Saturday, June 14, 2008
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
More pics because I can...
Pictures are of:
My grade 4 class working on stories
Levy, Teressa and Benson (kids in my grade 4 class) enjoying a pop-out book.
Pricilla (our maid), Judah (Sharon's baby) and me.
One of the creepiest manikins I've ever seen in my life (and I've actually seen the same one in various stores here).
Some more pictures
Pictures are of:
Rosemary and I (she is a girl in my grade 2 class)- I thought it was sweet that she was wearing a Canada t-shirt.
Me making flashcards for my grade 2 class.
Josh and I making Barney cupcakes.
Chris, Josh and I bowling in "Africa Light"
Monday, June 9, 2008
The events of my weekend in Africa Light
There’s this saying that Zambia is part of “Africa Light”—basically it’s “easy Africa”. Many of the things that we are used to in North America are available here (although they may be expensive). On Saturday, after some lesson planning, Chris, Josh and I experienced some Africa Light (and actually found out that many of our Africa Light activities are very reasonably priced).
In the morning we made these Barney Cupcakes that we found a mix for in the cupboard. The cupcakes were green and had purple icing. We laughed quite a lot! After that we headed off to one of the malls called Manda Hill were there was a music store and we looked at guitars and then had a pizza lunch. After that we went to a café in the mall (the Kilimanjaro Café) that has great milkshakes. Boy, I love milkshakes. Especially vanilla ones!
Then we walked to the other mall (Arcades) and bowled. We bowled with more pins and with balls with holes in them. Josh and Chris have only ever bowled this way (8 pin bowling?). After trying to hold the ball with my fingers in the holes and getting gutter balls, I proceeded to play almost the entire game throwing the ball between my legs and I came second! I also snapped off the end of my thumb nail in one of those little holes. The dangers of bowling!!
After that, we had tea in another café and then headed to the movie theatre where we watched Narnia (Prince Caspian) which came out here yesterday. It was the first time I’d seen it and I really enjoyed it a lot. It exceeded my expectations. And the theatre was pretty decent. The movie was late… which was ok because we arrived right when it was supposed to start. The ads skipped a lot and we thought that didn’t bode well, but the movie worked really well.
After that we went to the “Food Fare” (another restaurant in the mall) and ate those messy burgers again… and I had mine with Indian garlic naan on the side… because I could.
It was a delicious and very fun day. It’s really fun to have the guys around. I really enjoy their company.
When we got home, we found that Leeland had managed to get up all the mosquito nets (and there was much rejoicing!). One of the worst feelings ever is trying to sleep and hearing that loud buzzing around your ear and knowing there’s a mosquito right by your head, and then the buzzing stops and you think “it’s landed on me and is sucking my blood and giving me diseases right now” so you promptly (in your semi-conscious state) smack yourself in the face hoping to kill it… and then the buzzing starts again… and then the whole process starts again until you’ve caused yourself much more damage than the mosquito would have. Just saying.
On Sunday we went to a church service where a bunch of churches had come together for a conference. I didn’t know any of the songs, but I really liked a bunch of them. They had really powerful words. We hit the craft market really quickly and met up with Alissa (a girl that was on the safari with us). After some food at the Food Fayre (we’re becoming regulars) we headed off to the youth group at the school. Today I was the speaker! AH! Lots of praying went into that! For someone who loves theatre, I do find public speaking (especially about things that are really important to me) quite challenging. I didn’t know what I was going to speak about, but this morning God really put it on my heart to just do a simple gospel presentation. Sharon translated for me (I really wanted it to come across clearly), and I spoke (over a drunk guy that was calling things into the room throughout the whole thing!). Lots of kids prayed afterwards to accept Christ into their lives. I pray that those decisions will be sincere and that they will be followed up on so they will be able to grow. After that, any kids that wanted to stay behind and pray with leaders individually were able to, and then we divided into groups. Josh and Chris lead some of the kids in soccer drills and a soccer game outside, and a bunch of the other kids stayed in and I did a choir class with them. We were working on that “Alleluia” song (that Michael W. Smith sings), and worked really hard on the harmonies. We performed it for Tanya afterwards and the girls were so happy with the way it turned out that they all started clapping for themselves. It was pretty cool. Then we met up as a whole youth group and prayed together and then it was time to go. The meeting was pretty cool. That night, Leeland did a bbq! Score! And then I got to type to my amazing sister online. And the day ended with watching “Blood Diamond” on TV. It’s been a great weekend.
