Lwapeng (Home)

This is dedicated to all my oh-so-patient friends and family who have been waiting for me to post these photos (especially Traci!). And a shout out to my mom's class at Klahowya High School... if you've been reading I hope you enjoy!

Here's a little background:

I live on a family compound, meaning there are a few other homes on the plot owned and occupied by the same family. The "compound" style of living is common in Botswana and many volunteers end up being placed in this situation. In the beginning, it's a bit bizarre to imagine living 2 years in such close proximity to others, but there are benefits to having people closeby - it provides respite from loneliness we feel from time to time; it's extremely safe; and it's an easy opportunity to have cross-culture experiences (what we're all here for!).

Here is my little pink house! You can see how close I live to the family on my compound -- the building to the right is the main house. It's just 10 ft away!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Living room, view from the entrance to my home. The sink in the back corner is essentially my kitchen sink since there isn't one in my actual kitchen (very strange setup).

Living room, view from the entrance to my kitchen. The doorway in the background opens to my bedroom. Main entrance to the house is to the right.

Living room, view from the back by the "kitchen sink".

Living room, view from the entrance to my bedroom. The door in the background opens to the kitchen.

 

 

 

Kitchen. Cabinets and fridge.

 

 

Kitchen. Gas stove and gas tank.

Bathroom. I even have a shower! -- it's just to the right, the blue colored object is my shower curtain. The bathroom is connected to the kitchen.... again, very strange setup.

 

 

 

Entrance to my bedroom. Closet straight ahead....

My opened closet. I fit everything I brought with me here into this - I just shove it in there or on top!

My house has way too much furniture for its' size...this chair hardly fits in my bedroom. I feel like yelling the line from Knocked Up... "There are 5 different kinds of chairs in this hotel room!"

My mock aerial view, standing on the unnecessary chair in my bedroom. Admittedly, I can't blame just the chair - the mosquito netting over my bed also takes up quite a bit of space.

If you pull away the mosquito netting, you'll find a very big bed for a small girl. Yay!