Few Days Before Christmas Away from Home

Two days from now is Christmas Day and one night away is Christmas Eve. The occasion is eating me and my emotions, and as if not contented with my poignant feeling while writing this, I let Christmas songs play on my laptop. Being away from home at this time of the year I guess is the most difficult moment in my volunteer life. Today, I would have been busy preparing menu for the Christmas Eve, arranging wrapped gifts for distribution on Christmas Day, ensuring that house is ready to receive guests. I am trying to be happy and ignore feeling homesick but I can’t help it. I went to Shoprite to shop for food on Christmas Eve, and was excited unpacking the grocery bags. I rested for a while and decided to cook real food for dinner. I was happy with the food I prepared but again, while having dinner I was humming a Christmas song and when I realized what I was doing, I paused, cupped my head with my hands and tried to control my tears from falling. I felt alone again, I was thinking how I would cope with my feelings, it’s difficult, and really challenging. I miss mama, I miss my cousins, I miss my friends, I miss home, I miss my place, I miss everything. There’s no one near me to share with how I am feeling, long distance calls is expensive, besides, the more I will miss home if I talk to anyone from the Philippines. So I just succumbed to my feelings with a prayer that I’ll be strong enough to surpass this volunteer’s life complexity, convincing myself that everything’s going to be alright and Christmas day will pass by just like any ordinary day.

Strange Concepts....Sense of Urgency and Priority

Assisting my NGO in proposal writing as agreed upon during my induction at the office is most welcome as long as it will not affect my major tasks and responsibilities as Monitoring and Evaluation Advisor. Three weeks have passed and I have reviewed already the guidelines and even tried to browse on-line since applications will be submitted through the net. I have given my opinion regarding its preparation, primarily saying that I can write proposal on my own but my job is not supposed to be this way but rather through sharing skills; besides, a proposal should be based on the context of Zambia and therefore, the locals have more knowledge on how to go about it. I also said that several heads are better than one, so it is important that people sit together and discuss how to proceed with it.

My idea regarding the preparation was accepted and so, schedules were set on its preparation. Saturday and Sunday were both cancelled due to power service interruptions so it was reset to Monday, but then other things came up so the people in-charge to discuss the proposal became busy, whatever it was I would say, was not in the priority list of the tasks at hand. The day ended doing nothing about it. Tuesday came; the people in charge to help in proposal preparation were busy as usual with things which are not priority. What I find really difficult to understand is for people to determine which tasks are urgent and which should be the priority. Whenever somebody would come with any agenda, it will be attended to. And then, another visitor would arrive for whatever reason, and then attention will be deviated to that person until time has gone without accomplishing the tasks at hand for the day. It’s frustrating, sickening and tiring and being a volunteer, if you get affected, you will be the loser. Entertaining the feeling of frustration from work mixed with personal emotions would really drive me mad. Therefore, to keep myself composed, I make conscious effort to process within myself such situations. I just hope that in my two -year stay in this organization, I would be able to influence and develop in them the sense of urgency and priority.

My Laptop My Bestfriend

I was not expecting that my laptop is going to be my best friend in Zambia. Fr. Richard told me once, a friend who cannot respond and react. I call it my best friend because I turn to it whenever I feel down and bored, I switch it to watch film, listen to music and most of all, I talk to it through my stories. Blogging is supposed to be stories about the place as the title goes but I guess it can also be true figuratively that I am taking the road less travelled, that includes life which I guess somebody who is not brave enough would take. Power service interruption is normal in Chipata, it is called load shedding but on Saturday—the 20th of December, it took the whole day. I failed to cook breakfast and lunch because load shedding, which I am now used to, usually takes 2 hours. I took some crisps “junk foods”---Filipino English and some biscuits but these foods failed to substitute real food, naturally it did not appease my hunger. Fortunately, Fr. Richard gave me a call and unashamedly told him I was hungry, to the rescue of the Father’s House, I took lunch there. I am now getting used to nshima, pumpkin leaves and beef/chicken cooked in tomatoes which until now I could not copy despite the efforts because I really liked the way it is cooked. I stayed for a while after eating hoping that the power will be back but it came at six o’clock in the evening. But I left an hour after eating because it seemed hopeless waiting. I finished a book while taking naps in-between. The day ended like this.

