First impressions from community projects

Sanibonani!!

The past four days our participants have spent time in different Swazi communities learning about development on the ground, getting to know the local culture, and supporting local development initiatives ranging from permaculture gardening to helping out at a refugee camp. In the following posts to come, some of our participants will share their first impressions. Below are some thoughts from a group stayed at Bulembu, a former mining village in Northern Swaziland that had lost its economic foundations with the closure of the mine and is now being brought back to life by a coalition of development activists.

Bulembu – Wed, 4th January
Today, we set off on our community projects. Our group made our way to the community of Bulembu where we’ll be working with orphans as well as doing social work. It was bittersweet to leave the Waterford campus and everyone else, because even though we have been in Swaziland for only 5 days, we all feel like we have known each other for years. Have you ever been on a roller coaster? On the 3-hour ride to Waterford we felt like we were on a roller coaster and it was fantastic! The landscape and scenery was absolutely breathtaking and we couldn’t stop taking pictures on the bus journey. The fact that the bumpy ride was causing us to constantly jump out of our seats, and caused us physical pain (we may have a couple of bruises from hitting our heads), couldn’t stop us from enjoying every second of our journey. Upon arrival, we all hurried into the kitchen to prepare a spaghetti lunch prepared by chef Sam, chef Cendrine and chef Jule. At first, we had some difficulty getting the stove started, but thankfully Emer was able to help us start it. After settling into our accommodations, we had a short briefing and introduction to the community and our agenda for the next three days. We are all eagerly looking forward to spending time with the kids in the community and bonding more as a group. Stay tuned for all the stories when we return to campus!

Hillary, Jule, Sam, Emer, Cendrine, Wawa, Baphelelisile, Charlotte