My summer in Africa started with a two week field study with Dr. Chong in Tanzania. I could not have asked for a better introduction to Africa. This field study was no vacation, as we worked extremely hard and definitely got down and dirty. Our goal was to focus on community development and parter with a program called Better Lives, where we connected with Rollins Alum Sam Barnes. Through this program we worked on two projects in two different locations named Lishe Bora and Tupendane. Our first day of the field study, we went right to work at Lishe Bora. Here, we assisted in building bathroom and kitchen facilities for a campground for Sam’s ecolodge, and we did this for three days. It was not easy work. My group was responsible for building an outdoor grill, and we had to make an insane amount of cement and use that with the bricks. After those three days, we had a day off where we got to visit some tunnels, watched how coffee is made, and hiked and jumped off a waterfall. The next day, right back to work in Tupendane, where we assisted in completing a living facility for teachers at the primary school. There we made even more cement, which was used to complete the flooring, and countertops throughout the house. Lets just say, I never want to carry heavy buckets of sand and water for a very long time. At the end of the three days in Tupendane, we were lucky enough to play in a soccer game against some of the locals there. Our team was so strong and tough, but we were definitely not used to the grounds as were were playing on rocks and sand, instead of the pristine grass we are used to. The game ended up in a draw, but I was very proud of our team. They also had a closing ceremony for us where we got to enjoy a performance by the Massai tribe which included the traditional singing and dancing. It was beautiful to watch. The day after we finished at Tupandane, we were able to go to a hot spring and swim and rope swing there, which was a lot of fun. And then the trip ended with a three day safari throughout the Serengeti National Park and Ngorongoro Crater. The safari was so amazing, and we were able to see animals like hyenas, lions, elephants, leopards, giraffes, zebras, buffaloes, and gazelles. As fun as all of these activities were, I do not think this trip would have been as impactful as it was without the group of students that were selected to go. Everyone got along very well, and we had some very funny students on the trip, it made it such an enjoyable experience.
After it was time to say goodbye to all my new friends, I got on a plane and instead of heading back home to the United States, I was heading for Maun, Botswana. I was lucky to get an internship in Maun with the help of a family friend of mine. I had many jobs. In the morning, I would tutor out of school teenagers in math, science, and english. We made it fun though, so learn english, I brought the game of scrabble to teach them, and now they are obsessed with that game. After tutoring, I would go to some of the local wards (neighborhoods) and walk around and visit the elderly and interview them for their health and economic history. The program I was working for is starting an elderly day care facility where the elderly go for food and a fun social environment, and needed background information on all of their patients. This was an amazing experience but difficult to see the conditions in which people live there. Maun is a town filled with a lot of inequality. There are big houses or mansions owned by people who own safari companies or nature filmmakers right next to little shacks or huts owned by the locals. After my interviewing, I went to Matswane Primary School, where I led their after school soccer program, and taught soccer skills and games to the children. It was interesting being a female soccer player here because it is very uncommon for women to play soccer. So my first day of work, I received comments like “why is a girl teaching us?” They quickly warmed up to the idea of having a woman coach but it was definitely a shock to them. On the weekends, I would teach soccer to children in a local ward, which was my favorite part. These kids could not afford anything, many of them didn’t have multiple pairs of clothes or didn’t have shoes at all. My coaches at Rollins Soccer were kind enough to donate a lot of old soccer tshirts, uniforms, and balls, which I distributed to this ward called Wenela. Here I also taught them soccer drills and skills and they were able to finally play because they finally had a ball. They were playing on a field completely made of sand, which is something I am definitely not used to and it was extremely difficult. They would play barefoot on this sand while there were little spiky balls in the sand that would get stuck in their feet. They were amazing players and even friendlier children.
Now I am back in the United States, which has given me a lot of time to reflect on my experience in Africa. It was such an amazing experience that not everyone gets the opportunity to have. I learned so much not only about Africa and the culture, but a lot about myself. This is something that I feel I could do for the rest of my life, and I enjoyed every minute of this experience.