sylvia pimentalBuilding in Ndola
July 28th 2008 21:07
First off, my apologies for such long time between updates. I've been straddled with weeks withour internet, then weeks with very little internet, then a lack of ability to upload photos. Still suffering from that last one so you're going to have to imagine these things.
Last you read I was in Cape Town, however, at seven am on the twenty first of june I left off from their to fly to Johannesburg. In Johannesburg I met up with the others in my group - the group being a bunch of guys (and two girls, I suppose) from my old high school or other places connected, all of us going to Ndola, Zambia, to add a roof to an old building at GLO Zambia so they could use it for accomodation for their students.
And so we went! For two weeks we worked night and day, incredibly hard, using all the strength in our puny human muscles, and, eventually, success! The building now possess a good lot of new bricks, as well as nineteen trusses (termite proofed by yours truly) that support a strong, corrugated steel roof (which cut the hands of yours truly). For that matter, we also put down a large ditch (dug by yours truly), uncovering a sewerage tank in the process (yours truly. not quite as proud of that though.). All in all it was a great time.
The students around were all very friendly, it didnt take long for the fact that we were white and they were black to be totally removed from our minds - honestly, we just kind of forgot. The food was good too - the Zambian staple food is Nshima, and they eat it like nothing we do back in Australia. Nshima is corn meal, boiled until it is a thick porridgey substance. It is eaten with every meal, really, it IS every meal. There is ofcourse usually a small side dish for flavour, but the mainstay of eating is to roll up a ball of Nshima in your right hand (left hand can be offensive, depending), and dip it in the other part of your meal - they make some excellent sauces in Zambia.
After our building project was complete, we drove down from Ndola to Livingstone, to visit the mighty Victoria Falls. It's this time when I really regret not being able to show you photos, but in truth, photos can never do justice to the falls. They are the second tallest in the world, standing at around 100m, just below Niagra Falls. 1.2 Kilometres across they are almost impossible to accurately photograph. But heres the big one - at Vic Falls, one million litres of water go over the edge, every second. We'd kill for that back home, thats for sure.
It was at the falls that I, unfortunately - and my mother will be very displeased to hear this - lost my good, expensive shoes. Whether to theives or the river we're not sure, but there is a section where you can hike down to the base of the river but a lot of the walk is underwater necessitating a removal of footwear - those of us who did it returned to find our shoes long gone. Luckily one of the other group members gave me a pair of old shoes, if you're reading this Sebastian and Annette, thanks VERY MUCH!
The markets around Victoria Falls and in Livingstone can be very dangerous places - not with mugging our outright theft, no, but its a place that suckers in even the most street smart shoppers. A few rules, never sit down with anyone, never let people "show you what I make", and if people ask you to do these things just say "no, I have to keep going," and walk off, dont let them stop you by calling after - they will tell you stories of how they need money for transport, they have not made any sales to day etc, then you meet up with the rest of the group and guess what, the same guy suckered everyone with the same story. Yes, theres probably a few genuinely needy people there, but just buy what you want, and remember one of my favourite Bemba phrases - Kosa; Be Strong.
After our time at the falls I split from the group and bussed up to Lusaka. From their I went with Chachacha Backpackers on their tour to Lower Zambezi National Park - the tour was excellent, though a little disorganized. Our guides, Alec and Veronica, were wonderful people and you honestly lost track of who was in charge and who was on tour, sooner or later it was almost like a road trip. We saw all kinds of wildlife - pictures I really hope to add soon, including but not limited to Lions, Hippos, Elephants, Buffalo, Impala, Waterbuck, and, though these were both from long distance, a Leopard and a Zebra. Turns out Crocodiles in Africa are smaller than those in Australia, I should have known. Alec also rattled off a list of birds names each time we heard calls with ease that made me begin to suspect that he was lying through his teeth.
The food, I should add, was fantastic - no more Nshima for us. Spaghetti Bolognese was esepcially wonderful, and a cooked bacon and eggs breakfast, after eight months of wandering around on peanut butter sandwiches, was almost too much for my sensibilites to bear (this statement would make alot more impact if I had, oh, say, any sensibilites when it comes to eating to start with). We went on several game drives and were blessed with good luck, but I opted out of the canoe trip - as one of my best friends once said, "Rowing (and by extension, Canoeing), is 50% arm movement and 50% inventing new curse words." I've personally always found the latter to actually be more like 99%, and so decided, quite wisely I think, to relax by river side for the afternoon.
