Greenwich Street Residences Luxury
Corner unit 2 BEDROOM is over 1100 sq. ft. and features an SUNNY north / east exposure, high 11 ft. ceilings, and a huge living room with ample space for a full dining area. This unit is one of our DESIGNER READY
Price: $981,000
CC: $1149
Real estate tax: $397
Kitchen has Sub-zero Fridge, Viking Range and Microwave, Fisher/Paykal 2-Drawer Dishwashers, instant hot water tap, In-wall ipod docking station, and much, much more! Marble bath with deep soaking tub has both a Rain shower, and a handheld. Unit has 5 Large closets, one of which is a Large walk-in hall closet measuring about 5ftX6ft & built out with Elfa System. Great location, near all train lines, parks, shopping, theaters, dining. Full five star Hotel-like service with concierge and 24-hour doorman… and Very Reasonable Common Charges! Free continental breakfast is served to residents Monday through Friday. Full gym access included for all residents with free trainers and abs/Pilates/yoga classes. Building has a fantastic game room with billiards, darts and large flat screen TV. There is also an Amazing common roof deck space with towel and drink service on weekends, and an indoor “Harbor Room – Sky Lounge” which is also available for private parties. Free Wi-Fi in all common areas! This is a spectacular building to live in!

Located on Greenwich Street, this building is on the cutting edge of designer development. This art deco tower rises 37 stories with sweeping views of the city skyline, Hudson River and beyond. All of the residences feature oversized windows and soaring ceilings. Enter through the buildings art deco façade into a grand marble lobby featuring a hand carved reception desk and grotto water fountain.

5-Star amenities include a café, library with grand piano and fireplace, billiards room w/ flat screen TV, Harbour Room featuring lounge seating, poker table, dining room w/ kitchen and spectacular views and SKY DECK, with lounges and day beds all in traditional South Beach style.

This unit is being offered at attractive prices. Together with our completed common spaces and 5-Star amenity program, Greenwich Club Residences is a spectacular product and we look forward to working with you and getting your transactions closed.
R.S.V.P.
Jamie Knuckles
NestSeekers International
Direct: 646-443-3760
Cell: 347-323-8671

http://www.nestseekers.com/24139/Financial_District_Luxury_Greenwich_Street_Residences_Luxury_Corner_unit_2_BEDROOM

Amenities

* Dining Room
* Central A/C

Rent: Furnished: $6,300
Security: 2 months
Apartment Features
Kitchen: Dishwasher; Bathroom: Marble; High Ceiling;
Details
Size: Studio
Ownership: Condominium
R/B/B:2/0/1
Availability: Immediate
Term: 1 – 12 Months
Neighborhood: Upper West Side
Building Description
Cross Streets: Broadway and Amsterdam Avenue.
Full Service; Elevator; Post-war; Built 1999; Mid-rise; 10 Floors; 50 Apartments.

Building Amenities
Garage; Hotel Style Service; Business Center;

Building Policies
Pied-A-Terres Allowed. W/D Allowed. Pets Allowed.

Building Notes:

* The Phillips Club offers ownership membership as well as extended stay accommodations. These apartments can not be used as a permanent residence. This building is akin to owning a time share in lieu of staying at a hotel when in NYC.
* The Phillips Club is a member-owned luxury residence combining the advantages of home ownership with the conveniences of the city’s finest hotels, The Club offers unequaled amenities, service and privileges without recurring hotel expenses.
* The Phillips Club offers 24-hour concierge, daily maid service (nightly fee during use), and privileges at the Reebok Sports Club/NY.
* The Reebok Sports Club/NY offers rooftop in-line skating and running. Music-filled, junior Olympic size swimming pool for lap swimming. 40 -foot climbing wall. Two full-court, regulation-size basketball gymnasiums. State-of-the-art 13,000 SF coed weight-training gym. Cardiovascular deck with 5,000 SF of computerized training equipment. Challenges. Muscles and mind, recharged. Complete spa facilities including steam rooms, saunas and Jacuzzis. Large, luxurious locker rooms with towel service. Paul Lebrecque salon and spa. Exhaustive. Fitness evaluation center. Personalized instruction. Nutritional counseling. Child care center “For Kids Only.” Landscaped sundeck.
* Business amenities include: Multi-line telecommunications system with voicemail. Dataport for computer hookup. Fax machine in each residence. 24-hour business center. Conference room. Conference facilities at Reebok Sports Club/NY.

R.S.V.P. for a preview:
Jamie Knuckles
Nestseekers International
Cell:347-323-8671
Amenities
* The Phillips Club offers ownership membership as well as extended stay accommodations. These apartments can not be used as a permanent residence. This building is akin to owning a time share in lieu of staying at a hotel when in NYC.
* The Phillips Club is a member-owned luxury residence combining the advantages of home ownership with the conveniences of the city’s finest hotels, The Club offers unequaled amenities, service and privileges without recurring hotel expenses.
* The Phillips Club offers 24-hour concierge, daily maid service (nightly fee during use), and privileges at the Reebok Sports Club/NY.
* The Reebok Sports Club/NY offers rooftop in-line skating and running. Music-filled, junior Olympic size swimming pool for lap swimming. 40 -foot climbing wall. Two full-court, regulation-size basketball gymnasiums. State-of-the-art 13,000 SF coed weight-training gym. Cardiovascular deck with 5,000 SF of computerized training equipment. Challenges. Muscles and mind, recharged. Complete spa facilities including steam rooms, saunas and Jacuzzis. Large, luxurious locker rooms with towel service. Paul Lebrecque salon and spa. Exhaustive. Fitness evaluation center. Personalized instruction. Nutritional counseling. Child care center “For Kids Only.” Landscaped sundeck.
* Business amenities include: Multi-line telecommunications system with voicemail. Dataport for computer hookup. Fax machine in each residence. 24-hour business center. Conference room. Conference facilities at Reebok Sports Club/NY.

