On 20th
July, with a large holdall and a small backpack (with a notebook inside), I
arrived at Heathrow, ready to go to Zambia in Southern Africa. Not knowing
quite what to expect of the next fortnight, I was certain of only one thing: I
would write at least once a day in my journal, to make sure, if nothing else,
that my family would get a blow-by-blow account of the expedition and all its
events.
Now, though, I want
everybody to know about my trip – from other school friends to family friends
and all of my relatives, and perhaps most importantly the generous sponsors
from my “Less Locks Fox” hair-cutting event back in February; the experiences I've had feel too amazing not to share.
So here we have my
Zambia Journal – with a few bits added in, in italics, for clarity and extra
explanation, but mostly left exactly how I wrote it at the time – weird
phrasing, slang, grammar mistakes and all. Reading it back to myself, I think
the change in my outlook is really noticeable – it’s quite a transformation
from “there aren't any proper toilets!” to “I never want to forget this”. It
truly was the trip of a life time, and I can only hope that comes across here.
*
Zambia Diary 20/07/13 – 04/08/13
20/07 21:41pm
We’re on the plane! I can’t believe we’re actually on our
way to Africa – I am beyond over-excited.
No, I will not be sleeping tonight... Too many New Girl
re-runs to watch... and a mural for the Zambian orphanage to plan. Apparently.
I am going to try to write something every day, if not only
so I remember as much as possible when I get back...
So wooo Zambia ’13 here we come...
*
21/07/13 10:15am (SA time)
We are just about to take off for Livingstone, after a couple
of hours in Johannesburg, trying not to fall asleep after pitifully little
sleep on the plane last night.
(Minor) disaster struck at the Jo’burg airport café, where,
although they happily took payment in dollars or sterling, they refused to give
change in anything other than Rand. Let’s hope I can keep the R128 sage for 2 weeks
until I can use it on the way back. [I
did.]
So far, we’ve experience nothing but über-friendly people –
including “Welcome-to-Zambia”-Guy in the security queue (‘how does he know
where we’re going?!... Ohhh our sweatshirts with ‘Zambia’ written on them’),
and Timothy the watch-salesman. ‘Ah your shirts, you must all be so sporty,
what sport do you do?’ and ‘So on the way back, you take me to London too,
yes?’ were among our favourite Timothy quotes. How wrong he was on both counts.
On the plane this morning I tried to help Amy wake up a bit
by ‘lightly spritzing’ her face with water... resulting in the somewhat
mystified businessman sitting behind her to get a nice misting too. We’re
already clearly very popular with the general public.
21:57
We are in bed, having finally managed to put up our mosquito
nets. [The hostel we stayed at,
‘Jollyboys’, had bunk beds in the dorms. Those on the top bunk had nowhere to
attach their mosquito nets above them, resulting in the whole ceiling being
plastered with gaffa tape in a last-ditch attempt to protect ourselves from
malaria.]
Today has been busy, and difficult due to everyone being
utterly shattered. Emily lost her bag (no, SAA lost it for her) and we are
hoping to retrieve it tomorrow morning.
After arriving at the hostel, we caught a bus out to
Victoria Falls, and tried on the way to change all of our dollars to Zambian
kwacha. The guy doing the exchange actually got on the bus with us which was
odd... [We had been not-so-reliably
informed that we would all need dollars during our stay, only to be confronted
upon arrival by the fact that it is illegal to use anything except kwacha in
Zambia now.]
Victoria Falls was incredible, particularly the spot
where we could go right out into the mist and spray. It was literally like
being hurled into a rainstorm. Crazy.
After an interesting meal and meeting some ‘World Challenge’
travellers, we finally were allowed
to go to bed. I want to sleep forever please.
*
Monday 22/07/13
17:49
On the bus to Mwandi right now, waiting for the driver to
refill petrol. He seems to know everybody we pass... Or maybe he’s just
friendly. It’s a shame he’s not as punctual as he is amicable... We have
already spent nearly three hours waiting for this bus over the past two days! [It swiftly became a recurring theme in the
expedition – calculating ‘Zambian Time’. This involved booking buses for a half
hour earlier than when you actually wanted them to arrive]. Then once on
the road, there’s traffic and road works, giving street vendors plenty of time
to try to sell us bracelets. At least the waiting gives us a good chance to
take in the surroundings. I LOVE the taxis! They are a bright cobalt blue and
they’re EVERYWHERE. It’s such a cheerful colour.
