Quick Update

Time has passed by and I swear it was just February!

I know many of you are wondering how I'm doing and what I've been up to.  I'm healthy and staying well here in Zambia.

Everyday continues to bring more challenges or new experiences.  I try to hold meetings, yet find only three or four people come.  I've attempted to help a farmer stock his pond with fish from the dam, yet he seems to go missing every now and then.

However, I have successfully been able to work with the local vet and we vaccinated over 1,500 head of cattle for Black Leg.  I also have been able to motivate the community to work further towards building a market within the village.

Outside of the village I have attended a motorbike racing event and went fishing!  I actually caught a couple fish! I took a small holiday in the city and enjoyed going to the cinema and eating at an Indian restaurant.

At my house in the village, I've finally started taking time to read a few good novels as well as a book that's helping me learn more and more about myself.  Also, I am again seriously attacking building a new garden!  I have some tomato and pepper seedlings ready to plant and getting more excited for the prospect of my own veg!

I've been able to have awesome visitors as well as visit other parts of Zambia and see super people out and about, too!

Up then down is the life of a Peace Corps volunteer.  Daily struggles and tiny celebrations.  And time that continually keeps on moving.  Until next time!  Cheers!

A Month In My Life

I can talk all day long about my life here in Zambia, but you still won't truly know what I am talking about until you all come and visit me and experience it yourselves.  Right?  Yeah, I figured it was a long shot!

Therefore, I hope for those who won't be able to come across the ocean to Africa to check out things here, I can at least share a few more photos of the last month in my life here in Zambia.  Its been busy to say the least and I hope you all enjoy!

 

 Jaylene!  Gotta start with this little girl always!  She grows daily and is quite the rascal.  But she is a good girl!

 I made cheese!  Another volunteer and I got some fresh milk, added some lemon juice and Ta-dah! we had cheese!

 Kitchen Party!  Friends of mine like to get together to cook and share a meal every so often in the resident area of the Mission Hospital.

 Kapenta!  Small dried fish that make a great relish with nshima.  I cooked it all by myself!  Surprise, surprise! But, I like it!

 Let's go milk 150 cows...by hand! 

 Still love me some baby calves!

 Seed maize!  What better way than to spend my birthday weekend visiting farmers in my area and seeing beautiful fields and animals?!

 Just a regular sunset from my doorstep.

 I have a driveway!  And they slashed my grass!  Its amazing what can get done when you just ask!  Thank you to my community!

 For four days I hosted three new PCTs at my site.  Here are the two wonderful ladies with a community member who was showing us a local dam. 

 Like our new citenges?  We do, too!  We were given these as gifts and just had to model them off for the camera! I think we look good!

 Oh, yeah!  I look good in this hat. I know!  And that kitten was totally loving its first-class, waterproof ride!

 Other volunteer and his fire!  He fired up my oven at the site visit and we cooked pizza. 

 Yep, just made it across the raging stream! Almost knee deep water running over the road at a volunteer's site.  I'd like to say it was eventful, but really it was just puddle jumping.

 

 Jaylene thought she needed to climp OVER the fence instead of letting us take down the gate. She is just so cute though.  But super silly, too!

Kenny and I were able to spend my birthday together!  It was such a super weekend!

 

And, no my life isn't quite as chill and relaxing as this little girl's.  She has it so rough! 

Its been a great few weeks and I've stayed busy here, there and everywhere!  I have hosted people, visited others, and am helping my community start up a new market place in the village!  Hope to keep busy and update y'all again in the future! 

I Tried!

Are you a gardener?  I thought maybe I'd try to be one.  Not so sure I'm cut out for it!

Two girl friends of mine helped me just after Christmas clear an area of grass and plant some beans and onions.  I was so happy to see the shoots of green beans coming up a few days later.

With the beginning of my garden I was excited a week later to finally add some cucumbers, squash, peppers, and watermelon.  I was still hopeful for my little garden. Around this time of planting the other vegetables, my onions still had not emerged. 

And then the heavy rains came.  Water is good for a garden, usually.  Too much though creates some major issues.

A month later at the end of January my beans were turning yellow, I had maybe four cucumber plants sprouted and still alive, and a lot of grass! 

Now it is almost March and I have two cucumber plants still alive.  The rest is grass that I even had boys come and slash.  I maybe should have weeded before I called it a loss.  However, botany isn't really a strength for me and I was afraid to pull the rare plant that DID make it! Slashing really isn't any better, though!

Maybe I'll develop my gardening passion and skills over time.  For now I might just count this first little garden a successful failure. 

In the meantime, I have just realized the wonderful resource that vegetables, fruits, trees, and flowers provide for us.  Never before have I cut open a tomato or pepper and thought, "Hmm, should I take these seeds and plant them?"  Or looked at a tree and decided I needed to wait for the seeds to dry and try planting them as well.  Its quite exciting to find new life in so many things that we see every day!

I am at this moment carrying lemon, tomato, red pepper, and a pretty flower's seeds home.  I am going to have another go at this gardening business!  I really do hope I reap a few vegetables in a couple months!  I'll keep y'all updated!  Any tips you may have?? I am most open to any suggestions or help that anyone may find useful to share! 

 

And here are two photos of the plot that I originally planted for my garden.  

Yeah...its all grass now!