On our way to Namibia we stayed in South Africa for three days. It was so goooood to meet our friends from Arethabeng School once again. Unfortunately we didn't get to the school on time in order to see the kids because of our flight. But we met the whole staff. Once again we felt the importance of this friendship. In Arethabeng they had toughts of the children of this friendship school project on their wall. I enjoyed reading them.
In the evening we had braai (barbecue) in our host family. Most of tha staff of Aethabeng came there too. I love their way of getting together and spend time talking and eating in a very relaxed way. Everyone is working together to make it happen.
The next day we were taken to Haartebeespoort Dam. That was an amazing place about 45 minutes away from Pretoria. The scenery was so beautiful!
We also had a short visit in Pretoria. Jacarandas were still blooming even tough the best time had passed. We loved those Jacarandas!
The view from the union building:
On our way back to Soshanguve we saw a wedding seremony. That was so interesting. The joyful dancing and singing on their way to the seremony tent was something different!
First came six pairs dancing (I guess best mans and pride's maids), then came the bride and groom and others followed them. It was so cool!
In the evening we had braai in a white South African family. We enjoyed that a lot too. Somehow I didn't take any pictures there. Anyway we get to swim in a pool and eat meat that was actually hunted by the man of the house. The food was soooooooo delicious and we loved the company. But the highlight of this short visit was yet to come.
In the morning we went to the local lutheran church with our host family. It was something different. I can't find the words to discribe the experience! When we walked in the congregation was singing hymns in voices and the church chimed! So right from the beginning we felt God's presence. The seremony was in Sesotho but even tough we couldn't understand anything we didn't get bored. I think we would need more of that spirit into our churches.
Anyway even tough we had just two-nights visit in South Africa it was once again an experience that won't be forgotten. And even tough it was already the third time in South Africa it was unique and something very special. Part of my heart definately belongs to South Africa.
In the morning we went to the local lutheran church with our host family. It was something different. I can't find the words to discribe the experience! When we walked in the congregation was singing hymns in voices and the church chimed! So right from the beginning we felt God's presence. The seremony was in Sesotho but even tough we couldn't understand anything we didn't get bored. I think we would need more of that spirit into our churches. Anyway even tough we had just two-nights visit in South Africa it was once again an experience that won't be forgotten. And even tough it was already the third time in South Africa it was unique and something very special. Part of my heart definately belongs to South Africa.
This time we stayed in a hotel right outside of the city of Windhoek called Country Club Resort. Of course it was luxurious but I would have prefered staying at homes like we always did in South Africa. That way you get to know the people and the country and its culture better. Inside the hotel you felt like you could have been where ever in the world. Well, you don't get to eat crocodile in a hotel in Finland!
Namutuni School (our new friendship school) looked a lot like same our friendship school in South Africa. Classes full of enthusiastic learners with a great volume of singing. One thing was different. These learners and teachers already new a lot of from Finland. Actually the principal and two other teachers were educated by Finnish missionaries and the language they used got its written form by Finnish missionaries and Finnish Martti Ahtisaari played a very important role in Namibia's strive for independence. Many teachers and kids had Finnish names.
We had a story crafting workshop for the teachers in Namutuni School. We have used story crafting in our friendship school activity with Arethabeng school from South Africa earlier. Then we published a book 
We like the simple but powerful method. It's simple: Someone tells a story and other one writes it down just like the person told it. It's a way for us to give children a voice. There were three of us from Finland and two from South Africa in the workshop and the whole staff of Namutuni School. We really had good time together and results of the workshop you are going to be able to read from our next book done with Arethabeng School, Mikkola School and Namutuni School. It will be published in next September.
The dancing group of Namutuni School performed us some traditional dances. I enjoyed that a lot!
Can you see the crocodile?
Look how close to the car the rhinos came. It was almost scary!
This is how the animals look on a plate (kudu, ostrich, sprinbok, crocodile and zepra).
One evening we took a taxi to take us to the near by mountain to see the sun set.
We had many beautiful moments and sights in Namibia but the most important thing we gained is new friends. Here with us two teachers, Veripi and Martha, from Namutuni School with us (me and Tuuli another teacher from Mikkola School).
Hilla is very kind, obedient and well-behaving dog. She is also easy and she adjusted very well to her new home with us. I've never been a dog person. Actually I couldn't stand most of the dogs. While Juha was home alone a lot with the distressing graduation work to do I decided that he deserves the long wanted dog. I don't regret my decision. I've learned to like Hilla. Yet she's still more the dog of the rest of the family, especially Juha's.
I enjoy the joy Hilla has brought to our family. I also like the fact that she gets me out much more often than I used to go. I'm not a morning person but somehow those morning walks with other dog people are precious to me. I wouldn't want to do it every morning and fortunately my turn is maybe once a week. I also like the fact that Hilla likes me even tough I don't spend so much time with her. But she greets me with glee everytime I come home.
The best thing with Hilla is that she takes us out and into new places. Very often we take Hilla out together with Juha, my husband. Sometimes girls or at least one of them comes with us. One of our favourite places is Haltiala. That's where we were today. It's an area right beside the Vantaa river. We walk along the river bank and enjoy the country idyll. Every now and then we go down to the river, sit for a while and then go on again. The view is amazing and Hilla gets to run free. 
down by the river:
the view:
The oat field:
Once again thank you Hilla for taking us their!
As you can see from the name label (TYKKYLÄINEN) Jonna is a tiny girl compared to the others in the team and she is also new. I must admit that she has surprised me how well she's learned the game. There's still lot to learn but I didn't know that she has sportive talent at all. I'm sad that she didn't fall in love with the violin but Finnish baseball is a good one too. Actually I think it's the best sports in the world!
