Happy Almost Halloween everyone!
Hope you are all enjoying the cool fall weather and getting into the holiday spirit! Things here are going well...it is HOT HOT HOT now! October is supposedly the hottest month out of the year, and I really didn't think it was that bad but now, it's pretty unbearable at times-especially when biking!
Saturday was Zambian Independence Day...I thought everyone would be out celebrating but to my surprise, there was hardly any celebrating! I came into Mpika to meet up with Laura and we biked to her house where I spent this weekend. She lives 15k (7.5 miles) from Mpika and man I'm I sore from that biking! I thought 7k from my site to Mpika was bad, but she is all up hill so it makes it even worse. But she is so in shape she finds it no problem to bike that much haha. I tell you, after two years, I'll certainly be able to enter the Iron Man competition :-) The weekend was nice and relaxing.
Today, we are in Mpika trying to finalize plans for a camp that Peace Corps is putting on. The 7 Peace Corps volunteers in Mpika District will be hosting camp GLOW-Girls Leading Our World from December 6th-12th. Since Mary Ellen and I are the newest volunteers, we are included but not expected to plan for the event, however since I'm so close to town, I've offered to help Laura in the planning. For the 5 volunteers who have been here for a while, they will be bringing two girls from their local schools and one teacher to this camp....and basically it is an empowerment camp. I am really excited as this is really what I spent a lot of my time at college studying! It will be interesting to see how this camp plays out and hopefully the girls will walk away from it really empowered! I'll keep you updated on how the camp goes!
Work wise, things are really picking up...I never thought I'd be busy during my "no-work" community entry period but really, I'm super busy! Last week, we started village inspections so I was able to meet everyone in White Village and Chilebela Village. My catchment area of Chibansa has 27 villages so now I can cross off three of them that I've visited! The third being my own village of Bufuba. I am also super busy with the anti-aids club at school. Last week, we had our first official session and I gave the lesson on myths and facts of HIV/AIDs. I was impressed by how much the students already knew, but there were a lot of truths that they thought were myths so it was a good lesson for them to learn. This week, we are tackling the immune system and how HIV/AIDs affects it. Wish me luck! The students are really great though and seem geniunely interested so it works well for all of us. Last week, I attended a School WASHE meeting (Water and Sanitation Education) which was sponsored by the NGO DAPP-Development Aid People to People. It was held at the school and we went around looking at the various water sanitation facilities...whether the school had adequate toilets, hand washing facilities, a water source etc...unfortunately, my school is lacking greatly in water sanitation so hopefully this new School WASHE committee will try to work to improve the school's situation. They don't have a water source at school so school children are made to bring a 2 liter bucket of water every day so they can clean the toilets. They don't have hand washing facilities so children don't wash hands after they use the restrooms. It really is a hygiene issue! And there are so many students but the school lacks adequate desks so the students sit on reed mats on the floor. I am hoping that I'll be able to work with the school to improve their situation, somehow.
On Thursday, I came to Mpika to meet up with Dr. Mulenga who works at the Ministry of Health. I introduced myself and told him I'd be working with him to help Chibansa catchment, but he is such a busy man that I feel my workings with him will be really limited. I also met with the DEBS-Director of the Education Boards and she is a really great lady. I am hoping she will work with me to help Chibansa School.
This week, my agenda is pretty full with more village inspections and anti-aids club. I finally got my kitchen door put on, and painted, and my kitchen walls cemented so all I have left to do is lime the walls (to keep termites away) and my home will be complete. As soon as I have everything set up, I'll take pictures and post for everyone to see!
Alrighty well I'm going to sign off for now. I really hope you all are well! Please write and keep me up to date on your wonderful lives!
Miss you!!!
P.S. I apologize in advance for my previous and any future posts that I have not spell/grammar checked this blog....I write against the clock and never have enough time to go back and re-read so sorry sorry!
Monday, October 26, 2009
Thursday, October 15, 2009
ZamFood
Greetings all!
