Merry Christmas And a happy New Year! Well first off I hope that this little Christmas letter finds you well and I hope that you and your families are having a wonderful holiday season. As for me, I am doing okay, getting along just fine here in Africa. I am starting to adjust to the culture and daily life and routine here in Mozambique. A lot has happened in the last three months, which seemed like it would never end, but now that three months is over; I look back at it and think that it went by too fast. I am finishing my Peace Corps training and am now entering into phase two as an official Peace Corps volunteer, where I will live and work in a teaching training institute here in Namaacha, Mozambique. I will be training future From left to right: Mahondie, Caroline, Lulu, Domine and Dolce.teachers, best teaching practices. I am not sure I am qualified to do this, but it will be a learning experience and will hopefully make me a better teacher in the US. `The culture in Africa is one that amazes me and I often sit back in wonderment at the way the people get by and live their daily lives. It is so different from what I am used to, not better or worse, but different. I have live with a wonderful host family for the last few months, which has given me the opportunity to dive into their daily routine and into every aspect of their culture. Everything seems to be different, from the way they cook to the way that they clean. Every meal is cooked over charcoal or wood and way too much oil and rice is used. I have cooked many local dishes from Matapa, which is a green leafy vegetable with a coconut sauce, tomatoes and onion to Chove, which is much like Matapa, only a different vegetable, but basically the same ingredients. Both are served over rice. I have killed many chickens, a duck and a turkey, and up next, a goat, on Christmas day. I wash my cloths by hand and I take a bath out of a bucket. I currently live in a cement house, with a tin roof. The kitchen is separate from the house and the bathroom is also separate from the house, which makes for a cold bath every morning. It is hard to put into words, and I think that if I tried, it would just confuse you. You really have to see it to believe it. Probably with what I have said thus far, you are thinking, wow, he must be miserable and hating life, but you know what, I love it. Lulu and Caroline are pictured here, who are my host siblings and me.I have had the chance to travel a little; I have been to Maputo, which is the capital of Mozambique. It is a very dirty city, but it has everything that you could possibly want. I have also been to the beaches of Xai-Xai, which were absolultie beautiful. We swam and played soccer and Frisbee for two days. It was a nice break from the hustle and bustle of training. I haven’t done much traveling, but once I leave my home stay and am a volunteer, I will have several months before I start teaching, so I hope to get some traveling in. Namaacha is located right on the boarder of Swaziland, which has a lot of animal reserves. We will also be very close to South Africa, which I will go to often. Christmas here in Mozambique, will be very different. For one I will not be able to share it with my family and friends. Second, children in Mozambique and all over Africa will wake up with not a present under the tree or a gift in their hands. Not because they don’t have the money, but because it is not a part of their culture. They have something far greater; they wake up and celebrate the day for what we are supposed to celebrate it for. They spend the day with their family, they go to church and they have a Christmas dinner with the entire neighborhood. Not to say that the presents aren’t nice, I know that I have loved them in the past. I think that it is important for us to have fun with our tradition of opening up presents and giving gifts to our loved ones, but don’t forget to remember why we are giving the presents in the first place. It’s funny how three months abroad can teach you so much about another culture and think and reevaluate your own culture and beliefs, without abandoning them. I have really been thinking a lot about the people here and really thinking about how lucky I am to be born in the US. Not because it’s better or our culture is that much greater, but because we have had the opportunities for a good education and college is within reach for every child in America. We have been able to grow up and not worry about spending a few bucks on an item that in retrospect we don’t need, but may make our lives easier. I have seen people take a wire they find on the streets and cut it down and use that for a nail, instead of going to the hardware store and spending a few cents for an actual nail. I have seen people make their own tools for the garden. Sure it’s harder, but it’s cheaper and at the end of the day they can still put food on the table. Well I will continue to write and continue to try and do the best work that I can in Africa. There is a lot of work to be done, just within the school and the community. I do not expect to change the world with my small actions. But think about it in this way. If I give a child a book to read or a good education, I have not changed the world, but I have changed that child’s world for life. Have a merry Christmas and send my love to everyone in the states. David Hartness