Swazi ~Trip Info~

Hey, y’all!!! Anyone ready to go to Africa? :0) 

 

Enclosed are some instructions on packing and miscellaneous info. Please read this entire email, as I am sure it is going to be a long one.

 

-PACKING LISTS: You will receive in an email 2 different packing lists, one for personal items and one for ministry supplies. When packing, please keep these items separate. This is important because at training camp we will combine all ministry supplies, like putting all markers together in one suitcase. So it’s important not to have your personal stuff in those bags. Also, the personal bag list does not supercede the list that AIM gave you in the packet. Whatever is in there as far as dress code and stuff to bring is what we will follow. Unfortunately, I do not have that list in front of me, so I made this one with what I had. PB&J can go in your ministry supply bag, along with your supply of ziplock bags (quart and gallon sized). These lists are not exhaustive either, but they give you a good idea of what you’ll need to pack.

 

-PACKING: I know we’re packing for 3 months in Africa, but it’s important to try to not appear to be the “rich Americans” with a ton of stuff. For that reason, I suggest a smaller suitcase for ministry supplies and a medium sized bag for personal (along with a carry on). If you have a duffel bag or a hiking bookbag, those are wonderful for trips like this because they are easier to pack into vehicles and carry over terrain into huts. I’d recommend getting one for your personal bag, but it’s not required. Packing light is the key.

 

-CLOTHES: One important thing about Swazi culture is appearance. Swazis value looking neat and clean, even if it’s really hot outside and they are sweating. I once rode in a vehicle with all the windows up in 90 degree weather with 17 other people (in a 15 passenger van) because my vanmates didn’t want to get their clothes dusty from the road–they preferred to sweat it out in the stuffy van! Please don’t bring stained or torn or ratty looking clothing, because it can be highly offensive. Even though they might be wearing the same type of clothing as we are… or even if their clothing is dirty or torn… the difference is that it could be the only outfit they have, whereas we are “roughing it” and not wearing our “normal” clothes–and they know that. That being said, please bring things that you don’t mind leaving behind or just losing to the elements after months in Africa. As for quantity, assume laundry will be done once a week and you can re-wear clothes that aren’t too dirty.

 

-WORSHIP: if anyone plays the guitar, please let me know and please bring that guitar! It would be so wonderful to have praise and worship together with instruments, although a cappella can be oh-so-sweet…

 

-MINISTRY SUPPLIES–  I know it says this on the aim packet, but it never hurts to re-emphasize: THESE ARE NOT TO BE PURCHASED BY YOU!!!! IF YOU DO NOT HAVE EVERYTHING ON THE LIST OR IF YOU DO NOT HAVE MINISTRY SUPPLIES AT ALL, PLEASE DO NOT GO OUT AND BUY AN ENTIRE SUITCASE WORTH OF SUPPLIES!!!!!! I say that to ensure that you do not feel guilty/frustrated by the donations that you have if you don’t have a lot. These are supposed to be donations. Go to your church and ask if the youth group can have a craft supply drive or see if the childrens’ program can have a penny push. Maybe someone would love to support you but they can’t give you $20— but they can give you a pair of scissors. Also, stores like Target and Walmart can be pretty generous. Find a manager and see if they can donate. If you are having problems with this, please email me and let me know. Pray about it. God WILL provide. I’ve never gone on one of these trips without all the supplies that we need. That being said, if you have more or less of an item, don’t sweat it, just bring it all, as much as room permits!

 

We ask for large quantities of these items because we will be in Africa for 3 months–and that’s all we have for vbs and school and such, and there is a craft time to every program like that. You could have anywhere from 20 to over 100 children in crafttime, depending on the circumstance, so we want to make sure that we have everything that we need! spread that number out over 3 months and it’s a lot of craft supplies!

 

I just came back from Swaziland and can honestly say that the country is overrun with popsicle sticks and other craft supplies. So DON’T break your back–or your bank account–trying to round up these supplies. The things on the lists are suggestions. If you don’t get a lot of donations, that’s absolutely fine. If you get a lot, that’s fine as well. They make great gifts for schools.

