Chris Webb

Ok... so... last weekend I went to Denver, Colorado for an interview. I took Greyhound complete with all the weirdos that come with it. Good news though: I got the job!!!!!! I'll be working on grassroots campaigns for Democrats (of course). So, this weekend I'm off to Boston for training!

Oh my god Becky.... Look at....him! (5 points for random pop reference)

It's true, I'm back in America. After two years of slow internet access and no driving, I've finally come home. I suprised my family for Thanksgiving. And what a suprise! My dad's quote "Oh shit!" I don't swear in here a lot, but I think it's the quote of the week.

I literally walked into the pre-dinner football games. My brother picked me up from the airport Tuesday night and I slept at his place in Austin until we drove down for the dinner. My brother and I had to pick up one of my parents cars at the house before dinner at my grandparent's place. Well, my dad was there so he was the second to know the truth (Nick was the first). My mom called us, but my dad was cool enough not to spoil the suprise.

I walked into my parent's house for the highlight of the evening. There's almost nothing like seeing your family after two years of not. My young cousins didn't even know who I was. Andrew had the second greatest quote of the week with "Who are you?" He was 2? when I left and since I only came home from Atlanta during the holidays neither him nor his older sister knew who I am.

So, life is good. Many people ask what I'll be up to now. I'm looking for a short term job, I might go to Oregon (my mom wants to send me up there), I probably will bicycle ride across the US with Kristin- a Peace Corps buddy, and then Marshall Islands with World Teach. I need to apply for the World Teach job soon. I have decided that I can go and do whatever I want until I am 30 years old. When 2010 comes around I'll apply for graduate school to get my PhD.

First meal in America: Taco Cabana...mmmm... two years anticipation of Mexican food.

I hope everyone else had a great holiday.

Normally I don't like to write about people in this thing because it's public. But, I'll only jokingly make fun of them.

-----
Moses
-----

I have a driver, kind of like Driving Ms. Daisy, only I'm male, younger, and my driver likes to break the speed limit- a alot. And he likes to honk at people. It kind of sounds like he has road rage, but really he is just acknowledging everyone he has ever met as he drives by. In addition, he hates the city police. To explain, city police is a new thing this year. Formerly, all crimes were handled by the national police who never gave traffic tickets. Now, city police gave a ticket to Moses for stopping on the road to drop someone off. If Moses hates anything more though, it's the kamikaze taxi drivers that buzz through Windhoek.

Conversation this morning as we see the city police pull someone over ahead of us
Moses: Ahh! City police! I hate city police.
...later as we pass the pulled over car..
Moses: Good! I hate taxis. Police need to pull them over.

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Mrs. Garises
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My principal this year. She is a Damara and married to a born again minister. This is sort of like Southern Baptist without all the nonsense about Disney boycotts. Her favorite musician is Michael W. Smith, so I hooked her up with some tunes. She also got my donkey jerky from the farm.... delicious?? I don't interact with her (or the rest of the staff) as much as I did last year.

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Mr. Gallant
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My old housemate. I think I mentioned him in an earlier post. He's a coloured from Cape Town (which makes him a Cape Coloured- kind of high class coloured). His classroom is always immaculate. If you're wondering how I could have survived know that I can clean a lot too. In fact, I swept my house at least once a day when living with him. (And I mean house...)

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Mr. Tjozongoro
--------------

I have to say that I haven't talked with him as much as I would have liked. He's an older teacher (upper 50's, but I'm pround to say that he now has an email address. His nickname is "Uncle Tjo" (pronounced Uncle Joe)..... and he's hooked me up with Eric Clapton and The Who CDs. This guy is always funny and actually dedicated to his job.

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Mr. Karumendu
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A Head of Department. He's Herero, so stereotypically he loves cattle. I got him hooked on Encarta then Wikipedia (online encyclopedia). I even showed him how to scan pics so his desktop background is a nice big ram. He uses information found on the internet in his class preparations, so at least I did *something* here.

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Mrs. Britz
----------

If ever there was a teacher who exemplified the Protestant work ethic, she's it. She runs the school tuck shop (snack counter), sports program (with another male teacher), matric (graduation party), and just about everything else at the school. I wonder what the school will be like if she ever leaves. She even gave me chocolate one day.... because I sat for 2 days printing off learner diplomas, but it was a nice gesture since most Namibians just take my work from granted.

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Mrs. Classen and Mr. /Hoxobeb
-----------------------------

Supposedly my lab prefects, but I can't say I do much with them except show them neat tricks. But, there energy astounds me sometimes.

