Yeah. Life is Basically Awesome.

My goodness! Will the excitement ever stop?! This past week flew by with HIV classes and library check-outs. On Friday we had a huge Peace Corps Halloween party in Mbabane at a 3rd year’s apartment (if you extend your Peace Corps service for a third year, you get to live in a regular apartment in the city and volunteer at an NGO). It was wild to say the least! You get 40+ Americans in their 20’s who have been cooped up in solitary cement huts for a month and things get crazy when they get together around running water! Also on Friday I went to Manzini and met up with the guy who was so kindly holding on to the iPhone Lizzie (my sister) gave me to use here. After finding it, he was nice enough to answer once and ask for 150E in exchange for it and then never answer again. It took me a couple weeks and lots of help from my community to track him down, but we did it (EVERYONE in Swaziland knows everyone. It’s like living in Boone with thatched roofs)!!  So I went to Manzini and got my phone back, ran some errands, and had lunch with Melanie.

Then Saturday! Whoa. I know I said I went on a cool private safari before, but that last one was nothing compared to Saturday! Ted is basically the coolest person on Earth, and is apparently getting a kick out of my excitement when he shows me incredible animals (I thank my Mom for that appreciation of nature - And I would like to take this time to reminisce with her and my family members over trips through Nebraska when the Sandhill Cranes were migrating through. Mom was CRAZY about them and insisted always that she, not Dad, got to drive through Nebraska. While Dad’s face turned blue and knuckles white from his grip on the ‘oh-shit bar’, the rest of us got whip-lash from constant trips past the shoulder of the road and back at 80 mph. Good times. Really taught me the true beauty of nature... You know... the cranes and all). So anyway, this time Ted took me to Mkaya in the bush veld. We saw giraffes, black rhino, African buffalo, I carried tortoises out to a pond, we got out twice to take pictures with white rhino (don’t worry, Ted and the ranger both picked up sticks. Everyone knows you can stop a charging rhino by throwing a stick ... I was ready to poop my pants). We saw BEAUTIFUL birds (Mom, I WISH you would come out here in the summer -December- the birds are breath-taking when they are in full mating plumage), zebra fighting, baby rhino feeding, hippos, fish eagles, it was too much! I am living in an absolute dream! 

And now for some completely inconsequential side stories that you are more than welcomed to skip over.

In Shape

So, I ran out of propane last week. I have the average sized propane tank that most grills in America use (Peace Corps gave everyone a propane cook stove, so I use the gas for boiling my water, cooking, etc). I got a khumbi back to my village after going to town to get it filled, but still had a bit over a mile to where I live. I thought about waiting until a car came by to hitch a ride with it, but being as it was Sunday, the likelihood of transport was slim to none. So I picked it up, and started marching. I was quite surprised at how much easier it was to carry that full tank over a mile home than it was to carry an empty tank 3/4 of a mile two months ago when I ran out of gas during training! I guess all of this walking and hauling water and hard labor is really starting to pay off in terms of getting in shape!

Magic Kettle?

Either I have a magical tea pot, or I have truly become a Peace Corps volunteer. So I ran out of propane the other morning for my gas stove which meant I could not boil water for my tea or to wash my dishes. I knew I wouldn’t have a chance to go to the city for a few days to refill my handigas, so when I came home from school and saw smoke coming from Gogo’s chimney, I figured I’d see if I could put my tea kettle on her stove to boil. Not wanting to be a nuisance, I only boiled one pot as I lamented over the fact that I would have to go another couple days without washing my hair (that is a total lie - I was thrilled for the excuse). When I got back to my hut, I prepared my bath and set out a mug with a tea bag. After my bath (Note: I do mix cold water with the hot while  bathing - I’m a double dipper), I lit a candle and put it under the kettle in attempt to warm the water a bit more (feeble), then poured myself a big almost-steamy tea and sat down to read for a bit. After a while I decided to see how the candle was holding up in the water-warming game (poorly) and poured myself a second mug of tea. After finishing that one I looked at my pile of dishes that had been piling since breakfast (two meals and a snack pretty much takes up all my dishes), and I wished I hadn’t had that second tea so that I’d have enough for dishes. I picked up the pot and decided heck, may as well go for it. Get as many dishes clean as possible. I don’t want another ant episode! I did all of my dishes (NOT double dipping. No water but the water from the pot), and thought, huh, this pot still feels pretty heavy. Maybe I’ll have enough water left to put through my filter and fill my water bottle for tomorrow. I looked. There was still over a third of a kettle left in there! Whoa. A bath, two mugs of tea, and 2.5 meals worth of dishes, and I only used just over half a tea pot of hot water?! Ridiculous! This isn’t some gallon-sized tea kettle or anything either! It is very average sized! So either I am an absolute champion at using little-no water for my daily needs (aka I am disgusting and dirty and a true PCV) or my kettle has magical water generating powers.

Thanks so much for keeping up with me and! And don’t forget, you are MORE than welcome to send me letters at:

Katie Walters PCV

P.O.Box 2797

Mbabane H100

Swaziland

AFRICA

I tried to pose as though I was helping the tortoise.
In actuality, I am fairly certain I terrorized the poor thing.

Beautiful Giraffe! I didn't get a very good shot of her baby though.
Sorry I couldn't share that.

Caption: Just take the d*** picture Ted! There is a horn pointed RIGHT at my stomach
and there is nothing stopping it from going STRAIGHT through me!!!!

Me with my buddies Nandipa and Andile!!