From Life in Oshikuku to the lives of the Himba

As I start my tenth week in Namibia I cannot believe that I have less than a month to go in this amazing country. I have mixed feelings of sadness for the limited time I have left, but also happiness knowing that I will soon see friends and loved ones at home in England.

Monday started with a long journey back from Rundu to Ongwediva. It was very interesting as we changed areas and tribal regions. Not only do the buildings change but so does the language. On the journey we stopped briefly in Tsumeb, where I met some Damara speaking people. Their language is full of clicks, which are formed at the back of the throat. I thought they were choking, but Pennie assured me that they were talking to each other. We also saw a lot of children and young people selling fish at the side of the road. This is the time of the season where the real big fish can be found in the Oshanas (temporary lakes). We also saw some lads selling the bullfrogs that they had caught, which is unusual, as they are normally caught at the start of the rainy season, before Christmas.

Tuesday was a full work day, but I did mange to go out into Oshikuku and take some photos of everyday life. As you can see from below, there are always Goats and Cattle roaming around the streets, but the market is normally very interesting. I don’t pretend I know what everything is that they are selling, and it sometimes even smells good.

Wednesday was the first of a number of award ceremonies I have planned. I went to Mupewa Junior School and presented them with their certificates of attendance for the five workshops that I had completed with them They were all very pleased to receive them as you can see from the photo below.

Thursday was work day from my house; but I did mange to go to the independence day celebrations at Mupewa. It was a really nice event, if a little disorganised and it was very picturesque as they hold assemblies underneath the big tree in their grounds. I managed to get some really good photos, and I include a couple below.

Friday was a preparation day for next week, which is going to be very busy with workshops. However, I did go to a leaving do in the evening for two German trainee Doctors who work at Oshikuku Hospital. As with the other hospitals I have seen there was a little unofficial campsite outside the gates. I am told that women who are expecting babies walk from their homesteads and camp outside until they go into labour. It could save the NHS millions of pounds if we introduced it in the UK!

The weekend was a bit of a treat as we decided to take a trip to the Ruacana Falls and stop overnight in a lodge. With the heavy rains we were told that they were spectacular; and they were! The Lodge was also very nice, with air conditioning, and for the first time in nine weeks I slept under covers. Luxury!

On Sunday morning we took the option to visit a Himba village, which was a long way into the bush. It was really interesting and we were given a friendly welcome in yet another different language. As you can see from the pictures, the Himba coat themselves with Ochre, a red mineral. The women also mix the ochre with clay and put it in their hair. However, they can only do it when they become a woman, and the little girl you can see has her hair done differently until she is deemed to be a woman. Men can have as many wives as they wish, as long as they can support them! The one we met only had two wives as he was getting on in years. The buildings are very traditionally made, but surprisingly comfortable inside, but the beds were just a blanket on the ground. I don’t think my back could cope with that any more!

Best wishes to all at home, and with this adventure drawing to a close, I am starting to think of the changes I will find back in England.

Has it stopped raining yet? Is Norwich City in the Premiership? Is petrol up to £20 a gallon? Are Christmas decorations on sale? Is Gordon Brown still Prime Minister? Will the children at Parkside remember me? Is there any ‘more’ Celtic staff at Parkside School?

So many questions!

Barry

The Road to Rundu.

The week started with not having any electric; but this time is was our fault, as we had run out! I then had to walk to the shop that sells the credit for the electric metre, only to find that they couldn’t do it for me. This meant a panicky text to one of the other Heads, Shay, who came to the rescue and bought us some credit. The rest of the day was a standard working session, with meetings at both the junior and secondary school along with preparation for workshops. I took a few pictures at Mupewa, of everyday events. such as getting water and a PE lesson.

On Tuesday I had an important meeting at the circuit office in Elim, which is about twenty kilometres away from Oshikuku. I was picked up from Nuuyoma Secondary School and we drove the sandy road to Elim. Unfortunately, the road had been washed away in parts and I was really pleased that we had a ‘four by four’ to cope with the terrain. I enclose a picture of one of part of the road and a newspaper satellite picture showing the region I am working in, with all the flooding. Oshikuku is in the top left side of the picture and Elim is south of that. As you can see the rest of the road is now under water.

Wednesday was a working day in both schools and I finally got some printing done for the training certificates, as Mupewa had some ink in their one and only printer. I also set a number of dates with both Principals, for work session, up until I leave. I agreed to write a development plan for Nuuyoma and introduce it to the senior managers and the staff. In Mupewa I agreed to support the Principal in delivering training to other school Principals, and help him produce a simple website for the school.

On Wednesday evening I had a visit from a ‘Peace Corps’ Volunteer from America, who is working with a group of women in a Basket Making business. She had worked on a ‘Fund Raising’ video presentation, and wanted my opinion. I also received a phone call from VSO to say that our bid to purchase a digital projector had been successful, and the money had been deposited in my account. This is a bit late for us, but it will benefit future Heads who work in Namibia.

