tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59535843617818148482024-03-05T23:56:34.818-08:00My VSO AdventureWendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.comBlogger29125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-20942308960938996312011-05-21T14:08:00.001-07:002011-05-26T15:50:03.550-07:00VSO adventure over and another one begins....<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="color: magenta; font-family: "Tahoma", "sans-serif"; font-size: 9pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-CA;">What can I say really so much has changed since I last wrote.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am getting divorced.. that’s the biggest change. Bob has just moved out of the house and I arrived home on Monday May 16<sup>th</sup>. The biggest thing I learnt in Africa is its meant to be the way it’s going to be. Whether that means people just wait for things to happen because they feel it’s beyond their control or it means that things happen for a reason and unfold in a certain way and there isn’t much you can do to stop it.. I’m not sure.. Only time will tell. I just want to acknowledge some people who have been an amazing support to me; my <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>mom, my best friend Jesse, and my sister in law Reesa. Thank you for all your love and support but most especially for the support you have given me in these 6 months.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="color: magenta; font-family: "Tahoma", "sans-serif"; font-size: 9pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-CA;">I had an incredible journey in Zambia.. from arriving and missing home so much to establishing meaningful friendships and embracing the culture for all it had to offer.. I had an incredible time in Zambia and I wouldn’t exchange it for anything and I will never regret taking the plunge and doing it. I would consider doing another trip of it’s kind. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="color: magenta; font-family: "Tahoma", "sans-serif"; font-size: 9pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-CA;">There wasn’t much about this experience I didn’t enjoy but the things I won’t miss are.. people knocking on your bedroom window asking for some favour at 7:00am on a Saturday.. and taking cold showers when it’s cool outside in the morning and sometimes having no water at all. I will miss coming home for lunch everyday.. and making fresh lemonade from the lemons in my neighbours yard. I will miss living a very laid back and stress free life. Even though there is very limited things to do I never feel bored.. it’s very strange.. you can always find something to keep yourself busy with.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="color: magenta; font-family: "Tahoma", "sans-serif"; font-size: 9pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-CA;">There is plenty still to be fixed in Zambia but there is plenty to be fixed all around the world; everyone has their own struggle it’s how you decide to tackle and concur it..It’s the end of the VSO adventure and another adventure begins...</span></div>Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-76315803200303072092011-03-31T01:35:00.000-07:002011-03-31T01:35:19.649-07:00The 10 things I knew starting out..<div class="MsoNormal">At the very beginning of being here.. these were the things I had learnt.. and now here are my reflections on them. </div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> 1. </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->All that will be eaten are carbs here.. I will be a vegetarian for the next 6 mths.. with a few cans of tuna and some eggs thrown in for good measure. – in January we had a butchery (thank you Anari) open up in Siavonga.. it is far away so I was only able to go by cab.. but I went every month or so and stocked up so I did eat pork chops, steak and chicken regularly in the last few months I was here. The other thing that I didn’t realize was how many tomatoes I would eat while here.. it’s one of the only veggies that you can get in large amounts for cheap and they are delicious.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The volunteer before me had planted basil (thank you Ben) and I was able to get garlic from Lusaka.. so I made bruschetta and pasta with olive oil garlic, tomatoes and basil very often..</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> 2.</span></span></span><!--[endif]-->The work I have to do at Siavonga Nutrition will not last me 6 months.. but there are a lot of agencies who can use help.. one of them being Celim.. it’s out of Italy and they are doing amazing micro-finance work. – this was very true.. I worked for Lake safari and then for the district council of Siavonga because there was not enough for me to do at SNG.</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> 3. </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->It’s hot and I will have the best suntan of my life while living here.. – also very true. I don’t think I’ll ever burn again. </div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">4.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> 4.</span></span></span><!--[endif]-->I will miss my husband more than worlds can express.. and although I can still have fun it’s always at the back of my mind. – as time went on it did get easier but after I got past the halfway mark all I kept thinking about was I was halfway to seeing my hubby again. </div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">5.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> 5.</span></span></span><!--[endif]-->I will forever have diarrhea and I’ll just get used to it. – My system never got 100% used to the food and drink here.. I was either constipated or had diarrhea the entire time I was here but at least I didn’t get Malaria</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">6.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> 6.</span></span></span>I will forever be changed by this experience and will have made new friends for life. This is very true.. Although there are few who made the list.. the ones on the list are super important to me and I will keep in touch with them forever. </div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">7.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> 7.</span></span></span><!--[endif]-->I will never be afraid of bugs again.. so far we have spiders, ants, flying maggots (which are a delicacy here.. very nice lightly fried) centipedes, a hybrid spider/moth, geckos and of course mosquitoes. Also true I’m not afraid of any bugs at all.. I am however still afraid of chicken’s beaks and feet. </div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">8.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> 8.</span></span></span><!--[endif]-->I will not see hot water for 6 months but it doesn’t matter because it’s really hot and we don’t need it! There were a few mornings when it had rained the night before that warm/hot water would have been welcome but on the whole I really didn’t miss it at all. </div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">9.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> 9. </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->A cell phone is key to a good social life.. everyone sends texts all the time, it’s cheaper than talking.- Although texting a lot cheaper a lot of people here still call because there are many who don’t read.. so I got used to calling and txting.</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">10.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> 10.</span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Zambia is beautiful in her own way.. There are some very beautiful parts and some not so nice parts but in everything there is a little bit of beauty (that sounds so cheesy but it’s really true). I can’t express how true this is.. I will miss waking up to seeing Lake Kariba in her splendour.. to beautiful 6:30pm sunsets.. to the rolling hills from Lusaka to Siavonga and to all the changing greenery.. from 1 month to the next the landscape changes completely.. the nature grows and changes so quickly around here because of the heat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fruit and veg come in and out of season in a matter of weeks and you have to get it while it’s here. It’s amazing. My favourites were mushrooms, luigi which is a root that tastes kind of like potato, and rape.</div><div class="MsoListBullet" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: none; tab-stops: 36.0pt; text-indent: -.85pt;"><br />
</div>Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-4850074539633328282011-03-31T01:33:00.000-07:002011-03-31T01:33:07.282-07:00Prison Break<div class="MsoListBulletCxSpFirst" style="margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: none; tab-stops: 36.0pt; text-indent: 0cm;">So what an exciting weekend.. Friday night I went out with my boys.. Jack and lennox and Driver 2 of his friends.. we had a great time. It was nice to hang out with them again; in fact we all said it had been too long!</div><div class="MsoListBulletCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: none; tab-stops: 36.0pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had a really nice time..at the end of the night I was dropped off first, I had just got out of drivers car and my phone rang.. it was Trust our house boy he had been arrested. So off we went the group of us to the police station. We got there and there were 10 boys sitting on the ground of the police office. Trust is in the corner looking like he’s going to shit his pants. I asked to speak to the person in charge and they said in order to bail him out we’ll need to come back tomorrow morning starting at 6am, and they are doing me a favour because when they arrest someone on a Friday night they usually hold them until Monday. I asked what I could do to get him out tonight because I can’t bear the thought of him sleeping in the cell. (it’s 10 x 10 and disgusting and full with drunk men.. 1 of whom assaulted a woman standing in the office with her lip cut open) She says wait for my boss... I spoke to the boss and explained Trust is a good boy who has never been in trouble, he doesn’t drink.. or smoke, he’s always at work on time and does a good job. The man says wait here and I’ll see what I can do.. 30 minutes later he comes back from rounding up another group of 20 boys... all these young boys are being arrested for being “out of bounds” this means they were found walking after 10pm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Technically there is nothing illegal about walking after 10pm however for <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>anyone younger than 20 something there is an unwritten rule that they shouldn’t be found walking around after 10pm or they can be arrested.