From the Desert to the Beach: Cape Town

By: Jesse Rothman, Emily Johnston and Brittany Nivens

Week 16: December 1-7

When we arrived in Cape Town on Saturday evening we were all experiencing a rush of different emotions: sadness at leaving Windhoek, excitement for Cape Town, happiness and apprehension at the looming prospect of returning to the real world and to familiar faces. We were ready to learn, to unwind, and to begin to get ready to go home.

I (Emily) was very surprised by Robben Island as we docked in the harbor and I think that we all felt a mixture of emotions touring around in a fancy, air-conditioned bus with the troubling history passing by. I could picture how Nelson Mandela and his comrades felt in the tiny cells with few blankets and a bucket as a latrine. Reading Mandela’s Long Walk To Freedom prepared me to see the living conditions, but I did not truly understand their working conditions until I saw the quarries. They worked in brutal heat in the summer and bitter cold in the winter, always mining only to retrieve stone to line the roads that would bring them to and from their homes to work. Although I was glad for the opportunity to see the Island, I felt weird as a bratty tourist in a place where so much suffering occurred.

We also visited the Triangle Project, which is an organization that serves the needs of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered (LGBT) communities of the Western Cape. I was excited to speak with the people there because this is an area of human rights that we had not really discussed this semester and I feel like it’s a problem that needs to be addressed in Namibia and South Africa as well as in the United States. At the Triangle Project I learned that every 27 seconds a woman or child is raped, killed or assaulted in South Africa which is an astonishing statistic, given the progressiveness of South Africa’s constitution. It is the only country in Africa where homosexual marriages are legal; this is something that isn’t even close to being done in the US. The director told us the story of a 19 year old woman who was stoned to death by 20 men in 2006 on her way home from a night club and the case has yet to go to trial, despite having an eye witness. Whether you believe that LGBT people should have the right to be married or not it is undeniable that violence against them is unacceptable. Whenever I catch myself being surprised by stories of violence or discrimination I flash back to all of the horrible things that happen in America everyday. While this is not comforting, it helps me realize that the things happening in South Africa aren’t all that different from things in the US and it saddens me to think the world can be such a dark, vicious place.

Our last group activity was a visit to Self Help Manenberg. This was a community based and operated self-help project located in a mixed-race or “colored” township of Manenberg. The apartheid regime created this township (along with others) after they forcibly removed colored people from their homes within the city and the community has a dark history of poverty, overcrowding, drug abuse, and gang violence. Into this bloody milieu, however, Self Help Manenberg stepped in 16 years ago and is now running programs in virtually all areas of society there. The dedication of the employees and the sense of optimism about the community were truly encouraging. Throughout this trip I (Jesse) have been preoccupied by the question of what to do. Manenberg made me think that sometimes you might just need to act and figure out the details later.

During this week in Cape Town we learned about things that we weren’t really exposed to during the semester, we were able to relax and to begin to process all that we have learned, and we began our transition back to the Global North, to materialism, to home – as Cape Town certainly seemed to be more culturally familiar than Windhoek. This semester has been unforgettable, challenging, fun, confusing, informative and it is hard to fathom that it has come to an end. It is now time to take what we learned back to our lives, to continue our inquiry from home, and to take action.

1. communal cell at Robben Island

2. CGE students at Cape Point – the most southwesterly point in Africa

3. Picture of Cape Town

4. Children at Self Help Manenberg

Integrative Projects

By: Eppie Kyles, John Linstrom, Thomas Siburg, and Paul Theiss

Blog Week: 23-29 November 2008

It has been our last week in Windhoek, and the time was sad, exciting, busy, and disjointed. Integrative projects, Thanksgiving, and the many goodbyes we shared all collided in what may be considered a hectic but memorable week.

Throughout the semester we had been thinking of specific subject matters for our integrative projects, which incorporated different aspects from each of our classes, volunteer and internship experiences, and trips around Namibia. As individuals and small groups we put our heads together to think of creative ways to exhibit what we have learned and researched about certain topics of interest to us. Seeing the variety of topics we chose to focus our projects on just illustrated the diversity within our group and the different topics we are passionate about as well as the diversity of issues that are prevalent in Namibia. Some focused on political parties, music and poetry during the liberation struggle, German colonization, and the history of apartheid to name a few. These topics were presented through song, power point presentations, dramas, and creative writing pieces.

Paul, Brett, and I (Eppie) focused on the evolution of the education system in Namibia and portrayed our knowledge and research by creating a musical trio— !nona (which means “three” in Damara/Nama)—and writing and directing a music video entitled “You Can’t Ask for a Revolutionary Change Overnight.” We found it difficult to incorporate the different aspects concerning education from our classes into our song, but by having each member focus on either the past, present, or future, we were able to blend these aspects into our verses. Paul focused on the past Bantu education system which emphasized learning through corporal punishment, Afrikaans as a medium of instruction, and the church’s presence in the education system. Eppie’s verses were on the present day system and its improvement from the Bantu education system but still illustrated the flaws that exist. While Brett, modeling after Namibia’s Vision 2030 and using the present progress of what we have observed to make our own predictions, focused his verses on the future. We chose the title “You Can’t Ask for a Revolutionary Change Overnight” because we felt that the education system has made changes since the apartheid era, but still revolutionary changes need to happen to improve the type of education received by students, to improve the welfare of Namibians, to improve the Namibian economy, and to further Namibia’s development. Just as a revolutionary change is needed within the education system, the same is so for the country of Namibia. We have come to the conclusion after 3 ½ months here that You Can’t Ask for a Revolutionary Change Overnight for Namibia. To transform from a country divided by apartheid to a developed and thriving country takes time and cannot happen in 18 short years. Yes, progress has been made, but there is so much more to be made for this young promising nation.

Thanksgiving was a time of unusually familiar sounds and smells. A day that started like any other, with overcrowded bathrooms, coffee, and sleep-crusted eyes, quickly picked up into a festive flurry. Without knowing how it had happened, I (John) began to notice from behind my heavy but slowly opening eyelids a house covered with brown and beige balloons, hand-made signs, personalized hand turkeys, and other implements of nostalgic celebration. I found myself in the kitchen fighting sweet potatoes for several more hours than I had planned, and can testify to the miraculous way the CGE student family suddenly fell into the various familiar holiday roles. I guess, no matter where a person is, he or she will find times to recreate the old comforts of home.

