African Cup of Nations

Well, it was fun whilst it lasted!

Unfortunately Zambia were knocked out of the African Cup of Nations this evening - they failed to win a game or qualify past the group stages. Despite the outcome, I enjoyed watching them play with the Zambian fans. I managed to catch some of the games here in Kaniki. Not at the local pub since this would have been frowned upon – there is quite a different culture and attitude to drinking here (alcohol is associated with people who are permanently drunk).

Most of the students from the college, who we share the site with, set up a projector to watch the action on a huge screen across the wall of one of their lecture rooms. Rosie and I were invited and fed popcorn. There was a great atmosphere. I think anyone else nearby might have thought that Zambia scored numerous goals. Unfortunately the ball only reached the net twice during three matches! The celebrations were hilarious though. Nearly all the students suddenly jumped out of their seats, some darted around the room, and others whistled or screamed. Of course we Brits clapped and cheered too in our own polite way.

Zambian Team

Occasionally when the digital TV signal was lost and the picture blurred, it was switched over to Zambian TV. The commentary was much quieter and harder to hear and it looked a bit like a programme from the 1980s, with a brown tinge over the screen!

The scores on the doors were:

Zambia vs Congo 1 - 1

Zambia vs Tunisia 1 - 2

Zambia vs Cape Verde 0 – 0

By the last game, it looked unlikely that Zambia would qualify but it was still a possibility. Hopes were high and lots of shouting ensued. Watching the game with the students was definitely more enjoyable than the 0-0 result suggested. Clearly the students were disappointed but I was impressed that they kept a positive attitude.

Apparently the students play sports on Wednesday afternoons, which we have been invited to join. Let’s hope their fun and positivity remains, even if we’re not very good, as it will be volleyball or football rather than my usual sport of netball!

Me and Rosie
(Going out for a curry in town - the first time we've both had properly straightened hair!)

Looking Ahead

‘Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus’

Philippians 3: 12-14

In the busyness of life we don’t often prioritise time to stop and reflect. During the last couple of years I’ve learnt to do this a bit more, particularly in my leadership role at school. I expected that I would have lots more time for it here, observing and pondering life in another culture. It turns out that you can even busy yourself up in the land of the laid back, where people don’t feel the need to multi-task. I learnt today that it is frowned upon to eat whilst walking!

Those that know me well, know that I’m a bit of a night owl and true to form I am up past midnight typing this. I am the queen of procrastination and one of my bad habits is staying up late, depriving myself of sleep. I am determined to change this. Where better to do so than whilst living out in the sticks in Africa?! On a positive note however, once everyone else is asleep I find time to check out my photos and type, which forces me to stop and reflect.

Kaniki, Mufilira Road

The whole of Zambia stopped today. The 20^th January 2015 marked an important day here with elections for a new president. Consequently people stopped to vote. In fact, many people must have walked a considerable distance to Kaniki to vote, as the next polling station along from here was in Ndola, 15km away. These elections also meant a random Tuesday off school for me, hooray!

This morning I stopped for just a moment and read the verse above. Coincidentally, the date 20th January also in fact reminds me of the day that my life turned upside down. Three years ago, I was married, living in Winchester, teaching, enjoying holidays and planning a future. Up until that particular evening, when one conversation with my then husband plunged me into utter turmoil. That might sound dramatic but it is how things felt at the time. Many of you know the details as you lived through it with me.

Three years on and much has changed. I am single, living in Africa, teaching in a very different context and pursuing different dreams. However, much more has changed than just the physical differences; I’m a different person now. By the grace of God, not bitter and broken but healed and happy, supported and encouraged by loads of absolutely wonderful people even though they are thousands of miles away.

Missing all these lovely faces as well as many more!

It's time to forget what is behind and look forward to all that is ahead! :-)

Kapumpe School and Arise Project

Enjoying a shawarma en route into town

Braai with the team

My First Day at School

Well, I loved it! There were lots of positives along with some challenges and plenty of things to improve on. I can already see that in this job I will be learning on the go for a while! A two minute walk to school in the sunshine is certainly a great way to start the day though. School starts at 7.30am here so earlier than at home, but it means we are finished by 1pm.

One of the best moments of the day had to be our arrival at school. It was 7am and most of the children were already there. As soon as they saw Rosie and I approaching, several of them ran over to hug us. Running with such force, they very nearly knocked me over! The children grabbed the bags I was carrying - a watermelon and oranges for the weekly snacks - and insisted on taking them into the classroom for me. I carried a watermelon! (that comment only makes sense if you’re a Dirty Dancing fan!).

