The Smoke That Thunders

The African name for Victoria Falls is Mosi-oa-Tunya which, in English, translates into "the smoke that thunders." It seems like a much more applicable name for such an impressive monument to nature than the name of a fat English queen who never set foot anywhere near the Falls.

I have been to Vic Falls (the one advantage of this name is that it is slightly shorter) three times now. The first time was in October. I probably wrote an article about it at that time but I can summarize it by saying that I was taken by its breathtaking height. There was almost no water in it then as it was the height of the dry season so we were able to walk right across the top of what is now surging river water. Then we returned in December. By this point there was a little more flow and you could feel the mist on your face from the other side of the canyon. I guess you could call this "medium flow."

On this trip, however, the Falls were at their most spectacular state, the peak of water flow. The river is over a kilometer wide at this point and the entire mass of it plummets down immense cliffs. The resulting mist and spray not only soaked us as we stood across the gorge from the Falls but also could be seen from Livingstone, several kilometers away. It felt like one was standing in a cloud with the mist shrouding much of what you could see in most directions.

I think probably every foreigner who has ever set foot in Zambia has made their way to Victoria Falls. Far fewer Zambians have seen their natural wonder, although there seemed to be a fair number of them when we were there. If you ask around in Lusaka, though, you won't find many people who have been there and I'm sure the same could be said for the rest of the country. Foreigners, including myself, have a passionate desire to get there because it is the one internationally recognize tourist attraction in the country. Locals, aren't quite so keen. I asked a friend if he would like to see the Falls some day. He said maybe he would but that he had already seen them on TV many times so wasn't all that interested. Don't know if this is indicative of wider opinions, or if it is just that most Zambians don't have the money to travel to see them (this is probably the major reason) but they certainly seem to be less of a deal for Zambians than they are for me.

Nonetheless, the Falls leave no doubt that they are one of the seven natural wonders of the world and it has been great to see them at these three stages of water flow.

Groly To the Lord

Spelling mistake? Well, that's what I would call it. This sign on a minibus I saw this morning is no mere spelling mistake, however. Not only did Glory become Groly but it is also indicative of the wider trend among Zambians that Rs and Ls are often confused in written and spoken English. This is something that I may have mentioned before, but the sign made me think of it again.

The R/L confusion extends to many words: right/light, river/liver, full/four, lay/ray, lake/rake, play/pray. For example, someone might say, "my lake is broken" when they mean "my rake is broken." Or people will talk about the "Zambezi Liver." In my Grade 8 class last term I tried to hit back. We carefully went through how to pronounce the letters and then moved on to some words getting the class, then small groups, and then individuals to try pronouncing the words. The effort was futile so after a few efforts I gave up. I then gave a short reading test where they had to read out sentences like "I turn on the light" but I discovered that much of the class wasn't able to do any reading, let alone differentiate between two letters.

I think that this confusing letter-switch might be a result of local languages. The word "to come" in Nyanja is "bwera" which is pronounced "bwela." I hear that in Tonga there is no "R" but that some Ls are pronounced as Rs. Given these pieces of evidence I think I can conclude fairly safely that this is the root of the confusing situation.

For someone not used to switching Rs and Ls at random (or should that be landom?) this can be confusing. When someone tells you that the play at church it takes a little while to realize that they meant that they pray at church. I'm getting a little quicker at it though now. Who knows, maybe I'll even start doing it too someday.

The Meals I Dread

It has been a while since I've done a list, so here goes another one. The five worst relishes (side dishes) with nshima. I should point out, however, that most nshima relishes are really good but some I would rather do without.

1. Kapenta - the thought of these little dried or fresh fish makes me gag. The worse part is that when you eat them it stinks up the whole house and the taste remains in your mouth for the rest of the day.

2. Caterpillars - chewy and not particularly tasty.

3. Dried fish - some dried fish is OK (mostly due to the salt content), but I had one kind of dried fish whose skin was sort of slimy. That was not my favourite, one can be sure.

4. Impwa - these can be OK but often they are served cold and have a funny taste to them. They are a vegetable but I can't really figure out how to explain them beyond that. You eat them whole and I think that they are boiled before eating.

5. Chihuahua - of all the greens, this is my least favourite. I far prefer rape or cabbage (which is , by far, my personal favourite).

There you have a list of my least favourite relishes. I would give a list of my favourites but it would be not particularly interesting: beef, sausage, chicken, buka fish, cabbage, and mince meat (ground beef).

Global Family Report - Chimwemwe

Every six months, MCC produces reports for people who sponsor a Global Family program at several schools in Zambia. Two of the schools that receive support from Global Family are the schools where I work. Here is a sneak peak of one of these reports:

National News:

Zambia has remained stable since the September 2006 elections, although an ongoing war of words continues between the main opposition leader, Michael Sata, and the president, Levy Mwanawasa. Currently the major political issue in the country is developing a new constitution to, among other things, reduce the power of the president. Opposition parties and numerous NGOs and church groups have campaigned hard for many years on this front, and some continue to complain that the government is dragging its feet. The government, for its part, maintains that a process is in place. It is widely assumed that the issue will be settled near the end of Mwanawasa’s presidency.

