{"id":157,"date":"2013-06-27T11:05:01","date_gmt":"2013-06-27T16:05:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.traviswohlrab.com\/?p=157"},"modified":"2023-05-02T20:24:07","modified_gmt":"2023-05-03T01:24:07","slug":"iii-greetings-from-lesotho","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/traviswohlrab.com\/blog\/iii-greetings-from-lesotho\/","title":{"rendered":"III. Greetings from Lesotho"},"content":{"rendered":"

Lumelang lelapa le bakhotsi!
\nHello family and friends!<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

\"Thamae\"<\/a>
My Host Family (Chief Thamae)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I am pleased to be writing you all from the comforts of my host family\u2019s compound in Ha T\u0161itso, Berea, Lesotho. The 2013 Lesotho Healthy Youth group of volunteers consists of 19 people from all over the United States. We all met in staging in Philadelphia before departing on a 15 hour flight from JFK airport to Johannesburg. After landing we immediately boarded a charter plane to the capital city of Maseru, Lesotho. From there we were greeted at the airport by the wonderful Peace Corps staff that consists of Americans, HCNs (Host Country Nationals), and current volunteers. It was here that we were assigned to our training groups. There are three total. Each group lives in a separate village and that are all in relative close proximity.
\nAs we were pulling into Ha T\u0161itso (my training village), the driver began honking the horn repeatedly which alerted all the residents to our arrival. We were then greeted by dozens of ecstatic women and children. Our host families were then announced which prompted cheers and traditional dances from all bo_\u2019m\u2019e (mothers). I was selected to live with the Chief of Ha T\u0161itso, \u2018M\u2019e Matato Moreneng. More on this in my next post.<\/p>\n

The past 3 weeks have been jam-packed with a vigorous schedule consisting of language and cultural training. In this post I will attempt to briefly elaborate on these.<\/p>\n

Daily Routine<\/b><\/em><\/p>\n

The Peace Corps has a robust system in place for trainees that has been constantly evolving over the past 52 years. The training process is uniform throughout the host countries but contains unique aspects for each respective program. My day begins around 5:30am. Alarm clocks are not necessary here thanks to the roosters. I would describe them as a symphonic medley of drunken yodelers. They don\u2019t follow the rules either since they like to begin the song of their people around 3am. The donkey that resides outside of my room has proven to be an effective snooze alarm. \u00a0Since it\u2019s winter, my room is about 40 degrees (F) when I wake up; so after thawing out I hit up the bucket bath and then head to the kitchen for a breakfast that usually consists of Corn Flakes with warm long-life milk, porridge, and instant coffee. Then it\u2019s off to language training for 2 hours with a LCF (Language Co-Facilitator). I am fortunate to have \u2018M\u2019e Malineo as my LCF. She has been working for Peace Corps Lesotho since the first group arrived in 1967. An all-around incredible person, words cannot adequately describe her enthusiasm for teaching us Sesotho and the ways of the Basotho. After language, we head to a central location to receive training on other topics pertaining to service with the rest of the volunteers. This consists of primarily of cultural and safety training and usually lasts until about 4pm. From there we either walk or are bused back to Ha T\u0161itso where I meet with my host family and usually help with some of the daily tasks such as fetching water or chopping wood for the stove. If there are no tasks to be done, I usually play soccer with the kids (video below). The sun goes down around 5:45pm and dinner is at 6:30pm. I\u2019m usually in bed by 8pm.
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