My bad, I had the blog set to delete comments automatically, sorry, it's fixed now!
Today's the day, nervous and excited to find out where I will be working. I will be living there for the next ten days starting this Sunday, guess I better do the food shopping before. It's a good thing my care package arrived yesterday, jerkey and dried fruits and nuts should help alot! One of things that the PC told us last weekend during our interview was that we will have to find our own way back at the end of ten days, but they don't recommend hitching. How the heck is that going to work? Guess I will figure that out when I get there.
I have a new baby in my family, well not exactly new he's 7 months. My brother's girlfriend had been living with her family but now she's moved in with ours. He's SO cute!
Wish me luck!
Luapula is where I'm going to be! There will be many PCVs close by. More later!!!!! 294 miles from Lusaka to Luapula
OK, Here we have it. Ntoposhi Town 15km from city of Mansa which is the capital of Luapula. 3 neighbors with 2 Lifer PCVs and 5 from my intake group, will be nearby. Alot of fish ponds but no construction know how. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mansa,_Zambia for more details. First Generation Placement! YAY!
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Sunday, August 22, 2010
Wish List
Care Package Wish List
I am NOT asking you to send, but if you need some ideas..............
Addressed to Fr. Garrett Lojek, (God won't mind, I promise. It's more likely to reach me without theft), Or you could put on the outside , "live snakes" since they are afraid of them JK . When I pick up my packages from the post office, I am taxed on the content value, so please under value when mailing and list things as "used".
Garrett F Lojek PCV
P.O. Box 710150
Mansa, Luapula
Zambia AFRICA (write Africa and Air Mail in really big letters)
-Saddle Bags for my Bike MUST BE WATERPROOF
-Odometer (New Request)
-Quality Toothpaste,
-Anti-perspirant "Old Spice Aqua Fresh"
-Sweet America Snacks, (You know, CANDY)
-Dry Rubs for cooking meats
-Compass,
-Map of America,
-Mach 3 Razor with blades,
-Trail Mix
-Teas and Sugar Packets
-Packages of Tuna or Salmon, actually the type that include the crackers and mayo sound perfect.
-Packets of Condiments from Fast Food Restaurants, they won't need refrigeration
-Magazines, OK well not really my favorite but something that I would be interested leafing through! Environmental Magazines would be PERFECT. Time or USA Today
-Hand sanitizer
-Toilet paper YES, TP and if you are coming to visit, bring your own! A toilet seat, what a novel idea and how cool if I had my very own.
-Anything light weight that would make my life easier! ESPECIALL air tight storage containers that keeps my unwanted friends from eating my stuff (ie bugs, snakes, lizards and rats)
Letters Letters Letters Letters Letters Letters Letters Letters Letters Letters Letters Letters Letters Letters Letters
and more Letters
G
I am NOT asking you to send, but if you need some ideas..............
Addressed to Fr. Garrett Lojek, (God won't mind, I promise. It's more likely to reach me without theft), Or you could put on the outside , "live snakes" since they are afraid of them JK . When I pick up my packages from the post office, I am taxed on the content value, so please under value when mailing and list things as "used".
Garrett F Lojek PCV
P.O. Box 710150
Mansa, Luapula
Zambia AFRICA (write Africa and Air Mail in really big letters)
-Saddle Bags for my Bike MUST BE WATERPROOF
-Odometer (New Request)
-Quality Toothpaste,
-Anti-perspirant "Old Spice Aqua Fresh"
-Sweet America Snacks, (You know, CANDY)
-Dry Rubs for cooking meats
-Compass,
-Map of America,
-Mach 3 Razor with blades,
-Trail Mix
-Teas and Sugar Packets
-Packages of Tuna or Salmon, actually the type that include the crackers and mayo sound perfect.
-Packets of Condiments from Fast Food Restaurants, they won't need refrigeration
-Magazines, OK well not really my favorite but something that I would be interested leafing through! Environmental Magazines would be PERFECT. Time or USA Today
-Hand sanitizer
-Toilet paper YES, TP and if you are coming to visit, bring your own! A toilet seat, what a novel idea and how cool if I had my very own.