We also adore all the children – they wave to us all the
time, and all the babies are strapped to their mothers’ backs with wraps of
material. It’s adorable.
Today has, despite a lot of time spent waiting around, been
really good. After discovering that we can’t use dollars yesterday, we spent
two hours in line at a bank changing all our money to kwacha. Always useful
when you can actually use the currency you have.
Breakfast at Jollyboys was REALLY GOOD, and everyone
definitely needed it. There were choices of French toast and eggs and then a
‘Breakfast Sundae’ option too, which was muesli, honey and yoghurt all layered
in a sundae glass [perhaps I went a
little overboard on the gruelling detail here.] It was definitely what I
needed after a night (another night) of very little sleep... After going to the
loo at midnight I got back into our dorm and found it impossible to lock the
door! After a ridiculous fifteen minutes of scrabbling around with the key in
the pitch black, I decided I either had to leave it (not a good idea) or get
some help from my fast-asleep friends (the marginally better idea). Me
whispering “Guys, if any of you are awake and know how to open this flipping
door, some help would be appreciated!” did not go down toooo well at quarter
past one at first, but finally Ellie explained what I had been doing wrong so I
got back to bed. I then spent a considerable amount of time trying to guess
what each of the loud animal noises clearly audible from our room were, but I
eventually got to sleep.
I was also ‘Leader’ today, so Amy (assistant) and I were in
charge of getting all of the R & R activities sorted for when we return to
Livingstone on the 1st August. It feels like a very long way
away! With the help of John-the-useful-arranger-guy, we’ve sorted our last two
days, so it was a successful day for us.
We’re now well on our way to Mwandi for our project phase –
so apologies for the writing, but the sun has now set so I can’t see a thing.
23:13
Well this is delightful. After what turned into a four
hour coach journey, (did the driver know where we were going?), we arrived
at Mwandi.
There is a semi-proper toilet so we’re happy... But the
driver got stuck in the sand (no... wait... the bus did) so we only got to eat
and fiiinally get the tents up at about 9:30. Now there are loads of mad, loud dogs
all around the campsite. One even peed on one of our tents [later on in the trip, the same fate met our own tent too]. I
believe this does not bode well but I’m sure the whole situation will seem
better in the morning. At 6:00. When we have to get up. Yay. Bye.
*
23/07/13 13:02
Waking up this morning was pretty horrible... Amy’s alarm
didn’t go off and neither did mine but NEVER FEAR, the herd (troop? Gaggle?) of
cockerels and dogs woke us up. It was so cold in the morning we couldn’t feel
our hands – but cereal and toast for breakfast indoors (hurrah) warmed us up.
After that we met Paula, who runs the project. She is brilliant. She told us
her whole story of how she ended up here, saying at one point, “Then, would you
believe it, I peed in a bucket for four years when we were living in the hut.”
To which Mr. Wilkinson replied, “That’s a very long time to pee.”
She explained what the project and trek would be like, then
we collected our work gloves and set off for the main part of Mwandi village.
We split into 2 teams (of 9 and 10) and were shown how to string logs together
for the structure of the houses (there are two houses we’re working on). Within
minutes, a small group of local children gathered. They love wearing our
gloves, stroking our hair, and at times throwing lizards at Amy [a definite highlight]. Lunch has been
good too! After eating crisps and peanut butter sandwiches, Amy suddenly asked,
“So... Is this Western food, then?” YES AMY. YES IT IS. I don’t think peanut
butter is a Zambian delicacy.
These are our 2 hours off from 12 – 2 [we worked from 8 until 12, then 2 until 4 or 4:30]. I am really
appreciating the shade right now. The temperature here is always so extreme!
21:09
Back in our tent, because the campsite and village curfew is
9.
Here are some things I missed out from today...
When speaking to Paula, we discovered that the planning
(naming NO NAMES) has gone slightly astray, as we were told we needed to bring
no supplies for the project, but now apparently if we want to paint a mural we
needed to buy paints. Luckily, Paula very kindly said she’s going to
Livingstone on Friday so can get some for us.
After lunch today, we continued building the house, having
completed the framework before lunch. The next task was to churn up water and sandy
soil in a pit, make the gloopy mix into ball/slab shapes and slowly build up
the wall. We found that it’s really not our strong point as the columns of mud
kept collapsing, but we have a good few more days to perfect (or at least
improve) our technique. Becca’s hands were so coated in mud that she couldn’t
feel anything, and when I was on the inside trying to hold up the wall, she
started patting my hand into the column because she thought I was mud... It WAS
funny at the time.
