Hey Everybody,
Hope all is well in the States. Things here have been really exciting lately. I just returned from a 10 day trip to Tanzania, which included visits to Dar es Salaam and the Island of Zanzibar. We took the train from Kasama, which took about 2 days of being jostled and crammed. However, the train runs through some very scenic parts of Zambia and Tanzania, and even a game park towards the end of the ride. It was very interesting to see other parts of Sub-Saharan Africa outside of Zambia. The development and standard of living (including houses, roads, transport, etc.) were considerably improved as we moved away from Zambia and into mainland Tanzania. After traveling a bit it has become evident that Zambia is probably the most ‘bush’ (least developed) country that Peace Corps sends volunteers. This is exactly what I signed on for, and I wouldn’t change it. However, it was interesting to gain some perspective about the development neighboring countries and see how much easier life for PC Volunteers elsewhere is in comparison to Zambian volunteers.
After arriving in Dar, we traveled to the beach for a few days, and then went to the Island of Zanzibar for a music festival. The festival was incredible – lots of local African music with a really cool vibe and an interesting scene. The city of Stonetown (where the festival is held) is very beautiful. It is an incredible mix of Muslim and Indigenous Tanzania culture, which blend peacefully – resulting in a very interesting atmosphere with some outstanding architecture (I’ll post pictures later). Some of my favorite moments in the trip were just wandering around the city, getting lost and just observing people.
After the festival we headed to the secluded beaches of Northern Zanzibar – one of the most picturesque places I have ever seen. I was told the clear, blue-green waters with white, sandy beaches were similar to those of the Caribbean. Regardless, it is one of the most beautiful places I have ever visited. The scene there was much more relaxed, but we still managed to party a little.
On the train home, we saw Elephants, Zebras, Monkeys, and lots of Gazelles while traveling through the game park. We even saw a herd of Wildebeests attacked by 3 Lions! It was a very exciting thing to see, and also extremely unlikely, since the train was moving about 40 MPH throughout the whole park. It was a great end to a perfect trip.
Now that I’m back in Kasama, I’m really looking forward to getting back in the Village for a few months of solid work. The rains are about to subside, and that means that the cold season is about to start. This is an ideal time to dig fish ponds and motivate the community of Chibo.
The adjustment back to village life is always a little bit difficult – mostly because of the lack of satisfying social interaction. Traveling and meeting lots and lots of new people is something I really enjoy. It will take a few days of decompression before I am once again used to the slow pace of the village life. However, I’m looking forward to spending time with my Zambian family, and really getting some headway on my Peace Corps objectives.
I hope everyone is coping with the Recession in America. If things get too bad – you all have a place to stay in Zambia, where you can live for about $.50 a day! Haha.
My best to everyone, and please write/email if you get a chance. I love hearing from everyone since you are all in my thoughts.
- Hos
Monday, February 23, 2009
Monday, February 2, 2009
February Rains
Hey everybody,
Hope the failing economy isn't affecting you too negatively back home. Apparently things are really sliding, and the effects are noticeable now. I wish you all the best with everything, and you are all in my thoughts. I guess, to put a positive spin on things from the bottom side of the world, I chose a wonderful time to put off getting a real job and travel to Africa. While things here are not much better with regards to economic times and employment (in fact they are drastically worse), life here is going well.
I spent about 2 weeks in Lusaka, the provincial capital, doing some training with the other Peace Corps Volunteers that came into country at the same time as me (in total there was about 30 of us). The training consisted of instruction in secondary projects we can start in our villages - including HIV/AIDS trainings, teaching, sustainable farming techniques, etc. The idea is that we will take our community analysis skills to our communities, and give the villagers the tools and knowledge to analyze their own problems, and help them find sustainable solutions for these problems. I learned a lot during this time of training, and I've come to realize that the best way to accomplish positive change within my community is just to enable others to do things for themselves. This has been a bit difficult at first, as I am a bit of a control freak and could make faster headway doing things myself. However, the idea is that while this process is a bit slower, once I return to America my village will remain with the tools which enable them to analyze and solve their own problems, thus it will be 'sustainable' as they won't need another PC volunteer.
The second part of the training involved a 'counterpart' (community partner) from each of our respective villages. I brought my host father, and for 2 days of very full training the group analyzed the skills and techniques which should be used to bring positive change to our communities. Overall it was a very rewarding experience, and upon returning to my Village my counterpart has been very excited to begin working on projects to improve village life. My role in my village has changed a bit now from a lecturer and leader to a facilitator. Its a fine line, but basically when I make meetings now I ask questions to encourage the villagers to find solutions, rather than offer the solutions myself. Again this can be a bit frustrating, but we are making some headway and have identified several projects which may improve life for those in Chibo. As with anything in Zambia, these projects will take a long time, so we aren't rushing into anything.
While in Lusaka myself and 2 other RAP volunteers got to participate in the planning of a fish pond at a local wildlife conservatory. This was a great experience, for more than one reason. We got to watch lions and cheetahs feed, which was definately impressive. We also managed a sweet experiement that brought me back to the early 1990's and one of my favorite cartoon films - Riki Tiki Tavi. We were planning the site location for the demonstration pond at the conservatory with another volunteer when we found a baby spitting cobra slithering across our path. After watching the cobra stand on its midsection and spread its hood, we managed to catch the snake with a stick and force it into a bucket. At that point, we carried it to the Mongoose exhibit, and released the snake inside. Watching a Mongoose hunt down and kill the snake was very amusing - albeit a bit unfair for the spitting cobra. Still, once you actually see a poisonous snake face-to-face, the whole simpathy, animal rights sentiment really flies out the window (at least for me). Plus, my justification is that the workers at the park would have just killed it anyways - this seemed like a more dignified death (I'll admit that term is a bit oxymoronic). We are hoping to return to the conservatory within the next few months to begin construction of the demonstration fish pond and arrange for its management and stocking.