-Anything light weight that would make my life easier! ESPECIALL air tight storage containers that keeps my unwanted friends from eating my stuff (ie bugs, snakes, lizards and rats)
Letters Letters Letters Letters Letters Letters Letters Letters Letters Letters Letters Letters Letters Letters Letters
and more Letters
G
Thursday, August 19, 2010
What Did You Learn In School Today?
Megan, I Learned all about which Zambian snakes and crawlies to be on the look out for! Wow- today's PC Medical training was thorough
Chuck My favorite part, "if u get bitten at night, we wont come help u till morning"
Megan Yeah... I plan on locking myself up at night- haha! We talked to our bataata for a long time about keeping snakes out and we learned what bemba words to yell if we encounter any!
The Black Mamba
Chuck My favorite part, "if u get bitten at night, we wont come help u till morning"
Megan Yeah... I plan on locking myself up at night- haha! We talked to our bataata for a long time about keeping snakes out and we learned what bemba words to yell if we encounter any!
The Black Mamba
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Photos Of Fish Farming
Sorry no time to describe what you are seeing but I thought you'd like to see them anyway!
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
A little help from my friends
I haven't had access to the internet so I've taken some of the writings from my fellow PCV. I hope that these journal entries will help you to be patient until I can do some of my own. Below is a picture, although of poor quality it lets you know I'm immersed in the Zambian culture but still being ME. Me and dinner! A goat which we caught was to be our din din that night while the remainder of the meat, Shaun made into jerkey. He did wake this morning craving an In n Out burger, whatever that is.
Tonight my family cat caught a viper after dinner right near my Amomma's house, which was about 10 feet from where we were eating. Kitty killed the thing and then I walked over to see what she got and it turned out to be a snake. All the kids and mom freaked out (side note all zambians are terrified of snakes) so even though it was dead, my mom wouldnt let the cat eat the snake. Obet (one of my host brothers) had to fetch a huge stick as so he didnt have to get near the snake while moving it into the bush while mom held the cat back. (Side note, the cat just had 4 kittens last week and shes already too skinny and really wanted to eat that snake. I try feeding her when no one is looking because I secretly want a kitten to bring to my site.)
Anyway, what made this whole snake thing so funny is we had a 4 hour medical lecture on animals to avoid while in zambia today. The viper being one. We were talking about the snakes today and what to do if you get bit. The black mumba was being discussed, it being the most deadly snake in the world one of the most aggressive. Some asked Gilly (our awesome british medical officer) what she meant she made a witty british joke "off the path without a posse" and informed us we'd have less than 2 hours to live if we were bitten. There is no anti venom in zambia.
Wow long snake story. The sad thing is we got way more tales of peace corps people and thier misadventures with the various creepy crawlies that lurk in the dark places in zambia. We were assured that we would be impregnated with botfly larva at some point during service. Look that up people the african botfly. They lay eggs in wet clothes, which then hatch and the pre larval stage will burrow into your flesh where it will mature. Now think about how it rains for 6 months. How to dry out clothes? Luckily, it you cover the larvas air supply it will wiggle out of your skin before becoming a fly.
Okay enough of that, tomorrow i do my first fish transport on my bike, should be good. I have my interview with all the peace corps directors on saturday; cross your fingers for a first gen site.
Thats it for now. Send me pictures of home or anything my family loves them. I'll have steady mail until the end of september. After that i wont have any regular contact with the outside world until after christmas.
First from Salley
Hello from Zambia
First Site Visit:
After just a few nights spent at a training center outside of Zambia's capital city, Lusaka, my intake of volunteers was sent out on our first site visit. During this time, we were to stay with current volunteers at their posts out in the bush! I was sent to Northern Province, specifically Mpika district, to the village of Mununga. The current volunteer did not have enough room in her hut for all of us, so we took our tents and camped out for 3 nights. Memorable moments from the trip include:
1. Having the father in the neighboring house stay up all night guarding our tents (we heard rumors that he circled our cluster of tents with a club to protect us!)