On the way out of the village, a whole group of children
came and held our hands to lead us out. Most of them were as young as three or
four – it’s startling how comfortable they are with strangers. Also, the kids
from this morning learnt my name! Dala and Andrew, who are brothers, are
particularly good at saying it. It is adorable.
We waited in line to use the two, cold, outdoor showers to
rinse all the mud off, and were then served another delicious meal. This time
it was beef stew with rice, and it was gorgeous. We then played a LOT of card
games – proving that NONE of us have a feasible poker face – and finally had to
go to our tents. Which are, thanks to the campsite and trail to the project
site, completely coated in sand. I’m loving it... And the fact that my 95% Deet
mosquito repellent is burning a hole in its own plastic packaging after just
three days.
The hundreds of dogs are out again tonight. It must be so
very tiring to bark THIS MUCH EVERY NIGHT. Can’t they take a break? No?
Another early start tomorrow for project – I can’t wait to
meet more of the villagers. Pictures of African children are what make up the
majority of my camera memory card. [All
of the children we met were amused by nothing as much as by our cameras. Every
morning they would run up to us shouting “Picture! Picture!”. They were in
complete wonder at the whole process.]
*
24/07/12 13:20
The chorus of cockerels continued this morning. It’s all we
talk about at breakfast: “Did you hear the cockerels? The dogs? Yeah me too.”
Project has gone well today – about twelve children joined
in with the work and we got a lot of the mud filled in on two of the walls. We
played catch with them in our break – they just use rolled up socks for a ball
so we’re going to bring them a couple of tennis balls.
There is sand everywhere – I can feel it in my mouth and
everything. The trek is going to be such hard work if it’s all on this kind of
sandy terrain! [It was.]
During the “mudding” stage of project, Becca and I went with
Felix, our guide, down to the banks of the Zambezi to collect more water – he
said that over 70 people have been killed by hippos there in the past year. He
then asked, “If a hippo was running towards you, would you be scared?”... And
laughed when we said, yes, we probably would.
21:35
We have completely finished three walls of our mud house!
We’re so excited. It’s for a blind elderly lady who currently lives in a small
house with her whole family [it was
incredibly crowded, with four generations under one roof]. The lady’s
daughter, Grace, has been around and helping out with the house – I think we’re
all working particularly hard because we want to show Grace what we’re trying
to do for her mother.
Andrew, Dala and a lot of other children were there again
today – they all join us walking in and out of the village and hold our hands.
Andrew is so good at football – our team leader Kate was playing with him and
he is a pretty talented ten-year-old.
We had a really interesting conversation today with Felix
that really brought home the cultural differences between England and Zambia.
He was shocked to find that we didn’t all go to Church every Sunday. He told us
that only “the drinkers of the village” miss Church! I don’t think he could
quite understand just how many different beliefs and cultures exist in one
place in England, particularly near us in London. Grace asked us, “You don’t
even pray?” and most of us said “Not really.” She sort of laughed and said,
“Aah, maybe nothing to pray for.” I felt really bad.
Felix asked us what we do when we see a ghost... No one knew
what to say to that! Apparently, in Mwandi, you pray for the person that has
passed away and then “tell them to get out!”
Felix has five children; we met two of them today. Later in
the week we’re giving them some football kits to say thank you for all of his
help with our house.
On the way back to camp, we stopped on Mwandi’s main street
(still very small, though) to get a drink – the first refrigerated drink in
days! We attempted washing our clothes when we got back but it was already dusk
so I reckon they’ll stay wet overnight. OH WELL. We then had a hot meal and
another cold shower. My shower was made somewhat more interesting by our game
of “Assassins” [an on-going team game in
which everyone is designated a person to secretly ‘kill’ in a certain place
with a certain ‘weapon’], when Lauren tried to ‘kill’ Becca, outside of the
shower. The whole team screaming “RUN! RUUUNNN!” when I had soap on my face and
so couldn’t open my eyes was terrifying. Assuming they meant me, I FREAKED OUT,
imaging a herd of buffalo stampeding through the camp... Luckily I washed the
soap out of my eyes and managed to assess the situation before running out of
the shower naked.
I’m definitely ready for the trek tomorrow – thankfully
we’re getting up really early to avoid walking through the midday heat.