I was admittedly somewhat conflicted about the feast idea at first, and still am in some respects. It wouldn’t have taken a very long taxi ride to get to the heart of the bitterest poverty in the city, and we were in Windhoek to gain a better understanding of the reality of that poverty so that we could become better global citizens. And there we were, modeling American overconsumption. Where was the responsible, global-village-inspired frugality?

Yet any ethic of frugality needs room for festivity. And as we sat together around a common table—students, professors, and staff laughing and remembering stories—I became convinced that this celebration could fit into the model of a “festive frugality.” And if the way the meal went wasn’t enough evidence of that, it became clear when professors and house staff began to stand up, one by one, and express their thanks for the food and for the great semester before their (often teary) goodbyes. And I realized that this wasn’t just blind consumption of huge mounds of food—this was ubuntu, the celebratory community reflective of the tight communities in Katutura from which we have learned so much.

Knowing that this was our last week in Namibia brought much emotion. We had to say goodbye to our home of the past three months, saying goodbye to all the CGE staff, new Namibian friends and soon, in another week, saying goodbye to all our new friends from the States, and—most importantly—saying goodbye to the life we have known. We have all been so thankful for being able to take part on this program, and the thought that it had come to an end was both exciting and terrifying. Many thoughts and concerns continue to float through our heads. The main focus for me (Thomas) was the thought that I will be going home, back to the United States. Namibia – 5 Simpson St., Windhoek – has been our home these many months and what we have learned and experienced has defined who we have become. This is the place that we “24 American Students” have come back to, grounding us together as one family, but the program is ending and we need to continue on this journey of life.

Travelling to Hosea Kutako International Airport was really taxing. As I sat, waiting in the airport before boarding the plane, I realized that this may be the last time I’m ever in Namibia. This was a sad thought. Realizing that I don’t know the journey ahead is rather terrifying. I began to think that if we weren’t about to spend a week in Cape Town, South Africa I would probably be feeling even worse. Subconsciously knowing that I’m only a country away from Namibia was comforting and easier to handle than having the Atlantic Ocean separating us. Many of us spent the final week, even up to this final morning, frequently tearfully visiting our homestay families, friends and our internship and volunteer sites. Soon we will be home with our families and friends in the States, but this doesn’t make leaving Namibia any easier.

Captions:

1: Paul, Brett, and Eppie rehearsing !nona.

2: Brittany, Michelle, and Alana fast at work cooking Thanksgiving morning.

3: CGE staff and students coming together to celebrate Thanksgiving together.

4: Packing up for the long haul to the airport – one last goodbye to the staff and the house.

Wrapping Up, Winding Down

Week 14: November 17-23

By: Melissa Crowley-Buck, Adela Hoffman & Liz White

After our last week of classes, we realized how much we will miss Namibia and the “24.” Studying abroad in Namibia has allowed me (Liz) to become more creative in how I represent what I have learned. I have been lucky to learn a great deal from guest speakers, an opportunity that has only been given to me a few times at Saint Joe’s. It will be very depressing to leave the lifestyle we have been living for the past three and a half months. This semester has been one of the most beneficial, educational and greatest experiences of our lives. It is sad to realize that as a senior my (Liz’s) years at university are coming to an end and I cannot help but feel nervous to graduate. This semester abroad has made me realize that there are other opportunities out there that I would like to explore in order to find out if they would suit me better. At this time in my life I cannot change what I have started, but to my advantage this semester has enlightened me to see new paths that I have not seen before. Maybe I could somehow fuse my accounting major and the international community, which would allow me to work abroad. I feel I have changed so much that I am not even sure that accounting is the correct and best path for me. Time will tell, and hopefully at that time I will have the courage to follow the path destined for me.

Looking back on all the places we have visited during class time, we would have to say that Penduka was one of the most memorable. Penduka, an organization that reaches out to the disabled community, trains people living with Tuberculosis or other disabilities such as deafness, in craft skills so that they can earn a living. Profits made by Penduka are then used in Tuberculosis treatment, awareness, and support. Throughout this semester we have learned and some of us have seen first hand the effects of HIV/AIDS. The unique aspect of Penduka is that it recognizes the great impact of Tuberculosis, which is extremely prevalent in Namibia and yet tends to be marginalized. The Penduka TB Programme works to support victims of the illness and helps them not only receive treatment, training and education but it also assists TB patients to complete their TB training. One thing that did kind of bother us was that Penduka is run by a European woman who only comes to Namibia once or twice a year to check up on the site. We would like to see Penduka either run by the government or by a Namibian in order to ensure sustainability and not having dependency on a foreign aid.

We all agreed that the best speaker we’ve had so far was a man named Professor Kerina. At the age of 18 he went to the UN to petition and speak on behalf of those who wanted a free Namibia. And speaking of Namibia, did you know that this was the man who actually named the country Namibia! Crazy right? He was so well spoken and very inspiring. At one point he got to talking about our new President-Elect Barack Obama. He made an excellent point that relates both to Namibia and the United States. He said: “You cannot expect your President to come clean your house if it is messy. It is your house! Clean it yourself and then let him see what you’ve done. Do not expect him to do all the work. Especially the work that you can do yourself.” We thought it was such a wonderful point and a common theme we have come across in our time here. Namibian and US citizens alike, cannot rely on one person or one government to solve all our problems. It is constant work and cultivation that keeps a country moving and it requires everyone to do it. All in all we are nervous and excited to leave Namibia. We are sad to leave the people we have come to know and have shared so many experiences with. At the same time we are so excited to return home and share our experiences and knowledge of Namibia with our friends and family.

It is so easy to go home and simply return to our everyday lives but we like to believe we’ll do otherwise. At the very beginning of the semester, while we were still in South Africa, one of our professors, Linda, told us that we have turned a significant corner in our lives by coming to Africa, that we can never again bury our heads in the sand of ignorance and oblivion. It has taken this semester to really understand what she meant by that. We feel like all of us here will never forget what we have seen in Africa and will carry that for the rest of our lives.

