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Africa » Zambia
Letter from July 27th - Saturday, August 18, 2001
by Ratty
Letter #8 (I think) July 27, 01
... My pulse quickened as I fumbled to open the carefully taped package from beloved Uncle Steve. Sweaty palms and a racing mind made negotiating the cardboard flaps difficult. Jena's voice, rising with excitement: "What is it?! A book!?!" In response I hear myself croak: "It feels bookish -- " As the styrofoam peanuts in the box parted like the Red Sea, I read aloud" : The Holy Bible? -- This is an expensive practical joke." (Especially in a country where finding a spare Bible is easier than finding a restroom.) Clever Steve and Auntie Frosti had outsmarted potential package pilferers by enclosing a non-Bible in a Bible cover. Great! (The Botany of Desire is the title of the actual reading material. Looks like a good read! "Twalumba maningi," as the Tongans say in gratitude.)
We also received a book from the priestess Sarah B. and a wonderful potpourri of goodies from Judy Hayden (bungee cords, suncreen, bug dope, antibacterial gel, fingernail polish of a color called "Wisdom Mist" and 2 boxes of Coffee Nips that were shared far and wide. In fact several Zambians are considering defecting to America where Nips are readily available.)
Life here, south of that line on the globe, continues to be exciting, busy and frustrating at times. As the dry winter stretches on and the world turns a notch browner, our Peace Corps training heads into its final, climactic week. Time is a very scarce resource, so JP and I steal a moment whenever possible to breathe this strange African air. One week from now, we will move out of our homestay and attend a commencement ceremony where we will each deliver a brief speech in Tongan. Did I mention that the national media will also be in attendance? Tune in to "Radio 2 Zambia" for live coverage and you may hear us stuttering in a foreign tongue. What fun!
I can tell that we're feeling more at home here every day. The brightly colored money no longer seems exotic. I pay 11,000 kwacha for powdered milk, and eleven thousand of anything feels as arbitrary as $2.59. It's fun to step outside of your home monetary framework, something so familiar you don't even consider it.
Watching chicken behavior no longer interests me; they eat bugs, poop in our doorway, and occasionally fight -- pretty predictable.
I've also noticed something within myself that likely results from living in lily-white Eugene: until we came to Africa, the first thing I would notice about an African-American was their color. In a land of all white sheep, it's hard to not see the black sheep as primarily black. After we had been in Zambia for about a week, I would be well into a conversation with someone when I'd notice that I HADN'T made note of the fact that they're black. Perhaps that sounds a little odd, but it felt like an exciting shift that several members of our all-caucasian PC group have mentioned. Several times in a village setting, when I'm feeling rather relaxed and at home, I'll catch sight of the skin on my arms and realize: "Holy shit! I am a white person!" Not that we've gone native, or are anywhere near fitting in here. But it's a different awareness of race. Not sure if it's more accurate to say that we are less aware of color, or more acutely aware of the difference. Either way, it's interesting.
I haven't yet gotten used to the sight of grown men holding hands together as they stroll down the street. This is not homosexuality, which is not only considered culturally taboo but also illegal (!!) - but rather an outward show of a personal space difference between Zambians and Americans. To make this situation all the weirder, it is culturally inappropriate for men and women to even touch each other in public, as that might be seen as sexual. Did I mention that vibrators are also illegal? And I thought Americans had sexual hang-ups. Sheesh!
Tomorrow we will travel a short distance to an HIV/AIDS care center. It may be a very difficult visit, as it is the last stop for some very sick people living in a country where AIDS medicine is out of reach. (The average per capita income here is about $360 per year, and 22% of the adult population is infected with HIV -- just over one in five people.)
July 28: Gillian, the Peace Corps nurse, tells us that thus far our group has been healthier than most. We've had food poisoning, the common cold, random diarrhea, one case of giardia and one case of cerebral malaria. The unfortunate soul with malaria is doing fairly well, thanks to an elixir of mephloquine, doxycycline and quinine. The side effects of the quinine are nearly as bad as malaria though, ringing in the ears and an all-over feeling of lousy.
Through a series of miscommunications and flat tires (they've become the hallmark of training lately) we missed our HIV/AIDS rendezvous, so we spent most of today driving and fixing tires. That's "tyres" as they say here.
For the first several weeks in Africa, I often found myself calculating the time of day in America, and picturing the daily activities occurring there: the morning radio show, meetings at the BLM office, an Oregon sunset, friends going out to eat, the McKenzie River. Yesterday I realized that it had been weeks since I had done this -- another milestone in making this place our home. Or perhaps we're just too damn busy to think about anything other than our narrow little world of training.
Further ramblings on packages: airmail postage (which is pretty spendy) takes about 3 weeks. Feel free to lie on the customs form about the contents, it seems unlikely that anyone, either legitimate or not, will be opening boxes. We do not (so far) pay duty, so feel free to send diamonds!
I've just returned from the Internet cafe in Kitwe, and in the six weeks since I last opened my account, 152 messages, mostly porn and debt consolidation, had accrued. E-mailers be warned: I probably won't have access (or desire) for email. Paper letters are cheap, fun, old fashioned, and paper is useful here. [edited out address - talk to Mama and Papa Turner if you need it, or email me (see 'contact' page) and I'll pass your request along]
LOVE, Rat and JP
P.S. One more package wish: color slide film (200 speed?).
"Tulaiisya mukukwambilila zilengwa leza" --- "We will learn to conserve God's creation"
- Created:
- Tuesday, October 12, 2004 at 12:45 PM