Grant's update

So first I want to add that we did not have zesa (electricity) all weekend and into yesterday. We were disappointed becuase we want to show you all our puppy, Juno, so you could all see how cute she is. It is pretty much impossible for us to upload any pictures or videos during the week unless we wakled to school in the pitch black late in the night and did it then. So....we have to wait until the weekend to show you pictures. I also have a small video of thepeacocks that chill in front of my classroom. I'm most excited about posting those. So I have attached an email Grant sent out to his family so you all can see another update on what we have been up to! Check out the websites he put on here of the places we get to go to in the coming months.
Here it is:

Maguanani!

Yesterday marked a month that Jen and I have been here in Zim. We had sort of a perfect celebration of that by having over Russ and his wife Terri for dinner. Russ is the principal of the middle and high schools, and he is the person that we spent our time interviewing with in Boston. I cooked dinner (the food turned out very well, I successfully drove to 3 different grocery stores in different neighborhoods, and Jen was able to enjoy a yoga class, these were all great signs of us settling in), and we sat on our patio by our new grill/firepit and talked about the adventure. It’s amazing to think how far we’ve come since February. We shared our experiences with the interviews, and the decision making process, and I felt something change as we sat there. I felt the strong realization that we had chosen where to go, and what to do, and that we had made the right choice. We’ve experienced ups and downs, and been through plenty of challenges, but it feels like we’ve finally arrived. I think back to the week in February all of the time, and last night it just kind of clicked with me that this is what we’re supposed to be doing. The teaching is like it’s supposed to be. The life is quiet, and there is adventure out there to be had. Best of all, there is a GREAT community of teachers and parents, and we’ve really been over whelmed with their generosity. We got our first excursion planned. We’ll be going with Russ and Terri, and some other teachers to the Kopje Tops Lodge the second weekend in October.  We are really looking forward to testing out the 4x4 driving, and camping equipment (although we’ll be staying in a tree house lodge). I am taking my fifth grade class to the Imire Safari Ranch for 3 days and 2 nights in the end of September.  It should be quite the experience, and it’ll be something totally new for me. I wouldn’t have taken any of my classes from Nesbit, but this bunch of kids have been well versed in this sort of travel. In case you’re looking through the Imire site, we’ll be staying at their bush camp. Yesterday was also our Open House. Jen and I both got to meet almost all of our parents, and it’s pretty amazing to see where they’ve all come from, and why/how they’ve ended up here. It’s definitely an interesting place to live, and the parents spent awhile talking with me about the settling in process (and how I’ll be teaching their kids).

Onto the 1 month up-date:
House
Everything is coming together nicely. It’s starting to feel a lot more like home. We have been working hard to get the yard looking nice (ok, actually Benson our gardener has been doing the work, but we took him to the nursery, and we’ve been talking about it a lot). OUR SHIPMENT ARRIVED! I can’t tell you how fun it was to go through the boxes. Having our own bedding, pots, pans, and other “home” stuff really makes a huge difference. The school supplied us with a starter kit to hold us over until the shipment arrived, but this is a big step up for us. We spend most of our nights with a fire going, and I’ve really gotten into the South African wines, Jen’s been helping me try and figure it all out, but so far I’m not too great at telling the differences. Our garden has been planted, and we’ve got fruit trees in the yard. So far we’re only harvesting kale, but we’ll have a lot more in a few months. The guest bedroom is coming along, still trying to find a way to make it comfortable when people come. Jen’s mom is coming in October, and then her sister and brother and law are coming for the New Year. We’ve got an office, and another bedroom that is basically our store room for now. We’ve got a ton of toothpaste, ketchup, soap, pasta, beans, and other things that we’ll use. Most of the things that we sent will be helpful, but it’s hard to know exactly what to pack. Still trying to figure out why we sent so much chocolate syrup… We’ll have some pictures posted soon.