* Doorman
* Concierge
* Health Club
* Pool
* Elevator
* Garage

APARTMENT INFORMATION:
APARTMENT 5 BEDROOM Penthouse Duplex
Apt. #52G
RENT: $22458
BATHROOMS: 5.5

APARTMENT FEATURES:
All apartments have 9-foot high ceilings.
Most apartments with spectacular East River and/or cityscape views.
Marble bathrooms with marble topped vanities.
Individually controlled heat and air conditioning.
Every apartment features bay or corner windows.
Energy efficient, tinted dual-glazed windows.
White mini-blinds on all windows.
Private intercom system to doorman.
Individual electronic alarm system at each apartment entrance.
Many apartments include full-size washers and dryers.
Selection of cable television hook-ups available.
Full 8-foot high doors.
3/4 inch solid oak parquet floors.
Contemporary kitchens with side-by-side icemaker refrigerators, self-cleaning ovens, built-in microwaves, instant hot water dispensers and ceramic tile floors.
Many apartments feature windowed kitchens.
BUILDING FEATURES:
Landscaped building entrance, framed with limestone piers.
Elegant lobby with domed ceiling.
Attentive, uniformed doorman at your service 24-hours a day.
Beautifully decorated corridors with designer alabaster lighting fixtures and wall sconces, crown moldings and decorative wood-framed apartment entrance doors.
High-speed passenger elevators with separate service elevator.
Separate monitored service entrance, with attendant.
Attended indoor garage.
Package room with delivery escort.
Fully equipped, air conditioned laundry facility with closed circuit TV security.
Cheerfully designed children’s playroom.
Magnificent swim and fitness center with landscaped and furnished sun terrace.
55-foot lap swimming pool.
Fully equipped exercise and aerobics room.
Recreational lounge (with full kitchen facilities – ideal for private parties – by reservation.)
Men’s and women’s locker rooms, with separate saunas and showers.
Fully furnished conference room (by reservation).
PREVIEWS ARE AVAILABLE AT YOUR REQUEST!
TO SCHEDULE A VISIT R.S.V.P. for a VIP TOUR:
JAMIE KNUCKLES AT: 347-323-8671
Amenities
Full Service Luxury Building.

* Doorman
* Health Club
* Pool
* Roof deck
* Elevator

* Terrace
* Dining Room
* Fireplace
* Washer/Dryer
* Central A/C

A group of 200 students on an outreach to Swaziland.  Get yourself some coffee, and have a look at this clip, and follow the link for more.  Swazi1000

Enjoy

Peace

Charl

When the rain comes sprinkling down, perspiration that would be barely worthy of comment in Iowa, every drop slams against the tin roof of my concrete house like the world is going to end in flood. Sitting on my bed, munching NikNaks and contemplating whether to wash the dishes or write letters or maybe do a Soduku, I am convinced we are in the middle of a miraculous storm, the water drumming and rattling and generally assaulting my roof with the all the aplomb that must accompany rain in a desert. I open my wooden door and peer through the sturdy metal burglar bars and smell the moisture in the dirt, but when I stick my hand out, palm up, barely a trickle meets my skin. The litulu is not pouring after all, but only trying to fool me into hoping for the end of drought through the resonant corrugated metal above my head.

I wrote that two months ago. When it was still the dry season.

It is the rainy season now, and I have new context for the term apocalypse. The preview of what the apocalypse will most certainly feel like is screened at least once a week, in Swaziland, when the strobe-lightening pulses and crackles across the sky like the finale at a fireworks show.

It is an official American government requirement that all Swaziland Peace Corps Volunteers have a lightening rod installed next to their homes. Our safety and security officer puts his lightening safety lecture right up next to his talks on avoiding assault, theft and poisonous snakes. (“The best thing to do during a lightening storm is to sit on your bed, with your shoes on. Under NO circumstances touch water.”)

If the occasional drizzles of the dry season made my tin roof clatter, the waterfall deluge that pounds my house now is like a machine gun aimed at the thin barrier over my head. The roof shakes with the water slamming into it. Combined with the bone-shaking, sonorous thunder and continuous lightening, I imagine I am sitting in a bunker in the middle of a battlefield, untouched but under siege. Water pours under my door and drenches my grass mat. I hear the security officer’s voice in my head and don’t retrieve it from the flood.

Outside, once the tornado-force winds have finished finding their way through the cracks in my walls and leaving a fine layer of red dirt over all my belongings, they blow the storm clouds north. Emerging, I am amazed at the change the almost daily rains are working on the community around me.

A swamp is rising in what used to be a fauna-filled trench that crosses my road. The dirt street is often a slurry of mud, smoothed down after the rain ceases by giant trucks that strike a strong resemblance to snow plows. Soaked with water, trees burst into red fluted flowers and a layer of green coats the once dusty ground.

Now is the Swazi lowveld summer. The days swelter with humidity and temperatures soaring above one hundred degrees Fahrenheit under the beating sun. In the evenings the storm clouds gather. Usually they pass over with only gentle, brief rains. But at least once a week, the winds rise up, the rain slams down, the power goes out and I get a brief glimpse of what life must have been like on the ark.

Orphans and trinkets, Mbabane, Swaziland, 2005.

I suppose this photo focuses more on those who do not have the blessing of family, an appropriate follow up photo to the World Aids Day photo. This photo was taken at an orphanage in Swaziland. (If you are unfamiliar with this small country located in the southern section African continent, you can go to our World Aids Day post to find out more and also find links to further information.)

