Ga Go Na Mathata: First Week of Classes and Putzing Around Gabz

After swapping stories with fellow exchange students, I realized that my first week of UB classes was inordinately straightforward and uneventful. All of my lecturers showed up on the first day of classes (though each was between 5 and 20 minutes late), I did not arrive to any class only to find it had been dropped for the semester, no one mixed up my gender on my student ID card, both UB and PLU have approved all of my courses, none of my professors have said something about me in Setswana that I couldn't understand in front of the class to elicit laughter from the Batswana students, none of my professors used class time to permanently reschedule the class without any organized process of voting, and I have already received a syllabus for one of my classes! The only glitch occurred when one of my professors arrived on Wednesday only to say that class was cancelled for the rest of the week because she had been double booked for that time slot and needed to sort things out, although she assured that the class would resume at the scheduled time on Monday. Cheers and whoops filled the lecture hall and students were practically on the professor's heels as she exited. It seems that a government-funded college education produces a more carefree brand of college student than I'm used to encountering at a private liberal arts school with a sobering price tag. I don't know the exact specifications of the policy, but from what I've read and heard citizens of Botswana receive free tuition at UB and a stipend for living expenses-- although university admission itself is highly competitive. The government spends around 20% of its budget on education and is pushing hard to diversify the economy and bolster the work force in order to maintain the country's prosperity when the diamond mines are inevitably scraped clean. Some students still struggle though, evidently... I encountered a student passing out fliers for student loans. He told me that budgeting may still be tough despite government aid, especially when one's family might be struggling financially and as a full time student he or she doesn't have an income to contribute. This also might be a more common scenario at Botswana's newer private universities. Regardless, I've been reflecting on the cost of education in the U.S. and its implications for student psyche. Are the pressure and anxiety caused by classes that cost hundreds of dollars per session motivating or debilitating? I see so much injustice in sending young people into the world already shackled to banks and limited in their opportunities because of debt. I'm looking forward to gaining a better understanding of how Batswana students view their college education compared to what I know about the attitudes of my American peers.

Emotionally this week has been jarring. This adjustment period has me feeling raw and vulnerable, so my perceptions of myself and my environment have made everyday life seem so much more dramatic than usual. I need to work on being kinder to myself: it's ok that I don't know, that I don't understand, that I feel uncomfortable sometimes, that I don't already have the kinds of friendships that take time and trust to build, and that I miss things about home, especially those I love. I just try to remind myself that I am brave for coming here, for committing to this experience, and for embracing everything it has to offer even (especially?) the painful parts. I've also had some great times this week playing and bonding with new friends and exploring my new home.

My dinner from Curry Pot, one of the dining options on campus:
Greek salad and a fat cake with mince (I am eating some meat... There aren't
that many veg. options for protein at the refectories.

Cloud formation over the Las Vegas dorms-- at risk of sounding
like a stereotypical American-in-Africa, the sky is seriously bigger here
and the clouds more textured and immense.

Earlier in the week I had lunch with Krista and Dana (from my CIEE group) at Gaborone Sun, a nice hotel down the street from UB. They even let non-guests use the pool if they buy drinks or food. Friday I went on a mini-adventure with Krista and Anandi: we walked around and found a place called News Cafe which is stylishly decorated, air conditioned, AND HAS ESPRESSO! Batswana mostly drink instant coffee, so this was the first time I'd had a latte since leaving Washington. I didn't even care that the outside ambient temperature was almost as hot as my beverage. On our walk we also found a botanical garden where we got to learn a bit about some native species, and we ran across a place that teaches children's cooking classes-- they said they could arrange a class for our group to learn how to make some traditional Setswana foods! Family and friends will have that to look forward to when I get back. =]

Saturday most of our group rose before the sun to beat the heat and climb Kgale hill which is just outside the city and has a great view of the greater Gaborone area at the top.

Two combis at the station

The group waiting for the combi to fill up before we can go

We arrived before the vendors

Bro.

Afterward we treated ourselves to breakfast at Gamecity mall. It seems like most of the restaurants, including Juicy Lucy where we ate, are chains from South Africa or elsewhere. This probably doesn't have the best implications for Botswana's own economy.

Anandi and Nahara, tired and hangry

More good coffee!!

Later in the afternoon/evening our whole CIEE group, including the host families of our homestay friends met for a braai (a barbecue) at the home of the gracious homestay coordinator Mma Bianca. After everyone finished the meal--which included several kinds of meat, mashed potatoes, and variety of salads, curries, etc--the braai erupted into a dance party, which I'm told is pretty typical. I'm not used to having something like a barbecue include trans-generational booty shaking, but it was so much fun!