Photo Captions:
1. Students before their last class in Namibia
2. Penduka's mission statement
3. Majority of the students sad on the way home from their last class visit
4. Student Melissa Crowley-Buck with Professor Kerina

Relieving Stress and Applying Lessons to Life after Namibia

Week 13: November 10-16
By: Danielle Veal, Latrease Davenport, & Michelle Munger

After traveling from the South, we came back to Windhoek for a week of classes and the normal stresses of being students in a foreign country. From classes, to our internships and volunteering, to community events, this week has been full of making memories and realizing that time here in Namibia is precious. To end a stressful but beneficial week, we had a tye-dying and t-shirt making community event. Feelings of unity shot through the group and I began feeling closer to my fellow classmates than I have in the past. It’s very important that we have an outlet, and this community event gave us a chance to relieve some of the stresses we’ve been carrying on our shoulders. Everyone’s creative juices were flowing and talents were shown. There were many proud faces and impressive projects created that night. We are starting to realize that the time is coming near for our departure from Namibia and our semester is almost over. Because of it, it’s easier to embrace the small moments that make us smile and the small memories that can only be lived once.

As a closing of the semester we spent this week’s history class having an Antiracism and Diversity Workshop. We have spent the semester discussing difficult issues of Apartheid and racism--making the issues personal for our lives and talking about bringing home what we have learned. Having a safe place for open dialogue has allowed each one of us to feel comfortable talking about issues of privilege. I (Michelle) realized how much I have taken for granted in every day situations and how my whole life things have come easy to me. I have never had to benefit from Affirmative Action or know that I was discriminated against because of my gender or skin tone. It has been difficult to accept the privilege without a sense of guilt. I am now trying to be more aware of when my privileges come into the picture and question them. Lastly, we discussed with others from our schools, how to bring home what we have learned and how we have changed. It is really important to make sure that our time here is not in vain. I have decided to make a conscious effort to always beware of the comments being said, even when only in jest. While dealing with these issues can be very uncomfortable, it is during those uncomfortable moments when I believe we can best learn from one another and learn about ourselves. I am really thankful to have opportunities like this one to make me reevaluate my opinions and thoughts about racism and diversity.

In Development Class this week, many of us signed up to visit different donor and international aid agencies around Windhoek. The students were fully responsible for setting up the visits to these agencies, as well as finding transportation to and from the meeting. This assignment also allowed us to learn more about international aid and how different countries are helping with the development process in Namibia. Some students visited GTZ, which is a German enterprise that works internationally in many different countries in the area of sustainable development. Other students took a trip to UNAID where they learned the difficulties aid agencies face with very little funding. On Friday, the entire class visited the USAID office in Windhoek. There, we met with Gloria, the UNAIDS Program Officer. During this meeting, she talked about possible career avenues that students can take after college. Gloria spoke very candidly on working abroad and some of the challenges that come with working for a governmental agency. Speaking with people who have been in her position allows students like us to think about our futures and the different opportunities that exist for careers abroad. Traveling abroad has opened many students’ eyes to perhaps living and working overseas, and some have even thought of raising a family in a foreign country. Although we are here to learn about Namibia and Southern Africa, we are also here to learn about ourselves and think and reflect upon where we want to be in the future.

So now there’s only one a few more weeks of class. There are only a few more workdays at our internships, only a few more nights left in Windhoek. Everyday is a new experience and a new day to reflect and to gain knowledge to bring back to the states. Although we are all missing our family and friends very much, we are also dreading the moment in which we leave this country. So that’s why we’re trying to have as much fun as possible and learn as much as we can, and so we will never forget Namibia.

Captions:

1. Group Uniquesm during the Antiracism and Diversity Workshop (Michelle, Latrease, John and Jesse)
2. Visiting the United Nations for Development Class (Michelle and Brittney)
3. Tye-dying at the Community Event (Heidi, Meg, Eppie, Brittney, and Alana)
4. Cooling off in the pool! (Latrease, Danielle, Rachel, Meg, and Heidi)

Southern Adventures in the Kalahari Sands

Week 12: November 3-9
Lauren Blake, Cameron Ingram, and John Linstrom

This week served as an eventful component of our experiential learning. Starting with an exciting election followed by a memorable trip to the south, we had a tiring but very rewarding experience.

Anticipating American elections this week had us all anxious to see if there would be any change in how we were treated in Namibia. Impossible expectations were placed on Barack Obama to embody black empowerment and political advancement. It is amazing to see first hand how important our elections are in a global context when other nations’ elections hardly break news.

Election night inevitably came after weeks of waiting for its arrival with many of us going to the American Cultural Center to watch the state results pour in. This event was followed by a slumber party in our common room full of red bull guzzling, pajama snuggling Americans parked in front of the television. At four o’clock a.m. people became glued to the TV as final results came in with the eventual announcement of our first black president, Barack Obama. With chills going up our spines we all took a moment to realize that we had just witnessed history, and gained an immediate sense of pride in our nation. Going to our internships that next morning Kirsten Hubbard, one of our fellow students, was actually stopped while wearing an Obama pin and given an appreciative hug and a kiss by a stranger on the street. Bombardment in the form of questions and celebratory cheers regarding these results have given us all hope for a brighter national future to go home to. We didn’t have long to celebrate as our trip to the South was planned for later on that same week.

During our trip to the South we went to the small town of Berseba. Before we left the class was broken up into four groups and given the assignment of coming up with new ways for the Teen HIV/AIDS group in Berseba to teach students and the community about HIV/AIDS. I (Cameron) found this quite daunting: what could I teach these students that they didn’t already know? My fellow group members shared this concern and decided it would be best to start a dialogue about HIV/AIDS. This way the students would be able to present to us what they knew or wanted to know, and we wouldn’t have to make assumptions.

I was excited by how much these young students knew about the topic, and how open they were about discussing the more sensitive subjects of the disease. This is something that always surprises me back in the states, since I didn’t really learn about HIV/AIDS until high school health class. I can’t even imagine myself sitting down with a group of 13 year olds back home and expecting them to be well versed on the transmission of HIV/AIDS. I also find myself questioning, if these students are so knowledgeable and claim that the community is also aware of how to prevent HIV, why is the prevalence rate so high? This is something I have been grappling with this entire semester. There are many factors that seem to contribute to the high rate in Namibia, such as poverty, lack of employment opportunities, poor education, and gender roles. Fortunately, Namibia has a large amount of NGOs whose main focus is helping those who are HIV+, like my internship, the Young Women’s Christian Association. HIV/AIDS was not the only aspect of our trip to the South, we also were exposed to the contrast of community, governmental, and privately owned tourist sites by staying at a different one each night.