2. Taking "snaps"of the kids. They love love love to have their picture made!
3. Watching the neighbors kill and cook a chicken and rooster in honor of our visit to the village.
4. Helping the mother of the neighboring family prepare a traditional meal: nshima, relish (rape with ground nuts), etc. (Food will require a whole separate post- coming soon, I promise!)
5. Learning from our host volunteer the boundless culinary possibilities of the brazier (or charcoal cooking stove)- we made a curry dish, spaghetti, scrambled eggs, pancakes, popcorn, tacos, and even a cake! I am definitely looking forward to experimenting with both new and old recipes as soon as I have my own brazier.
6. Learning how to tie my chitenge (wrap skirt) so that is didn't fall off while walking. I have been told that this traditional piece of cloth has 500+ uses, the most popular being clothing, apron, headwrap, baby sling, purse, blanket, towel and curtain. I am sure that I will discover many more uses over the course of my next 27 months.
7. Experimenting with the bucket bath for the first time. It's just you, a bucket of warm water, a cup and towel in an enclosure made of some sort of grass that does not lend itself to much privacy!
8. Attempting to learn how to use the bathroom in a pit latrine, a target that to most Americans would seem nearly impossible to hit. After several failed attempts and wet shoes, I learned that disrobing from the waist down was the best method while I was still in "pit latrine training".
9. Experiencing my first long ride in the back of a land cruiser - 6 hrs of bumpy roads in the back of a land cruiser with 7 other volunteers (but no one complained!).
Overall, the experience was great! It gave us volunteers a chance to see what village life is really like, time to voice our fears, concerns, and excitement surrounding our next 2 years of service in Zambia, and time to recharge after several busy days of travel, shuffling baggage, filling out forms, receiving a plethora of vaccines and playing numerous icebreakers with PC staff and fellow PC trainees.
Second is Kelsey
Mwapoleni Mukwai!
Mwapoleni Mukwai is the greeting in Bemba for when you first meet someone or haven't seen someone in a long time.
I have been in Zambia for about three weeks now and I am loving every minute of it. I stayed with a CHIP volunteer that was just hitting her one year mark and she was great. After our long journey we arrived in her village and her and her two other PCV friends went on to host a wonderful three days together. We cooked pasta, tacos and rice and soya, we asked her and her friends about a million questions about their service and just tried to soak up every minute. The next day she took us to her NHC (Neighborhood Health Committee) where they were painting a new building they had just gotten as well as putting up posters and planning for a VCT event ( Voluntary Counseling and Testing- aka HIV/AIDS testing) that was coming to her village soon. They were all so sweet to us and all of the bamaayos ( mothers) cooked us a typical Zambian feast, it was about enough food to feed an army even though there were only four of us girls.
The next day we went to this Lake near where the PCV lived and relaxed and asked more and more questions. I had my first official hitching experience- we hitched on the back of a truck filled with rocks, no wonder the ride was free it was not the most comfortable I've had!
I have been living with my host family for two weeks now and love love them! My family is composed of my baamayo (mom) my dad, three brothers and a sister. I am the 7th PCV they have hosted so I think they are pros by now. I live in a small small round mud hut. I have a mattress on the floor ( of course with my mosquito net covering me) as well as two small tables and my water filter. There is not much room for anything else but at the end of a long day of training it is my favorite place to come back to.
I live in the middle of my families compound which includes their house ( small mud house with a tin roof) and a few other small huts for cooking, bathing, and the other boys to sleep. They speak a little English so it that has made adjusting a bit easier but they are insistent on me learning Bemba so they talk to me and study with me almost every night.
