Shoprite finally got dark roast coffee. That makes for a good final week. I just danced through the legal department, because no one else is back here.
Went to buy some fruit from Matilda and Christen today. They didn't make me eat that weird meat bread stuff, so that was great.
Went to the fabric store to buy some chitenge with Julie and Evelyn. I think it was a fun outing for Evelyn. She doesn't get much liberty as the housekeeper, so I kidnapped her. Haha. :-P
Julie is calling her tailor, so maybe I will have a sweet skirt and top to bring home.
The End.
Monday, August 10, 2009
Thursday, August 6, 2009
African What?
This afternoon I went out to the corner to buy some fruit from Matilda, but when I got there she had other plans. She had just purchased-------something. I'm still not sure what it was, but it was some sort of edible product.
All I wanted was a banana, but I got this new suprise instead. She said "eat it! Eat it!" So, I did.
It looked like burnt, soggy bread, but there was minced meat in it, and it felt like there was sand in it, as well. I am thankful that she wanted to share her lunch with me, and now I can write this entry, but it was interesting at best.
All I wanted was a banana, but I got this new suprise instead. She said "eat it! Eat it!" So, I did.
It looked like burnt, soggy bread, but there was minced meat in it, and it felt like there was sand in it, as well. I am thankful that she wanted to share her lunch with me, and now I can write this entry, but it was interesting at best.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Little Things
The little things that excite me:
-Electricity
-Filter coffee (non-instant!)
-Space heaters
-Meat
-When the office has running water
-When we have hot water in our flat
-Finding the few elusive faucets that have hot and cold water running out of the same tap, so I can have warm water
-Washing my hair now that my braids are out
-when the grocery store has chocolate chips in stock (which I still haven't come by)
-rice krispie treats
New discoveries:
-Amarula
-Milo
-Redd's beer is different from the Redd's Apple I had in Germany, and not as good
-nshima... it's growing on me, and I ate it by choice over the weekend
-Cadbury chocolate makes you gain weight very quickly... but we don't care.
ps-i feel like a bug is crawling around my head, but i cant find it. what's wrong with me?
-Electricity
-Filter coffee (non-instant!)
-Space heaters
-Meat
-When the office has running water
-When we have hot water in our flat
-Finding the few elusive faucets that have hot and cold water running out of the same tap, so I can have warm water
-Washing my hair now that my braids are out
-when the grocery store has chocolate chips in stock (which I still haven't come by)
-rice krispie treats
New discoveries:
-Amarula
-Milo
-Redd's beer is different from the Redd's Apple I had in Germany, and not as good
-nshima... it's growing on me, and I ate it by choice over the weekend
-Cadbury chocolate makes you gain weight very quickly... but we don't care.
ps-i feel like a bug is crawling around my head, but i cant find it. what's wrong with me?
Matilda
Everyday I buy fruit from Matilda, at the corner. I always called her the fruit lady, until I asked her name today.
Anne and I went to the store this morning after church, and Anne wanted to get apples to make fried apples. I like giving business to Matilda, so we decided to get them from her later in the day. Around 1 pm I walked out to the corner and told her I would like 11 apples and 2 bananas. I saw a grown woman jump up and down. She was so excited for such a larger order. She gave me 12 apples, 3 bananas and a hug. It's been a good day for both of us.
Anne and I went to the store this morning after church, and Anne wanted to get apples to make fried apples. I like giving business to Matilda, so we decided to get them from her later in the day. Around 1 pm I walked out to the corner and told her I would like 11 apples and 2 bananas. I saw a grown woman jump up and down. She was so excited for such a larger order. She gave me 12 apples, 3 bananas and a hug. It's been a good day for both of us.
The most adventure any Sperry boat shoes ever saw.
I need to write all about Livingstone, but this could be very long and severely unorganized. I think I'll put on some Azure Ray and get to it
Friday morning, Kate and I awoke around 5:15, got ready and caught a cab to the inner city bus station. Kate had her duffel bag in hand, and I was wearing my 65 litre hiking backpack, but I still had the straps adjusted from a time before my braids/weave. As a result, I couldn't stand up all the way straight, due to the wad of fake hair. On the bright side, I didn't need a travel pillow on the bus, because my hair acted as the perfect neck rest.