********************
Learners............
********************

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Ndilimeke
---------

Ndilimeke is a learner. I can't say she's the most influential learner in my life, but she's sitting right next to me so I figure I'll mention her. Also, the rumor around the school is that we're dating (which probably means she shouldn't be sitting next to me). Many learners supposedly are dating me. It's just one of those things I have to live with. Ndilimeke, whose name means "In God's hands" was an LRC this year (like student council) and always seems to attend the same concerts as me. Fun girl, but not in a dating kind of way. She has Cleopatra eyes which are also kind of cool.

----------------------
Terrence and Juhwanney
----------------------

Attached at the hip? These are the trouble makers with just too much time on their hands. They bring me movies and rap music then constantly bug me until they get to use the CD burner. They sometimes try to hide in my classroom if another teacher is looking for them (because they're trouble makers), but I kick them out. Normally I'd just say that they just need to grow up a little, but that'd only make them bigger trouble makers.

--
8C
--

Grade 8 classes are notoriously difficult to teach except 8C. These kids all had computer classes in primary school so for the entire year I was able to go quickly through lessons with them. Always asking interesting computer questions, they were a pleasure to teach. If I come back in 4 years it'll be to see how these kids are doing in grade 12.

---
11A
---

My other favourite class but only because they have a thousand personalities. Terrence and Juhwanney are in the class as is Wilhelmina, the youngest grade 11 I've ever seen (she turned 15 this year). I always joke with her about her age. Next year she's deputy head girl which is a nice thing to see.... oh yeah, she loves reading Danielle Steele (sp?) books. I actually gave her Mark Twain stories and she could understand them. (That's absolutely amazing). Other people from the class include Angeline and Ndapanda the newspaper girls full of ideas for making money. Then there's Paulus to whom I introduced origami and now he's hooked.

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Lungi
-----

He's 19, but he's not like any other 19 year old I know. He's taking some grade 12 exams over again (he barely didn't make it into a university this year. I hope he passes because then he'll try to come to the US as an au pair. He's the only Namibian I know that will form his own opinion on music.

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Police Officer
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Uncle of Lungi and one hell of a nice guy. He used to live across the street from me when I lived with Mr. Gallant. I haven't seen as much of him lately since I moved to town, but he's always so nice.

Anyone who has spoken to me for at least 5 minutes will instantly find out that I love almost every type of music out there. Types that I don't like- polka, Herero music, and some nu-metal (not all, but some). So, it's not too shocking to find out that I went to a concert last night.

I met up with some Americans at the concert (not Peace Corps and very new to Namibia). One of the girls helps with counselling (sp?) at my school. Well, I went off to talk with one of my learners only to find out that the Americans have gone to get some food. A Namibian guy offers to take me to the food stands, but as it turns out- he has no idea where they are. Unlike most Namibian adventures this actually turns out cool because somehow the guards let us into the VIP section. Two of the Americans were talking to a rap group about stuff and I proceeded to hang out with these rappers for half the night.

These guys were really cool and introduced the girls and I to all the major acts performing that night. I even ended up going clubbing with their backup dancers. Those girls can really shake their asses.

In the end it was a great night- got one of the girls phone numbers and got to consult the rap group on how to improve their performance. They invited me to their house so I think I'll hang out with them this week.

In other news: People add me as their "friends" sometimes. Actually, it's kind of scary to know that people read this thing sometimes. I haven't checked out who is listed as a friend in a long time, but it was great to find one volunteer from Bulgaria. She seems to be having a good time.

Well, not really "on my way..." but I'm finishing up things here. I'm really busy, but it's a great feeling to be doing things for the last time.

Volunteers are coming into Windhoek fairly regularly now as they have exit interviews and medical examinations. Last night some volunteers got together for a nice potluck dinner.

Here is an excerpt (not from me):

When I first got to the village my neighbors told me, "We need to set you up with a woman." The hesitant volunteer replied only that he was not ready for a relationship. "No, not a relationship. I said a woman!" A little worried by the Namibian, the volunteer explained that he wasn't in a financial situation and didn't want to spend the time getting a girl. Confused by the volunteer's response, the Namibian answered, "What? You don't have eight dollars?"

-You have to love the 'special' people you meet in Namibia.

The new group is coming in soon. Thanks to google, the Peace Corps and new volunteers have read this thing. Knowing that I can get kicked out of the country, I've tried to keep this blog fairly clean and kept most of the negativity out of it.

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In case you were wondering
--------------------------

Namibia's ET rate (quitting rate) is higher than the international average.
My group started with 46.... now: 29!
Two were medically separated, the rest quit.