As for my "typical day" it is a little hard to describe because in Peace Corps nothing is "typical" or "uniform" and everything is scheduled to change! However to generalize Monday through Friday I wake up around 7 am and I am at language training in my village by 8. My language class is just me and one other girl so the one on one attention is wonderful. Also it is in the village which makes it easier when we need to practice our Bemba, we just walk right out the door! Language class is from about 8-12 and then I walk home to have lunch with my family ( probably Shima, a protein and a vegetable, probably doused in oil and salt- Zambians LOVE oil and salt). By 2:00 pm or 14:00 hours I am at the training center for our technical training. Our technical training is anything from HIV/AIDS education, Malaria training, guest speakers or cultural programs. Then by 5:00 we are usually done, just in enough time to bike home before it gets dark, take a bucket bath ( which I have learned to love very quickly), sit around the Brazier and watch my bamaayo cook dinner, eat and I am in my hut by 8:00 pm asleep by 9 or 10. That is my day in a nutshell.
On Saturdays we have half days and Sundays we have free. Last Sunday I went to my first Zambian funeral with my bamaayo. It was one of the most interesting and overwhelming experiences I have had yet but I am so glad I went. The people here are so honest and open about their emotions that they just wail and wail and nobody tries to stop them. It was almost a freeing experience in some sense and I think it is something that you don't see in the West very often.
I feel like everyday I learn something new and experience something completely out of the norm. I am truly loving Zambia, the people are the most accommodating and hospitable people I have ever met. They treat me like their daughter even if we have just met on the street and they would offer me dinner even if they didn't have enough to feed their own family. Their country is beautiful and everyday all I have to do is look at the Zambian sky and know I am doing the right thing. Whether it is in the morning as the sun is coming up and the sky seems to go on forever , my bike ride home as the sun is setting and the most beautiful colors can be seen, or at night before bed as I brush my teeth under the most stars I have ever witnessed in my life, the Zambian sky is incredible.
Third is Em
First week
Sunday was spent at IST (in-service training) where we got some shots, filled out some forms, and got sized for our bike and helmets. It was a rather short day of actual scheduled activities and so we had quite a bit of free time to walk around the grounds and just hang out. It was nice to have some freedom to just get out and be outside.
Monday started off bright and early at 0530. We packed up the land cruisers and headed to out 1st site visits. Most Zambians do not have personal cars so they get where they need to go walking on the side of the road, biking, and hitching rides...so it is crazy to see people walking right by us as we went 120kmh. Myself and 4 others were at Sarita's site...a volunteer who has been posted for 1 year. Her site was AMAZING! Beautiful garden, separate kitchen, and a very nicely decorated hut. I will have to steal some of her ideas...Since we didn't arrive until late afternoon we just spent the rest of the evening hanging out, asking thousands of questions, and cooking dinner. Chris, a fellow PCV in a nearby village, was also there and he was an incredible cook. He hand made tortillas and then we had tacos with soya pieces as our source of meat. DELICIOUS!
Our first official day was spent meeting the headman of the village (he is the leader), visiting the local clinic where Sarita works with a nurse, and an ECT on many different projects like HIV/AIDS outreach and child health week programs. All of the healthcare provided there is free for patients (including vaccinations) and so are any drugs that they need, including medication for HIV positive patients. That blew my mind! Next we headed to a local school to atttend and afterschool program called anti-AIDS club. The club is made up of 7-9th graders who meet once a week to learn about HIV and AIDS and how to prevent it and educate others about it. They greeted us with songs and a drama skit. And we were also able to play two games with them; lifeboat and an africian version of sharks and minnows now called lions and antelopes. Myself and four of the children were in the final lifeboat so we won "sweeties" or candies. Surprised I went for the win in a game here in Zambia? You shouldn't be :)
On Wednesday we headed off to a village down the road to meet with the neighboorhood health committee (NHC) to go on village inspections. There were about 10 members present and so we split off into 2 groups to check every site in the village to ensure that everyone had a permanent toilet, bathing shelter, handwashing station (called a tippy-tap), mosquito nets for every member of the household, refuse (garbage) pit, and a two-tier drying rack. If any one of those elements were missing the house was charged a 5 pin (5000 kwacha) fine. If they had no money they could give something else, like a chicken or radio, to cover the cost. Improvements would have to be made in the week and the NHC would be back to check. These inspections provided a great teaching opportunity for why all of these were important elements to stay healthy because that's what this Zambian community wants is to be healthy and they are very motivated to do what it takes to get there.
