Luckily, I've been able to get into the computer lab again! Unfortunately, that means I can't post any of the incredible photos I've gotten over the past several days, and today particularly Last update was yesterday morning, I think, and a lot has happened since then so I'll try to keep this interesting. We met yesterday afternoon with our Univen students, which has now been taken down to the 5 original players that are truly invested in the project (as I had hoped for and predicted). The nursing students were supposed to come to the 1430h debriefing yesterday but none of them showed, so it was clear that we were moving forward without them. We finally had a highly productive meeting and debriefed about the meeting with the water committee from the day before. They voiced that their main concern was water accessibility to the whole village, not necessarily the cleanliness, and the flow of the water which has also been an issue. Many of the villagers have access to water via pipes that are present in their backyards, or their neighbors', but there are still many households that have no water access and must fetch it from far away and carry it to their homes. It is believed that the size of the water pipe (which is currently 50mm) is too small, so they want to install a 100mm pipe so improve flow and accessibility.They also discussed that they wanted the roads to be improved, and for a creche (preschool) to be built in the village, as right now they must transport their children to a neighboring village, and pay to use theirs.We also strategized in the meeting about logistics and plans for the community visit we did this morning (Thursday), and developed who would work with which group. It was decided that the original folks would stick with the water group, and that Kwathiso, Miriam, and I would conduct the Elderly Women's group at the same time. Joe, Foster, and Elly were assigned to go around the village to folks that they knew and recruited men for the business group.

We wrapped up our meeting and headed back to Acacia, where we hung out for a bit and then, as per usual, I got started on dinner. We wanted to use up as much of the fresh stuff we have as possible before we head to Kruger for the weekend, so I made a sweet potato and carrot mash with orange and local spices, rice, and green beans with garlic and ginger. I should note that I mashed the potatoes and carrots with a liquor bottle. Very classy, I know. Sid went to the store and got a case of the Castle Milk Stout, which was delicious! Sid, Joe, Julie, Cassie, Miriam, and I played cards, had dinner, drank beer and whiskey, and called it a night.

This morning, we had to be up early to meet our Univen partners to load into the van (yes, van. Not bus. Thank God.). The van was also on South African time, so we were late to the village again. I was less than thrilled. Luckily, the folks coming to the meetings hadn't come outside too early because it was quite chilly, and many of them arrived when we got there. Miriam, Kwathiso, and I joined the elderly women on the ground under the big mango tree at the chief's house and introduced ourselves.Kwathiso introduced the project and explained things to them,and we got started by asking them how they pictured their community if it was perfect. They discussed the water accessibility, and how they wanted everyone to have water, first and foremost. They also expressed that they wanted to be able to knit and sew for the community, and how they needed a sewing machine to be more efficient. It was fascinating to hear them brainstorm ways in which to purchace a sewing machine, including sewing and beading things by hand to sell at the markets and using that money towards the purchase. They also discussed how they could see if everyone could contribute a little bit of money towards the purchace, and that they would sew clothing for those people. What I found to be most exciting was their desire to have a community garden/farm, where anyone in the village was welcome to the food grown on it and then whatever was leftover could be sold at the market. The money made would be used for community projects, as well as to keep the garden going. As with the Water Committee, these women expressed the need for a creche, as well as road improvement to the creche that is being used currently. It was enlightening to hear these women discuss these things, particularly because the ongoing theme was that they wanted to do things for their community. Every personal contribution that they suggested was ultimately for community improvement, and I found it to be so inspiring that these women are so selfless, and that the community seems to be pretty selfless in general. I would love to see an attitude like that, even in the slightest, in many communities in the US.

After the meetings wrapped up, we all walked a ways to look at the pipe system currently in place. We ended up in a woman's back yard while she was using the system to wash some clothes. She had two children (assuming they were grandchildren) in the yard with her. While the men were checking out the pipe system, I got distracted by the kids, who loved my camera. We played with them and took pictures, and showed them the photos. They were delighted! One of the male villagers, Jonas, also wanted to take pictures with me. He was kind of creepy about it and was reluctant to let go of me after the picture had been taken (he had his arm around my shoulder). I'll upload photos as soon as I can. Promise!

After a long morning in the village, debriefing with the team over lunch, and sneaking into the computer lab to write this novel (sorry it became so long), I'm pooped. Hopefully I'll be able to update after going on Safari this weekend complete with pictures. And of course epic stories of me saving my entire team from an angry elephant bull, park police discovering a lion cub in my suitcase, and giving a bottle of whiskey to a monkey to see what happens. Signing off, ya'll!