We looked at a lot and decided to try to return to the Botswana Museum were the same crafts were being sold after a museum exhibit, at more reasonable prices. I also suggested to Anita that since we had not walked the open Mall, we might want to try that area as well. I believe I have mentioned that many individual set up their areas and sell many items along the Mall in front of the stores that are also located there.
August 19th began with both Anita and I sleeping in until almost 10 am. Njale has left early for Gaborone as the heating element in her hot water tank failed on the 18th. My shower the morning of the 19th was quite invigorating. Anita passed. I worked much of the morning on the family computer as we were receiving frequent messages that the open space on the hard drive was critically low. We were down to 8mb, which I know is much smaller than my Palm. So I copied many files from the desktop to a flash drive that Njale had and then deleted them into the recycle bin. Finally I brought up the program list on the troublesome drive and asked the computer to arrange according to frequency of use. I started with programs that were over 100mb, and if they had not been used within the last two years, I asked the computer to uninstall them.
(NOTE - I can see Jim cringing now and wondering if I really knew what I was doing. The answer is probably no, but any program that I recognized, I did not uninstall. I finally found a program that required over 500mb and was a 'trial' program that as best as I could tell, had never been used since its installation in 2003. That one was the final program I deleted, and we are no longer receiving messages about a critical shortage of computer space. I think I did OK.)
After solving the problem of the computer, I tackled the television. As I looked at the setup, I recognized a power cord on the back of the cable box. At home, we sometimes need to disconnect this cord and let the box reset itself after the poor thing becomes confused. Crossing my fingers that it would work here in Botswana, I disconnected the cord, saw that the plug end really did look like ours at home. I waited 60 seconds as Comcast sometimes tells us before reconnecting, and voila, the television began resetting itself and finding all the stations we had been watching when Refilwe was home and mostly in control of the changers.
We have heard from Refilwe that she arrived safely, is not impressed with her accommodations, has already lost her glasses in the ocean, and apparently is still having a grand time. She is due home on Friday - time unknown as of now.
We tried on Monday to book a trip to the Okavango for Tuesday through Friday and were unsuccessful. The cost of this trip would have been almost 3 times the cost of our trip to Chobe next week. As much as Anita and I wanted to add the Okavango, we decided to err on the side of sensibility, and leave that area of Botswana for another visit.
Njale returned mid afternoon after an unsuccessful trip so we are still without hot water. The three of us spent the rest of the day resting, and talking. We combined talents for dinner and enjoyed a white sweet potato casserole I made using some left over vegetable sauce made by Njale on Sunday. Anita added a lovely cabbage and carrot slaw. And our meat was chicken sausages and a chili beef sausage in multigrain buns. Sliced tomatoes finished our plates.
Today, August 20th, we were up fairly early for a visit to the KTOGLA. This is the center of Moshupa tribal business. Njale called several friends to see if we needed a male to take us and present us to the chiefs. There are 2 chiefs, or almost chiefs, for Moshupa now. This is a hereditary position passing through the male side of the family. The chief we met in 1990 died several years ago. The two we met today are not official because one of them has not been elected to the Council of Chiefs who sit with the Parliament in Gaborone. We finally decided that we could go on our own.
When we arrived, Njale went into the offices and found that both chiefs were busy hearing municiple court cases. We were asked to wait and one would come to see us shortly. Njale had reminded us that we needed to be wearing dresses (brought with us for this specific purpose), and that we would be shown the location where women can enter the enclosure. We had a brief chat with the first chief who, indeed, showed us where we could enter and where he would enter.
Meeting inside, I remarked that the large tree that shaded almost the entire enclosure in 1990 was gone. He said that they realized it was sick and dying, so planted another to replace it. All that is left are two very large pieces of wood at one side. I was allowed to take a few photos.
One is of a baboon that was on the top of a high hill that is at the back of the space. I didn't have my long lens on my camera, so I don't think the baboon will be too visible. (The baboon shows when the photo is enlarged, but is only a speck on photos sized for the blog, so if you want to see the baboon photo, you will need to ask for a private viewing of all 5700+ photos. Let me know.)
When the second chief joined us, he mentioned Brian and remarked about how much he had done for Moshupa. During my last visit to Kansas, I purchased several packages of bookmarks that have interesting facts about Kansas. Offering them to the Chief to use as he wished, he suggested that I should take them to the 'school that Brian built'. That was to be our next stop, after returning home and putting on warmer clothes than dresses as it was a cool and cloudy morning.
