On our way out of the village, Zee picked up some sweet sorghum and Skokes and Zee taught me how to eat it. Everything is with your teeth-- peeling it, chewing it, and then spitting it out as it is similar to gum. It was pretty good. Kind of the taste of watermelon, but I guess watermelon flavored gum since you don't swallow it.
During the interviews in Mmatseta, we heard a lot of complaints on the BPC (Botswana Power Corporation) home solar system plans. (There is no grid available in this village.) People seemed unhappy with the fact that they'd be renting a system forever when in a few years, they could have used the money to purchase their own. They were also not satisfied with the number of appliances that they were able to use with it.
In Lentsweletau where there is access to the electrical grid, people gave us their complaints on the increasing cost of electricity. From what I could tell, it seems as though they are not considering what factors go into the cost (the cost of oil or coal...), but only care about what they have to pay. This is where education is key.
One lady that we interviewed today was in love with my sunglasses. She asked if she could have them and I figured why not since I got them for free. When I gave them to her, she started jumping and yelling with excitement. She called her neighbors over and said that she was going to go to the club. It was really great to give someone something that made their day. Zee took me shopping to get almost identical shades after we had finished our work for the day.
We will continue our work for our final presentation on Sunday and then start writing our report. I've really enjoyed being exposed to such a different culture, though I wish I had picked up the language faster (well I guess I still getting there...)
Here are more pictures of the safari courtesy of Brian, my personal photographer.
Watching the sunrise at the Gaborone Airport.
Brian busting out his airplane playlist.
Propeller planes are loud.
Maren stoked for our 6 hr ride in the truck to the game reserve!
Kam and John (CWRU) keeping it real.
Pavement is glorious.
Leaving Maun
Kisa, our guide, showing us the route to the camp.
Kisa
Transition to dirt road. Pavement, you were missed.
The gate to the world of wild animals
Top Left, country code. Top Right, maximum speed limit for vehicle (km/hr)
Sunglasses and bandana, good choice Amber to protect yourself from dust.
Road now just sand.
Our lunch guests
Brian's surprised face
The rest of these pictures (and the previous 2) are taken by Brian because he's more talented, more artistic, has a better camera, and enjoys taking pictures more that I do. O and he forgot his SD card in his computer.
Impala
Hippos!
Campfire to keep warm after sundown
Up before sunrise to find some predators, even though a leopard stopped by camp for breakfast.
Water buffalo
Bedazzled by a dazzle of zebras
The food was delicious at camp. The bread, homemade, was my personal favorite.
Baboon
What we called, the Zazu bird. Disney did a great job animating the bird's flight.
Boat trip
I think this is Elisah our boat tour guide.
Day water lily
Hippo out of water. Yikes.
Lion and cub. Check.
Andrew's close up
They like to walk on the roads.
Mallory and Erik (CWRU) looking out the top of the truck
Andrew and Cowboy hat with lions in the background
"HERE ARE LIONS!!!" Thanks Brian.
They headed off through some grassland so we couldn't follow them anymore.
Baboons
Wild dog
That's my truck. I'm in the roller coaster row (back seat) on the near side.
Jackal??
Bats hanging outside the bathroom at the game reserve gate.
Giant spider inside the bathroom at the game reserve gate.
Back to the world of domesticated animals.
Until next time,
M.e.
No comments:
Post a Comment