to see and explore here that is still relatively untouched.  While I sometimes long for the ease of home, I am consistently delighted in the small things...a lizard on the wall, a bat flying overhead, and the moon and stars so clear at night. (I see all these things every night here!)

I am sure I have learned more than this, but just some of my reflections on my time here, adios, Nicaragua!