The next day, I was well-prepared. I went for prayers and took some food with me with a plan that I would stay at the office the whole day, surfing the net and sending out Christmas greetings--- By the way, Caritas Office is just across the Mchini Parish---unfortunately, after the mass, power went off. I waited for 2 hours but again I was disappointed. Power was back at 4 o’clock in the afternoon. Again, I was reading a book wherein I fall asleep which lasted for 3 hours, something I don’t normally do in the Philippines. I have to force myself out of the bed because I don’t want to sleep longer; getting out of bed, I found the power was back. So hurriedly, I put the rice cooker and just when I was about to wash the rice, I found out that there’s no water in the tap. I haven’t had a lunch, could not have it from the Father’s House because it’s too much to eat from there every day. I have to share the costs then, though the priests are very welcoming. I waited for the water but I failed, after two hours of waiting I decided to just use the water from my water filter. As I am writing this, I am cooking the rice.

Coping up when you are away from home is difficult, I tell you. However, as I always say, I have made this decision. So, I have to exert efforts and try harder to make this work. I was supposed to join other volunteers to Malawi but due to visa matters, I failed; although, I am still hoping to follow after Christmas. The rest of my volunteer friends don’t have to bother themselves with visa to Malawi because their countries are members or I would rather say, initiated the Commonwealth countries. I asked myself should I feel bad that Philippines is not a member on situations like this? Or I should be happy it is not. Well, certainly I feel proud to be a Filipino and happy of the latter.

Christmas---reality bites. It’s only four days away. I don’t want to feel it, away from home. Alone in this part of the world, it’s too much to think about. I am trying to control my emotions, not to let the situation affect me but I guess I have to face it whether I like it or not, however, it depends so much on me how I will do it. Sometimes, I feel that life is not fair, I have come this far for a reason, but I could say it has failed me in this respect. As a consolation, two Filipinos will be joining me. So we would be celebrating the noche buena together, and perhaps make each other happy and enjoy Christmas in Zambia.

People Come and Go...and my sad experience with a cab

Goodbye is not easy but it is a reality that everyone must face whether or not a person likes it. Two months ago, I arrived in Chipata with two other volunteers from the UK but I travelled from Lusaka with a colleague who would also be working with the diocese of Chipata for two months. Being both from the diocese binds us together and with another volunteer we became friends, we hang-out and would always make sure that we don’t miss each other on any occasion, especially the simple pleasures in Chipata. We have explored different places where we can have mosi ( a local beer) which really kept us something to do aside from the fact that it was also our bonding moments together. Two months have passed; it’s time to leave and fly back home. And one of the usual things to do is have a leaving party. It’s exciting to prepare parties although it was sad to know that this is particularly a goodbye party.

The party took place in one of the volunteer’s house. Preparations as well took there. Since my place is around 2 kilometers from the party place, I decided to take a taxi so as not to bother other volunteers to pick me from home. Bravely, around 12 noon, I went by the roadside and waited for a cab. In Zambia, getting a cab is a matter of guessing because you wouldn’t know which car is a taxi and which one is not because they are painted in different colors. The law says taxi should be painted blue but, according to people, because this is the color of the ruling party of the government, the opposition was saying that it’s part of the political campaign so naturally people were not happy about it; in short, some taxis were not painted in blue.

As I have said, getting a taxi is a game of chance, I stood by the road waiting for any vehicle to stop and ask if I wanted a ride. After fifteen minutes or less, a taxi coming from the opposite direction stopped by asking if I wanted a ride. I said yes and gave direction to my destination. I hopped in. Zambians are friendly; yes it’s true, until that day. Upon settling in the passengers’ seat, the taxi driver greeted me with how are you, so I said I am fine, thank you but it’s just so hot outside because it took me a while to get a taxi. Sincerely, this was the only thing I said. For no apparent reason at all, the taxi driver was so angry and looked back at me, told me in a loud voice to get out of the car. To be exact “in Jesus’ name, get out of my car!”, trying to be brave, I told the taxi driver, I can’t understand you, did I say anything wrong, did I do something bad?. Insistently, the taxi driver repeated in a very loud voice that I get out of the car. Scared to death, I came out of the car. I came out of the car feeling scared, lost and alone. As if not happy with what he did to me, the taxi driver called upon a drunk man and said something to him, I assumed nothing good because the same drunk man was instructing the children approaching to walk fast away from me, although it was in their local language, I figured out what he said because walk fast was said in English. Still not satisfied, the taxi driver found a group of women along the road, talked to them, probably about me again. I wanted to cry and scream but I managed to convince myself to be strong. I don’t want to get a taxi anymore but I have to be with my friends because I needed somebody to talk to. After a few minutes, another cab stopped by. I bravely hopped in and tried to be quiet and prayed. As soon as I reached my friend’s house, all 3 of them were looking at me, I was on the verge of crying and shaking. I narrated my experience and I felt somehow good after talking to them but the memory lingered in my mind. They assured me that it has nothing to do with my character and some people are really mean, so charge to experience what happened to me.

