After being in Namibia for well over a year, I have noticed all sorts of prejudices. Most are tribal related and date back several hundred years. The Damara and the Herrero have been fighting off and on for nearly 1000 years, though with no written record of when the conflict started it’s difficult to know when it actually started. Everyone just knows those two hate each other and always have. Occasionally though, it is extremely helpful to be white. Why? You say. Well, as many of you know I’ve been working on a school renovation project with money that was donated by my church (thanks Trinity United Methodist Church) and we finally went to Windhoek to buy paint, brushes, sealant, and a few minor things for classroom repairs. I went with my vice principal (Mr. Bock) who is a Baster (colored). We spoke with the people in the paint section about prices and inquired about a school discount. They sent us to the manager who was an Afrikaner, white people who are known for establishing apartheid. I speak with him instead of my vice principal and he sends me to a contract manager, who is another Afrikaner. The second guy barely spoke but gave us a large discount. I mean he took off about N$2000, about a 35% discount when we were just hoping to get 10% off. My vice principal is convinced it’s because I’m white. I think it’s more likely because I’m American. People here are fascinated with Americans. I’ll never actually know why they gave us such a large discount, but I know we’re going to take advantage of it for the next year.
Also I have decided that one rabies post exposure treatment was not enough and decided that I should obtain a dog so I can receive more rabies treatments. In reality my new roommate wanted a dog so I agreed and ended up getting a dog from another volunteer. He’s about four months old and his former name is “Polony,” but it has been decided he needs a new one. We decided to rename him “wicket,” not after cricket or croquet but after the ewok adventure movies of the mid 1980’s . Yes, I found a roommate who is a nerdy as I am. Sometime Peace Corps is awesome.
School has been hectic and crazy since the start of term three but I’m just going with it. Only one more week of teaching and then I can sit back and watch learners take exams. Then it’s off on a whirlwind adventure around northern Namibia followed by time in the states. I’m using all my vacation time to do these trips. It’s ok though, my only other planned trip is Cape Town next April. My garden workshop had to be postponed for a few days. If it happens again I’m just going to dig the whole thing myself. It’s easier than trying to plan around the constant cycle of weddings and funerals.
