A Visit to Baptista’s House: Baptista and his Family
- Work I Am Doing: a. In and Around Maputo and b. Beira
- Beira - In and Around; The Grande Hotel: a. Beira , b.TheGrande Hotel , c. Baptista's House
- Tough Stuff
- Visit to Nelspruitt, South Africa (EASY reading!) Drive to Nelspruit and Along Blyde's River Canyon
A Visit to Baptista’s House. I have been involved in a study about identifying vulnerable populations in urban Mozambique and the adequacy of resources to help alleviate extreme poverty and vulnerable populations. One of the first people we interviewed is a young man named Baptista. We know him because he sells flowers across the street from the VSO building. In addition to letting me interview him, and arranging a focus group for us, he invited us to his home in Albazine, a very poor neighborhood on the outskirts of Maputo. When we arrived at his house, his family brought all the chairs they had outdoors and placed them under a large mango tree. The women sat on a mat at the base of the tree and we and Baptista and his brother, Moises, sat in chairs to talk. Baptista’s wife, mother, grown nephew, daughter (7rs old) and niece (3 months) were all there. You will see in pictures that Moises, his brother was thin as a rail and looked quite ill. It turned out he had been sick for some time, unable to work, and in fact, had been in a clinic for a couple of weeks. He had come home that day because he couldn’t afford to stay any longer.
Their house is made of reeds with a tin roof. Baptista has been slowly buying block to build a house. He thinks he now has enough block but needs money to pay for cement, other materials and helpers. They don’t have running water or electricity now and he doesn’t know when they will have that in the new house after it is built but having both is a goal. He showed me the block, explained where the house would be built and what still needed to be done before he could start. He also showed me around the property, identifying the trees (he has planted an apple tree that is still quite small but that he is very proud of), explaining the duck pen, how they get water (not on the property – they have to go down the road) and pointing out places he would like to develop in the yard.
I was watching Baptista’s mother and daughter playing with his 3 month old niece, Latiina, and really wanted to hold her, which they let me do. I had been wondering since I arrived how mothers tie their babies on their backs, and even though my Portuguese is halting, I managed to ask if they would show me how it is done. Sonia not only showed me but insisted that I tie Latiina on myself. You will see in the pictures how it is done, and you will also see me trying to do it gracefully – but it is nerve wracking! I was worried I would drop Latiina before I had her secured. She held on very nicely – no worries – and once I had the cloth tightened she felt very secure. I will have to say that Latiina is one of my favorite cultural ambassadors.
Their house is made of reeds with a tin roof. Baptista has been slowly buying block to build a house. He thinks he now has enough block but needs money to pay for cement, other materials and helpers. They don’t have running water or electricity now and he doesn’t know when they will have that in the new house after it is built but having both is a goal. He showed me the block, explained where the house would be built and what still needed to be done before he could start. He also showed me around the property, identifying the trees (he has planted an apple tree that is still quite small but that he is very proud of), explaining the duck pen, how they get water (not on the property – they have to go down the road) and pointing out places he would like to develop in the yard.
I was watching Baptista’s mother and daughter playing with his 3 month old niece, Latiina, and really wanted to hold her, which they let me do. I had been wondering since I arrived how mothers tie their babies on their backs, and even though my Portuguese is halting, I managed to ask if they would show me how it is done. Sonia not only showed me but insisted that I tie Latiina on myself. You will see in the pictures how it is done, and you will also see me trying to do it gracefully – but it is nerve wracking! I was worried I would drop Latiina before I had her secured. She held on very nicely – no worries – and once I had the cloth tightened she felt very secure. I will have to say that Latiina is one of my favorite cultural ambassadors.
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| Select the photo above to link to Baptista and his Family for more photos. |
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