First off, thank you so much for all the fabulous mail I've been getting...it is wonderful to hear from you and I'm glad that you are finding this blog enjoyable! I finally figured out how to change the comment setting on this blog, so now anyone who wishes should be allowed to comment! Hope that helps those of you who have wanted to comment!
Also, many many thanks to Ms. Rice's class for the letters! It made my week and I have written responses to all of you so be looking for them--but remember, it's mail from Africa so it might take a few weeks! Also, Happy Birthday Ellie!
Things in Zambia are still good...I'm still in this "honeymoon" stage where everything is perfect. My home is still not complete but it is getting there. The carpenter finally came and put a new door on the house and it is beautiful! So much more secure than my previous door! But he has not finished my bookcase for my clothes so I'm still living out of a suitcase. My shelves for the kitchen are finished and are also beautiful...this carpenter is very talented and is so friendly I'm glad I'm giving him lots of business! I finally got plastic put up on the inside of my hut so now when it rains, I'm protected! I live in the windest place in Zambia so unfortunately with the plastic, it makes it extremely loud but I'm managing to sleep at night so that's good!
Yesterday, I held my first anti-aids club meeting at the school. There are so many students it is a little overwhelming!!! But the first meeting went well, we laid out the rules and expectations for the club. I am hoping to co-facilitate with the students so every week, I'll have one of the older students lead a session with me. Next week, we are really delving into the topic of HIV/AIDs and learning about what it is and how it is spread. I think it will be a good successful club, and I'm hoping that I can take a group of dedicated students up to the other basic school in my district, Kaole Basic to start up a club there since they do not have one.
October 24th is Zambia's independence day and I have been warned that on this day, the village will become deserted because all of them will be out picking caterpillars! That's right, in my district, Mpika, we are famous for our caterpillars and the Zambians love to eat them! So my villagers will camp out for months in the "bush" and collect as many caterpillars as they can and then sell them in the market for additional money! It is a crazy notion, but I am told I can't leave Zambia without trying caterpillar....so after the 24th, I'll be able to give my opinion on caterpillar :-) On the subject of food, Zambian food is very bland compared to other places. They staple is a dish called Nshima, which is made by adding a ton of mealie meal to water until it thickens. They eat Nshima for every meal: breakfast, lunch and dinner! It usually is accompanied with a relish of some sort (relish= side dish) like chicken, rape (which is like collard greens) or cabbage. I have grown accustomed to Nshima but do not cook it at site for myself, so many of my villagers are very worried about my eating haha because Zambians believe that no one is full unless they have eaten Nshima. My favorite relish is called Ifisashi and it is made with Rape, ground nuts that they finally ground into a paste and mix into the rape. It is very delicious!
Work wise, things are great. I had my first meeting with the neighborhood health committee on Tuesday...and this was the longest meeting ever! I literally was at the clinic from 8 am in the morning until 4 pm!!! The only good thing was that they served us lunch :-) The committee is really great and the people are all excited to work with me! Next week, I start my village inspections so will go around with Ellis to all of the villages in my catchment area to meet everyone. I am so ready to do this as I feel I have not explored my area enough!
Today, I am in the Boma with Mary Ellen-my neighbor in the village of Mpepo-about 100K outside Mpika. She is my closest neighbor from my intake...and is one of our older volunteers but she is really great! She is like a mother-figure and is always looking out for us. She came to town so that we could meet with the ministry of health officials. Unfortunately, they were not around today, but we had a productive day meeting with the other various NGOs and introducing ourselves. I splurged and had an ice cream as my birthday treat to myself :-)! I might go to Mpepo with her to see her village and come back tomorrow but haven't decided yet if that's what I should do.
Other than that, I'm still adapting and adjusting to life in the village.
I miss you all and think about you all the time! Please continue to write and feel free to comment now!! Hope all is well back home!
First off, thank you so much for all the fabulous mail I've been getting...it is wonderful to hear from you and I'm glad that you are finding this blog enjoyable! I finally figured out how to change the comment setting on this blog, so now anyone who wishes should be allowed to comment! Hope that helps those of you who have wanted to comment!