The following morning, I was traumatized, I don’t want to go out and for two weeks now, memories keep coming back. I am still scared. I don’t want to go out with a cab. I shared my experience to some of my colleagues. They all said it was an unfortunate experience. However, they related it to Satanism, rumors were spreading in Chipata that Satanists are present. Probably, the taxi driver was a Satanist who has seen me covered with God’s grace and could not stand my presence with him. So, it was his way of chasing me away. Good consolation since 3 of them assured me with the same reasons. Fr. Richard even said I could ask the Bishop when I meet him because he had similar experience in Lusaka. They were concerned about me but it was more difficult to process my experience within myself. This is one thing I have to keep to myself without telling people back home so they would not be worrying but certainly it would be one of the stories I would tell them when I go back to the Philippines.

Safari in Africa

It’s a dream come true for me! I have never thought in my life that I would be able to do real safari in Africa. For someone who spent half of her career in environment development work, such opportunity is rare; therefore a great fulfillment. Less than 3 weeks in placement, I couldn’t resist joining other volunteers to a safari, thinking that it might be difficult to organize it by myself. The destination-- South Luangwa National Park, the second largest national park in Zambia in terms of size but number one in fauna diversity.

For a first-timer like me, I had the impressions that it was a long travel which was more than the 2-hour drive people claim to be. Apart from this, the road was also bumpy which I think made the trip longer. I tried to relax my body to avoid feeling the bumps and was relieved that there was enough room for two people in the car. We stayed at Condote Guest House, which is one of the many ventures of Chipata Diocese. It has rows of self-contained rooms and twin-bed rooms with common toilet and shower. Monkeys were all over the place climbing and hanging on the trees. The guest house was simple but comfortable and one of the cheapest in town because of its location outside the national park. Most of the guest houses are within the national park and normally charge higher.

The first thing done was pay entrance to the park to save time for the early start of the next day’s safari and also book for the night safari. Private vehicles are not allowed inside the park during night time. The next day was really an early start. Luangwa National Park is located in a valley, different from the Philippines because to see animals, you have to trek or climb up mountains, unlike here, animals are roaming around. The vegetation is characterized by medium tall trees (apologies to my terrestrial professors for not able to call them the proper way!), I know that Africa has its own name for its type of forests, but again I cannot remember it. Since October is the hottest month in Zambia, the vegetation of Luangwa National Park was brown with little patches of green. I was excited to hop in the safari car and while on it, my eyes were widely open every time there is sighting of animals. I enjoyed watching the animals wandering around the bush. I wish I have an SLR camera because my digital camera failed to capture the birds and even taking photos of animals from a distance. Rules and regulations on getting off the vehicle are strictly observed. Some of the animals I have seen, as far as I can identify and name included elephants, which has a big population, monkeys, baboons, hippopotamus, rhinoceros, deer, wild buffalos, again a big population, impalas which were seen everywhere, my favorite giraffes and zebras. Although at the end of the day, I was disappointed for not seeing the king of the jungle. However, it didn’t mean all hopes were gone because the safari operators assured us that we would see them during the night safari.

