Mail

Can we talk about how I am the only person who has not recieved mail yet. well im lying there are about 3 of us. everyone else gets a package plus 4+ letters a day. yes a package a day. i know someone whose grandfather sends him a package a day.

and didnt i have this conversation with my parents before i left. i was like "hey parents, remember the difference between good parents and bad parents". okay so supposedly i am getting a package soon. WELL I BETTER AT LEAST GET A LETTER.

swear-in is in a few days. tomorrow i take my language test. if i fail bad things happen. so im not going to fail. im going to study study study. then we swear in and become real peace corps volunteers. and we get tons of sweet amenities like a key to the headquarters and our pictures up in washington d.c. and and a sweet i.d.

im trying to talk myself into believing that i can accomplish big things at my site. when i know fair well that i will most likely sleep in until school starts and come to maseru every other day. how am i going to talk myself into building a library and starting community meetings. i dont know if im that kind of person. plus we have been talking direction from day one here. how am i supposed to think on my own!? im a little worried.

Mahlanyeng

I just got back from Mahlanyeng my home village. i took public transportation myself twice! yay! now i am in maseru at the internet cafe. my village is only 40 minutes away and it takes that long not because of the distance its probably half the time in a regular car but because the taxi (its not a real taxi its like a huge van) makes a ton of stops.

my rondavel is huge! it has a beautiful thatched roof and blue walls. i love it and have a hard time leaving it to come back here. i have two puppies and a kitten. i love it.

okay so i only have 1 minute to type this. i should probably bye more time next time. sorry guys. i will update soon. maybe tomorrow!

A Village Feast

This wednesday marks the end of our stay in our villages. Its the end of community based training. we are going to end it in style with a feast.

the food here kinda sucks. not going to lie. the main staples are papa and moroho. papa is this corn based sludge. it tastes like if you took instant potato mix and subtract all the taste and then mix it with a little water. it doesnt taste like anything. the other is this bitter lettuce thing that they cut up really small and fry with tons of oil. it also tastes horrible. they also boil all their meat. which is gross. the only thing i do like is chakalaka. its like a vegetable curry. its delicious. you can buy it in cans here.

we only have a small top burner to cook our food. but every night almost we get together for potlucks. you would be suprised at how good we can cook. im really into baking and am now famous for making cakes. birthday cakes.

crap my time again!

My permanet site

Okay so Mpota means nothing. I am known as Ausi-which means sister. When I teach I am M'e Mpota which is mother mother Mpota even though i am not a mother. its basically the difference between miss and mrs.

so i received my permanat site today- its in Maseru district. the district of the capital. I will not be in the capital though or even near it. i am closer to a small town named roma. my village is named Mahloenyeng. Some other volunteers have running water and electricity. i have neither. I will live in a small rondeval. but i do have veiws of some mountains.

i am excited about my site. its really cute. and i know i will love it. i will teach at a secondary school which is like a middle school. i will teach 7-9 grade english and english lit.

oh no my time is up!

I Live in the Village of Maqaka

So far I have been in Lesotho for 3 weeks. It's not at all what I expected and neither is the Peace Corps. Lesotho is less-exotic, more dirty, and smaller than I expected. The Peace Corps is much easier than I expected. They basically baby you for the first three months.

Anyways, I lived in a training center with the fellow peace corps hopefuls for 2 weeks. We had intense language and cultural training, as well as 10 shots. Now I live in a village with 10 other peace corps volunteers and I teach English at a local high school. I like it a lot suprisingly.

I live in a small room with no electricity or running water. I have yet to see a house that has either in Lesotho so far. Some people live in rondavels which are small round huts with thatched roofs.

I cook with a small gas stove top. I am learning how to make meals without a refigerator. this is the most challenging thing.

I live with a Basotho family who have adopted me and given me a new name-Ausi Mpota. Living with them is suprisingly easy and I never feel awkward or out-of-place even when they are speaking in Sesotho at the dinner table and I have no idea what they are saying.

Everyday, I wake up at 5 a.m. I head the the latrine. Then I boil some water on my stovetop and take a bath in a bucket. Then I get dressed. Clean and sweep my room (this is mandatory). Then I head to the kitchen to help my M'e (mother) cook Lesheleshele (sorgum porridge). Then we pray and eat breakfast. Then I grab all my teaching gear and head to the road. Then a peace corps van picks me up and takes me to the high school where I teach English (10th and 12th grade). THen we drive back to the village and i go to Lesotho language lessons. Then I head home and help cook more meals. THen I usually go to the orchard and pick peaches, plums, and apricots. Then I go running or hike up a mountian if I have time. Then I go home and eat dinner with my family and then play cards with my siblings. THen I retire to my little room and spend about 3-4 hours doing homework and writting lesson plans by candle light. I do this everyday.

This is my African life. Its not so different from America except for no water or electricity and i pee in a hole. plus there are wild dogs that chase you here. but other than that its pretty much the same. also Lesotho looks like colorado. ive never been to colorado but thats what ive heard.
there are no exotic animals here or anything. but if i go over the border into south africa i will supposedly see a zebra and a baboon in about an hours drive.