Viva Espana: World Cup Fever

Ok, I know it's a bit late to be writing about the World Cup, but I started this blog 6 months after I moved to Botswana and I've done some pretty cool things over the last half year. So I will be updating everyone of my shenanigans in a belated fashion.

First up: World Cup. I don't know how I would have survived June without the biggest sporting event in the world. As you may have noticed from my last post, I'm a hockey junkie. Never cared much for football, or is it soccer, I don't know anymore! But as I struggled to meet people and to build a social life for myself, football (as I've decided to call it), help ease my transition. Pretty much every night of the week, I would head out to a local pub or restaurant to watch a game. Any game. I really didn't care. Since Canada has no team, I decided to cheer for my adopted continent. I cried with the rest of the continent when Ghana came so close to moving on to the semi-finals. I felt almost as devastated as when the Sens lost in the Stanley Cup finals. Seriously.

I'd thought about going to a game but I kept wavering because of the cost, the travel expense and the lack of a buddy to go with me. Then my friend Knight called on a Thursday evening saying he had tickets for Saturday's quarter-final match between Spain and Paraguay and invited me to come along. After a few phone calls to find accommodation (thanks Andrew), I booked a flight on Friday and Saturday morning, I was off to Joburg.

IT WAS TOTALLY WORTH IT!!!!!

We went straight to Nelson Mandela Square where we were greeted by the colours of the world. Spaniards, Dutch, Mexicans, Germans, Americans and a whole lot of other people proudly displayed their country colours by wrapping themselves in flags, painting their faces, donning hats. It was patriotism at its best.




Knight and I quickly decided we were cheering for Spain (my choice was based on the good looks of #14 Xabi Alonso) and proceeded to purchase some Spanish flags and draped ourselves in them.

As we were walking through the mall, we heard some cheering and clapping and turned to see team Ghana walking through the mall! Fresh off their devastating defeat the previous night, the team was given a hero's welcome as people from all over the world cheered, clapped and expressed how proud they were of their effort. It was beautiful. I almost cried.



The game was just as awesome. Knight told me we had good tickets but I didn't realize how good they were. As we walked into the stadium, we were directed to the lower level. We then started walking down the stairs, searching for row x. As we continued to walk down, I turned to Knight and asked him where exactly we were sitting. He told me to keep walking,

We stopped eight rows from the pitch. EIGHT ROWS!!!! Oh and we were sitting in about the centre of the football pitch! I could hear the players talking to each other. So amazing.Thank you Knight!

We watched the eventual World Cup champions squeeze out a victory against Paraguay. It was truly an amazing experience. One that I will never forget.

Hockey Night in Canada

This is for everyone back in Canada who are gearing up to watch NHL opening night. Montreal Canadiens vs Toronto Maple Leafs. Classic rivalry. Wish I was home for it! Go Habs Go! (tomorrow, it's Go Sens Go!!!!)

Making a difference, one letter at a time

My role in Botswana to is to build capacity in the area of communication and information management. It has been a struggle particularly at the counselling centre. The centre is short of funds, as are many NGOs, and I have been utilized to write proposals and look for sources of funding. Not necessarily my job description. Also, one of our major programs, which employs about 17 staff, ended September 30. Therefore, most staff spent the past two months wrapping up the program, writing reports and polishing their CVs in hopes of finding new employment. I've been asked to write a lot of CVs and I've helped out after hours as much as I can.

There are many days where I can't help but feel like I'm wasting my time here. I've been working at Maun Counselling Centre (MCC) for two months and I don't know if I've actually made any type of difference. The point of capacity building is that when I leave, the people in the organization should be able to continue with my work. I just don't know if that can happen here. Especially in such a short time.

When people think of communications, they usually think about websites, newsletters, pamphlets, brochures, etc. Well, at least that's what management thinks about at MCC. But when an organization is struggling to survive, the last thing it has is money to produce these types of products. Also, for many employees at the centre, English is still a new language and the capacity to write these documents has not yet been developed.

When I spoke to employees, they informed me that their communication needs were far more basic. They want to learn basic typing skills, basic English language writing, how to take minutes during a meeting, etc. This isn't what I had in mind when I first came here, but I have to adapt to my surrounding and to the needs of people.

Another struggle has been the lack of enthusiasm, or maybe it's better described as apathy, in actually learning. Sure someone tells me they want to learn how to type, but when I ask them to type a simple letter, they say no. Same thing with taking minutes. Batswana are funny people. Many of that claim to want to learn, but don't actually want to do the work to get there. This has been my biggest frustration so far.

So imagine my surprise and deep delight when I walked into the office this morning and found a coworker practicing his typing using a program I found online and added to every computer in the IT room. Not only was he practicing, but he was teaching another employee how to use the program. Still working on lesson 1, which practices using the letters "F" and "J," he excitedly told me how he only made 23 mistakes during his last test. The first time he took the test, he made 191 mistakes. He is now working on lesson 2 and his typing is improving every hour!

This is the first time in two months that I've seen someone take initiative with anything that I've attempted to teach. Typing might seem like such a small skill, but if they get comfortable with the computer, then they might start typing their reports instead of writing them by hand. This simple skill will help them today and in the future wherever they may be.