We took the 7:30 Mazhandu bus that actually left right on time, and they even gave us a juice box and snack. I started reading Catch 22, listened to every mewithoutYou song that I have (was surprised to realize that I actually knew more than half of them), and enjoyed seeing this beautiful country. Our trip was the first time I traveled outside of Lusaka, and I did not want to come back. Lusaka is okay, but there is something about the people and scenery outside of the congested city. Everyone who lives here agrees--their home-villages are more desirable.
We arrived 5 minutes early, at 2:25 pm (14:25 hours, as they say in Zambia). We trekked down the street, and up the hill to Jolly Boys hostel, checked into our 2 person hut, and made plans for the long weekend.
Saturday, we got up around 6 for our first big day! We took microlights (basically, tricycles attached to kites and propelled by a fan. The locals like to say that they are lawn-mower powered kites. Anyways, first Kate and I dressed up in our flight suits and took retarded pictures/videos of ourselves. Mine was large enough that I look like an oompa loompa. I flew over the falls, Zimbabwe, and some elephants & hippos.
After microlighting, Kate and I went to the Royal Livingstone (rooms start at $549 a night, if you're interested) to wait for our boat to Livingstone Island. As we waited, I had a European-style latte (the pretty ones that are layered in clear glass mugs), took some pictures with monkeys, and found some giraffes.
Once we got to the Island, we were in for a delightful shock. The island is a small walking island that drops off at the end of the falls. We thought we would take a few pictures, get a bagel or some crappy pastry for "breakfast" and head back. Instead, we were with an older English couple whom we just loved. To our surprise, we had been booked into a private tour. Alpha Omega was Kate and my guide. He took us out to the edge of the falls, took our pictures, and then took us through the water to another point on the falls. We were very close to the edge of the falls, and it's not until lying in bed that night that I realized that one slip of my foot in the water would have sent me on a nice slide over the edge of the falls and 300 meters below into the boiling point. Good thing AO showed us exactly where to step with each foot, and held my hand. (pictures to come). Kate pointed out the irony of dying at the hands of Alpha Omega.
Then, Kate, Mr. and Mrs. Jonathan, and I sat at our little falls-view table and had coffee and eggs benedict (my favorite!).
My favorite part was walking barefoot in the mud next to huge elephant prints. I finally got to play in the mud/dirt!
After that wonderful experience, Kate and I went to Zambezi Swing to do really stupid things. Really embarrassing things... like that time Kate got stuck suspended over the gorge like superwoman. Stories for another day, but just a word--don't ever try to repel down a gorge facing forwards. It might sound cool, but you look like a dumb-chembe.
That night (Saturday), Anne and Sara arrived in Livingstone, and we went on a dinner cruise, but it really wasn't worth it unless you got drunk, which we didn't. I met an Australian guy named Augustus wearing an awesome tweed pea coat. An overweight gay guy from Rome, GA was trying to explain to Augustus that he looked gay and wouldn't get any girls. I interjected that I personally like guys who look gay but aren't. To that, Rome-guy replied that he was gay... which was completely obvious from the way he talked. Guess he thought it wasn't that obvious.
Anyways, moving on... Sunday morning, Kate and I met Megan and her family at the Botswana border for a Safari with her family... I LOVE ELEPHANTS. We got to see a female lion, which is rare on the day Safari trips at Chobe Park. It was awesome, and makes me want to spend some of my vacation days camping at a park. It might be too expensive :( but I will look into it.
Monday, we went white water rafting down the Zambezi River... not until after we "hiked" down the gorge (my legs are still SO SORE and I took 4 Aleve this morning). I have never tried to descend such a treacherous trail. I really thought someone was going to die before we got to the water.
I've been rafting several times before and never fallen out, but I fell out on "Double Trouble" and everyone freaked out, but I was okay. A level 3 rapid, so not that scary, but the Zambezi is a difficult and powerful river in general. Glad they didn't tell us stories of people dying until after we were on dry land again. During one of the low rapids, Kate and I thought it would be a good idea to take up the guide on his offer to allow us to jump out and ride the rapid while holding onto the outside. I think my legs went numb, and I was so cold I couldn't even pee in the water to warm them up (yeah, I know). Once pulled back in, we began to question why we thought that was a good idea.
