The Long (not short) of it.

It’s hard to believe that my week in Kalomo is over already! It seems like I just got here. I’m going to miss everyone so much. I wasn’t sure what to expect weather wise, with it being the rainy season, but I have now learned! The first few days were extremely hot, getting up to about 37C most days. It has been stifling. But huge fluffy clouds roll on by and cool you off every now and again, then every few days the rains come. Today, for my last day, it is beautifully clear and sunny and at 8:30 am (I know shocking isn’t it, that I’m up) the temperature is very agreeable. Speaking of being up so early, I’ve had an epiphany as to why Africa is so agreeable to me. Daytime here is my night at home, so I’m actually still on my same weird schedule, but here, it works! I admit to being very jet-lagged this time and found it hard going at times. I think the constant changing weather played havoc with my sinuses, as it has been mostly a feeling of heavy headedness. Yesterday, I was actually feeling really under the weather, like I couldn’t wake up, with very swollen eyes etc.  I spent most of the day napping and by dinner time I was feeling 100% again, so don’t know what it was, but am thankful that it didn’t last long!  

So, on with the show, this is it! The flights all were uneventful, thank goodness. I left the airport in Heathrow to go outside for the obligatory cigarettes, so got my passport stamped that I was in Britain again. I’m one of those weird folks who like stamps in my passport to show where I’ve been. I guess it just proof to myself that I was actually there. I had booked into the lounge again at the Jo’burg airport, so was able to shower, change and have something to eat along with good coffee. Now,  I was all set for the last leg to Livingstone. Godwin, the WV ADP manager and Muntanga, the owner of Bulo Bwanga Guest House (where I have been staying and which means ‘my bed’ in Tonga) met me at the airport, using Harry’s car; who owns the First Choice Guest House in Kalomo, where we stayed on our last trip. We made a quick stop at Backpackers in Livingstone, where I will be based with the African Impact group, to drop off 2 of my 4 bags (I was also carrying my pull along, backpack and computer case, WHAT, did you think I was travelling light?), we then stopped at the grocery store so I could pick up bottled water and milk for my tea. Yes ZBFF ladies, I had my kettle this time! My tummy is literally floating with tea. Then we hit the road for Kalomo. For those members of the trip in 2010, the highway is now finished and is wonderful. No bumps and dust this time. It took just over an hour travel to reach here, where as last time, I think it took over 2, because of the road construction. Muntanga does like to drive FAST though! Everything was so new and different from home on the last trip, this time I felt like I was coming home, things were familiar and there wasn’t that feeling of waiting for the unexpected. I knew where I was and I felt safe. Godwin and Muntange brought me straight to the Guest House, which unfortunately, was not within walking distance to the office this time, in fact it is almost at the other end of town (which is actually not that far in reality, Kalomo is not a big town after all), but Godwin was not about to let me walk back and forth each day. The Bulo Bwanga Guest House is lovely, my room is huge, I have a bathroom in which I could hold a dance, it’s immaculately clean and the owners and staff have been amazingly friendly and helpful.  Muntanga and his mother Charity own the Guest House and live in a smaller home at the back of the property. They have an African Ridgeback( rescue) guard dog named Sally, who everyone seems quite scared of, but we seem to get along fine. Poor thing is not feeling well though, I think she was probably hit on the back at some time quite hard and has now developed arthritis.  She whines as she gets up and down and walks with her tail between her legs, poor thing. They employ a couple of young men, one who has been to cooking school - but I’m embarrassed to say I did not avail myself to his skills (which smelt quite amazing at times, mmmm garlic) and stuck to my usual scrambled eggs and toast for most meals; what with not feeling quite up to snuff, I depend on eggs to be easy to digest and not throw the system off any more than it is. I may get a little more adventurous in Livingstone and have…say…a grilled cheese sandwich!!?? Anyway, I’m digressing here, so, I spent the afternoon and evening unpacking,, trying to sort into which suitcase I had put what stuff and realized I had left the bags of dolls at Backpackers! I realized at that time also, I had misplaced/lost my book into which I had put hard copies of all my travel information, photo copies of my passport, credit cards etc!!!! What a dilemma, I was beside myself with panic! I was hoping beyond hope that I had left the book in Harry’s car, but couldn’t check as Muntanga had taken Godwin home, so I was forced to wait for his return to check. On the drive up from Livingstone I had remarked that I had forgotten to purchase a SIM card for my phone, and wouldn’t you know that kind hearted Muntanga had stopped on his way back from dropping Godwin off, to pick one up for me in town, what service! Later he also set the whole thing up for me, getting my phone working and showing me the ins and outs of it. I told him my dilemma about the bags and book to which, about the bags, he says, “Ah, no problem madam, we’ll just have your friend from Backpackers pop them on the bus and send them up”. Really! I can do that? So I immediately called Erin of African Impact and asked if she would be kind enough to do so, which she was and long story short, they arrived here at 11:30 the next day. Wonders, of wonders. Now, as for my book…so far we could not locate it. Not in the car….so I emailed British Airways and was impatiently waiting for an answer, meanwhile checking my accounts online to make sure there was no untoward action on them. I didn’t really want to have the hassle of cancelling my credit cards if it wasn’t needed, as I wasn’t sure how I would manage without them! I ended up going to bed still worrying about it. In the morning, Godwin picked me up and took me to the office where we began phoning Customs and then B.A. trying to locate it. The person at B.A. asked what was in it, (after a couple of dropped calls and me having to ask Godwin to talk to the person, as the accent was so strong) and again, wonders of wonders, they said they had it and would hold it till I got back to Livingstone on the weekend. Whew!!! What a relief, now I felt I could really enjoy myself. I went over to the sponsorship office and asked if I could be of any assistance, and Helen gave me a pile of photo’s printed on paper that needed cutting out (4 per page) to be attached to letters and/or updates. There were a couple of pictures, which turned out to be sisters and a brother, who were in such rags, I was almost in tears. What surprised me was that these were actually sponsored children. I am realizing, that for all the good work that WV does in the communities, I think the children and families might need a little bit more themselves, from the sponsorship monies. Might I suggest to anyone that sponsors, that  rather than sending small gifts (aside from the ones WV sends you, to send back for the children) and paying enormous postage in Canada, save your nickels and dimes, and once a year call WV Head Office and do a ‘Gift in Kind’ for your sponsor child. Personally, I think that would make an amazing difference for the families.

