Sometimes I work...

Working hard at my fancy desk

It hasn't been all parties and stomach aches over here. Believe it or not, I have been working, and I have a picture to prove it.

While things at the university have been a bit slow, I have managed to keep myself pretty busy. Today I even had 1 student show up for class! Mark one in the win column.

A few weeks ago, I helped organized a webinar at the Embassy for local English teachers. About 20 teachers participated in a worldwide, interactive seminar.

Webinar at the Embassy





Teaching Access students



playing a vocabulary game

Look how much fun they are having!

I have also been working with the English Access Microscholarship Program at a high school in Cazenga, which is a pretty rough neighborhood outside Luanda. The kids there have really impressed me with their enthusiasm for learning and I'm really enjoying working with them.


*The English Access Microscholarship Program (Access Program) provides a foundation of English language to talented 14- to 18 - year-olds from economically disadvantaged sectors through after school classes and intensive summer activities. Participants gain English skills that may lead to better jobs, educational prospects, and increased opportunity to participate in future exchanges. Since its inception in 2004, over 70,000 students in more than 85 countries have participated in the Access Program.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Spreading a little Irish cheer in Africa...





 St. Patty's Day party at the Marine house

 

My Angolan friends didn't wear green. How embarrassing!


By the way, classes at the university were supposed to start 2 weeks ago, yet I haven't seen a single student. We are "easing our way into the semester."

Food Dilemmas

One of my biggest challenges since I arrived has been finding edible, reasonably priced food. Many of the Americans here ship boxes of food before they arrive, and now I understand why.

Due to the devastation caused by the civil war, Angola produces next to nothing. Farmland has been destroyed and littered with landmines and roads outside of Luanda are so poor, that it is almost impossible to transport products into the city. Therefore, almost everything in the grocery stores is imported, making it incredibly expensive and of poor quality.

I have tried a couple different grocery stores because I've been told that the quality and variety of food is hit or miss. So far, it's been a miss. I usually walk around the produce section for a solid half hour searching for anything that looks remotely enjoyable, with little success. For sanitation reasons, it's best to follow the "peel or cook" rule, which can also be limiting. Some people wash fruits and vegetables with a bleach solution, but I think that's gross.

I keep asking Angolans where I can buy fresh vegetables and fruit, like in an open market or on the street, but they are convinced that my 1st world stomach can't handle street food so they simply refuse to give me any information. So finally I made my driver stop the car because I noticed some women selling delicious-looking fruit on the side of the road. Before I knew it, I was bombarded. I spent $40 and ended up with I think 38 oranges and 12 avocados. I've been eating roughly 3 oranges per day. I'm still working out the kinks in my system.

On the bright side, I made a wonderful guacamole for our BBQ on Saturday night!

 On Friday afternoon, my Angolan co-workers reluctantly invited me to join them for lunch (not because they don't like me, but because they didn't think I would enjoy their usual lunch spot). Boy, were they wrong! We walked across the street to a modest "restaurant" which consisted of a sheet held up with wooden poles and 2 plastic tables inside. Outside, there was a grill with whole, fresh fish sizzling. I was served a heaping plate of beans, cassava greens, fish, and funje by a smiling, plump woman who anxiously awaited my reaction to her cooking. It was by far the best meal I've had since I've been here and it was only $5!



Enjoying a traditional Angolan meal with my co-worker, Djamila



       

My new lunch spot

* Funje (the white blob in the photo) is a staple in Angola and is a thick porridge made from manioc (yucca) flour. It doesn't have a strong flavor and is used mostly to soak up sauces, but the texture is a bit rubbery and it sometimes has a gray-ish color, which is off-putting to most foreigners

                    

KUDURO!!!

Kuduro literally translates to "hard butt." It's a musical style and dance that originated in Angola in the 1980's. I got my first taste of this lively tradition on Saturday night. Nadya, a former student of mine and native of Luanda, invited me to a family party.

Sidenote - This was also my first experience with "Angolan time." The party started at 2pm, Nadya told me she would pick me up at 3, she got to my house at 6, we arrived at the party at 7, and we weren't considered late. As one of my Angolan co-workers pointed out today, it's surprising that in a country where the life expectancy is 55, people think they have all the time in the world.

I took this video at the party. I call it "The Angolan Electric Slide"

Here is one of the most popular Kuduro songs and the most ridiculous music video I've ever seen.

First Impressions

"If you can make it here, you can make it anywhere"

This is the general sentiment among both locals and expats here. Because living and working in Luanda can often be challenging, there is a strong sense of community among expats. I have received a tremendous amount of support from the staff at the US embassy and my housemates as I navigate life in this crazy place.







Chamber of Commerce of Angola event last night. I met the US ambassador to Angola and several big players in the oil industry here. I have no idea why I was invited.

What the heck am I doing here?

To be honest, I was a little fuzzy on the details of my job before I arrived, but I have a much better idea now. The English Language Fellow program is a public-private partnership between the US Dept. of State, which is why I'm affiliated with the embassy, and AMEC-Paragon, a Houston-based oil company. AMEC is providing my housing, which is why I live with 15 middle-aged white dudes. They are also supplying me with transportation. Because of security issues, a driver takes me everywhere. We are quickly becoming best friends.

The primary goal of my fellowship is to improve the English program at Universidade Agostinho Neto. I will be teaching 2 courses at the university and also working wth the head of the English Dept. on the curriculum. AMEC recently renovated the English Dept. office at the university. It's incredibly modern for this city.

My colleague at the university, Rocha

The other aspect of my job is community involvement. The embassy has English programs at schools in the most impovershed areas of the city. Starting next week, I'll be spending time with the kids there, assessing the programs, and ordering English materials.