Tip, tap, ratta, rappa: it is the sound of rain on our window panes and on our ceramic tile roof. Splish, splosh, splash: it is the sound of rain adding to the already huge puddles on the ground and competing with the sound of the fountain outside...
It is another rainy summer day in Soyo. The rain hits the house, the thunder reminds me that I have no control of nature, and the rising water level in the yard warns me to rethink any outdoor activities today...again, I am not in control. It is all very humbling. This summer season has consisted of very heavy rains and thunderstorms almost every day since November. One would think that this would help the Angolan nationals with their farming efforts. Instead, the heavy deluges have caused mudslides, damaged the few roads in town and left some of the makeshift homes in shambles. Gardens don't seem to thrive because the heavy rain washes the soil away and beats down any plants that are trying to grow. The good news is that when we have one day of sunshine, we really cherish it! Also, as Beta and Orlanda keep reminding me, May is just around the corner...and it doesn't rain after May 15th. This is an inside joke. I hosted an outdoor birthday party for my husband in mid July last year, looking forward to an evening of admiring the African sky and stars. It rained mid party! That may have been one of the only nights it rained here last winter. Luckily, I had put up a couple of canopies thinking they would provide a bit of ambiance. The ambiance became a great shelter from the rain. I should add that we had a delightful time, despite the showers. Since then, I tell Beta and Orlanda that it never rains in Soyo during the winter, unless I schedule an outdoor party...then all bets are off!
The road to Kinwica on a rainy day
Our drivers have to judge water depth and navigate cautiously...thank goodness for 4 wheel drive vehicles!
Peanuts and the casaba plants (an Angolan staple) seem to be the only plants that survive and thrive during the torrential rains of the Angolan summer. On the occasional sunny day, you will see locals scattering and arranging peanuts to catch the warmth of the sun, allowing them to dry. While at Mpinda Mission School this week, we saw one of the orphans rearranging peanuts on a tarp, hoping to dry them. It seemed like a massive quantity of peanuts. A lot of work is involved not just in planting and growing them, but in harvesting them as well. My neighbor, Lynn, successfully planted and harvested peanuts from her small garden. She and her driver dug up the peanuts a couple of weeks ago and managed to take advantage of the sun in the one or 2 days that we were blessed with a bit of sunshine. Once they were dried out, she roasted them in the oven with seasonings. I sampled her finished product...VERY delicious!! It was amazing to think about how much effort went into the whole process. I now have a new appreciation for the cans of peanuts sitting on store shelves!
Lynn's Peanuts
From peanuts to another nut...our beloved "El Pensador". OK, before I get bombarded with hate mail, one of Merriam-Webster dictionary's legitimate definitions of nut is "crazy person" and that is what the locals call him in Portuguese, "maluco". It also makes for a great segway! This man the locals call "maluco", walks all around town. We have seen this guy in many different places across the town of Soyo. We have spotted him on the beach, in front of our neighborhood and near the river. It is like playing a game of "Where is Waldo?" when we ride around town. We each report when we have seen him and where. He is now an expat legend in Soyo and we call him "El Pensador" (Portuguese for "The Thinker"), Augustine Rodin's famous bronze sculpture. Anytime he is spotted, he has his hand on his chin, just like "El Pensador", hence the nickname. Our neighbor, Melania, took a picture of him sitting by the river (see below). We can't seem to catch him in his "thinking" pose because as soon as he sees us, he smiles and waves (that is his gift to us!). However, we will keep trying to catch an authentic "El Pensador" stance for you.