After our tour we returned to Lusaka, where I spent eight nights at Chachacha Backpackers. Honestly though... next time I would opt for somewhere else. It was not BAD, but the kitchen was pretty under furnished (and what a coincidence, they just happen to have their own restaurant), the rooms did not feel very safe (which is expected when you dont have any locks on the doors), the other patrons, though friendly, were very loud (not helped by the non-stop service of alcohol to both patrons and staff) and the staff, while mostly friendly, were rather hard to pin down to actually doing anything, most of the 'hard workers' spending their day at the bar or playing pool. It was just... difficult, whenever you asked for something you were made to feel like you were petitioning homeless people for a bar of gold.
Theres not a lot to do in Lusaka - you can walk up to Arcades Shopping Centre and watch a good hollywood movie (though they come in about a month late), or go bowling. Theres markets around town though they are for the most part a waste of time, selling just imported junk or fruits and vegetables - I know it sounds cool, buy your fresh produce at the market, but its faster, easier, cooler, and inarguably safer to do so at a supermarket (and while it is cheaper at the market, the supermarket is still pretty cheap).
The Sunday market at Arcades is a haven for tourists, its full of the kitschy souvenirs everyone came to buy, and theres many tourists around so you dont get hassled quite as much - keep in mind, Kosa, be strong. Theres also a decent market not far north of Chachacha, which is open every day and mostly hassle free; though there is not a lot of selection in goods.
Anyway. With a big bag full of touristy gear and all my junk, I left via taxi to the airport (one good thing about Chachacha, theres almost always taxi's waiting out the front), next stop, New York City.
Link time!
GLO Zambia is a great place and worthy of your interest.
VIctoria Falls is absolutely indescribable, it's just awesome.
CR Holdings' website, unfortunately, is suspended(?) but they remain a reputable and reliable way to bus around Zambia.
Chachacha Backpackers runs good, though expensive, safari's. Luckily I paid for mine a few months ago, recently the prices have risen as much as $300US. The accomodation is not reccomended, though, admittedly, I cant vouch for anywhere else in Lusaka being any better.
South African Airways has a new website, which is not nearly so mind boggling as the last.
African Microwave.
Last you read I was in Cape Town, however, at seven am on the twenty first of june I left off from their to fly to Johannesburg. In Johannesburg I met up with the others in my group - the group being a bunch of guys (and two girls, I suppose) from my old high school or other places connected, all of us going to Ndola, Zambia, to add a roof to an old building at GLO Zambia so they could use it for accomodation for their students.
African Shower.
And so we went! For two weeks we worked night and day, incredibly hard, using all the strength in our puny human muscles, and, eventually, success! The building now possess a good lot of new bricks, as well as nineteen trusses (termite proofed by yours truly) that support a strong, corrugated steel roof (which cut the hands of yours truly). For that matter, we also put down a large ditch (dug by yours truly), uncovering a sewerage tank in the process (yours truly. not quite as proud of that though.). All in all it was a great time.
Now You're My Ditch.
The students around were all very friendly, it didnt take long for the fact that we were white and they were black to be totally removed from our minds - honestly, we just kind of forgot. The food was good too - the Zambian staple food is Nshima, and they eat it like nothing we do back in Australia. Nshima is corn meal, boiled until it is a thick porridgey substance. It is eaten with every meal, really, it IS every meal. There is ofcourse usually a small side dish for flavour, but the mainstay of eating is to roll up a ball of Nshima in your right hand (left hand can be offensive, depending), and dip it in the other part of your meal - they make some excellent sauces in Zambia.
Aussie Barbeque in Africa - on my Birthday!
After our building project was complete, we drove down from Ndola to Livingstone, to visit the mighty Victoria Falls. It's this time when I really regret not being able to show you photos, but in truth, photos can never do justice to the falls. They are the second tallest in the world, standing at around 100m, just below Niagra Falls. 1.2 Kilometres across they are almost impossible to accurately photograph. But heres the big one - at Vic Falls, one million litres of water go over the edge, every second. We'd kill for that back home, thats for sure.
The Mighty Victoria Falls
It was at the falls that I, unfortunately - and my mother will be very displeased to hear this - lost my good, expensive shoes. Whether to theives or the river we're not sure, but there is a section where you can hike down to the base of the river but a lot of the walk is underwater necessitating a removal of footwear - those of us who did it returned to find our shoes long gone. Luckily one of the other group members gave me a pair of old shoes, if you're reading this Sebastian and Annette, thanks VERY MUCH!