A major focus of the trip to the South was on community-based sustainable tourism, often regarded as a panacea for employment in developing Namibia. We quickly learned, however, how much more complicated these situations often are. We stayed at a community-based campsite one night and had the opportunity to speak with a community leader who helped manage the operation. He was very positive about his hopes for growth and improvement at the site, the location of a prominent mountain formation which was the unusual result of magmatic pressure which never erupted into a volcano. He proudly spoke about the way that the campsite would create jobs for the citizens of his village, who suffer from a high unemployment rate. When asked about typical tourist traffic through the area, he responded that it varied greatly and was not yet very consistent. When asked about current employment, we learned that the number of paid employees at the site was originally three, and now is down to one. They hope for an increase to five in the eventual future.

The village is not that small. This project will not make more than a negligible difference in unemployment in the area.

This was a frustrating experience for myself (John), and was reminiscent of my experiences volunteering at A. I. Steenkamp Primary School in Katutura. At Steenkamp I have observed the same kind of meager initiatives which look great on paper, and are hailed as great by the decision-makers with the power, but are recognized as failures by people working “on the ground.”

Yet there is little that a visiting American student can, or has a right to, do about such situations. In the meeting with the community leader, we smiled and took appropriate notes, and later left to spend the night at an otherwise completely vacant campsite. We slept in the shadow of a huge, impenetrable issue.

Lights, Cameras, Costumes

Week 11 (October 27 – November 2)

By Brett Hartmann, Eppie Kyles, Becky Nieber, and Tom Siburg

As we finally returned to classes after fall break all we could think about was the amount of work we had yet to do, along with the realization that we only have one and half (1½) more months until we’re officially home again, having to soon say goodbye to all the new friends we’ve made.

It the midst of a very busy academic week most of us spent our Wednesday afternoon and evening working behind the scenes and starring in a Fashion Show to raise money for a future center in Northern Namibia. Behind the scenes specialists included Becky and Megan on hair and makeup, Heidi and Rachel on merchandise, Eppie on music, and Danielle and Alana behind their lens’ on photography. Melissa and Lauren gave an epic performance as the MC’s for the evening, giving well delivered jokes when staling for the next models to walk. Brett and Paul started the event with musical performances on the guitar and vocals. And to put it all together, Jessica, Liz, Eppie, Brittany, LaTrease, Thomas, Brett, Paul, Jason, and our fabulous intern Anna all worked the runway and strutted their stuff as international models wearing clothes all handmade by Taura, half of which were all made from recycled material. Jason looked especially great in his garbage bag jumpsuit.

You may be wondering how in the world we got involved in a Fashion Show in downtown Windhoek. A fellow Namibian friend, Taura, has dreamed and planned Nurturing Grounds Center for a village in the Northern part of Namibia called Osipita. This center will one day serve as soup kitchen, education center for young and old, career center for unemployed youth, and counseling program. Although it was at a very stressful time in our schedule, the pay off was worth the work. I feel like I can speak for everyone when I say that it felt amazing to help such a genuine person get closer to her life’s goal of giving back to the Namibian people. It was great to get out into the community for the show; yet, it felt confusing because the majority of the attendants were not Namibian. We began our semester trying to define the word “help” and how to truly help in Namibia without broadcasting our own ideology to the ones we’re trying to “help.” I feel that we were able to truly help in our endeavors of the fashion show. We felt that this was a genuine form of help because our entire house showed up and did what ever was asked of us without bringing our own agendas to her event. We all left feeling accomplished and helpful, all while having a blast with one another for an evening.

The following morning, history class was thoroughly enjoyed by everyone. We actually wanted to be there for the entire four hours. The class gave presentations about racism. Most people chose to do autobiographical projects, but some students researched other race-related topics. This was one of the best classes we have had since coming to Namibia. It was great to hear everyone’s personal insight on race and compare it to my own. One presentation literally caused a few tears to well up in my (Brett) eyes.

Often times I do not realize how serious of an issue race is, probably because I am a white male that lives in the United States. Since I have never had any problems that stemmed from my whiteness, I really had not thought about how much race can affect people. I think that is the case for most white males. You only notice the problems of your race and gender when you get discriminated against. How often do white males get discriminated against? Eppie and I certainly would never have the same experience growing up simply because our skin colors are different, but also because she is a woman.

During the creation of our presentations we had the chance to speculate about what we would have done if we had lived under apartheid. This was extremely scary for me being a white person. I decided that I probably would have just gone along with the system because it was the norm here. If you tried to be a hero and voice the concern on your conscience about the injustice of apartheid, you were ostracized from the white community. Dr. Byers Naudé was one of the standup whites under apartheid. He was a pastor who criticized the apartheid laws. Eventually, he was pushed away from the white community and all that he was familiar with. That takes courage. I do not know if I would have been that brave. I like to think I would be, but I doubt it.

It looked like a star studded event from Hollywood: Michael Phelps, Nastia Luken, Tommy Pickles, and Britney Spears all in our living room…….in Namibia! What brought these colorful characters to 5 Simpson Street, Windhoek West? The occasion was Halloween and we college students could not let the 5,000 mile distance between Namibia and the U.S. prevent us from missing out on celebrating one of America’s favorite holidays. Many of us spent the week running around town looking for customary costumes, but came up short, so we went old school and had homemade costumes. Halloween isn’t widely recognized in Namibia (actually it isn’t widely recognized in any country outside of the U.S), so we kept the festivities inside our little American enclave and boogied down into the late hours in an aura of nostalgia.