*
25.07/13 22:03
Today has been the best day of my life. I never want to
forget it!... But let me start at the beginning.
We were up early and began our short trek to the village of
Sooka with our guide Franco. It was hard work on the sand but we made it to
Sooka in a couple of hours. Once we’d made ourselves lunch, Kate A and I
designed the mural we’re going to paint at the pre-school. Then we had a free
afternoon to read and chat before Franco showed us how the villagers of Sooka
chop firewood... and gut fish! No, I did not have a turn.
There is a small school in Sooka, so we collected our wide
variety of stationary and toys that we brought with us and took it to the
school. The teacher had the pupils line up as we gave them each a
crayon/pencil/teddy. We had so much that soon the lines disintegrated and
became a mob. I handed out some colouring pencils, teddies and skipping ropes.
Afterwards, the teacher gathered the children in a group and
they clutched their new belongings and started to sing “Welcome to Zambia,
Welcome to Zambia, Welcome to Zambia, Our love is good.” [This is a tune I still hum to myself now.] Within seconds we were
in tears. After singing, the teacher thanked us warmly and explained that many
of the students were orphaned or vulnerable, from very poor families. They were
all so thankful for a few pencils and some paper – it was incredible to see.
Once back at the Sooka camp, the local women prepared fresh
fish for us (bream), with the local staple carbohydrate “nshima” made from
maize. It was two whole fish for each person, to be eaten without cutlery. It
was delicious – I couldn’t help but feel that that was how fish ought to be
eaten.
After dinner, we used a bucket of warm water to wash (we
can’t wait for the showers back at the main Mwandi camp!) and then the children
taught us some games. We didn’t entirely understand but they involved standing
in a circle, dancing, and shouting “Shake shake, OH, banana, OH!” There was a
small group of singers with drums, including Franco, and we danced and played
with the children. Once dark, a fire was lit and the choir performed some
songs. There was a tiny girl who I had been carrying, and she sat on my lap and
played with my camera for most of the evening. She is the most beautiful child ever.
As the choir sung, the villagers invited us to dance and a
lot of us were suddenly crying with happiness and sadness and wonder – all
these people are so cheerful, so warm, but they have so little.
All of the stars came out as we danced around the fire, and
nothing but clichés can describe the sheer MAGIC AND WONDER of this evening. We
sung some songs too, and one man thanked us for travelling such a long way to
see them. I wanted to shout “No! Thank YOU for letting us come, and for
cooking, and for singing and for having lovely children!”
In return for his speech, I stood up and said a few words on
behalf of the group as a “thank you”. I was so close to bursting into tears as
I said, “We will never forget this.”
I just know that for years I will think back to this magnificent
evening, dancing round the fire with a group of amazing people.
*
26/07/13 14:42
Trek Day 2! After a 5.30 start and cornflakes with powdered
milk, we set off for ‘Bush Camp’, with Franco and another guide Gabi. We are
camping next to the Zambezi – apparently the sunset is going to be incredible.
We are all GROSS because there are no taps/showers/toilets
here at all. Wet wipes and anti-bac gel all the way!
After arriving, we went on a two hour walk to a small
fishing village right on the side of the river. Franco and Gabi then spotted a
whole herd (group...) of hippos – they were moving down the river so we got out
our cameras and SPRINTED through the grass, straw and trees. The hippos –
Franco said there were around 8 – finally stopped, and so did we. We stayed
watching them surface and resurface for ages. I was so over-excited – they were
so close to us and it seemed really surreal.
After walking back we made some lunch, went out collecting
firewood and a small group are preparing to cook our dinner fairly soon.
The trekking itself hasn’t been too bad at all, and the rest
of the day after we have walked has been great. Trekking phase has so far
exceeded expectations!
*
27/07/13 15:31
Last night I was far too tired to write, and a little
homesick. After a great beef stew meal around another campfire (all my clothes
smell of smoke), we all lay back and gazed at the incredible stars. Out in the
wilderness there was so little natural light I could see them all perfectly –
as well as several shooting stars. This is such a magical place.
As we gazed at the constellations we had a brain-scrambling
conversation about space and parallel universes. I’m not entirely sure how it
came to this but we ended up with our legs and arms in the air pretending that
gravity had disappeared... Clearly the lack of personal hygiene and being in
the wilderness on the trek had got to our sanity.