In the morning we made these Barney Cupcakes that we found a mix for in the cupboard. The cupcakes were green and had purple icing. We laughed quite a lot! After that we headed off to one of the malls called Manda Hill were there was a music store and we looked at guitars and then had a pizza lunch. After that we went to a café in the mall (the Kilimanjaro Café) that has great milkshakes. Boy, I love milkshakes. Especially vanilla ones!
Then we walked to the other mall (Arcades) and bowled. We bowled with more pins and with balls with holes in them. Josh and Chris have only ever bowled this way (8 pin bowling?). After trying to hold the ball with my fingers in the holes and getting gutter balls, I proceeded to play almost the entire game throwing the ball between my legs and I came second! I also snapped off the end of my thumb nail in one of those little holes. The dangers of bowling!!
After that, we had tea in another café and then headed to the movie theatre where we watched Narnia (Prince Caspian) which came out here yesterday. It was the first time I’d seen it and I really enjoyed it a lot. It exceeded my expectations. And the theatre was pretty decent. The movie was late… which was ok because we arrived right when it was supposed to start. The ads skipped a lot and we thought that didn’t bode well, but the movie worked really well.
After that we went to the “Food Fare” (another restaurant in the mall) and ate those messy burgers again… and I had mine with Indian garlic naan on the side… because I could.
It was a delicious and very fun day. It’s really fun to have the guys around. I really enjoy their company.
When we got home, we found that Leeland had managed to get up all the mosquito nets (and there was much rejoicing!). One of the worst feelings ever is trying to sleep and hearing that loud buzzing around your ear and knowing there’s a mosquito right by your head, and then the buzzing stops and you think “it’s landed on me and is sucking my blood and giving me diseases right now” so you promptly (in your semi-conscious state) smack yourself in the face hoping to kill it… and then the buzzing starts again… and then the whole process starts again until you’ve caused yourself much more damage than the mosquito would have. Just saying.
On Sunday we went to a church service where a bunch of churches had come together for a conference. I didn’t know any of the songs, but I really liked a bunch of them. They had really powerful words. We hit the craft market really quickly and met up with Alissa (a girl that was on the safari with us). After some food at the Food Fayre (we’re becoming regulars) we headed off to the youth group at the school. Today I was the speaker! AH! Lots of praying went into that! For someone who loves theatre, I do find public speaking (especially about things that are really important to me) quite challenging. I didn’t know what I was going to speak about, but this morning God really put it on my heart to just do a simple gospel presentation. Sharon translated for me (I really wanted it to come across clearly), and I spoke (over a drunk guy that was calling things into the room throughout the whole thing!). Lots of kids prayed afterwards to accept Christ into their lives. I pray that those decisions will be sincere and that they will be followed up on so they will be able to grow. After that, any kids that wanted to stay behind and pray with leaders individually were able to, and then we divided into groups. Josh and Chris lead some of the kids in soccer drills and a soccer game outside, and a bunch of the other kids stayed in and I did a choir class with them. We were working on that “Alleluia” song (that Michael W. Smith sings), and worked really hard on the harmonies. We performed it for Tanya afterwards and the girls were so happy with the way it turned out that they all started clapping for themselves. It was pretty cool. Then we met up as a whole youth group and prayed together and then it was time to go. The meeting was pretty cool. That night, Leeland did a bbq! Score! And then I got to type to my amazing sister online. And the day ended with watching “Blood Diamond” on TV. It’s been a great weekend.
Friday, June 6, 2008
The events of the first week of June
It’s June! Crazy! I’ve been here for a month!
Well, this last little while has seriously been a whirlwind of activity.
On Saturday we hit a craft market that happens once a month in this place called Kabulonga. I have not seen so many masungus congregating in one area since I left the Hethrow airport. It was a lot of fun. I love craft markets. After that we went out for pizza- which was also fun. I ordered the bbq steak pizza again. That evening I had a special music practice for church the next day.
Sunday was exciting with church in the morning. It was fun to sing with three other people for a special number. The worship was really cool. Later was a community meeting at the school. The kids did their drime about the consequences of sex, and they did a great job. The community really enjoyed it. Afterwards, Lisa did a talk about HIV and AIDS awareness. AIDS is a big problem in Zambia. Because there is a stigma around the disease, people don’t want to be tested—they’d rather not know. Of course, if you don’t know you can’t take measures to stop the spread of the disease. After that was the youth group meeting which was also a lot of fun.
