Ndili bwino (I am well)

Two weeks and five days down the road, things are going well here in Lusaka.

I am finally beginning to settle in at work. It would probably take 2 years to feel entirely settled, but unfortunately I only have 6 months, so that is not a luxury I can afford. To make matters more interesting, it turns out I am working with not one but three organizations, all of whom have work to be done that would require me to be full-time at each...

For the Network of Zambian People Living with HIV/AIDS (NZP+) I am developing a project plan that will help them build the fundraising capacity of their Support Groups of people living with HIV/AIDS. This will help make Support Groups more active, independent and sustainable. To plan the project I hope to be able to spend quite a bit of time visiting various Support Groups around the country to assess their capabilities and needs in project planning and fundraising. Although, with only 2 days a week to dedicate to NZP+, I will most likely have to dedicate quite a few weekends to such visits. For the Zambian AIDSLaw Research and Advocacy Network (ZARAN) I am reviewing their Strategic Plan to identify potential projects and then assisting them to draw up subsequent proposals for funding. And for the Treatment Advocacy and Literacy Campaign (TALC) I am doing a variety of things, but first on the list is to visit some Support Groups of the Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia (CIDRZ) who have secured funding for small projects and assist them with implementation and financial management. There is so much to do and so much to learn (starting with about 1 kajillion acronyms!) that I am feeling a bit overwhelmed. But I'm also getting more excited with each day and looking forward to the challenges that lie ahead. Fortunately, I am also working with amazing people who make any confusion or frustration well worth the while.

Settling in at home has been somewhat easier. Mel and I have become firm friends with some of our neighbours, which has made all the difference. Simon and Emmanuel are brothers aged 4 and 10, and have taken to coming around unannounced, which is fine with us except we can’t really figure out why they come around… They have a computer, a TV, and loads of toys at their house, and yet somehow they still seem to want to hang out at our house, where there is just... us. Although Emmanuel did say he thought we should buy a TV, which he figured would cost about 25,000 kwacha, or $6 Canadian! Sunday they dropped by and spent the morning drawing us pictures, which we have promised we will put up on the wall. Then I showed Simon some pictures of Canada, and every time he saw the ocean he exclaimed “Swimming Pool!” Their older cousin, Thelma, also lives with them and comes over quite often. She is 17, an Adventist, Vice-Head Girl at her school, gets up at 4am every morning to do her schoolwork, and wants to be a computer scientist. She's also the sweetest, mostly lovely girl imaginable. She loves talking to us about life in Canada and Australia, invites us over to watch terrible Filipino soap operas when her aunt and uncle go out, and is always there for us in times of need. The other day, for instance, we decided to cook a new recipe out of Mel’s African cookbook: sashila (pumpkin leaves with groundnuts (peanuts)). Thelma came in once we had already started cooking and realized we were about to use whole groundnuts instead of pounded groundnuts! After having a laugh she ran to her place and got a groundnut pounder (wooden bowl and a big stick) and proceeded to pound and sift our groundnuts for us. Seeing we were obviously in desparate need of help, she has also agreed to give us lessons on how to make Zambia’s staple food: nshima (maize meal porridge). I have had it many times, always with a fork, but today at a workshop on Anti-retroviral Treatment Literacy, I had lunch with the participants who finally initiated me into the world of eating nshima, and everything else on the plate, with my hands. Strangely, I seemed to make more mess than anyone else in the room...

And when I find time, there is no shortage of things to do and see here. Last Saturday I was fortunate enough to be invited to a “Kitchen Party.” We would call it a Bridal Shower but, as I quickly discovered, it is unlike any Bridal Shower I have ever seen or heard of. Just imagine a large garden hosting 2 enormous tents, about 300 women dressed in traditional chitenge suits, a group of women playing traditional drums, a pile of gifts (all kitchenware, which provides a clue as to where Zambian wives spend much of their time) the size of Mt. Everest, and four Mzungu girls. There was enough drinking, dancing, yelling and general mayhem to last anyone a lifetime and everyone had a great time. As for me and my Mzungu counterparts, we were often dragged up to display our (attemped) dancing (i.e. hip-shaking) skills - a cause for great laughter from the whole crowd. The bride, however, had to sit without speaking or smiling throughout the whole event, which marks the end of a one month initiation where she learns, among other things, to please her husband. The rest of my weekend was spent at a much more subdued poetry reading and a monthly craft market where there were so many expats that, as another VSO said, "if anyone ever wanted to wipe out the staff of every Embassy and International NGO in Zambia, this would be the place to do it."

In other news, I returned to the clinic a week ago (twice in my first 2 weeks in the country!) for an infection in my foot. It stemmed from a tiny blister that I stupidly ignored, and before I knew it my whole ankle was swollen and blue... Fortunately, it's on the mend and I hope to manage to stay out of the clinic for at least another month! Cross your fingers for me:)