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To me this is a ridiculous practice.. the first officer told me they are cracking down on people to find the people responsible for stealing from the white people in Siavonga.. which sounds good but in actual fact the thieves are pros and they aren’t going to be amongst innocent 20 somethings..who are just having fun with their friends.. But I digress.. </div><div class="MsoListBulletCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: none; tab-stops: 36.0pt; text-indent: 0cm;">The boss finally comes back and I plea Trusts’ case again.. He tells me to come with him.. He and 2 of his officers meet with me in private around the corner.. and he says we’re willing to help you.. You must help us.. What can you offer.. I know he’s asking for a bribe but I’m scared to offer because it’s illegal to bribe an officer.. so I say well I’m not certain I’m doing the right thing and I don’t want to get in trouble.. But I can give you 100 pin if you let him out tonight... (it usually costs 25 pin *5.00 to get someone out) He says well I’m also looking for a white wife... can you help me with that? I explain I’m married so I can’t and I’m a volunteer so I can’t afford more than 100 pin.. But I would be really grateful if he let him out. </div><div class="MsoListBulletCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: none; tab-stops: 36.0pt; text-indent: 0cm;">He told me to wait... he walked away and talked to his officers.. his officers came back and said he had accepted I paid them and Trust was set free. I took him to my house and he slept on the living room floor on my sofa cushions and left the following morning. Trust is the quietest shiest guy I know.. he’s a good kid and he’s always appreciative of the help I give him with anything. In the morning he said; I just want to say thank you.. I don’t know what I would have done without you. My heart melted.. Trust was really lucky.. usually when these kids get arrested, everything gets taken away immediately. But because Trust is young and was so scared they allowed him a phone call.. without this he would have been in jail until this morning. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have always appreciated having the perks of being white here in Zambia but I really appreciated a lot on Friday night... we would never have been able to get Trust out on Friday night if I wasn’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div><div class="MsoListBulletCxSpLast" style="margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: none; tab-stops: 36.0pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><br />
</div>Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-44578145739623561222011-03-31T01:32:00.000-07:002011-03-31T01:32:15.566-07:00Tanzania<div class="MsoListBulletCxSpFirst" style="margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: none; tab-stops: 36.0pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoListBulletCxSpFirst" style="margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: none; tab-stops: 36.0pt; text-indent: 0cm;">I haven't posted in so long because of really crappy internet access.. but although I haven't posted I've still been writing so I'm going to post a number of new posts today!</div><div class="MsoListBulletCxSpFirst" style="margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: none; tab-stops: 36.0pt; text-indent: 0cm;">So back from Dar es salaam and back to work. I finished last Friday and went to Lusaka.. I stayed at Sanna and Alex’s and it was the first time I met them so it actual went very well all things considered. Sanna works for randstad and alex is a fundraiser in the UK. I got along very well with Alex. We have similar prospective on things. We went to majak (the cheapest and best Indian restaurant in Lusaka) on Friday night.. and there were about 30 people all sitting at 1 long table. Great dinner as usual and good company.. Nicolas and Elisa came as well. Annie and Estelle had a party that Saturday night so we were able to join in.. it was nice and then we went to Portico.. for dinner and drinks and went to see some sort of dancing from Mozambique.. kasimba? It was very nice and then Sunday we took off for dar. It was a short and easy flight over and we arrived and when straight to our resort.. It was right on the beach.. called Kipepeo lodge. Which means butterfly. It was a beautiful place right on the beach, our cabin was open air and the mattresses were on a riser and looked on to two French doors open to the outside and our balcony had a great hammock that I used every day. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was $35.00 a night and included breakfast. Breakfast was nice you could have anything from a list.. eggs and bacon,toast etc. The following day we hired a boat to take us to a close by island. The island was very beautiful with tons of amazing shells on it. We were able to take some home with us as well. </div><div class="MsoListBulletCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: none; tab-stops: 36.0pt; text-indent: 0cm;">We spend 6 hours on the boat and it took us to the island, we were able to walk all around it, we snorkelled and we ate lunch there... The snorkelling was a little disappointing because the water was so rough I was concentrating on making sure I stayed a float; but we had a good time. </div><div class="MsoListBulletCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: none; tab-stops: 36.0pt; text-indent: 0cm;">The second night we went into dar for dinner.. dinner was at a really casual place.. I had chicken tandoori and it was the best I ever ate. The final night we went out for a really nice dinner...I ate the best prawns with garlic and chili’s. They were plentiful and amazingly delicious, good wine and of course good company all for $20.00 US. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had a good trip back and we were in Lusaka from Wednesday afternoon to Sunday morning. Thursday and Friday I spent at Celim interviewing candidates for the branch manager and accountant roles.. it was fun actually and Saturday we went to the market, it rained all day and Annie and I wanted to go to a market.. we finally ventured out toward the end of the afternoon... we got 5 minutes away from the house and it started to pour rain.. We made it to the market and I found new running shoes but it was messy. It was raining very hard and the streets were flooded.. As I was walking down the street there got to a point where you couldn’t see the sidewalk and things were floating down the street. I decided to walk through it anyway and fell into a hole that was full with water and garbage up to my waste... when I got out of the hole I was missing 1 of my crocs.. some nice men<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>tried to fish it out<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>but couldn’t so I had to buy a pair of flip flops to get me home.. I miss my crocs! Lesson learned never walk where you can’t see without testing the ground with a stick or umbrella... too bad I hadn’t thought of that beforehand.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div><div class="MsoListBulletCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: none; tab-stops: 36.0pt; text-indent: 0cm;"><br />
</div>Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-86982269711475608042011-03-03T02:10:00.000-08:002011-03-03T02:10:32.108-08:00Half way through<div class="MsoListBulletCxSpFirst" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: none; tab-stops: 36.0pt; text-indent: -.85pt;">I can’t believe we’re almost at the end of February.. I arrived here in Siavonga exactly 3 months ago.. I’m halfway through... I can’t believe it’s been 3 months. In some ways the time has flown by and this is my regular routine and on the other hand I still feel like the new kid on the block. I feel like it’s been a lifetime since I snuggled on the sofa with my husband, or kickboxed, or went to an actual grocery store and went shopping. The other side of me says this lifestyle is so easy to get used to.. it’s hard to remember my crazy life.. working all day, going to the gym and then being social. Thinking about it makes me tired... </div><div class="MsoListBulletCxSpFirst" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: none; tab-stops: 36.0pt; text-indent: -.85pt;">This weekend I’m going to Tanzania. I’m really looking forward to getting out of our “usual” routine and see something new and exciting, hanging out just with the girls and meeting new people in Tanzania..I met a nice guy in Lusaka who is from Tanzania and is going to be there at the same time we are so I’m hoping he can show us the real Tanzania.. Elisa lived in Tanzania for 3 months so she also knows where to go other than the touristy spots. I look forward to seeing the beautiful beach!</div><div class="MsoListBulletCxSpLast" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: none; tab-stops: 36.0pt; text-indent: -.85pt;">I am very thankful for my experience here in Zambia... I think if I had found VSO earlier in my life I would have become a professional volunteer. Coming to a new place, meeting new people, learning a new culture and working along side the local people to help improve their lives.. it’s addictive really.. new foods, new activities, it’s been an amazing experience and I know there is more to come.. I am really trying to look out my front door every morning and memorize the view of the lake so that when I'm in a stressful moment at home I remember what it feels like to be stress free and in the moment. </div><div class="MsoListBulletCxSpLast" style="margin-left: 36.85pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: none; tab-stops: 36.0pt; text-indent: -.85pt;"><br />