After village inspections we were having a cooking party with the NHC members in the village! My first duty...kill the chicken. Yes you read it correctly, I killed the chicken. Ba Dorothy talked me threw it and with her amazing guidance I had success! Don't believe me? I have pics and a video to prove it, which will be up sometime soon? We'll see, but I have the record! Then we had to cut up all these veggies for the garnish and then the hard task of making the traditional nshima. These Zambian women are so strong because the process requires serious guns due to smashing all the ground nuts, and then whipping the thick nshima batter. I give them so much credit. And we were a part of every step of the making and the Zambians would just laugh and laugh as we struggled and they just asked "do you have food in america?" because we were such strugglers. It was so much fun and they were all such patient teachers with us, and I can only hope that I would be as patient with them if they came to America.
The whole first site visit was such an encouraging time for me. At first I was nervous because they kept telling us about all the people who ET (early terminate) from service and I worried, what if that's me? what if I can't do it? But after being here and living the life in the village for a couple of days (including successfully voiding in a pit latrine and taking a bucket shower) and interacting with the villagers I know that this is where I want to be. It's going to be challenging, but I know that through all things Christ is the one who strengthens me, and I will depend on him to get me through those tough days where I just want to give up.
A New Addition from Hunter
I'm normally pretty burnt out by the time I get back from training.
Tonight my family cat caught a viper after dinner right near my Amomma's house, which was about 10 feet from where we were eating. Kitty killed the thing and then I walked over to see what she got and it turned out to be a snake. All the kids and mom freaked out (side note all zambians are terrified of snakes) so even though it was dead, my mom wouldnt let the cat eat the snake. Obet (one of my host brothers) had to fetch a huge stick as so he didnt have to get near the snake while moving it into the bush while mom held the cat back. (Side note, the cat just had 4 kittens last week and shes already too skinny and really wanted to eat that snake. I try feeding her when no one is looking because I secretly want a kitten to bring to my site.)
Anyway, what made this whole snake thing so funny is we had a 4 hour medical lecture on animals to avoid while in zambia today. The viper being one. We were talking about the snakes today and what to do if you get bit. The black mumba was being discussed, it being the most deadly snake in the world one of the most aggressive. Some asked Gilly (our awesome british medical officer) what she meant she made a witty british joke "off the path without a posse" and informed us we'd have less than 2 hours to live if we were bitten. There is no anti venom in zambia.
Wow long snake story. The sad thing is we got way more tales of peace corps people and thier misadventures with the various creepy crawlies that lurk in the dark places in zambia. We were assured that we would be impregnated with botfly larva at some point during service. Look that up people the african botfly. They lay eggs in wet clothes, which then hatch and the pre larval stage will burrow into your flesh where it will mature. Now think about how it rains for 6 months. How to dry out clothes? Luckily, it you cover the larvas air supply it will wiggle out of your skin before becoming a fly.
Okay enough of that, tomorrow i do my first fish transport on my bike, should be good. I have my interview with all the peace corps directors on saturday; cross your fingers for a first gen site.
Thats it for now. Send me pictures of home or anything my family loves them. I'll have steady mail until the end of september. After that i wont have any regular contact with the outside world until after christmas.
The Botfly
A Lesion
The Aftermath (not me)
First from Salley
Hello from Zambia
First Site Visit:
After just a few nights spent at a training center outside of Zambia's capital city, Lusaka, my intake of volunteers was sent out on our first site visit. During this time, we were to stay with current volunteers at their posts out in the bush! I was sent to Northern Province, specifically Mpika district, to the village of Mununga. The current volunteer did not have enough room in her hut for all of us, so we took our tents and camped out for 3 nights. Memorable moments from the trip include:
1. Having the father in the neighboring house stay up all night guarding our tents (we heard rumors that he circled our cluster of tents with a club to protect us!)