I have been to many countries and the number of children without families is inversely proportional to that nations GDP; the lower the GDP, the higher the number orphans. When you add in the HIV/AIDS prevalence in Africa, the effect seems exponential. The truth is incomprehensible, the sub-Saharan countries of Africa are becoming nations of orphans. What is the future for a country where large numbers of its populace has grown up lacking the knowledge of familial love? Add to this Africa’s history of wars where mass starvation or the machete are considered legitimate strategies for victory. Are we to suppose such atrocities will decrease where mass numbers of the population have never known a sense of family belonging and responsibility to loved ones?

Those of us born in first world countries are insulated from exposure to orphaned children. They are here as well, but where? I dare guess they are greatly better off physically, but still in danger of the same emotional disconnectedness.

These photos are intended to engage, not trouble our readers. But, engagement necessitates some level of response. So, I will leave it there. You may ponder your response as a member of the Body of Christ.

On second thought, I guess I would rather it trouble you somewhat.

Last December, I remember looking ahead to this year… hopefully anticipating that I’d be in Africa doing HIV/AIDS work.  I remember wondering what my World AIDS Day activities might look like, and hoping that my day would be spent in a meaningful way.

Here I am, serving as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Swaziland – the country with the highest HIV prevalence rate in the world, where ARV treatment only began 4 years ago, where only about half the people in need of ARVs are on treatment, where traditional medicine still clashes with modern, where TB and other opportunistic infections pose serious problems… and where high levels of stigma and risky behavior persist.

On December 1st, I had the opportunity to attend the National World AIDS Day event in Siteki.  Even in a small country, it’s exciting be able to participate in a national event.  I went with staff and volunteers of my NGO, and we were some of the first people to arrive.

The day began with an AIDS walk.  Standing on the side of the road, waiting to join the growng crowd walking to town, I was overwhelmed with happiness.  Some organizations had made large banners and were holding them proudly.  There was a marching band and girls in costumes dancing.  Groups of people were wearing shirts that had been specially made with slogans showing off their rights with regards to HIV and AIDS.  Scattered among the crowd were boards that looked like the newspaper advertisements, only the headlines were things like “I’m ok, I’m on ARVs”, “I’m HIV+ but I’m still one of you”, “HIV Testing”, and something about not being stupid about sex.  We joined the crowd, and I was happy to note that no one looked at me as though I didn’t belong, and no one yelled mean words at me.  I scanned the group and didn’t see any other white faces participating… though there were some on the side of the road filming and taking photographs.  One of my friends from the NGO held my hand and we walked together.  It felt so right… felt like this fight against HIV/AIDS is something we’re actually doing together.  They sang beautiful songs that I wasn’t able to learn fast enough to join in.  Just as we were getting back to the area where the rest of the day’s events would be occurring, a group of kids from a high school started chanting “We are an HIV free generation… YES WE ARE!”

The rest of the day was ok… the walk was definitely the most moving part of it.  They had stalls where organizations sat with information.  Different groups sang, danced, and acted.  There were some big wigs there, Deputy Prime Minister and the heads of lots of big organizations.  Some of them spoke… although many of the things that were said made me roll my eyes and wonder where they’re living.

When I looked around at the rest of the people there — and there were a lot of people there, far more than I’d expected — I couldnt’ tell whether they were paying any attention or not.  Many of them were, I’m sure… but there was a solid hum of conversations going on no matter what kind of activity was going on.  I walked around with some of the women I came with, and I ended up getting a tshirt.  It was fun and exciting… but later I realized that pretty much every one there wanted a tshirt, and it wouldn’t suprise me if a tshirt and other free stuff was the main motivation in coming at all.  A bunch of other PCVs showed up, and admittedly it was difficult for me to pay much attention then.  Once it was all over, I was waiting around to figure out where our cars were and all of that.  Standing near some of the people I came with, I was approached by a woman.  She said that she had come from very far away, and was in a support group but hadn’t been able to get her tshirt.  I talked with her a bit, but she just continued with her sob story.  Eventually I gave in to her request, and let her have the shirt off my back.  I don’t know what made me do it… I always say no to people when they ask me for things.  Somehow the fact that she wanted this cheap, sweaty shirt off my back was enough to arouse some pity within me, and I decided if she wanted it that bad then she deserved it more than I did.

I sat in the car waiting to come home for over an hour.  The others I was with figured out where the food was, and decided to grab lunch.  It was typical Swazi food… and I decided to wait until I got home to eat.  They came back and ate their fill, then tossed the styrafoam plates out the window onto the ground.  Children were walking the grounds, picking up trays and trying to salvage any remnants of food that others had discarded.  It made me sad to see their hungry eyes.  When everyone was back in, and I thought we were getting ready to leave… some of them decided they hadn’t had enough to eat, and wanted to go back for another meal.  As they all walked off, I shook my head to myself.  I looked again at the hungry children walking along the area, and couldn’t help but think that food would be better served feeding them.  I also saw a man digging through the trash and trays that the children had already finished with, and he was scooping anything edible into a plastic bag.  I hoped that he was bringing it home for his dogs or something, but it’s a very real possibility that it was for himself or his family.  I felt slightly better about things when the people returned with their second trays, and I noticed that where the meat had been, there was now only chicken claws.

I got home and was exhausted, and I’m still not sure I’ve fully processed it.

There’s so much AIDS fatigue here — a term used to describe the fact that the country has been bombarded with HIV/AIDS messaging, and people are sick of listening.  I wonder about the event, and the other smaller ones that have been taking place at the regional and community levels.  Are people listening?  Do they care?  Or is it about saying they were there… showing off the tshirt they got…

My attitude and outlook has been all over the place lately, and I’m not sure where it’s currently sitting.  I’m glad I participated in the event, and glad that so many things are being done here in various areas throughout the country.  It’s just hard to measure impact and to know what difference any/all of this is making.