El Pensador
I continue to walk in the early morning hours with the other expat ladies in the neighborhood. Friday morning was a special day for us and for a 4 legged friend. On our walk, we encountered a very small puppy following a local lady who was carrying a large container of food items on her head. She was ready to go to the market to sell her items. When she noticed the puppy following her, she kicked him away. As expats, we get very upset whenever we see this cruel treatment of dogs or any other animals. However, I have to keep reminding myself that I am applying my western filters to the situation. In the US, although there are people who abuse animals, there are organizations and dedicated people whose sole purpose is to try to eliminate such abuse. That would be considered an exotic luxury here. In Soyo, shelter, water, food and electricity are luxuries. It is understandable that if human needs cannot be met, animals' needs are certainly considered competition for scarce resources. All this reasoning aside, when we saw this abuse taking place, we went to the puppy's rescue. I asked the local lady if the puppy was hers and she responded: no. At that point, Melody, one of our expat ladies (and dog lover!), grabbed him and put him in a towel she had been carrying. We asked the guards further down the street if they knew where he belonged and they replied that he had been walking the neighborhood by himself since the day before. That was all the information that was needed, the puppy was going home with Melody. Soyo is a pretty tough environment for dogs...there are quite a few dogs that roam around, skinny, ill, starving and dodging abuse. This little puppy had fought his way through the tough environment and found himself in the right place at the right time. Melody and her husband named him Shaggy. He is their gift...or are they his gift? If you are feeling a little "kicked around" by life today, just remember, Shaggy didn't give up and he's in a better place today!
Meet Melody's Shaggy...Isn't he adorable?????
Melody & Shaggy
Our work at Mpinda Mission School continues every week. In the past 2 weeks, we have met the 3 new classes of 1st graders and started our sessions with the second graders. It is always such fun to work with these children and in some cases, introduce them to scissors and crayons for the first time. Their excitement upon completing their projects is contagious. At the end of our sessions, they usually treat us to a few songs. This year, we are also treating them to our singing and silliness. We've been doing the Hokey Pokey and the "If You are Happy and You Know It" song. The children join right in with us and in one case, the teacher was videoing us with her cellphone. Hopefully, that video won't see its way to the internet! Nothing like expat ladies' Hokey Pokey video going viral!
Mpinda First Grade Angel
Mpinda second graders
While we were at the Mpinda Mission School this week, we took the opportunity to look at their new pig pens. We were met by several pigs and, to our surprise, quite a few piglets. The nuns raise the pigs for food...shhh, please don't let the piglets in on that secret! We took pictures of the piglets and of one of the large male pigs peeking (OK, maybe snorting) at us through the gate from his pen.
These pigs actually have longer snouts than what we are used to seeing
in the US. The larger pigs are a bit scary looking while the piglets are
just darn cute! I googled the topic a bit and found out that there are
currently 17 species of wild pigs in Asia and Africa. This particular
species of African wild pig is called a bushpig(the more scientific name: P. l. koiropotamus Desmoulins)They make good use of their very long snouts by rooting to find larvae, worms, tubers, bulbs and plant roots. For this reason, they are a menace to farms. There...and you thought this was just recreational reading for you today!
Mpinda piglets
Mpinda "daddy" Bushpig...take a look at that snout!
From peanuts to Pensadores and puppies to piglets, the experiences here continue to educate and intrigue me. Just like furthering your education, when you live in an environment stripped of luxuries, you also realize how much you really "don't" know. That must mean I'm not taking my time here for granted. I know that I'm much closer to experiencing the "realities" of life while in Soyo. In fact, some of us believe that US reality TV producers should come to Soyo if they want an authentic reality show. This environment strips the unessential from our lives and allows us to (although sometimes I can be hard headed) better understand the "real" gifts that God has bestowed opon all of us. Amen!
I close this post with thoughts of a very big gift that has been bestowed upon all of us living the Soyo experience: long lasting friendships. Here is a picture of the special time we had on Friday night while celebrating expat March Birthdays. It is a picture of some members of our "Soyo Family". I'm also including pictures of a ladies' Game Day and pictures of some recently departed expats. We have had many couples come and go since our arrival to Soyo in September of 2012. Therefore, we have many Soyo family members who are now living in other parts of the world...but we keep all of them in our hearts. We have benefited from their guidance, knowledge, experience, and more importantly, their sense of humor. Sharing the unique Soyo experience forms a strong bond. So even if some members are not physically here today...they will always be a part of our Soyo family. A big shout out to our Soyo family members around the world!!