On Monday, another volunteer was added to our busy house. I taught at the school in the morning and then Chris and I left go with Tanya to pick up Josh at the airport. After having lunch at home, Chris and I left to get our visas renewed. A guy from World Vision came with us which was really nice because he did all the talking and my visa was renewed really easily. That evening, Sharon made us a bunch of traditional Zambian dishes. She wasn’t able to get caterpillars though (too bad!). I liked the rice and this tomato/ onion sauce, and I stayed away from the little fish.
On Tuesday, I taught at the school. In the evening we all went out to a new Indian Restaurant. There are quite a few here. I had some amazing buttered chicken.
Wednesday was a sweet day. In the morning was PE with the kids. Chrissy and Josh were trying to teach them the proper way to keep score, to rotate and the proper ways of hitting the ball. They really liked calling “zero serving two” before serving.
World Vision gets a bunch of stuff donated to them and then they distribute it. Today we were able to take a whole bunch of dolls to the school. They were cool dolls too. They were hard (which will keep them cleaner than the cloth-body ones) have eyes that open and close, bottles to “feed them” and even an extra diaper (these dolls pee!). Of course, it took Sharon, Chris, Tanya, Josh, Chrissy, Paddy, Lisa and I a few hours to get them out of the boxes. That was some crazy packaging! We were told it wouldn’t be really culturally appropriate to give them to the boys, but we were able to give one to every girl in the school. They were so thrilled! They were kissing the dolls and feeding them (I saw lots of boys filling up the bottles with water). I don’t think most of these kids have ever owned such a cool toy. I took a picture the day before of a little girl who had tied a flip-flop to her back pretending it was her baby. Lisa, Paddy and Chrissy also had brought a bunch of stuffed animals for the kids which had been donated. And guess what… there were exactly enough stuffed animals for all the boys in the school. Totally a God-thing! After that busy morning, I headed off with Tanya and the ladies to a place called Chikumbuso. The story there is really cool too. It used to be a bar and brothel, but then this lady called Linda Wilkinson came and made it a place to benefit orphans, widows and single moms. There’s a sewing cooperative there, and there is a bag making program (they crochet beautiful bags out of plastic bags) and they’ve started making bracelets. They are also making soy milk (I think) and there is a school there as well. If you are interested in reading more about this project, you can check out: http://www.chikumbuso.com/.
Chris, Josh and I were left at home that evening and we had fun cooking dinner together… and making up our recipe as we went along. It was good times. We also watched “The Last King of Scotland” which was on TV. I was really interested in it because it’s about Uganda.
On Thursday I taught at the school. Chrissy, Lisa and Paddy left today. It was sad to see them go. They have been so wonderful to have around. I look forward to seeing them again when I go to the States. In the evening, Josh, Chris and I went to the mall where we had dinner (we went back to the messy burger place and enjoyed said messy burgers and milk shakes) and did some shopping and had a humorous conversation with a really drunk man at the supermarket.
Today is Friday. My grade four class are working on writing and illustrating short stories that they will present on Monday. I’d brought some treats for them today so that was fun. They are working really hard. Lots of my grade 2 students were crazy today (and did not get their good-behaviour treats). Boy they tired me out! Friday is always a half day, so some of the teachers came over to the house after school and we hung out by the pool.
This week has gone by so quickly! It’s crazy to think that I’ll only be here for two more weeks. This is an exciting time at Grippes. This weekend we are looking forward to the official opening of the bore hole. The woman in the village have also started construction of a brick oven which they hope to be able to cook bread in to sell. Part of the proceeds from that will go back to the school.
Other exciting things for me? I’ve ridden to school and back on the back of a bike a few times. I registered for classes for next semester. I saw some pictures of my beautiful sister’s prom.
It’s been a good week,
Dayna
Well, this last little while has seriously been a whirlwind of activity.
On Saturday we hit a craft market that happens once a month in this place called Kabulonga. I have not seen so many masungus congregating in one area since I left the Hethrow airport. It was a lot of fun. I love craft markets. After that we went out for pizza- which was also fun. I ordered the bbq steak pizza again. That evening I had a special music practice for church the next day.