We have three engagements in our group. One is between two volunteers, the other between a volunteer and her fiance. Another girl quit during training to go home to her boyfriend.


-----
Waldo
-----

Waldo is my Peace Corps APCD - Associate Peace Corps Director (my boss). He's a great guy and has earned the respect of all the volunteers in my group. Even the cynical ones like him. He has his little quirks, one of which is his lightning fast speech. He's so fast the Americans have to tell him to slow down. I can't say that I have any really funny stories with Waldo. All I can say is that I (along with many other volunteers) are happy to have him as our boss. Part of our group present to him was a "Where's Waldo?" book sent from America.

Some thieves broke into my school and stole our internet server. Bastards! I usually don't swear, but this was a major let down. They also stole two other computers. It's not like my school is a den of crime, but still....the security guards shouldn't have been sleeping on the toilets.

What have I been up to:

1. Funeral for my principal's mother
2. Being part of a movie! I was an extra in the Sam Nujoma movie "Where Other's Wavered" I'm the assistant to the general that's bombing the Owambo's during Namibia's fight for independence. I also happen to be assisting South African Prime Minister Botha too. (You can find him in the history books under racist jerk)
3. My school postponed the school tour to Etosha, so I will leave Africa without seeing: lions, wildebeast, or rhinos :-(
4. I broke up with my girlfriend a while back. She was quite devastated. That makes it just about one of the worst days in Namibia. The worst was the English advisor...
5. My school had Matric (Prom) and the grade 12's invited me to their after party at the club. I danced all night and still managed to go to school the next day. A couple of the teachers also partied all night. The remaining staff called us the "Taliban" because we never sleep. Incidently, the staff felt bad for Americans after Katrina. As one teacher joked, "Now the Taliban can control the weather!" Note: I didn't even know about Katrina until it was all over. I watched the news headlines and read "....New Orleans under water...."
6. I'm trying to tackle War and Peace right now. I'm on page 1,057.
7. Expect to see me home December 2. That's right after school ends.

Facts about Namibia:
2nd least dense population in the entire world. Most- Mongolia
The DRC, Afghanistan, Liberia, and Niger have a higher life expectancy.

I went to see The Wedding Crashers a few weeks ago. It was a funny movie, but I just sat there asking myself how can Namibian's truly understand the joke. In Namibia it's almost impossible to crash a wedding since everyone is invited.

South Africa is having it's Idols competition. It's like American Idols, but in South Africa. I was amused to see one of the finalists since "Behind These Hazel Eyes." If you don't know, that song is sung by Kelly Clarkson, the first American Idols winner.

Some friends from the Peace Corps might be bicycle riding across the United States in the spring. We have to work out some details, but it might happen. After spending two years here, it's time I see some of America.

Now that my time in the Peace Corps is tapering off I have a lot of administrative work. So, I have to write about all that I've done in the last two years. It's really hard to explain some things. (I was going to write more, but I'll just leave that- volunteers might understand my dilemma)

Wow... my first email from someone in group 25. I just can't help smiling when I think.... I'm on my way home.

I know I don't update that often then you see two posts in one day. But, I figured this deserved a mention. The boy's hostel in Okombahe burned down. I never lived in the hostel because it was one of the worst places I've ever seen to live in. I can't honestly say I'll miss the smell, but it's sad to know that the learners lost everything in the fire. Until they can find another place they'll sleep in the cafeteria.

That makes about 16 burnt down classrooms and 3 burnt down hostels at the school.

I went to Otjiwarongo and saw my host mom. There was a funeral for my principal's mother, so many teachers went to support her (my principal is female).

Whereas last year my learners often acted like criminals, this year we've actually got criminals at the school. A chain gang showed up last week to clean our yard. One of the guys actually asked me for ten dollars.

I've been sick a lot lately. First, I had some kind of an allergy attack- cold sweats, fever, and the like. Then I got my second case of GI problems. For those of you who don't know what that means it's diarrhea (spelling?). I was in bed for almost a day and a half clutching my stomach in pain. They say it's just one of those things you have to endure as a volunteer. I didn't eat a normal meal from saturday night until thursday night.

My school was hosted the tri-school tournament this year. That means a full day of netball and soccer. I actually played for the teacher's team, but arrived late- very late. I was watching netball on the other side of the complex and only made it for the last minute of the soccer game. To my suprise the first time I touched the ball I got a penalty. I still don't know why I deserved a penalty. The other teachers don't know either; however, the say that the referee was penalizing our team the entire game.