</div>Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-11802123796289018972011-02-22T05:40:00.000-08:002011-02-22T05:46:01.637-08:00Shit happens<div class="MsoListBulletCxSpFirst" style="margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: none; tab-stops: 36.0pt;">So I always debate whether to post negative things or not.. not that there have been many negative things, but when I do have something negative to say I ask myself, in the grand scheme is it really worthwhile? I wrote this yesterday and then mulled it over all of yesterday and today and have decided to post it. </div><div class="MsoListBulletCxSpFirst" style="margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: none; tab-stops: 36.0pt;"> This morning I woke up to find we had been robbed the night before. I woke up and went to unlock our front door and noticed all of the stuff that was on top of my fridge was no longer there.. 2 bottles of olive oil which you can only get in the capital and it’s expensive.. a lot of the goodies my mom and husband had sent from Canada that I just picked up, my salt, sugar and other cooking oil. My iron.. etc even the curtain that was covering that window. All of our windows have buglar bars.. however the window wasn’t locked and they opened the window and reached in and took everything, they even emptied my freezer of all meat and dinner pies that were there as well. </div><div class="MsoListBulletCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: none; tab-stops: 36.0pt;">I have to say I’m exhausted and disgusted all at the same time.I’m off to the police to make a report,, which will do nothing because they’ll do nothing with it but it’s supposed to be done so I’ll do it. </div><div class="MsoListBulletCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: none; tab-stops: 36.0pt;">I feel violated and annoyed at myself for not locking my windows.. but I keep being told Siavonga is so safe. I will miss all of the stuff my mom and husband so lovingly packed up to send here.<b>. but I will miss feeling secure in my own home more.</b>. I feel like someone was checking out the house for what they could take and came back in the middle of the night to steal all of our stuff.. </div><div class="MsoListBulletCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: none; tab-stops: 36.0pt;">So I went to the police to make the report I was there more than 45 minutes.. they filled out 3 pages worth of information and then the detective wanted to come and see the scene of the crime.. We walked to my house and he took a look at the empty freezer and bare top of the fridge.. and then said we’ll be in touch with you if we hear anything and if you hear of anything please be in touch with us.. I said no problem and off he went. I’m pretty sure I won’t ever hear anything more about it. The police told me that bolt cutters have been stolen from a nearby company and that there have been a few break in’s recently and they have stolen food when they have broken in.. I guess it could have been worse they could have cut through the burglar bars..so I have to just move on.. and let it go.. which is harder than I thought to do, I just keep thinking about all my nice stuff that I was going to enjoy that’s gone and then I get frustrated and sad all at the same time. </div><div class="MsoListBulletCxSpLast" style="margin-left: 72.0pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: none; tab-stops: 36.0pt; text-indent: -54.0pt;"><br />
</div>Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-38083032362469507722011-02-14T03:31:00.000-08:002011-02-14T03:31:13.072-08:00Valentine's daySo it's Valentine's Day in Africa. It's not as commercial as North America people where red and do nice things for their partners.. My partner is of course very very far away.. I actually said to him last week that today was going to be really hard for me because we haven't been apart for V day in 10 years. It's really weird to be in a country who doesn't commericalize Valentine's day.. but to be honest I miss the commerical-ness.. I miss the flowers and the going out for dinner.. In fact if I didn't say it's Valentine's day to some of my colleagues it might have gone un-detected. I just wanted to say to all the other volunteers who are away from their loved ones.. Happy Valentine's day.. and I hope that you don't feel too lonely.<br />
I got to speak to my husband today and it was supposed to be a surprize but he is having flowers delivered to the city's capital because I'm going to be there this week. He had to tell me of the surprize because I changed my plans to go into town from Friday to Wednesday or Thursday and with the plans changing and my uncertainty he had to ruin the surprize.. but the idea was enough.. It made me realize how special my husband is.<br />
If you are at home with your loved one(s) give them an extra squeeze and look at them in the eye and appreciate you're able to do it, because there are moments when Skype just doesn't cut it.. I miss my Puppy.. Happy Valentine's Day baby.Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-38516934391474990132011-02-07T04:50:00.000-08:002011-02-07T04:50:11.197-08:00Lack of Postage<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I haven’t been writing frequently these days.. I think it’s because depending on when you ask me how’s it going.. my answer varies so much.. at this moment... I feel great... I had a great weekend.. Friday night out with some local friends, Saturday we had a great movie night and Sunday we celebrated a friends birthday with a fabulous lunch and a trip to a lodge for swimming, drinks and pool and then out for dinner.. a great day and a great weekend.. Saturday as I walked out local market I found the cutest new shoes for 18,000, just under 4 dollars.. a great price.. and they are super cute! Everything is feeling really good at the moment. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">But<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>last Wednesday I was crying about how lonely I felt and how much I missed home.. last week was tough.. I really find the evenings hard.. because there is nothing to do in town except for drink.. firstly i don’t want to turn into an alcoholic and secondly it’s not like I can go to the bar by myself.. it’s not unsafe like something will happen to me.. I’ll just be hit 100 times, because women don’t go to bars themselves unless they’re prostitutes... So I watch TV, and sometimes a movie on my computer, listen to music and read my book but that gets boring really quick! Although I have met a few great people hear my social network is small and therefore I tend do see the same people very regularly. Not only was I lonely but my Ipod was stolen.. a long complicated story.. my watch stopped working and the bracelet my mom bought me before going to Africa broke when a little kid pulled so hard the silver bracelet snapped in half. (AHHH)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I still really like Siavonga, I just wish there was more to do in the evenings. I have definitely improved my pool playing while here; I wouldn’t say improved.. now I can make contact with the balls and sometimes even hit the right ones.. I guess you can call that an improvement! I do like our sleepy little town; I was thinking of a way to improve our nightlife.. it’s not easy.. I haven’t come up with a plan.. but if anyone has suggestions I’m all ears.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><br />
</div>Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-53790062977269057612011-01-20T05:09:00.000-08:002011-01-20T05:09:19.394-08:00Special projects<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">So last weekend I celebrated my 35<sup>th</sup> birthday. We actually celebrated on my real birthday</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> I planned a pool party for 2o to 25 people, unfortunately the weather didn’t cooperate so it ended up to be a Braai (BBQ) with no pool activity at all, but fun none the less. It was nice to have everyone together for a nice afternoon, after the Braai we went to Eagles Rest (on of the lodges a little bit further from us) it was a nice night.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I was shocked at how much vodka I consumed, and although I was not hung over.. I had a rough time getting anything done.. It was a very lazy day on Sunday. Sunday afternoon we went to Sandy Beach to watch the sunset..Every time I go there I realize how beautiful and peaceful it is.. it reminds me of an all inclusive.. beach, sand, sun and palm trees. What’s not to like. (except maybe the mosquitos) </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This week brings interesting work.. there are 3 volunteers from an NGO called SPICE in <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wales here to do an analysis on a time banking project.. basically this group helps an NGO to start a<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>time banking project. They help you to set up the project, to run it, to fund it and to make certain that it’s sustainable long term. They have over 40 of these projects currently running so they are experts at knowing the right questions to ask to uncover all of the information needed to start a project like this. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">All these projects are currency based and the idea is that you develop a local currency to encourage a community to reach a common goal. So as an example if you were looking for teachers.. you would provide them with 1 hour of “currency” in exchange for 1 hour of their teaching time. They could then exchange their 1 hour of currency for an hour of needed service, it could be babysitting or wood cutting etc. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">They have never done a project like this in Africa, most of these projects are running very successfully in North America. They have a few of these projects<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>running in South America and they have decided that SNG could potentially be the first African partner.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We have our initial meeting today to discuss what would be our unit of measurement because I don’t think anyone is convinced that time would work here in Africa.. but we’ll see what happens.. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><br />
