Top Five Experiences of 2018 (so far...)

My girl Tizzy and I pose after camp ends. 

5: Easter Camp

My current position does not put me in direct contact with kids nearly often enough anymore. As a result, doing Community Camp over Easter weekend was one of my favorite moments of the whole year. We had nearly one hundred children for four days and it was so much fun to interact with and observe them as they participated in ropes course, life skills sessions, and a talent show. Equally inspiring was getting to work with such incredible camp staff and volunteers. I love getting to watch these amazing professionals model incredible youth development skills and I love building strong friendships with them. 

Kayaking in Mozambique

4: Mozambique

In February, my friend Katie and I went on my last big Peace Corps vacation: Tofo, Mozambique. Our prime reason for picking this spot was that it is one of the best places to see whale sharks. It took us three days of travel to get there from Lesotho and we unfortunately did not get to see any whale sharks, however, the trip was still wonderful.

While Katie got scuba certified, I spent my days relaxing and walking on the beach, writing, wandering through the small beach town, and reading. It was the most peaceful and least demanding vacation I have ever enjoyed. Tofo Beach is truly stunning. I also took some time to bird nerd on a mangrove kayaking trip.

3: Herdboy Health Outreaches

My host organization has partnered with the District Health Management Teams in three districts in Lesotho to bring health services to herdboys in rural areas. Herdboys or balisana are a unique population in Lesotho.

They are marginalized from typical communities and social interactions through a lot of unfounded stereotypes. In my experience, most herders are wonderfully caring and friendly men-some young, some old. Due to stigma and discrimination, however, they also often live isolated lives and therefore do not get access to most government services including health care.

At the health outreach in Ha Popa, Thaba Tseka: beautiful views, a crazy bumpy ride in the truck with my colleagues,
the "road" we traveled, and a group of balisana that insisted we take pictures together. 

So far this year, we have done a handful of health outreaches to encourage balisana to get health care in the future. By bringing the services outside of the clinical setting, we have seen larger numbers of herders accessing medical tests including BMI, tuberculosis, blood pressure, blood sugar levels, and HIV testing services. Those that need additional follow up are being referred for additional medical care and the local clinics are following up to ensure that these services are received.

For me, these outreaches have also allowed me to get into more rural parts of Lesotho than I had previously visited. Our first outreach in Thaba Tseka involved a bumpy three-hour drive on something almost resembling a road to reach the village of Ha Popa. It was quite the adventure. The balisana there were so welcoming and fun to hang out with as they waited in line for their various health tests.

Grabbing a late lunch with my friend Pontso on a holiday.

2. Moments with Friends

This may sound like a generic cop out, but it is still true. Whether working or playing, I have had some of my favorite adventures with friends. The longer I live in Lesotho, the stronger my local friendships become and the more I cherish these relationships. The opportunities to catch up with friends over a meal or a football game is something I took for granted in the US. The reality is that making it happen between transportation challenges and rules that require I be home before dark make these moments much fewer and more precious.

With Rets'elisitsoe and his brother,
Ralethola (one of my best friends), after the
wedding. 

1. Weddings!!!

2018 has been the year for weddings. Every year I have been in Lesotho, I have attended a wedding or two. This year, however, I seem to be attending almost one per month!

First, there was my friend Rets’elisitsoe’s wedding in January. Here in Lesotho, the groom must be escorted into the church by a female family member. Due to some travel delays, Rets’elisitsoe’s cousin was running late and so he decided that I would  be his official escort and sit in the front row for the ceremony. It was an incredible honor to be quickly adopted into the family of two of my closest friends in country and to then participate in the wedding activities at his house the next day as well.

Then, a few weeks later, my friends Tori and Mpho-who married in America-returned to Lesotho for the traditional wedding ceremony that takes place with the groom’s family following a wedding. Tori completed her Peace Corps service in 2015, so the opportunity to catch up with her after more than 18 months and to be a part of this special day was truly wonderful. 

With Mpho and Tori at their wedding celebration in March

The third wedding I attended was in my community, but for the sister of someone I have known, respected, and adored for the entire time I have been in Lesotho. It was fun to hang out with the bridesmaids before the wedding, join the convoy of BMWs for the trip to and from the church, and help out with logistics and serving during the reception. 

With my dear friend Ototo at her sister's wedding in April

To keep up the wedding theme, I just returned from another friend's wedding. This one brought me out to Quthing, a district I hadn't visited before that is about three hours south of Maseru. Even better, I traveled and spent the day with some of my favorite guys in Lesotho. For once, I already knew both the bride and groom and am so glad that I was able to be there for their special day.

In Quthing with some of my favorite guys; Tlebele, Moseli, Ralethola, and Matseli. 

All smiles with the groom. 