Porridge for breakfast

In true African style, the lady who comes cook porridge for the children’s breakfast was late, so breakfast and the rest of the school day ran late too. My teaching began with phonics and then activities for learning through play, quickly immersing me into Key Stage 1 teaching! As most of my previous teaching experience has been in Key State 2, I do have to keep reminding myself that my class have only been at school (and learning English) for a year. However, I am pleased that I will be spending less time marking!

As with any class, the first few days are all about building relationship and making assessments. This was rather fun since I wasn’t always sure all the children understood what I was talking about! Songs worked well though. They even sing grace before eating at snack time as well as before breakfast.

Snack time in Grade 2

The majority of the children live in difficult circumstances. Many are part of the ‘Arise’ project which was set up to support orphans and guardians living in the local community. Some are ‘single orphans’ which means one parent (the breadwinner) has died and others are ‘double orphans’, which means both parents have died. Often grandparents or aunts take in children from their family to live with them. Some of the children are considered particularly vulnerable and this can be due to a number of reasons such as having HIV or an alcoholic parent. A couple of parents of the children are even known to have murdered their partner.

Although health and safety and risk assessments can be over-the-top and at times seem a bit ridiculous in the UK, thank goodness there is a system for child protection. There is no such system here in Zambia and such situations just seem to be ignored, as if they don’t take place.

Smiles from Victor

Alice feeling proud of herself

Joy concentrating hard!

From what I have seen so far within this culture, the expectation is that children learn by rote and understanding is not prioritised. The government school tend to fit sixty (or sometimes many more) children in one class so they often lack thinking skills and problem solving skills because there is little or no opportunity to apply them. Here it is acceptable to shout at other people’s children and some young people carry some huge responsibilities for their age.

Having visited some of the houses where the children live here, I personally think it is pretty amazing how they come into school in the morning. Most come with a clean uniform (even if their shoes are falling apart) and are usually keen to learn and to please.

Angel who can almost spell his name!

Purity practising her writing

Comfort reading a story to a dolly

Our school Kapumpe is very well-resourced compared to schools in Ndola. Many containers of books and equipment have been sent over from the UK and Denmark, where Kaniki University Bible College links back to. It is limited compared to schools at home, but overall I think the classrooms are a good size and provide great learning environments.

Victor again!

Cowboy Comfort!

Skipping is a popular activity at playtime

Grade 1 and 2 classes are situated within the completed school block (building work on the next one is currently underway) along with the school office and the Arise office. It means it is a place where many people come to ask for help or collect provisions, waiting on the benches outside my classroom. With the temperature being so warm, our windows and classroom door remain open so I hope any waiting visitors enjoyed the stories I read to the class at the end of the day!

I wasn't the only one who found the first day at school tiring. These two Grade 1 children were hard to wake up!

Home and Away

Last night I had four different Skype conversations. It was so great to be able to chat to friends and family, give them a virtual tour of my new digs and tell them about my first few days teaching here (post coming soon on this). Technology really does make the world seem smaller, and I think it makes it easier to stay away from home for longer.

I am loving having the opportunity to get to know new people and learning about a different culture. There’s something refreshing about taking a step back from everything you’re used to, realising that the way that we do things isn’t the only way or necessarily the best.

Naively I expected that I would have loads of free time once I was here but time still seems to get sucked up, just in different ways. Most things often take longer here because things break or just aren't efficient. As a team, we also seem to spend more time chatting and eating together, neither of which I mind! Plunging yourself into such a different context can be quite intense but it also means the focus is on what you’re doing rather than what you’re missing. Perhaps you don’t feel homesick when you’re in the place you feel like you’re meant to be at that time. Or maybe that will come later – we shall see! For now I will make the most of being here whilst also getting to hear tales from home. I do love hearing what people are up to and finding out about ‘normal life’ in England. I think it’s funny that the other Brits here think I sound posh; apparently I have a Winchester twang!