The night safari was another wonderful experience. For four hours, we were taken around to see animals but primarily the target was lions. The same animals we spotted during the day were seen although better in the sense that we found them in assembly. The birds were busy chirping reminding me of one of our guests in LIKAS who can identify birds by the sound of it. I was amazed with the nice colors of birds and even the colorful butterflies. Almost giving-up for the night, it was on the last hour of the night safari that we spotted lions, also in group, like a family because there were big ones and lioness as called by our safari guide. The King of the Jungle finally showed up and we were happy; however, excitement didn’t end with just the lions because we also spotted leopard and hyenas. My safari buddies and I were all happy as we drove back to the guest house because we have seen the animals that we wanted to see. The only regret I have was, failing to pose with the giraffes and zebras. Well, I still have enough time to go back to the park and the next time, I will try my best to capture moments with some of the animals.

When the wheel of life is down...

Today is the lowest point in my two-month stay in Zambia. I just felt that things were out of my hand, I felt bad that I cannot do simple things and manage simple tasks. My planned trip to one of the places in Eastern province was cancelled, I was not able to join my friends to another district, I missed my boyfriend on line, I was disappointed with my cleaner…I was helpless and I felt invalid. I have not yet fully recovered over the death of my closest cousin, a stepsister in the ICU…emotions have been piling up. Then, the burst of emotions got out of hand. I forgot that I am in Zambia, that the Aydel who is used to getting what she wants, the Aydel who was surrounded by people to do things for her, the Aydel who can always turn to friends and family to talk to, the Aydel who used to live in the Philippines….has to adjust to a new life, thousands of miles away from home.

From office, I went home with a heavy heart, I cried in front of Father Richard when I can no longer control my emotions. Father Richard is a very gentle person but when he told me that he failed to understand my emotions, the shallow tears just fall down from my eyes. In my short stay in Zambia, he has made my life easy. He is approachable and accommodating and I remember one guy who told me that if you don’t get along with him, there’s something wrong with your personality because he is a person whom you would easily get along with. So his failure to understand my reactions affected me so much.

Reflecting upon my behavior and reaction, I realized that in my 30 plus years in this world, it was the first time that I felt and behaved that way. But I guess with my decision to come to Zambia, I have to take things with maturity, though I am also a human being with heart and mind that sometimes, emotions dominate the rationale thinking. Life away from home is hard, much as I want to talk to family and friends back home, it’s not possible because it’s very expensive and it’s always a struggle to get connected. I have to be satisfied with the maximum of 10 minutes talking to them on phone every week.

Life has never made me strong, I cannot understand but it’s making me weak. I don’t know if the decisions I make leads me towards the life I want. I have made great sacrifices to come to this place with one major motivation, so I always ask myself, is it worth it? It seems to me that I didn’t make the right decisions but I hope as the months pass by, life in Zambia would prove me wrong. I need to strengthen my faith and keep praying that things would turn out the way I wanted them to be.

Reflection

It was a good point to reflect on what Fr. Richard had said, what motivates you to work in Caritas? and as a reflection, I have to ask myself what was the deciding factor for me for taking this post with Caritas, is it the nature of the organization or the job. Before leaving the Philippines, they were both the motivating factors for choosing Caritas. For some reasons, I have not been active in church although from time to time I would help in some aspects whenever I am needed in my parish. Just before I left the Philippines, I was rushing a task assigned to me since I have been doing it for the church many years back and to take advantage of it, I have to complete the work before flying to Zambia. It was good to hear from the priest the appreciation over the task completed because really I spent many late nights sleep just to complete the work rather than spending it with my family, relatives and friends since I will be out for a period of two years.

Jokingly, I was telling my priest friend that God is putting me on the right direction; maybe I would be going to continue my duties and obligations as a Catholic. Several times due to some circumstances in my life, I have to question God’s decisions over the things happening in my life. At certain point, I have doubted God because despite all the efforts exerted to faithfully perform my duties and obligations as a Catholic, things never happen the way I have prayed and wanted. Although, there are always awakening points that would remind me how God loves me and true enough, I just have to look at the brighter side of things.

My being in Caritas strengthened my faith. God led me to this organization because I have a mission in this organization and in Zambia. It is good to be in a place I called “I belong” as a Catholic; there is no reason for me to skip the Holy Eucharist every Sunday and perform my other duties as a Catholic. The short interaction I have with the Fathers in Chipata, made me realize many things. There may be differences from the Fathers back home but I surely admire the simple lifestyle of the Parish, their commitment and zeal of faith. These things I have shared with my friends with a prayer that I hope my first impression lasts. My mission in Caritas is to serve the people of Zambia in my own little way through sharing my skills in order to change lives. Leaving behind my family, relatives and friends and the comforts of home are great sacrifices I took. Being in Caritas is a mutual benefit, I share my knowledge and skills in development work and in return, I learn from the people and culture, and it strengthens my faith.