2. Taking "snaps"of the kids. They love love love to have their picture made!
3. Watching the neighbors kill and cook a chicken and rooster in honor of our visit to the village.
4. Helping the mother of the neighboring family prepare a traditional meal: nshima, relish (rape with ground nuts), etc. (Food will require a whole separate post- coming soon, I promise!)
5. Learning from our host volunteer the boundless culinary possibilities of the brazier (or charcoal cooking stove)- we made a curry dish, spaghetti, scrambled eggs, pancakes, popcorn, tacos, and even a cake! I am definitely looking forward to experimenting with both new and old recipes as soon as I have my own brazier.
6. Learning how to tie my chitenge (wrap skirt) so that is didn't fall off while walking. I have been told that this traditional piece of cloth has 500+ uses, the most popular being clothing, apron, headwrap, baby sling, purse, blanket, towel and curtain. I am sure that I will discover many more uses over the course of my next 27 months.
7. Experimenting with the bucket bath for the first time. It's just you, a bucket of warm water, a cup and towel in an enclosure made of some sort of grass that does not lend itself to much privacy!
8. Attempting to learn how to use the bathroom in a pit latrine, a target that to most Americans would seem nearly impossible to hit. After several failed attempts and wet shoes, I learned that disrobing from the waist down was the best method while I was still in "pit latrine training".
9. Experiencing my first long ride in the back of a land cruiser - 6 hrs of bumpy roads in the back of a land cruiser with 7 other volunteers (but no one complained!).
Overall, the experience was great! It gave us volunteers a chance to see what village life is really like, time to voice our fears, concerns, and excitement surrounding our next 2 years of service in Zambia, and time to recharge after several busy days of travel, shuffling baggage, filling out forms, receiving a plethora of vaccines and playing numerous icebreakers with PC staff and fellow PC trainees.
Second is Kelsey
Mwapoleni Mukwai!
Mwapoleni Mukwai is the greeting in Bemba for when you first meet someone or haven't seen someone in a long time.
I have been in Zambia for about three weeks now and I am loving every minute of it. I stayed with a CHIP volunteer that was just hitting her one year mark and she was great. After our long journey we arrived in her village and her and her two other PCV friends went on to host a wonderful three days together. We cooked pasta, tacos and rice and soya, we asked her and her friends about a million questions about their service and just tried to soak up every minute. The next day she took us to her NHC (Neighborhood Health Committee) where they were painting a new building they had just gotten as well as putting up posters and planning for a VCT event ( Voluntary Counseling and Testing- aka HIV/AIDS testing) that was coming to her village soon. They were all so sweet to us and all of the bamaayos ( mothers) cooked us a typical Zambian feast, it was about enough food to feed an army even though there were only four of us girls.
The next day we went to this Lake near where the PCV lived and relaxed and asked more and more questions. I had my first official hitching experience- we hitched on the back of a truck filled with rocks, no wonder the ride was free it was not the most comfortable I've had!
I have been living with my host family for two weeks now and love love them! My family is composed of my baamayo (mom) my dad, three brothers and a sister. I am the 7th PCV they have hosted so I think they are pros by now. I live in a small small round mud hut. I have a mattress on the floor ( of course with my mosquito net covering me) as well as two small tables and my water filter. There is not much room for anything else but at the end of a long day of training it is my favorite place to come back to.
I live in the middle of my families compound which includes their house ( small mud house with a tin roof) and a few other small huts for cooking, bathing, and the other boys to sleep. They speak a little English so it that has made adjusting a bit easier but they are insistent on me learning Bemba so they talk to me and study with me almost every night.
