This past weekend I was transformed. Our team was chosen to build a clinic compound for a very indigenous community in the northwest region Kunene, on top of the Zebra mountains, at a town called Otjomuru.
Background:
The people who live there are of a tribe called the Himba. This specific Himba sect has been marginalized and forgotten in history. The Deputy Prime Minister and my personal hero, Dr. Libertina Amathila found them lost in the mountains, marginalized as a people pushed into isolation in the due to wars in Namibia and Angola. Over the last 15 years, she's built them a school and a hostel for kids to sleep, and little by little gained their trust. Last year, children died because the closest town (or clinic) is over 3 hours drive.. There and then she decided something must be done, and the Pupkewitz Foundation, Claud Bosch Architects and Dr. Amathila hired us to help bring about a change!
The adventure!
I've been building in Namibia for over four years, but never had I gone so off-road to build a project. There is no running water or electricity, much less a place to buy food. A solar panel water pump was installed and teams of community members made on site over 50,000 bricks, with the help of Dr Linertina's team. Keep in mind, we sent tribal groups to the rivers to search for river sand and stones for all our bricks and concrete needs. We brought almost a 1,000 bags of cement on a 9 hour drive to prep the site.
Our team arrived Friday night, so late that I was actually worried we may have gone to the wrong village. It actually happened to be my Hebrew birthday, and Ndahanwapo (one of our foremen) found out and sang me happy birthday at least three times (diff languages) on the road!
Upon arrival, I felt like we were settling no-mans land at night. We built our tents (yes, there are no hotels nearby) and we went to sleep. In the morning we woke up to find out Dr Amathila was camping out with us to monitor the kick off of our work- she's the most hands on and inspiring leader I've come across Namibia. She was actually laughing that we put up our tents in the middle of the village- almost as if settling in the place. We quickly moved out to a side and found an amazing group of trees that gave us eternal shade when we needed it most.
We spent the next two days hiring community members and planning the works. Our core team was made up by our project manager Tjipa Makale- who is the leader in manufacturing all of our bricks in Ruacana, and a group of five Owambo men from our Omusati office, who had never even been in the Kunene region, much less in a Himba village. Shipangelo, Ndahanwapo, Isaac, Jeremia and Filipus. I bonded with these guys in ways that I haven't with any of our construction teams, because in the mountains there is no cell phone signal.
The first order of business the guys decided was to build a shower. They quickly made a small 2x2 room of bricks standing one on top of the other, and in less than 30 minutes the 5 guys had finished a shower. Im telling you - speed in construction is based on need. Then we built a storage shack (or so they convinced me). Right after we finished building the shack - about 6x3 meters. I saw wheelbarrows running to get bricks. When I peaked inside, I noticed they had paved the entries shack with interlocks, moved in their tents and built a proper house. Shipangelo, looked at me smiling and said, now we can say we are living better than the boss!
The rest of the two days was spent in a variety of tasks. Our teams measured the clinic and the house for the nurses, dug out the trenches, prepped the land with anti termite poison and mixed concrete to finish the foundation. In less than two days, Dr Amathila was laying the cornerstone.
I must say working with her is one of the most refreshing feelings. I've been reading her book, autobiographical, and everything I do has new meaning. She always talked of planting during exile in the refugee camps she ran, so I decided to surprise her. I brought along six packs of vegetable seeds (carrots, cabbage, maize, tomatoes, Etc), and in an hour she had organized a team to reach the community how to plant and built a vegetable garden in the backyard!
One of the highlights of my trip was getting stuck in a river on my way down from the mountains. I left our construction teams settled and ready for the next two months, and headed south east with Tjipa.
I was actually carrying tons of materials, and Tjipa had advanced much more than I on the road to Opuwo. I was giving a ride to two Himbas I picked up on the road, a very old lady who sat on the back of my truck like the queen, and a very warrior-like, half naked tribesman, who made funny jokes, none of which I could understand. Both sat on the back of my truck, as their red powder catches on and would stain the car.
What happened next is out of a movie. When I got stuck in the river, the tribesman jumped out and made a bird noise, holding his two hands close to his mouth. In the span of ten minutes, as my car sank in muddy waters, over two dozen tribesmen came out of the bush to help. Initially they were all in shock to see a white man on his knees, dirty from the mud trying to save his car. The whole scene was new and likely funny to them.
I got out of the mud, dirtier than on my worst kindergarten says, and screamed in my best Himba a phrase I learned on an excursion with my mother to a Himba village - "ehh o birra, samaleka, helpa!!" - somehow I think I offered black label beer to anyone who helped. My mother and I had been to a Himba village a year earlier and when we brought them food and staples, they danced around in a circle with us. Months later when I played the video to a Himba guy in the capital, he told me they were singing "oh birra samaleka"- one beer black label. I never knew if that was the phrase they associated with happiness, or if while dancing they actually asked us for a pack of beer. In any case, it's a moment my mother and I will never forget.
Back to the river. I was freaking out. My car was sinking. It was 6pm. I had no signal - I had actually texted Tjipa (our project manager) 20 times over begging him to come save me but the messages didn't seem to send. One of the Himba man took my phone to a nearby tree, saying signal will eventually catch on that one. I don't know why but I gave him my phone and he ran- not away, but to the tree. I also thought about it a few times, but eventually stopped caring and focused my attention on the sinking car.
About 12 of the men were on their knees with me trying to throw dry sand and move the muddy waters from around the wheels. Others were bringing stones, while cars drove past and offered help in different ways.
An hour must have gone by. If it wasn't for all those tribesman, my car would have been deeper in the river. They took everything out of my car to reduce weight and put it on the side of the road. A few times I actually turned around in disbelief wondering if my things were still there. They were, neatly packed and guarded. That is something that refreshes me over and over again - Namibians are good, kind and full of heart.
Eventually, Tjipa showed up, the tree worked! He was confused at the sight - all my belongings on the side of the road, myself and 20 Himbas sinking in mud pushing my car. He laughed, then got to work. We tried three times, everyone gave a rope (luckily I had bought one at MegaBuild for emergencies), and after a few failed attempts, we went for the gold.
Tjipa's Land Cruiser pulled my Nissan NP300 out of the muddy river, while 8 of us pushed from the back with all our hearts, as ropes ripped off. The celebration that followed is one of the most memorable moments in my time in Namibia. The entire crowd of people jumped, as if their team had won the World Cup. Two of the Himba men carried me in celebration out of the mud while screaming. Remembering kind of makes me want to do it over again.
We packed my belongings, laughed and hugged. I paid my dues, there was enough for everyone to have a samaleka, and Tjipa and I headed to Opuwo. This time the "Queen" riding in his car as mine was a tad dirty, and the "Warrior" on mine. It was the highlight of a too/eventful weekend.
Upon arrival in Opuwo, Tjipa and I walked in to a restaurant to grab a quick bite before heading to Ruacana where another project was calling us. Guess who was the only person eating there? Dr Amathila. She was on the floor laughing when I told her the story. We shared a nice moment, ate an incredible meal, and looked forward to the coming adventures.
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