Franco and Gabi sung us some songs, and then we sung for
them... Like in Sooka, they were incredibly generous to let us butcher various
pop songs and school hymns in front of them after their perfectly harmonised
pieces. Completely exhausted after this, I fell straight asleep.
This morning we set off on our third day of trekking. As
soon as the sun rises it quickly becomes sweltering, so it was hard work.
However, the comforting incentive of the Mwandi campsite – with its showers and
lovely meals – caused us to speed along and arrive back before lunch. There is
no project for us to do today because it is the weekend and nobody works – on
Monday, though, we will get back to our mud huts so we can finish before we
leave.
Tomorrow is Sunday, and so Church, and we’ve been told we
can go which is exciting. Like on project, girls have to wear skirts covering
the knee, so a lot of the team have gone into the centre of the village to buy
material for a sarong. Best of all, we are CLEAN! That has to have been one of
the greatest showers of my life... And my hair is no longer like matted straw.
Bonus!
I can hear the choir practicing next door, presumably for
Church tomorrow. They are incredible. It’s such a beautiful sound!
... Unlike the dogs and cockerels which are sure to grace
our ears tonight.
Tomorrow, Kate A and I can go to the school and outline and
maybe paint the mural design. We have black, white and blue.
A small group went to the orphanage today; we can only go a
few at a time each day. When they got back, they told us that most of the
children we’ve met while on project are there, including Andrew and Dala. I feel
heartbroken for them.
20:43
We go to bed so early now it’s hilarious. All the hard work
and early mornings are exhausting us!
Tomorrow most of us are definitely going to the Church
service. I can’t wait to hear the singing they were practicing earlier.
Another delicious meal – I’m going to get home and wonder
where on earth the nshima is.
One week in and I’m still finding it surreal that we’re
here, although it is amazing how quickly we’ve become used to our new way of
living... But, joy of joys, to add to the late night symphony is Amy’s cough,
after contracting a cold (yes, in a hot country). I’m hoping sleeping in a tent
with her won’t spread it to me. I’m such a selfless friend, aren’t I? ...Get
well soon Amy.
When the sarong-buying group returned (three hours late! We
thought they’d been savaged by cockerels!) they all had corn rows in their
hair. The rest of us are considering jumping on the corn row bandwagon at some
point too. Promoting local business, and all that.
Kate, as in our leader Kate, got stuck in the toilet
earlier! Tumu insisted on fetching a video camera as the other teachers tried
(and eventually succeeded) to save her. We were all in hysterics as Mr.
Wilkinson finally flung open the door to let Kate out and cried, “I AM
INVINCIBLE!”
... Maybe he could do something about the cockerels, then?
*
28/07/13 20:55
Finally got to wear my maxi-skirt for Church today! The
singing was BEAUTIFUL and would you believe it, Franco can add
‘being-a-choirmaster’ to his long list of accomplishments (linguist, singer,
fish-gutter, wood-cutter, expert wilderness navigator). Florence said, as his
‘Jerusalem Choir’ stood up to sing, “I’m so proud of him.” It’s weird but I
know what she means. Unfortunately it went downhill from there as the service
overran by an hour; Paula was there and even she was grumbling and eventually
led us all out! The poor preacher was STILL not finished when we were all
shuffling out. “Boy oh boy was she talkative!” was all Paula could say on the
way home.
I did, however, get to introduce our whole party to the
congregation. The secretary was reading the notices and said, “Now we welcome a
group from England to our service, Meester Lewis is here to introduce us I
think?” So I guessed (correctly) that that was meant to be me and stood up at
the right time.
We got back to camp and did another load of washing, then
Kate and I collected the paint (along with the small selection of acrylics left
by a previous team) and set off to the pre-school to start the mural. The wall
we were designated (outside) was so big we had no hope of covering it, so we
just stuck to the middle. We decided to draw a backpacker holding the hand of a
Zambian child standing on top of the world. We did the same with a crescent
moon on the left, with two people sitting on it, then a sun in the opposite
corner. The gloss paint we used was difficult to work with, but with the size
of the mural and the team helping us we were sure we could finish it in one
day... And we did! Kate and I got to sign it, and the African children were
watching us and saying things like “Wow” and “Niiice” throughout, which was
encouraging. I feel proud of our work!
After a shower, and trying (in vain) to scrub the sticky
gloss paint off me, we ate dinner and then designed a game plan for the next
three days. They are our last days on project, and we will feel terrible if we
don’t finish our house. We’ve decided on a few rules.
