we got to talk again!!!!!

oh yes ma'am. that is Sam (sus's friend from 4th grade), sus, mom, and me.

we were about to go to frontier city.

i am pretty sure they were in 4th grade, i was in 7th.

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anyway, i got to talk to sus Sunday morning.

it was tricky calling this time, b/c when it's cloudy there, she doesn't get great reception :).

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these are the things we talked about:

-she met a girl Brooke, from Idaho, and she likes her.

-when we were talking she had just walked Brooke home, and she and Chris were walking back to their house, and she was talking to people on the road in their language, and she was so cute. she was telling them she was talking to me :).

-i got to talk to her host sister (17), and she was so nice, and her English is great! she is graduating from HS soon, and applying to universities in USA and England!

-they are living in a cement structure with a tin roof & NO ELECTRICITY! which i had no idea, until i hear sus say "oh hey Chris, can you hand me a candle". and i said, do you have electricity, and she said, no. and she has an outhouse like thing for a bathroom. but i don't know about a shower.

-they have been eating "regular food" she says. it's the end of avocado season, so they are eating at least 1 each a day. and a lot of oranges. they are growing chard and kale and cabbage and eating a lot of that. and making a lot of soups b/c she says they are comfort food. when she went to the capital last week, she got to get garbanzo beans for hummus, which she was pumped b/c their grocery store only has 1 kind of bean. so she made hummus and naan (which i guess she just smashed the beans by hand? ill have to ask her... i am only assuming they do not have some kind of solar powered blender). they have this sour milk like thing that's like yogurt, and she made cheese from that. they made tomato soup too. the grocery store is a 20 minute ride from where they are and they can only go about 1/week. the peace corps gives them about $40-50 per week for food and transportation. and the food prices are comparable to the US food prices. The only veggies they have are what's in season, obviously. she also made cookies the other night. I will have to ask what kind of stove they have and how it works.

-in their house they have no heat or anything, but she said they stay warm (it's like 40* at night). and the other day it rained ALL day, so they were inside ALL DAY :(.

-the women that are married typically have long braided hair with some extensions braided in. the younger girls typically shave their heads, sus thinks it kinda for their school uniform. oh and the women usually cover their heads with something, i think kinda like a wrap.

-since it's winter, it's been getting dark at 6pm.

-there was a couple they were emailing back and forth with in the peace corps, and they found out they will be close to them when they get to their permanent site. so hopefully they will get to meet up with them.

-their perm. site is in between Big Bend & La Bunesa (you can see Big Bend on the Swazi map on google maps. It's in the SE corner of Swaziland. They are about an hour from the coast.

and apparently it's Hot and Dry (which will be just fine for susy).

-Peace Corps hasn't placed someone there in 5 years, but the people of the village have been requesting someone. And are excited they will have people!

-They say it will be hard b/c it's hot and about an hour walk from any kind of main road to be able to meet up with transportation. But i think sus and chris like that.

-They will be staying in a mud brick house with a tin roof an possibly electricity. it looks to be the same size place they are living in now, about 2 rooms.

-they will be able to have a garden and goats and chickens.

-they will be able to teach how to community garden

-and be able to work with pregnant mommas

-and chris should be able to work with sexually abused people and gender issues

-wed or thursday they will meet up with the peace corps person and travel with them to the site and stay for about 5 days.

-she seems really excited!!!

-it was so good to talk to her :)

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on another note, i got to skype bethany last night for an hour at Shellie's house.

we got to talk about everything! She loves it but doesn't love it at the same time. she's learning a lot AND a lot more in a week than she ever could in the US. She's really excited for Stephen to come, he leaves Thursday. And will get there Saturday morning. She said the food is good, but the city is SOOOOOO dirty. She said the GROSSEST thing by far was in the OR she was observing a surgery, and you know, you have to be sterile and what not, but instead of shoe coverings like we have here, they have shoes that stay in the OR that are open toed rubber sandal like things, and they NEVER CLEAN THEM, other people wear them, and then you have to wear them, EWWWW. and i mean, how sanitary is that, to be wearing USED open toed shoes in the OR?????