Kelly and Mitch Love Botswana!

Hey, Erik here. Kelly and Mitch have finally found enough free moments to blog about Botswana, so here it is!

It wasn't my first time to Botswana, but I learned so much more about
this lovely country the second time around and have come to
appreciate it even further. We were lucky enough to be around for
the 44th anniversary of their independence. We didn't get to stay
for all of the fireworks but we did get to see the pride the
Botswanans have in their country. And rightfully so! Only 44 years
ago Botswana was a poor country suffering many of the same problems
that exist throughout Africa, however, Botswana was lucky enough to
find diamonds within their boarders and, thanks to a government that
was not corrupt and cared for it's people, it's now a fast growing,
thriving country and a shining example to other African countries.
There are malls and universities, but they have still managed to keep
a huge portion of their land reserved for the wildlife. In Botswana
you won't see as many tourists on your game drives as other
countries. Botswana has adopted a policy of high quality, low volume
tourism, keeping the reserves less damaged and untouched.

It is, however, the people that make Botswana a wonderful place.
Unlike so many other countries in Africa, you don't have to worry
about getting pick pocketed or cheated out of your money or about
your safety. The people of Botswana are not violent and do not like
confrontation. Granted, you can't always get exactly what you want
all the time there (fast internet, for one thing) but the people are
very generous and accommodating.

Working with some of the orphans at the media arts camp put on by the
Pearson Foundation was one of the highlights of my trip. In this
camp, run by Erik and Andy, they were taught how to use computers,
take still photos and use digital video cameras. I'm sure none of
them had ever touched a computer or video camera before. The wonders
of a digital camera where you could immediately see the results was
so amusing to them they constantly erupted in fits of laughter seeing
the photos of themselves on the camera monitor.

They were able to take the cameras back to the orphanage to shoot as
much footage as the camera could hold, and the results were amazing.
We were able to see them completely uninhibited. They and their
fellow orphans felt right at home when one of their own was behind
the camera and they hammed it up.

I also had the opportunity to interview them and the results were
amazing. They told me how they came to their orphanage. Some lost
their parents to AIDS, some had parents that were just too poor to
take care of them. Listening to their stories brought tears to my
eyes more than once, but being able to see their faces when they saw
pictures of themselves and hearing them laugh out loud made me so
proud to be able to be a part of this event.

Thank you Erik and Andy for all of your hard work and thank you
Pearson Foundation for making it all happen.

pula!
Kelly Hu