Also, many many thanks to Ms. Rice's class for the letters! It made my week and I have written responses to all of you so be looking for them--but remember, it's mail from Africa so it might take a few weeks! Also, Happy Birthday Ellie!
Things in Zambia are still good...I'm still in this "honeymoon" stage where everything is perfect. My home is still not complete but it is getting there. The carpenter finally came and put a new door on the house and it is beautiful! So much more secure than my previous door! But he has not finished my bookcase for my clothes so I'm still living out of a suitcase. My shelves for the kitchen are finished and are also beautiful...this carpenter is very talented and is so friendly I'm glad I'm giving him lots of business! I finally got plastic put up on the inside of my hut so now when it rains, I'm protected! I live in the windest place in Zambia so unfortunately with the plastic, it makes it extremely loud but I'm managing to sleep at night so that's good!
Yesterday, I held my first anti-aids club meeting at the school. There are so many students it is a little overwhelming!!! But the first meeting went well, we laid out the rules and expectations for the club. I am hoping to co-facilitate with the students so every week, I'll have one of the older students lead a session with me. Next week, we are really delving into the topic of HIV/AIDs and learning about what it is and how it is spread. I think it will be a good successful club, and I'm hoping that I can take a group of dedicated students up to the other basic school in my district, Kaole Basic to start up a club there since they do not have one.
October 24th is Zambia's independence day and I have been warned that on this day, the village will become deserted because all of them will be out picking caterpillars! That's right, in my district, Mpika, we are famous for our caterpillars and the Zambians love to eat them! So my villagers will camp out for months in the "bush" and collect as many caterpillars as they can and then sell them in the market for additional money! It is a crazy notion, but I am told I can't leave Zambia without trying caterpillar....so after the 24th, I'll be able to give my opinion on caterpillar :-) On the subject of food, Zambian food is very bland compared to other places. They staple is a dish called Nshima, which is made by adding a ton of mealie meal to water until it thickens. They eat Nshima for every meal: breakfast, lunch and dinner! It usually is accompanied with a relish of some sort (relish= side dish) like chicken, rape (which is like collard greens) or cabbage. I have grown accustomed to Nshima but do not cook it at site for myself, so many of my villagers are very worried about my eating haha because Zambians believe that no one is full unless they have eaten Nshima. My favorite relish is called Ifisashi and it is made with Rape, ground nuts that they finally ground into a paste and mix into the rape. It is very delicious!
Work wise, things are great. I had my first meeting with the neighborhood health committee on Tuesday...and this was the longest meeting ever! I literally was at the clinic from 8 am in the morning until 4 pm!!! The only good thing was that they served us lunch :-) The committee is really great and the people are all excited to work with me! Next week, I start my village inspections so will go around with Ellis to all of the villages in my catchment area to meet everyone. I am so ready to do this as I feel I have not explored my area enough!
Today, I am in the Boma with Mary Ellen-my neighbor in the village of Mpepo-about 100K outside Mpika. She is my closest neighbor from my intake...and is one of our older volunteers but she is really great! She is like a mother-figure and is always looking out for us. She came to town so that we could meet with the ministry of health officials. Unfortunately, they were not around today, but we had a productive day meeting with the other various NGOs and introducing ourselves. I splurged and had an ice cream as my birthday treat to myself :-)! I might go to Mpepo with her to see her village and come back tomorrow but haven't decided yet if that's what I should do.
Other than that, I'm still adapting and adjusting to life in the village.
I miss you all and think about you all the time! Please continue to write and feel free to comment now!! Hope all is well back home!
Friday, October 9, 2009
Survived my first week!