</div>Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-90954609775338018112011-01-07T04:11:00.001-08:002011-01-07T04:11:48.458-08:00Tonga lessons<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Yesterday I had my first official tonga lesson.. I have made friends with a local kid who is going to teach me tonga. He’s 22 and works full time at our local liquor store. The plan is to have lessons twice a week and to practice in between and hopefully I’ll be able to pick it up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have decided I want to learn the language to better communicate but it’s also killing me that they are taking about me and I can’t understand what they’re saying! All I hear is Musungu (white person) and that’s all I understand. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">One of the huge benefits of being here is there is no stress at all.. The only thing I need to worry about is what I’m going to eat and what I’m going to do to entertain myself.. the entertainment part is very limited. ..and it’s becoming clearer to me why so many Zambians drink..<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is 1 night club here in Siavonga and honestly I really enjoy going to it because it’s the only place where you can dance.. but it’s full of drunk and disorderly people so I can only go if 1 of my local friends is available to escort us otherwise it can get messy and unsafe. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Life is relatively easy here as long as you have some money, there is someone to do your laundry, clean your property, cook<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>your meals if you like.. all for a cheap price, physical labour is very inexpensive because it’s so easily available.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Without money you need to worry about where to get your water, electric and figure out how you are going to pay your bills.. the local who is teaching me tonga makes 300,.000 kwacha per month that’s about <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>$70.00 monthly and half of that goes to rent ... which leaves 150,000 Kwacha to live on. Most locals live in millimeal (this is maize that they eat daily) it costs 50,000 kwacha for a months supply. That leaves 100,000 for all other expenses.. $25.00 for the rest of the month. I HAVE NO IDEA HOW THEY DO IT</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The biggest misconception about Africa is that everything is so cheap.. it’s NOT. It’s very expensive to live here. Most things are imported and as such have a high price tag. A bag of pasta is $3.00 it’s not .99 like back at home. It’s something I’m still trying to wrap my head around.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So the question is how do people survive and manage to keep a roof over their head.. They take advances on their pay,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>a lot of stores extend people credit, they borrow, they sell services of stuff on the side to make extra money..</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">It’s interesting because although they are poor they are also proud.. my tonga teacher and I had lunch yesterday.. he knows I work with VSO and that I make quite a bit of money but he insisted on buying me lunch.. (he makes 300,000 monthly and lunch was 15,000 for the two of us.. ) He helps take care of his younger brother and helps his parents out. It’s actually humbling that he’s 22 and his priority it to make sure that everyone is taken care of. At 22 all I was concerned about was what I was doing that night and where we were going to go for cocktails..<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Although there is a deep sense of commitment to family and community, they aren’t working together to get out, to do better... </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Since I’ve been getting tutored the community has been asking this young man.. where he found me... because they want their own white man to befriend. The hope is that a white man will befriend you and give you stuff.. they don’t want to learn from you they want to sponge off you and be bought.. this is the concept that I have the most difficulty with, young cheeky boys asking you to buy them a softdrink because you’re white.. I always look at them and say you need to buy me a soft drink I’m a visitor you need to treat me well so I can go home and tell everyone they need to come and visit Zambia.. oh no no no you can buy me a soft drink.. we play the same game every time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Africa is a strange and beautiful place... more soon xoxox If anyone has any questions they want answered fire away..</span></div>Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-14596988715349710212011-01-04T22:54:00.000-08:002011-01-04T22:54:33.792-08:00No one does it better than my husbandOver the last several weeks when I reflect on what this experience has brought to me so far.. I keep going back to the fact that if it weren't for my amazing husband I could not have easily been here. It's been tough on him, I think it's always more difficult for the person staying behind. <br />
He never complains or makes me feel guilty for being selfish enough to leave him for 6 months.. and although he doesn't realize it he has given me the most beautiful gift..to follow my heart and to live out a dream, to make a choice to be selfish because it was just that important. <br />
So I just want to say it publicly like I do privately I have the best husband in the world. <br />
This experience is enriching me in so many ways.. and teaching me things I never thought I would learn and I owe it all to my husband.. thanks Puppy for letting me go. My heart is always with you no matter how far away I am physically.Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-8202447653389974572010-12-31T03:01:00.000-08:002010-12-31T03:01:57.376-08:00Batteries recharged<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We got back 2 days ago from a 10 day vacation, we started in Zambia’s capital Lusaka. Lusaka is a very built up city, if you saw pictures of the city centre you would never know you were in a developing country. There are Mercedes trucks and the road is full or cars and people selling airtime and anything else you can think of on the side of the road, tomatoes, puppies, clothes, sunglasses.. but mostly airtime for cell phones. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We stayed in 3 different VSO volunteers houses while there, we had a great time enjoying city life that we miss while in Siavonga. On reflection though.. we crave city while here in Siavonga but a week into the trip I was thinking of “home” in Siavonga. There is something very nice about living in a small enough town to see familiar faces and know some of the local shop keepers where you shop regularly. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After being in Lusaka for 3 days we headed to Livingstone – 7 hours away from the capital and 10 hours away from Siavonga. We took a “luxury” bus that leaves from the city centre twice daily and costs 110,000 Kwacha.. which is about 22.00 cdn. The huge benefit to taking this bus was that it leaves on time. It was actually the most luxury we’ve seen since arriving in Africa. They gave us the newspaper and drinks and snacks while on the journey.. we even made a toilet stop.. you have to pay for use of the toilet but you need to supply your own toilet paper, just 1 of those things in Zambia I’ll never understand.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Livingstone is a small tourist town..we stayed at Jollyboys backpackers.. owned by a Canadian couple who moved out here from Vancouver 2 years ago. It’s a great place to stay if you find yourself in Livingstone.. it’s very laid back and very reasonably priced.. they cater to people who want a chill out vacation. With a pit of pillows in the centre of the resort.. they have a very nice pool a very small and laid back restaurant and bar. They make a decent cup of drip coffee which is very hard to find here. For that alone I would stay there again.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">While in Livingstone we went to walk the famous Victoria Falls.. it’s really beautiful, I had my doubts as a Canadian that they would be as impressive as Niagara falls but honestly I was more impressed because you can get closer to the falls and you can walk down 1km to the water on a stair trail. (great workout) and along the way you’ll see baboons and beautiful vegetation. It was a great day. Livingstone also has some really great lodges with art and jewellery for sale to benefit the local community.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They also have a market area with a line up of about 30 vendors selling similar stuff, scarves, earrings, carvings, paintings etc.. if you can fight your way through the vendors there is some nice stuff that`s not very expensive. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We did a lot of reading and laying at the pool, ate a lot of great food that we don`t get in Siavonga.. pizza and Mexican. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">For Christmas eve we went to a volunteer couples house who live in Livingstone from Australia, and they had a few friends over in addition to our group, Mary, Ety, Joi and I. It was a really great time, nice to be with people who are fun to hang out with, and are like extended volunteer family.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We were due to have a crazy night out of dancing and drinking and it never happened but honestly it didn`t matter. We had a great time anyway.. Mary and Eti carried on to Chobe national park and Joi and I made the long journey back to Siavonga in 1 day.. 6 hours in the luxury bus and then 3 hours in what they call mini bus. This is really the only mode of public transportation that comes into Siavonga. It looks like a VW bus. They seat<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>8 people including the driver<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>but we were 12 and the conductor felt he could get 3 more in.