It has been almost a year and a half since my last blog posting. A lot has happened in the past year. We met our adult children in South Africa for Christmas 2013, explored Cape Town, Stellenbosch (wine country) and enjoyed a Safari at Lalibela Game reserve (near Port Elizabeth). My husband and I celebrated our 26th wedding anniversary in Zambia and Zimbabwe, visiting historic and awe inspiring Victoria Falls. These adventures helped to create many new family memories. As you can imagine, we took hundreds of pictures. Here are some of my favorites below. I had to share these with you before describing the year that followed. So please hang in there while I indulge in family trip pictures!
Daddy lion...how cool!
Well, Mr. Giraffe...who has the right of way? OK, got it!
Encountering this herd of elephants is amazing!
Hippos abound in the Zambezi River (Zambia).
The mighty Zambezi River at dusk.
A lion cub just "sitting around".
African penguins at Betty's Bay. "Happy Feet!"
Sailing the Indian Ocean.
Breath taking Victoria Falls...Zimbabwe view.
Now for the rest of the story....2014! As I've mentioned in several blogs, there are peaks and valleys to the expat life and you have to really enjoy the peaks and save up a reserve of joy for handling the valleys. So, in 2014, my husband and I used up a bit of our reserve joy when we encountered delays in obtaining visas for us to continue to stay in our home in Soyo. No worries though...we still have plenty of joy in our reserve! Visa delays are not uncommon in Angola. However, ours was a super-delay. We tend to be overachievers! With expiring visas imminent, we were sent to the US. My husband was able to continue his work remotely from Houston. After a few months of hotel living in Houston, I flew to North Carolina to help our daughter get settled into her senior year at college. Afterwards, I "moved in" with my sister and brother-in-law in North Carolina for what we thought would be a short stay. My husband returned to Soyo after his visa was issued. My visa was not issued until March 2015! Needless to say, I felt like a gypsy last year and I am so grateful to my sister and brother-in-law (and nephew!) for their amazing hospitality. It was a challenge for my husband and me to live apart for so long...but we are very grateful for the opportunities we had to see family and friends in 2014.
I returned to Soyo last month and have resumed my life here. Orlanda (our housekeeper) had kept our house nice and tidy while we were gone. Beta, our driver, made sure our plants in the yard were watered. We were very grateful for their support during our absence!
Beta's wife, Niclette, had baby girl, Ana, while we were gone!
The group of expats in Kimbumba slowly changed during our absence. Before our departure in April of 2014, we said goodbye to Pat & Mo, Craig & Kris and Joe & Linda (our neighbors). Pat and Joe retired and Craig went on to another assignment. We welcomed Ray & Lynn (our new neighbors), Paul & Jean, Melody & Richard. As always, the hellos are exciting and the goodbyes are so sad. The good news is that this day and age, technology allows you to keep in touch with the friends that leave. Also, new expats bring a fresh perspective and enthusiasm that help you to remember your first days in Soyo.
We were amazed at the wonderful changes that occurred at the Mpinda Mission School while we were gone. Thanks to everyone's generosity and to an effort by expats Victor & Miriam to involve the plant employees to provide labor on Sundays, there is now running water to showers for the girls' orphanage living quarters. There is also an outdoor covered area with sinks (and yes, running water!) and soon to come...some counter space. The 2 existing generators are now both working. There are new water holding tanks positioned to provide water pressure (hurray for gravity!). The nuns and resident girls are most appreciative of all of these improvements!
We were able to get in a few sessions with the first and second graders at Mpinda before their end of trimester exams began. Karen, our expat retired teacher, continues to lead the effort to come up with creative and age appropriate projects. We will be back to see the children in early June. My first day back with them last month reminded me of how much of a heart warming experience it is to work with these children who are so grateful for our time, new pencils, new projects, and our (sometimes hilarious) attempts to speak Portuguese to them. Rest assured, it is we, the expat ladies, who are blessed to spend this time with them! It is hard to describe the feeling that I get while I'm there that lingers for quite a while within me after I've left...let's just say, it fills my joy reserve.
New sinks and blocks awaiting tile for counter tops.
One of the newly configured water tanks.
Mpinda students making necklaces with string and beads.
Video of Mpinda students and teacher saying goodbye with their song!