As for my "typical day" it is a little hard to describe because in Peace Corps nothing is "typical" or "uniform" and everything is scheduled to change! However to generalize Monday through Friday I wake up around 7 am and I am at language training in my village by 8. My language class is just me and one other girl so the one on one attention is wonderful. Also it is in the village which makes it easier when we need to practice our Bemba, we just walk right out the door! Language class is from about 8-12 and then I walk home to have lunch with my family ( probably Shima, a protein and a vegetable, probably doused in oil and salt- Zambians LOVE oil and salt). By 2:00 pm or 14:00 hours I am at the training center for our technical training. Our technical training is anything from HIV/AIDS education, Malaria training, guest speakers or cultural programs. Then by 5:00 we are usually done, just in enough time to bike home before it gets dark, take a bucket bath ( which I have learned to love very quickly), sit around the Brazier and watch my bamaayo cook dinner, eat and I am in my hut by 8:00 pm asleep by 9 or 10. That is my day in a nutshell.
On Saturdays we have half days and Sundays we have free. Last Sunday I went to my first Zambian funeral with my bamaayo. It was one of the most interesting and overwhelming experiences I have had yet but I am so glad I went. The people here are so honest and open about their emotions that they just wail and wail and nobody tries to stop them. It was almost a freeing experience in some sense and I think it is something that you don't see in the West very often.
I feel like everyday I learn something new and experience something completely out of the norm. I am truly loving Zambia, the people are the most accommodating and hospitable people I have ever met. They treat me like their daughter even if we have just met on the street and they would offer me dinner even if they didn't have enough to feed their own family. Their country is beautiful and everyday all I have to do is look at the Zambian sky and know I am doing the right thing. Whether it is in the morning as the sun is coming up and the sky seems to go on forever , my bike ride home as the sun is setting and the most beautiful colors can be seen, or at night before bed as I brush my teeth under the most stars I have ever witnessed in my life, the Zambian sky is incredible.
Third is Em
First week
Sunday was spent at IST (in-service training) where we got some shots, filled out some forms, and got sized for our bike and helmets. It was a rather short day of actual scheduled activities and so we had quite a bit of free time to walk around the grounds and just hang out. It was nice to have some freedom to just get out and be outside.
Monday started off bright and early at 0530. We packed up the land cruisers and headed to out 1st site visits. Most Zambians do not have personal cars so they get where they need to go walking on the side of the road, biking, and hitching rides...so it is crazy to see people walking right by us as we went 120kmh. Myself and 4 others were at Sarita's site...a volunteer who has been posted for 1 year. Her site was AMAZING! Beautiful garden, separate kitchen, and a very nicely decorated hut. I will have to steal some of her ideas...Since we didn't arrive until late afternoon we just spent the rest of the evening hanging out, asking thousands of questions, and cooking dinner. Chris, a fellow PCV in a nearby village, was also there and he was an incredible cook. He hand made tortillas and then we had tacos with soya pieces as our source of meat. DELICIOUS!
Our first official day was spent meeting the headman of the village (he is the leader), visiting the local clinic where Sarita works with a nurse, and an ECT on many different projects like HIV/AIDS outreach and child health week programs. All of the healthcare provided there is free for patients (including vaccinations) and so are any drugs that they need, including medication for HIV positive patients. That blew my mind! Next we headed to a local school to atttend and afterschool program called anti-AIDS club. The club is made up of 7-9th graders who meet once a week to learn about HIV and AIDS and how to prevent it and educate others about it. They greeted us with songs and a drama skit. And we were also able to play two games with them; lifeboat and an africian version of sharks and minnows now called lions and antelopes. Myself and four of the children were in the final lifeboat so we won "sweeties" or candies. Surprised I went for the win in a game here in Zambia? You shouldn't be :)
On Wednesday we headed off to a village down the road to meet with the neighboorhood health committee (NHC) to go on village inspections. There were about 10 members present and so we split off into 2 groups to check every site in the village to ensure that everyone had a permanent toilet, bathing shelter, handwashing station (called a tippy-tap), mosquito nets for every member of the household, refuse (garbage) pit, and a two-tier drying rack. If any one of those elements were missing the house was charged a 5 pin (5000 kwacha) fine. If they had no money they could give something else, like a chicken or radio, to cover the cost. Improvements would have to be made in the week and the NHC would be back to check. These inspections provided a great teaching opportunity for why all of these were important elements to stay healthy because that's what this Zambian community wants is to be healthy and they are very motivated to do what it takes to get there.
