Dia dos Trabalhadores (May Day)

Mozambique is one of the many countries of the world to celebrate International Workers' Day on May 1st-- not surprising, given Mozambique's history with communism. Work and school were both canceled for the day and the whole town set about preparing for a big celebration. Chickens were slaughtered, dirt was swept, and children were taught new songs.

The whole town gathers at the start of the day.

Cultural groups and dignitaries from our neighboring town, Kaunda, were invited as well. I was particularly happy about this because it meant I got to spend the day with Szasha. We had matching Dia do Trabalhador capulanas to wear. There's always a capulana for public holidays, and as a teacher I'm expected to have one.

Szasha and I match!

The schedule was set to start at 8 a.m., but this being Mozambique we started around 10:30. There were lots of speeches, cultural exhibitions, and student groups.

(1.) Human pyramid from Kaunda's gymnastics club. (2.) My students hold banners. (3.) Giant cow costume. More on that later.

It was a really enjoyable day. Having spent most of yesterday sequestered in my room, feeling down, it was nice to get out of the house and cheer up. Particularly fun was getting to hang out with my students outside the classroom -- they were all thrilled that I had my camera, and begged me to take lots of pictures of them.

(1.) Two of my neighbors -- they'll be in my class next year. (2.) Our student Vice President. (3.) Some of my ninth graders and a random grumpy lady behind them.

By far, though, the most interesting part of the day was the traditional dancers that came from Szasha's town. Although our towns are separated by only 20 km, they are populated by slightly different ethnic groups -- so seeing Nyau, a traditional dance of the Chewa/Nyanja people that live in Szasha's town, was a real treat.

Nyau is a secret male society. When they run around town, women and children are supposed to run from them in fear. The dancers wear large, elaborate masks and costumes made of wood and feathers and dance a very high-energy, spastic sort of dance that throws up clouds of dust from their fast-moving feet. Traditional Nyau dance is an ancient piece of African cultural heritage meant to communicate with the deceased and is recognized as one of the world's Masterpieces of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.

Nyau dancing.

Once the Nyau dancers disappeared back into the bush that they had magically appeared from, the first part of the celebration was over. We took a break to eat lunch -- delicious grilled chicken, french fries, and salad, prepared by my wonderful roommate, Redi, with delicious doce de coco prepared by the nuns for dessert. I definitely ate too much, and my stomach was feeling very Post-Thanksgiving. Worth it.

After a short break, it was time for the football game. I use the term football here to mean the game that the whole world calls football but Americans for some reason insist on calling soccer. Weirdos.

A team bussed in from Tete City to play Mavudzi-Ponte, and everyone gathered at the football field to watch. We were a little too worn-out to cheer, but we sat and watched our team lose nonetheless.

(1.) Spectators cheer on the Mavudzi-Ponte team. (2.) A little girl plays on the sidelines. (3.) My team, the ones in red, get their butts kicked.

I was having a great time, but I was so worn out by the end of the day that I snuck off home before the game ended. I still had some lesson planning to do, and wanted to wash the dishes before Redi got home. Nevertheless, it was a super fun day, and I can't wait until the next public holiday. By the end of the day, I probably looked as tired as this super cute baby:

Time for beddie-bye, as Rachel says.