Our Completed Building Project.
The markets around Victoria Falls and in Livingstone can be very dangerous places - not with mugging our outright theft, no, but its a place that suckers in even the most street smart shoppers. A few rules, never sit down with anyone, never let people "show you what I make", and if people ask you to do these things just say "no, I have to keep going," and walk off, dont let them stop you by calling after - they will tell you stories of how they need money for transport, they have not made any sales to day etc, then you meet up with the rest of the group and guess what, the same guy suckered everyone with the same story. Yes, theres probably a few genuinely needy people there, but just buy what you want, and remember one of my favourite Bemba phrases - Kosa; Be Strong.
Not every brick makes it...
After our time at the falls I split from the group and bussed up to Lusaka. From their I went with Chachacha Backpackers on their tour to Lower Zambezi National Park - the tour was excellent, though a little disorganized. Our guides, Alec and Veronica, were wonderful people and you honestly lost track of who was in charge and who was on tour, sooner or later it was almost like a road trip. We saw all kinds of wildlife - pictures I really hope to add soon, including but not limited to Lions, Hippos, Elephants, Buffalo, Impala, Waterbuck, and, though these were both from long distance, a Leopard and a Zebra. Turns out Crocodiles in Africa are smaller than those in Australia, I should have known. Alec also rattled off a list of birds names each time we heard calls with ease that made me begin to suspect that he was lying through his teeth.
Mistah Lions
The food, I should add, was fantastic - no more Nshima for us. Spaghetti Bolognese was esepcially wonderful, and a cooked bacon and eggs breakfast, after eight months of wandering around on peanut butter sandwiches, was almost too much for my sensibilites to bear (this statement would make alot more impact if I had, oh, say, any sensibilites when it comes to eating to start with). We went on several game drives and were blessed with good luck, but I opted out of the canoe trip - as one of my best friends once said, "Rowing (and by extension, Canoeing), is 50% arm movement and 50% inventing new curse words." I've personally always found the latter to actually be more like 99%, and so decided, quite wisely I think, to relax by river side for the afternoon.
Hippo's... ASSEMBLE!
After our tour we returned to Lusaka, where I spent eight nights at Chachacha Backpackers. Honestly though... next time I would opt for somewhere else. It was not BAD, but the kitchen was pretty under furnished (and what a coincidence, they just happen to have their own restaurant), the rooms did not feel very safe (which is expected when you dont have any locks on the doors), the other patrons, though friendly, were very loud (not helped by the non-stop service of alcohol to both patrons and staff) and the staff, while mostly friendly, were rather hard to pin down to actually doing anything, most of the 'hard workers' spending their day at the bar or playing pool. It was just... difficult, whenever you asked for something you were made to feel like you were petitioning homeless people for a bar of gold.
Monkey!
Theres not a lot to do in Lusaka - you can walk up to Arcades Shopping Centre and watch a good hollywood movie (though they come in about a month late), or go bowling. Theres markets around town though they are for the most part a waste of time, selling just imported junk or fruits and vegetables - I know it sounds cool, buy your fresh produce at the market, but its faster, easier, cooler, and inarguably safer to do so at a supermarket (and while it is cheaper at the market, the supermarket is still pretty cheap).
Elephants!
The Sunday market at Arcades is a haven for tourists, its full of the kitschy souvenirs everyone came to buy, and theres many tourists around so you dont get hassled quite as much - keep in mind, Kosa, be strong. Theres also a decent market not far north of Chachacha, which is open every day and mostly hassle free; though there is not a lot of selection in goods.
Me and my friends back home... well, not really, but the resemblance is uncanny.
Anyway. With a big bag full of touristy gear and all my junk, I left via taxi to the airport (one good thing about Chachacha, theres almost always taxi's waiting out the front), next stop, New York City.
Link time!
GLO Zambia is a great place and worthy of your interest.
VIctoria Falls is absolutely indescribable, it's just awesome.
CR Holdings' website, unfortunately, is suspended(?) but they remain a reputable and reliable way to bus around Zambia.
Chachacha Backpackers runs good, though expensive, safari's. Luckily I paid for mine a few months ago, recently the prices have risen as much as $300US. The accomodation is not reccomended, though, admittedly, I cant vouch for anywhere else in Lusaka being any better.
South African Airways has a new website, which is not nearly so mind boggling as the last.
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