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Ironically the police have set up check points along the route from Lusaka to Siavonga to check for more capacity vehicles... because all of us had some part of our ass on the seat so that`s no problem. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">But we made it home safe and sound.. yesterday and today we went to our usual market to greet our community and buy some food and drinks.. all of our usual vendors asked where we had been and what we did for Christmas.. and of course most of them said Christmas was boring because they stayed in Siavonga.. when you ask them why didn't you go anywhere? the answer is always the same because Siavonga is my home.. </span></div>Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-4468412478151891892010-12-15T22:47:00.000-08:002010-12-15T22:47:34.005-08:00Namumu Orphanage<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">On Monday we went to Namumu orphanage.. there are 60 kids living there, ranging in age from 2 to 18. Some are orphaned and some have family or parents who don’t have enough money to raise them so they have decided it would be better if Namumu raised them. In these cases children can leave and come back for visits and holidays if their like. The other kids live at Namumu all the time.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The kids in Africa specifically in Zambia are well behaved.. and generally take care of each other. There is not a lot of fighting or bullying they are friends and just want to play and have fun. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We went to Namumu in celebration of international volunteers day.. so SNG and their volunteers along with Celim and 1 other organization participated in making and serving breakfast to the kids and then we cleaned the orphanage from top to bottom and the remaining volunteers prepared lunch for the kids. The kids are used to eating Nshima and beans for most meals. The irony is that they eat 3 meals in the orphanage as opposed to most kids who eat 2 meals but they don’t eat a lot of protein.. and they have no variety in their diets. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So yesterday they got toast and tea and for lunch there was rice, goat, chicken and coleslaw.. they really enjoyed the food and I think they liked different people serving it to them </span><span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-char-type: symbol; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> The event itself was disorganized but the afternoon was playing games with the kids and I had a great time. It was so nice to hear them all laughing and having a good time. We ended the day with lollypops for all the kids and new hair clips for the girls.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was exhausted from the days events but it was really a great day. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We bumped into one of the volunteers who works exclusively with the kids at the orphanage and he said they had a great time and were talking about how great a day it was. So it was a huge success. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">It’s Thursday today.. we leave for vacation on Friday afternoon. Tonight we’re having our Christmas dinner because it’s the last time we’ll all be together.. it’s funny how quickly you develop a family bond.. it’s only been 3 weeks but it feels like I’ve known these people for years; it’s a really nice feeling. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Adam received a chicken when he arrived in Siavonga.. he named it Christmas Dinner and we will be eating it for Christmas dinner. He is going to kill it under instruction of Elisa.. we’ll see how that goes.. my job is roast potatoes.. and we’re going to stuff the chicken. Yum yum.. </span></div>Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-78184109545032603922010-12-14T00:37:00.000-08:002010-12-15T22:45:17.655-08:00amazing weekend after being stuck in the mud<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Friday night last week we went over to my friend Elisa’s for dinner.. Adam brought steak to BBQ and a new friend Vanessa who owns a lodge. Vanessa invited us all up to her place to stay over Saturday night.. we are always looking for fun stuff to do over the weekend. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I made a bean salad and roast potatoes. Elisa made amazing grilled eggplant with olive oil and garlic... we had a great dinner with a few bottles of red and then we decided we should go to the only bar that stays open late in Siavonga.. it’s a locals bar that has a DJ on the weekend.. IT WAS FUN! </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We walked in at midnight.. it was definitely an experience obviously when you’re 1 of 4 white people in the bar you attract attention. People we’re friendly and wanted to dance and<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>gave a good time, there was no tension or uneasy feeling.. we had a great time... just danced and had fun.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We set out Saturday to find Vanessa’s inn at around 1 in the afternoon.. it was supposed to be 1 and a half hours away. The main roads in town are paved.. just outside of town they are gravel and out in the bush they can be sand, mud/clay or gravel.. but they are bumpy and uneven. We got turned around a few times and made a few U turns to make sure that we made our way to the right place.. an hour into the trip we got stuck in the mud.. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We all got out of the car to assess the situation and knew we were in trouble.. the sun was blazing down on us and we were 5 people in total.. not enough to push the car out of the mud ourselves.. and we were in the bush.. no one around, no cell phone signal and no idea of what to do..</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">So Adam bravely got into the mud and started to dig the tires out.. we went to search for some locals and it took a while but finally found some people with enough English they understood our problem and were going to help get us out..</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2 hours later after pushing the car from the back, and the from the front, forwards and backwards, putting stones and wood under the cars wheels WE GOT OUT! </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We had just over an hour before the sunset and we needed to find Vanessa’s place or we were going to be driving in the bush after dark.. that’ s not a good idea! We finally found the sign to Vanessa’s place, the road leading to her place is steep, rocky and you question whether or not it’s actually a road.. but we followed it anyway and made it to her inn.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">We arrived and it was more beautiful then I ever imagined.. her place is called Vanessa’s Place. It's listed in the Brandt Zambia guide book under "Village Point" If anyone needs her contact details let me know. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">She is on a lake.. and as far as the eye can see it's water and green lushness around you. </span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">She has a gorgeous open air kitchen.. everything is cooked over wood. An outdoor dining area.. a bar, a few sitting areas all quaint and cozy, all with<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>outdoor fire places. We had a drink and she has her staff were already hard and work preparing for dinner. We hung out and enjoyed the view. They showed us to our rooms. They are incredible.. open air.. cabins that were built by Vanessa and her husband. The showers are heated by firewood, which meant I had my first hot shower in 3 weeks. Her place is tranquil and filled with the best nature has to offer; it’s beautiful and romantic.. I definitely want Bob to come and visit this place with me.. I had a few moments where all I wanted was him and to have everyone else disappear... But we had an amazing dinner and retired to the boemer which is a concrete structure that’s open air with a very big fireplace.. continued our cocktails and enjoyed the fire.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Usually Vanessa charges 200,000 kwatcha a night per person and that includes dinner and brunch the next day.. which works out to $40.00 a night an amazing price or $80.00 a couple per night.. She charged us much less because we brought our own food and drinks.. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">On Sunday we did a bush walk so that she could show us how a real village works.. the village held 1 chief who has 4 wives, lots of kids, dogs, goats and chickens.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">They showed us how they collect water, dry the fish they catch, mill their own grain. They were happy and very welcoming people. It was a really nice experience. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">A fantastic weekend! This will be my last week at work before our holidays so I’m just trying to get as much done as possible before the break. </span></div>Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-27058635823095461562010-12-09T04:59:00.001-08:002010-12-09T04:59:21.404-08:00Community<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We have 2 hours for lunch, every day we stop by the bakery and pick up some roll, sometimes they make these donuts with cream inside. They are oily but delicious and Joi orders fish pies (which is like a beef patty with fish in it! I haven’ t had a chance to try them yet. Then we walk up to the market..check the womens’ stalls <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>see if there are any new vegetables to be had.. today we found corn on the cob.. we bought 1 for each of us and we’ll see if they are any good. Last week we had fresh green beans, we ate them last night and they were great. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Everyday on the way back from the market I can’t believe it takes us 2 hours to do our route.. it’s actually amazing that I used to eat my lunch at my desk in 15 to 20 minutes at most and now it takes me 2 hours to get my few little tasks done.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Most people have been sending me email asking what the community is like and what the people are like.. This isn’t easy to answer. The community is small and close knit.. and I’m still an outsider to them. I am welcome here and most people are extremely polite and friendly after being introduced by a common friend. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The people who I have gotten close to are my fellow volunteers, not necessarily from<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>VSO but from other organizations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have gotten to know a few white native Zambians; it’s funny before I got here I fantasized about making close friends with the natives.. and for me that meant black Zambians’. The truth is it’s difficult to suss out who wants to be your friend and who is looking for a handout... The native who really took an interest in getting to know me wanted me to become a Jehovah ’s Witness! (Everyone goes to Church, be it on Saturday for the<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>7 day Aventis or Sunday) They love to sing and dance.. and in the morning you see 30 people in a pick up truck on the way to work, singing in perfect harmony.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For the most part they are simple god fearing people, although most people aren’t able to feed their families everyday there is almost no violence or theft here in Siavonga.. We have a house boy who does the laundry, sweeps and irons all of our clothes. (there are small bugs that lay eggs in your clothes while they are drying on the line) so everyone irons their clothes to ensure those eggs have died because if not they get under your skin and hatch under your skin!)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is so kind and sweet, what teenage boy do you know that would be happy to do that kind of work.. he is really happy with his job and is appreciative of everything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think i’ll be lucky to make 1 or 2 black Zambian friends who are really friends. As it stands now I don’t have any.. I want to be clear it’s not that every white person is rich and every black one is poor. The white Zambian’s I’ve met however are comfortable.. they are lodge owners; and it’s been a family business for generations in some cases. They are wonderful and welcoming and very generous! There are Black Zambian’s who are comfortable as well, they are typically pastors, and some shop owners. I hope long term I’ll be able to meet some native Zambian’s who I can get to know better and be friends with.</span></div>Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-76229989888895424332010-12-08T04:22:00.001-08:002010-12-08T04:22:26.539-08:00Things are moving along as they should be<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I can’t believe that it’s been almost 2 weeks since I’ve been here. On 1 hand it still feels brand new and on the other it feels like I’ve been away from home for so long now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have semi- settled in to a routine here and it feels nice knowing what’s coming next.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just as I’m settling in it’s time to change it up.. next Friday marks the beginning of our winter vacation. As you all know we’re headed to Livingstone and if I’m lucky to Botswana as well; maybe we’ll even spend New Years there, you can never tell. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Last night my roommate and I were talking about what we would like to see happen over the next several months.. . SNG does a lot of work within different communities educating women’s groups on AIDS, farming, alternatives to Nshima (which is corn porridge that they eat with every meal) , and the benefits of breastfeeding.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>SNG has so little money that it’s difficult to get the volunteers into the field to teach; so it’s a vicious cycle. Adam (another volunteer at SNG) has a lot of pressure on him to bring in some funds so that 2011 can be a more productive year. Adam worked at raising money for cancer for more than 13 years so I’m certain he’ll get the job done. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Because we are expats we’ve had the benefit of speaking to a lot of white lodge owners, some of them second generation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We as volunteers have been questioning why the people of Zambia don’t want to take responsibility for making their lives better. There are a lot of theories on the subject.. I’ll save them for another day because I haven’t made my mind up as to what I believe just yet. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Our market is very small and a lot of the vendors sell the same things.. so as an example there are at least 8 women who sell tomatoes.. and at least 4 who sell mangos’ but no one does anything with the produce.. So they haven’t yet come up with a way to preserve their crops ... so they have money in harvest time and then starve the other 8 months of the year.. The problem is deeper than that as well.. they don’t seem to have the drive to decide they want something different from themselves. There are at least a dozen women who sell Jitenge (a 2 metre piece of brightly coloured fabric that we use for curtains, skirts and tablecloths) no one in the market has taken the initiative to make shirts, skirts etc out of them. They have at least 2 tailors in the market who could do it.. but they haven’t taken the next step. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I mentioned earlier that SNG has no money, so we were trying to think up new initiatives that SNG could be initiating right here in town.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are 4 restaurants in the market and 1 that we’ll eat at! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The other 3 are dirty and don’t have very good light and aren’t clean. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>SNG is responsible for teaching people about nutrition so why don’t we get involved to change this. I joked with a colleague yesterday about opening a restaurant. .. and then talking about it further with Joi; We decided that we’re going to investigate opening a community restaurant.. that way we can supply the ex pats with good clean food while teaching the area how to keep a clean kitchen; <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>and we can do workshops from there and also make a profit...<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>it would be something interesting to take on... down the road if it was successful we could have people farm specifically for the restaurant<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>and use the farm as a teaching facility. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Although there are many problems in Zambia and across Africa, it’s very easy to plant an idea and watch it grow.. there is very little red tape and if you have the funds there are lots of people willing to help out.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I feel as though a lot of my time has been spent thinking about what we can do to help and not knowing where to begin.. but a community restaurant is a beginning. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Ben, 1 of the other VSO volunteers along with another volunteer named Alistair, built a school with the help of some scouts in the UK, the scouts had the money and Ben is an engineer and Alistair did the business side. Their efforts resulted in 43 kids being educated this semester and not having to walk 2 hours each way to their old school.. it’s really inspiring!</span></div>Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-4378304095536589292010-12-07T00:38:00.000-08:002010-12-07T00:38:47.678-08:00Holiday Trip is bookedI have to say I have never been more excited to travel before. We are leaving Siavonga Saturday or Sunday December 18th or 19th. We'll stay in the Capital of Zambia (Lusaka) for 2 days and then we'll take a 7 hour bus trip to Livingstone to stay at Jollyboys backpackers.. for $12.00 US a night you get a room with 4 beds and a private bathroom. Each of us gets a bed, with mosquito net and a bathroom with hot water! <br />
After being in livingstone for 6 nights we'll decide if we are going to make the trip to Botswana. We'll be having Christmas dinner at 1 of the volunteers houses in Livingstone.. I don't usually celebrate christmas as you all know but it will be fun to have "family" time with the other volunteers.Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-55420330013860837962010-12-06T00:30:00.000-08:002010-12-06T00:30:42.030-08:00Having fun in the sunWe are currently in the rainy season here in Zambia, which means heavy rains usually at night and then the sun comes out during the day, it also means with each heavy rain a new insect appears in large numbers.. they stay for a day and then disappear.At the end of last week it was what they call flying termites.. they are a delicacy here.. a great source of protein and easy to catch and prepare. Last nights rain brought beetles..we also had a large number of frogs and no electricity.. so as I write this the power on my computer is depleating.. but it's worth it! <br />
So todays work day may be cut short.. because of our power situation.. we'll see how long that lasts.<br />
This week we were due to celebrate international volunteers day by going to an orphanage and spending the day cooking and cleaning for the kids.. and then having a few hours to play games with them.. I am super excited to visit. it's called N'muumuu.. and there are 2 VSO volunteers stationed there who are super great.<br />
