A quick little update...

Sorry I’ve been gone for quite a long time, we’ve had some internet malfunctions at the workplace.  We finally got it back working for the whole day—funny how not having internet makes you crazy.  I’m gradually getting more work, (nothing important) but at least it’s something to do.  The people I work with are great, and so fun to be around!  Soon I will be hearing from my boss as to which project I will be working for the next year.  I will keep you updated…

Last week I was involved in Kick4Life’s Training of the new coaches (TOC) for our curriculum.  Because they wanted me to get a firm grasp of the curriculum and how we teach the material to the kids using games, I was trained with the fellow 16 coaches.  Eight of them came from Maseru, and the other eight came from Leribe.  It was an exhausting 8am-6pm week, but in the end, I was so glad to have met the coaches.  They are all around my age, mostly older, but I really became close with a couple of the girls.  Too bad some of my favorites live two hours away.  But, I promised them that I would come to visit, and they promised that they were have me over to meet their mothers and they would cook me a special Besotho meal—sounds good to me!! 

This past weekend, me and a small group went to a small village called Maylealea just to get away from the city and into more of the Mountain Kingdom.  It was about an hour and a half drive, and the drive was picturesque desert mountains wherever you looked—it was beautiful.  Because we were out in the middle of nowhere, and up about 8,000 ft elevation, the stars were incredible.  I can’t think of how to describe them.  I have never seen that many stars before in my life, and they felt so close.  All-in-all it was a very memorable weekend, and I cannot wait to go back and explore more of the area!!  






TTFN:


Peace, Love, and Pictures to come...PROMISE!

Last Friday

On Friday, I finally got to travel outside Maseru, which was great to go out and explore more of Lesotho.  Starting Monday, we will be training new Kick4Life coaches from both Maseru and Leribe, so Hasmin (the other intern) and a staff member Spu went to talk to the new coaches to prep them on this week. Leribe was about 2-hour drive and the landscape consisted of tabletop mountains, patches of trees, and a sprinkling of villages—it was beautiful.

We briefly met with the coaches to prep them on the basic essentials to bring to Maseru, and what to expect during their training.  After the meeting, we went to a secondary school (high school) because there was a miscommunication with someone who was doing interventions without Kick4Life’s awareness.  School was just getting out as we all pulled up.  I got out to take some pictures, and once the kids saw me they completely surrounded me taking out their phones to take pictures of me.  They were asking me my name, where I come from, and why I was there.  When I answered there was laughter in the back of the crowd.  Were they laughing at me?  Well I asked, and a girl said they were laughing at the way I talked.  Sweet.  I guess I talk in a high-pitched voice, which is true haha.  They loved me taking pictures of them, and the girls next to me kept touching my hair and calling it soft because they had never seen blonde hair before. 

When I asked the kids whether they liked school or not, they answered that they loved it.  Keep in mind that unlike the United States, secondary school is not paid for by the government, so many families are unable to pay for secondary education.  They were yelling out their favorite subjects: English, accounting, history; man, I didn’t love school as much as these kids did.  Just another thing we take advantage of in the States.  These are kids that Kick4Life and Grassroot Soccer target because they are ones who are taking their future into their own hands, and their education will help stop the tragedies, like the spread of HIV, that Africa faces.  They are an inspiration.

TTFN:

Peace, Love, and Education is Power

I’m spending my first week here in Lesotho trying to soak in as much as I possible.  I’ve never traveled to Africa before, so these experiences are new to me.  Living here for a week is already making me realize the things I took advantage of before I got here—for example: insulated houses and heaters!  Holy Moly is it cold here!!  My office and house are usually colder than it is outside—how is that possible?   It’s been beautiful during the day—sunny clear skies, but at night and in the morning it becomes almost unbearable.  I have learned how to adapt wearing snowboarding socks, long underwear, sweats, a long sleeve shirt, a sweatshirt, and mittens to bed; and sleeping in my sleeping bag under the covers.  I STILL get cold!  The first couple nights I secretly pouted to myself, until I discovered how lucky I was when I met a group of boys yesterday…

Kick4Life not only uses the curriculum Grassroot Soccer created, but also creates projects in order to adapt to the needs of the city, Maseru, and Lesotho as a country. Yesterday, I shadowed the councilors who work with children living on the streets.  These group of boys come every Thursday to talk about issues they are facing, and hopefully gain the tools and life skills necessary to either get them off the streets, or return home.  I was amazed.  These boys looked like they had just come back from a production of Oliver Twist.  They were covered from head to foot in dirt, and smelled like they hadn’t showered in weeks.  Most were not wearing shoes, and there was one who could not have been older than 12 with an oversized man’s blazer on—he stands vividly in my mind.  And, I’m complaining about the cold?

