Halfway through Training
I'm sitting in an internet cafe with Kate, Sean, and Mar. We are trying to check our emails with great difficulty. Other than that Swaziland is great.
We have three early terminations (ETs) already, for various reasons. One of them the day of our 4th of July braii (bbq). Sad but true.
I can't wait until training ends and we can start work. Right now I get up every morning at 6am, run, do a bucket bath, eat breakfast that my homestay family (the Dlaminis) prepared, then head over to school for language class. At 10am, we have classes like Technical classes (teaching about HIV), Medical (nutrition, what to do in case of diarrhea, mental health), and cultural.
The thing about HIV in Swaziland is that a lot of it is still taboo.. I mean, they teach it in schools starting from the age of 6 or 7, but many traditional Swazis still believe in magic, or that someone dies because of witchcraft. It's difficult to judge them because they are operating from a very different frame of reference. Also, as dark as it gets at night, with the few houses that have electricity, and the random animal noises, the belief in magic doesn't surprise me. Ever hear a goat make noise? It sounds like a moaning child.
The western influence is certainly seeping in though, with its good points and bad points. Oh yeah, there's a large Chinese presence here in Swaziland. I was looking through the Social Studies textbook, and the countries they did profiles on were Japan, the U.S., China, and Taiwan. Taiwan??? How random is that. Apparently the Chinese do a lot for Swaziland in terms of agriculture and industry. There are some geopolitics at play here that Sean and I are gonna try to figure out. Maybe.
Sorry my emails will be short, but the internet speed is not very fast. If anyone can lend me some webspace I can try to load a picture or two. Send me an email. I'm sending a photo CD home to my family, maybe someone can Ofoto it. I will write an email update in the near future, if gmail ever starts working here.
I'm running up the mountains and dirt roads every morning (they call it "doing roadwork"). Does anyone want to run the Capetown half-marathon or ultramarathon with me next year? Rob... how does one train for an ultra?
Please let me know what you guys are up to... I'd love to hear about it.
We have three early terminations (ETs) already, for various reasons. One of them the day of our 4th of July braii (bbq). Sad but true.
I can't wait until training ends and we can start work. Right now I get up every morning at 6am, run, do a bucket bath, eat breakfast that my homestay family (the Dlaminis) prepared, then head over to school for language class. At 10am, we have classes like Technical classes (teaching about HIV), Medical (nutrition, what to do in case of diarrhea, mental health), and cultural.
The thing about HIV in Swaziland is that a lot of it is still taboo.. I mean, they teach it in schools starting from the age of 6 or 7, but many traditional Swazis still believe in magic, or that someone dies because of witchcraft. It's difficult to judge them because they are operating from a very different frame of reference. Also, as dark as it gets at night, with the few houses that have electricity, and the random animal noises, the belief in magic doesn't surprise me. Ever hear a goat make noise? It sounds like a moaning child.
The western influence is certainly seeping in though, with its good points and bad points. Oh yeah, there's a large Chinese presence here in Swaziland. I was looking through the Social Studies textbook, and the countries they did profiles on were Japan, the U.S., China, and Taiwan. Taiwan??? How random is that. Apparently the Chinese do a lot for Swaziland in terms of agriculture and industry. There are some geopolitics at play here that Sean and I are gonna try to figure out. Maybe.
Sorry my emails will be short, but the internet speed is not very fast. If anyone can lend me some webspace I can try to load a picture or two. Send me an email. I'm sending a photo CD home to my family, maybe someone can Ofoto it. I will write an email update in the near future, if gmail ever starts working here.
I'm running up the mountains and dirt roads every morning (they call it "doing roadwork"). Does anyone want to run the Capetown half-marathon or ultramarathon with me next year? Rob... how does one train for an ultra?
Please let me know what you guys are up to... I'd love to hear about it.
posted by Mark at 4:42 AM
5 Comments:
RDKatlanta: you run a shitload
yeah, that's what i told ken. that's awesome that you're running, i imagine africa is a beautiful place to run. wait tho, ultramarathon? as in MORE than 26.2 miles?!!! DAMN! shouldn't you do a regular one first? i know they have 50 and 100 mile ultramarathons, but you must be in great shape. i'm trying to get back in shape, running after work every day. i sit at a computer all day so i need some physical activity. sounds like you're doing well and settling into a routine. i'm working down in jersey doing CAD drawing for a surveying firm. it's really boring but something i can put on my resume and it pays alright. i'm living at my grandparent's house (dad's side). so yeah, it's not bad, just boring since i don't have any friends here. anyway, good luck with the marathon!
Haha, now you know how I feel in Athens, Rob. I been working out (pilates) a lot too. Nothing like running tho. I would love to see your pictures!
-Jing
hey mark this is andrew choi, ken told me about your site. i'm somewhat interested in joining peace corps myself so i'll be keeping up w/ your site ^_^ stay strong dude~
3 early terminations... sad :(
learn some swazi magic and you can teach us ^^
-jerry
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