My favorite quotes from rafting:
-as a kayaker wrings out a sponge from inside his kayak: "this is my pee... from my gin in tonic last night. want to smell it!?" -I think I fell in love in that moment.
-Jeff (the dumb-chembe father from Minnesota) as he asked his wife what it was like while being stuck in a whirlpool under our raft (still right side up, so no air.. OBVIOUSLY) "could you breathe under the raft? ...were there any air pockets? ...did you try to find any air pockets?"
-Jeff's wife Margaret: "do many people die from AIDS here?" -honestly, who ASKS that???
Favorite part of rafting: the fact that the normal helmets wouldn't fit over my braided hair, so they had to give me a special/nasty ghetto helmet. The adventures get better and better.
After rafting, we bummed a ride in the back of one of the raft guides' trucks to the border. Jeffert was heading back to his home in Zimbabwe, and we were going to the bridge for me to bungee. You might think that a simple truck-bed ride to Zimbabwe would be uneventful, but that isn't so. Instead, I accidentally got a little too close to Melvin, one of the raft guides. Melvin, Sara, and Kate were sitting with their backs against the cabin of the truck. I was sitting with my back against the wheel well. Melvin was sitting with his legs slightly spread and knees up. I was sitting Indian style perpendicular to him. We made an abrupt stop that I wasn't prepared for, and I ended up falling over with my head right between his legs. We became good friends really fast. Oops. Sorry Melvin.
Jeffert went with us through border control and to the bungee place. When we got there, they said they were fully booked. I was upset because that was the one thing I HAD to do in Livingstone, and we were leaving the next day. Jeffert talked them into squeezing me in, and they let me jump in front of 2 dook (Duke) kids. I was wearing a Carolina shirt, and they were wearing their dook shirts. Naturally, I went first and made them look bad. That's what Carolina is for.
Soooo... bungee jumping is amazing, and everyone should do it. I might go back to Livingstone again before I leave. Who wants to come bungee with me?
After bungee, we went to the falls and waited around to see the lunar rainbow (since is was almost a full moon). That was awesome. When the moon is full or nearly full, it is bright enough to cast light on the falls and make a huge rainbow. It's difficult to capture on film, but amazing to see in person.
Tuesday morning, Anne and I went to Mukuni Village for a big celebration. President Mugabe, President Rupiah Banda (Zambia), and the presidents of Kenya, DRC, and Tanzania were all present. We saw them helicopter in, but had to leave before they came out to speak. I wish we could have stayed an extra day so we didn't have to leave the village, but I had to come to work today.
On our way to the village, we picked up Owen to show us how to get there. Turns out Owen is Melvin's brother, and knows Alpha Omega. I love that everyone down there is connected in some way.
I've started learning a few words in Nyanga, but I want to learn more... and Tonga. Nyanga is predominate in Lusaka, but Tonga is predominate in Livingstone.
All in all, an amazing weekend. The only downfall was that we missed the Michael Jackson memorial, because we were on a bus.
Friday morning, Kate and I awoke around 5:15, got ready and caught a cab to the inner city bus station. Kate had her duffel bag in hand, and I was wearing my 65 litre hiking backpack, but I still had the straps adjusted from a time before my braids/weave. As a result, I couldn't stand up all the way straight, due to the wad of fake hair. On the bright side, I didn't need a travel pillow on the bus, because my hair acted as the perfect neck rest.
We took the 7:30 Mazhandu bus that actually left right on time, and they even gave us a juice box and snack. I started reading Catch 22, listened to every mewithoutYou song that I have (was surprised to realize that I actually knew more than half of them), and enjoyed seeing this beautiful country. Our trip was the first time I traveled outside of Lusaka, and I did not want to come back. Lusaka is okay, but there is something about the people and scenery outside of the congested city. Everyone who lives here agrees--their home-villages are more desirable.
We arrived 5 minutes early, at 2:25 pm (14:25 hours, as they say in Zambia). We trekked down the street, and up the hill to Jolly Boys hostel, checked into our 2 person hut, and made plans for the long weekend.
Saturday, we got up around 6 for our first big day! We took microlights (basically, tricycles attached to kites and propelled by a fan. The locals like to say that they are lawn-mower powered kites. Anyways, first Kate and I dressed up in our flight suits and took retarded pictures/videos of ourselves. Mine was large enough that I look like an oompa loompa. I flew over the falls, Zimbabwe, and some elephants & hippos.