I want a laptop! I helped FAWENA (Forum for African Women Educationalists in Namibia) make their newsletter. Actually, I pretty much made the entire thing myself. I used Microsoft Publisher (first publishing software I've ever used) to design and create the 8 page publication. The organization was so happy with the result that instead of paying me $500 (like they would have if they could) they took me to lunch. At least I have a new thing to add to my resume.... The reason I want a laptop is that I got to borrow FAWENA's while I was making the newsletter. I priced them online the other day at dell.com :-)

As far as my personal life goes: it's been much of the same. Now, that's a lot more stuff than this time last year. Last year I'd go home from school, eat lunch then sit and mark exercise books. This year, I go window shopping (a lot). Unfortunately, that often leads me to the book store and the music store and I inevitably spend some of my precious money. I don't make much and a single cd can be 10% of my monthly income.

I've gone to some movies lately. I saw Batman Begins and the Fantastic 4. To explain, I saw the Fantastic 4 because Namibians wanted to see it. I'm debating about going to see Charlie and the Chocolate Factory tomorrow with a Namibian. I don't think she'll like it.

Dating life has been interesting. I'm not going into much detail, but it has its ups and downs. Lise and I have been dating for 4 months now. She often is stuck in her house watching her nieces and nephews, so it's difficult getting out of the house. She bottles up her emotions pretty tight, so often I barely understand what's going on inside her. I still don't know what's going to happen in 4 months.

Facts about her: She's 24, owns 14 cows, and she's a quarter German. Her mother's father was German. (Remember this place was colonized by Germans).

So, when people think Africa they probably think of animals, drums (with people dancing around a fire), witch doctors....

They probably don't think of the local dance club. But, that's how 90% of the people I see on the street dress every day. Girls wearing fishnet shirts, capri pants, boys in Diesel jeans, All Stars for shoes, soccer jerseys, and most everything else nylon. Why nylon? It's the stuff you get in the China shops.

If you wonder how my learners dress when not in school just check out Total Request Live on MTV. Girls in short skirts, boys trying to look like thugs. That just about sums it up. No animals skin loin cloths for them.

While I'm at it, they love, love, love rap music and R&B. I might have already explained this, but 50 Cent is almost a god here. Typical conversation in the computer lab:
"Sir, can we listen to 50 Cent today?"
"No, he uses too many swear words."
"Umm...can we listen to Eminem?"
"No, he also uses too many swear words."
"Sir your music is boring."

Note: if they don't leave the computer lab fast enough (or if they bother me with too many stupid questions involving the music) I put on the hardest rock I have in here. Playing Static-X for about a minute gives the girls headaches. Other popular (or not popular depending on if you are me or the learners) music includes A Perfect Circle, anything punk, and Nine Inch Nails.

I have a CD burner in the lab. I also bought one in Okombahe when they broke into my house and stole my music. So, the learners bring me music and blank CDs to record their music. Sometimes they actually made the music and it usually turns out pretty well. I think 3 of my learners have recording contracts. Some are occassionaly in music videos. However, most of the music they bring is rap. So, I have the new Eminem, 50 Cent, Kanye West, every Ludacris album, Usher, Alicia Keyes... My mood has been mostly country music lately, so the rap doesn't fit in too well, but occasionally they bring me rock music.

There is a phrase in Namibia, "It's your birthday." This means that you are having a very good day. Perhaps you bought something new, received a gift or are just very happy. So, "it was my birthday" at the end of April when one learner brought a "blank" cd. It turned out to have Silverchair, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, and The Smashing Pumpkins. I want to know who this friend of his is who owns Smashing Pumpkins.... The album he brought is my favorite of the group (Siamese Dream) and one which was stolen last year from my house.

While I'm still on music....

YOU CANNOT FIND SO MUCH MUSIC HERE! I can buy these music magazines from England. (Uncut is only 70R!! and comes with a free CD!) The magazines talk about all this good music I could buy. I say could because that would necessitate having a competant rock section in the local Musica. They categorize Nickel Creek as rock...umm?? The country music section is pathetic. (Read Strange to Some... for more about country music). That's strange because the Afrikaaner rock music seems to incorporate country music. Afrikaaner music is an awful mix of techno beats, banjos, guitar strumming, and Afrikaans sung in the style of a stadium cheer. Not everything is like a cheer, but most of the stuff I hear tends toward that direction. I'm sure when you read techno beats and banjos in the same sentence some of you cringed. Well, imagine my feelings when I actually hear it...