1.
No talking to or playing with the children unless
they are helping out (no matter how cute they are)
2.
No water breaks altogether – take shifts
3.
Work harder than ever before
Once again, it’ll be hard work in the baking heat but it
will feel so good to complete it. I really hope we do!
*
29/07/13 13:08
Slight disaster struck on project today as three columns on
our last wall partially fell in. We’re going to be quite behind but we started
throwing mud at the other walls (to coat the outside) already. We’re leaving
the collapsed wall to dry before building it back up.
Enjoying my time in the shade! It’s so hot at this time –
the twenty minute walk to the project site will seem so much longer.
21:12
Just finished cleaning half a bottle of exploded sun cream
from the bottom of the rucksack I borrowed from my mum (...Sorry!) Not a fun
job.
We fixed our collapsed wall this afternoon and mud-coated
the other three walls. Good progress! Everyone’s exhausted now... There’s
nothing I like more than snuggling up in our tent; it’s actually really cosy.
After barely more than a week, England seems like a weird, distant memory to
me. Everything is so different out here. It’s nice to have a complete change
from normal routine.
*
30/07/13 19:59
‘Bedtime’ is getting earlier an earlier. Chichi, Matt’s son [Matt is the man who also runs the Mwandi
Mission, he handles the actual building of the houses] is two years old and
goes to bed later than us.
Our house has come on well – we’ve mud splatted all the
walls, in and outside – and tomorrow (OUR LAST DAY HERE) we’ll do the floor
(whatever that entails) and then smooth everything.
Managed to do more washing today – have enough clean clothes
to see me home! YES!
For some reason it is currently the craze to hide in one
another’s tents in the evening... Hilarious until you’re the victim (thanks
Becca).
In the afternoon, Grace, Kate and I went back to the mural
to paint the school’s name – “Mwandi U.C.Z. Pre-School” – above its door. The
headmistress felt it necessary to sit and watch us the whole time (no pressure)
and now am I covered in (stained with) yet MORE gloss paint. Check back in a
few months to see if it comes off...
I cannot believe tomorrow is the last project day. Time
flies when you’re building mud huts/meeting children/painting etc... It’s
pretty cool out here.
*
31/07/13 21:25
Last night at ‘Leopard Orchid Campsite’, Mwandi. Back to
Livingstone for R & R tomorrow; what a last day on project it has been! The
weather has been nice and cool – we’ve seen the first clouds today that we’ve
seen throughout the trip so working was easier without the scorching sun. My
hands are raw from smoothing the scratchy mud walls – they’re all pink and dry.
I NEED TO BATHE IN MOISTURISER PLEASE.
Lunch was a welcome break after working hard all morning,
and today was my turn to go to the orphanage. Over 200 children (most live
locally with grandparents) come there for lunch every day. We were in charge of
serving the food. I was TERRIBLE at estimating how much tomato sauce each child
should get. In the end I ran out early and had to re-distribute from the other
bowls that hadn’t been taken yet. I felt so bad!
Unfortunately [or
perhaps fortunately, considering my lack of food-serving skills], we didn’t
have time to stay longer [I really wish
we had. It was such a lovely place, and yet again it struck me how happy all of
the children were, in spite of how little they have]. We needed to get back
to finish the house for Grace’s mum. With help from local children we did
finish eventually! A couple of bits weren’t dry yet so we couldn’t work on them
but Grace says she can easily finish that off tomorrow. We cannot believe we
have actually built someone a home! It, like so many other things on this
expedition, is so surreal. Grace danced and clapped when we were done, then she
hugged me and got me to write down my phone number for her. [Out of everybody we met, I feel like I got
to know Grace the best. She is an extremely kind, caring woman and I sincerely
hope she will keep in touch. She is such an inspiration to be positive about
everything.] Isn’t it odd that these people live in houses made of mud, and
can share one pair of shoes between one family, yet nearly all own mobiles? On
the main street there are food shops, fabric shops and then three different
places to buy SIM cards and Airtime!
After project, saying goodbye to the children was the
hardest thing. They all clung to us and wouldn’t let us go – I wanted to cry
when we had to leave. I will miss them all so much.
