Get thee to a nunnery? :( I don't wanna.

7/30/09-- still more to come
It's winter, yet somehow there are still bugs around that like to dive-bomb my eyeballs. Is there something attractive to insects about my pupils? Perhaps there is something written there in Insect-ese that says "Oh hello there, it'd be rather nice if you bludgeoned this spot right here..."

The weather is getting a bit warmer, which might explain the whole bug thing. The weather has been nice, and a tad unpredictable. I spent most of the day in town yesterday; I went to lunch with S. and a few others for some rather yummy Chinese, then wandered around Mbabane for a few hours before heading to a meeting with the nuns.

I met with some nuns (Sister Diane and Barbara from the Cabrini Mission) yesterday to talk about the orphanage they run near Manzini. To meet them, Sarah drove me up to the Mountain Inn, a wonderfully situated hotel that overlooks the valley. The view was stunning, and I insist that anyone who comes to visit me and has the funds to spare stay there. (So that I can come visit you and sit around looking out at the view without getting too many dirty looks from the staff. :P )

It is not quite clear what they thought of me, but they said they would be in touch a few days, and seemed happy that I was interested. They may have thought I was one of those people who has never really been out of the country before, and comes in with unrealistic expectations. Or, they could have thought that I was someone who never actually worked internationally before, which is very true. I still don't know enough about the culture, but I am working at it. There is only so far that reading will get you, so at some point I am going to need to be involved in the community. Only problem is, if everyone wants me to have experience working in the community first, there will be some problems. xD

There are some other volunteer prospects, but I will have to wait to see what the Cabrini Mission says first, as they were the ones I asked first, and their organization is the one I most want to work with at the moment. Of course, if any paying jobs come my way, I will have to reprioritize.

In the meanwhile, S. has given me something to do--I don't know if it is actually something that needs to be done for her office, or if it is just something to keep me busy, but in either case I am very grateful. There are some new things going on involving Domestic Violence against Women here, and she is going to give me some things to read and take notes on. And tomorrow, I may be going to sit in on a meeting to get a feel for things. I am quite excited at the prospect. Especially because this weekend we will be going to a panel on women’s empowerment--it will be nice to have more background before I go.

Have to go take a shower now—have an appointment with the hairdresser. This place truly is "Africa-lite"/"Switzerland of Africa."

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