 

-HOST GIFTS- At the end of our trip, we will present a basket of gifts to our hosts, whether they are pastors, missionaries, or specific people in the community. They do not need to be super-expensive, but they also can’t be junk. Ideas for host gifts are candles, a headlamp with batteries, a hat, a t-shirt from your hometown, any souvenir from your home state, a journal, a watch, etc. The Swazi women absolutely LOVE lotions and such things. Basically, something simple that expresses our appreciation for all the sacrifices that these wonderful people have made for us. Devotional books are okay, but if they are in English and the person doesn’t read English, we have a problem. So if you bring a book, please bring something else. These can also go in your ministry supply bag if you’re out of room. Please mark them however, or set them aside in a ziplock bag or something, so we will know that when we combine everything at training camp.

 

-WEATHER: Remember, it will be  late summer/early fall while we are in Swazi.   If you Google “world weather,” you can find a site that will give you the average temperatures of where we will be. (Put in “Manzini” as the city, because it’s the one closest to us). That way you can know how to pack as far as clothes go. It’s pretty hot now and we won’t have ac. By the time we leave it should be pretty cool, though, so definitely bring a jacket or something. Swaziland is really windy when it’s cold.

 

–PB&J: Please bring AT LEAST 2 large jars of peanut butter and 2 jars of jelly. I recommend making at least one of the jellies “non-grape” because grape jelly everyday for lunch for 3 months can get extremely monotonous. That sounds like a lot, but it needs to last for the entire trip. If you’re like me and you can’t eat peanut butter, you might be living on “j”  sandwiches for lunch. African peanut butter and jelly is definitely available, but it is not the same quality as the American stuff and you will probably get sick of it pretty fast.

 

-TRAINING CAMP will be held at the AIM site in Gainesville, Ga. For those of you not in the South right now, this state has weird weather. It’ll be over 70 degrees one day and 20 the next. January in ga is usually pretty cold. Nothing like up north–and it rarely snows–but last week it got in the 20’s. Of course, this week is 70, so whatever. It rains a lot in the winter, and if it does, it will be cold and messy outside. Be prepared for cold weather and bring clothes that can be ruined. Ga is famous for its red dirt–no kidding, it really is red–and there’s a lot of it at aim. It gets everywhere and it stains too dark to get out. Go to www.weather.com and put in 30506 (Gainesville, Ga) to see what the weather forecast for training camp will be.

 

–COMMUNICATION–Once every 2 weeks, you’ll be able to use the internet and/or call home. Let your family and friends know that you’ll be able to talk with them then. If you don’t want to use a payphone (which is expensive because calling cards are $9 for 5 minutes), go to www.skype.com and get an account. Then go to Walmart and buy some headphones with a microphone. With skype you’ll be able to call the states from the internet cafe. I think it’s 2cents a minute to call a cell phone across the world–definitely worth it! Though you’ll be able to send letters home (and they will arrive–I did it last year), you will be unable to get snail mail because of our location. Which brings me to the next thing…

-If you think you’d like to get mail during the trip, get your family and friends to write you letters now and seal them. Have them put a date on the envelopes that they want you to read the letters, and then keep them until that day. If you think you’ll have problems with not opening the letters, you can give them to me once we’re in Africa and I’ll hold onto them until that day. Then you can still get “mail!” This isn’t required, it’s just a nice idea. :0)

-TIME DIFFERENCE–Swazi is 7 hours ahead of EST, and in the Spring when the US goes on Daylight Saving’s Time, it’ll only be 6.

-MALARIA MEDS- For those of you bringing malaria meds–see the AIM handbook as to if you actually need it or not. There are several different types of malaria meds out there, and some of them can have some pretty strong side effects. Some of the once a week ones give terrible nightmares, and though I’ve never taken them, I’ve had to sit with people the mornings after the nightmares and hear them cry. It can be pretty terrible. Not all of the once a week ones are like that, though.

There’s one that’s once a day called “doxycycline” and it’s actually an acme medication. It’s pretty common and insurance companies don’t blink twice when giving it to you. It’s said that you can be sensitive to sunlight while on it, but I took it in the amazon and had no problems, along with most of my team. Since we’re so close to the trip, I’d recommend seeing if your doc can prescribe it fo r 3x a day for a month (and then you take it once a day for 3 months), because sometimes insurance companies only give it to you a month at a time. It’s not very expensive either.

 

I recommend taking garlic pills. They are cheap–one bottle is $5–and it’s like a natural bug repellent. I only got one bug bite while I was in Africa last time and I took them every day. My team didn’t and they got more bug bites.