If this is the only skill people learn while I am here, I will be satisfied. We need to start small. One key, one letter, one word at a time.

Indifference or Ignorance

I work in an HIV and AIDS counselling and testing centre. While we test and counsel people at the centre, our main area of focus is education and testing in rural communities and local impoverished areas. On my first day of work, I went to a shabeen (a gathering spot where alcohol is brewed and sold) for a testing and counselling session. Field officers from work had previously scouted the location, talked to the owner (commonly known as Shabeen Queens) and held a session about the importance of knowing your status. A week later, a counsellor, outreach worker and myself showed up for the testing session. It is important to show up early in the morning before people get drunk. It's not recommended to test people while they are under the influence. Unfortunately, we arrived a  bit late (around 10 am) and most patrons were wasted already.

I've been tested regularly since I was 20-years-old. Every six months to be exact. Not because I engage in risky behaviour, but because I think it's important to know your status and to get in the habit of being tested regularly. I still get freaked out every single time I get tested. I get nervous, panicked, my skin feels clammy and I'm pretty sure all blood is drained from my face. Why? My deep fear of needles probably has something to do with it, but I grew up with the knowledge that sex today is a lot riskier than it was 30 years ago. And HIV is the biggest reason.

Maybe I'm paranoid. I know even my doctor thinks I'm crazy to get tested so often since I'm from Canada and our country's HIV incidence rate is approximately 0.02 percent. Which is why I have a difficult time comprehending how people seem so unfazed about testing here even thought the incidence rate is a staggering 17.6 percent.

I don't know if it was their drunken state, a lack of fear or ignorance, but the people at the shabeen acted like getting tested was a simply a normal part of their day. They chatted with the counsellor, got tested, received their results and no matter the result, continued drinking and talking with the rest of the patrons. One man who tested positive sat next to me and told me he already knew he was positive and that he didn't care. Slurring his words, he told me he was taking anti-retrovirals and that he was fine. He then asked me to have sex with him.

I guess it's good that he has taken his diagnosis well, has begun treatment and may well live a long and prosperous life. However, he is more likely sleeping with many women, passing the virus to them as well as to his wife, depleting his body with alcohol and reducing the effect of the antiretrovirals in the process and simply not caring much about his life or the consequences of his actions.

And that is the case for many in Botswana. HIV and AIDS is everywhere: in ad campaigns, in schools, in the workplace, on TV, at home, in the funerals held every weekend, and yet, people don't seem to take it very seriously. This isn't just a one-off observation, it's something I see on a daily basis through my work. I don't know how to get people to care. It's not my job either but it's something I'm having a hard time siting down and accepting.

It's a man's world

I've been in Botswana for six months now. I've had my fair share of ups and downs. I've helped organize a major event that attracted international press, I've been up close and personal with lions, leopards and wild dogs in the beautiful bush of Botswana, and I've made some really great friends. I've also done four courses of antibiotics for various ailments, been sick more times than I thought humanly possible and continue to struggle with the HIV and AIDS epidemic and the seemingly blazé attitude of many about this virus and disease, and why exactly it keeps spreading like wildfires in Botswana.

But my biggest struggle has been the gender gap and how this paternalistic society has not only contributed to a complete lack of women's rights, but also to the rapid spread of HIV.

While polygamy is not widely practiced, it is not uncommon, actually it's far too common, for a man to have a wife and numerous mistresses. A friend  recently revealed how she found her boyfriend in HER bed with another woman. He told her to spend the night on the couch while he continued with his mistress.  She did. And he is still her boyfriend today. I was outraged when I heard this story. Sure, I've taken crap from guys before. Most women have, but I would never allow myself to be disrespected in such a way. I wondered why this successful, beautiful and seemingly level-headed woman would accept such behaviour?

A conversation with my friend Sharon revealed why many intelligent women accept this behaviour and why equal rights is far from being a reality in Botswana. Sharon indicated that many women are raised to accept this kind of behaviour. Young girls learn from their mothers that they are second-class citizens; that men will drink away their food budget, force them to have sex and beat them if they don't comply and that in all likelihood, their partners will stray. Their mothers have suffered the same fate and don't believe their daughters will find anything better. When daughters talk to their mothers about cheating boyfriends or husbands, the mothers will often tell their daughters to let it go and stay because "they will never find a man that won't cheat." Also, since women are raised in a society where the man will provide for you, it is a trade off to accept that he strays.

One wonders why any woman would accept being a mistress. How can we promote cheating and do this to our fellow women? Well, mistresses get gifts, money, groceries, etc. Men provide for a girl's family and oftentimes are that family's main source of income. It's one step above prostitution which some women are also pushed into by their families to make a quick buck.

It's easy to see why the HIV incidence rate is on the rise again. 

So what's a Batswana woman do to? Educated women still make 30 percent less than men while doing the exact same job. It is still legal for a husband to rape his wife. And worst of all, mothers are still teaching their daughters that they cannot survive, cannot have a good life without a man, despite how badly he might treat her and even thought his behaviour might kill her.