Zambia has made international news recently for its defeat in court by a “vulture fund.” In the late 1970s Zambia bought tractors from Romania with the funds to be paid over time. In the 1990s, Zambia was close to reaching an agreement with the Romanian government to buy out the loan for a fraction of its cost, when it was bought up by this fund, who then demanded the full value of the loan (around $40 million). As a country that recently was able to increase health and education spending dramatically due to debt relief, it would be a major blow to Zambia’s social services if it was forced to pay out a large sum to this creditor.

School News:

Another term is now complete at Chimwemwe School, and as usual, this term has brought its own unique set of challenges, setbacks, and opportunities. Last term was made difficult because several teachers left the school for positions in government schools. We continued to lose teachers this term, this time due to illness and childbirth. Losing any teachers from a barebones staff has consequences, but, this term, three were lost for extended periods. At times, there were more classes than there were teachers, so staff would juggle multiple classes at the same time. The result has been that extra duties have been shared among all staff members, whether that meant teaching additional classes or assisting with the administration.

Shortly after the previous newsletter, Grade 7 and 9 students from throughout the country wrote national examinations to determine who would pass on to Grade 8 and 10. Those who do well are given places in government schools in the next grade. Chimwemwe School had good results from the exams, which is a positive sign about the quality of education being provided. These exams also have an impact on the Grade 8 intake at the school. The students that come to the school either failed the exam in Grade 7 or are unable to go to a government school. As a result the ability of students in the Grade 8 class ranges widely from those who can read and write very well to those who remain illiterate, which makes accommodating the educational levels of the Grade 8 students difficult.

In late November Chimwemwe received internet access from a local internet service provider. The staff are now quite proficient at it, while the older students have all received lessons and can now be seen filling the computer room to play a variety of educational games or read the news. The facility also serves as an internet café, a facility which has been successful in raising much-needed resources for the school. You can check out Chimwemwe’s new website at www.chimwemwe.ac.zm. Computer lessons also started at the primary level this term. Since we currently only have four computers, it was a bit of a challenge to accommodate classes ranging in size from 35 to 70, so much of the work was done in the regular classroom. Nevertheless, the computer lessons were very popular for the younger kids, and parents were very happy to see that their children were learning some skills with the new machines.

Chimwemwe students also participated in inter-school sports this term. Pupils participated in the disciplines of football (soccer), netball (for girls), and occasionally in girls football. The players were eager and practiced hard but, alas, no wins came the school’s way. More importantly, however, everyone enjoyed themselves and students improved their skills as the term went on. Next term the whole school will be involved in inter-class games and athletics.

Samson Kayonde, GF Recipient:

I had the opportunity to visit the house of Samson Kayonde, a student who successfully completed Grade Nine with the help of the Global Family program. Samson is nineteen years old and has been a double orphan since 2000. His mother died in 1989, his father in 2000, and his lone sister in 1990. He currently lives with his grandmother, Betty, and six others; five of these are double orphans. No one in the household has a regular job. In order to support the family the grandmother raises a little money by making and selling table clothes, although she often only sells one or two of these in a month. Samson and the others try to help out by finding piecework in the community. When I asked how they can afford to eat, let alone worry about other necessities, the response was “we just survive.”

Samson has been attending Chimwemwe since Grade Five. He likes science and says that some day he would like to become an accountant. Like most Zambians his age he enjoys playing football and going to church. Samson is a quiet, thoughtful, and polite young man who under his quiet demeanour shows an undeniable determination to succeed.

The house was dark inside because the family cannot afford electricity and there are very few windows. Betty’s husband was building the house, but died before it could be completed. There is enough space to live in but one can still see the remains of unfinished walls around the front of the house. At the back of the plot there was a small garden where the family is able to grow a few vegetables and onions for their own consumption. Samson said that he enjoyed working back there and I can see why. It was quiet, shady, and a cool breeze lifted the day’s heat.

On our return trip to school I asked Samson again how they afforded food if there was no income. He thought for a second, as if deciding whether or not to share a secret. “Sometimes,” he said, “we don’t eat for three days.” Samson explained how he always came to school anyways, just so that no students could guess that he had not eaten.

Samson is a tremendously eager and ambitious youth. On one of my first days at Chimwemwe School he came to me asking if I could teach him French lessons. My busy schedule did not really allow for many lessons, but we did have a session or two. It is a tremendous compliment to Global Family that such a youth, coming from circumstances more difficult than most North Americans (myself included) can comprehend, has been given the gift of an education and hope for the future.