-LUGGAGE WEIGHT: Remember, there is a weight limit for luggage: 50lbs..

-ATMS/$$$–The currency in South Africa (SA) is the rand. The exchange rate right now is roughly 7:1 USD. You’ll exchange money in the SA airport when we arrive. You can use the rand in Swaziland. It has the same value as Swazi $, which is called emiligeni. However, you cannot use emiligeni in SA. Also, you cannot use rand coins in Swaziland.

 

You WILL have access to atms in swazi. Make sure you check with your bank and tell them that you’ll be out of the country, because sometimes they think activity is suspicious and shut your account until you talk to them. Same with credit cards. Most places take visa. Mastercard too, I think, although I’m not positive.

 

I recommend bringing about $200-$300 to spend.

 

-HOUSING–the homestead that we will be living on is in the country, in an area called “Timbutini.” We will be 20 minutes outside of Manzini, a major city. I lived on the homestead last semester, so I know what it’s like. It has electricity now (it wasn’t there when I lived there last), and there is a supply of fresh water. It doesn’t have running water. The bathrooms are outhouses and you’ll take bucket baths. A lot of livestock lives on the homestead (goats and chickens), and cows wander onto the property every day, so there’s a lot of poop and random animal noises. It’s hilarious.

 

If you bring anything that needs to be charged like an ipod or a camera battery, you’ll need a converter. You can get those in Africa.

 

If anyone has an itrip and doesn’t mind bringing it, that would be amazing. That way we could have tunes when we ride in the car. Yes–ipods and mp3 players are most definitely welcome. Please be aware that there are only a few outlets that we will all be sharing. Also, being that it’s Africa, the electricity could go out at any time.

 

Also, a tape converter that could plug into an ipod is also welcome.

 

–DRIMES– Yeah, no one’s ever heard of them, huh? Drimes are dramas that are set to music. Y’all will learn them at training camp and then they can be used as a powerful evangelistic tool in country. They are called that because of the ministry called “Drime” that is based out of Vancouver. Clothes for them do need to be be loose and long. If every person could bring a pack of D batteries, that would be very helpful. The stereo runs off of these and without them, we have no way to play the drimes.

 

–THE FAST– You’ve probably come to the point in the Journey that talks about a fast that will last for the entire trip. If you’re still trying to think of something to fast from, no problem! That’s fine! Some ideas are: looking in a mirror, makeup, caffeine, sugar, reading books other than the Bible, sleeping (waking up an hour earlier), music, even a relationship (I know someone who didn’t talk to her boyfriend in the states for the entire trip as her fast). Fasting doesn’t always mean abstaining from food, that’s just the most common. One thing you need to know is that on AIM trips, you cannot fast from food completely. Those guidelines are set in place because of the strenuous nature of the trip and other factors. You can fast from a type of food, but meals are mandatory unless you are sick.

 

One thing to consider when trying to come up with something to fast from is the purpose of it. What is the purpose of this one? To feast on God and see what he has to say to you while you are in Africa. Fasting isn’t breaking a bad habit or even trying to quit a sin, like fasting from cursing or complaining or thinking negatively, because that’s something that shouldn’t be in our lives anyway. It’s choosing something that is pleasurable to you (that you have access too, like fasting from movies doesn’t work because you won’t have access to them) that you do on a daily basis that you can give to God. It’s saying that “this is good for me and I might even need this (like we need to eat to survive), but I’m offering it to you today as an act of worship because I love you.” It also helps if the fast is measureable. Fasting from something abstract like thinking of certain things is really hard to objectively do.

 

I hope these two paragraphs are helpful. They aren’t meant to discourage you, only to provide encouragement and guidelines for something that many people are confused about a lot. Just pray about it and God will show you what he wants you to fast from, I promise! He’s awesome like that. It’s not something to stress over and worry about, so please don’t do any of those things. Most of all, this is something between you and God, so it has the value that he places on it, not the value that we place on it.

 

I think that’s it for right now. I hope this helps you and relieves any stress that you have as far as packing and stuff. If you have any questions or problems, please let me know!

 

I (Kristen) am on facebook and now am a part of the group online, where this message is also posted, so you can contact me there.

 

It’s not long now before we go!!!! I hope that you enjoy these last few weeks at home and that your time of preparation isn’t stressful. Hopefully this helped!!!! Let us know if you need anything!!! We love you and are praying for you!!!!

 

-Your leaders