Sugar cane time!

Okay, I am really bad at keeping up with this blog. Blame the lack of internet hot spots. All my entries are in my laptop ready to be uploaded but I can only do one at a time. Once I get a better hold of the publishing, keeping up should get smoother.

I couldn't resist posting this video. Today was my first time eating sugar cane. We were at Elizabeth's house cooking nshima when a baby girl ran in with the 'sweet stick'. Never having eaten it before (we use sugar rape in Slovakia), I gave it a try. And although the first few seconds may not look like it (it's difficult to clean and bite it off when one is missing five teeth like me), I was definitely a fan.

Ready for work!

One week has passed since I came to Zambia.

Yesterday and today I was being introduced to my place of work and other parts of Lusaka by my supervisor Viktor, and his nephew. They picked me up in the morning and we drove around the city and into Kabanana where I will be working.

To start my research, I have to have an official approval from both UNC’s Internal Research Board (IRB) and a Zambian IRB. We drove to the Institute for Social and Economic Research and the University of Zambia (UNZA) to find out about how to get an academic affiliation for my project here. After making three separate visits, we finally found the right person at the Department for Research and Graduate Studies. While talking to her, someone locked us out in her office by accident and we spent ten minutes ‘imprisoned’. We got a good laugh out of it with the professor we were visiting, which made the stuffy, academic atmosphere in the room much lighter. I had to send her my research proposal in the afternoon and she would be in touch with me about following up. I am hoping to get the research affiliation at UNZA sometime within the next 2-3 weeks, depending on how fast they review my application.

Yesterday afternoon I also got to see my worksite for the first time. Kabanana is an area of squatter settlements bordering two other similar districts. It’s sprawled across a semi-steep hill facing Roma, the district I live in. The walk from there to Kabanana takes around 30 minutes. It’s much faster than taking a bus which doesn’t ride directly up the hill to Kabanana but connects from the city center. That trip would take me at least an hour every morning (and cost me mula). I am actually looking forward to walking to and from work every day. Other than being a great exercise (and a wake-up hike in the morning), it’s a cool opportunity to get familiar with the Kabanana community. I am also curious about people’s reactions when they see a muzungu walking around their tiny compounds every day. I hope by the end of the two months I will have a grip on many of the big and small paths, shortcuts and roads winding through Kabanana, as well as get to know a lot of the local families. More about Kabanana, its residents and my co-workers later :)

 

 Bird's eye view on Kabanana and Roma. Notice the striking difference in the housing density.

The flight

I finally got a stable Internet connection to publish a few first posts from “Zed”.

My trip was slightly long and a bit tiresome but thankfully without any major hiccups.

All the flights arrived on time and the long haul flight across the ocean took even less time than expected (11 as opposed to 13 hours).

I got to meet several nice people on each of the flights. From RDU to DC, it was a man from the Seychelles who came to North Carolina for a crime investigation workshop. From Addis to Lusaka, I sat next to a Zambian lady who was coming back from China. We had a very good conversation about Western perceptions of Africa, political correctness as Americans know it and as Africans know it (in regards to race), our families and aspirations. It gave me an opportunity to evaluate my expectations for this summer and beyond.

My favorite plane ride was from DC to Addis where I sat next to two young ladies (8 and 10 years old) and their dads who were in the row next to us. They were traveling to Addis for a visit of a community center for orphaned and homeless children that is being supported by their ministry (downlineministries.com). It's a wonderful project; the workers train the young children to be leaders in their local community and help bring street kids into a safe environment at their center. We called the journey a sleepover; we had the whole row to ourselves, played games, watched movies and talked about anything and everything. Before we ever took off, their dads promoted me to the function of a nanny. Needless to say, none of us got to sleep for more than maybe half an hour. Both the girls were adorable, and I really hope I can keep in touch with them to hear about their impressions and stories from Addis.

                                                               The sleepover trio!

One annoyance of the trip, however, was that I didn’t find my luggage in Lusaka. Three days after arriving, I still don’t have my bags. Being in a hurry and a bit angry at having to pay $70 for my second bag despite the fact that I should have been allowed to carry two pieces, I left the baggage slips at RDU airport by mistake. That means that I don’t have the bags’ reference numbers and they can’t easily trace them. I am relying on prayers and the hope that some Good Samaritan at one of the three airports will venture into the Lost and Found and discover my two lost suitcases.

