"NamBoer...more like NamEK"

So I’m now a little over three weeks deep into “Phase 2” of Peace Corps i.e. the introductory stages at site. During this time, I’ve been getting acquainted with Rehoboth and the people who I’ll work closely with over the next two years. At school, I’ve still been observing and teaching a lesson occasionally or helping out my counterpart.

I went to a fellow RPS teacher’s farm this past weekend.  A lot of Namibian families own and operate cattle farms like the one I went to. The farm was only about an hour outside of Rehoboth and about 5000 acres I believe. But we did have to drive through several other farms on gravel roads. The landscape was untouched savanna grassland for miles and miles. This farm in particular had cattle, goats, and sheep along with springbok and wild horses. Several times we drove around the property and once saw the herd of springbok. I’m told there will be plenty other opportunities for me to go back to the farm. It’s definitely a very authentic experience and restful at the same time. I played dominoes for the first time i

I witnessed my second fresh slaughtering as we killed a sheep – which I thought would be our Sunday lunch. I wasn’t wrong, but I wouldn’t say I was right either. We didn’t necessarily eat the more desirable cuts. We ended up eating the heart, liver, kidneys, and certain parts of the intestine and stomach and brought back the rest of the carcass for another family in Rehoboth. After several adventures with liver, I can confidently state it is not my cup of tea. But I ate most of what was offered to me and smiled as I ate. Oh, did I mention I cut the sheep’s head off?

While I’ve had a few rough days where I’ve had to take care of classes while a teacher was out – rough because the learners misbehave and know I won’t beat them, I’ve had some pretty awesome moments as well. Today, my counterpart and I gave out a writing assignment for the learners to write about heroes or people they admire. In both classes, a learner raised their hand and asked if they could write about Mr. Kelly.

We’re now in the end of year exam period, which entails “invigilating” exams (a seemingly made-up word for proctoring) and also trying to get learners to be quiet and study when they aren’t taking exams. Yesterday, there was an essay question about Batman. I don't even know what to say about that so I'll leave it to y'all for the witty comments. That’s all for now, more to come soon.