Livingstone

Here are some animals we saw at the Safari!

Victoria Falls:

Since it is dry season, Victoria Falls did have much water running over the cliff edges. But, I did get to see a few rainbows in the water when the sun was shining half the time we were there. So, instead of being in a wall of mist, I got to look out over the huge gorge.

Village Life

Yes, there is a power pole in this picture. They are lined up everywhere, even in the MOST secluded areas. Many Zambians carry around a cell phone, even in the villages (depending on how far away the nearest big town is). Since the rainy season is starting up, we don't see many of these beautiful sunsets where we can see the sun. But, we did get to see these types of sunsets nearly every night for the last 8 weeks!

If there is not a town around, there are these many walking paths that people use to get from place to place. A lot of them are to and from where the Zambians get their water, passing between villages or other people's homes. I have been on these little trails before and have met man-made bridges consisting of car doors over a ditch or stepping stones in wet areas. Most of the stay here, the only thing that was green were the trees because the ground was pure brown dirt and dry grass. And, sadly, the only wildlife around are the normal bugs, spiders, hornets, dassie rats, and dogs.

On a few of our village visits at the end of last week, we helped carry water to the Zambians we were visiting. This picture shows what little water they have - it is about a foot and a half deep. Once it is dry, the Zambians wait for the hole to fill again, either by rain or by some underground spring that slowly seeps water up into the hole. Once collecting the water, a few of the girls from the group carried it on their heads (I watched). I have read that women who carry heavy loads atop their heads for an extended period of time causes their back vertebrae to compress together due to the weight. However, most village girls start learning to carry loads atop their heads as young (or younger) as six years old.

Apart of the village life is the extensive chickens that are running around. Although it seems like there are a lot of squawking, if there were visitors or family members from another village, the chicken population is greatly reduced. But, every village I have been to or driven by has had at least three or four chickens running around. These last few visits, I even saw some kittens and one or two puppies, which is a rare pet to have since they are of no value (except dogs are used for watch dogs, but most are feared due to being wild or having possible rabies). The hut behind the chicken nests in this picture is used as a storage area and to keep the valuables off the ground from animals. Also, most of the people I have met are farmers or work with some sort of beef or crop business - either it be tobacco or maize crops, which are the two biggest crops here in Zambia. Zambians also cell their garden products (if they have a garden), or they are workers for white or Zambian farmers.

The last picture is what a village looks like. The first building on the right is an area where Zambians go to get out of the hot sun as a social place to talk and relax. The other brick buildings on the left are homes. There may be nothing but a few rugs and home-made stools inside to sit on. But, their kitchens are outside with an open fire and great metal cooking pots to cook nshima (made of finely ground maize - looks like flour). They also eat kapenta - a fish that looks like a large minnow, about two or three inches in length that the Zambians usually eat dried like potato chips.

As my time here is coming to a close, I am enjoying every bit of being with the guest house staff (they are like family!), and allowing my experiences here to register and commit to memory. And I still have so many more stories to tell all of you once I get back!

Next stop: Livingstone - Victoria Falls, evening safari, and more exploring!

Disclaimer: None of these pictures are mine - so a lot of the girls are very good with photography!

What I've been doing lately

A couple of things that I need to brush up on, since it's been a while! I'll bullet what I've done so that it doesn't become a very long blog:

October 29th - Chabbobboma Banana plantation and Harbor

• Located near Lake Kariba for irrigation system
• 4,000 banana plants are harvested each year
• Crocodiles live in the lake, as do hippos which come out of the water at night to eat the banana plants. They are scared off by flashlights held by guards. Apparently hippos are not a fan of light
• Harbor - Fisherman who go out into the water may be fishing in a bad boat. They get washed up on the beach drowned because they cannot swim well. Fishing as a job is very dangerous and risky.
• Ate nshima, chicken, and relish for lunch Zambian style (with hands) on a comfortable log. It was good eatin'

November 5-8: Lusaka (capital of Zambia)

• Toured Lusaka, saw the Embassies of different countries, courthouse, courtyard, air port, and other government-owned buildings.
• Visited the late-president's grave
• Karaoke at Le Triumph Dolphin Restaurant - really good tomato soup there! And Indian food!
• Had American-style pizza for the first time in two months!
• Watched A Christmas Carol in a very nice theater! LOVED the computer graphics - very well done.
• Bought some souvenir type stuff at the craft center and learned the art of bargaining "Come, come and look. Pick out which one you like and we'll settle for a price." Heard that a lot, it was fun!
• Caught a cold. I think it was from the air conditioner in my room's fault because I did not have a cold before or after the trip to Lusaka. So, no surprises when I come back to the colder side of the world.
• Visited an orphanage/hospice. It was amazing that only 6 Sisters cared for nearly 45 infants/toddlers every day - changing, feeding, loving them. Hospice patients, in their sickness, greeted us with songs of greeting and joy that we had visited them. Homeless people also come in the night to sleep at the hospice (but only to sleep there and nothing else)
• Met a guy from Idaho who had worked for the Peace Corps. Supposedly his friends assumed that we were 'fresh off the boat' just because we were taking pictures. Nope, just fresh from Choma!
• Visited St. John's Medical Center, hospice, orphanage, urban school, Nursing Council building, and CHAZ (Christian Health Association of Zambia).
• Last day we were going to go to a church in Lusaka (Sunday), but two of our team members were sick, one with Malaria and the other with a GI upset, so we just headed home. Five hour drive, but it was all paved, so it was nice sleeping

November 9: Habanuga Village Visit

• Team from the Choma hospice allowed us to travel with them about 2.5 hours away from Choma waaaay out into the wilderness or 'the bush' to educate the Habanuga village
• Taught village men and women and children about how to prevent malaria, HIV/AIDS, being faithful to significant other, decrease or cease to drink the amount of shake-shake intake (village beer), boiling water to kill bacteria, washing hands properly, sexual health, spiritual health, and exercising to make them stronger.
• Learned some cultural beliefs about what makes people rich
• One person stated that they do not seek health care when they get malaria because it takes 48 hours to get to the nearest health clinic and by the time they get there the malaria is already very bad, so they just stay at home.
• The children ran away from some of the girls who wanted to play with them (they ended up chasing the children). This, I learned, is because when the children are younger, they think that white people resemble ghosts because of our white skin due to an old cultural belief. However, once they become older to understand, they know that white people are the same as they are.

I do not have any pictures as of now of all that I have experienced, and there is much more that I have not written down, but those are the main points. That's what I've been up to, anyways.

And it is starting to rain more! We had our first thunderstorm yesterday! Yay! However, it brought a lot of flying termites into the house and moths. I just found out this evening by one of the Zambian staff that they eat the flying termites with nshima as relish. The caterpillars that hang from trees I hear are pretty tasty, too.