Ok, so most volunteers are even more remote than us and fail to even have a music store, but most volunteers (in other countries) bring laptops with a 2 year supply of dvds. I think that'd be a good idea for Namibia, but some people have the wrong idea when they write the job descriptions for Namibia. Example: my job description said that I might be teaching computer classes in a place without any computers....Hmmm?? Not a good place to send a computer teacher in my opinion. Another assignment actually says that the job will be so remote that volunteers won't have electricity....Umm... maybe at night or about half the week, but the other times it's just fine. In fact, the most remote volunteers either have computer labs or laptops of their own. Internet is a different story.

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Strange to Some But True
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Ask a Namibian about country music and they will tell you that they love Dolly Parton. In a distant second comes Don Williams. I had one learner tell me that their favorite singer (of all time!) was Dolly Parton. I was in a taxi cab recently with a driver that could not understand any English. Explaining anything to him was nearly impossible. After a few minutes of riding with him he popped in- you guesses it- Dolly Parton.

Ask some people their color and they will actually answer with "coloured." In Namibia coloured is not an insult.

I asked my Damara learner last year about their favorite food. More than half of the learners said donkey meat. Yes, I have eaten some donkey. Doesn't taste too bad, just smells.

I'm on my 5th country director in less than 2 years. Louis, Helen, Howard, Gene, now Jeff..... That's my boss' boss.

No internet in most of the country (or it's cost prohibitive for anyone to use their phone line), but 90% of the people must have a cellphone. I have one. My number is (country area code) + 81 236 0493 or maybe you have to put the zero in there...... (country code) + 081 236 0493. My learners were even mocking me because I ONLY have 40+ numbers. They insist that I need 100+

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Quotes of the Month (June and July)
-----------------------------------

"Sir, have you ever heard of black people?"
(June)

"You must be a Damara!"
(July)

I have recently begun a new chapter in my Peace Corps experience- Afrikaaners....

I moved into the Windhoek High School boys hostel more than a week ago to find myself in an unknown land- there are white kids in the hostel!?! There are also blacks too. These two things are definitely one of the first things I have ever seen in Namibia 1) White kids in a hostel 2) White and black kids hanging out together.

No matter there skin color these kids have a couple things in common, but the factor that allowed these kids to hang out together and attend school on an equal footing is money- lots of money. These kids are rich. I was walking around the school one evening to find them playing a Playstation 2 on a tv equipped with a satellite connection. In Okombahe we were often caught without electricity. I even think many of my learners didn't have electricity at home. Now, contrast that with the WHS learners that have stereo systems in their bedrooms....

Note- in Okombahe, radios were not allowed in hostel rooms because of the "noise levels" produced

My new living place is about a 20 minute drive across town (yep, town takes 20 minutes to cross...) So, an employess of Fawena (Forum for African Women in Education- Namibia chapter) drives me to work everyday. Then I take a taxi home.

A taxi to town costs $5.50. I'm getting reimbursed for the taxi fares which is nice. What's also nice is now I can go shopping without having to spend so much money on taxis, but I no longer have Mr. Gallant to teach me some Afrikaans.

Internet connection is so slow that I often cannot download a 900KB file before it times out. It feels like those days before 14.4 modems. Z modem download? X modem download??

Life hasn't changed too much since I went to Victoria Falls. I am virtually broke until payday- June 20. The pay us once every three months in the Peace Corps. Talk about a potential problem when in this country no one can seem to understand the idea of budgetting....

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Namibian Budgets
----------------

Non-existent. (spelling?)

People in this country get paid once a month at the end of the month. Teachers, police officers, and nurses get paid on the 20th. So, at the end of the month expect a massive number of people in the grocery store. In fact, it's more like a flood of people. If you ever wondered where all the Namibians live, you could go to Katatura, Ovamboland, or the store at the end of the month.

So, everyone shops and shops spending all their money. If they don't spend all their money it will either a) be used on alcohol or b) be given to family.

a) alcohol- The end of the month is THE party time. No better time exists to hear all the great Namibian and South African tunes oozing from bar sound systems. I really feel sorry for some of these dogs at the end of the month. Many wives accompany their husbands to the stores at the end of the month to ensure the family has something to eat otherwise it will be drunken away.

b) given to family- Property is somewhat communal in Namibia (and much of Africa). If you have something that a family member needs then that family member will take it or exert such guilt on you that you give it to them. If another family member is broke, you can and are expected to help financially. Of course, this can also include food. Taxis run everywhere (including illegal taxis) during pay time because the people want to spend their money before their friend does.

Namibians are quite broke by the time the end of one month rolls around. So, Namibians can't understand how I can budget for three months.

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Namlish
-------

My English grammar and spelling are very poor. One American said that I now have the "Namibian accent." I already expect to hear many laughs when I open up my mouth.