World AIDS Day… not really something to celebrate, especially not here.  But I’m glad it’s being acknowledged – everywhere.

Another container shipped!

Today, Thursday, December 03, 2009, another 40 foot container of medical supplies and equipment for THE KINGDOM OF SWAZILAND was shipped from MedShare’s Southeastern Distribution Center.  This is the fifth MedShare container to Swaziland funded by the current grant from the COCA-COLA AFRICA FOUNDATION.

The donated items are being sent to the Ministry of Health of Swaziland which will then distribute them out to the government hospitals of Mbabane, Pigg’s Peak, Hlathikhulu Government Hospital, and Mankayane.  MedShare was able to load 877 items on this container which the Ministry of Health of Swaziland requested, including: Personal Energy Transport (P.E.T.) carts, stretchers, patient blankets, IV sets, surgical towels, IV poles, anesthesia breathing circuits, a centrifuge, a C-Arm portable X-Ray, defibrillators, electrosurgical units, and much more.  MedShare also prepared and sent five “Equipment Maintenance Kits” which contain tools and spare parts to help the technicians at the recipient hospitals repair and maintain the biomedical equipment they have received from MedShare.

The Swaziland Reed Dance is an annual ceremony in which young maidens dance before their king. The King in turn chooses a new wife from the young virgins. To access the full documentary on Swaziland go to www.satvchannel.com

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnYSKi4tidQ&hl=en

Visit : Travel Blog

On the day before World AIDS day, it is appropriate to blog about something related to this topic. UNAIDS recently published their latest epidemiology report on the global HIV/AIDS pandemic. You can download the full report here.
While, for most of the readers of this blog, this report contains statistics, for every person personally involved in the fight against the AIDS pandemic, these numbers and percentages represent people. There are some positive things included in the report. It is clear that ART (anti-retroviral therapy) is helping many people to live longer. According to the report the number of new infections are coming down slightly. But in a country like Swaziland with a population of less than 1 million and with the highest infection rate in the world (according to the report Swaziland had an estimated adult HIV prevalence of 26% in 2007, but antenatal surveillance found an increase in HIV prevalence, from 39.2% in 2006 to 42% in 2008, among female clinic attendees), I wonder if it isn’t a matter of “too little too late.”
In a newspaper in South Africa it was reported that the Dutch Reformed Church (N G Kerk) which is also the church that sent me as missionary to Swaziland in 1985, might be rethinking it’s attitude towards cohabitation as an alternative for marriage. The irony was that the immediate following report told of the alarming increase in HIV infections amongst the white, the rich and students in South Africa (three groups that form a large part of the membership of the Dutch Reformed Church.) In the report it says that the South African Blood Transfusion Service had to reject 25% of blood donated by students at a specific university, due to it being HIV-positive.
One of the reasons, I believe, why Swaziland has such a high rate of HIV infections, is because marriage has to be postponed. Swaziland has a lobola system, where a man who wants to get married, has to discuss a form of bride’s price which needs to be paid before they can get married. One of our church members was involved in such a discussion over the weekend and eventually it was determined that the young man had to give his future father-in-law fourteen head of cattle! Keep in mind that this man and the girl are deeply in love. They are emotionally and physically ready to get married. But they can’t, not unless the man can find a way to pay at least part of the lobola. It is no wonder that very few Swazi girls (or men, for that matter) enter into marriage as virgins.
In 2005 I was in the Netherlands at a meeting of the Reformed Ecumenical Council and was chairperson of a committee that had to write a document on the church’s response to HIV and AIDS. I am extremely proud of the product that we presented to the meeting. (You are welcome to download a copy of this document with the title Towards a Theology of Hope in a Time of HIV/AIDS.) As we worked on the document, thinking and rethinking through every sentence, I was challenged by a young woman from the Netherlands. She asked me whether I wanted the document to be accepted by the Reformed churches all over the world, or only in Swaziland? I had felt for a more conservative approach, but was eventually convinced that this would lead to the document never being acceptable in churches in Europe, where sex before marriage and homosexuality are issues which are totally acceptable in most churches. (Once we had agreed on our approach and reformulated one or two sentences, I came under strong attack, especially from churches in Nigeria, when I had to defend the document.)
But I then wanted to know from some of the people in the Netherlands, why cohabitation was so acceptable to them. The answer I got from some church members, was that people had to wait until they were older before they could get married. Typically, they would wait until they were around thirty before they got married, regardless of when they started dating. And when I asked why they waited so long, the answer was that they had to collect money first before they could get married.
And this is where the link with the lobola system in Swaziland comes in. In South Africa people also tend to get married at an older age. The arguments I hear is that they have to buy a house and furnish the house before they can get married. In other words, the problem in Swaziland and the problem in South Africa (and Europe) boils down to the same thing: a materialistic approach towards life. And this is where I feel that the church is failing it’s young members. Instead of giving the go-ahead for cohabitation, shouldn’t the church rather address the problems that are causing young people to opt for cohabitation instead of getting married? Shouldn’t the church rather speak out against the ridiculous extravagance of wedding ceremonies? (I recently heard of someone we know planning to get married, who’s invitation cards costs more than my son’s entire wedding had cost!) Shouldn’t the church say to young couples that it’s fine to rent a cheap apartment with only the most basic things to survive (which they need in any case, even if they live together). Shouldn’t the church say to young people that it’s really not necessary to buy a five carat diamond ring in order to get engaged?
I remember a story which was once told to me of a town high up in a mountain with an extremely dangerous road leading up to the town which frequently led to accidents and severe injuries. As the authorities debated a solution for the problem, they eventually decided to build a new hospital in the town in order to treat the victims of the accidents.
Is this perhaps what the church is doing?

