For those of you who don't speak Damara, that means "good day," and the exclamation point means that you have to click your tongue a certain way. Damara is the clicking language, and we started weekly language classes this week to prepare for our rural homestay which will happen in October. Damara has no fewer than 4 kinds of clicks, including one called the "devil click" and is absolutely impossible for a foreigner to perform without inducing gales of laughter from any Damara speaker in the vicinity.
Aside from practicing my clicks, I also started working at my Internship this week. I'm working with an organization called The Big Issue, which is a street newspaper organization that employs homeless and impoverished people, or "vendors" as they're called, to sell The Big Issue Magazine for profit. They also have activities and events for vendors to keep them off the streets when they're not selling papers. I found out that my job this semester as the intern is to set up a Women's Craft Program for women vendors. As of now there are no events or activities specifically for the women vendors, so they wind up back on the streets. I have been drafting a proposal and putting together funding ideas that I will apparently have to present to some higher ups in the community later on. I'm really excited, and hopefully I can make it happen!
Well, I've got some homework to do-- we started our real classes today, and we've got loads of readings. I'd love to hear what any and all of you lovely people back home are up to-- feel free to email me at jamesh@stolaf.edu if you get the urge!
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