Blogs from Lusaka, Zambia, Africa - page 4

Today we returned to Hidden Voice School. Because of the energy we brougt yesterday, they wanted us to come back for PE and more physical exercise with the children today. So, balloons were again popular; a game similar to duck, duck goose with the whole group; some races and some arts and crafts. You should see your children and your friends with these kids. They are having a ball, being creative and making these kids feel special. I hope the pictures begin to give you an idea. We had our own fun sheduled for today - a visit to the crocodile farm. These crocodiles are monstrous! A waist high cement wall and a little chain link fence are all that separate you from a killing machine that looks fierce, powerful and like it somehow is still ... read more

The last two days have been very challenging for Zambia Trip 2012. We have been at Bauleni Street Kids Project. It is a school and residential home for children with special needs and normally developing kids that are getting an education. The school is not funded fully. The government helps some, but not nearly enough, so the school is working toward self-sufficiency. They grow their own food for feeding the students and for selling at the market. They have a bakery that makes bread for the students and to sell. The door to the bakery faces the main road that runs right in front of the school so people can come in and buy the bread. They also make bricks to build their buildings and to sell. All of these ventures help the school pay for ... read more

We made it. We are in Africa! Our trip out of Dubai went smoothly. It was hot and humid in Dubai this morning, just like last night, but we went through security and got on the plane with no glitches. It was almost 7 hours to Lusaka and the most unbelievable thing is that all 20 of our bags were waiting for us. Frontier had told us in Denver that they could only get the bags to Dubai and we would have to re-check them there. When we were at LAX and checking in with Emirates, they told us they had booked the bags on through to Lusaka. And sure enough, there they were - all 20 of them. Its nice when the system works! The move through customs was quick and painless, much easier than ... read more

Last night (Sunday), we had dinner at the home of the Honourable Madam Justice Chibesakunda, a judge of the Zambia Supreme Court. Mada Justice Chibesakunda was the first female lawyer in Zambia, was Zambia's ambassador to Japan, and is a graduate of the Chipembi Girls School, a school we have heard much about since arriving here. This school seems to graduate strong, independent young women who go on to do amazing things in Zambia. The women who greeted us at the judge's home wore beautiful dresses and while there was a formality to the event, we were also made to feel very welcome. We saw photographs of the judge meeting Pope John Paul II and our visit was interrupted by a phone call from the Prime Minister of Zambia. Although she was anything but pretentious, it ... read more

We are almost ready. The second Zambia group from OLP is about to leave for Africa.We have one fundraiser left, this weekend, a commissioning mass over Memorial Day weekend and a packing day, then off we go. The actual trip dates are June 1 to June 23, 2012. There are 10 of us going: Monica, Mary, Ian, Denis, Sean, Evan, Caitie, Allison, J.P., and Andy. Sandy can’t go on the trip after all, but she is still helping make advance arrangements for when we get there. Fr. Patrick has e-mailed us and told us that we will spend the first few days in Lusaka and a good deal of the time we will be at St. Theresa Mission in Ibenga. The original plan for starting the school at Kapiri Mposhi is still tied up with negotiations ... read more