Windhoek

Being in Windhoek has been a welcomed change to life in Rundu. I was a little worried that this past weekend would be difficult… staying in an empty hotel room isn’t exactly the ideal accommodations for staying abroad. Luckily this was not the case at all.

Friday afternoon, after work, I was dropped at the Cathedral to meet with Father Richard, he was standing outside waiting for me. We walked just a few blocks to have dinner. We sat on a balcony on the second floor overlooking the main street in downtown Windhoek. It was a nice meal and we talked about a lot of different things. Naturally, Derek came up and I told him I was getting married this summer. As I talked about Derek and some of the things we want to do together he commented that it seemed like I was in the perfect place to get married. It made me feel good; after all it was coming from a priest. Following dinner he took me to visit a family he knows well. The family is from Rwanda but has been living her for quite some time. The father used to be the United Nation’s economic advisor to Ethiopia, clearly a very smart man. We visited there for some time meeting his 3 of daughters and his son. One of the daughters has been very involved with education and is currently working on the application process to receive a Fulbright scholarship. After this visit Father brought me back to the hotel for the night.

I showered and headed to bed quickly, as I had to be up by 6 Saturday morning.

The Cathedral, along with other Catholic churches in Windhoek had arranged a pilgrimage from the Cathedral, in the city centre, to Brakwater, one of the townships about 15km, nearly 10 miles, away. He picked me up at 6:40 in the morning and we headed to the Cathedral, slowly others begun to arrive, mostly university students. We gathered in the church, and about 7:30 we begun our trek. At this point Father departed and drove to the convent, he joked that there was no medical team involved in the event and being 70, he decided it wasn’t the best idea to walk all that way. I joined with one of the daughters of the family I had met the night prior. I walked with her for the most part, until towards the end I joined up with her father and talked politics until we reached our destination. At other times throughout the walk we sung songs, or prayed the Rosary. We headed from the center of town north, passing by a few other Catholic churches where more people joined. Then we entered the freeway, walking mostly along the shoulder, and there we continued passed the northern industrial district into the countryside. Basically we were walking through the desert, the sun was out, it was hot and busy. There were hundreds of people. Eventually we exited the freeway; toward a convent in the township. Once we arrived people flooded into the chapel there. By the time I got there all the seats were full and people were crowded around the doors of the building trying to get a peek. I snuck into the building and sat on the floor, behind a door which was propped open, I couldn’t see anything for the next few hours. Father Richard (I could tell from the voice) along with others produced the full Stations of the Cross, followed by Holy Mass. The mass concluded around 12:30. At this point Father and I headed to lunch. We had a very nice lunch, ordering the same meal, some nice chicken, some very nice fries, and a salad. We chatted for quite some time. Again, I finished my whole meal… and then just visited with him until he was finished. After lunch he dropped me back at the hotel. I showered and took a needle to the blisters I had all over my feet from walking. Being totally exhausted I tried to nap for over an hour, I was very frustrated at my inability to fall asleep.

Sunday morning I was hoping to sleep in, but of course this did not happen. I lounged for a bit in the morning and then grabbed breakfast from the hotel. Mary-Jean, one of the daughters of the family we spent some time with the other night, picked me up for mass around 9:15am. We headed to the University of Namibia, where Father holds mass on Sundays for the students there. Mass was held in a classroom, a small alter was set up on a tiny table in the front of the room. It was a good mass; you could tell the students enjoy Father Richard enormously. On campus there they have an organization set up for Catholic students (run entirely by students). The classroom was full of students from Zambia, Angola, Botswana and of course, Namibia.

After mass I again went with Mary-Jean. We stopped by a supermarket and went back to her house to make a hearty breakfast: sausage, bacon, eggs, rolls, etc. It was nice, I chatted with the girls for quite some time. Eventually one of the sisters realized I was the same age as her… and then one of the other sisters also reacted. They couldn’t believe I was only 21. I found this strange, I feel like I look so young here, my hair is always a mess and I rarely wear make-up. I asked them how old they thought I was and they said 26. (what, me, 26??) I asked them why they thought that and Diane, the one who is my age, said “well, because you’re getting married,” I thought that was a funny reason. One of the others, Sonya said because “you’re so mature and seem so old.” At this Mary-Jean piped in and goes “well maybe that’s why she’s so comfortable getting married.” Overall it was a great meal with wonderful company, pretty much the type of situation which I thought I would have experienced by living with a host family, but which I never experienced in Rundu. Needless to say, I was totally stuffed, and definitely no longer feel any skinnier than I was when I left Seattle a few months back. Between being in the hotel, Father taking me out for meals, and then eating with this family, I am clearly fattening back up.

Tomorrow is my last day with AED. Following another day at headquarters and being put up in a nice hotel, I will start “slumming it” as Father referred to it. I’ll be moving in with another American volunteer here in Windhoek. I’m more than ready for it! I’ll beginning working daily at the Nord Camp, a center for children from Windhoek. I will also be helping Father with other random projects, including his work at the prison for soon to be released inmates. On Thursday and Friday I will be at Nord Camp and on Saturday, also Namibian Independence Day, I will help Mary Beth with a soccer team she is forming for girls in the area. Before this program there was nowhere that the girls were welcomed to play. Sunday I will again attend Holy Mass with Father at UNAM and then Monday-Wednesday I will continue working with the children until my departure Wednesday evening.

My internet access will be severely limited once I start working with Father full time. Feel free to continue sending e-mails and if I don’t reply my sincere apologizes!

See you all soon! Love, Rebekah