Because they were speaking Sesotho, I was sitting in among the group unable to understand a word that they were talking about.  I would continually ask one of the councilors to translate for me because sometimes the boys would burst out into laughter.  I was confused because the consequences of smoking and sniffing glue were the topic of conversation.  She told me that the boy with the scar on his cheek is a bite mark from a girl whom he attempted to rape because she would not buy glue for him.  She adds, “he is very naughty”.  Naughty?  Naughty!?

That same boy was the only one out of the group who spoke English, and was eager to talk to me and get to know more about me.  While talking, I found out he’s 17 (I didn’t believe him) he looks about 13.  The councilor then told me that because these boys are so malnourished, they stop growing.  We started to kick the soccer ball around, barefooted because most of the boys don’t have shoes, and some only have on tattered socks that are struggling to stay on their feet.  Once they realized that I could play soccer, the boy with the over sized blazer ran to me and clung to my arm and held my hand wanting to be on my team.  My heart overrode the thoughts of how dirty he must have been because I didn’t budge, and in that moment I realized, “who am I to judge these boys living on the streets?  How do I know that they even have a home to return to, and if they do, I do I know that these boys will be loved and cared for?”

Like I said before, this is a whole other world.  They deal with problems that I have no idea how to fathom.  How can I logically judge them when I don’t have the mental capacity to understand how they are living, and why? 

TTFN:

Peace, Love, and Understanding

It's Time for Africa

Finally found my way to Lesotho, and man was it a long journey! 


The intern orientation was AMAZING!  Everyone that I met gained a spot to my list of most amazing people I know.  But seriously, all the interns brought so many different backgrounds, skills, and personalities that made the group just click.  I can't wait to visit them throughout the year at their different sites.  It was hard to say goodbye when we all finally opened up and got to know each other.


I arrived to Maseru early on in the morning today.  As I step off the plane and went through the fastest (non-existant) customs line ever, I looked for my bags, but they were nowhere to be found.  Great.  They turned up eventually and as of right now, looks like nothing is stolen.  (that could have been a nightmare)


It wouldn't be a stretch that I'm in culture shock overload.  I felt like I tried to mentally prepare myself for the conditions I was about to see, but it didn't hit me until we were driving through the city.  And yes, on the other side of the road!  Kids playing soccer with what looks like a ball made from trash bags and tape, cows grazing of the side of the road, and women carrying the heaviest looking bags on their head.  My first day of work is tomorrow, and the people I've met so far have been so warm and welcoming.  


Miss everyone so much already! xoxo


TTFN:


Peace, Love, and Jet-lag Fever 

Where Does the Time Go??

But really, how is it August 2nd already?!

Tonight, I head off to Hanover, New Hampshire for an intern orientation before I leave for Lesotho on Sunday, August 7th!!  Leaving Granite Bay, CA is always bittersweet.  Driving around town is just as it's always been, with a few improvements, and my room is just as I left it before leaving for college.  (sigh) I will miss morning coffee with the parentals, on-the-ball with my mom, and frozen yogurt with my dad -- the day-to-day little pleasures that make home so hard to leave behind.  But my adventure is calling, and I feel that this is the call I was meant to answer.

Grassroot Soccer is an AMAZING non-profit that uses soccer to inspire and create awareness of HIV/AIDS to children throughout Africa.  They create an environment for people to learn more about the virus and feel comfortable enough to get tested.  I will actually be working with their partner non-profit, Kick4Life, which is based in Lesotho.  I do not know exactly what my job will be, but I feel that I will not know for sure until I arrive in Lesotho.

For those of you who have never heard of Lesotho before, don't feel bad, I had no clue.  Here's a visual:

 *curtesy of Google Images*

TTFN:

Peace, Love, and T-minus 6 days