Photo captions

• Make-up artist Becky putting make-up on a model during the fashion show. Taken by Alana
• Fierce poses from the models for the fashion show. Taken by Megan Lee
• Models Anna and Liz in recycled wear. Taken by Megan Lee
• Brett, Paul, and Taura perform a song at the fashion show. Taken by Alana
• Group Halloween Shot
  

Trip to the North

Week 9: (October 13-19) By: Rachel Dahlgren, Alana Jordan, and Megan Lee

After saying farewell to our families on the rural homestay, we came back together and continued our journey to Etosha National Park. As we were driving to our campsite, we were filled with joy as Passat (CGE's Transportation Director) pointed out many wonderful animals, like giraffes, zebras, elephants, springbok, and even a lion! It was so exciting to see these exotic animals in the wild and not a zoo. Personally, I had a hard time convincing myself that I was really seeing these awesome animals! The night life was happening at the water hole the second day we were there. There was definitely a showdown between eight rhinos and six lionesses, only to be broken up by a herd of elephants parading in! It was simply marvelous to have a scene from the Lion King unfold before our eyes!

Etosha is a tourist must. The wildlife that Etosha has to offer is amazing! In addition to the great animals, there are plenty campsites. There are many different landscapes that we have been discovering as we have lived here, and Etosha is simply one of them! Etosha is definitely a major attraction for people from around the world. As we were enjoying Etosha, I could not help but notice how there were not many native Namibians taking in all of the beautiful sights as well. Really the only Namibian people we saw were those who were working at the campsites. As we have spent time talking with people in Windhoek and visiting other areas like Swakopmund and Sossusvlei, I have noticed that many natives cannot afford to go to enjoy these avenues of Namibia; this makes me (Rachel) sad. Regardless that its peoples’ cannot afford such adventures, many outsiders can, and the Namibian government is capitalizing on these opportunities. Tourism is a growing industry in Namibia; it is a good investment to bring in domestic revenue and improve the economy. Namibia is becoming more popular with tourists each year; it is only a few years time before it will not be the hidden treasure of Africa.

As we continued our travels throughout Northern Namibia, we continued to relate our interactions with Namibians to issues we have been discussing in class and experiencing first hand. We had an opportunity to meet with the King of the Ondonga Tribe, and the Traditional Leaders Council (which the King also Chairs). It was quite interesting how the different languages and dialects ran across us in an attempt to translate our inquiries and the council’s defense of their communal purpose. There was a lot of confusion and unanswered questions, but I do not know the extent that was lost in translation because of language and/or distinct differences in culture.

One of our professors, Romanus, is native to the region, and he took us to a water-entertainment park. We all had a great time hanging out and playing around, escaping the afternoon heat. Mid-swim, Romanus asked us about privilege and the necessity of leisure. We all agreed that leisure was important, but opinion on the degree varied. Some argued that certain sectors, like education and crime, have fallen so far behind that Namibia has no choice but to focus on those first and foremost. Others believed that some assistance with community leisure, like a public pool, would help to decrease crime as fewer kids are on the streets. I (Alana) am in agreement with the latter. I think that everyday is such a struggle here that most instances of crime are out of desperation. I do think that having some sort of avenue of play, however simple, is essential.

Our trip to the northern border of Namibia into Angola was a lot different than we had expected. Many of the students, including myself (Megan), have never had an experience such as this. The border was not a clearly marked or grandiose; it was instead a chain link fence. There was a “no man’s land” between the two countries, and this is where our group hung out and observed. There were hoards of people on the other side of the fence, all carrying pieces of typical computer paper covered in stamps – these suffice as their “passports.” There were many border police officers on duty, but whenever they lost focus or turned around for just a second, the Angolans raced inside. It quite honestly reminded me of minors trying to sneak into the local bar. And the officers just laughed it off. It was very strange to me – I’m not sure this sort of behavior from officers would ever be acceptable in the United States.

There are a large number of shops on the border where the Angolans buy cheap goods. They buy in bulk, probably so they do not have to experience the disheveled border more than they have to. All of these relatively cheap shops are run by the Chinese. We learned that the Chinese, along with their cheap goods, are sending native Chinese employees to keep shop. This is only contributing to the growing unemployment rate in Namibia, and is in fact hurting the economy because native Namibian businesses are forced to lower their prices to upkeep competition.

The Namibian / Angolan border lead us to see people of both hope and despair. We will never forget the eyes of those on the other side of the fence, crowding the border post officer to get their papers stamped and enter into Namibia. The whole experience made us realize that we should definitely check out the United States’ two borders, so we can have a more developed and informed opinion on the similarities and differences between each.

Picture 1: A watering hole at Etosha, one of many visited by students

Picture 2: Sossusvlei Park, a growing sector of Namibia’s tourism investments

Picture 3: Student Adela Hoffman enjoying an afternoon in the pool

Picture 4: The Namibia/Angola border

Picture 5: One of many Chinese businesses at the border

Rural Homestay

Week 8 (October 6-12)
By Kristin Hubbard, Heidi James, and Jessica Spanswick

The final home stay of the semester took place just outside the small town of Khorixas, situated approximately 5 hours northwest of Windhoek. Students stayed for 6 days on rural farms. For many students, this was the most challenging home stay experience of the semester, as students have never had to live without electricity, running water or plumbing. The farms were situated in small clusters on communal farmlands, but remained very isolated from Khorixas. The farms themselves were only about a 15 minute drive away from the town of Khorixas, which is still a very small town with only the bare necessities available. For our home stay families, Khorixas was only accessible by a two-hour donkey cart ride, the only form of transportation for many rural people.

One student experienced just how isolated and frightening living in a rural area can be. She witnessed a small child fall on some barbed wire and puncture his head while playing. A fellow student grabbed her first aid kit and rushed to help the boy. However, she had to pause before helping him in order to put on a rubber glove due to the prevalence of HIV/AIDS in Namibia. Such an action drove home the realities of the HIV epidemic, as precious time and energy was expended to take precautions against AIDS that might have meant the difference in the boy’s safety. The boy’s injuries seemed very severe and the students were sure that he would need stitches. However, that was not an option considered by the family due to a lack of transportation to Khorixas and money to pay for medical help. This incident underscored the realities of rural life in Namibia and forced the student to stretch their comfort levels as they thought critically about healthcare in rural areas in regards to the HIV/AIDS epidemic.
Students were confronted with a very different standard of living and economic hardship when staying families. Some students found that while food was available, very little was consumed, as it was a very dear resource. Most of the families subsisted on their own food, so students rarely felt at liberty to ask for food, because they did not want to deprive their family of such a valuable resource.