Thanks to Sandra, one of our newest expat ladies who lives in Soyo and Luanda, we found out about another parish whose priest is in the process of getting a community gardening project at the Kikudo parish here in Soyo. When she met with him, he had already cleared an area behind the church and had many cans and containers filled with some starter plants. Melody, one of our new Kimbumba expat wives, has extensive gardening knowledge. She and I visited Padre Francisco to meet him and to see how the expats could help him with this self sustaining project. It has great potential to get the Kikudo community involved and to provide the community with much needed fruit and vegetables. Padre also has a few goat and chickens and would like to increase their population and add pigs. I can't say that I have any expertise in gardening, farming or in raising livestock...but I'm willing to help and so are many of the expats. This project is of particular interest since it entails helping a community to help itself and to create something that will hopefully prevail long after the expat community is gone. I took some pictures of the area behind the church in hopes of getting a "before" and "after" perspective later.
Padre Francisco shows us his starter plants.
Felipe (Melody's gardener), Melody and Padre Francisco discuss compost location.
More starter plants!
Phase 1 of the Kikudo parish garden.
We are now preparing for a US visit in order to attend our daughter's college graduation. It seems like yesterday when we first moved her into her dorm room and now she is graduating! We have gone beyond our comfort zone in the last 3 years by coming to live in Soyo, Angola and have experienced personal growth. She has gone beyond her comfort by standing strong and excelling at her college work while her parents were a long way away. She has shown great strength and courage and now we will celebrate her accomplishments! Our son has also made plans to take time off from work to be with his sister on this very special occasion. We have been blessed with two very special children and we are most grateful for their dedication to family values. The joy reserve gets a boost from them too!
Well, it is time to close this blog chapter so that I can post it before leaving Soyo. We had a pretty rough rain storm very early this morning. It is a reminder that the Angola rainy season really doesn't end until May. Water was seeping in through the front and side carport doors when I came downstairs. Also, the lightening must have caused a power surge, because the outlets downstairs weren't working. A little trouble shooting led to a covert breaker that had never tripped before. We are always learning something about the house! Water and electricity are always a challenge here...too much or too little. This time our trip away from Soyo will be a short one. I look forward to returning and continuing my work on this blog that helps to document our time in Africa. I guess I can keep my alias as "Gal in Soyo"....because I did come back and it is home for me (at least for now)!
As I published my last blog last May, I wondered if I had changed much since leaving the states in September of 2012. The answer, as you already may have guessed, is that I have. Age has a way of mellowing our temperaments, but experiences in our lives help to mold us. As my husband and I made our way around the US this summer, we were in awe of the advantages, fabulous infrastructure and luxuries that we had taken for granted when we lived there. By the way, even the word, luxuries, has taken on a new meaning. Luxuries in my dictionary now includes dependable source of running water, electricity, public bathrooms, paved roads...you get the picture. That perspective change was understandable ... what was unexpected, was a change in our attitudes and expectations. We seem to be more tolerant and patient. The worst of traffic jams, or a long line at a store, is now tolerable and we marvel at the sense of order there seems to be in the US. Hah! Yeah, those of you that know me are wondering how that could have happened to me. Believe me, it was a shock to me as well. So, maybe you can teach an old dog new tricks? Apparently so!
Since my return from the states this summer, I got quite busy again with different activities including traveling to the Mpinda Mission school twice a week to work with the first and second grade students. It continues to be the highlight of my life here in Soyo. Unfortunately, the Angolan school year came to a close in November. The students will be on vacation until mid-February. Summer time is approaching here in Angola and the rainy season is about to start . It makes sense that the children will be enjoying their break and not having to endure even hotter temperatures in the very basic concrete classrooms. The flooding that occurs on a regular basis during the rainy season would also be a challenge for them if schools were in session during this time.