Expect to hear:
Tji!
Ach ne!
You're no good to me.
I'm coming.
Now, now?
I am having a 50 dollar.

All of these things have been said to other Americans, much to my regret.


......And I've been dating a Namibian since April. Her name is Liza. No, she isn't Himba.

In the last few days I have done the following:

Added 3 countries to my visited list: Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Botswana
Seen (finally): hippos, elephants, and crocodiles.
One of the seven wonders of the natural world: Victoria Falls.

This leaves only lions, leopards, hyenas, wildebeest, and rhinos on the not seen list, 5 more of the natural wonders (I've only otherwise seen the Grand Canyon).

I more or less did this entire trip on a very limited budget because I'm virtually broke from too many temptations in the capital.

Ok.... I'm not a very funny guy. Actually, I'm not funny at all, so these observations are not meant to be funny, if you laugh well.... go me!.... if you don't- I've already warned you.

The outgoing president's retirement package comes out to something like $4 million Namibian dollars, but somehow there is no money for textbooks.

The people are shocked to see two dating people hold hands because it's considered too much affection, but shocked to see a women wearing a fish net shirt and bra?? or half a mini-skirt....nope! That's just fashion

Girls here spend every hour of every day doing their weaves and braids. I kid you not because it takes about 4 days from start to finish, but then they do it again a couple days later. There is one girl in my class with a different hairstyle every single day I see her which means she does her hair every other day. One day she has an afro... the next it's in short braids... the next it's in long braids....

Ever want Namibians to attend a meeting? Don't expect anything.... unless you have food. Then the person's neighbor's second cousin will come too.

Most common question: "How many children do you have?" This is actually disturbing because they know that I'm in Namibia for 2 years and they know that I'm 25. So, they kinda think that I might have dropped off kids at my parent's house and said, "Hey, coming back in two years... Junior likes the blue giraffe and Cindy likes to hear Harry Potter before bed..."

Conversation with women concerning kids and marriage:

Woman - Do you have children?
Me - No
Woman - Why not?
Me - Because I don't want children.
Woman - You need to have black children.

a few minutes later..... (different woman)

Woman - Are you married?
Me - No
Woman - Do you want to get married?
Me - Not right now
Woman - Will you marry me?
No - No, I don't want to marry anyone right now.
Woman - That's ok- I'll marry you.

---------------

Since I've moved to Windhoek, I've actually had a pretty good time. I haven't made any friend like Gabriel from Okombahe, but it's been pretty good. (I'll talk about Gabriel at the end of this).

There are 4 women on the end of my street that have been really nice to me. They failed out of high school (either grade 10 or 12) and live in their houses without much to do. They are also 20-25 years old. The most amazing thing is that none of them have children. They basically sit around and clean all day- every day. If you ask them what they did today, they will say "washing" or "cleaning." They also take care of their various siblings/family members. They have satellite TV, but unless the other family members are away (which is almost never) I don't get to watch TV at their house. One week I went over to Lizze's house every day to watch movies, music videos, and sitcoms. Documentaries are a little harder to watch because Namibians don't appreciate them at all.

Notes about watching music videos - First, they just launched MTV Africa. Second, there are 4 music video channels to watch here. Third, since this is the only way I get to hear some of these groups I don't feel bad watching MTV.

I know this is old news in America, but I really like watching MTV's Pimp My Ride. I think it's hilarious.

---------------

Gabe's (Gabriel) - In the village I met this kinda lonely, but very nice guy named Gabriel. He is an Agriculture Extension Officer. So, his job entails showing farmers how to vaccinate their livestock, use what little water we have, giving workshops on farming, etc... His wife lives in the village Anker.

The sad thing is that this guy is just about one of the most educated and nicest people I have met in Namibia. I would go over to his house almost every day to watch soccer with him or some movie. When he would leave for the weekend on some trip he might even give me his keys so that I could watch TV.

In his wife's village, Anker, there is a volunteer named Courtney. Courtney is a very sweet girl from rural Oklahoma. I'm quite amazed that Namibians understand her with the accent. It turns out that Courtney (unknown to me) made good friends with Gabe's wife at the same time that I was making friends with Gabe's. Once when Gabe's went to see his wife in Anker I was able to travel with him and visit Courtney. This was only possible because through Gabe's I had a hike to and from Anker.

I was talking to a volunteer that since finishing the Peace Corps 4 years ago has remained in Namibia to work for the Ministry. She lived in Courtney's shopping town. At that time Gabe's and his wife lived in the shopping town. The ex-volunteer lamented the fact that Gabe's and his wife moved. It just so happened that Courtney and I were in the car. She was like.... "Oh... but she's in my village helping me." And I was like, "And Gabe's is in my village helping me." We then talked about how good that couple is to volunteers and Namibia.