The daily tasks of farm life became part of students’ lives on the home stay. Many collected fire wood, water, rode (and drove) donkey carts, herded and milked cattle and goats and prepared meals. Several students were able to witness or participate in the slaughter of a goat for their consumption. Others learned how to make fat cakes over an open fire, and re-apply a cow dung mixture to the sides of the houses. Families were busy all day, except in the mid-late afternoon when the heat became too oppressive to do anything but rest and stay cool. Many witnessed the harsh effects of farm life on their families. Many of the women had persistent asthma and coughs due to a life time of cooking over the fire.

The rural home stay proved to be a unique experience of interaction, despite language barriers. The families were exceptionally welcoming, and many students marveled at the ability of these families to open their homes to foreigners, especially white foreigners, who resemble their former oppressors. The trend of forgiveness is something that we’ve seem all over Southern Africa, the effects of the regime is still part of daily life, but we’ve seen just how committed people are to bridging gaps after apartheid.

Hope, Despite the Obstacles

Week 7: September 29-October 5
By: Jason Koele, Jesse Rothman, and Jessica Spanswick

The number of challenges facing Namibia and Southern Africa can be somewhat overwhelming: poverty, racism, lack of education, HIV/AIDS, corruption and abuses of power by government, and regional/ethnic divisions are seen and felt everywhere. Despite these challenges which face the Namibian people everyday and plague the CGE students’ minds with question upon question in an attempt to solve these issues, we were reminded to keep focused on our course of action by our week of classroom speakers. Like many, it does not include suddenly deciding to ignore or disregard the problems, nor to be transfixed and paralyzed by the magnitude of the challenges facing the country, but like the few, our course of action is to bring about hope and community where there is none.

To open the week of classes, Mr. Graham Hopwood, chairman of an independent think-tank here, spoke to the Political Science class about the evolution of democratic culture in Namibia. I (Jesse) found him refreshingly optimistic. He wasn’t rosy or naive, but he pointed out (rightly, I think) that while the myriad of challenges are obvious, Namibia actually has a lot going for it. Namibia has a stable government and a relatively free media. It is a young country that still is very much, as Mr. Hopwood put it, “on the learning curve.” To be reminded of the fact that some things are going well is both heartening and unusual, because it is much easier (for me at least) to see the many challenges facing the country and the region.

On Wednesday, the Religion and Social change course met with Dr. Gehard Buys, a pastor, theologian and former president of the Namibian Evangelical Theological Seminary. Our objective as a class was to better understand the viewpoint of a white Afrikaner in the midst of apartheid, his thoughts about the religious morality of apartheid, and the effects it had on his life.

I (Jason) was struck right away by Dr. Buys persona. Expecting an advocate of apartheid, I was taken aback by his sympathy and admiration for the native African people. Although Dr. Buys grew up having strong ties with the elite secret force, through his father’s connection to the South African Apartheid regime, he looked to his own faith to discern his moral stance on apartheid. “One day, I decided leave my family at age 15. I ran away from everything and everyone I ever knew for when I thought of apartheid, I thought of injustice and how Jesus wouldn’t advocate such ideologies or support such atrocities,” said Dr. Buys. I could only sit in disbelief as he continued with how the apartheid secret service would hunt down those who committed treason (anyone who went against the ideologies of the apartheid government) and murder them or would taint their family name to shun them out of society. I thought to myself, who could kill another human being just for disagreeing with them? It didn’t make sense to me how those who supported apartheid, but weren’t connected to the government, could just stand back and watch all these atrocities happen. Understandably, the protection of their family would be priority, but wouldn’t you think the lives of hundreds of thousands would come before yourself? Would you or I in that situation have just stood by and watched thousands die without saying a word? Would you (hypothetically) have been a white Afrikaner, supporting the rule over blacks? Dr. Buys helped me realize that not all white Afrikaners took the path of apartheid ideology and that following one’s faith and God’s calling to do the right thing in the face of fear and death can lead to peace, serenity and forgiveness.

I (Jessica) was so excited to attend the Basic Income Grant (BIG) release for our Development class! We’ve been studying different strategies for poverty reduction and wealth redistribution in Namibia. Honestly, I was very skeptical of BIG at first, but at the results release, I was filled with hope! The plan of BIG is basically to tax the rich and give it to the poor. This seems to be one strategy of evening the playing field of the poor blacks and wealthy white Namibians. It makes me really upset when I think about the minority white population who own the majority of capital and industry in Namibia while there are so many hungry homeless people on the streets. It’s just not fair that people whose ancestors have lived on Namibian soil for centuries do not have any food to eat or land to own. I feel that something needs to be done to right this wrong in Namibian society, and BIG is one strategy that should definitely be considered. I thought a lot about the wealth disparity in southern Africa this week. Sometimes I take it for granted that we have many of the same problems in America. Our GINI Index, or gap between the rich and the poor, may not be as drastic in America, but that does not excuse us from assisting the unfortunate to lift themselves up. I want to take what I learn about wealth distribution in southern Africa and apply it back home in America. For example, I’m really interested in African immigrants to Minneapolis, MN. I tutor recent refugees from Somalia and Kenya at a local church, and now I feel like I can relate a little more to their background. Maybe with my latest experiences in Africa I can help get them what they want from American society.

For the weekend, I (Jesse) and five other students went down to Sossusvlei. One thing that I have felt is that this trip has made me less sure about almost everything and the pristine and simple beauty of the largest sand dunes in the world were a very nice change. It reminded me that - despite all the difficulty, all the inequality, all the injustice - the world is beautiful and certainly worth fighting for.

Coastal Connections

By: Lauren Blake, Adela Hoffman, & Liz White

After a few weeks of strenuous academics, challenging internships/volunteering, and enriching homestays, it was time for a well deserved trip away from the city. We journeyed to Swakopmund, a majestic city 175 miles west of Windhoek, where the sand dunes run directly into the Atlantic Ocean. When we started discussing our blog, we realized that each of us had had a different significant event we felt most attached to.

A moment that will forever be instilled in my (Liz’s) memory was when we drove through the DRC, an informal township in Swakopmund that is comprised of endless dirt roads covered with hundreds of tin shacks. I felt uncomfortable driving through there because I felt like we were staring out at these unfortunate people who were simply staring back at us most likely questioning why two vans of predominately white people would want to drive through this town. Furthermore, I felt uncomfortable knowing that we were warm and cozy in our vans and that they were cold sitting outside their shacks. To top it all off, I knew that within ten minutes we will have driven through the whole town and be back into our beautiful guest house by the shoreline never to see these people again.