Greetings from the internet cafe in Mpika! So I am on day 10 of being on my own in the village and so far things are going really well. When Ted, the PCVL (Peace Corps Volunteer Leader) dropped me off at site, he was very disappointed because they had not put a new roof on the hut, or put a roof on my cimbusu (toilet) and there was grass all around the hut so he told them that if the work was not finished in three days, he would come back and take me out of the site. So the first night in my hut, I had a lovely view of the full moon so it was lovely! Thursday, I thought the village would turn out in crowds to finish my house....but they didn't! And I spent the day just playing a lot with the children and reading. There are a million children in my village...most of them are great, some of them are not! I often feel like I am babysitting them which gets old and frustrating at times, but for the most part, they are just overly curious excited children. My house is located literally in the center of the village...everyone has to walk by my house to get to the village center or the paved road, so there is always foot traffic. In many ways, I love it because it doesn't feel so remote or isolated. At other times though, when I would like privacy or alone time, it is quite difficult! But overall, I love my site and the location...I am surrounded by beautiful beautiful hills and trees so I am at peace when at site. On Friday, Ba Gilbert...my counterpart who is the chairperson for my housing committee, came and really started work on the house. He whitewashed my walls for me and painted the walls with some paint I had bought in Kasama. I told him I could do the painting but he didn't believe me so did it himself! Hahah oh well, at least it does look good. On Saturday, a carpenter came out to my site and I ordered some furniture which will be ready tomorrow, I'm so excited! I am getting a door to put on my kitchen, which is a smaller mud hut outside my regular hut so I'll be able to store all my food and kitchen stuff in a room that will be secure! I am getting a new door for my hut because the one I have is not good. I am also getting shelving for the kitchen, as well as a bookcase to put my clothes in so I'm excited that once it is in the house, I'll be able to unpack. Also on Saturday, the headman for my village, Ba Lawrence came and built a new roof for the cimbusu as well as a fence so there toilet was a little more private! That same day, later in the afternoon, I met with my clinic staff to lay out agendas for the next three months. Ellis Kalengo, the EHT (Environmental Health Technician) is a really great resource and I am looking forward to working with him. When I returned home, the roofing crew arrived and put some plastic and thatch on the roof. Lucky, they did it just in time as we had our first rain storm that night in Mpika!! I was sooo lucky and remained dry throughout the night.
Sunday, I went to the Catholic Church with Gilbert. It was a VERY long service...and we didn't have a priest--there is a shortage of priests so it was some community members who led the service. But the service was very nice and the music was amazing...so much drumming, singing, dancing--truly an African church service. Ted came back as promised on Sunday and was so impressed with the work on my house! He really made the village feel special haha.
My real work week began on Monday but I had nothing scheduled so I spent the day at home...reading and trying to come up with plans for work. I played a lot with the children who are great when I want company! They love doing things for me...like fetching my water, washing my dishes and it is hard for them to accept no! I am hoping I can have someone help me with laundry and getting my water regularly as carrying a 20L jerry can is extremely heavy and I'm a weakling! I am amazed at how strong the women and children are here. I see mothers with babies on their backs, 20l jerry can filled with water on their head and a bucket in each hand all the time and am always in awe at their strength! The women in Zambia, as I'm sure throughout Africa, as the hardest working group of people and there days are so long and tiring, but they always greet with smiles on their faces and seem happy! I am excited to work with the many women's groups in my community!
Tuesday, I was suppose to go the clinic but my EHT cancelled on me so I had my first meeting cancelled....haha I guess I am suppose to get used to it as this is quite the norm in Zambia. So I spent the day doing home improvement projects...and proved to Ba Gilbert that I could paint by painting the windows and window sills in my hut.
Wednesday, I met with Laura and Carrolle Anne...two PCVs who live in my district and have been here for a year. Laura is my nearest neighbor and is 7 k from me. We went to Mpika town and had lunch at a Somalian restaurant which was very nice and then I came back because I had to meet with the Anti-Aids club at the basic school. The club is very excited to start work and it will be interesting to see what they have already been doing. The teacher I'm working with worked a lot with the Jeana so he wants to carry on where she left off. I will be going to the school regularly.
Thursday, I went to the clinic and observed the ante-natal clinic....it was an interesting experience and the expecting mothers were so friendly! I will be going regularly to those clinics and hopefully doing some health talks on safe pregnancy and safe motherhood. Thursday afternoon, Ba Gilbert's wife brought me lunch...it was so sweet of her and it was nice to have some company (other than the children) while eating.