Boy on a fence, Mbabane, Swaziland, 2005.

With this photo it would be all too easy to focus on the obvious, the common thread of the oft used mission-oriented challenge of how much need there is in the world. Of course all of that would be true, a legitimate call to action. However, that too easily lets us off the hook. This is one of those opportunities to self-assess, some healthy reflexive critiquing.

Look at this image, not in terms of the lack or the need shown concerning this family, but as a counterpoint to the abundance in our own lives. What is the minimum we need to be happy? In these past months many people have suffered loss of possessions, homes, cars, an alteration/disruption of a lifestyle. I don’t mean to belittle the pain associated with such loss, that pain is real. Then I look at this family. Their possessions can quite literally be seen in the photo. There were no toys in the home, no cherished dinner set passed down through the family, no iPods or Wii games strewn about the living room. What they have can be seen in this photo.

The song lyric keeps popping in my head, “when you’ve got nothing, you’ve got nothing to lose.” Yet, the truth is that they do have something; they share common possessions with the richest of the world, the love of family, and times of joy with friends and family. This photo contorts the truth because of the despondent demeanor of a boy in dirty clothing turning from the camera. In truth that is merely showing his shyness, not his lack of happiness. Moments later he was running and laughing with the other children around this home in sheer enjoyment of a toy one of them had made. With scraps of material they had found a game materialized that was an obvious enjoyment for the children who joined in.

Maybe we, in these richest nations of the world, should mourn the children who become bored because they need a new game for their electronic game console, the old games have become tiresome. Or, those who never experienced the joy of making up a game from nothing that could entertain for hours. What about the families who bemoan the lack of new carpeting or a new BBQ with which they could better enjoy their patio and pool. Or, woe to the photographer whose digital camera is lacking in the latest features (I had to include myself in here somewhere.)

A friend recently challenged me to think honestly about what it is that I needed. Or better, what do I need to forsake to better serve the Lord? Possessions do indeed anchor our feet more securely to the ground, and when they are stripped from our hands we mourn. Yet, do we mourn so deeply at this loss of things that we don’t feel the freedom of our feet?

It’s been a long almost-2-weeks of being in town with my fellow PCVs.  Nice in the sense that there were showers, flush toilets, and electricity… and I got to catch up with people I hadn’t seen or talked to in months.  But it also created a lot of stress, toyed with my emotions, and has generally left me feeling overwhelmed.  We were here for training, and I actually feel like it was worthwhile because I learned about resources that will help me be more effective as I begin my work in the community.

Also this week I was voted onto our Volunteer Advisory Council, which means I’ll be serving as a liaison between volunteers and staff to address issues and improve communication.  Every few months we’ll meet, or more frequently if issuse arise.  I think I’ll do well with it, and am very glad to have been chosen

I just want to emphasize that I’m happy here, I’m doing well, and I’m really excited about the ideas I have for my community.  I realize that the tone of some of my posts may lead you to believe otherwise, but most days my heart is light and I continue to look forward to what will be unfolding next.

That said, I’ll be heading back to my community tomorrow.  I know it’s going to be hard and I will go through another period of adjustment.  It will be tough to go back to: constantly hearing Siswati and trying to understand it; bucket baths and candlesl; isolation.  I’m excited to get back to the life that I’ve come to enjoy, but I’m also prepared for the mood downswing that will likely accompany it.  To make matters worse, my roof has been leaking and there were heavy downpours for 6 days straight last week… which has me a bit worried about what condition I’ll find my house and belongings.

As I’m re-entering my community, I’m trying to stay focused on why I’m here and what I hope to do.  Here are the projects/ideas that I’m going to be working on:

• World AIDS Day events — attending the National one on Dec 1, and helping at a fellow PCVs event on the 5th
• Meetings at the NGO to continue with assessment work I’ve been doing
• Working on database improvements and entry at the NGO
• Play area renovations at NGO (maybe)
• Assist NGO staff with curriculum/activities about Positive Living and ARTs
• Developing curriculum/activities for lifeskills youth group at NGO
• Developing curriculum/activities for lifeskills classes at secondary school
• Attending training and beginning to serve as volunteer for Junior Achievement program at high school
• Meet/work with primary school teacher to develop lifeskills curriculum/activities
• Meet/work with Committee for Disabled Children to discuss/revise proposal and work towards submitting it
• Meet with migrant worker contracting company
• Develop workshop/training ideas for migrant workers

Basically, I’m going to be busy.  Or I’m not going to find a way to make any of that happen and then I won’t have anything to do!  Only time will tell.

It was so nice to talk to some of you on Thanksgiving   It was strange to be away from family for the holiday, but it wasn’t sad or anything.  We went to the U.S. Ambassador’s house — which was gorgeous — and ate a huge meal with all of the traditional foods.  I have a feeling Christmas will be harder to deal with, but I know we’ll all get through it!  On a side note about Christmas: there’s very little I want or need, and am certainly not expecting gifts.  I don’t think I’m going on vacation over Christmas, although I may take a trip for New Year’s.  That’s yet to be determined.

I’ve been bad about letters, but I’m going to try to get better.  The letters and packages you send me really do make a difference, and I go back and read through them on bad days.

I love you all.  I miss you.

<3

Travelling through South Africa, Swaziland and the beaches Mozambique this tour gives you a mix of the old and the new and great photographic opportunities.

Discover the diverse culture and rich wildlife of South Africa and Mozambique with a maximum of 16 person in our custom built full size expedition truck. With over a meter of legroom at each seat sit back, relax and experience the wonders of Southern Africa.