Welcome to Chipata

Travel. The long, straight road to Chipata traversing the Great East Road…so called because it is the road leading to Malawi. After five hours of waiting for the driver to pick me and another volunteer for Chipata diocese, off we went to travel squeezed on the front seat of the land rover since there were people who hitched a ride. After two stops for water (only!), we reached Chipata at 17:30 (have to get used to their time!) summing up the 6-hour drive. I was so tired and very hungry and I am usually unpleasant when hungry. My first destination was the convent (called Father’s House in this part of the world). The people I found at the Father’s house were very helpful, I managed to unload my suitcases quickly because everyone helped. However, without minding where my things were going, I asked the driver if I was going to stay for the night in a father’s house, which was humbly replied that the Executive Director would take me to my house. I asked one of the boys helping me with my luggages where he was taking my bags who said that they are in a safe place, and asking me what was my problem. As I said, I am bad when hungry, so in a sarcastic manner, I said; my problem is I am tired and hungry! Only to know the following day that I was mean to a priest, the parish priest! After few minutes I was taken to my house with another car behind with Father Richard on the driver’s seat, the Executive Director of Caritas! After unloading my things and showing the rest of the house, we went to eat!!! It was dinner in a local restaurant that was owned by Indians. Father Richard was very helpful and kind, he helped me fix my mosquito net before leaving me at the house. Reality sunk in again, I am home alone. I prayed that I would manage to sleep in a big house.

My House. Located in the middle of a big plot of land in an area which is just starting development, which appears like a subdivision in my jargon. Houses are big and construction is on-going. My house is newly-constructed, in fact I am the first occupant, four-bedroom two of which are self-contained rooms, a seating room, separate rooms for dining and kitchen. My room in particular is spacious and it has a bathtub. Curtains were already hung when I found it and the basic furnishings necessary during my stay. Literally spacious because the furnishings are very minimal and I don’t think I would be able to fill it during my stay. The lawn still needs landscaping and gardening, this one I promise to myself I would help improve.

The Place. Chipata is a quiet, small town referring to its residents but big when it comes to geographic area. It is complete with basic facilities for communications, shopping, sports, dining, transport and recreation. Located in the Northern part of Zambia, Chipata is the capital of the Eastern province, 15-minute drive to the border by car and 2-hour drive to Lilongwe, the capital of Malawi. My host in this part of Zambia is the Catholic Diocese of Chipata through Caritas- Chipata. I would be interacting with people from the church aside from the beneficiaries of the various programs and services of Caritas.

The Fathers. I was adopted by the parish for 4 days because I have to eat at the Father’s House during those days when I didn’t have my fridge and cooker yet in my place. I learned to eat Zambian’s staple food called nshima, which is made of maize flour. It’s heavy on stomach, very good for carbo-loading. In fact, during the succeeding meals, I only have to take half of its serving. It’s good to pair with any type of dish like fish, vegetables and meat. My short interaction with the fathers in Zambia made me realize a lot of things about this vocation. Lifestyle-wise, fathers here are different from the priests in my country. Fathers in Zambia live with the community, share rooms with absence of all the perks I have seen in the living quarters of the priests back home. Everything here is communal yet it couldn’t be presumed that the parish/diocese and the fathers are poor because it is definitely enjoying the privilege a church would have in any part of the world. Moreover, the development work it is providing to the people is admirable. The spirit of helping each other among the parishes is obviously practiced, and the commitment of the fathers is worth emulating. These are my first impressions, I could be wrong as the time passes by and as I stay longer in this place but I hope I wouldn’t be. I hope first impressions last.

