A Big Party

Kids singing....
and traditional dancing (I think I could be good at this stuff when I turn 60)


This weekend we went to the inauguration of Mupewa Primary School, where another World Teach volunteer works. All in all it was a long day in the sun with lots of speeches, but the entertainment was great. The school's choir sang wonderfully, and the real highlight was the Iita Kadha Cultural Group, made up of about ten elderly men and women, all of whom wore pink skirts, who did some wild dancing. It involved blowing whistles and complicated moves where they would kneel down and then twirl around with their feet entertwined. This kind of thing makes me realize that there is a lot of culture here that I am missing out on.

Dinner and a Soccer Game

Its been a week just like any other here in Oluvango, but two events have made it a little more exciting.

The first was having dinner at my principal's house. We had been planning this for a long time, and it finally worked out. The plan was that we would show my principal and his wife how to make pizza, while they would make traditional Owambo food for us. The only problem is Sinead and I don't really know how to make good pizza, so we had to fake it. We bought some pre-made bases at the supermarket and then put various things on top. The only cheeze we could find was gouda.

Overall it went pretty well- I started out helping, but then at some point I left the kitchen, and before I knew it I was handed a beer and it was implied that I shouldn't go back to the kitchen. So Sinead and my principal's wife Frieda did most of the cooking. I tried to protest a little, but I'm afraid not too much. Apparently gender roles are still very strong here.

The first course was traditional Owambo chicken and oshifema (millet porridge), which is eaten communally out of a big bowl (Sinead had potato salad). It was delicious, and really filling, so by the the time the pizza was ready no one had much room for it. Our hosts were really nice though, eating a big slice each and complimenting it nicely. It did turn out pretty well, much better than a trial run Sinead and I had done a few days earlier (where we had put too much sauce on and it became a kind of pizza soup).

After that they suggested that we watch the video of their wedding, and I think we both felt special that they wanted to share it with us. Owambo weddings are long affairs, with celebrations at both the houses of the parents of both bride and groom, and sometimes at the houses of uncle's and aunts too. We couldn't understand anything, but with all the spontaneous singing and dancing it looked better than any party I had ever been to. I really hope I can go to a wedding before I go- the problem is that they are always during the school holidays, when we are planning to go traveling.


The other big event was a girl's soccer game between Sinead's school and my school. This had potential to inject some tension into our relationship, so I'm glad the result was a draw. Both sides played really well, and I took some nice action photos which I'm hoping to get on the blog soon. Sinead has been doing a great job of starting and coaching the girls team at her school. In fact, she inspired the team at my school because it was her asking me to find some girls to play against her team that led to my principal asking another teacher to start a team. A lot of the boys at my school thought girl's soccer was a big joke, but I think now that they have seen them play they have more respect.

So that is a little update on what is going on here. Teaching is going well, I'm just nervous about the upcoming exams and also about the final exam for grade 10. I really would like a lot of my learners to pass and I'm not sure if that is going to happen.

Epupa Falls

The Zebra Mountains (notice the stripes)

Epupa Falls

A Himba woman and her baby (it cost N$13,00 to take this photo, which is actually relatively cheap)
Sinead in the morning sun
Swimming in the pools next to the falls.


We have just returned from a quick trip to Epupa Falls, which all the guidebooks say you need 4wd for, but we did it in our little VW Chico (with only one flat tire). It was a lot of driving but a great trip overall- the falls were spectacular, and the campsite was right next to them (i.e. I could have reached out of the tent and put my hand in the water). At the campsite, which was very crowded, we met lots of nice South Africans, some of whom fixed our flat tire and some of whom invited us to braai (barbecue) with them. It turns out that Afrikaners are incredibly generous people. We also saw a lot of Kaokoland, as the northwest corner of Namibia is called- it is a fairly undeveloped region, even by Namibian standards, but it is also strikingly beautiful. The people there are the Himba, who still wear very traditional clothes (and not much of them) and live a semi-nomadic lifestyle. They often charge tourists (including us) money to take photos of them. Sinead also bought a traditional Himba marriage necklace.

Overall it was a great trip, and we are starting to feel like we have really seen a lot of Namibia.