Life in Nam: Week 16

Are we fine?

I’ve returned from Namibia and am blogging from home. Nothing quite “wild West” about the ‘burbs of Northern Virginia, except for the cowboy boots I’m wearing. Traveling from full-on summer and sunshine to short days of winter was something of a shock to the system. Crisp days are certainly more festive and not as jarring as snowflake streetlights on a sweltering, 34 degree C day.

Four months was long enough to have time and space to think, to become acquainted with a place, to observe interactions and take part in a process, and to meet amazing people and travel to stunning landscapes. Four months is not long enough to walk away with a sense that I’ve contributed. I was leaving just as I was beginning to form friendships in a meaningful way, settling into a routine, and connecting friends and colleagues to each other. From a workplace perspective, it was difficult to walk away when the process was incomplete, the same problems plagued the group, an enormous public health issue still looms and when donor funding is in “transition.” No, you can’t solve it all in 4 months. It is about the journey, and one hopes to give a bit and take something in return. Hopefully, this will not be my only chance to visit and contribute to a country I’ve come to love.

There are plenty of things I will miss: the sunsets, stars and sense of community with a small town feel. The phrases: “is it?!” “babbelas” “are we fine?” and “floozies” (for your dearest friends, of course). I will miss the people. Eric, the taxidermist now taxi driver of Tswana descent who I befriended. Lovely Lerine, who has a heart of gold. Some of the dedicated and passionate people I met through work, particularly the CDC folk. 2 Canadians a Brit, the lawyers/interns who never ceased to amaze with their talents and borderline inappropriateness. And the accomplished and uber-competitive women in my running group (may they cross the finish line strong at Comrades)!

Namibia strips away the pretenses, forces you to contemplate, lays bare your deepest longing, and reminds you to enjoy it all along the way...

Life in Nam: Week 15

The Power and the Glory

December 1st is World AIDS Day, and so on Wednesday night, the US Embassy and a group called Spoken Word co-hosted a poetry slam. An impressive turnout of talent and recent stardom (which included the newly crowned "Mr. Gay Namibia." Unfortunately, there is still a long way to go for tolerance of the gay community in Namibia: http://www.informante.web.na/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=9180&Itemid=1&PHPSESSID=bbfca61f1633f0cd4dd9e288223c3509).

The evening was quite different than previous song nights at the Playhouse Theater. A poetry reading seemed the perfect way to express the complexity and impact of the epidemic on individual lives. It was an evening of bravery, honesty, and raw emotion.

5x7 Folded Card

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Life in Nam: Week 15

Figuring it out.



The perfect road trip weekend. Two gals hit the road heading west to Swakopmund. We threw our bags and bikes in the back of Andrea’s VW “kombie” (with a Grateful Dead sticker on the back), Paul Simon and John Lee Hooker on the cassette player, and the car, nicknamed “Shanti” (or White Lightning III, as I referred to her), drove a steady 100km/hr. All of this in order to swim, bike, run...

It was a typically overcast coastal morning. We stood on the beach near the Jetty, waiting for our turn to swim through epic swells in 16 degrees C. The 2011 Desert Triathlon was not exactly on my “to do” list when I arrived in Namibia a few months ago. But when I met up with a group of hard core runners here, they quickly convinced me to step outside of my comfort zone for the open water (ocean!) swim. So I joined the group of other insane wetsuit-clad athletes and proudly finished, albeit slowly. (I blame flat tires and the ridiculously challenging swim conditions: http://www.namibian.com.na/news/full-story/archive/2011/december/article/murphy-wins-desert-triathlon/)


If this is not figuring it all out, then this is pretty damn good.