It's almost Thanksgiving

A lot has happened here in Zambia since my last post. Now, I am living in the village of Chibobo in Central Province. I have been at my site and adjusting to my new living arrangement for a little over 1 month. I can say with certainty that I love my site and the people of my community. They have been so warm and welcoming and are ready to start working. So far I have met with the local school, clinic, orphanage, and several women’s groups. I’ve been working to learn the village’s health concerns. So far I have found people are most concerned with HIV/AIDS, malaria, nutrition, and child and maternal health.  Right now malaria is on the increase due to higher rain fall. When talking with the clinic staff I was told there had been over 50 cases of malaria for the month of November (this was on the 8^th)! I can see many areas where I can help the people here and motivate them to want to continue when I leave.

Recently I was sitting on the front step of my house and saw some visitors walking up. They were from Finland and the Green Living Movement that promotes conservation farming. They were with a reporter from ZNBC who was doing a documentary on the farming practices. I was able to tag along while they filmed in the fields. I learned all about their organization and that my host has been to many different parts of Africa in promotion of conservation farming. GLM is providing trees for free that the farmers can plant alongside their crops. The roots from the trees provide nitrogen into the soil. This makes it possible for the farmers to not use fertilizers and chemicals. The organization is also helping with income generating projects such as keeping goats, chickens, and pigs. I hope to be able to work with them in future projects.

Today, I biked the 12k from my site to the paved road and hitched a ride into Serenje Boma. The next three days are Peace Corps Provincials and Thanksgiving. The volunteers all get together and pitch in to make a dinner. Tomorrow we are cooking the sweets!! This will be my first ever holiday season away from home and family. As difficult as that will be its nice we volunteers can be together for Thanksgiving. I have a lot to be thankful for this year. I’m thankful for the opportunity to be in Zambia and learn from this culture, to meet and make new friends, for my health, and for the support of friends and family. I’ve had a lot of time to be by myself with no distractions and learn what things are really important. I know that being here is so much easier when I have the love and support from back home. Tom, my boyfriend, has been a wonderful support as well as my mother who sends me packages without fail. I love you both very much. I hope to be seeing you in February. I’ve created an account online called “Help Bri Get Home” that friends and family can contribute to. As a volunteer I only receive enough money for food and basic necessities. If anyone can help me in funding a ticket home I would be so appreciative!  

http://fundrazr.com/campaigns/8OIv3

I will try to post soon. I have limited access at my site but I may have found my signal sweet spot. It’s a tree about 50ft from my hut; it and I have become quite close J

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Love Bri

Sept. 9^th

The news of late is that I’ve been told my site will be in Central Province in the district of Serenje. I have also been able to meet my host counterpart.  He is a very sweet 65yr old man and an organic farmer. We had a great talk on climate change. He shared with me his 65yrs of observations on the topic and how the area where he lives has changed from when he was a child. He told me the weather is hotter, there are less water sources, and the air is not as clean as when he was a boy. It was wonderful listening to him and I was amazed that I found someone in rural Zambia who shares my concerns.

Hey, I'm sitting in an internet cafe right now in Lusaka. I just hit the one month mark in Zambia!! At this time I'm in pre-service training learning about health in the rural communities as well as how to speak Bemba. I have been living with a host family in the rural area of Mulungushi village. My family has 5 children from ages 15-1.5yrs. I'm still adjusting to living with a host family but for the most part it has been a very rewarding experience. On a typical day I have about 13 miles of biking to do to get to my training site and back. This was hard at first but I'm getting better and making the trip faster everyday. Yesterday I visited a rural health clinic and was able to deliver a health talk to some of the mothers. I was also able to weigh the babies and track their growth since birth. I have been surprised by the amount I'm able to do here despite not having a health background. I'm very excited to get to my site and start working with the community. Some of the projects I've been thinking of starting are income generating activities such as off season gardens run by women or girls.
Best wishes Bri

Countdown

Leaving for Philly tomorrow and then heading to New York where my flight leaves at 11am on the 18th. After the 15 hour flight I will be touching down in Johannesburg for my first steps in Africa! It's then a 2 hr trip north by plane to Zambia where I will be living for the next 27 months!!

Bri
7/16/2012