Sunday was exciting with church in the morning. It was fun to sing with three other people for a special number. The worship was really cool. Later was a community meeting at the school. The kids did their drime about the consequences of sex, and they did a great job. The community really enjoyed it. Afterwards, Lisa did a talk about HIV and AIDS awareness. AIDS is a big problem in Zambia. Because there is a stigma around the disease, people don’t want to be tested—they’d rather not know. Of course, if you don’t know you can’t take measures to stop the spread of the disease. After that was the youth group meeting which was also a lot of fun.
On Monday, another volunteer was added to our busy house. I taught at the school in the morning and then Chris and I left go with Tanya to pick up Josh at the airport. After having lunch at home, Chris and I left to get our visas renewed. A guy from World Vision came with us which was really nice because he did all the talking and my visa was renewed really easily. That evening, Sharon made us a bunch of traditional Zambian dishes. She wasn’t able to get caterpillars though (too bad!). I liked the rice and this tomato/ onion sauce, and I stayed away from the little fish.
On Tuesday, I taught at the school. In the evening we all went out to a new Indian Restaurant. There are quite a few here. I had some amazing buttered chicken.
Wednesday was a sweet day. In the morning was PE with the kids. Chrissy and Josh were trying to teach them the proper way to keep score, to rotate and the proper ways of hitting the ball. They really liked calling “zero serving two” before serving.
World Vision gets a bunch of stuff donated to them and then they distribute it. Today we were able to take a whole bunch of dolls to the school. They were cool dolls too. They were hard (which will keep them cleaner than the cloth-body ones) have eyes that open and close, bottles to “feed them” and even an extra diaper (these dolls pee!). Of course, it took Sharon, Chris, Tanya, Josh, Chrissy, Paddy, Lisa and I a few hours to get them out of the boxes. That was some crazy packaging! We were told it wouldn’t be really culturally appropriate to give them to the boys, but we were able to give one to every girl in the school. They were so thrilled! They were kissing the dolls and feeding them (I saw lots of boys filling up the bottles with water). I don’t think most of these kids have ever owned such a cool toy. I took a picture the day before of a little girl who had tied a flip-flop to her back pretending it was her baby. Lisa, Paddy and Chrissy also had brought a bunch of stuffed animals for the kids which had been donated. And guess what… there were exactly enough stuffed animals for all the boys in the school. Totally a God-thing! After that busy morning, I headed off with Tanya and the ladies to a place called Chikumbuso. The story there is really cool too. It used to be a bar and brothel, but then this lady called Linda Wilkinson came and made it a place to benefit orphans, widows and single moms. There’s a sewing cooperative there, and there is a bag making program (they crochet beautiful bags out of plastic bags) and they’ve started making bracelets. They are also making soy milk (I think) and there is a school there as well. If you are interested in reading more about this project, you can check out: http://www.chikumbuso.com/.
Chris, Josh and I were left at home that evening and we had fun cooking dinner together… and making up our recipe as we went along. It was good times. We also watched “The Last King of Scotland” which was on TV. I was really interested in it because it’s about Uganda.
On Thursday I taught at the school. Chrissy, Lisa and Paddy left today. It was sad to see them go. They have been so wonderful to have around. I look forward to seeing them again when I go to the States. In the evening, Josh, Chris and I went to the mall where we had dinner (we went back to the messy burger place and enjoyed said messy burgers and milk shakes) and did some shopping and had a humorous conversation with a really drunk man at the supermarket.
Today is Friday. My grade four class are working on writing and illustrating short stories that they will present on Monday. I’d brought some treats for them today so that was fun. They are working really hard. Lots of my grade 2 students were crazy today (and did not get their good-behaviour treats). Boy they tired me out! Friday is always a half day, so some of the teachers came over to the house after school and we hung out by the pool.
This week has gone by so quickly! It’s crazy to think that I’ll only be here for two more weeks. This is an exciting time at Grippes. This weekend we are looking forward to the official opening of the bore hole. The woman in the village have also started construction of a brick oven which they hope to be able to cook bread in to sell. Part of the proceeds from that will go back to the school.
Other exciting things for me? I’ve ridden to school and back on the back of a bike a few times. I registered for classes for next semester. I saw some pictures of my beautiful sister’s prom.
It’s been a good week,
Dayna
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Pictures
Kajeja and I. She is two. Her parents leave her at home for long periods of time with no one to take care of her. She often wanders over to the school. She's adorible, ridiculously dirty and always has a runny nose. If I was going to bring a kid home with me...
This is one of the little girls in the reception class receiving a doll donated from World Vision. All the girsls in the school got them and they were so happy.
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