On Thursday I had a training session on Record Cards with Nuuyoma Secondary School, so I had to get some copies done. This time the photocopier was broken, so I had to go to Mupewa to get them done. Their copier was also broken, but they did have an old one, which after 50 miss-feeds I was able to get most of the training materials done. The actual training went well except a few young staff that I had to tell off for not taking it seriously.

In the evening I went drumming again, and this week it actually sounded OK at times. From there I went onto a ‘leaving do’ for an English volunteer, Chris, who was returning to England very soon.

On Friday, Pennie and I were off to Rundu, to meet up with a old colleague of mine, Linda Shiner, who had been an Educational Psychologist in Norfolk and had come over to Namibia to work, over two years ago. However, before we left I had work to do, including the purchase of the Digital Projector in Oshikati. Having successfully done the purchase, we set off on our 620 Kilometre journey. It sounds a lot, but with the roads so empty, and so very straight, we were there by 6.00 pm, having stopped for a short lunch break in Tsumeb.

Saturday, started with an aborted trip to a lodge by the river, as the access road to it, was completed flooded. However, we did go around the Rundu market, and had lunch off one of the food stalls. I enclose a picture to show the cooking area. The food was very tasty, and I had some locally caught river fish and a variety of different salads. In the afternoon, Linda, took me to meet one of her ‘Special Olympic’ people, Daniel, who is totally blind, but lives with his wife and baby by the Ovango river. His family live in a traditional homestead in the bush, and he took us there for a visit. Most people live like this, which must be very hard as there is no, water, electric or any services. I was made most welcome and was shown around the whole place. I attach a couple of the fantastic photos I was able to take. The only problem, I had, was that Daniel was drying fish in his house, so that the dogs wouldn’t eat them. The smell was something I cannot describe, and I have to say that I never want to smell it again.

Sunday turned out to be a wonderful day, as we joined a group of Swiss volunteers on an all-day boat trip on the Ovango River. It was also time for them to return to their own country, and they wanted to finish their time in style. It was wonderful, with brilliant scenery, excellent food and lovely company. However, I had a surreal experience as Mrs. Booth, Acting Head at Parkside, telephoned me in the middle of the river and miles into the African bush!

It was a marvellous weekend, and Linda was amazing as a host. The area of Rundu is very beautiful and the people were great, and I can see how you would fall in love with it. However, all good things must come to an end, and the long journey back was tinged with some sadness as I had spent such a short time in the Kavango region and Rundu in particular.

Best wishes to all.

Barry

The water continues to rise!

Well, after the trials of Etosha last week, I found myself still in Ongwediva on Monday morning. This meant sleeping on the floor for another night, but it also meant that I did not have to make my way back to Oshakuku by a ‘Hike’ of some sort. I took one of my colleagues to Ondangwa as he was getting a lift back to his work area. The floods were really quite bad here and there were still people by the side of the road with all their possessions. I have included pictures of the floods, but not of the people, as I feel it is not right to do so. Some people are quite pleased as the high water means that there are fish around. These fish seem to survive under the sand for eight months of the year and then appear when it starts to rain. I have included a picture of some of the fishermen, however, we have seen a lot of people using their mosquito nets to fish with. I think they get a lot more fish like that, but it is a bit dangerous and people are drowning.

As Pennie has broken her leg, she has allowed me to use her car, which is great. I went back to Oshakuku and sorted a few things, then drove back to Ongwediva, avoiding the cows, goats and donkeys. I spent most of Tuesday working on a training programme for Cluster Principals, which Pennie and I will deliver at the end of March.

On Wednesday we had no electric for most of the day, but in the morning we met with an inspector to discuss the training. He was from a nearby area called Tsandi, which I am told is where the President of Namibia comes from. Working at the house was quite quiet, but as I looked out of the window the Mongoose seem to enjoy the peace of the area and play in the garden. In the evening I was invited to a local lodge where a famous disabled British actor, Mat Fraser, was appearing. He was a Thalidomide baby and now in his forties, was a great advert for what can be achieved with talent, determination and given the opportunities.

Thursday was more work in the morning, but in afternoon I was invited to a drama performance at the local special school, Eluwa. It was meant to start at 2.00 pm and it was about a mile walk, so I set off with plenty of time to spare. When I got there, I couldn’t find any one who knew what was going on and walked around the school at least three times. I was now late and went back to the reception. I politely asked if the secretary could help me, and she got very upset because I hadn’t spent the normal fifteen minutes on greeting her and exchanging pleasantries. Not a good start, but eventually I found someone who would talk to me and they directed me to a classroom. I needn’t have worried that I was late, because as with all things in Namibia it didn’t start on time. However, it was well worth waiting for and we had a wonderful dance performance from a group of blind and deaf girls, followed by some story-telling drama. Mat Fraser led some of the drama activities and I managed to get the job of taking the photographs. It was a wonderfully inspiring afternoon, and I was really glad I had been invited. However, I did note that the signing and finger spelling is all very different here from our country, which is a great pity as this school would have been a very good link for Parkside School.