Indian Wedding

When I left my own culture behind to move to Lesotho, a country that is 98% Basotho, I expected I would learn a huge amount about the Basotho culture. I anticipated learning about Basotho traditions surrounding holidays, weddings, and funerals.

I never imagined, however, that I would also learn about Indian culture through living in a small, predominantly homogeneous country in Southern Africa. It turns out, however, that my village in Lesotho includes a handful of Indian families. Last year, I attended a non-traditional Indian wedding in my own village, complete with the accouterments of what is called a white wedding here but in the US would simply be considered the norm.

Then, my friend Natasha, got engaged. I was invited to the official betrothal ceremony and ritual last Easter, where I got my first glimpse at the formal ceremony that goes into Indian rituals. Natasha encouraged me to attend her wedding, which I thought was impossible, as it would be in Durban, South Africa during the holidays. In the end, however, it all worked out and I spent my Christmas and Boxing Day with her extended family celebrating her nuptials.

The rituals for the wedding actually began well in advance of my arrival and included things like cleansing. Both the bride and groom participate in rituals with their own families prior to the actual wedding. On the eve of the wedding, each older woman in the family completing four steps with the bride or groom, a dozen of the groom’s family members visited to deliver the bride’s sari and other necessities for the wedding ceremony.

The day of the wedding, I donned my first sari, and off we went. It took a surprising amount of practice to get good at moving around in my sari, which would have happened faster had I tied my underskirt tightly enough. It turns out that the sari, which is tucked into the underskirt, will in fact slip out if the wearer moves around a lot and the skirt is too loose. This makes moving around tricky. Eventually I was educated in the need for a tight underskirt by a new grandmotherly friend.

The wedding itself was about two hours long. Both the bride’s and groom’s parents sit on either side of the stage. Additionally, the bride and groom each have an attendant who actually attends to their needs, such as blotting sweat as the stage lights were quite warm. While the many rituals connected to the wedding occurred on stage, next to the stage with a microphone was the storyteller. He acted as an MC for the wedding, giving us information about the rituals occurring, the meaning behind them, and occasionally introducing us to entertainment provided during the longer rituals.

I cannot imagine a wedding in the United States going on behind a dancing couple or a performing musician, however, that is apparently the norm for Indian weddings in South Africa. Given the length of the wedding and its rituals, I can understand the desire for entertainment.

After the rituals were concluded, Natasha and Prien were announced as married, and we were served a meal. During the meal, a representative from each side gave a speech. Then, there was a receiving line including the parents and the couple before family photos, just like in America.

As the wedding itself concluded, the couple and the bride’s family returned to the bride’s home or in this case the bride’s family’s home as we were far from our village in Lesotho! There, the family assisted the bride in changing from her 15kg wedding sari and heavily flowered hair into a lighter sari and more comfortable hairstyle. While they did this, the rest of us moved on to where the reception was to be held.

Four hours after the wedding ended, the reception began. A family member of Prien’s came and got us as the couple and bridal entourage approached. As we ran, as much as one can in a sari and incredible heat, into the night with many women and a few men from Prien’s family, we wondered at this Indian tradition. Once at a junction in the road, we learned that this rushing out to hijack the couple en route to the reception is not cultural tradition but a family tradition and we were lucky enough to be the only non-family included.

The reception itself included much more ceremony than other weddings I have attended; however, it was kept lively and fun. The MC for the event was a well-known local comedian and part of Prien’s family. As we listened to numerous speeches from different friends and family members, he kept people entertained. He made each speaker dance up to the stage area. He also ensured we all laughed with comedy bits.

Dancing with Charo Charo

Once he realized there were two white girls in the tent full of Indians, we became one of his favorite targets. I was accused twice of matching the white walls of the tent, although he celebrated that after he made me blush I was no longer camouflaged. He gave us each Indian names as our American names were too difficult to remember. He promised to help us find good Indian husbands and later auctioned us off as brides. And, perhaps most memorable, he called us up to the front saying the couple had a present for us. This present, apparently, was the opportunity to public attempt Bollywood dancing. Luckily, Emily and I are up for anything and jumped in with smiles on our faces.

Later, when the speeches were completed and the reception transitioned to a later dinner (it was after 11) to be followed by dancing, I appreciated all of this entertaining attention. By making us the target of his comedy, Charo Charo had broken the ice for all the people who had yet to meet us. As a result, everyone had pulled us into the fold, celebrating our Indian names, my sari, our dancing, and so on.

The fun continued until after 2am, at which point we left with some of Natasha’s family, for the hour drive back to their home. We slept only a few hours before we were up again and off on our next adventure to St. Lucia. 

Photos from the ritual the night before the wedding

Photos from the wedding and reception.