It's been estimated that 12 000 Boers (farmers in Afrikaans, the trekkers) migrated from Cape Colony because they weren't happy with British rulers, they wanted to find more fertile land to farm and avoid border wars with xhosa-speaking groups. It's called 
The Monument is huge: 40 metres high, with a base of 40 metres by 40 metres. It's situated on a beautiful place right outside of Pretoria, the capital of South Africa. The view from the Monument is amazing. 
After passing through the gate one finds oneself inside a big 
Monument was massive also from inside. I only had hard time with our pupils while I tried to translate at least something to them of the presentation to keep them not to die of boredom. Of course I couldn't do it - listen and try to understand and translate at the same time. Well, I enjoyed all I could see and rest I can always study afterwards...
I am little pit scared of hights so I didn't feel very comfortable up on the Monument but as I mentioned earlier the view was beautiful. Just don't look straight down! And it also helps that the Monument is built of granite and made very steady and strong. Go and experience it yourself!
Animals on the reserve include buffalo, rhino, hippo, giraffe, eland, springbuck, impala, zebra, various wildebeest species and others. There is also a 25 Ha dam with a variety of birdlife on the reserve. We didn't see all the animals that was there but we enjoyed very much of the game drives (a jeep ride among animals), bush walks and a boat ride on a dam. It was amazing. We got very near to the animals.
Jack was a quide on game drives, bush walk and a boat ride. He did great job with us...
The boat ride was very special! I loved every second of it. The beauty of the river, sun set, bird sounds, view and everything...
Not only that we enjoyed the animals on the reserve area we also liked the lodge area where were the bungalows and houses for accomodation. It was peaceful, no souvenir shops, just relaxed athmosphere and calmness.
This is the house where we lived.
A little peek into our home in Mongena. Tuuli is one of our teachers and was in South Africa second time as I.
There were also some animals on the lodge area. It was fun to get so close to them!
So if you ever go to South Africa and don't have enough time or money to go to Kruger national park or you want to avoid malaria go to Mongena to see animals. I strongly recommend! For us it was a unique experience.
Another new thing was that we were able to take two of my pupils to South Africa. Most of my pupils wanted to go so it was hard to decide who to take with us. We had funding for only two and it also would have been too risky to take more children with us. We decided to take a boy and a girl and drew lots among them. So Eeva and Vili came with us. 
Eeva and Vili got lot of attention at once they got to the school yard. They spent most of their time with the learners who were making the films for the project. They had had their own films already made in Finland.
They both really enjoyed being at the school and told after the trip that times spent at school were the best in trip. They also told that it was rather demanding to have so much attention. Everyone wanted to talk with them, play with them, have them take pictures of them etc. I was happy to see that children from different sides from the globe could get along so easily and enjoy each other's company.
As for me I enjoyed the morning assemblies the most. The songs, the dances, the prayers - everything. This time we had prepared ourselves better for the assemblies. We had learned some Finnish folk songs and brought Finnish national instrument, 
Helping Hanna in movie making workshop was interesting. The workshop was held in English because we can't talk Sotho. Children understood us very well but we couldn't understand them when they talked together in Sotho. If they talked about yesterdays football match we wouldn't have known. We didn't hear if they had misunderstandings etc. All in all kids concentrated very well and were amazing. Once in a while I saw them writing letters or talking with Eeva and Vili but they got the work done.
Here you can see one example of difference in resources in Finnish schools and in South African schools. When my pupils told their three-picture-stories they showed their pictures on a screen with video projector which we have in every classroom. In Arethabeng electricity was off that day as in many days. Life isn't fair.
Here are pictures of the pupils of Arethabeng. Many of the children live in very poor conditions nevertheless you can see them smile. I used to think that poor means sad but I've learned that when you are rich you can be poor in you heart. Money can't buy happiness and joy.
I feel priviledged that I've had the opportunity to get to know the Arethabeng school, its learners and its staff. It's been an eyeopening experience to me. I've got so much love and care from the people there that I can never give back. I've fell in love with South Africa because of those people.
In the project children in our school (
The workshops started by making three-picture-stories of available pictures. At first it was little hard for pupils to make the stories only with three pictures and to have three main things in it: Interesting beginning, the middle and the surprising end. I think that the rehearsal gave the idea how to tell stories with pictures. In the workshops children also learned about different picture sizes, shooting angles and how to use the camera and the stand.
After that theory based learning children started writing their stories. Hanna Toiviainen, the project director who held the workshops, helped each group to make scripts of those writings. The real work started when children had to make story boards of their scripts. It demanded perseverance and a new way of thinking. How to tell the written story by film? How can the viewer know that a child is depressed or how to show that mother is favoring another child? Those kind of questions rose in making of story board.
Story boards looked like this. You had a screen where you drew what happens in the picture. Beside every picture you wrote the picture size and shooting angle, place of shooting, actors and description of what happens. Some groups had very hard time making the story board but some got hold of the idea very quickly.
When the story board were made the group had a final production discussion with Hanna. In that discussion the group had to show that everything was ready for shooting: Shooting places had been chosen, properties had been searched, scenes were practised etc. Then it was time for Action!
I wasn't in South Africa at the end of the workshop so I didn't see the shootings that were made there. Shooting the film was very exciting. Every group amazed me how well they had been prepared for the shooting. The beginning of shooting was always slow but at the end children acted like professionals as if they've done this thousands of times. For me it was a little hard to be just an observer. Many times I wanted to quide the group but soon I realized that the kids do actually better job without my advice. Healthy experience for me!
Here are some pictures of camera practise in Arethabeng. As you can see surroundings are very different from Mikkola school. We had snow, they had blooming trees. 