They do everything from find the funding to keep the orphanage going to overseeing all of the programs they do. However when in Africa everything runs behind schedule... so we got the budget approval for this day on Friday afternoon but the funds won't be here from VSO until tomorrow and we need food and cleaning supplies so we're waiting to find out if the event will have to be postponed.<br />
Saturday night my friend Elisa hosted a great party.. 25 people came to her place to have some drinks and a bry (that's a BBQ) a great time was had by all. Sunday we had anticipated going to the beach but the weather didn't cooperate so we went to see the Dam between Zimbabwe and Zambia.. so technically I've been to Zimbabwe because you can walk around the border!<br />
It was pretty cool to see a working dam in Africa, the waterway is really beautiful.<br />
Lastly I'm off work between Dec 17th and Jan 3 so I'm going travelling with my roommate and a few other VSO volunteers. We are going to start in the capital (Lusaka) and then lead to Livingstone.. it's supposed to be really nice.. lots of cafes and stores to buy local crafts from.. (that's something Siavonga is seriously lacking) and then if I can get my work permit sorted out we're going to head to Botswana..there is a game park very close to the border that we are going to check out.<br />
<br />
sending sun from Zambia :) xoxo wendyWendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-88732357482002272542010-12-02T04:31:00.000-08:002010-12-02T04:31:31.893-08:00Today is my 1 week celebration... I've been here for 1 week and survived<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Today is my first week celebration..I’ve been here for a week and<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve survived... so these are the things I’ve learnt.. </span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1.</span><span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">All that will be eaten are carbs here.. I will be a vegetarian for the next 6 mths.. with a few cans of tuna and some eggs thrown in for good measure.</span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2.</span><span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The work I have to do at Siavonga Nutrition will not last me 6 months.. but there are a lot of agencies who can use help.. one of them being Celim.. it’s out of Italy and they are doing amazing micro-loan work here.</span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">3.</span><span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">It’s hot and I will have the best suntan of my life while living here.. </span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">4.</span><span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I will miss my husband more than worlds can express.. and although I can still have fun it’s always at the back of my mind.</span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">5.</span><span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I will have diarrhea for the next couple of weeks.. and I’ll just get used to it.</span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">6.</span><span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I will forever be changed by this experience and will have made new friends for life</span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">7.</span><span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I will never be afraid of bugs again.. so far we have spiders, ants, flying maggots (which are a delicacy here.. very nice lightly fried) centipedes, a hybrid spider/moth, geckos and of course mosquitos.</span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">8.</span><span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I will not see hot water for 6 months but it doesn’t matter because it’s really hot and we don’t need it!</span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">9.</span><span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">A cell phone is key to a good social life.. everyone sends texts all the time, it’s cheaper than taking.</span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">10.</span><span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Zambia is beautiful in her own way.. there are some very beautiful parts and some not so nice parts but in everything there is a little bit of beauty (that sounds so cheesy but it’s really true).</span></div>Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-70848514149529132682010-11-30T00:41:00.001-08:002010-11-30T00:41:47.044-08:00Online but not so connected.. my first few days in Zambia<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">My first few days in Zambia, </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I met my new boss, and although he seems very nice he would barely make eye contact with me and the gentlemen the he brought with him named Rod is a volunteer from the UK didn’t seem to be too friendly but we sit right next to each other at the office I haven’t seen yet.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">So we met the other 2 volunteers in town to meet with the Nutritional council who oversees all of the nutrition groups. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>there are 50 nutrition groups in Zambia and still they have 48% of the entire population who are malnourished.. so it’s safe to assume they aren’t using their resources in the best way possible.. but that’s why we’re here!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I finally met my roommate.. and if ever I can say I’m grateful ...she will be enough.. I’m so lucky she’s kind and friendly and very welcoming! There is a community of volunteers in Siavonga and all over Zambia. They are a close knit group.. 1 of the group Elisa( from Italy and super warm and welcoming) invited us for dinner.. Joi (my roommate) and the 2 the other volunteers who work at SNG group, Adam and Rod.. We got home from Lusaka last night at 7pm, the drive home was fantastic.. a ton of potholes the size of a full tire.. they could swallow my little echo up whole) Lots of lush greenery in contract to tons of small communities made of huts and little shacks built out of wood and thatch. Most of the locals live in communities with no electricity and no running water, they use coal to cook with. The children are all running around happy and playing and parents are working hard , usually the women are responsible for farming. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Our drive home was 2.5 hours, on our way we stopped for goats crossing the street, saw children driving ox driven carts, and best of all there were Zebra at the side of the road like we would see horses driving up north in Toronto.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My house is really sweet, the kitchen is tiny and not well equipped but we have to make due, the bathroom is great, there is no hot water in Siavonga at all, but when it’s 40 degrees who needs hot water so far the showers have been really refreshing.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Saturday</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">My first full day in Siavonga, Joi took me to the market. The market is about a 6 minute walk from our place.. Everything in Siavonga is up on a hill so it’s exhausting walking in the heat but we have a pool to cool off in when we’re done. The market is sparse and doesn’t have a lot of selection.. I will be eating a lot of tomatoes and eggs and mangoes. We have 2 chickens right on our property who lay eggs.. so they are super fresh, but you can also buy eggs at the local market. The market made on gravel<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>patches.. not what I expected, the former volunteer who was living with Joi actually built there only road in the market.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is a small bank, post office, bakery (they only bake 4 things) and a very small grocery.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can walk the whole town in 2 minutes.. so we’ll see what lies ahead.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Yesterday afternoon we had a few friends over, Sam and Venod who work for<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mbaba orphanage came over, vinod from india and sam from Virginia, super nice guys who work with 60 girls<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>in an orphanage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Elisa and Nicholas, adam and rod and joi and I it was a nice afternoon. We made lunch and swam. Time goes by very quickly during the day here. The days are packed with socializing.. which is really nice so you don’t feel so lonely. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Last night we went to a guys house who is white and was born here in Zambia, he was such a great host, he owns a beautiful compound with at least an acre in garden and a huge home. He is a friend of another native Zambian who owns a<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>lodge that the volunteers hang out at regularly. Really nice guys.. had a few drinks and then we went home. I slept all night until almost 9am. I did my first round of laundry.. just my underwear in a<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>bucket with soap.. we actually have a house boy who gets 80,000 from joi and 1 each who does our laundry and (that’s about 20.00 mthly to come twice a week) so I’ll only have to do my underwear! </span><span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-char-type: symbol; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> Today we are going to Sandy beach and the owner of a lodge has allowed us to use his kitchen to cook in, so we’re making pasta carbonera.. we’ll see how that goes should be a lot of fun though! Much love miss everyone xoxo <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><br />
</div>Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-74498138343620046372010-11-25T02:16:00.000-08:002010-11-25T02:16:53.742-08:00Hi From Zambia<span style="font-family: inherit;">I arrived this morning.. with the first ever cardinal of Zambia. he was just ordained in Rome this week! So we had tons of press and lots of welcomers at the airport I felt famous. </span><br />
