If you are anything like I was about a year ago, you are frantically searching Peace Corps Zambia blogs in an attempt to see what this place is like and what you need to pack for your upcoming two-year adventure. I decided to put up this post to offer you some guidance, as I know how crazy the weeks leading up to fly-in can be. Below you will find a list of suggested items that I have found useful during my past year in country, as well as suggestions of what not to fret over buying or packing. This is by no means a complete list, and not every item may be important to you, but hopefully, it will give you some direction if you need it.
I also want to extend to you a big welcome to the Peace Corps Zambia Family! Peace Corps Zambia is an awesome placement. The land, people, and volunteer friends you make while here are amazing, and I hope you come to love this place as much as all us current volunteers have. Training is going to be tough and tiresome, but stick it out, because the other side is pretty great!
Safe travels, and we will see you in a few weeks!!!
Salley
P.S. If any of you current volunteers read this and have something to add, feel free to comment : )
Packing List:
-Speakers for your mp3 player (you can get some here, but the quality isn’t that great, and if you love your music, you will want to be able to listen to it while you do chores around the house or use it for dance parties with your village kids!)
-Extra set of earphones for your mp3 player (again, you can get some here, but the quality is crappy)
-Gatorade or other powdered drink packets
-Luggage locks for when traveling
-Combination padlock for your hut’s front door (great if you want to avoid the possibility of losing your key and getting locked out)
-Plastic mattress cover (queen size – great for when your roof leaks over your bed!)
-Fitted sheet (again, go with queen size – you can get these here, but they are expensive and not the finest quality – flat sheets can be found here no problem, and pc gives you a set when you get here)
-Headlamp (at least one, maybe 2) and handheld flashlight with lots of batteries!
-Camera (bring lots of memory cards and a few flash drives too – I have found that loading my pictures on them and mailing them home to have my mom post on my blog is so much simpler than me trying to load them using the slow and unreliable internet here at the Peace Corps house)
-Photos from home (aka “snaps” - great for hanging in your hut and also to show your host family and friends in the village)
-Gift for host family (calendars, a framed photo from training (bring a cheap frame from home), headlamps, etc)
-Short-wave radio
-Saddle-bag for bike (not absolutely necessary at first, but might be nice to have someone send you later if you run out of packing space)
-Enough shampoo/conditioner for about a week or so (this stuff will weigh your suitcase down if you try to bring too much, and you can get nice-smelling stuff here that works well)
-Zip-lock bags (the gallon size and “big bags” are great for storage and travel)
-If you knit, bring your needles (you can get yarn here, however, it is cheap quality)
-Face wash (if you have a favorite kind, bring it, cause you probably won’t find it here)
-Deodorant (you can get some deo/antiperspirant combos here, but they are expensive)
-Off-unscented bug spray
-Binoculars (i just went on safari, and having these made the tip so much better – you don’t have to spend a lot on them though)
-Box for electronics (I bought one at REI, it is small, padded box that is perfect for keeping your electronics safe when traveling, as expect to have you luggage squished and squeezed!)
-Laptop computer (this is, by no means absolutely necessary, however, with the growing number of volunteers and only one computer per PC house (which often crashes), it is nice to have – especially if you want to Skype home with family and friends – I bought a net book before coming here and it is cheap and small, so perfect for traveling)
-Duct tape (you will find so many uses for this stuff here)
-Nalgene bottles (2 are handy to have)
-Hand sanitizer (good for on the go – you can get it here, but it is really expensive)
-Medium-sized backpack
-Gum (you can get it here, but if you have you have a favorite type at home, it’s is nice to have)
-Rain gear (boots, umbrella, raincoat)
-Sunglasses
-List of your internet usernames and passwords (nice to have during training when your laptop is in storage and you go to internet cafes)
-List of addresses for writing postcards home
-Daily planner and journal
*packing suggestion: I packed all my toiletries in clear plastic "rubber maid" type box (it was about the size of two shoe boxes put together, and taped it up to prevent shampoo explosions while traveling to country. This worked really well, and after I settled into my house, I had an extra storage container as well.
Girl-specific items:
-Sleeveless shirts! (don’t listen to the manual – you are allowed to wear these here, and you will want to when it gets hot!)
