Feliz Aniversario: One Year in Country
We arrived
in Mozambique September 26th, 2012.
While I would agree with many that our first 3 months (of Pre-Service
Training) in country pale in comparison to the 24 months of service at our own,
individual sites, I nonetheless consider those first three months as formative
of our views of Mozambique. My current
site of Cuamba in the province of Niassa is very different from our training
site of Namaacha, and it’s certainly poles, maybe even worlds apart from the
capital of Maputo. But these differences
add to our varied perspective of Moz. I’m still just learning about this enormous
country. Hell, I’m still just learning
about my site of Cuamba. Honestly, I’m
still trying to work through my impressions and experiences here. Some of you have already heard me call it
“Cuckoo Cuamba,” but that may only a knee-jerk reaction, I think. I’ll need to spend a bit more time to render
a fairer, more accurate, representation of this city.
For now, let
me re-cap this action-packed month of September 2013. It started out laid-back enough, during a fabulous
(as always) Sunday brunch at Colin’s, when I got a call from RPCV Anwar Archer informing
me that he’s already arrived in Cuamba. . . all the way from Namibia! Anwar is a fellow Cape Verde Transfer who got
moved to Namibia as a Small-Enterprise Development volunteer. He COSed the end of August and travelled
coast to coast from Namibia to Mozambique.
It took him about 9 days of over-land travel, including stops at
Victoria Falls and Lake Malawi, to get to my site. What an honor to be a part of the last leg of
his trip to reach the Indian Ocean!
In Nampula
on our way to meet JICA volunteer Takuyu, I almost got robbed on the busy
Kankhomba street near the city’s major traffic circle. I got sandwiched between two guys, one of
whom shook my arm, to get my hand out of my pocket, I guess. I quickly (and luckily) side-stepped out of
the trap.
On my way to
the airport, the taxi I was in rear-ended a motorbike. It got pushed and plopped onto the center
divider of the road. Before the “mota”
landed on its side, the driver and his passenger behind him were able to hop
off the bike. They both seemed to be
okay, though the biker kept on hopping, with a grimace on his face, holding his
crotch. His passenger, on the other
hand, hopped into my taxi, and for a moment I thought we would need to go to
the hospital. They spoke in the local
language of Macua, and I understood nothing of their minor squabble. But when we went straight to the airport I
realized that the accidental passenger I think was just getting a free ride
from the taxi driver.
Overall,
though, I enjoyed the short stay in Nampula.
I finally met up with the famous (perhaps too famous amongst PCVs) JICA
volunteer Takuyu. We celebrated one of
his colleague’s birthday and enjoyed some Japanese cuisine. I also got to see other PCVs at the Peace
Corps office, gathering and preparing for their REDES (Raparigas Em
Desenvolvimento e Saúde) conference. It’s
so very rare, here in Cuamba, for us to see PCVs from other provinces, that
seeing them in Nampula was special, to say the least.
As I mention
in last month’s blog post, I would be travelling to Manica’s provincial capital
of Chimoio for my own COS (Close of Service) conference. A direct route to that city from Cuamba would
have been a little over 1,000 kilometers, but my round-about trip (or “creative
route” according to PCV Helen in Tete), more than tripled the distance. The plane from Nampula took a 30 minute
layover in Tete City Airport, before heading to Beira, the provincial and
coastal capital of Sofala. There I
stayed overnight at Hotel Indico, in a somewhat sketchy area near Miramar
Hotel. The following day I was very
tempted to crash the house-party in full swing around the corner, but I really
just wanted to get to my destination, and I wasn’t sure what the chapa ride
would be like, so, after taking a short walk on the beach and an errand to the
bank, I checked out of the hotel, took a chapa to “Baixa,” the main hub/chapa
station. There I boarded a full chapa
(luckily got a seat way in the back).
The 3 to 4 hour ride to Chimoio was
relatively easy and without much incident—a wonderful thing, since we sped
through Sofala, which is considered RENAMO country. The road to Chimoio also showcased big-rigs
that have flipped over on the side of the road.