On Thursday evening I went to an African drumming class, which was a bit of fun. At the end of the session I even made a sound that was almost rhythmical. I apologise now to Mrs and Mr Holderness and any other musicians for this very poor showing of musical talent and general co-ordination. However, it might not end here as I thought I would even go again some time; sorry music world! I enclose a picture of me with Doris my Zulu instructor to the right of me and a Dutch girl to my left.(Can’t remember her name)

On Friday morning Pennie and I went out into the country and met with my Inspector to discuss the training we were putting on. The journey was interesting because parts of the road had been washed away. When we arrived we found that my inspector had another meeting with Principals, but we managed to squeeze in a brief meeting with him. At twelve I was supposed to have a guided tour of the special school, Eluwa, but the person who was meant to be showing me around, had forgotten she had another meeting. I must get them to use a diary!!!!

The weekend was very interesting and I did a lot of new things. I had my hair cut on Saturday morning, which turned OK, surprisingly. I then went to see a dance group that Doris runs, in the afternoon, where they performed outside a shopping area. (I attach a picture of some of the dancers). In the evening I went to a Braai, which is African for a Bar-B-Q, at the house of the Dutch couple I rescued from Etosha last week. It was really good, but I think I may have had a little bit too much orange squash! I also met a fellow special needs teacher from Suffolk, who went on all night about how Ipswich is doing better than Norwich this year. I couldn’t argue with her as I had just found out that they had lost again to Blackpool.

On Sunday it was back to Oshakuku, and preparing myself for the weeks work ahead.

A week which ends in a rescue!

As I start my sixth week in Namibia, I think to myself that the first five have flown by. It will not be long before I am preparing to go home, but there is so much work to be done here and so little time to do it.

Monday was going to be an exciting day for me, as I was to be picked up and taken to Outapi, the educational regional head office for the Omusati area. At Outapi, I was to present four workshops to the special needs team, to see how they could be rolled-out to more schools in the region. I had organised a lift with the head of the SEN team, and I was to wait outside the Secondary School to be picked up. So I waited, and waited! After two hours I decided to wait no longer and headed back to my place. It seems that something had gone wrong with the transport organisation; which was not a surprise. There seems to be a lack of basic organisational skills here, which quite often leads to such problems. I am going to introduce the ‘Work Diary’ to Namibia, where people write down all the things they should be doing; I think it will revolutionise the education system here!

On Tuesday we got up after another night of rain to find the garden completely flooded again. To get out of the house we had to paddle first and then put our shoes on later, as the water had gone over the stepping-stones I had set up. I delivered a workshop to the Primary school in the afternoon, on how to use the ‘Cumulative Record Cards’, which all schools should use in Namibia. They are the database system for learners in schools and also the tracking of their achievements throughout their school careers. The concept is good, but nobody has told the schools how to use them! So I was asked to put a training package together, that could be used in any school. As this was the first workshop of this type I was a little nervous as to how it would go. I needn’t have worried, as it was very well received and staff were extremely grateful for the guidance.

Wednesday was a general work-day in the morning, and in the afternoon I had the final workshop on Special Needs with Mupewa Junior School. This also went extremely well, and the now staff all seem to understand that ‘chalk and talk’ does not include all learners in the classroom. The Principal was so pleased with the training that he had written a letter to the Director, asking if his school could offer the training to other schools. I agreed that this would be a sustainable way to continue this work and suggested I mentored them in the first couple of workshops.

Thursday was meeting with Principals and working on Development Plans, but Bonnie allowed me to lead on a couple of her Maths classes, which gave me an opportunity to model some of the differentiation work. I really enjoyed the teaching and the Learners responded to the different style extremely well.

On Friday I had agreed with Bonnie that I would teach her classes all morning as she was at UNAM, which is the Namibian University in Windhoek. However, it was a weekend where the Learners all go home. As there was severe flooding in the north of Namibia, we had special permission to let them go early. So I ended up teaching classes from 7.30 to 9.15 am, which was a much-shortened session. The Principal told me that the floods had already claimed forty lives in the area, and we had great concerns for the children walking home through the Oshanas (Shallow lakes). The rest of the day was working on management issues and finishing workshop presentations.
On Saturday I went to Ongwediva and did some shopping in the morning. In the afternoon a group of us went to ‘Pondo’, the special needs home and had a great time playing with the kids. I also met the ‘main man’ there and looked at some linking of Parkside School with Pondo. I think it would be great if we could do some work with them. That night I received a text from a colleague who had gone to Etosha wildlife area with some friends, and had broken down. It was decided that I should borrow a 4X4 and go and pick them up. So on Sunday I set off to drive 250 Kilometres to get them from Etosha. I got there at 10.30 in the morning, and there seemed no alternative but to tow them back to Ohsakati. Which is what I did, going very steadily for all 250 Kilometres, towing another 4X4. I was exhausted by the time I got back!!!

The pictures this week are: A group of infant Learners at Mupewa; please note the woolly hats in temperatures of 35 degrees. My house after a night of rain, and the refection of a sunset off my flooded garden. Last but by no-means least, my new girlfriend at Pondo Special Home.

Best wishes.

Barry