8 photos.
women carrying bundles of thatch (grass)Oshikango, Namibia, 1996
The Owambo people of the region have adopted western dress, influenced by missionaries who arrived about a century ago. Women in Namibia, as in other countries of Africa, do most of the physical labour on farms. In the background is the Oshikango border post. There is a large amount of trade near the Angolan border, especially since the end of the Angolan civil war in 1994. The women may have brought the thatch from Angola, which is less densely populated and less deforested. The thatch is sold at markets and used for roofing.
view of Auas Mountains from Harmony CentreWindhoek, Namibia, 1994
This photo was taken from my Peace Corps training site. It represents my first view of Namibia: hot, dry and dusty, short shrub-like trees with thorns and few leaves, savannah and mountains of the central region, and beautiful rainbows and sunsets. When we volunteers arrived in November it was said that we brought the rain. Rain is considered good weather. Windhoek, the capital city, is in a semi-desert region, and water shortages become a major problem during droughts. Water must be piped from dams and rivers as far as several hundred kilometres away to meet the growing water needs of the city.
