Settling In

Sometimes you just have to make your own fun here, and by sometimes I mean most of the time.

It was a huge team effort of blood, sweat, and tears. But after just a couple hours of work the team successfully scraped together an entire Settlers of Catan game set. Some cardboard, paper, and crayons have pieced together a lifetime of fun (or hopefully at least 2 years of fun).

The game was built in Windhoek, but now resides in Swakop where visitors aren't just encouraged to play. they're forced to settle.

Changes to the game:

• the name from Settlers of Catan to Settlers of Namibia
• Wheat to Mahangu
• Sheep to Game
• Ore to Diamond
• Knight to Bushman Warrior
• Victory Points: Shebeen, Pride Rock, Car Wash, Church, Fat Cake Meme

On a side note, the first 3 games played have been won by...Me.

Being Korean...But Not Really...Not Yet

“I’m not Chinese”

“I’m Korean, but I came here from America which is where I grew up”.

“I don’t speak Chinese”

“You’re damn right I know Kung-Fu!” (It’s a lie; I don’t know Kung-Fu)

These are just a few of the lines that I say or at least think of saying on a daily basis here in Namibia.

Apparently, everyone from America is white and everyone that is Asian is Chinese. If I’m not Chinese, I am Japanese. Once in a blue moon does someone actually guess that I am Korean. I have even been called Indian, both in the Native American sense and the Indian sense. There is a Native American themed restaurant chain here (don’t ask me why), and there are Indians here working on construction projects. I also once was mistaken for a New Zealander, but generally I am Chinese here. It’s not a big deal. It does not and will not affect my success here as a Peace Corps Volunteer. Is it extremely annoying? Yes. Can it be funny sometimes? Absolutely. Do I want to bang my head against a wall? Not quite yet.

I think this is due to equal parts ignorance and history/experience. I don’t think geography and cultural classes are of utmost importance here. When it comes to people of other backgrounds, knowledge seems to stem from history/experience and media.

At some point a pretty significant number of Chinese immigrants came to Namibia. Many Chinese own what are literally called China Shops. They sell really cheap and random products and they don’t typically hire Namibians. The other source of Chinese comes from construction. China has invested a lot in Namibia constructing roads and other infrastructure. In Swakopmund, I often get mistaken for a miner since a lot of Chinese work for the mines. These are the Chinese people that most Namibians have had experience with, so this is the group that I automatically get put into. I should also probably note that I get it from everyone: Black and white, young and old, educated and uneducated. It doesn’t matter; to all of them, I am Chinese.

As I walk down the street I here whispers of “China” and “Chinese”. People greet me with “Nihao”. Children have asked me if I know Kung-Fu. On occasion I get the good old “Ching-Chang-Chong” line. My reaction to all of these remarks usually goes one of two ways depending on the situation and my overall mood at the time. Sometimes I just completely ignore it all. I keep on walking like I didn’t hear a thing. People aren’t too persistent here, so they’ll just stop. The other thing I’ll do is stop and talk to the person or people.

I’ll explain that I am not Chinese and that I don’t speak Chinese. I then either tell them that I am from America and end the conversation there or sometimes I tell them that I am Korean, but grew up in America. At times I even say these things in Afrikaans: “Ek is nie Chinese nie. Ek praat nie Chinese nie. Ek is Korean maar ek kom van America af”. (I am not Chinese. I don’t speak Chinese. I am Korean, but I come from America). This always catches them off guard.

Regardless of what I say, the response I usually get is “ohh, ok”. Whether they understand it or not is trivial. On special occasions when the person seems nice and I’m in a good mood, I explain further that Americans are not all white, but in fact can potentially be of any race or ethnicity. Again I get “ohh, ok” as a response, but it makes me feel good that I tried.

More recently, I have tried to be proactive. A teacher from the primary school in town asked me to talk with the 7^th grade class about entrepreneurship. I was more than happy to do this. Here is how I started my presentation:

“Good morning everybody, how are we today?”

           “Good sir, good”

“My name is John, and today I’ll be talking to you all about entrepreneurship, but before we begin raise your hand if you think I am Chinese.” (nearly every hand goes up) “Ok, now raise your hand if you think I am Japanese” (the remaining hands go up) “Ok, guess what? You are all wrong”.