In one week I'll be headed to Zanzibar - an Island off the coast of Tanzania - for another vacation. There is a music festival which will be extremely unique and exciting, and hanging out on the beach will be a nice break. While the timing of this vacation isn't perfect because it breaks my momentum in my community a bit, the music festival is only once per year and I really want to attend. Upon returning, I'll be teaching fish farming to 8th and 9th graders 1 day a week, and also doing HIV/Aids training with these students, in addition to the fish farming trainings and programs in which I'm already participating. All in all, life in Chibo is going very well and I'm managing to stay very busy. When I'm not working with fish farmers, I'm usually playing guitar or reading. Time in a Zambian village has definately given me a new respect for 'downtime' and the appreciation of television and mindless entertainment.
On that note, myself and 9 other volunteers managed to pull an all-nighter last night to watch the Superbowl. The game, as you probably all know, was very exciting. While i'd like to have seen less Referee involvement, it was definately a nice slice of home to watch some good old 'American Football'.
All my best to everyone back home, I hope I can speak with you all soon
- Hos
Hope the failing economy isn't affecting you too negatively back home. Apparently things are really sliding, and the effects are noticeable now. I wish you all the best with everything, and you are all in my thoughts. I guess, to put a positive spin on things from the bottom side of the world, I chose a wonderful time to put off getting a real job and travel to Africa. While things here are not much better with regards to economic times and employment (in fact they are drastically worse), life here is going well.
I spent about 2 weeks in Lusaka, the provincial capital, doing some training with the other Peace Corps Volunteers that came into country at the same time as me (in total there was about 30 of us). The training consisted of instruction in secondary projects we can start in our villages - including HIV/AIDS trainings, teaching, sustainable farming techniques, etc. The idea is that we will take our community analysis skills to our communities, and give the villagers the tools and knowledge to analyze their own problems, and help them find sustainable solutions for these problems. I learned a lot during this time of training, and I've come to realize that the best way to accomplish positive change within my community is just to enable others to do things for themselves. This has been a bit difficult at first, as I am a bit of a control freak and could make faster headway doing things myself. However, the idea is that while this process is a bit slower, once I return to America my village will remain with the tools which enable them to analyze and solve their own problems, thus it will be 'sustainable' as they won't need another PC volunteer.
The second part of the training involved a 'counterpart' (community partner) from each of our respective villages. I brought my host father, and for 2 days of very full training the group analyzed the skills and techniques which should be used to bring positive change to our communities. Overall it was a very rewarding experience, and upon returning to my Village my counterpart has been very excited to begin working on projects to improve village life. My role in my village has changed a bit now from a lecturer and leader to a facilitator. Its a fine line, but basically when I make meetings now I ask questions to encourage the villagers to find solutions, rather than offer the solutions myself. Again this can be a bit frustrating, but we are making some headway and have identified several projects which may improve life for those in Chibo. As with anything in Zambia, these projects will take a long time, so we aren't rushing into anything.
While in Lusaka myself and 2 other RAP volunteers got to participate in the planning of a fish pond at a local wildlife conservatory. This was a great experience, for more than one reason. We got to watch lions and cheetahs feed, which was definately impressive. We also managed a sweet experiement that brought me back to the early 1990's and one of my favorite cartoon films - Riki Tiki Tavi. We were planning the site location for the demonstration pond at the conservatory with another volunteer when we found a baby spitting cobra slithering across our path. After watching the cobra stand on its midsection and spread its hood, we managed to catch the snake with a stick and force it into a bucket. At that point, we carried it to the Mongoose exhibit, and released the snake inside. Watching a Mongoose hunt down and kill the snake was very amusing - albeit a bit unfair for the spitting cobra. Still, once you actually see a poisonous snake face-to-face, the whole simpathy, animal rights sentiment really flies out the window (at least for me). Plus, my justification is that the workers at the park would have just killed it anyways - this seemed like a more dignified death (I'll admit that term is a bit oxymoronic). We are hoping to return to the conservatory within the next few months to begin construction of the demonstration fish pond and arrange for its management and stocking.
In one week I'll be headed to Zanzibar - an Island off the coast of Tanzania - for another vacation. There is a music festival which will be extremely unique and exciting, and hanging out on the beach will be a nice break. While the timing of this vacation isn't perfect because it breaks my momentum in my community a bit, the music festival is only once per year and I really want to attend. Upon returning, I'll be teaching fish farming to 8th and 9th graders 1 day a week, and also doing HIV/Aids training with these students, in addition to the fish farming trainings and programs in which I'm already participating. All in all, life in Chibo is going very well and I'm managing to stay very busy. When I'm not working with fish farmers, I'm usually playing guitar or reading. Time in a Zambian village has definately given me a new respect for 'downtime' and the appreciation of television and mindless entertainment.
On that note, myself and 9 other volunteers managed to pull an all-nighter last night to watch the Superbowl. The game, as you probably all know, was very exciting. While i'd like to have seen less Referee involvement, it was definately a nice slice of home to watch some good old 'American Football'.
All my best to everyone back home, I hope I can speak with you all soon
- Hos
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