Firsts in Mozambique

Sunday church services in Mozambique are colorful experiences filled with loud clapping, expressive songs and lively dancing. Locals even bring their own drums to church! The services are around 45 minutes long and Sunday school follows. More than 150 village children attend and they enjoy learning bible stories with books and puppets. (They absolutely adore the puppets!) At my first service I found myself being pulled to my feet by an elderly women. She only spoke Portuguese and despite my protests of “poco Portuguese”, meaning I speak little Portuguese, she began explaining the complicated dance steps. When she finally realized I was not following her she jumped up and showed me how to “shake it” in front of the congregation. I can dance a great two step or cupid shuffle in the U.S., but African dances are another matter entirely! All English attendees were the honoured guests and the children sang a special song for us. Their voices were beautiful! This is a very friendly country and even the markets are filled with music and dancing.

In the markets I often hear old popular 90’s American tunes by groups like N’SYNC and the Spice Girls. My South African friend, Danielle, informed me that Africa is slightly behind in the times. She asked me what trends were popular in the U.S. and I told her leggings, button up shirts, neon prints and North Face jackets. Danielle informed me those will probably be trendy in three years in South Africa. She also told me she was from a small town with a population of 70,000. My hometown of Gallatin, Mo., has a population of 1,200 which astounded her! Afrikaans is the main language of South Africa although native languages and English are widely spoken. Most schools even teach students at least three languages fluently. Danielle has taught me Afrikaans phrases, such as “I want to sloop in a corner,” which means you want to take a nap!

The bean processing was officially finished this week which was very exciting. Monday begins corn processing which will entail unloading, cleaning and spraying the corn to be stored for the upcoming year. Many locals are hired to help with the yearly grain buying. I stand at 5’ 6’ and am taller than most male workers here! Supplies must be bought in advance to ensure the orphans will have food throughout the year. Corn work will continue throughout June. To mark the beginning of June I have helped prepare for one of the largest yearly celebrations. June 1 is International Children’s Day which is considered a major youth holiday in Africa. Many of the children do not know their birthdays so this is the day for general birthday celebrations. All village children are invited to an event sponsored by the orphanage where they spend a fun-filled afternoon playing games and receiving cookies and candies. I am in charge of preparing games which will include sack runs, relay races and limbo.

Each week a staff member rotates assisting Linda, our cook, with meal preparation. This week was my kitchen assistant time. I greatly enjoy the fresh tropical fruit here especially the bananas and watermelon! The sweetest food I have eaten is banana cake. (Everyone knows I have a sweet tooth and in the U.S. I enjoy baking my famous homemade chocolate chip cookies!) Goat is a popular meat here, I find myself missing American beef. Dairy products are difficult to come by as well so I will be without milk and cheese this summer. Luckily, my diet in Africa has expanded beyond rice and beans as I had feared! Linda is great at making homemade meals out of limited resources as she even made enchiladas last night.  This week, I found myself missing American food. I will be eating my fill of cereal, hamburgers and ice cream when I return!