-Knee-length stretchy skirts – the ones with the fold-over top are great, cause they are always comfy and fit well even if you gain or lose weight)
-Leggings (can be worn under skirts or chitenges when biking
-PJ pants (it will be chilly at night during training)
-Fleece jacket
-Solid colored t-shirts (buy tighter-fitting ones, because repeated hand-washing will stretch them out – these also are great to have to wear with chitenges
-Cute shirts / dresses (because you most likely will want to go out or look cute as some point during training)
-Make-up (if you wear it, bring it! You prob won’t want to wear it in the village, but at the PC house or for special occasions it is nice to have)
-Tampons (maybe bring a box or so to start with, but after that, rely on PC to provide these for you)
-Nail polish, Ped-Egg, and foot cream (these have been one of my all-time favorite care package items - your feet will take a beating here)
Other clothing advice:
-Boys: bring some pants a few inches smaller than what you ordinarily wear (and a belt!), especially if you are a little fluffier in the middle, you will lose weight
-Girls: bring stretchy clothes with elastic waist-bands, you might gain weight (I know, it’s not fair)
-Choco or Teva sandals (as a peace corps volunteer, you are eligible for awesome discounts at these companies – while these aren’t the most fashion forward footwear, it is good to have a pair for long bike rides, hikes and other adventures)
-Closed-toe shoes (for me, these were not necessary, I think I have worn mine once, however, others wear theirs often)
-2 pairs of jeans (one for the village and one for wearing in town)
Don’ts:
-Don’t worry about a fancy phone (you can get an internet phone here for pretty cheap)
-Don’t bring water purification tablets or fancy water purification devices (You can get chlorine here and PC provides you with a water filter)
-Don’t worry about trying to find Zambia-specific adaptors for your electronics, you can get those here
-Don’t bring fancy solar chargers (you may end up in an area that has a school/clinic that has power or solar panels, and you can charge your phone there)
-Don’t spent tons of money on camping equipment (some people didn’t even bring a tent and shared with other volunteers)
-Don’t spent a ton of money on new clothes at REI or similar stores (especially if you don’t already wear that type of clothing, cause you prob won’t want to wear it once here)
-Don’t bring towels (chitenges work great for this purpose, and PC will give you one as soon as you get to country)
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Easter Bunny vs Elephants
This past Easter, I decided to forgo the Easter Bunny, and instead go on my very first SAFARI!!! While Easter Baskets and eating ham with the fam at home are great, going on Safari was life changing! We went to the park closest to my house that also just happens to be one of the best in Zambia! It is just a 4 hour drive from my hut! After my first day in the game park, I called home begging my family to come and experience the adventure too. If any of you have ever been enthralled in a National Geographic special on T.V., or were one watched the Lion King over and over as a child (that’s you, Han!), trust me that this is a million times better than that, as everything one has seen on those 60 minute television specials comes to life and is walking and breathing just meters away from you!
I went with my very best Peace Corps friend, Emily, and we stayed at a beautiful lodge just across the Luangwa River outside the park. Every day we crossed the water in a small motor boat and once on the other side, hopped into cruisers and rode around to see what was out and about that day. I was slightly worried that we would not see as much during our trip as we would if we had waited to go later in the year, because we were going right at the end of rainy season, a time where the grasses and brush would be tall and visibility might not be all that great. However, I was not unhappy in the least about our experience! We spent 4 days in the park and saw plenty – lions (including a 3 month old cub, and a couple mating!), impala, water buck, tons of beautiful birds, cats of various sizes, hippos, crocodiles, elephants, zebras, giraffe, etc.
The package we had at the lodge included two game drives or walks per day, one in the morning, and one in the evening. The night drives were really fun and also a bit scary at times, as that is when we were closest to the lions. A female and her cub walked just a few feet away from our cruiser (which was completely open, I should mention). They were so close we could hear them breathing. I think I was so scared I had to hold Emily’s hand (thanks, Em!)!
This experience was unlike any I have ever had, and it is difficult to communicate in this post the excitement that had me nearly hyperventilating every time we came across a new animal in the park. I vowed that one day, when I have children of my own, this is a vacation I will save up to take them on. The zoo is nice, but after this, I just don’t think it will cut it. If you have reservations about coming to Africa to visit, I hope that this post encourages you to make it happen. Safari is an experience you don’t want to miss!
Pictures coming soon!!!
I went with my very best Peace Corps friend, Emily, and we stayed at a beautiful lodge just across the Luangwa River outside the park. Every day we crossed the water in a small motor boat and once on the other side, hopped into cruisers and rode around to see what was out and about that day. I was slightly worried that we would not see as much during our trip as we would if we had waited to go later in the year, because we were going right at the end of rainy season, a time where the grasses and brush would be tall and visibility might not be all that great. However, I was not unhappy in the least about our experience! We spent 4 days in the park and saw plenty – lions (including a 3 month old cub, and a couple mating!), impala, water buck, tons of beautiful birds, cats of various sizes, hippos, crocodiles, elephants, zebras, giraffe, etc.
