Updates
I just finished a long stretch in the village, maybe three months, just within my district and neighboring Ikelenge. No trips to Solwezi or Lusaka or to other provinces and by chance no internet (since it is out in our BOMA). Instead I spent a lot of time riding my bike around and visiting other volunteers, including a 270km ride around the province on some backroads to visit volunteers. I’d like to shoot for another long stretch, but that doesn’t seem likely as I’m getting a wonderful visit from my family and heading up to visit friends in a week or so. Tentatively trying to plan a trip for Ethiopia in December as well.
This was our route and a picture of the Chitunta plain and the Lewakela river where we crossed both on a random bush road.
At one point in Matonchi, Ryan Kenny’s village, we came across a man who excavates rocks and crushes them to sell to construction workers in the BOMA.
When we arrived after the longest day of cycling (85km) at Kelondu Village to visit Larry Maurin his family had slaughtered a goat for us.
We spent one day visiting the rapids of the great Zambezi River at Kaleni Hill area and visiting volunteer, Kinsie Rayburn. Below is our friend Alex, from Lusaka, visiting literally and figuratively as far from home as he can in Zambia. Being back in the village was relaxing, I’m including a few random photos at the bottom that I’ve liked although the majority of my pictures lately have been on film that I can’t include . . .
One of my PCV neighbor’s host brother cycled 15km to give me a small cage he had made with two little white eyed __________. I can only remember the first part of the name. They both died within thirty minutes of going into my house, which I only regret more for not releasing them straight off. The cage is pictured below.
Mr. Kabwita, my counterpart, in his fields.
A little girl washing dishes for a teacher at Ikonga School in the bush of Ikelenge
A random kid photograph . . . this was when he was in my lap and still too little to realize I am terrifying and to start crying.
Cassava leaves.
Lunch.
Scrawled on a chair at Mukinge Girls Secondary School. While it is most likely a mistake in grammar, I like the different meaning the phrase gets for omitting one ‘s’.
Deanna Dent 