After microlighting, Kate and I went to the Royal Livingstone (rooms start at $549 a night, if you're interested) to wait for our boat to Livingstone Island. As we waited, I had a European-style latte (the pretty ones that are layered in clear glass mugs), took some pictures with monkeys, and found some giraffes.
Once we got to the Island, we were in for a delightful shock. The island is a small walking island that drops off at the end of the falls. We thought we would take a few pictures, get a bagel or some crappy pastry for "breakfast" and head back. Instead, we were with an older English couple whom we just loved. To our surprise, we had been booked into a private tour. Alpha Omega was Kate and my guide. He took us out to the edge of the falls, took our pictures, and then took us through the water to another point on the falls. We were very close to the edge of the falls, and it's not until lying in bed that night that I realized that one slip of my foot in the water would have sent me on a nice slide over the edge of the falls and 300 meters below into the boiling point. Good thing AO showed us exactly where to step with each foot, and held my hand. (pictures to come). Kate pointed out the irony of dying at the hands of Alpha Omega.
Then, Kate, Mr. and Mrs. Jonathan, and I sat at our little falls-view table and had coffee and eggs benedict (my favorite!).
My favorite part was walking barefoot in the mud next to huge elephant prints. I finally got to play in the mud/dirt!
After that wonderful experience, Kate and I went to Zambezi Swing to do really stupid things. Really embarrassing things... like that time Kate got stuck suspended over the gorge like superwoman. Stories for another day, but just a word--don't ever try to repel down a gorge facing forwards. It might sound cool, but you look like a dumb-chembe.
That night (Saturday), Anne and Sara arrived in Livingstone, and we went on a dinner cruise, but it really wasn't worth it unless you got drunk, which we didn't. I met an Australian guy named Augustus wearing an awesome tweed pea coat. An overweight gay guy from Rome, GA was trying to explain to Augustus that he looked gay and wouldn't get any girls. I interjected that I personally like guys who look gay but aren't. To that, Rome-guy replied that he was gay... which was completely obvious from the way he talked. Guess he thought it wasn't that obvious.
Anyways, moving on... Sunday morning, Kate and I met Megan and her family at the Botswana border for a Safari with her family... I LOVE ELEPHANTS. We got to see a female lion, which is rare on the day Safari trips at Chobe Park. It was awesome, and makes me want to spend some of my vacation days camping at a park. It might be too expensive :( but I will look into it.
Monday, we went white water rafting down the Zambezi River... not until after we "hiked" down the gorge (my legs are still SO SORE and I took 4 Aleve this morning). I have never tried to descend such a treacherous trail. I really thought someone was going to die before we got to the water.
I've been rafting several times before and never fallen out, but I fell out on "Double Trouble" and everyone freaked out, but I was okay. A level 3 rapid, so not that scary, but the Zambezi is a difficult and powerful river in general. Glad they didn't tell us stories of people dying until after we were on dry land again. During one of the low rapids, Kate and I thought it would be a good idea to take up the guide on his offer to allow us to jump out and ride the rapid while holding onto the outside. I think my legs went numb, and I was so cold I couldn't even pee in the water to warm them up (yeah, I know). Once pulled back in, we began to question why we thought that was a good idea.
My favorite quotes from rafting:
-as a kayaker wrings out a sponge from inside his kayak: "this is my pee... from my gin in tonic last night. want to smell it!?" -I think I fell in love in that moment.
-Jeff (the dumb-chembe father from Minnesota) as he asked his wife what it was like while being stuck in a whirlpool under our raft (still right side up, so no air.. OBVIOUSLY) "could you breathe under the raft? ...were there any air pockets? ...did you try to find any air pockets?"
-Jeff's wife Margaret: "do many people die from AIDS here?" -honestly, who ASKS that???
Favorite part of rafting: the fact that the normal helmets wouldn't fit over my braided hair, so they had to give me a special/nasty ghetto helmet. The adventures get better and better.