I haven't seen him since I left Okombahe which is a little disappointment.

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My English is on the border of becoming full-blown and fully destroyed African English. I actually used the phrase, "________ is not good for me" the other day. Plus, I frequently say something like, "I am having a pen." When I go back home I know that you will have when instead of saying "no" I will say "ha-a" or "aa-a" or "hi-i". Instead of "wow" I am heard saying "shi" (pronounced like "she").

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I currently have a roommate, but the school is looking to move me to a hostel. The current hostel option? Windhoek High School - the 1-4th best school in the nation. It's sometimes the best, sometimes second best.... Basically, it's a former white school where only the richest black kids can go. The hostel is probably very, very, very nice because otherwise the rich teachers wouldn't attend.

Comparison between Dibasen (Okombahe), Hage G. Geingob (current school), and Windhoek High

Dibasen Hage Windhoek High
___________ ___________ ___________
Burnt Down 14+ 0 0
Classrooms

Learners ~230 ~550 ~800??

Number of white 0 0 600+??
learners

Average class 35 45 25?
size

tuition per N$80 N$150 N$1000??
term



As you can see.... there are massive differences between schools. Living at this school would confirm the posh existance I now have in Windhoek.

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Why volunteers quit -


For someone not in the Peace Corps it might be shocking to think that 30% of volunteers quit. When I first came here I thought that quitting (ETing) is like giving up and a poor decision. Now, I feel the opposite. Quitting is just fine with me. Sometimes I'm jealous of people who quit.

Volunteers quit for different reasons. Some, hate their teaching job, are harassed, ridiculed, threatened, made to feel useless, have problems adjusting, or find themselves unhappy and just want to return home.

Example of an actual thing that happen to a volunteer:

1. Volunteer hosts a chess tournament to which two other volunteers bring students. Volunteers are happy because the tournament has gone great. Two go to the hostel to check on their learners only to find a bloody mess. Two (?) learners sent to the hospital. One learner given stitches from a cut on her head.

Story:

A teacher is at a bar drinking heavily. There is no such thing as casual drinking in Namibia. A few learners are there and insult the teacher's mother. The learners go back to the hostel. The teacher goes home, picks up a panga (machete), and follows the learners into the hostel. He proceeds to beat them with the handel of the panga. Somehow (said with extreme sarcasm) doesn't understand how a gash appears on one girl's head. Teacher leaves. A few minutes later the volunteers show up.

The teachers buys the parents off with a couple goats, so the parents don't press charges. School has the teacher write a report on what happened which probably disappeared.

This teacher happened to be the friend of the volunteer, his Peace Corps appointed "community contact person", and next door neighbor. The Peace Corps had actually used this person as a host father for one volunteer during training despite knowing that he's a violent drunk.

Result:

Peace Corps response after the volunteer lost faith in the system? "Can you stay and teach?" The volunteer finished the term and left.

The response is basically paraphrased and I forgot some details of the story, but the core of the information is correct.


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Other volunteers get harassed because:

They don't drink enough- Volunteer insulted in school because he's not an alcoholic. The other teachers will go out to a shebeen (bar) any day of the week and drink until school begins the next morning. They will show up to school drunk then leave to pass out at home.

They ask about how the grades work- One volunteer received almost no help from the teachers and was actually called into the principal's office one day where the HOD's (Heads of Departments) proceeded to insult her for one hour because "she asks too many questions"

They refuse to let the principal beat the learners senseless- One volunteer's mission was to work on reducing the use of corporal punishment at her school. She had workshops and actually accomplished some things. One day the principal comes into school in a bad mood. Later she caught some elementary school age learners (I think grade 1) dodging class. She takes them into her office and starts to beat them. This was their first offense, but somehow managed to warrant a beating that caused screams to be heard across the entire school. The volunteer ran into the office and stood between the principal and the learners. This caused the principal to be rather upset and threaten to beat the volunteer if she didn't move.

That principal was particularly evil. Example- principal says she'll give the volunteer a hike to the school. Principal calls and says "Oops! I forgot you. If you can meet her in 10 minutes she'll give a hike to the school." Principal fully knows that the volunteer is 1 hour away. That volunteer's site had NO transport and you can only get there once a week.

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I know my grammar is bad, but oops!

Yippee!!!!

