Ke Tichere.

I started teaching this week. It is absolutely the most rewarding experience. These children are the most polite and willing to learn children I have ever met. They sit quietly two to a chair. When you enter the room they stand and greet you with "How are you madam?". They hang on my every word which i say in the slowest, clearest way possible. They scramble to answer my questions. They oooh and aahh over my diagrams and giggle uncontrollably at activities and almost die with excitement when we play board races or other games.

This is because the education in this country is horrible. The teachers hardly ever teach the students. Instead the students sit in the bare classrooms alone with nothing to do. The teachers here only lecture. No one has any textbooks. They teach science without any diagrams, any microscopes, even any pictures. They teach literature without any books. When a student speaks in class without permission, or is caught speaking their native language, or they answer the question wrong they are whipped on the head, hands, or back of the legs with a stick. They are whipped so hard they scream. Sometimes they are brought into the office and whipped in front of my desk. The other teachers demand to know why i do not whip them. "Where is your stick" they say. When i told the students I do not whip and will never whip. They asked me if i could stop the other teachers from whipping them. I almost cried. I told them i wish i could.

Right now i teach my english, literature, biology, and geography. I also teach life skills from my peace corps life skills manual when the other teachers fail to show up. Today I taught for 6 hours straight. I told this to some other volunteers and they told me to not overdo it. but i dont even notice the time. i only notice when it is up and i do not have time to say everything i want to say to them.

but i love teaching. i love it. and i also have a new best friend. his name is mpho and he has hundreds of american sitcoms to watch at his house. and a refrigerator. it is bliss.

Daily Life

So I've finally settled into my village and everthing is going well. I have a daily routine that is not too challenging and have finally figured out how to feed myself.

it turns out I am super super close to volunteers Ed and Carol. They are a married couple and I've visited them twice already. I can walk to their house. Their school is 10x bigger then my school and has a gigantic swimming pool. i know? i still cant believe it. there is a beautiful gigantic swimming pool super close to me. i still can't believe my eyes. i will take pictures of it. hopefully you can access the pictures i already took: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2404739&id=12307651&l=48c75c8f39

in a few days i will begin teaching for real. i still dont know what grades or subjects. but im sure it will be fine. you really cant screw up teaching here. showing up already puts you ahead of at least half of the teachers.

next week i will put up pictures of my house and village. also my school. and thats all i have to say really. oh and happy birthday to mela and myself. yay. i will be alone in a rondavel. feel free to call me though. you can get my number from my mother if you do not have it.