We are 2 months into our time in Namibia
We were pretty limited in what we could do to celebrate since volunteers are not allowed to travel during our first three months in Peace Corps. (The purpose of this is to maximize our available time at site for integrating and adapting… more on this to come.) Our main objective was simply to enjoy the Saturday out of the house and away from disruptive children.
Started off with a nice breakfast of French Toast. (This is a more difficult feat than you would think! We so appreciate nonstick frying pans now, as they are uncommon here, and make it difficult to prepare many American breakfasts involving eggs, pancakes, etc!)
Dinner was more Namibian, as we ate, surprise, meat! It was supposedly extra special, don't know why, but it was tasty! Our family also sang the Namibian Lutheran birthday song to Kevin in that odd nasally way the Damaras like to sing: "Happy birthday to you, Happy birthday to you, Let the light of the Lord shine on you, Happy birthday to you!"
We were pretty limited in what we could do to celebrate since volunteers are not allowed to travel during our first three months in Peace Corps. (The purpose of this is to maximize our available time at site for integrating and adapting… more on this to come.) Our main objective was simply to enjoy the Saturday out of the house and away from disruptive children.
Started off with a nice breakfast of French Toast. (This is a more difficult feat than you would think! We so appreciate nonstick frying pans now, as they are uncommon here, and make it difficult to prepare many American breakfasts involving eggs, pancakes, etc!)
Dinner was more Namibian, as we ate, surprise, meat! It was supposedly extra special, don't know why, but it was tasty! Our family also sang the Namibian Lutheran birthday song to Kevin in that odd nasally way the Damaras like to sing: "Happy birthday to you, Happy birthday to you, Let the light of the Lord shine on you, Happy birthday to you!"
Unfortunately I wasn't able to make Kevin a cake with our current limited (and shared.. host family) resources, but I did make him cookie dough! And a PCV in our town promised us Welcome/Birthday cookies… so nice!!
The 3 of us kind of camped out in a shady spot on my school grounds, so Kevin could put a dent in his most current reading endeavor, Nelson Mandela's A Long Walk to Freedom. (I told Kevin he should write a response when he is finished and post it to the blog! So much to learn about Namibian/African culture from this reading experience. If you're in favor, encourage Kevin and comment "I" or "yay"!)
And a nap! A birthday is not complete without a nice nap, right?! (If you're old that is!) ;o)
You'll notice some of Kevin's "birthday presents" in the next few photos. Two in this first one: Patches. Haircut (which I am proud to say is my work of art, even if it did take 3 hours!). (I don't know if Kevin is giving Patches a kiss here or if he is showing us his version of Zoolander's "Blue Steel." ... Have you ever wondered if there was more to life, other than being really, really ridiculously good-looking?)
And Kevin's first pillbox! Kevin feels REALLY old now. This photo contains both of our malaria pill containers, to be fair. Kevin takes the daily pill and still has trouble remembering (Alzheimer's already?!!), hence the gift of a pillbox. Also note his "GERIcare" vitamins, courtesy of the Peace Corps Medical Office. (Again, to be fair, I (and probably all the female volunteers) were given prenatal vitamins… Maybe I can blame them for my heightened maternal instincts… for a dog?!)
With our travel restrictions lifted, maybe we'll have a more eventful, youthful birthday celebration next year..?! Nah, it was a nice day and good times were had by all.
Besides, Kevin doesn't even have "the old man smell" yet, agreed Dave? ;-)
Besides, Kevin doesn't even have "the old man smell" yet, agreed Dave? ;-)