I could envision them thinking that we as students have no idea what they have to endure every day to survive. I hated this moment because it still did not stop me from feeling superior to them, which I know is wrong, because I should never feel this way towards anyone. It was a very challenging situation to grapple with and I now continuously ponder what the United States would look like if people were allowed to build their own house wherever they could find land. Would these informal settlements spring up? One thing I try to remember is that perhaps these people are content within this community. Maybe this situation is better to them than roaming the streets during the day and having to find a homeless shelter, if that, to sleep in at night. Yet personally, I know I would feel safer having my own shack that I could call home surrounded by people who are in the same economic state.

For me (Adela), visiting the Rossing uranium mine on Thursday was the most memorable part of the trip. Obviously, the mine is creating a large number of jobs and is the largest industry in the community of Arandis, which lies in the outskirts of Swakopmund, but I felt very nervous when it came to thinking about the inevitable closing of the mine in the future. In about a decade the uranium supply within the mine is going to deplete and the mine itself will eventually have to close down permanently. Being the largest income generating industry in the town, the closing of the mine would create a lot of economic problems for the area. It is scary to think about Arandis not being self-sustainable without the mine. I felt that it was very unfair for the mine to advertise this idea of an economic self-sufficient community when in reality, it is not. While touring the mine, I realized that Rossing mine is a very sophisticated industry, much more so than the other smaller industries in Arandis. I feel as though this sophistication will cause trouble in the long run because the other local industries currently do not have the capability to absorb these newly unemployed workers into their own workforce and offer the same benefits and salaries previously held by the mine workers.

Brainteasing car rides between tours and speakers throughout the week kept us in high spirits and prepared us for the exciting Saturday we had ahead of us. Naturally, we tried just about every tourist related option available. I (Lauren) opted to go quad biking and sand boarding and loved every second the exciting adventure. Taking part in the predicted future main source of income for Walvis Bay, my pessimism left me questioning the controversies surrounding eco-tourism and its potentially deteriorating environmental effects. After cruising over dune after dune for miles in a seemingly endless mountain range of sand I thought about home. Our group is constantly suffering from this complex we refer to as F.O.M.O. (fear of missing out) with friends and family back home and I determined that all my past memories were incomparable. Looking out as far as the eye could see one way was complete desert and massive sand dunes while simply turning around all you could see was the clear blue ocean with no sort of industry or human occupancy.

Partaking in activities of eco-tourism enabled me to turn a complete 180 and accept this municipal effort of industry as the most feasible response to balancing environmental conservation with sustainable economic growth. What other options does Walvis Bay have to create a sustainable economy? Any introduction of industrialization would blatantly impact the tourism market because of the tainting effects it would have of its pure and unique form. By taking advantage of the natural beauty of the region in a seemingly sustainable way, Walvis Bay is able to provide employment opportunity for its local inhabitants as well as maintaining its globally known ecological beauty.

Leaving the coast, we felt as though our initial expectations for that long weekend had been far exceeded. We did partake in a lot of typical tourist activities, but thanks to our program we were exposed to the oftentimes hidden side of the glamorous costal community. We were able to successfully connect this trip to the ever present themes of nation building, decolonization of mind, and globalization to our individual experiences here in Namibia.

Photo Captions:

1. Students face the fierce winds at the Lagoon.

2. Tin shacks in DRC, an informal township of Swakopmund.

3. The Rossing uranium mine.

4. Adela, Lauren, and Liz quad biking around the dunes!

Readings, Writings and Reflections

By Brett Hartmann, Alana Jordan, and Becky Nieber

This week was a good time for settling in at the house and rejoining each other in community after the home stay. That does not mean that it was easy. Most people found themselves reading for class, writing papers, and running to Pick-And-Pay to get groceries/essentials (Nesquick).

To be honest class readings dominated most of my (Brett) time this week. However, most of the readings kept my attention and caused me to dwell on various topics: the most interesting being religion.

For religion this week, the theme was African traditional religious beliefs. There was a large chunk from a book entitled African Religions and Philosophy by John Mbiti, in which he discussed the various African concepts of God before the missionaries came. Being a theology major, this obviously interested me. What I found surprising was Mbiti’s statement that, “In all [African] societies, without a single exception, people have a notion of God” (29). He later went on to say that, “Every African people recognizes God as One” (35). This information astonished me. It also led me to think about the role of missionaries a bit more. If the African people already had the notion of a God, what did the missionaries do?

First of all, I believe the word “missionary” has a horrible connotation now-a-days because people associate it with imperialism and forcing your beliefs on others. However, I am not going to deny that some of the missionaries back then might have done this. What makes me mad is that most missionaries laid claim to exclusive religious truth and considered African culture to be inferior. Instead of seeking to understand African culture and African concepts of God, most missionaries straight up told them what to believe, what type of worship style they should have (from a white culture), and rejected all other religious practices. In my opinion, this is not how religion should work. No one should lay claim to exclusive religious truth, which ostracizes everyone else who does not believe what you do. That is the type of “I’m right, you’re wrong” mentality that accomplishes nothing of value. Instead we should all learn from each other.

Personally I believe that almost all religions have elements of truth in them. However, religions run into trouble when they try to claim exclusive truth. This causes conflict and has caused wars in the past. War and hatred should not be the goal of any religion. That is what I find so painful about the history of Africa. Religion was just one of the many reasons why the colonizers thought themselves superior to the African peoples. For example, just look at Kipling’s poem entitled “The White Man’s Burden.” This poem talks about how it is the white people’s burden to “civilize” the Philippines. Even though it was not written for Africa, similar ideas of imperialism and superiority can be applied to Africa. How could Christians think of themselves as better? How could Christianity later be used to justify the horrific apartheid regime?

The claim of exclusive religious truth along with a sense of cultural superiority led to the ignorance of the missionaries and the colonizers as to the greatness of African culture. Until recently in one of the churches (I don’t recall if it was Catholic, Lutheran, or Anglican), the people were not allowed to use drums in their worship services! One of the best parts of African culture is the rhythm and beats provided in music. Why would someone deny them a cultural practice which would enrich the service that much more? Why is African culture less valuable than Western culture?

