It has been one week since I arrived in Mozambique.  Since I got here, I have been staying with my brother Matthew in Nhamatanda.  I will be in Nhamatanda until Sunday when I will then go to Mezimbite to begin studying with Allan.  This last week has been quite exciting.  My time in Nhamatanda has provided a chance to rest from jetlag while also getting acclimated to the culture and way of life.  It has been a blessing to spend time with my brother and have a teacher to show me the way of the land.

The trip here lasted nearly a total of 40 hours.  My first flight flew from Chicago to London.  With a nine hour layover, I had a chance to take the Underground (the Tube) into the city.  Having gone to London twice before, I am somewhat familiar with the city.  I spent my day walking along Thames, playing with my new camera, and visiting London’s contemporary art museum, Tate Modern.  I also took advantage of the opportunity to eat of my favorite food from traveling in Europe, the Pickled Cheddar Sandwich, for both lunch and dinner. 

After leaving London I transferred flights in Johannesburg, South Africa, and eventually ended up in Beira, Mozambique.  My third and last flight to Beira was in a very small airplane in which the stewardess had to crouch slightly and duck her head to serve beverages and snacks.  When I arrived in Beira, I found my brother and Allan Schwarz waiting for me.  Matthew took a bus, or a chapa as they are called here, and Allan drove his truck to met us at the airport. 

I left Chicago with two packed bags: a large hiking backpack full of my own things and a duffel bag filled with gifts and presents for my brother and Mary, his girlfriend.  I felt like Santa Claus bringing an entire bag so stuffed with goodies that the zipper couldn’t even close.  The duffel bag however did not appear at the baggage claim in Beira.

After filing a lost bag claim we left the airport and Allan drove us in his pickup truck on the left hand side of the road to Matthew’s casa in Nhamatanda.  On the way, we stopped in Mezimbite where Allan showed us the base of his work.  The entire community there lives sustainably.  I was also able to see where I will be living for the majority of the summer.   To answer some of the lingering questions: I will be living in a tent.

My time in Nhamatanda with my brother has given me a glimpse of the way people live here.  Matthew has taken me to his school and introduced me to a number of his students and friends.  While adjusting to the early mornings, bathing from a bucket, and the 90 degree winter, I have really enjoyed the detachment from what I have always considered necessary.  Though very different, the food here is excellent.  I never realized how many different recipe combinations existed using only the same basic ingredients: rice, beans, tomatoes, peppers, onions, and greens.  The food here is very healthy and consists mostly of fruits and vegetables.

All of the people I have met have been more than friendly.  I am greeted with waves and smiles.  I am spending a lot of time learning Portuguese with the village children and my brother’s students.  Although I spent a number of weeks abroad surrounded by foreign languages, I have never felt so fully submerged in a different language.  I am enjoying the experience of learning a new language - the slow, broken, and sometimes humiliating conversations often accompanied by creative pantomime.

The children here are anxious to learn.  I have never seen so much excitement from a child when a dictionary is placed in front of them.  I cannot imagine the same excitement over a dictionary from children where I grew up.  I wonder if these children’s fascination comes from the fact that there are fewer things to distract them here.  In between Portuguese lessons I have taken the opportunity to sketch some of the places of Nhamatanda.  During my sketching excursions, I have gained a reputation as the “arquiteto branco” (white architect).  There is a group of students from a nearby orphanage who has met a few times to draw me.  I give them paper and draw diagrams on a chalkboard at the orphanage and they teach me Portuguese.

As in America, many people here own dogs.  The dog culture, however, is very different.  Dogs are all kept outside and are used strictly to guard animals and houses.  When I arrived last Thursday, I was greeted by my brother’s dog, Leão (which means “lion” in Portuguese).  Leão followed us to the market and all over the village on my first day here.  This weekend, however, we woke up and found Leão sick, lying under Matthew’s window squealing and wandering in circles.

On Sunday we went to the Catholic church where my brother goes.  I sat in the front of the church next to him and three others who he drums with every Sunday.  Afterward, we went to one of Matthew’s friend’s house to ask for a chain to use to lock up the dog.  Although the family didn’t have a chain to lend us, we learned that the oldest son in the family, who lives in the city but was home for weekend, and who Matthew had never met, is an air traffic controller at the airport in Beira.  He asked about my flight and we told him about our lost luggage, which we had presumed stolen.  He and I exchanged phone numbers and he told me that he would call the next day, when he returned to work, with any information that he could find regarding my bag.

Eventually, we found someone who would lend us a chain.  When we returned home, Leão appeared sicker.  With the help of one of Matthew’s students, we chained the crazy dog to a bamboo post.  The neighbors said that another dog in the neighborhood had gotten rabies and we wonder if Leão had been bit.  She passed away later that afternoon.

The next day we received a call in the morning from our friend at the airport.  The duffel bag full of goodies had been found.  Santa Claus made it to Mozambique after all. 

This weekend I will be leaving to Mezimbite to begin working with Allan.  Although I am unsure whether I will have any internet access there, I will have the occasional opportunity to use a slow connection at my brothers.  Because of the connection speed, I will not be able to post pictures yet, but I hope to do so in the weeks to come.

Até logo.