Today was our last day at the Berea school worksite. Our tasks included finishing our wall murals and playground; it felt good to complete all of the projects before leaving. Some of the murals painted consisted of a map of Africa, a map of the world, various animals, numbers, shapes and phrases in English and Sesotho. The playground monkey-bars with its mismatched drill holes were troublesome at first but we found an alternate use for them as a lowered platform/bridge. We were under a time crunch all day-- all of our work had to be completed by around noon. The reason for our haste was a celebration and thank-you party hosted by the vast majority of the village people (including the chief!). In addition to thanking us for the work we did for the school, the community was also saying goodbye to a Peace Corps volunteer, Beth, who taught at the school and also helped us with our projects and translations. There were several aspects to the celebration: there was drama performances by some children, a dance performed by a group of young women, and several speeches made by various community members. The woman from the village also made us a lunch of traditional Lesotho food. It was very, very tasty! The party was good closure for all of our time spent at the school and other sites.
We returned back to Thorns and relaxed with an hour of free time before meeting and dinner. It has been a very fulfilling day!