 The cutting was all they had for me to do in the sponsorship office, so I wandered back over to Godwin’s and realized it was time to run to the bus stop to pick up my bags from Livingstone. The bus was a little late, but everything arrived safe and I had Godwin take me back to Bulo Bwanga , dolls in hand. While waiting at the bus stop, I noticed the only other white person I had seen in Kalomo (story to come later). As I arrived back the sky was getting dark and threatening, with black clouds hovering on the horizon, so I watched for a while as an awe inspiring thunder and lightning storm made its way towards the guest house. Luckily I had Skyped Tom earlier, so didn’t have to worry about computer use as I began to run around unplugging things for safety’s sake, and didn’t try turning on the computer till the next day. When we visited in 2010, we Canadians kept looking at clouds in the sky and saying’ Oh, it’s going to rain, eh?” the Zambians would laugh and say “ah, no” and we would wonder why, when there were so many clouds floating around; at home it would be pouring. I have found out that the sky has to be totally covered with clouds for it to rain. They thought it was a hoot when I told them that any one of those clouds would pour rain at home and that, in fact, sometimes we get rain at the front of the house and not at the back. The soil is sand and clay, so everything turns to mud right away and you sink up to your ankles, walking in some spots!  Think of our worse rain storms at home and double or triple the down pour! I’m told hundreds get killed every year from lightning strikes and just last week 7 cows were struck dead, and yet, you see people walking through the storms with umbrellas.

For my ZBFF's from 2010, all the bugs are OUTSIDE this time, but we did stop by The First Choice Guest House and they have been doing atremendous amount of work around the place! I didn't get to check inside any rooms, so can't say if they are any better, but the outside is very different. As you can see, Raoul was there and I got to say hello and give him best wishes from everyone.

  So, as the lightning rolled by, I decided to take a shower in that enormous bathroom; I got the water just right, hopped in and got my hair all lathered up, then - there was no water! I had to jump out, grab my still warm kettle and rinse off as best as possible - TIA. I found out in the next morning, the power grid gets cut at night by about ½, in the evenings (I thought they were energy conscious and used energy saving light bulbs and that’s why the lights were so dim) so the water pump doesn’t work. Was in bed and asleep by 8:30pm!!!!

*Note to self- take earlier showers.