Today, I am in Mpika...have spent the morning at a training for community drama hosted by Health Communication Partnerships (HCP) and it was very interesting. I am hoping that they will come train my anti aids club so that they can start doing community theater as a tool to educate people on health issues. I also meet with the DAPP organization in town and have set up meeting times for next week to discuss possible work. I am staying in Mpika tonight with Laura...we are cooking dinner for a lady who runs the orphanage in Mpika so I am looking forward to that.
So far, I am staying upbeat and positive. Life here truly is much more simple and beautiful. I enjoy spending time reading, relaxing and meeting the various people in my villages. They are so friendly and so welcoming. It is hard to believe I'll be living in this community for two years! It seems so long, yet not enough time for all the work that needs to be done!
Alrighty, well time is running out....hope you all are doing well!!! Please please write me or comment on the blogs so I know what's going on over there in the wonderful U.S. of A!
Miss you!!!
Sunday, I went to the Catholic Church with Gilbert. It was a VERY long service...and we didn't have a priest--there is a shortage of priests so it was some community members who led the service. But the service was very nice and the music was amazing...so much drumming, singing, dancing--truly an African church service. Ted came back as promised on Sunday and was so impressed with the work on my house! He really made the village feel special haha.
My real work week began on Monday but I had nothing scheduled so I spent the day at home...reading and trying to come up with plans for work. I played a lot with the children who are great when I want company! They love doing things for me...like fetching my water, washing my dishes and it is hard for them to accept no! I am hoping I can have someone help me with laundry and getting my water regularly as carrying a 20L jerry can is extremely heavy and I'm a weakling! I am amazed at how strong the women and children are here. I see mothers with babies on their backs, 20l jerry can filled with water on their head and a bucket in each hand all the time and am always in awe at their strength! The women in Zambia, as I'm sure throughout Africa, as the hardest working group of people and there days are so long and tiring, but they always greet with smiles on their faces and seem happy! I am excited to work with the many women's groups in my community!
Tuesday, I was suppose to go the clinic but my EHT cancelled on me so I had my first meeting cancelled....haha I guess I am suppose to get used to it as this is quite the norm in Zambia. So I spent the day doing home improvement projects...and proved to Ba Gilbert that I could paint by painting the windows and window sills in my hut.
Wednesday, I met with Laura and Carrolle Anne...two PCVs who live in my district and have been here for a year. Laura is my nearest neighbor and is 7 k from me. We went to Mpika town and had lunch at a Somalian restaurant which was very nice and then I came back because I had to meet with the Anti-Aids club at the basic school. The club is very excited to start work and it will be interesting to see what they have already been doing. The teacher I'm working with worked a lot with the Jeana so he wants to carry on where she left off. I will be going to the school regularly.
Thursday, I went to the clinic and observed the ante-natal clinic....it was an interesting experience and the expecting mothers were so friendly! I will be going regularly to those clinics and hopefully doing some health talks on safe pregnancy and safe motherhood. Thursday afternoon, Ba Gilbert's wife brought me lunch...it was so sweet of her and it was nice to have some company (other than the children) while eating.
Today, I am in Mpika...have spent the morning at a training for community drama hosted by Health Communication Partnerships (HCP) and it was very interesting. I am hoping that they will come train my anti aids club so that they can start doing community theater as a tool to educate people on health issues. I also meet with the DAPP organization in town and have set up meeting times for next week to discuss possible work. I am staying in Mpika tonight with Laura...we are cooking dinner for a lady who runs the orphanage in Mpika so I am looking forward to that.
So far, I am staying upbeat and positive. Life here truly is much more simple and beautiful. I enjoy spending time reading, relaxing and meeting the various people in my villages. They are so friendly and so welcoming. It is hard to believe I'll be living in this community for two years! It seems so long, yet not enough time for all the work that needs to be done!
Alrighty, well time is running out....hope you all are doing well!!! Please please write me or comment on the blogs so I know what's going on over there in the wonderful U.S. of A!
Miss you!!!
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