Although for the last 2 days I've been crying non stop.. now that I'm finally here I've stopped. I still don't know how I'll live without my husband for 6 months but I'm trying not to cry about it anymore.<br />
<br />
I did see the toilet first hand.. and it's a real one with a flusher and all. (I'm staying in a hotel tonite while in the capital) I also found out that Siavonga is one of the hotter places in Zambia so I do have a pool.. for real! I also have a roommate named Joi belle. Can't wait to meet her tomorrow. I'll be in the capital for training today and tomorrow and then off to Siavonga and I start work on Monday.<br />
<br />
It's crazy culture shock but somehow I feel like I belong.. it's a really strange feeling.. but the adventure has definitely begun. <br />
So stay tuned.. I have a SIM Card for my cell and I'm up and running.. and tomorrow we'll see what will be with internet connectivity. For the next 2 days I'll have connectivity from the program office! I'll post pics soon.Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-88674717762691849012010-11-20T19:41:00.000-08:002010-11-20T19:41:55.093-08:00Long goodbye's<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-I3d-uEs4iyFXtClQtCUVk8GF7q7pkEXdRMmqd2Q9g4K5lTxdFck65QZsxazV1IZ05LoBSsZG0RJchqBOtMoSvq-YkYnaOPr8GVynhiKVA1VOzdCzZE_iupIxhehwh7yqLGxLZZXqYau9/s1600/butterfly+cookies.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-I3d-uEs4iyFXtClQtCUVk8GF7q7pkEXdRMmqd2Q9g4K5lTxdFck65QZsxazV1IZ05LoBSsZG0RJchqBOtMoSvq-YkYnaOPr8GVynhiKVA1VOzdCzZE_iupIxhehwh7yqLGxLZZXqYau9/s200/butterfly+cookies.JPG" width="200" /></a>This week has been filled with ups and downs, excitement and fear... and happiness too. I sold all of my butterfly and monkey cookies.. and raised $375.00 for VSO just from cookie sales! So thanks to all my friends and colleagues who bought them all up and a special thanks to dutchess of dough (Erin) for making them for me. <a href="http://dutchessofdough.com/">dutchessofdough.com</a> </div><br />
This week was my last at work, I've never not worked in my life.. so leaving work on Friday was surreal. I have always said I don't define myself by what I do.. but I'm rethinking that.<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVY813winmkymQw3xwsxIu99yk-phqby4ETaX0V3FoEWhkU55AXORgJUFjzCNdjYZ0sBQNjiQ1nWiRWz2VKSYsT4zqFkgKQBcBdGysS1aoyT7XR11ADS4sNlTptWeeMQGQjPTGhapNg_ca/s1600/margolese+bro%2527s+and+duncan.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVY813winmkymQw3xwsxIu99yk-phqby4ETaX0V3FoEWhkU55AXORgJUFjzCNdjYZ0sBQNjiQ1nWiRWz2VKSYsT4zqFkgKQBcBdGysS1aoyT7XR11ADS4sNlTptWeeMQGQjPTGhapNg_ca/s200/margolese+bro%2527s+and+duncan.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My hub on the right, Duncan his best friend in the middle and Corey is bro on the left</td></tr>
</tbody></table> <br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">I had a great chance to spend some time with colleauges outside of work at Hemingways.. which was really great and my branch had a great potluck lunch for my last day, it was delicious! I also had an opportunity to spend 1 on 1 time with my closest friends.. it's really hard to say goodbye when you know you'll only be able to keep in touch by email.. it's not the same as speaking and/or hanging out; It will be tough to be out of their lives for the next 6 months. I look forward to arriving and meeting new friends; none of whom will ever take the place of what I call homebase friends.. those are the people who you have grown with most of your life. To me they are the most important and even though through the years your relationships shift and change they are still the people you come home to when you feel lost. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">For the last 8 weeks I've felt really excited to start this adventure, but as it approaches I get more afraid and realize how much I'll miss home and all it means.. but I know it will be worthwhile.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinrTFx1Zopv7bjVPUaUwdhn5odfJMZVpVZyHLEsKOLkqPUHrYBzYcvQ4wsiORKMLqh9VkF_pvdoaBjxH95XeVKHrU6Ss2AIWop6okGhWql6vygXcAL_vINubwGThC3DLJUa_BJx-MGd78i/s1600/libby+and+i.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinrTFx1Zopv7bjVPUaUwdhn5odfJMZVpVZyHLEsKOLkqPUHrYBzYcvQ4wsiORKMLqh9VkF_pvdoaBjxH95XeVKHrU6Ss2AIWop6okGhWql6vygXcAL_vINubwGThC3DLJUa_BJx-MGd78i/s200/libby+and+i.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Libby Bell and I</td></tr>
</tbody></table> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVmsCSO5erhLFaIwXzQEHALYGGCdRP_dxLaUnXT5JD3ktLiN-C_duwzKErWFDpq-BACg4DHG0IcaV90H4O94MEynveTiO7L4thfqojBok1lXI12yuh884tOkGbwns3FBUFTfGGUoE_soWt/s1600/tamar+joanna+and+helen.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="height: 187px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; width: 259px;"><img border="0" height="150" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVmsCSO5erhLFaIwXzQEHALYGGCdRP_dxLaUnXT5JD3ktLiN-C_duwzKErWFDpq-BACg4DHG0IcaV90H4O94MEynveTiO7L4thfqojBok1lXI12yuh884tOkGbwns3FBUFTfGGUoE_soWt/s200/tamar+joanna+and+helen.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tamar, Helen and Joanna (my girls from the office)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-74340811451791656002010-11-09T11:30:00.000-08:002010-11-09T11:30:56.812-08:00change of departure dateAs we approach the 13th I picked up my medication, packed and am slowly saying my goodbyes.. I checked my personal email at the beginning of my work day.. SURPRIZE! an email from the travel coordinator asking if it would be okay if I left on the 24th instead..the good news is I also got an email from my future roommate.. not only do I have a toilet but I dont have to share it with anyone else. My roommate seems friendly and fun.. so I can't wait to arrive! So 10 more days in Toronto..Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-41165926087899853102010-11-07T17:56:00.000-08:002010-11-07T18:02:00.833-08:00planning and packing<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhibf3qPW5o7tw78hyphenhyphenhPJK-55-CHQ5zWfQMiE4bLefML0LLQRJa7vpLYe2AZNlSHQ8SHzbBfsOpeA05YY7RP9RhnkOmyLOFjvcU5Qdz7OkdUcboK3pg6QYnqFdE9FsQ_5gO2SeU2VTv1Qpx/s1600/VSO+Training+Class+Oct+2010+001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhibf3qPW5o7tw78hyphenhyphenhPJK-55-CHQ5zWfQMiE4bLefML0LLQRJa7vpLYe2AZNlSHQ8SHzbBfsOpeA05YY7RP9RhnkOmyLOFjvcU5Qdz7OkdUcboK3pg6QYnqFdE9FsQ_5gO2SeU2VTv1Qpx/s320/VSO+Training+Class+Oct+2010+001.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Training Class Oct 29- Nov 2 2010</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Training finished last week and it was fantastic.. truly much more than I ever anticipated... I thought we would learn what not to do while in country, but instead it was like giving us the keys to uncode our new cultural reality. <br />
I'm 6 days away from departure... this was a big weekend. We had a great dinner on Saturday night with close friends to say good bye. This weekend I focused on getting packed up and ready to go.. I'm 80% of the way there. Just a few more things to put into my bag and 1 fight with Manulife to overcome and I'll be cleared for departure. I am in the process of unlocking my old cell phone so I'll have a phone to bring with me to get me started. I wanted to say hi to all my class mates who were all outstanding! Safe travels to all.. <br />
I'm so excited to get there but I'm having some trouble sleeping through the night at this point, partially out of nerves and partically out of excitement. I'm spending my final Friday with my husband just me and him for the day... This week is full of seeing friends who couldn't make it to the dinner.. I look forward to saying goodbye slowly.. Have a great week everyone!Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953584361781814848.post-87367783309102637842010-10-30T05:33:00.000-07:002010-10-30T05:33:06.957-07:00Single Story- day 1 of VSO TrainingI finally got confirmation of my departure date...November 13th! So I'm in Ottawa on 5 days of training. <br />
Day 1 was yesterday and quite honestly it was energizing and inspiring. Firstly there are 17 other people in training with me,1 more interesting than the next. Most of us live somewhere in Canada and a few live in the US. Between us, we are going to 11 different countries in the next 3 months. Most of the people who are going with VSO are going from between 6 and 24 months. Some have volunteered for organizations simlar to VSO before.. it was just really inspiring to meet so many interesting people in 1 day.<br />
<br />
So the trainings' purpose is to educate you on the country you are going to, but much more importantly it's to be prepare you to be in a completely different reality and to sensative to the cultural differences between you and your new environment. So yesterday we spoke about learning styles, dominance and marginalization and all that means.. and Single Story Telling. I had never heard that expression before yesterday. Single Story Telling is to tell of your experience from 1 angle only.. so as an example all we hear about Rwanda is of the genocides.. this is their single story... there are plenty of wonderful things happening in Rwanda.. like the Stratford theatre has partnered with a kids Rwandan Theatre to teach them about acting and the theatre, ( one of my co-trainees is going next week to work on this project). So CUSO-VSO wants us to be aware of telling single stories rather than thinking it through and telling multiple stories.<br />
<br />
The truth of the matter is that the media tells single stories all of the time, and what matters is what information people have access to... and they have access to the media, and the media needs to sell it's product so they'll report on the stuff that sells. Part of the reason I started my blog was to have a record of all that took place on my journey, the other reason was to share my story and the story of the community I'm going to live in and to hopefully get my new community involved in communicating to North America and finally because my colleague Dan Bryson who volunteered with VSO last year did such a great blog that it inspired me to ignore my fears and just leap!Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09755648229641768410noreply@blogger.com0