Ok... so it's really slow sometimes, but I'm working on the speed issue and communication. I've been trying to get internet for more than a year now, but I guess it takes a trip to the capital city to get anyone to really pay attention to your insistent requests to plug the damn lines in.

Other than that... I'm doing quite good. I have a class coming now so I must leave.

I've settled down in Windhoek which poses a big problem. Windhoek is definitely more expensive than the village. I teach at a very nice school with learners that can actually understand English! It's almost unbelievable that my grade 8 learners understand me after only a few days. Last year it took my learners at Dibasen 1 month.

I bought my first contemporary American CD: Green Day's American Idiot because I wanted something harder than Dave Mathews. It turns out that I own almost every single Dave Mathews album now because I've copied them from other volunteers. But, to find a hard rock album is almost impossible. Basically, there is some truth to the "hippy" volunteer thing.

I'm already thinking about December when I'm done!!!!!!!! Wow, 1 year and 4 months without a lot of stuff. Of course, I'm better than most volunteers when it comes to amenities, but former apartheid countries really try your emotions. As one learners said, "Sorry, we were so mean to you when you first came, but we're not used to being nice to white people."

To leave things on a high note: life is good now. I don't go to the Peace Corps lounge that much so I don't get online as much as you might think. I'm waiting for the internet access to be available at the school.

I never made it anywhere else except Cape Town. You can blame the Peace Corps for changing their stipend amounts without telling us. Since I've been here a while, I've basically been able to do tons. Some other volunteers showed up so we spent Christmas together and soon New Years.

What I've done:

Climbed up and down Table Mountain
Partied all night long
Spent Christmas on a beach (and got burned)
Saw a free concert with South Africa's biggest acts: Siphiwe Dana, Thandiswa, and Malaika
Robbin Island tour (where Mandela was kept)
Went to The Incredibles (twice- second time with other volunteers)
Got pierced through my lip (so it shows up on my chin, not my lip)

don't get tooooo mad dad.

I'm in Cape Town, South Africa. I never quite made it across the country. You can blame finances for that. The Peace Corps decided to change our quarterly pay to monthly. Oh, well. I'll (hopefully) afford to stay here until after the New Years.

For the family: I'm at the Riverlodge Backpackers phone number(021) 4480526 country code is ??? Call me if you want to say Merry Christmas or something.

Life is fine here. I went to see the movie The Incredibles and loved it. There is a big mall here called the Canal Walk which is gigantic even by American standards. I have also seen Robbin Island (where Nelson Mandela was in prison), climbed Table Mountain, gone clubbing, and done other things you do in a city. Let me tell you that this city is gorgeous!

I won't be online again until after Christmas. Merry Christmas! Happy Holidays!

Yep, in about 4 hours I'll start my trip to South Africa and knock another country off the world map. Sad thing is that I'm told there are no visas to Mozambique right now. :-( So, I don't know what I'm doing for New Years.

Maybe I'll still do Swaziland, but just come back to Cape Town for New Years

I haven't had any internet access for 6 weeks!! ugh!!! I'm in Windhoek right now trying to plan my trip to Cape Town, Durban, St. Lucia, Swaziland, Mozambique, and Johannesburg. Can I do it?? You'll find out some time in January. I'm going to try to spend my Christmas rafting among hippos in St. Lucia. It also has 90% of the wild crocodiles in South Africa so I won't do much swimming.

I have to get two root canals in January or Febuary for $10,000. That's Namibian dollars, but still that's a lot for the US government to pay. If anything happens to you in the Peace Corps you get all your medical covered. For me, it's that the PC messed up the diagnosis of my teeth.

Other than that.... I've done one year of teaching! Oh my God!

Let me point out some of the messed up things I have seen:

Teachers dating learners
Learners getting naked (in class)
Being called black and getting an African name (Gazza - "not there")
Learners stabbing other learners in class
Getting my house broken into twice

and that's just what I can remember in two minutes.

My address is now:

PCV Christopher Webb
P.O. Box 6862
Windhoek 9000
Namibia
Southern Africa

That's because I'm moving to Windhoek and I don't have the school mailing address anymore.

On one of the other volunteers sites there is a photo of me in Africa. He also has a picture that I took. The picture is mediocre (I should have taken out the canyon ridge - but I had 5 seconds to take the photo).

http://p.hostingprod.com/@calboy.org/photographs_FRC.html

That should give you a page of various pictures. Jonathan created the site and I actually spent most of my last holiday with him. Maybe one day he'll post the pictures of me cutting off my goattee. www.calboy.org

I'm in Windhoek visiting the school where I will be moved next year. It's located in Katatura, the "liveliest" spot in Namibia.