The package we had at the lodge included two game drives or walks per day, one in the morning, and one in the evening. The night drives were really fun and also a bit scary at times, as that is when we were closest to the lions. A female and her cub walked just a few feet away from our cruiser (which was completely open, I should mention). They were so close we could hear them breathing. I think I was so scared I had to hold Emily’s hand (thanks, Em!)!
This experience was unlike any I have ever had, and it is difficult to communicate in this post the excitement that had me nearly hyperventilating every time we came across a new animal in the park. I vowed that one day, when I have children of my own, this is a vacation I will save up to take them on. The zoo is nice, but after this, I just don’t think it will cut it. If you have reservations about coming to Africa to visit, I hope that this post encourages you to make it happen. Safari is an experience you don’t want to miss!
Pictures coming soon!!!
Hi!!!
Hello from Zambia! I know it seems that I have long forgotten this blog, but I promise I haven’t! Below you will find two posts written back in March, but I held off on posting them as I was waiting for my mother to post the accompanying pictures. She has yet to do so (hint, hint, mom), but I thought I should go ahead with these anyway so that y’all back home would know that I am still alive and doing well! Hope you are doing well too!
NC’WALA
In Februay, I attended NC’WALA, a traditional ceremony for the Ngoni people (the folks in my village are from the Ngoni tribe). I went with some other Peace Corps Volunteers and friends from my village. My family did not attend, as they feel that the ceremony is barbaric because some female participants dance topless. (Their chosen religion, Jehovah’s Witness, has shaped many of their views of traditional practices, some for the better, but also has in many ways robbed them of some rich cultural traditions. This, however, is not something I should discuss further on the blog, so I will stop there : / ). I am so glad that I went to this ceremony. There were thousands of people there, as the Ngoni tribe is also found in many of Zambia’s neighboring countries and people from all over were in attendance. The paramount chief of the Ngoni people was there, as well as President Banda.
The ceremony was mostly dancing done in a huge circle involving men in animal skins wearing bells on their ankles, and topless women chanting, singing and clapping. The dancing is done in a particular pattern of stomping (too difficult for this white girl to attempt) and involved waving of dancing sticks and shields. I believe that the Ngoni people were known for being great hunters and warriors, hence the skins and shields.
To accompany the dancing there was the presentation of a gift to the chief. This year, the gift was a chest freezer and refrigerator. In addition, there was also the slaughter of the sacrificial cow. I was able to get a pretty good seat and was just a few yards away from the cow as this was happening. I didn’t watch, of course, but a friend that was with me videotaped the whole thing and said that the cow was speared all the way through. Ugh! I was told that after the sacrificial killing, all of the important people involved in the ceremony drink the blood. However, I also heard rumors that now-a-days they just pretend to drink it for show.
I took a few pictures and videos, so hopefully, those will be up soon for your viewing pleasure!
Daily Life
I feel like I have yet to give you an idea of what my day to day routine is like in the village, so to give you a better understanding, I have come up with a general itinerary:
5:00-5:30 Awake to roosters crowing and the sound of my Zam Fam starting their day. Usually this involves my 10 year old sister walking past my house on her way to fetch water making ridiculously loud animal noises as she goes, Atate hammering something very noisily, and goats running up on my porch, or rubbing themselves along the sides of my house to scratch an itch. These noises have become very familiar to me now and are my alarm clock to awake and get started with the day.
5:30-6:30 Lay in bed contemplating my day’s schedule, checking email and facebook, etc.
6:30-7:00 Get up, put on my chosen chitenge for the day, wash face, empty chamber pot, and sweep porch (usually covered in dust and goat poop!)
7:00-7:30 Breakfast – usually cereal with powdered milk, bananas or apples with peanut butter, or bread/buns with peanut butter (there is a grocery store in town where I can purchase some of these things) along with whatever fruit is in season in the village – previously mangos and guavas
7:30-1:30 Chores around the house – dishes, fetching water, washing clothes, sweeping, weeding my yard, planning for meetings, starting a fire and cooking lunch (During this time of year, I cannot schedule meetings in the morning, because everyone is busy in their fields. I usually plan for one afternoon meeting per day). (On Wednesday mornings, I will go to the clinic around 8-9 to help with growth monitoring for children under 5 years. I have also started a mothers’ education program and have begun presenting health talks on these days as well.)