Still today people are fighting those same battles. In the worship services that I have attended, most of the songs were hymns and the services were not much different from traditional ones back home. Western culture with its “superior” religious beliefs and “civilized” ways came to Namibia and imposed its values upon it.

From religion to political science this week has been full of thought-provoking discussion. The legacies of apartheid and colonialism in Namibia cannot be more apparent than in the education system. In our political science class this week we discussed the current “criminal injustice,” as our teacher Urbanus Dax phrased it, of the education process that is occurring in Namibia. Up to 20 percent of first-graders in [Namibian] State schools- and in some cases even whole classes- have to repeat their first year of school.[1] This trend of national “setting up children for failure” has no simple solution.

After independence in 1990 the government decided upon English to be the national language and that all classes beginning in first grade would be taught in it; this was to unify a nation in verbal communication that currently had at least 15 different forms of language. Yet, as a group we observed that in first grade teachers that are not proficient in English teach the children in English; how does this make any sense? Furthermore, who are these kids able to go to for help learning English when their parents never fully grasped the language? I (Becky) know that trying to learn a second language is almost impossible for me but that to even start to understand another language I needed to fully understand my own language first; I need a sturdy foundation on which to build my comprehension of a second language. These kids are never given the chance to fully comprehend their mother tongue and even more so never given any credit to the fact that they can fluently speak more than three languages by the time they’re “failing” first grade.

Urbanus, not only our current teacher but a former primary school teacher and principal, spoke of his theory of education: teach from the known to the unknown, from the easy to the difficult, and from the concrete to the abstract.[2] If we apply this theory towards the Namibian education process it’s obvious that these are not built, and therefore, there is nothing to grow upon. This infuriated me. Under colonialism the government enforced a policy that led white people to succeed and blacks to fail; but it’s 18 years since independence and while the words of the policies my have changed the outcome has stayed fairly consistent.

There are people here that are trying their hardest to break this crashing cycle and I’m proud to say that I work right along side of one of these great people. Taura works with me at my internship location, Catholic Aids Action, as a volunteer choir group leader. Her dream of positively contributing to this nation is intoxicating, from the moment she and I first talked about her aspirations I’ve been hooked and eager to help anyway I can. The rest of the CGE students have gone under her spell almost as quickly. A majority of the students here are helping us plan and successfully run a fashion and culture show at the end of October. All profits will go towards the start up of Nurturing Grounds Centre in a village in the northern part of Namibia.

If I had encountered someone like Taura in the United States, with her passion and goal of building a center, I would have never thought the two of us could pull something like that off. Yet, being here and seeing the things that individuals contribute to the progress of this nation gives me hope that this is an attainable goal. She has filled me with a sense of purpose and determination while I’m here and I can only hope that it will continue to be with me after I’m gone.

Taura also planned a community picnic at the Parliament Gardens that a few of us attended this past Saturday that I helped coordinate. It was an opportunity to causally chat with not only Namibians but people from Germany and Finland as well. I felt very at ease at the picnic and loved the music that we made together. Taura brought her guitar and after an hour or so of singing in the group a man in the gardens joined us with his drum. I instantly felt a sense of community and warmth that I don’t feel as often as when I’m in the United States. It just made sense for him to join us through music, and there was no feeling of awkwardness between the new friends.

Since our arrival in August, the thing that I (Alana) have struggled with most is relating and justifying similarities and differences between African and American culture. It has been a roller coaster ride of emotions and frustrations as I have strived to understand Namibians within the context of their culture in relation to my own upbringing. Everyday, I have to take into account things that I never fully considered in the states. Throughout my stay, I am constantly reminded of the level of implications regarding my gender and my race. I now know what it is like to be the minority. I now know what it is like to be the only face in the crowd completely different. I am constantly stared at and judged either for being American, or mistaken to be an Afrikaner. The most awkward part of it is that (I feel that) all parties are aware of my foreign presence. I keep telling myself that I am getting use to it, but the truth of the matter is that you never get use to it. You adjust, but never get used to being the odd (wo)man out. It has come as a surprise to some Namibians that the States are not just the bright lights of L.A. and New York. All Americans do not hang out with celebrities. A few weeks ago, a group of college students from the University of Namibia hung out with us at the CGE house. One young woman was surprised to hear that I work and go to school. She didn’t think any of us (white Americans) held jobs. Trying not to judge why she would think such a thing, I was suddenly aware of how much we rely on information that we don’t see.

Although contained within the same world, Africa has its own set of realities. As Namibia has come a long way in its 18 years of independence, the level of inequality and government resistance is still profound. In class, we have been discussing the issue of Namibia’s progress to that of the States. How sound is the U.S. economically, spiritually, internationally, and financially? The U.S. may be in a better position than African nations as a whole. However, are we really better off? Or due to our nation’s age, are we just better at concealing the actual progress? The majority of Namibia’s issues stem from colonization, segregation practices, a lacking education system, and an unruly government. As participants in both the Namibian and American systems, we (students) have been debating how the system has influenced the people, how the people have influenced the system, and how many parallels exist within the States. It has been quite challenging in that we continuously have to critically analyze where we come from, and how that upbringing has molded our personalities and the way we perceive our current surroundings. It has been very difficult to come to terms with how much of the “facts” of where we grew up was the product of our own connotations and not necessarily “the best way.”

As much as I love Namibia, the people I have met, and my experience thus far, it has been a tiring process. I anticipated this experience being a life changing experience. I never considered how much my heritage and upbringing would be questioned. I did not anticipate that the path to self-discovery would entail uprooting everything familiar and putting things into context not as an American, but as a human being.

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[1] “Education reform ‘making progress,’” Article from the Namibian, September 16, 2008.

[2] In Class September 16, 2008.

Photo Captions:

1. Melissa and Brett walking to Pick-n-Pay towards downtown Windhoek

2. Students working hard in political science class

3. Taura playing the guitar at the community picnic

4. Enjoying a Saturday afternoon at the community picnic in the Parliament Gardens

5. For History class this week we visited the Heroes Monument on the outskirts of Windhoek.