We have no paved roads here in Cuamba (actually, they just finished
paving one road through the center of town where all the government buildings
are located), but it seems clear that the tragic disadvantage of paved roads is
the higher rate of car accidents. Thank
goddess I arrived in Chimoio safely.
So I got to
Chimoio, another city that’s worlds apart from Cuamba. I met up with the other CV transfers at
Castelo Branco hotel. Our sessions,
unlike some in PST or Reconnect, weren’t as demanding. We do have a bunch of paperwork to submit. .
. For instance, our Volunteer Report Form (VRF) is due this coming weekend. And I’ve yet to write the letter to my
replacement here in Cuamba. I have to revise my “Description of Service” (DOS),
etc. etc. Aside from all the forms that
we’re reminded to complete, I have to get ready to move to Chimoio, probably
mid-November. I also discovered, during
the trip, that I would be participating in week 8 of Moz 21’s Pre-Service
Training. Hence, the early departure
from Cuamba. So, busy, busy, busy.
But those
three days of our conference were, believe it or not, relaxing. Maybe it was because we were well-fed, but I
think we all are ready for the next chapter, whether it be graduate school, or
a job-search, or another year in Moz. As
I said during our closing session, I probably would not have decided to come to
Mozambique without my Cape Verdean counterparts. It’s been tough here in the north without you
all; no one seems to really understand.
I appreciate the moments we spent together in Cape Verde and here in Moz,
but I’m also grateful to you all because I might not have transferred, might
not have met even more wonderful people, without you. I’m a bit sad that we’re all splitting up
(again!), but I’m glad and happy that I got to know you.
During our
fun conference, I neglected to write “warm fuzzies” to six of you. Sorry.
You all know I’m neither warm, nor fuzzy. But let me try to be, just a little:
Marina— you’re an intelligent, strong, and caring woman.
You excelled as a PCV, and I’m sure you’ll excel in other future
endeavors. I very much enjoyed our hike
in Sanicolau and our little ride around Beira to the airport. Wish I can visit you in Cabo Delgado! Alas, our time in country is short, and the
distances to travel long. Hope to see
you again, if not in CV, then perhaps stateside.
Brendão—I’ll
never forget the time in Somada when you whooped our asses in poker, with a
shitty 10-3 hand. Dude, I had a pocket pair of
aces! And remember that music festa in
Tarrafal? You and Lynette’s “sinister
shade of green” concoction at Tobey’s?
And then that one night drinking bomb brandy at “Baia Verde”
restaurant-bar, overlooking Tarrafal beach—was that before or after our epic
hike around Tfal? Good times, man. You were cool and stylish through it
all. It was awesome to have been in the
Santiago crew with you.
Mims— one of
the PCV goddesses of Sanicolau, you rock in art and philosophy. I enjoyed hanging out with you and your
students’ family in Canto Faja. I’ll
miss your cool logic and heartfelt understanding.
Joãzinho—
suave João, in case you didn’t know, all us boys looked up to you. Always gracious and thoughtful with an edge,
you’ll rock in Portugal and wherever else you go.
Craigles—that
was cruel of you to tease us with Blue Moon during our Skype call. I think you owe us all beers when we get
back. I’ll miss your good humor and
super chill attitude.
Kimi— I miss
your visits in Praia, and my visits to your São Domingos, and your Funana dance
lessons, and having ice cream at Arctica, and getting groceries at Calu, and
hanging out at Café Sofia. . . Ugh, things are so different here in Moz without
you. A reunião em Cabo Verde is a must, I think.
To all other
PCVs and friends I met these last two years, it has been one hell of a trip and
a great pleasure. Seeing you all again
would be grand. It was quite grand
seeing almost all Moz19ers of Niassa this last weekend for English Theater--a success, by the way. I was very happy and proud of my students´performance. Even though we were busy
helping facilitate the event, it was wonderful to see so many familiar faces (Jamie B., Grisha, Eric K., Jade, Ella, Matt J., Alice B., Victor, Hannah),
to catch up with what’s been happening even just for a short while. Peace Corps life is strange in that peak experiences
can be so high, but perhaps only because they’re surrounded by lull
moments. At least that seems to be the
case here in Cuamba.