After rafting, we bummed a ride in the back of one of the raft guides' trucks to the border. Jeffert was heading back to his home in Zimbabwe, and we were going to the bridge for me to bungee. You might think that a simple truck-bed ride to Zimbabwe would be uneventful, but that isn't so. Instead, I accidentally got a little too close to Melvin, one of the raft guides. Melvin, Sara, and Kate were sitting with their backs against the cabin of the truck. I was sitting with my back against the wheel well. Melvin was sitting with his legs slightly spread and knees up. I was sitting Indian style perpendicular to him. We made an abrupt stop that I wasn't prepared for, and I ended up falling over with my head right between his legs. We became good friends really fast. Oops. Sorry Melvin.
Jeffert went with us through border control and to the bungee place. When we got there, they said they were fully booked. I was upset because that was the one thing I HAD to do in Livingstone, and we were leaving the next day. Jeffert talked them into squeezing me in, and they let me jump in front of 2 dook (Duke) kids. I was wearing a Carolina shirt, and they were wearing their dook shirts. Naturally, I went first and made them look bad. That's what Carolina is for.
Soooo... bungee jumping is amazing, and everyone should do it. I might go back to Livingstone again before I leave. Who wants to come bungee with me?
After bungee, we went to the falls and waited around to see the lunar rainbow (since is was almost a full moon). That was awesome. When the moon is full or nearly full, it is bright enough to cast light on the falls and make a huge rainbow. It's difficult to capture on film, but amazing to see in person.
Tuesday morning, Anne and I went to Mukuni Village for a big celebration. President Mugabe, President Rupiah Banda (Zambia), and the presidents of Kenya, DRC, and Tanzania were all present. We saw them helicopter in, but had to leave before they came out to speak. I wish we could have stayed an extra day so we didn't have to leave the village, but I had to come to work today.
On our way to the village, we picked up Owen to show us how to get there. Turns out Owen is Melvin's brother, and knows Alpha Omega. I love that everyone down there is connected in some way.
I've started learning a few words in Nyanga, but I want to learn more... and Tonga. Nyanga is predominate in Lusaka, but Tonga is predominate in Livingstone.
All in all, an amazing weekend. The only downfall was that we missed the Michael Jackson memorial, because we were on a bus.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Adjusting
I think I am adjusting well. Yesterday was a hard day, and I cried part of the morning, because of so many different pressures. My dear friend Erica is such a comfort.
I'm learning to walk slower, and find the beauty in slowing down. I've replaced my cross ring on my left ring finger with my mom's gold ring, so I get less attention from the men. I eat my cereal with boxed milk, buy fruit from the woman on the corner, and brush my teeth with tap water. My shoes/pants are always covered in dirt, but my sunglasses keep it out of my eyes. My braids were starting to dread at the ends, so I melted them. I burned some of my real hair on accident, but oh well. Then I woke up in the middle of the night with my mosquito net tangled in my hair, because the ends of my braids got stuck in the fabric like velcro. Naturally, I sent a text to my sister explaining that I have to sleep in my hood so my weave doesn't get stuck in my mosquito net. Such a funny text! Although it was a pain and cut into my sleep, I put on my hoodie and was thankful not to wake up to another dog being shot, like the night before.
Today has been very cold. I didn't have my gloves this morning, and stood in front of the immigration office for half an hour in the cold, but I met some nice people and walked back to the office. Overall, a good day.
I better get back to work.
I'm learning to walk slower, and find the beauty in slowing down. I've replaced my cross ring on my left ring finger with my mom's gold ring, so I get less attention from the men. I eat my cereal with boxed milk, buy fruit from the woman on the corner, and brush my teeth with tap water. My shoes/pants are always covered in dirt, but my sunglasses keep it out of my eyes. My braids were starting to dread at the ends, so I melted them. I burned some of my real hair on accident, but oh well. Then I woke up in the middle of the night with my mosquito net tangled in my hair, because the ends of my braids got stuck in the fabric like velcro. Naturally, I sent a text to my sister explaining that I have to sleep in my hood so my weave doesn't get stuck in my mosquito net. Such a funny text! Although it was a pain and cut into my sleep, I put on my hoodie and was thankful not to wake up to another dog being shot, like the night before.
Today has been very cold. I didn't have my gloves this morning, and stood in front of the immigration office for half an hour in the cold, but I met some nice people and walked back to the office. Overall, a good day.
I better get back to work.
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