We have purpose-built our expedition vehicle, a Mercedes 1820 truck to be one of the best in the business, with exceptional reliability and speed. The truck is designed with our clients in mind: as a result, comfort and space are high on our list of priorities. The truck seats only 16 passengers. A smaller group size means that our tours have less impact on local communities and on the environment. We do not “rack-em, stack-em and pack-em”, as some companies do. Reclining coach-style seats, with over 1.3 metres of leg room, give you the space you need on long days of travelling. Our unique drop-down windows afford exceptional viewing. Above each set of seats is a roof hatch to provide an additional all-round viewing option.

There are two storage lockers per set of two seats. One locker is located inside at your feet for your hand luggage/camera gear and contains a box-safe for travel documents, money and other valuables. The other is an outside baggage locker. The truck itself is fully lockable. The linked cab and passenger compartments allow for optimal communication between passengers and the crew, and includes an intercom system for travel information.

We provide the services of an expert photographer and digital download facility on all our overland tours, a unique feature making us stand out from the others! One of our crew (normally the Tour Leader) is a full-qualified, semi-professional, photographer who will be available to give advice on photographic (and video) techniques; and will organise “workshops/tutorials” on photographic subjects and techniques (eg landscape, wildlife and bird photography, night shots, close-ups and portraits) to assist our guests to improve their photographic technique. We also provide a laptop computer with multi-card reader for those clients with digital cameras to enable you to download your memory cards and burn those special memories to CD or DVD while on tour.

Source: Nature & Kind Travel Collection

In case you are thinking of purchasing the new global version of Amazon’s Kindle for Christmas, be aware that there are still quite a few places that the global version will NOT work.  I was disappointed to find that the new version still will not work in my country.

Apparently the new global version will only work in SOME countries.   I thought it would be helpful to most expats to have a complete list of which countries it will, or will not work in (below).

It’s also interesting to note the PATTERN of groups of countries where the Kindle doesn’t work–some countries probably lack satellite coverage or delivery systems, while others probably don’t WANT readers to be able to download whatever they want by satellite.

STARRED (*) countries marked below indicate that Kindle needs to be ordered from a SPECIAL PAGE on the Amazon site.

The Global Kindle version DOES work in (as of Dec. 2009):

Aland Islands, Albania, American Samoa, Andorra, Angola, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Aruba, Australia*, Austria, Bahamas, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bermuda, Bhutan, Bolivia, Boznia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Bulgaria, Burundi, Cambodia, Canada, Cape Verde, Cayman Islands, Central African Republic, Colombia, Comoros, Congo, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Cote d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Denmark, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Falkland Islands, Faroe Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Finland, France, French Guiana, French Polynesia, Gabon, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Gibraltar, Greece, Greenland, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guam, Guatemala, Guernsey, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Holy See, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, India, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jersey, Kenya, Kiribati, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Latvia, Liberia, Leichtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macao, Macedonia, Madagascar, Malawi, Malta, Marshall Islands, Martinique, Mauritius, Mayotte, Mexico, Moldovia, Monaco, Mongolia, Montenegro, Montserrat, Mozembique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Netherlands, New Caledonia, Nicaragua, Niue, Norfolk Island, Northern Mariana Islands, Norway, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Puerto Rico, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Réunion, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe, Serbia, Seychelles, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka,  Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos Islands, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Virgin Islands – British, Virgin Islands – U.S.,  Wallis and Futuna, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

The Global Kindle version does NOT work in (as of Dec. 2009) the following countries:

Afghanistan, Algeria, Antarctica, Argentina, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bouvet Island, British Indian Ocean Territory, Brunei Darussalam, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chile, Chad, China, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Cuba, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, French Southern Territories, Gambia, Guinea, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Isle of Man, Israel, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Korea – Democratic People’s Republic of, Korea – Republic of, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Lesotho, Libya, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco (including the Western Sahara), New Zealand, Niger, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Palestinian Territories, Pitcairn, Qatar, Saint Barthelemy, Saint Helena, Saint Martin, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Somalia, South Georgia and the Sandwich Islands, Sudan, Svalbard and Jan Mayan, Syrian Arab Republic, Tajikistan, Thailand, Tokelau, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, United States Minor Outlying Islands, Uzbekistan,  Yemen.

While moderated by myself, David Bennett, in the admissions office, the hope in the coming weeks and months is to allow this site to be a conduit for students to talk about their lives as students. Let see how this experiment unfurls. Our first student blogger, Anica Lin, will be introduce herself shortly. She is a First-Year student from Swaziland who will comment not only on life at Lake Forest, but her life in America.

Amazon's Global Kindle Reader

I heard that Amazon now has a global version of Kindle. I was disappointed to find this morning that the new version still will not work in my country.

Since I’ve wanted one for some time, but have been waiting until they got a version that would work in my country, I checked out their website this morning, only to be disappointed again. Apparently the new global version will only work in SOME countries.

In case you are thinking of purchasing the new Global Kindle for a Christmas gift this year, since the new version will only work in SOME countries, I thought it would be helpful to most expats to have a complete list of which countries it will, or will not work in.

STARRED (*) countries marked below indicate that Kindle needs to be ordered from a SPECIAL PAGE on the Amazon site.

