New Year's Eve Alone...Sort Of

Flying alone on New Year’s Eve invokes for me an image of certain melancholy glamour. It conjures images of near empty international planes with quite, lonely people travelling on a night where they should be celebrating, reflecting as they fly through dark skies. Interestingly enough, my own experience now suggests that it is nothing like this, but rather almost exactly like any other flight. For example, during take-off (delayed due to mechanical problems, the story for both my flight from Denver to Houston and the current one to London) a small, blond-haired demon of a child decided, among other things, that confinement to seats was intolerable, possibly a crime. As we rose into the air, any romantic illusions of silently ruminating on my upcoming semester were ended by said child’s adamant screams that he was, most definitely, “going to POOP!” Either the child had a diaper or his claims were somewhat exaggerated, because we’ve been spared that accident and I am now officially on my way to (as the title of this blog suggests) Botswana.

Although I suspect this blog will largely (if not entirely) be read by people I already know, allow me to introduce myself and my travelling companion (as well as one of my best friends) Ani Reddy. As a pair, Ani and I trace our beginnings to junior high choir where we used to share a music book. However, our friendship didn’t truly take off until 10th grade when Ani asked me to be her debate partner. We then spent three years waking up at 5 AM on Saturday to carry around heavy boxes and argue with people. From this emerged the beginning of a beautiful friendship. Following graduation, Ani went to the University of Colorado in Boulder (CU) where she is now pre-med, majoring in something I can never remember but that sounds like neurosomething something science. She may wish to correct this at a later point; however, as I am the designated blogger she must live with my choices until then. I now attend Macalester College in Saint Paul, MN where I’m a double major in English and International Studies. Both juniors interested in travelling, we decided to study abroad and that brings me to where I am now: on a plane to London with a child who may or may not have to poop.

Featured here: Ani and Kaija on one of their many exciting travels.

The program itself is through CIEE, which does study abroad programs around the world. Ani and I will be directly enrolling in the University of Botswana where we will live in the undergraduate dorms (like all college dorm rooms, these are reputed to be palaces :)). We will each take four classes through the university as well as a Setswana language course. For several decades, Botswana was under British colonial rule—although largely indirectly—and as such I’ve been told that most people, particularly in the capital Gaborone where Ani and I will be, speak English and our classes will likewise be taught in English. However, Setswana is the language the proceeds English and the British for most of Botswana (although the country is largely homogenous, it, like many countries delineated by colonialism, contains a number of diversities). As such, Ani and I will be trying our hand at Setswana and faithful blog readers will be kept abreast of our progress. To quote my program director on where we’re going, “Gaborone, one of the fastest growing cities in the world, is unique in many respects and presents students with an opportunity to develop a deeper level of understanding and appreciation of what it means to be a Motswana [my interjection here: Botswana is the country, Batswana are the people as a group, Motswana is one person from Botswana] in a changing and globalizing community. Our host Institution, the University of Botswana, is home to more than 10,000 undergraduate and graduate students. Students are drawn primarily from Botswana but we also have a good number of students from the whole of Africa, the USA and other countries which make UB a truly international Campus.”

The World and Botswana

Some may be wondering why Ani (who I am meeting in London) and I are flying on New Year’s Eve. It seems like a cruel program that would demand its participants all depart on a night widely recognized as a holiday. The truth is that tickets were cheaper this way, but the more glamorous truth is that we will be spending a two day lay-over in London, regaling the locals with our well-honed British accents and knowledge of things like Shakespeare, tea, and British television.

For those interested in sending cards, packages, and money *winkwink* the location at which both Ani and I can be contacted is the conveniently brief address below:

Participant Name
c/o Batsirai Chidzodzo, CIEE
University of Botswana
Block 134-D
Office #039
Private Bag 0022
Gaborone, Botswana

A few housekeeping points: I hope to update this blog every one to two weeks; however, not knowing what life will be like in Gaborone, I make no promises. Also, it is my deep desire to avoid what I consider to be a major pitfall of blogging: the propensity to be mind numbingly dull. To let me know how I’m doing make sure you comment below!

That’s all for now, folks!