News...
For those of you to whom I haven’t already spilled the proverbial beans, I have some news. Fear not – I am not pregnant, I do not have any strange disease, and I have not run off and married a village chief. Quite simply: I am staying in Zambia! I have decided to do another 1-year volunteer placement with the Zambia AIDSLaw Research and Advocacy Network (ZARAN), one of the organizations I work with currently. Instead of supporting them in the area of fundraising, however, I will be staying on as their temporary Research Officer, to help with their many research projects and papers and to do some research training for their staff. For 2006-07 we will be researching the realities of access to HIV/AIDS treatment in Zambia, the attitudes towards HIV testing, and the prevalence of HIV/AIDS in prisons. In each area, we will conduct research throughout the country, write a discussion paper to be shared with stakeholders at a consultative meeting, and then use the feedback from the meeting to develop advocacy activities and write a policy options paper to be submitted to government. (That’s the plan, at least. But this is Zambia, so we’ll see how it plays out in reality!) I’m excited about the work I will be doing, and equally excited about staying in Zambia for a while longer (not to mention staying in one place for more than 12 months - it will be the first time in about 7 years!).
One thing I am particularly looking forward to is getting to see the fascinating change in seasons here one more time. I always considered tropical places devoid of seasonal change, at least in the Canadian sense, but each day here I realize how wrong I am. So far, I have only witnessed the change from the hot dry season to the hot rainy season, which brought with it not only rain but also new vegetation and new insects - in addition to the grasses, Lusaka is now ablaze with bright orange gerber-daisy-esque flowers, and the fruits and vegetables for sale on the street seem to changing constantly: mangos disappeared one day, just like that, then mushrooms popped up overnight, out of nowhere, litchis started appearing here and there, maize took over every inch of earth it could find, and avocados have formed dark green gangs that have overtaken the city… The jacarandas and flame trees that were in bloom when I arrived have faded, and now some tree whose name I don’t know is sporting large orange and yellow flowers all over the city. The flying ants that appeared in Nov-Dec came in swarms that made them seem they were about to take over the planet (only to die every night covering the ground in a carpets of wings), and then they also just disappeared one day. Now it is grasshopper season, and everywhere you look there are huge, brilliant green grasshoppers. It’s quite spectacular watching nature do its work here. Not any more spectacular than watching the leaves turn colour and feeling the crisp air of Canadian autumn, but equally spectacular in its own way.
I will also get to be here for the upcoming elections in October, which, given the impact of government on a developing country, are always interesting. (On a side note, I saw the current President for the first time the other day. I joined VSO on a march for International Women’s Day and was marching along chatting to the girl I was carrying our banner with when I turned my head and saw President Mwanawasa standing stoically just a few feet away from me!). And, hopefully, more time in the country - and the nature of my new placement - will provide me with opportunities to see more of Zambia and learn what life is really like outside of the capital.
Being the lucky girl that I am, I also get to come to Canada and the UK for a visit when my first placement ends. I arrive in Toronto on May 10, then move on to Victoria on May 16, then to Calgary probably around June 02, and finally to Norwich on June 13 (hopefully!) before I return to Zambia on June 16. So, if you find yourself in one of those places and feel inclined to listen to me carry on about life in Africa over the last 6 months, feel free to give me a shout!
And, of course, the best news of all: WGA will continue for another whole year!! Apologies in advance ;)
One thing I am particularly looking forward to is getting to see the fascinating change in seasons here one more time. I always considered tropical places devoid of seasonal change, at least in the Canadian sense, but each day here I realize how wrong I am. So far, I have only witnessed the change from the hot dry season to the hot rainy season, which brought with it not only rain but also new vegetation and new insects - in addition to the grasses, Lusaka is now ablaze with bright orange gerber-daisy-esque flowers, and the fruits and vegetables for sale on the street seem to changing constantly: mangos disappeared one day, just like that, then mushrooms popped up overnight, out of nowhere, litchis started appearing here and there, maize took over every inch of earth it could find, and avocados have formed dark green gangs that have overtaken the city… The jacarandas and flame trees that were in bloom when I arrived have faded, and now some tree whose name I don’t know is sporting large orange and yellow flowers all over the city. The flying ants that appeared in Nov-Dec came in swarms that made them seem they were about to take over the planet (only to die every night covering the ground in a carpets of wings), and then they also just disappeared one day. Now it is grasshopper season, and everywhere you look there are huge, brilliant green grasshoppers. It’s quite spectacular watching nature do its work here. Not any more spectacular than watching the leaves turn colour and feeling the crisp air of Canadian autumn, but equally spectacular in its own way.
I will also get to be here for the upcoming elections in October, which, given the impact of government on a developing country, are always interesting. (On a side note, I saw the current President for the first time the other day. I joined VSO on a march for International Women’s Day and was marching along chatting to the girl I was carrying our banner with when I turned my head and saw President Mwanawasa standing stoically just a few feet away from me!). And, hopefully, more time in the country - and the nature of my new placement - will provide me with opportunities to see more of Zambia and learn what life is really like outside of the capital.
Being the lucky girl that I am, I also get to come to Canada and the UK for a visit when my first placement ends. I arrive in Toronto on May 10, then move on to Victoria on May 16, then to Calgary probably around June 02, and finally to Norwich on June 13 (hopefully!) before I return to Zambia on June 16. So, if you find yourself in one of those places and feel inclined to listen to me carry on about life in Africa over the last 6 months, feel free to give me a shout!
And, of course, the best news of all: WGA will continue for another whole year!! Apologies in advance ;)
posted by ash at 4:17 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home