The Global Kindle version DOES work in (as of Dec. 2009):

Aland Islands, Albania, American Samoa, Andorra, Angola, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Aruba, Australia*, Austria, Bahamas, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bermuda, Bhutan, Bolivia, Boznia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Bulgaria, Burundi, Cambodia, Canada, Cape Verde, Cayman Islands, Central African Republic, Colombia, Comoros, Congo, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Cote d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Denmark, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Falkland Islands, Faroe Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Finland, France, French Guiana, French Polynesia, Gabon, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Gibraltar, Greece, Greenland, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guam, Guatemala, Guernsey, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Holy See, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, India, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jersey, Kenya, Kiribati, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Latvia, Liberia, Leichtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macao, Macedonia, Madagascar, Malawi, Malta, Marshall Islands, Martinique, Mauritius, Mayotte, Mexico, Moldovia, Monaco, Mongolia, Montenegro, Montserrat, Mozembique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Netherlands, New Caledonia, Nicaragua, Niue, Norfolk Island, Northern Mariana Islands, Norway, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Puerto Rico, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Réunion, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe, Serbia, Seychelles, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos Islands, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Virgin Islands – British, Virgin Islands – U.S., Wallis and Futuna, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

The Global Kindle version does NOT work in (as of Dec. 2009):

Afghanistan, Algeria, Antarctica, Argentina, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bouvet Island, British Indian Ocean Territory, Brunei Darussalam, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chile, Chad, China, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Cuba, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, French Southern Territories, Gambia, Guinea, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Isle of Man, Israel, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Korea – Democratic People’s Republic of, Korea – Republic of, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Lesotho, Libya, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco (including the Western Sahara), New Zealand, Niger, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Palestinian Territories, Pitcairn, Qatar, Saint Barthelemy, Saint Helena, Saint Martin, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Somalia, South Georgia and the Sandwich Islands, Sudan, Svalbard and Jan Mayan, Syrian Arab Republic, Tajikistan, Thailand, Tokelau, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, United States Minor Outlying Islands, Uzbekistan, Yemen.

Arguably the world’s deadliest snake, the black mamba has been the focal point of many exaggerated African legends, making its name feared around the world. Known for its cunning speed, aggressive behavior, and ability to inject potent venom into its prey, the black mamba is not something you’d want to provoke.

Found across the African savannahs and in rocky areas of southern and eastern Africa, the black mamba is a popular snake to witness on an African safari tour. Although they are dangerous, you are extremely safe within your vehicle with your highly knowledgeable and certified guide.

Here are the real facts behind the black mamba:

• The black mamba is actually grey, but gets its name for the blackish-bluish color inside of its mouth that is displayed during aggression.
• Reaching up to 14 ft. (4.3 m) in length, the black mamba is Africa’s longest venomous snake.

• Black mambas are difficult to out-run as they’re one of the fastest snakes in the world—they can reach speeds up to 12 mph to be exact. And surprisingly, they do not use this incredible gift for speed to attack their prey. Instead, they use it to escape threats.
• Left untreated, the black mamba’s venom has a fatality rate of 100%.
• The black mamba is so strong that it can raise its 1/3 of its body off of the ground.
• A black mamba will spend hours on a branch waiting for its prey, which are usually reptiles, amphibians, and rodents.
• Using its long black tongue to smell, the black mamba will frequently display its tongue when it senses something approaching.
• Females can lay up to 17 eggs in a nest beneath the ground or in a hollowed tree hole and they will hatch in approximately three months.     

For a closer look at the black mamba and research being performed on it, view this fascinating PBS video.

Kingdom of  SWAZILAND

stamp: 3 cents

year: 1969

mammal: catlikes / lion

No, I didn’t stop blogging. I’ve just been through an exceptionally rough time and when I did get a chance to relax, blogging was fairly low down on my priority list. But now that I’ve reached most of the deadlines that were stretched out before me, I should be able to do a few things that I neglected over the past 6 – 8 weeks, including blogging.
One topic that has been on my mind quite a lot lately, is the influence of prayer on mission. A lot has been written about prayer and I hardly consider myself as an expert on the topic. In fact, I’m usually the first one to admit that I have no idea how prayer works. That’s not the same as to doubt whether prayer works. It’s just that I have no special formula that I can use to guarantee that things will happen in the way we want them to if you keep to certain rules. I do also know the truth of what Søren Kierkegaard once wrote: “A man prayed, and at first he thought that prayer was talking. But he became more and more quiet until in the end he realised that prayer is listening.”
What I do realize, the longer that I’m involved with mission, is the essential role of prayer in this work. Just looking at our own ministry in Swaziland, Shiselweni Reformed Home-Based Care, and the way in which God has provided in our needs after people prayed about something, has made me realize that, statistically, it would be virtually impossible to say that it was purely by chance that things had happened, sometimes within an hour after praying about a matter. It could happen once. It could happen twice. But when you have ten, twenty and more stories to tell of how people prayed about a certain matter and an answer came, then you have to admit that something supernatural is happening.
We have a large number of prayer supporters all over the world. Not nearly enough though! But those who are praying for us, form an essential partnership in our ministry. Some pray daily. Some pray on a specific day in the week for Swaziland. But without prayer support, we, who are working on the inside, know that our attempts to do what we do will never rise above mere humanitarian assistance.
We can do lots of good things for God, but to rise up to a higher level, every mission ministry needs consistent prayer support. Perhaps Acts 1:8 could be our guide for prayer for mission: Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, the ends of the earth. If every Christian could start praying consistently for four mission ministries – one close by, one a bit further away, one even more further away and one really far away – who knows what we might see happening in the world.

MILWANE WILDLIFE SANCTUARY, Swaziland — Lions and elephants used to roam freely across Swaziland, but excessive hunting and habitat lost to agriculture meant that for nearly a half century, the king of the jungle could only be found on the kingdom’s coat of arms.

Now, thanks to the efforts of one dedicated family and the personal protection of King Mswati III, wildlife is staging a remarkable comeback in one of southern Africa’s smallest countries.

From no natural reserves in the mid-1950s, Swaziland now counts six legally protected game areas. While neighboring South Africa loses dozens of rhinoceroses to poachers each year, Swaziland has not lost one since 1992 — a success attributed to strict legislation and law enforcement against poaching. In a sign of Swaziland’s newly found success in wildlife conservation, the country is now exporting animals to South Africa, including rhinoceroses to Kruger National Park.

