Dancing Mzungus!
Yesterday, after yet another shopping trip to Kamwala (where someone unsuccessfully attempted to pickpocket me) Mel and I headed out to Kabulonga, a posh area on the outskirts of the city where some other VSO volunteers live. We met up with Francesca and Natalie and headed towards Mutendere, a 'shanty compound', or slum, just north of Kabulonga. The rich neighbouring with the poor - it's quite a contrast. Natalie will be working at Africa Directions, a Youth Centre in Mutendere, and they were celebrating Independence Day with some sort of performance that we were going out to see.
After walking for ages, we asked how far it was to 'D Block' of Mutendere, and were told we should definitely get a minibus, so we hopped on the next bus and were dropped off at the last stop, in the market area. It's like a different world in a compound (a different world where 80% of the population of Lusaka live). No real roads, shacks for houses, people and animals everywhere... There was still quite a bit of open space, however, and the poverty did not appear to be as extreme as I had imagined, but perhaps I wasn't seeing the whole picture.
We found someone who thought they knew where Africa Directions was and he led us down paths, between houses, through market stalls, and along dirt roads until we finally found it. We passed through a high, unmarked cement wall into a courtyard with hundreds of kids sitting on the ground watching two girls about 8 years old move their hips like nobody's business. When they finished, five boys about 5 or 6 years old got up and started doing Michael Jackson-esque moves in turn. And on it went. A whole afternoon of some of the best dancing I have ever seen by anyone, let alone little kids. Dancing obviously comes shortly after birth.
There were about 6 Mzungus (white people) there, including us, and we were quite the attraction. The kids, although shy at first, didn't take long to be sitting on top of us, asking to be our friends, and laughing at just about everything we did, especially when we got up to dance or tried to speak Nyanga. It was an intense but great experience for all of us, and just proved how much there is to see and experience here. Six months is starting to seem very short....
Last night we finished off our action-packed day with a trip to the Playhouse (coincidentally the name of my favourite bar in Norwich). It's right around the corner from Drew, Natalie, Mel and I and has a small bar in the basement with the cheapest beer in town (less than CAD$1 for a bottle of local "Mosi'). A dangerous discovery:)
First day of work tomorrow!
After walking for ages, we asked how far it was to 'D Block' of Mutendere, and were told we should definitely get a minibus, so we hopped on the next bus and were dropped off at the last stop, in the market area. It's like a different world in a compound (a different world where 80% of the population of Lusaka live). No real roads, shacks for houses, people and animals everywhere... There was still quite a bit of open space, however, and the poverty did not appear to be as extreme as I had imagined, but perhaps I wasn't seeing the whole picture.
We found someone who thought they knew where Africa Directions was and he led us down paths, between houses, through market stalls, and along dirt roads until we finally found it. We passed through a high, unmarked cement wall into a courtyard with hundreds of kids sitting on the ground watching two girls about 8 years old move their hips like nobody's business. When they finished, five boys about 5 or 6 years old got up and started doing Michael Jackson-esque moves in turn. And on it went. A whole afternoon of some of the best dancing I have ever seen by anyone, let alone little kids. Dancing obviously comes shortly after birth.
There were about 6 Mzungus (white people) there, including us, and we were quite the attraction. The kids, although shy at first, didn't take long to be sitting on top of us, asking to be our friends, and laughing at just about everything we did, especially when we got up to dance or tried to speak Nyanga. It was an intense but great experience for all of us, and just proved how much there is to see and experience here. Six months is starting to seem very short....
Last night we finished off our action-packed day with a trip to the Playhouse (coincidentally the name of my favourite bar in Norwich). It's right around the corner from Drew, Natalie, Mel and I and has a small bar in the basement with the cheapest beer in town (less than CAD$1 for a bottle of local "Mosi'). A dangerous discovery:)
First day of work tomorrow!
posted by ash at 2:09 PM
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