Vezubuhle: Our Permanent Site

Vezubuhle is considerably larger than Bundu, with twice the number of schools (six) and roughly two to three times the number of houses. There are also more tuck shops and even a few larger food stores (nothing like a typical grocery store, but larger than a room in someone’s house). Although the majority of the roads are dirt, there is one tar road and we have witnessed the tarring of another road since our arrival. The landscape is made up of rolling hills with Vezubuhle situated on a high plateau. As a result, there are frequent winds and a tremendous amount of dust. We have come to terms with the fact that our shoes and clothes will be orange for the next two years. Hours of scrubbing the dust out of our laundry prove futile moments after walking down the dusty dirt roads. The people of Vezubuhle are just as kind and hospitable as the ones we left behind in Bundu. Although it was a bit overwhelming greeting the seemingly hundreds of people we passed on our daily walks, the effort has paid off and now most of the residents know us by name. We walk to school to the shouts of, “Lochani Thabo and Thandeka!” We try to explore a new area of our village every day and are constantly meeting new and interesting people. Due to the high rates of unemployment and the spring weather, most people spend their days outside: working on their gardens, washing clothes, or relaxing and visiting. We have become used to planning plenty of extra greeting time into any journey through the village.

pictures: the view from our roof; shops near the main road; some of our new neighbors