Success was never assured. By mid-century, the last Swazi lion and elephant had come and gone, and only a few large mammals subsisted at Hlane, the hunting grounds of former King Sobhuza II. The area had been home to thriving animal populations, but commercial hunting, land devoted to growing sugarcane, timber exploitation and mining had driven most species to local extinction.

Swaziland has not lost one rhinoceros to poaching since 1992. (Nicolas Brulliard/GlobalPost)

Ted Reilly, a young local farmer who had participated in an animal rescue operation in what was to become Zimbabwe and subsequently worked at Kruger park, was appalled by the situation when he came back to Swaziland. He first approached British authorities as Swaziland was then a protectorate but was told that neighboring Kruger park and another South African reserve offered plenty of protection to the region’s wildlife.

It was then that Reilly turned to his family and asked them to turn their successful beef, citrus, rice and corn farming operation into Swaziland’s first conservation area. The farm was not the best location for a nature reserve, but it was the only available land at the time and so in 1960 Milwane Wildlife Sanctuary was established. Reilly then visited King Sobhuza to ask for his support.

“And Sobhuza loved the idea because it was his heritage,” said Ann Reilly, Ted Reilly’s daughter. “So he allowed Dad to go and catch animals down in Hlane, where the last few animals were left.”



Today, Milwane has increased tenfold in size, and is home to large animals such as hippopotamuses, giraffes and leopards. Along with Mkhaya Game Reserve in central Swaziland and Hlane Royal National Park in the northeast, it is operated by Big Game Parks, a private nonprofit organization endorsed by the king and still run in large part by the Reilly family. The country’s other reserves fall under the supervision of the Swaziland National Trust Commission, a government body.

Swaziland’s reserves have been replenished in animals thanks to transfers from parks in South Africa but also through “Back to Africa,” a program that organizes the repatriation of rare animals from zoos worldwide to suitable environments in Africa. Earlier this year, Milwane welcomed three roan antelopes from a zoo in the Czech Republic. The antelopes joined a herd that had been transferred from the United Kingdom in 2004 under the same program.

To befit its royal status, Hlane is the crown jewel of Swaziland’s reserves. Unlike Milwane, whose vegetation includes alien species such as gum tree and lantana, Hlane features a landscape of native savannah, thickets and riverine forests. It is home to Swaziland’s only lion population after a reintroduction in 1994 and to three others of the Big Five — leopards, elephants and rhinoceroses but no buffalo.

Following the “Rhino War” of 1988 to 1992 when animals were killed at an alarming rate that reached one killing every two weeks, rhinoceroses were moved to a separate enclosure at Hlane so that their numbers could be better monitored. Convicted poachers face both the court of law and punishment by their traditional chiefs. Swaziland’s Game Act was also amended to make it one of the world’s toughest anti-poaching legislation. Under the act, rangers who shoot and kill poachers are not liable to prosecution.

“Rangers in Swaziland have better rights than even the police,” said Sibusiso, a guide at Hlane.

Authorities also distributed meat to communities surrounding the parks to deter poaching. Those efforts paid off. Although the government does not release wildlife statistics for security reasons, observers agree numbers have rebounded spectacularly. In addition to the export of animals to Kruger, traditional hunts have resumed at Hlane. Hunters armed with rifles, pistols and spears now regularly participate in culling operations to control booming populations.

Wisdom Dlamini, director of national parks at the Swaziland National Trust Commission, said three more protected areas are waiting for official approval to add to the existing six and that the establishment of a transfrontier conservation area would allow animals to move freely across borders from Swaziland to South Africa and Mozambique.

“It really has done a turnaround,” Ann Reilly said. “It’s a very healthy situation.”

Source: Global Post by Nicolas Brulliard

My sisi gave birth to a beautiful baby girl last Sunday.

This is wonderful news. It was also, for me, very strange and sudden news, as I had no idea the woman, with whom I share a house, was pregnant.

She did not look pregnant. You know, first child, heavyset build. I couldn’t tell, anyway. And no one ever talked about it in front of me, or at least not in English. No complaints about swollen feet or declarations of cravings for pickles with ice cream. No speculation on whether it was a boy or a girl or considerations of baby names. Neither were there the physical cues I might have observed in America to announce a baby’s impending arrival. No baby showers, no knitting of tiny sweaters or collecting of toys, no assembling of cradles or strollers, no readying of a nursery – little Nolihle sleeps swaddled tightly in blankets on her mother’s bed.

Nolihle means beautiful. She is.

In Swazi society, all of your mother’s sisters are called make, mother. All your father’s brothers are babe, father. All the children of those bomake and bobabe are called your bosisi and bobhuthi, your sisters and brothers. The term cousin, umzala, is reserved for children of your mother’s brothers or your father’s sisters. Uneva? Do you understand?

Under this system, in my family in America, I have not just one mother, one father and one sister. I have three mothers, five fathers, five sisters and four brothers.

Family casts a wider net here. If the cashier at the grocery store, the lady next to you on the kombi or the person behind you in line at the post office discovers you share a last name – which is quite common when pretty much everyone is from the same ethnic group – that stranger will more often than not embrace you and call you family. Even I get this reaction when I use my host family’s name, though I am clearly not going to be related to anyone known to the embracer.

In light of all this, it was still rather startling when, while chatting with an acquaintance about the baby, I suddenly found myself being congratulated heartily on now being a mother. My sisi had a baby, therefore, I am now, technically, Make Lomkhulu, older mother. The younger sister, age 13, is the baby’s Make Lomncane, younger mother.

In Swaziland, family is everything.

Even if you’re the foreigner whose obliviousness illustrates just how much you are not family at all.