Although 46kg lighter, I arrived at Lusaka’s airport safe and sound. Munty et al. (it really was a big team) met me at the airport after I got through the long immigration line and filled out paperwork for my lost bags. I was tired but incredibly happy that my summer (or rather winter) was officially kicked off as the plane touched the ground at Kenneth Kaunda Intl Airport.

 

                                                   Munty, Mundia and the worn-out Mia

Fight off the jetlag before it ever comes

I discovered a medicine against jet lag. Well, I didn’t discover it. I rather proved that it works.

Here are a few points that my campus nurse suggested to me before I flew out. For many it might be a “duh!” issue but I think it’s a good thing to remember for anyone who moves between time zones. I don’t like taking pills, even those that try to prevent jet lag, so this “organic” alternative proved pretty handy for me.

• Get a good night’s sleep the day before you travel (as almost always, I haven’t applied this one, so the following step was a little harder to do)
• Don’t take naps longer than 45 minutes while traveling.
• Drink LOTS of liquids (if you can suppress your cravings, don’t drink alcohol; that will only give you a bad headache by the time you reach your destination)
• Don’t overeat; this will only slow down your metabolism and make you more prone to sleep. Eat light foods, and snack on fruits, granola bars or other easily digestible goodies.
• Travel with a wheeled piece of hand luggage; it will take the pressure of your shoulders when you’re walking around the airport and you will get tired less easily.  
•  Once reaching the destination, don’t sleep until it is the local nighttime. If you resort to the absolutely necessary nap, be sure to wake up (or be woken up) before you reach the 45-minute threshold.

Now, I know that this may seem a bit harsh and hard to do. Depriving yourself of sleep after you finish a13-hour flight where you couldn’t shut an eye (not to mention the connecting flights)? I’ve been there, and it’s really not as terribleas it sounds. Remember, you can still take naps during and after your flight. The point is that you don’t fall into deep sleep until the nighttime at your destination. You want to make sure that your body adjusts to the local time as fast as possible.

Although this approach may work for some and not for others, I encourage you to try it. It’s worth it if you don’t want to look like a zombie tourist the next three days after you arrive. Consider that if your trip were 10 days long, almost one third of it would be characterized by constant fatigue.

In my experience, if you hold off your sleep until the night of your arrival, your body will reset much quicker. I hadn’t slept for over 24 hours by the time I hit the hay in Lusaka. The next morning, after some 9 hours of sleep, I felt like a rosebud. Throughout the whole day I may have yawned once or twice, but I felt perfectly awake and alert to observe and learn about all the new people and places surrounding me.

First impressions

Here are a couple of memories from flying through Addis.

This amazing view on the morning, fog-covered outskirts of Addis Ababa gave me the first glimpse of the African continent.

Right after touchdown, our aircraft strolled past this curious scene.

I found these five workers hilarious. They stood on the same spot for five minutes while our aircraft waited to park. Then they moved five steps, looking equally confused, and waited again.

Another interesting experience was waiting in the small terminal with several hundred other travelers from all over Africa. To kill time, I tried guessing where many of them were from judging from their many different attires and languages.

I have to admit that I was a little surprised to see the little TV screen in the middle of the terminal, showing a 90s work-out show with white, half-naked men and women hopping around. Expecting Ethiopians to be more conservative, it struck me as something that was perhaps being shown to accommodate the many Americans passing through the terminal.

I also noticed that creating neat lines while boarding an airplane was almost a taboo. People were cutting lines here and there, pushing and shoving one another, but nobody seemed to be complaining. Definitely a difference from the strict Americans, systematically calling out rows and color-coded tickets to board the plane.

Last American breakfast for a year

With great joy I connected to the free wifi at Dulles International. It's the second airport in my life that provides free internet. I assume the reason for that is that DC is the capital of the most visited country in the world. The next step could be providing free internet in every state capital. We already pay tons of money in airport fees so I think they could spare a dollar there to pay for free wifi.

Now that I've aired my frustration at internet accessibility, I can focus on the point of this post.

I wanted to share a little moment from my breakfast that I grabbed before I board the plane. It's my last breakfast Americano for some time now...

