Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas
and
Happy New Year!

Lauren and I have returned from Holiday. Most of our time was spent on Zanzibar where we were either camping or living in thatch huts with no electricity or running water. I loved ever minute of the trip. Meals came from the village, bread and fruit. The pineapple was amazing. Days were spent lounging around and playing soccer with the village boys. It took Lauren and I a little bit to adjust to playing with the young boys because they would play beach soccer naked. Imagine 50 little naked boys running around after the soccer ball, dodging shells and the occasional cow that would venture out onto our field. Below a few photos from Zanzibar.

Bored on Christmas and decided

to make my Christmas card for 2008.

Sunset with the roommates Ben and Lauren

Cape of Good Hope in Cape Town, South Africa.

Christmas Eve dance party with my Monkey friend.

Dhow sunset at kendwa beach, Zanzibar

I am very excited for the next few months. At the end of January I will attending the TOMT, Training of Master Trainers, in Lusaka, Zambia. I will have a chance to meet other coaches from other sites around Africa and visit with the Lusaka interns. The TOMT will also be a great learning experience for me, working with some of the best in the GRS family. After the TOMT, I will return to Port Elizabeth for two weeks and then head to Richmond, South Africa for my new assignment. Leah Bellow, Bloem intern, and I will be moving to Richmond, South Africa, in the Northern Cape, for three months to start a new GRS program.

Richmond, South Africa

The program will be a small scale community program. Leah and I will be responsible for working with the community members in designing a sustainable GRS program to fit the community needs of Richmond. We will also be responsible for finding community members to deliver the GRS program. I am very excited for the opportunity to work in Richmond, South Africa. A slight scenic change from beach to desert, but I am excited to live in Richmond.

I will be spending the next few weeks handing off PE responsibilities to Lauren and Ben. Teaching Lauren the QAC and office work.

I really have no exciting stories but will recommend a must read for the new year. The book is called 28 Stories of AIDS in Africa, written by Stephanie Nolen. 28 Stories of AIDS in Africa is an excellent portrait of the AIDS epidemic in Africa. The Author Stephanie Nolen spent 6 years traveling across Africa collecting stories from nurses, doctors, community members, orphans, political leaders, military men and many more. The book helps illustrate how the disease has spread so quickly and it's ties to poverty, conflict, and famine.

I hope everyone had a great Holiday season!