In Country Induction

I could not put a date on this entry since I missed so many days because our in-country training has been very busy because of the different sessions squeezed in 5 days! Gender and culture in Zambia, history of Zambia and, National volunteering, HIV and AIDS in Zambia, monitoring and evaluation, etc. I would not be dwelling so much on the details of each session but let me share what struck me most during each session. Zambia like any other countries has its own story to tell when it comes to fighting for freedom. It has own heroes that lead the battle to achieve freedom, and this year, Zambia is celebrating its 40th year of independence. It was striking to know that Zambian currency was once higher than the value of a US$ during the early years of independence specifically during the time when the price of copper was very high in the world market. Copper, is the major contributor to the country’s economy, one of the regions in Zambia in fact is called Copperbelt which goes by the name because of the availability of copper in the entire province. However, the price of copper went down which affected the economy of the country, Zambia started to “know” the international money-lending institutions and due to other political reasons, its economy continuously went down. In addition to this, the HIV and AIDS epidemic slowly affected the entire nation in several aspects. As mentioned during the lecture on gender and culture in Zambia, volunteers are not discouraged to fall in love or engage in sexual affairs; however, it has always to be kept in mind “treat every Zambian as HIV/AIDS positive”, personally I do not agree to this generalization but on the other hand, this is a way of reminding oneself of the reality of HIV and AIDS, and should therefore take extra caution on this matter. During the session on HIV and AIDS, two
PLHWA were present to share their experiences and how they managed their condition. During the session on Culture ‘in’ Zambia, I was confused how family was explained. If Filipinos are extended, Zambia is much more extended; aunties can be mothers while uncles can be fathers, etc.

Parties! During the course of the week, the British High Commission in Zambia through the High Commissioner hosted a cocktail party for volunteers. It also coincided with the 50th founding anniversary of VSO global and I learned that night that VSO Zambia was among the first five countries VSO volunteers served. It was a nice party, I got the chance to meet serving volunteers, Zambians and other nationals. The High Commissioner was well-knowledgeable about what VSO is doing that was proven through her speech. A cultural presentation was also one of the highlights of the evening wherein VSO work was portrayed through drama, dance and song. Another party was dubbed cultural night which was held on the last evening of the induction and hosted by VSO for partners and volunteers. The presentations portrayed dance and songs from the different tribes of Zambia. It was amazing to see the youths dancing while singing, in other words, dancing to their music! They were good at swaying their hips and tapping their feet. I had the feel of it when I was forced to dance during the last number wherein the leader of the group started to take volunteers from their seats. I was seated behind, the last row actually, but fortunately or unfortunately, I was pulled out to represent the Filipinos. Well, I managed to sway my hips and danced Filipino way to the tune of African music…

Tour Around Lusaka

I got up earlier than expected, again maybe due to the time difference. The breakfast was good, milo, cocoa drink, coffee are available which were all nestlè products, moreover, bacon, eggs, pork and beans, sausage were also served! Good enough to eat more to keep up for what I missed during lunch and dinner. I was happy for the availability of such foods, which means I wouldn’t starve! However, this has become our breakfast everyday.

The day was scheduled for city tour, we visited some of the major or rather I would say significant areas in Zambia’s history. The bus took us to the most congested part of Lusaka City called Mutendere Compound, then passed through Zambia National Broadcasting Company. Another stop was the Burial site for the 3rd Republican President who died in August of this year. The burial ground was being developed into a place similar to that of Mahatma Gandhi’s burial ground in New Delhi as well as Bagabandhu in Bangladesh. Then to Chilenje House which played a significant role in the history of democracy in Zambia, a small house where Dr. Kenneth David Kaunda lived. According to the tour guide, it was in Chilenje House 394 where meetings were held during the struggle for independence which Zambia achieved in 1964 with Dr. Kaunda serving as the first President of the Republic of Zambia. The next destination was Kabwata Cultural Village which housed indigenous crafts like wood carvings, batik and tie dye, stone crafts and other bead crafts. Houses were also made of indigenous materials the way houses were built before. The residents of the village are artists in various fields. The village was government initiated with the primary purpose of preserving some aspects of Zambian culture. According to the village leader, 10% of the sales are placed in a common fund which is maintained to sustain and subsidize development in the village. I was surprised by the high awareness of the people in protecting the environment. It was explained by the leader that wood are gathered in a sustainable manner and permission is secured from the tribal leader of the place where woods are gathered. What impressed me was the rare kind of wood, called ebony and jacaranda, too bad; I didn’t know its scientific name! So I couldn’t say if they are available in the Philippines. The finish product looked fantastic apart from the light weight of the wood. The next stop was a very impressive building which housed Zambia National Museum. The museum contained memorabilias of Zambian history and culture including those being used for witchcraft! The next stop was Manda Hill that was also surprising in Zambia, it is a shopping complex that included a big grocery shop called Shoprite, local and international fastfood chain. What made it memorable for me?! I was able to eat chicken biryani, my favorite dish in Bangladesh. Due to limited time, we were not able to move around the place but I am assured that I would find things I thought not available in Zambia.