After village inspections we were having a cooking party with the NHC members in the village! My first duty...kill the chicken. Yes you read it correctly, I killed the chicken. Ba Dorothy talked me threw it and with her amazing guidance I had success! Don't believe me? I have pics and a video to prove it, which will be up sometime soon? We'll see, but I have the record! Then we had to cut up all these veggies for the garnish and then the hard task of making the traditional nshima. These Zambian women are so strong because the process requires serious guns due to smashing all the ground nuts, and then whipping the thick nshima batter. I give them so much credit. And we were a part of every step of the making and the Zambians would just laugh and laugh as we struggled and they just asked "do you have food in america?" because we were such strugglers. It was so much fun and they were all such patient teachers with us, and I can only hope that I would be as patient with them if they came to America.
The whole first site visit was such an encouraging time for me. At first I was nervous because they kept telling us about all the people who ET (early terminate) from service and I worried, what if that's me? what if I can't do it? But after being here and living the life in the village for a couple of days (including successfully voiding in a pit latrine and taking a bucket shower) and interacting with the villagers I know that this is where I want to be. It's going to be challenging, but I know that through all things Christ is the one who strengthens me, and I will depend on him to get me through those tough days where I just want to give up.
Monday, August 9, 2010
A little background
I was born and raised in Brookline, Massachusetts in a family of 6, one brother and two sisters. I attended Landmark School in Beverly Massachusetts because I have severe learning disabilities. After graduation I went on to study at Westfield State College, where I graduated with a degree in Regional Planning and Geography. In the early Spring of my Junior year, I started thinking about my possible options for Senior year. I had taken a winter term in Belize studying eco-tourism and knew I wanted something outside the US. At first glance I thought it might be China but found that they didn't offer a necessary course in order for me to graduate. That search opened my eyes to the Peace Corps and after some discussions at home, I decided to start the application process. WOW, what a process, 15 months! The PC really need to be sure that their candidates are not only qualified but emotionally and physically ready to take on this challenge! Two weeks before I graduated, I heard from the PC that I was accepted and would be heading off to Zambia two months later. WOW again, sure I could turn back, it was normal for me to feel like, "what the heck am I doing?" But I knew in my heart that this was what I wanted to do, so, putting one foot in front of the other I began to assemble the necessary items for my life and the next 27 months. While living in Zambia I will be living in a straw hut with no electricity or running water and biking to work 12 miles each way every day.
On July 20th, 2010 at 6:30 in the morning my flight left for Atlanta, Georgia. Staging which is meant to make sure every piece of paper has it's I's dotted and T's crossed, in addition to all the necessary shots. I was in Atlanta less than 36 hours. At 7pm on July 21st I left the United States for Zambia. Our itinerary was to have us land in Johannesburg South Africa and and take another flight on to Lusaka. Our connection was missed and we spent the night in SA before heading on. It's been three weeks of whirlwind days starting at 5:30a and ending around 8:30p. This includes classes every day in one of Zambia's most common language Bemba. I am currently living with a host family who have 10 children. The Zambians I have found are some of the most caring and fun people I have ever met.
I will write more when I have access again to the Internet. G
On July 20th, 2010 at 6:30 in the morning my flight left for Atlanta, Georgia. Staging which is meant to make sure every piece of paper has it's I's dotted and T's crossed, in addition to all the necessary shots. I was in Atlanta less than 36 hours. At 7pm on July 21st I left the United States for Zambia. Our itinerary was to have us land in Johannesburg South Africa and and take another flight on to Lusaka. Our connection was missed and we spent the night in SA before heading on. It's been three weeks of whirlwind days starting at 5:30a and ending around 8:30p. This includes classes every day in one of Zambia's most common language Bemba. I am currently living with a host family who have 10 children. The Zambians I have found are some of the most caring and fun people I have ever met.
I will write more when I have access again to the Internet. G
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)