All this being said, it’s a shame to miss key upcoming events like my cousin and his fiancée’s (also affectionately known as BobCat) wedding (I hope the plans are going well guys!) and my friend Geraldine’s retirement do. Today also marks my wonderful Nan, Hope Cross’s 90^th birthday. She is one amazing lady! Anyone who has met her will agree that she is one of the most positive people around, so I am confident that she will be enjoying the family celebrations this weekend. Nan suffers from dementia and probably won’t remember where I am without being reminded, but I am pleased that she seemed to understand what I was coming to do in the moment that I told her. I know she would absolutely adore the children here so I told my class about her and we recorded them singing her a message. It captures a little of their personalities…I hope you enjoy it!

Visiting Nan at Christmas

Message for Nan

Highlights of my first week in Kaniki

I’m not sure if ‘Highlights’ is really the right title. There have definitely been lots of great moments over the past week and some funny ones too, but also several challenging moments. However, ‘Low lights’ does not sound right either! I guess it wouldn’t be such an incredible, thought-provoking experience without such challenges. So here are some of my ‘highlights’ from my first week in Zambia:

The weather

·         I love being outside more! In fact, my windows are permanently open, albeit covered by mosquito nets, so it sounds like the jungle at night!

·         The warm weather means I don’t need a jumper. People don’t tend to hang about in the sun here so I don’t have to keep slapping on sun lotion or try and get a tan. Let’s be honest though, even if I did, I’d still look like I glow in the dark compared to the Africans!

·         When it rains here, it really pours. There is also lots of loud thunder and lightning! It doesn’t last long though, and then cools things down so this usually brings some welcome relief from the heat.

Driving, Zambia-style

·         Having never driven an automatic before, let alone a 4x4, driving here has been quite an experience! Zambians rather conveniently drive on the left hand side of the road like we Brits. Well, that’s the official line! In reality, they actually drive on whichever side has less bumps or potholes, only keeping to the left when there is oncoming traffic.

Our wheels

The team

·         Fortunately I get on incredibly well with Rosie, the other teacher from the UK who arrived two days before me. Although she’s a lot younger than me, we can chat for hours. We both brought our hair straighteners with us, although they’ve not had much use yet. We’ve also bonded over sharing chocolate and watching boxsets together in the evening.

Rosie

·         We had a very warm welcome from other volunteers here in Kaniki. One of the Danish volunteers invited us for pancakes one evening, and another had us round for cooked breakfast another day. As many of you know, I do enjoy socialising over food!

Pancake party

The African way

·         Things take a LONG time here! Setting up a new classroom in the UK would usually take a few days. Here it seems to have taken us most of the week, including several occasions when we’ve been preparing resources well into the night! It’s taken a bit of getting used to…online resources are no longer just a click away! One good example is that the school stapler broke whilst we were putting up class displays. It was the only one so it required a trip to town. This meant that Rosie and I drove ourselves into Ndola for the first time in torrential rain. After a 3 hour round trip just to buy a stapler, we stretched the budget and bought two.

Rain water preventing us from getting out of the car on our trip to buy a stapler!

The community

·         Earlier this week we visited some of the Arise orphans who will be starting at our school. We went to see them in their homes in places called Kaniki Extension and Kamalasha. The children were much shyer than I’m sure they will be in the classroom and their homes ranged from mud huts to simple brick houses. Parents insisted that we sat on their makeshift chairs, even if there was not enough for everyone. Apparently it is disrespectful to refuse.

 Goodwin (Grade 1 student)

 Mabel (Grade 2 student - in my class!)

Mabel's house

·         The most sobering moment of the week came when we visited a lady called Charity. Her three sons are single orphans (meaning one parent, the breadwinner, has died) sponsored by Arise, although they attend a different school. Charity has been ill for seven years and recently returned from a month’s stay in hospital where the doctors told her there is nothing more that they can do for her. She has herpes and is almost certainly HIV positive (I also learned that the only question that you would be advised not to ask a Zambian is whether someone has HIV or not. There is still a lot of stigma surrounding it). Charity was extremely thin and frail, yet her legs and feet were hugely swollen. How do you encourage someone in that situation? I think it actually happens the other way round. We heard that on her return from hospital, rather than complaining about her ill health, she thanked God that he had looked after her sons whilst she had been away. Her sons, who have been looking after their mum since a young age, were lovely and polite, and a real credit to her.

Home ‘comforts’

·         Although insignificant in comparison, I am definitely not enjoying the insects in my new home. I’ve had to deal with a range of spiders, millipedes and cockroaches that have crept into our house uninvited. Apparently the sounds of the whack of my flip flop and our cries of annoyance can often be heard next door! After hearing that Rosie found a cockroach in her mosquito net, I am now sleeping with mine tucked in very tightly.