The morale? It’s difficult to judge a place and its people when you have not been there and you have not interacted with them. Zambia may be in the process of developing its country but its richness in culture and history cannot just be substituted with any fast-growing development. In fact, it has huge potential for development in many aspects.

TOUCHING DOWN...LUSAKA

Finally after 24 hours of grueling flight, 3 plane transfers, I, together with two other Filipino volunteers, touched down Lusaka International Airport. A VSO staff picked us up from the airport and assisted us in securing our visa granting us 30 days because our work permit has not been released yet.

The VSO driver took us to a place called Barn “Motel” which will be our “house” during the induction week. The place is very simple, housed in a wide compound surrounded with trees and different flowering plants that serves as fence, and for this country, the landscaping was pretty good and it has a swimming pool! In this country I have seen the best quality of roses with big flowers, thick petals and a variety of colors. A small reception area separate from the line of rooms was our first destination, after leaving our luggage we proceeded to the dining area to have our most awaited lunch! Some volunteers from other countries were already around, having arrived ahead of us, probably due to the short distance from their origin. The food serving was huge, more than enough for 2 persons of my eating capacity. I was so hungry but only to be disappointed with the rice that was not cooked the way I expected. Maybe my tongue has to adjust again from the taste of rice cooked the African way. I couldn’t blame my distaste for the food entirely on how it was prepared but maybe the fatigue I felt from the long trip since all I want to do is lie down, besides, our arrival time in Lusaka was already 8.30 in the evening, Philippines’ time. My body clock has to adjust with time in Zambia.

After settling in, I did the most awaited part of the journey, lie down in bed! I did not sleep because I have to condition myself and waited for the evening so I could sleep soundly. After few hours of rest, I couldn’t wait to call home which I managed to do through the reception area. Mum was still emotional when I talked to her, which was understandable under the circumstances. Ten thousand kwacha for a 3-minute call, I did not bother converting how much it was in peso! After hanging up the phone, I received my first kwacha for the equipment, half million (kwacha!), dream come true, I am a millionaire in Zambia! But that was only equivalent to less than a hundred US$.

Departure

It was raining when the van picked me up from my boarding house, glad that my cousins with nieces were there to support mum from the emotional stress my departure was causing. We stopped by at Jollibee infront the domestic airport to have lunch, though I would have wanted to eat at Mc Donalds but there was none. Afterwards, we proceeded to Terminal 1 of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport. Off I went inside to check in, my luggage was good enough for the allowed kilograms but I had a long negotiation with the person at the check-in counter over my hand-carried luggage. It appeared that I had two hand-carries because of the backpack I used for my laptop and other electronic gadgets. Despite all the explanations, I was not allowed, so I got out and remove some of the things from the bag. The downside of this, I added to the emotional stress of mum because it was like another send-off. On second check-in, I was not allowed. Fortunately, one of the two volunteers I was travelling with has no hand-carried luggage and so I was saved.

Hong Kong International Airport was not new to me since I have passed through here several times, (guess it’s one of the frequently taken routes because it’s cheaper). We waited for our flight to Johannesburg for 4 hours, bracing ourselves for the 13-hour flight! The plane was full, but surprisingly only few Africans were on board and so were the Filipinos who have to join ship in South Africa. One of them was just wearing an islander slippers  The plane was quite small and therefore no enough leg room to stretch my legs. Reality sunk in, I have seen the distinct color of people as I was getting out of the plane at Johannesburg International Airport, I have to convince myself that I have travelled this far to fight poverty and disadvantaged through my service as a VSO volunteer, without discounting my other reasons for accepting a post in Africa. Johannesburg International Airport was impressive, it was huge and the shops were nice. We stayed inside for a couple of hours to wait for the flight that would take us to our final destination.