1:30-2:00 Lunch with the family or neighbor, depending on the day
2:00-4:00 Meeting (some meetings require biking to, and thus Atate and I will eat an earlier lunch and leave around 12:30)
4ish/5ish Bucket Bath! I have really perfected my technique and use 10 liters of water for bathing
6:30-8:30 Family Time – paying games with the kids, sitting by the fire and helping Amai and the girls cook, eating supper (Occasionally, I will eat by myself or with a friend, but most times I am with the family). My family has one light bulb powered by their solar panels, so we try to eat quickly before the light fades. (during rainy season, it was often too cloudy to provide more than an hour or two of indoor lighting at night)
8:30-9:00 Getting ready for bed, reading, or phone calls home if I have a phone date with one of you : )
By 10pm, if not sooner, I am usually fast asleep.
Pretty exciting, huh?
NC’WALA
In Februay, I attended NC’WALA, a traditional ceremony for the Ngoni people (the folks in my village are from the Ngoni tribe). I went with some other Peace Corps Volunteers and friends from my village. My family did not attend, as they feel that the ceremony is barbaric because some female participants dance topless. (Their chosen religion, Jehovah’s Witness, has shaped many of their views of traditional practices, some for the better, but also has in many ways robbed them of some rich cultural traditions. This, however, is not something I should discuss further on the blog, so I will stop there : / ). I am so glad that I went to this ceremony. There were thousands of people there, as the Ngoni tribe is also found in many of Zambia’s neighboring countries and people from all over were in attendance. The paramount chief of the Ngoni people was there, as well as President Banda.
The ceremony was mostly dancing done in a huge circle involving men in animal skins wearing bells on their ankles, and topless women chanting, singing and clapping. The dancing is done in a particular pattern of stomping (too difficult for this white girl to attempt) and involved waving of dancing sticks and shields. I believe that the Ngoni people were known for being great hunters and warriors, hence the skins and shields.
To accompany the dancing there was the presentation of a gift to the chief. This year, the gift was a chest freezer and refrigerator. In addition, there was also the slaughter of the sacrificial cow. I was able to get a pretty good seat and was just a few yards away from the cow as this was happening. I didn’t watch, of course, but a friend that was with me videotaped the whole thing and said that the cow was speared all the way through. Ugh! I was told that after the sacrificial killing, all of the important people involved in the ceremony drink the blood. However, I also heard rumors that now-a-days they just pretend to drink it for show.
I took a few pictures and videos, so hopefully, those will be up soon for your viewing pleasure!
Daily Life
I feel like I have yet to give you an idea of what my day to day routine is like in the village, so to give you a better understanding, I have come up with a general itinerary:
5:00-5:30 Awake to roosters crowing and the sound of my Zam Fam starting their day. Usually this involves my 10 year old sister walking past my house on her way to fetch water making ridiculously loud animal noises as she goes, Atate hammering something very noisily, and goats running up on my porch, or rubbing themselves along the sides of my house to scratch an itch. These noises have become very familiar to me now and are my alarm clock to awake and get started with the day.
5:30-6:30 Lay in bed contemplating my day’s schedule, checking email and facebook, etc.
6:30-7:00 Get up, put on my chosen chitenge for the day, wash face, empty chamber pot, and sweep porch (usually covered in dust and goat poop!)
7:00-7:30 Breakfast – usually cereal with powdered milk, bananas or apples with peanut butter, or bread/buns with peanut butter (there is a grocery store in town where I can purchase some of these things) along with whatever fruit is in season in the village – previously mangos and guavas
7:30-1:30 Chores around the house – dishes, fetching water, washing clothes, sweeping, weeding my yard, planning for meetings, starting a fire and cooking lunch (During this time of year, I cannot schedule meetings in the morning, because everyone is busy in their fields. I usually plan for one afternoon meeting per day). (On Wednesday mornings, I will go to the clinic around 8-9 to help with growth monitoring for children under 5 years. I have also started a mothers’ education program and have begun presenting health talks on these days as well.)
1:30-2:00 Lunch with the family or neighbor, depending on the day
2:00-4:00 Meeting (some meetings require biking to, and thus Atate and I will eat an earlier lunch and leave around 12:30)
4ish/5ish Bucket Bath! I have really perfected my technique and use 10 liters of water for bathing
6:30-8:30 Family Time – paying games with the kids, sitting by the fire and helping Amai and the girls cook, eating supper (Occasionally, I will eat by myself or with a friend, but most times I am with the family). My family has one light bulb powered by their solar panels, so we try to eat quickly before the light fades. (during rainy season, it was often too cloudy to provide more than an hour or two of indoor lighting at night)
8:30-9:00 Getting ready for bed, reading, or phone calls home if I have a phone date with one of you : )
By 10pm, if not sooner, I am usually fast asleep.
Pretty exciting, huh?
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