Expat/Angolan spouses at Mpinda Mission School
We have welcomed two new expat couples to the Kimbumba community. One couple, Miriam and Vic, moved to Soyo from a previous assignment in Venezuela. Another couple, Eddie and Karen, came from Alabama. They are a great addition to our expat family and have already made a big impact on our social and community activities. The sad news is that we have started saying goodbye to several couples that have completed their assignments in Soyo. Cindy & Nyles, Eric & Marina, Joan & Bernie, and Jan & Andy will be leaving Angola by year end. This is the tough part! We all know that we come here to be a part of the community for a few years and we must part ways at the end of our assignments. That said, it is hard to tell your heart to hold back from becoming too close due to the inevitable goodbyes. It is a very close knit community of expats in Kimbumba. We share good times and very challenging times...we cry, laugh and share experiences that not too many people would find tolerable...and yet, we survive together and strong bonds are formed. The good news is that we are developing life long friends. The bad news is that the friends we are with today will soon be scattered all over the world...not down the street or across town. Thank goodness for technology like email, Skype, Facetime, etc.
Kinwica get together for Joan and Bernie
Kinwica get together for Joan and Bernie
Kinwica get together for Joan and Bernie
Nyles and Cindy's going away dinner at Nempanzu
Bernie and Joan
Nyles and Cindy
Kimbumba ladies
Kimbumba men
Entertainment included a contortionist
Angolan cultural dance
Andy and Jan
In an effort to bring together the expat and Angolan community family members, the plant HR director asked for volunteers to form a social committee a few weeks ago. Miriam and I volunteered to serve on the committee. Jacira and Liliane, Angolan spouses volunteered as well. It seems to be working. Four of the Angolan spouses joined the expats on the twice weekly trips to Mpinda Mission school to work with the first and second graders in the last weeks of school. With the help of our new expat spouse, Karen, who is a retired teacher, we started planning a Christmas program with the Mpinda orphans. The Angolan spouses are a great help for this project, as they are educating us on the cultural nuances of the Christmas traditions and are able to translate what is needed of the girls and boys when requests in Spanish or English do not seem to work.
Ladies at Mpinda School
Working on the social committee with the Angolan spouses, Jacira and Liliane, has provided a greater appreciation for some of the cultural differences that exist between expats and Angolans. One marked difference is the ritual of marriage. Marriage in Angola tends to be a luxury rather than a common occurrence. In talking to the Angolan spouses, it is because an Angolan man is expected to provide many gifts to the Angolan woman's family when asking for her hand in marriage. Life in Angola is tough enough and many people are just trying to make it through each day with enough resources to feed themselves. Spending money on gifts such as cases of beer, goats, whiskey for your intended fiance's family seems like an extreme luxury to many Angolan men and women. We understand that this is the reason that most decide to live together instead of marry in the traditional Angolan customary way. This is quite perplexing, since the Angolan population is predominantly Catholic. The Bishop officiated mass a few weeks ago and despite my still limited grasp of the Portuguese language, his message was VERY clear to me. He insisted that the institution of marriage was quite important and universal and not to be considered a cultural choice. Children seem to be the on the receiving end of the problems that come with the lack of formalized marriages here. Children primarily tend to be the responsibility of the mother. If the biological father dies, the children are not the heirs of the father. Instead, the father's nieces and nephews from his sister(s) are the heirs. The reason is that there is no legal proof that the children really are the father's descendants.
The new social committee coordinated a street party for all Kimbumba resident plant employees and families. The goal was to bring Angolan and expats together to share their favorite dishes and provide a venue for social interaction. The party was a success! Expat dishes included spaghetti, chile & cornbread, red beans & rice, grilled chicken, shepherd's pie, Angolan funge, fish, cole slaw, cookies, brownies, breads, etc. A special treat provided by the Angolans was grilled goat. The goat was brought to one of the houses the day before the party and tied up as though it were a pet. We tried to take alternate routes when coming home that day, so as to not develop a friendship with the goat, since we knew it's fate. Lest you think I felt too bad about the goat's demise. let me tell you that I had a taste of the grilled delicacy and loved it! The professional quality pictures below are thanks to our expat pro, Nate!
Eric, Marina and Bernie
Kris, Jan and Karen
Kris and Mo
Many neighbors came to enjoy the party!
Kimbumba Street Party group shot
Yes, this was the goat!
Ana & Jeff dancing???
