Ok people let’s talk Holiday fun. This year didn’t feel much like the holiday
season, I’m blaming the million-degree heat and lack of snow, but that doesn’t
mean that we didn’t do it up right!
I met up with 3 other PCVs in my group and we instantly set
off for the coast! The first stop was
Walvis Bay which turned out to be a sleepy little town during Christmas but we
had fun going to the beach, exploring, and eating a Christmas Lunch at the, only,
place open that day. We went on a Harbor
tour given by Levo Tours, which was AMAZING!
This is where I met my new Best Friend Bubbles. I got to hug bubbles twice; the first was
planned and bubbles just hopped into my lap on the boat, and the second was on
purpose with fish strategically given to Bubbles behind my head. We got to see two different types of Dolphins
and at the end of the tour we were fed a gourmet meal complete with Oysters and
Champagne. The Oysters in Walvis Bay are
supposed to be the meatiest in the world because of the way they are grown in
the cold Namibian Waters.
The last stop was Swakopmund. Swakop is such a cute town with older
buildings that reflect the early german influence, with nice shopping, good
food, and one of the nicest prisons I have seen in my life. *Note
I didn’t get arrested on this trip (just a wanted fugitive) but we did drive by
the outside. We found an awesome hawkers
market where all is fair in love and bartering.
New Years Eve was
epic this year and by far the best and most memorable. In the morning we went…Wait for It…
SKYDIVING! Now I confess that I have never wanted to go skydiving a day in my
life but my friends were all doing it so it would be dumb of me not
to..right? So yes after I cracked under
peer pressure I was the first of the four of us to go up in the plane to take
the plunge of a lifetime. You can tell
by the video that I was SO scared. I had
the man I was attached to explain to me like 4 times what I needed to do and
when. But by the end I was smiling because I had survived.
After skydiving the
girls and I went out to New Years supper. And later met up with friends for an
awesome New Years Eve Party. Event
planners had drained the remaining water from an indoor swimming pool and
replaced it with sand in a stadium seating kind of way. In the deep end there
was an epic dance floor that was packed with hundreds of people. Complete with three DJs and several bars this
was THE place to be in Swakop that night!
Resolutions for the New Year?
While I’m not always the biggest fan of resolutions I have made a few goals.
1. I want to focus more on learning Damara more fluently. I can speak it decently well for a /Hûsa but I want to be more fluent. But on top of that I'm learning a little bit of Otjiherero to put in the same amount of effort to my Herero friends.
2. I also want to be the best version of myself that I can be. This experience has taught me a lot about myself and about the person I am meant to be. I want to make sure I’m the best friend I can be to those around me and to myself!
3. I also resolve to wash my hair more often and wear more fashionable clothes. My lovely friend Sam once pointed out to me that I could be more fashionable. My friends at the school say they like my hair when it’s down (i.e. washed) because it looks more free.
So you may be
thinking…Wow what’s next for your adventure?
Well I’ve been
chosen to be a resource volunteer for the new PC/Namibia health group coming in
March. So I will spend a week with them
answering questions about my life here and presenting on different topics.
The youth camp I
work with, Camp GLOW, will be coming up in August. My friend Anna and I are in charge of
planning the health day, which I am really looking forward to.
My family is also
planning a trip out here and it will be really nice for many reasons. First I
get to see them. I skyped with my
parents over the holiday and my dad mentioned that it was the first time they
had seen me in almost a year. This is was strange to think about because I am,
thankfully, able to talk to them every week on the phone. And it will also be nice because I will be
able to share this part of my life with my family. I take a lot of pride in being an honorary
Damara and I take a lot of pride in my village and my country. I’m excited to show them all of what Namibia
has to offer.