Amy and I were the final two to get cornrows today. We’re
all going to look mad in the airport. While having our hair done, two young
women were touching our hair and saying “soft softy soft!” and laughing. One of
them put her face really close to ours and looked very seriously at us then
said, “What is your secret, mu kuwa?” ‘Mu kuwa’ is the word for ‘white
person/people’ in Lozi (the local language). All the children – as young as two
or three – shout it to us as we pass. It’s also what they call us before they
learn our names! I went through at least a week thinking it meant “hello” –
that’s how frequently people said it to us. Gabi had to explain on the trek
what is really meant.
I’m going to miss this place so much – and Paula, and her
brilliant laugh, and the incredible food – it has been a great place to stay.
I’m very proud of what we’ve achieved here.
*
01/08/13 21:58
How is it August?! It makes me feel like we’ve been away for
months.
Sadly, this morning we had to say farewell to Mwandi and the
incredible people we’ve met there. After saying goodbye to Paula, Matt, Felix
and Martin (and getting group photos with all of them), we got on the bus (it
was actually on time!) and headed back to the bustle of Livingstone. After
returning to ‘Jollyboys’ hostel we walked out to town to see the markets and
buy some snack. Ellie bought so much chocolate that the lady at the checkout
asked, “Are you making something with all this chocolate?” RUDE.
After rural Mwandi, the taxis and shops and even people
wearing shoes seem strange and very sophisticated!
At 2:30 we got taken out for our first R & R activity –
the game drive. For such a small park we saw a lot (thanks to the excellent
sight of our guide Herbert). After seeing plentiful warthogs we saw a giant
lizard, zebra, a baby crocodile, elephants and even some giraffe a couple of
metres from our vehicle (unfortunately it was a park that doesn’t have any
cats.) It was a very bumpy ride and we constantly felt we were about to fall
out of the truck! A lot of fun though.
We went out for dinner at the ‘Zambezi Café’ – recommended
by Matt – (I know, actually getting to individually choose what we want to eat,
wild!). We were a bit overtired to 100% enjoy the great food but we did manage
to try some “Piri Piri crocodile bites” (nice – tasted like chicken, basically
African Nando’s) and then some grilled caterpillar (not so nice – surprisingly
fishy).
Now we are finally in bed (after half eight bedtimes for a
week, 10:15 feels like midnight) and ready for (hopefully) a great penultimate
night in Zambia.
*
02/08/13 13:32
We are having a great last full day here! After a lovely
night’s sleep we woke up early to have showers and visit the town’s curio
market before the elephant interaction. The markets were great – we all had a
LOT of fun haggling, as well as exchanging our hair ties for their products
instead of money. It seems proper hair ties are in very short supply here...
Then we walked back to be picked up for the elephants! Once
at “Thorntree” we were introduced to Gerald, the guide, who explained how the
elephants were trained (positive reinforcement), how many there were (nine),
and what not to do (shout, run or sit down). The elephants were then brought
out (including three babies!), and we got to feed them and sit on their legs
when they were sat down. It was incredible! The babies were so greedy,
searching you with their trunks when the food bag was empty. Half of our team are
partially covered in elephant saliva. Loooovely. Everyone was so in awe though,
such an amazing experience.
Now we are lying in the sun after lunch, waiting to get
ready then go on the sunset river cruise. Our last activity, and our last night
in Zambia! I can’t believe it.
19:54
The sunset river cruise was beautiful –an amazing way to end
a great expedition. We saw loads of hippos terrifying close, as well as a young
elephant washing and two crocodiles. The food – snacks and a barbecue – was
really good too, and we were lucky enough to be put on our own private boat for
the evening. It was a gorgeous sunset and we all had the chance to dress up a
bit.
Finalising the airport details for tomorrow felt so odd – I
cannot believe we’ve only been here for two weeks – it seems like a lot longer.
Part of me misses home but another part doesn’t want to leave! I don’t want to
forget what it is like here, especially the lives of those in Mwandi and Sooka.
I think the past two weeks have been genuinely life-changing; the experiences
we’ve had have certainly altered my perspective on a lot of aspects of our life
at home and what we take for granted. I hope I can look back at this journal
and remind myself of what I’ve learnt.
This has been a brilliant trip with some incredible people, and
I’m sure there are plenty of memories from this expedition that I will always
remember.
 |
| A few Zambia memories... |
Thank you for reading
my Zambia journal, and special thanks to everyone that sponsored me. Please do
contact me via Twitter (@foxylouisa), email (loui2106@hotmail.com) or Facebook
if you have any questions.