As I mentioned earlier, the social committee led an initiative to work on a Christmas Program with the Mpinda Mission School orphans. It was a great experience working with these students. Our retired teacher expat, Karen, wrote the script which consisted of a portrayal of the nativity scene. The students have beautiful voices, so the choir prepared several Christmas songs. Expat spouses, Tari and Goulia, made costumes. The program was in Portuguese and English thanks to the help of the Angolan spouses. All of us worked with the students on proper English pronunciation and the timing of their scenes and songs. The songs were in Portuguese and Kisilongo (a Soyo dialect) except for the last song, which was in English, We Wish You a Merry Christmas. It was funny to hear the giggles from the students when they tried to pronounce the words to the song. The words "new" and "earth" seemed to be the most challenging ones. We tried to over emphasize the sounds in an effort to help them to pronounce these words...this generated giggles as they tried to imitate us. We practiced for about a month and in the last 2 weeks, held practice every day. Everything slowly came together...it was ready for prime time on Thursday, November 28th. Yes, that is right, Thanksgiving Day in the US. Here it was just another day. It was the best day that we could think of to bring the community together to celebrate Christmas and give thanks for the many blessings bestowed.
Karen helps Celina with costume fitting
Jan helps with English pronunciation
Mother Superior Elisabeth shaves a wild boar to prep him for dinner tonight
What a great Thanksgiving Day for all of us! I'm including pictures/videos of the Christmas program and the choir performance the next day at the plant cafeteria for your enjoyment. The students really enjoyed the bus ride to the cafeteria "VIP style". They serenaded the employees and got to enjoy lunch which included ice cream for dessert! The social committee had also requested donations for the Mission School and that day, we delivered the results of the money/food drive to Mother Elisabeth. We managed to make major purchases of rice, beans, oil, flour, tuna, sardines, cookies, etc. Mother was thrilled with all of the food that was given to them...they will not have to worry about feeding the students for quite a while!
Choir and Christmas program
Mary, Joseph, Jesus and the star
The shepherds come to visit Mary, Joseph and Jesus
Mpinda Mission School students, Sister Isabel and Angolan/expat spouses
Mpinda Choir performance at cafeteria
Father Alejandro and Sister Isabel accepting the donations
African dance led by Celina:
Celina speaks for all students, expressing gratitude for lunch and the very generous donations, then leads choir in their rendition of "We Wish You a Merry Christmas":
Mpinda Student Choir sings during the Mpinda Christmas Program:
Our Thanksgiving was very special. I am thankful for many things in
my life including: my Puerto Rican cultural heritage and strong family
ties; the wonderful education that I received throughout my life thanks
to parents that insisted upon it; my 32 year business career which
allowed me to mature and helped me to develop important skills; my
husband; my children who continue to show their commitment to their
values and their strength and determination, despite being so far away
from their parents at this time; my sister who is my anchor and
inspiration; and my good friends who amazingly reach out to me when I
seem to need it the most. Thanks, God, for all you have given to me. May
I show you my gratefulness through my acceptance of continued our
guidance.
A friend recently called me from the US and during our conversation, we
realized that we were having the same revelation in our lives. The
experiences that we have had in our lives so far have prepared us for
the experiences we are having today. However, we acknowledge that we
must be open to the opportunities as they present themselves. Sometimes
they are not very obvious or earth shattering at first glance.
Regardless, they have been presented to us for a reason. We don't have
to be in a third world country to have these life molding experiences.
We just have to be open to them, accept them and learn from them. Most
of these opportunities push us beyond our comfort zone. If they didn't,
they would not have much effect on our lives. The key is to recognize
them, embrace them and learn from them. The experiences I have
encountered throughout my life have prepared me for the new experiences
that God has place into my life this past year.
As Christmas approaches, many expats and Angolans make their preparations to leave Soyo for the holidays. We will be going to South Africa to spend a few weeks with our kids. We hope to explore a different part of the African continent and introduce our kids to Africa for the first time. We are also looking forward to our first safari (more blog pics!!). We will send out Christmas cards this year after Christmas so that we can send out a recent picture of all 4 of us together. I take this moment to reach out to all of you, our friends and family, to wish you a blessed Christmas and a Happy New Year! May 2014 bring even more beautiful experiences. May God give us the wisdom to understand that there are beautiful experiences in our everyday lives no matter where/who we are...it is up to us to recognize, accept and be thankful for them!