Baitirile School is much larger than when I saw it in 1990. The school where Brian was headmaster had approximately 200 students then, if my memory is correct. According to the deputy headmaster, who we spoke with today, it now has over 600, thus the additional buildings. The deputy headmaster spoke of this being 'Brian's legacy' and that some teachers think of themselves as 'Brian's students'. He is remembered well, and I was happy to hear him spoken of with such reverence. The deputy headmaster accepted my bookmarks for the library, and locked them away until the students return after this brief vacation.
The Soroptimist Club in State College sent several boxes of books in the late 1980s to Brian and this school. In 1990, I saw the books in the library. Today we were unable to get inside as it was locked up tight, even with the windows covered from the inside.
Even the weeds are different - here is one in blue/green that is all prickly. I loved the contrast between the concrete step and the weed growing at the corner.
On the way home to change our clothes, we stopped at the home of one of the sisters of Mrs. Disale, one of Brian's 'aunts'. Although she was not feeling well, she invited us in for a brief chat, and allowed me to take her photo if I also took one of Njale.
We drove into Gaborone and Njale dropped Anita and me at the Museum where Anita wanted to purchase a number of baskets at more reasonable prices than we had found at BotswanaCraft, hoping that the exhibit pieces were still available. We were in luck, and she chose several. The prices were still more than was in her wallet, so we asked that they be held for us until we visited the ATM on the Mall which was only about a block away.
The seal of Botswana on the entrance arch to the mall. The mall from the ATM location showing the President Hotel where Jim and I stayed (part of the visit) in 1990.
As we walked to the bank, Anita began seeing the baskets for sale along the Mall, as I had told her they would be. The Mall looked much like I remembered and it was fun to be back in an area that had changed little, except for the names of the some of the stores. Even so, some of the stores we used were still there. Jim might remember the small food store across from the President Hotel where we stayed during part of our visit in 1990. The name has changed, but there still is a store in the location where we made a nightly run for snacks. The Cinema that was across the central square of the Mall is gone and the building has been replaced with a 5 story office complex. The Barclay Bank is on the same corner, and as we used its ATM, we ran into Sputnik who works at the bank and is a cousin of Njale. We also ran into Njale's boss who was wondering why she did not answer her cell phone. I explained that I had the phone and had not heard it ring.
Njale's expertise was needed to help with some computer problem, so I promised to have her call as soon as we met up. She was spending the time looking for the heating element we need to fix the hot water tank.
After Anita and I walked the Mall from one end to the other and back, she had purchased the baskets and other woven goods she had wanted and had saved quite a bit of money. I also made a purchase of something different for Dad's wall in Kansas to remind him of this visit to Botswana.
We went back to the Museum to purchase part of what they had been holding for both of us, at prices at least half of what was being asked at BotswanaCraft. We were very lucky to find the end of an exhibit of local craftsmen and women who were willing to let the museum sell they products.
A walk back to the central square of the Mall, where the President Hotel is located, and we were near the spot where we were to meet Njale. Anita and I were hungry; I suggested the restaurant at the Hotel which is one story above the mall and has outside seating so we could watch the comings and goings of individuals below us. We had just ordered our meals, when Njale disappeared under us. Anita ran down the stairs and stopped her from purchasing a fast food meal. She came back up and we enjoyed a leisurely meal in the shade of the warm day. For this meal we had macaroni spirals baked with tomatoes, basil and Parmesan cheese.
A view of shoppers from the terrace where we had lunch at the Hotel and a sign on the building where Jim and I shopped for snacks in 1990.
The drive back to Moshupa was longer than normal because we needed to stop in Kumakwane to speak with Njale's brother about coming tomorrow to fix our hot water heater, and to check on progress in the rental house being built there as well. Next stop was in Thamaga where Njale visited with her doctor to check to see if she should have malaria medicines as well for our trip next week. He said no; a pharmacy where she had stopped said yes, so Njale is uncertain what she will do.
We are expecting more guests for a couple of nights. A dear friend of Njale's needs to be in Moshupa for a funeral and called to ask if she could stay here. Although it will be a bit crowded, Anita and I said, of course. So we will have more friends to meet. Anita remarked that although we know only about 5 people in Botswana, counting Njale, we continue to run into people we know. Amazing!
That's the news from far away. I wish one or more of you readers would comment so I can tell how I doing and if I'm telling you want you want to know.
