I’m on vacation in Pretoria now. Feels like Mars. I came up last week for a training with the Peace Corps on Permagardening. It was amazing! We were taught methods on how to create a garden in areas with dry soil, little access to water, and small spaces.
The training was provided by PEPFAR and they booked us in this beautiful lodge on an estuary. I was able to extend for a few nights and will be picking up John at the airport tomorrow!  After vacationing on the Wild Coast for 2 weeks we will return back to the village.

Hopefully with Johns help and this permagarden training, I can be more of help to the village community gardens while also continuing the repairs on the park. Also I will be facilitating a girls leadership camp in March with 3 other PCVs. We are in the planning and grant writing stages now. If all goes well, 80 Zulu teen girls will attend a week long camp learning about empowernment, esteem, and health.

This all sounds like gloriously important work. Really its the small pebbles. Most days here have been a service with sharing a laugh, helping with English, or paying a visit to a neighbor.
Days feel like weeks and a week like a day. I can’t beleive its been 6 months I’ve lived in the villages of Africa. I can feel it though. This hotel room with water and electricity (Mars) …In not using the lights, Im eating food from my backpack cuz the twenty dollar meal feels extravagant, I spilled on my sheets and hand washed them, told the maid I didn’t need anything, the TV I can’t even explain its effect- saw an US movie with Target store shown and it looked like the Circus.

Thank you for your letters, they are the highlights of my day. Tomorrows my last day online if u want to email me and tell me EVERYTHING about you! I’d love it.

Ngiyajabula futhi ngiyathanda yena kakhulu,
( Im happy and love you all so much)
Angie