(Advertised above are hot chocolate and banana bread)

Having devoured this deliciousness, I now feel readier to sit on a plane for the next 17 hours.

A precious 'borough moment

Today I ventured into downtown Hillsborough for the first time and I was charmed. Kasi was my awesome tour guide, giving me little history snapshots of the town here and there.

 
And here is my favorite!

Kasi is such a special friend to me. I still remember our first Swahili class at the Global Center two years ago where I first met her. On that note, I also have to mention Ginny who has been just as precious. I can laugh, cry, get encouraged, make fun with them (and of them) daily and never get fed up. They make me feel genuinely at home at UNC.

I am thankful for that skype invention. I don't know how I'd survive without them otherwise this next year.

It just became real

Zambian business visa finally stamped in my passport, vaccines taken, suitcase waiting to be packed- I am getting ready to hit the runway in less than a week!

In the meantime, I thought I would post some details about my flight. The route will look something like this (I say something like this because I often have the traveler's luck of having my destinations randomly changed several hours before boarding the plane):

To annotate further, my journey should be as follows: Raleigh/Durham -> DC -> Addis Ababa, Ethiopia -> Harare, Zimbabwe -> Lusaka, Zambia.

The trip should take around 25 hours, and I'm hoping to get over the fatigue and a 6-hour jet lag fast enough to start my internship on the third day. Does that sound doable? (I'm asking honestly; I think the amount of excitement overwhelmed a large portion of my sound judgment)

I won't have any significant layovers on the way there so I won't be able to explore the amazing cities where I will be transferring, unfortunately. (I'm glad my mom doesn't speak English and so she can't read this last paragraph. I don't think she is generally very impressed by this adventure of mine, and adding a few extra stops to my travel might add more than a few extra points to her blood pressure levels)

The route from Zambia at the end of the summer will be similarly exciting, although it will lead to Europe as opposed to North America. Plus, I might spend a day in Cairo!

Charlotte!

Yesterday I took the Megabus down to Charlotte to visit my friend Linda. Although short, it was a very pleasant visit. We have not seen each other since last year's spring break and it was really the best time to catch up before I won't see her again for a year and half.

Just to add some background, I first met Linda five years ago in Bratislava when I started going to Sunday Bible study meetings at her apartment with a few other Slovak and American friends. She has witnessed my progress in learning to speak English fluently, and watched me fall in love with God during that one year. I have experienced much healing, restoration and joy learning with her and from her, and she truly became a great role model for me. She has a big heart for foreign nations; throughout her life, she has lived in England, Thailand and Slovakia, among many others. I wish I can one day retell stories and experiences like she does.

Here are a few soaked pics that I snapped yesterday getting off in Charlotte. It was rainin' and rainin', I'm tellin' ya!

The sulky East Trade St

My sulky feet!

And finally, comfort à la hotel room at Linda's

I have to add that Linda was the hero of the night. After parking in the downtown, her car wouldn't start so she got out in the pouring rain to get someone to jump-start it. It finally decided to work, and I managed to find her after being lost for a while (although we both were on the same street). It was a fun night adventure though!

Slowing down at the 'borough.

Having finished my fourth busy semester as a Tar Heel, I can finally slow down a little bit before heading out to Zambia on the 19^th. These past four months were fun and very rewarding, but I made a decision of not working two jobs alongside school again. Although my grades haven’t suffered (really only by the grace of God), the physical and mental stress of constantly being short on time was quite overwhelming. I admire and commend any student who works 2+ jobs, and I pray that soon someone figures out a way where all students can come to the university to focus primarily on studying.

Forgetting all the stress, I will be spending the next two weeks in Hillsborough with my friends, an amazing family who have been taking care of me ever since I first arrived at RDU airport 2 years ago. Sometimes, to make things simpler, I call them “something like my adoptive parents” when my school friends meet them moving me in and out of the dorm. They have also housed me a year ago during Christmas when my flight to Slovakia got delayed by 10 days due to a snowstorm. They embraced me as a part of their family, and I spent one of my most beautiful Christmases with them. I’m learning tons from them about being hospitable and welcoming to anyone, at any time. Many people would call it the Southern hospitality, but I think it wells up in their hearts regardless of being Southerners. It's one of the things you can carry around the world with you. I will dearly miss them next year.