Car
So far, so good on the car. I feel fully comfortable driving during the day, at night is another story. There are no streetlights, and the folks around here have a tendency to walk in the middle of the road, and wear dark clothing. They also tend to be African. So, combine that all together, and it can be tough. Jen has been driving more, she’s doing a great job. The pictures of the car, known as Frankenstein, are up on the blog. We’ll get the front end fixed up at some point, and the bird poop has been cleaned off. Having the car has made a huge difference. We were starting to get a little cabin fever. We can walk to a set of shops, but it’s nice to be able to get to other places/restaurants/cheaper stores. I’m looking forward to testing out the bush-crashing.

Dog
We got a puppy. Actually our friends got us a puppy. It worked out nicely, we were talking about getting one, and the next day they happened into some great puppies. She’s mostly Rhodesian Ridgeback, also known as African Lion hound. They bred these things to hunt lions… so they are really good dogs to have around the house. She’s great with us, and once she gets to know new people, she’s great with them. We named her Juno (after a friend suggested it for the Roman goddess- protector of the home). She didn’t like being kept out in the grandma cottage the first 2 nights, but she’s been great in the house.

School
The first month has been primarily spent at school. We’ve both been busy planning, and trying to learn the new ‘models’ that we use here at H.I.S. I really think that we both lucked out with the teaching partners. There are 2 teachers on each grade level, so that has been a big change. My partner, Jeanne, and I get along great, and we’ve been able to plan a lot together, and the same thing can be said for Jen and her partner, Stephanie. They have also gone out of their way to help us with the outside of school things. The whole staff has been welcoming, and we’ve had lots of home cooked meals at their homes. They’ve lent us cars, and house supplies, shown us around, and taught us the little things that are important to know around here. I’ve started coaching volleyball, and that has been a lot of fun. I’ve got kids who are amazing, and I’ve got kids who continue to get hit in the face. I’ve had to help kids untangle from the net twice… the first game is on the 8th of Sept. so we’ll see how that goes. Luckily the other varsity coach has done volleyball for a long time, and he’s really good with the drills. When I’m not releasing kids from the net I do more of the one on one and clipboard breaking.

Zim
I wish that we had a little more to add here, but the month has been packed with school, and local trips. So far I have nothing but great things to say about the people. Everyone is friendly, I feel safe everywhere that we have gone, and we haven’t encountered any issues related to safety. There are challenges here, but we’ve been relatively unaffected. Buying things is a challenge. Different stores can have wildly different prices, and things are there one day, and not the next. We’re getting to know places better, and we’re marking places to take people to when they come. There aren’t really any places to go out. I miss Twain’s something fierce. There are a few “pubs” here, but nothing great. Smoking is big here, so they’re all pretty smoky. The beer here is an issue. It’s all pretty bad. We have gotten together at some of the pubs and watched some rugby. It’s not quite like sitting around on a Sunday watching the Pats and eating wings. That’s been the hardest for me so far. The weather here makes up for it all though. There have been a few “chilly” nights (by Georgia standards, not New England). The days have all been mid seventies with no humidity. I got in the pool last weekend, and it’s a little bit away from being swimming temp, but it’ll be really nice in about 2 weeks I’m told. October is supposed to be really hot, and then the rains come and the weather goes back to being nice. We’ll be going to Victoria Falls and Hwange National Park with Jen’s mom in October, so we’ll have more to say about the country. Everyone that we meet is very proud of their country, and they’re all happy to tell us more about places to go.

Let’s see, what else is new?
Our school uses the International Baccalaureate program, and the elementary version the Primary Years Programme. We were supposed to be trained on that before we came. The training would have been in New Jersey, and not the Jersey Shore. Just Princeton, NJ. We tried to get the school to set that up several times, but they didn’t get around to doing it (we found out later it was budgeting). Anyways, this is required training, and it has to be done this year. After looking at the list of possibilities, we are limited to one. Friggin’ Florence Italy! UPGRADE! We’re waiting for final approval of the budget, but we should be going to Florence for a month in the beginning of November. Tough stuff, I know.

Anyways, it’s been a great month. We’re feeling settled, and we’re anxious for more. There are things we miss (family, food, beer), and new things that we’re picked up. We’re looking forward to being able to share it, whether here or by video and pictures. The blog will be updated this weekend.

I hope all is well. When you get a chance, let me know how things are going back home.

Cheers, (that’s the proper sign off here)
Grant