     “Sir, you’re Korean” says one boy from the back

“Yes, that is correct! Thank you! I am not Chinese, not Japanese, I am Korean. Thank you.”

Then I proceeded with my presentation (which went very well), but not before making certain that 106 kids know that I am Korean. Hopefully, they will tell their family and friends and hopefully word will get around, so that maybe overtime people will recognize me as the Korean-American business volunteer instead of just another Chinese guy. With Swakopmund being a large community it will be an upwards battle, but I know that even just a small impact can go a long way.

My Host Organization

I've mentioned before that my Host Organization and primary project is a COSDEC (Community Skills Development Center). Here is a little bit more information about it:

COSDECs are vocational skills training centers. There are 9 centers located throughout Namibia. All of the centers are governed by the COSDEF (Community Skills Development Foundation). The mission of these COSDECs is "to provide focused, practical skills training that incorporates business skills, entrepreneurship, and life skills and to relate the training programs to opportunities in the local economy in terms of demand for goods and services." The target market are unemployed youth and school drop-outs, and the very inexpensive course offerings attract this market. A typical course is 7 months long with a 3 month job attachment, and the total cost for a course of this length is only $700 Namibian. The courses are offered at such a subsidized cost thanks to significant outside funding.

The particular COSDEC that is my Host Organization is COSDEC Mahetago located in the township of Mondesa, Swakopmund. The current courses that are offered to trainees include:

• Basic Welding & Fabrication
• Basic Joinery & Cabinet Making
• Basic Plumbing & Pipefitting
• Basic Bricklaying & Plastering
• Basic Office Administration & Computing
• Basic Food Preparation & Serving
• Basic Clothing Design

I will not be working directly with any of these courses. Instead I will be working with the center's new Business Development Center (BDC). The BDC has 3 main functions: 1) incubation units, 2) business courses, and 3) mentoring. The BDC will also offer the community a resource center with computers, printing, and other business resources. 

My main responsibilities will be to assist in developing the BDC's activities in a professional and sustainable manner. Sustainability is essential, especially considering that I am a volunteer and not an employee. Any developments that I assist with at the COSDEC must be able to continue without my presence. For example, if I develop a business course on bookkeeping, the course must be able to be taught by an instructor without my help. Furthermore, if that instructor leaves, there must be sufficient documentation about the course so that a new instructor can teach the course without aid. 

So there's a little bit more detail on my work situation, but I will also be sure to continue to keep you up to date on all my projects.

Pictures of COSDEC Mahetago:

Food For Thought (Oct-14)

While living with a host family my diet was pretty dependent on what my host mom bought and cooked. I could have been pickier and more demanding, but that’s not me. I was always well feed, so who was I to complain.

Since moving to my own place in Swakopmund the game has changed. I now buy the food and cook my own meals. Sometimes myself and the other Swakopteers, Swakopmund volunteers, (I just came up with that) get together and one might cook for all or we might cook as a group. This is always a nice occurrence, but for the majority of my meals, I cook for myself.

Some examples of what I have been cooking/eating:

Breakfast (nothing crazy, just quick and easy stuff)

•  Eggs, toast, and fruit. This is pretty standard. I’ll scramble the eggs, cook them over easy, hardboil them, or maybe put them in a hat.
  
•  The other main breakfast I have is yogurt with granola. Simple, easy, delicious.   
• Oh and of course I may just throw together a PB&J. Always a winner.

Lunch (even easier than breakfast)

• Leftovers from the night before.
• PB&J…
  

Dinner (keeping it simple to save $, but getting creative when I can)

• Rice or lentils with beans. Yep, that’s what we got to do on our Peace Corps budget. I usually add in things like onions, carrots, dice tomatoes, or frozen vegetables. Sauce packets and spices help add flavor as well.
• A pretty good one pot dish I made was chickpeas and sausage cooked with chicken broth, onions, diced tomatoes, and garlic.
• I made chili, just like mom makes it back home. The only thing missing from the recipe was bacon because I can’t afford to use mince (ground beef) and bacon in the same dish. It’s a shame I know.

Snacks & Desserts (not much to say here)

• The popular snack recently has been popcorn. No microwave, but who needs one when you have a pot and stove.
• The only sweets I’ve made so far has been sugar cookies, but I’ll be baking up some more sweets for sure.