·         Our cold shower has been fixed so we can choose between cold and slightly warm, and afternoons or evenings are the optimum time when shower pressure is best. We’ve also had a couple of power cuts which has meant no water and resorting to a ‘wet wipe shower’. I have learned to leave my torch in a convenient place since our first power cut, when I had to light a candle in order to find it. I felt like someone in the Victorian era!

Well, a few bullet points has turned into a bit of an essay but I hope that this gives you a flavour of the events from my first week. It’s hard to believe I’ve only been here that long!

I do hope you’re all enjoying your insect-free homes ☺

The Journey to Ndola

I am finally here! I arrived safely in Ndola on Saturday 3^rd January. It was certainly a journey of two halves! The first flight from London to Ethiopia was really good. I had extra space as the seats next to me were empty, on what was otherwise a fully booked flight. Travelling alone encouraged me to chat to others and I met some interesting people – an elderly couple working as missionaries in Ethiopia, a lady who set up the charity ‘Project Pencil Case’ and an Israeli man who had lived all over the world.

The second flight from Ethiopia to Ndola (via the Congo) was definitely not so enjoyable. In fact, it could not have been over soon enough! Before the plane even took off, I started throwing up and continued for most of the four hour journey. Urgh!!! Ironically, I wasn’t ill at all during the turbulence so I could only put it down to the plane food from the previous flight. Thanks Ethiopian Airlines. I felt extremely sorry for the passengers around me! As you can imagine, it was such a relief when we did finally land in Ndola.

It has taken three months of ridiculously busy preparation in order to get here. So much so, that right up until the moment we left for the airport, all of my family were doing jobs that they’d been roped into helping with! Dad was typing letters; Mum was cutting and laminating resources; Rhi was downloading software onto my laptop and Rach was setting up this blog! My last term at school had been pretty crazy, whilst also moving out, letting my flat, changing my name, and most importantly, squeezing in time to see lots of you lovely people. Although my decision to spend a year in Zambia was made only a short time ago, it was not out of the blue as it might have seemed. My previous visits to Africa (although now over ten years ago!) inspired me.

When I was nineteen, I visited Africa for the first time. I spent two weeks with a team in Meru, Kenya. One of the projects we helped with was a feeding programme for the Samburu tribe. The following summer, my sister Rhi and I, joined a ‘Soapbox’ mission team to Kenya where we worked in the Kibera slum for three weeks helping to build a clinic. Then during the summer before my final year at uni, I went to Grabouw, near Cape Town, in South Africa. There I got involved in various community projects run by the local church (painting the building, helping in a crèche, pre-schools, and a home for children with Cerebral Palsy). There is definitely something about Africa that draws you back!

You may well have noticed that I love to travel! One of the things that appealed to me about choosing teaching as a career was that it’s a skill that could take you anywhere in the world…and the school holidays help with this! J Last year, when I looked into teaching opportunities abroad, I felt overwhelmed by the numerous possibilities available. I thought about it (which takes a while, if you’re as indecisive as me) and decided that I wanted to go somewhere where I could fill a need. I prayed about it and a week or so later, I received an email from a uni friend who was out in Zambia. Not only did she say that they needed a teacher at their school but they also wanted someone who would help with the project they run for orphans in the local area. It sounded right up my street!

I knew I wanted to get involved in working with orphan children. Sometimes I think the things that pull at our heart strings come from positive experiences in our lives, sometimes from difficult struggles we have seen or been through. For me, I think this tug to work with children in this context came from both. I have had the privilege of growing up in a very loving and supportive family and it is something that I think every child should have. On the other hand, I have in the past taught children that have not been so blessed, and I’ve experienced my own sense of abandonment, when my husband left me. I guess I have found that you can use your experiences to encourage other people (or that God can use you, even in your brokenness, depending on what you believe). It provokes you to want to make a difference somehow.

So, after nearly ten years of teaching and developing my skills in the UK, I am ready for Africa!!!

Farewell England!

After a very busy week of preparations and packing until the early hours of this morning, I am finally setting off.

I'll be flying to Addis Ababa in Ethiopia to change planes and then arriving in Ndola tomorrow afternoon. You can add your email address in the subscription box on the top right of my blog if you want to receive the updates by email.

Thank you for all the kind messages! xx