July 2010

The Department of Political Science, with the assistance of the Division of International Studies & Programs at Texas A&M University-Kingsville (TAMUK), is pleased to introduce its Botswana Program - a unique joint partnership between TAMUK and the University of Botswana, Gaborone, Botswana.

The Program is being directed by Dr. Nirmal Goswami, Professor of Political Science, TAMUK, and co-directed by Dr. Leapetswe Malete and Dr. Maitseo Bolaane, University of Botswana.

The Program will include twelve students traveling to and staying in Botswana from July 7th through July 23rd, attending classes at the University of Botswana, and visiting multiple sites through field trips within Botswana. Areas of focus include history, politics, economics, culture, health, environmental policies, etc., with reference to both Botswana and Southern Africa.

This blog will document our experience. You are welcome to post comments.

You are all invited to cyber travel with us as we learn about the unique and beautiful country of Botswana!

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Places in Gaborone

Botswana may be a developing country but one of the first things you sense is the pride that its citizens take in their country. For instance, we visited the Three Chiefs Monument. It is a national monument about the history of Botswana and the three founding fathers of modern Botswana. Just as we look at our founders in the United States as men who overcame odds to establish a nation based on principles of freedom and equality, the Three Chief Monuments describes the struggles Botswana faced and the basis of the core values which led to development of Botswana as an independent nation. Our tour guide kept our interest throughout the whole tour because he spoke with great passion and pride about his country and its history. We also visited the National Museum here in Gaborone, and somewhere during my walk through the museum I ended up behind some children aged 6-11 years. What caught my interest about these children was the simple fact that they were all so interested in the exhibits and taking their time to read the brief paragraphs posted below each exhibit. It showed a sense of pride and knowledge for their country, and perhaps a thirst for knowledge in general. This was so great to see and so moving to see such young kids having a thirst for knowledge. I didn’t know what to expect from the people of Botswana, but they are extremely friendly, perhaps as friendly as us Texans. At first when driving into Gaborone it totally reminded me of Kingsville, as far as appearance, but when we were in the van and saw a monkey in the backyard of a tree; there was no doubting we were in Africa! Overall, I am enjoying my visit here in Gaborone.
Adriana M
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3 comments:

  1. UnknownJuly 16, 2010 at 10:19 PM

    Yes, the monkeys would be a real tip off that it was't Kingsville. But all small towns are quite similar in some ways. When I first saw Kingsville, I could see many parallels to the small town I lived in growing up in Kentucky. But the differences are also always remarkable. Would like to experience Botswana - city and countryside.

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  2. UnknownJuly 16, 2010 at 10:20 PM

    Oh, and a big Texas hello for Obi Wan, err, Dr. Goswami.

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  3. JayaJuly 19, 2010 at 9:01 AM

    Thanks, Adriana. It's impressive how even people from smaller, poorer countries than ours have as strong a sense of national pride as we do! It forces you to take a step back an look at what really makes a country great.

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