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Well, what can I say. It's hard to believe that my time here is almost over…After 11 months of working and worrying and wondering what will be around the way, I can finally see the end. Just two more months of life out in the desert and then it's back to the cold, flat, wet, land of home in North Dakota. (Mom, I really do love it there, so don't worry…I'll come home).
So what have I been up to for the last few months?
The biggest event by far that happened these last few months was the Inauguration. Gobabeb Training and Research Centre was inaugurated by the prime minister of Namibia on the 9th of May. The inauguration was to help celebrate the expansion of Gobabeb's training programmes, the new facilities, and to thank many of the major donors to the station. We had approximately 85 visitors to the station, who came to help us celebrate the occasion. I got to meet the prime minister of Namibia (he made fun of me for being from the U.S. and voting George Bush back into office). I have to say that after several months of working hard to prepare---all the displays, brochures, presentations, and protocols---it was a rousing success. And we had much nicer weather than during the last Information weekend (read report #3 for full details ).
The training season has picked up once again…And I believe I must have inherited some of those teaching genes from my parents. I was so antsy waiting for the first group of students, it's almost an addiction. The smiles on their faces and the interested questions, and the looks of amazement and wonder that I see on the students' faces certainly is addicting and I'm glad they are back again. The last group to visit was a group of students from an international school in Luanda, Angola. They were amazed not only by the area here and the arid ecology, but also by the fact that Namibia had all the things they didn't in Luanda---little things like chocolate and soda at the stores. It was then that it hit me that not all places in this region are as safe and developed as Namibia. I think that those students taught me a few things as well that week.
What do have to look forward to in my last few months?
Well, up first is the holiday with my dad… My mom came to visit in November, but since my dad was teaching, he couldn't get enough time off until the school year was finished. We'll head out on a tour of Namibia, and spend a few days out here at Gobabeb. Being of the same mind, I'm sure we'll spend most of our time picking up rocks or dirt or leaves or remains of some animal to examine, and I'm almost positive we'll annoy the guides with all of our questions, but it should be fun. More than fun, fantastic.
But perhaps the most daunting on the plate for the upcoming months are two long courses that I will be planning and facilitating before leaving. One is a field geography course for the University of Namibia students. We'll be spending 22 days out in the field doing research and writing up our results, along with 2 weeks of class time in Windhoek and out at Gobabeb beforehand. Needless to say I've been doing a lot of reading about water consumption and management in the Kuiseb Basin, and trying to figure out what is the best way to monitor the consumption of water of livestock such as goats and cattle…Any suggestions would be more than helpful!
The second course will be an in-service training programme that has just been expanded to include several weeks of class time before the students' projects begin. Module-writing, scheduling rooms and accommodations for all of the visiting lecturers, writing out responsibilities of each person and reading even more about water management in the Kuiseb have filled my days and nights (and sometimes even my dreams!) for the last few months and will continue to do so until its time for me to go.
Well, that's what's been going on, and what will be going on for the next few months. And no, I don't know what I'm going to do when I get home. But, I'm sure, whatever it is, I will take the lessons that I've learned here at Gobabeb with me. Thanks again for taking the time to read the updates I've written, and I'll see many of you at home soon!
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