Botswana oh Botswana - here we are at last!

 We made it to Africa, to Botswana Africa, which I have wanted to visit since about 2005 when my Bryan introduced me to this remarkable country via a fictional book he shared with me set in Botswana.  It's so much more than I could have hoped for though it has been a stressful week.

Up at 0400, we first made the trip to Atlanta then the 16-hr flight across the pond to Johannesburg, South Africa, where we caught yet another flight to Gaborone, the capitol city of Botswana arriving at 8:30pm two days after leaving Provo.  As you can well imagine, the jet lag has been dreadful. Each night in bed begins well enough at 10pm but ends with wide awake frustration at 0300.  Finally last night I slept almost 10 hours and feel like a new person today.  Hallelujah for that.

                                                 

                                                 

This country is Botswana, complete with the most amazing skies and sunsets the Lord ever engineered for human eyes.  It is summer here, the rainy season, and when it rains, it drenches.  When not raining, the temps top 104 daily.  But it's a dry heat as Elder Kasper is wont to remind me.  The thunder and lightning storms we've enjoyed nightly exceed any I've ever beheld.  

We have encountered the AP's (Assistants to the President) and the Office Elders who are absolutely stellar young men guiding us through a million questions and forms and VISA applications and where to go find food.  Our trainers, the incredible Gatten duo, will remain in country for another 5 months to teach us all the ropes and then hand over the reins when we are ready.  What a huge blessing; they had noone to train them when they arrived a year ago.

My apartment is spacious and fairly clean albeit full of cockroaches.  Kasper quickly acquired a sprayer and some pesticide and declared successful war.  I've acquired my first African art to adorn the bare walls.  We won't speak about the mattress other than to say it is new and hence bed-bug free yet bears small resemblance to anything remotely comfortable.

I've managed to successfully fed us all week albeit with many changes to my recipes.  The country offers plentiful fruits, abundant meats, and a lot of vegetables I don't yet recognize nor trust.  

Botswana is one of the wealthier African countries as diamonds were discovered here in the 1970's.  The economy is comprised of tourism, diamonds, and cattle of which they are abundantly proud.  Still very much a developing country, there is much poverty sitting side by side with upscale (and expensive) western style shopping malls.  Outside of Gaborone, however, people live in small villages with minimal amenities, living mostly in huts or corrugated sheet metal shacks some without private bathroom facilities where several families share a hole in the ground.  

Termite mounds abound which for some inexplicable reason I find hilarious and endearing.

 But what I most adore about this country are the Motswana, the people of Botswana.  They are an absolutely lovely people; soft spoken, quiet, polite, always ready with huge white grins, and walk with a slow and easy ambling gait.  They are respectful and kind and hugely pleased with us when we use the few words of their language, Setswana, to say hello or thank you.  I expected more caucasians than I have encountered yet feel no discomfort nor tension; they are completely at ease with us.  Crime is quite low here as there is excellent policing and quick punishment meted out.

In church today, I was accepted with open arms, love, hugs, friendly handshakes, and an eager willingness to help the missionary work in any way possible.  Our mission had about 18 baptisms yesterday throughout both countries (including Namibia) as the gospel is so quickly and lovingly embraced by these humble people who are devoted to the Savior and His restored church.  

I love Botswana.  I love Motswana people.  I love sharing my testimony of the restored gospel with them.  I will love serving them and this mission, so let's get to work!  It's been a rough week of sleeplessness, foreignness, and sickness for us both, but next week I promise to take many more pictures to share so that you, too, might come to love this place and this people.