fifteen

Oh man, so my computer broke and now I can’t use it. I am not a happy camper. I guess it’s not that big of a deal though. We will see.

So last Monday, Heather, her parents, Krista, Nura, Sharghi and I all made the trip to Livingstone. Heather’s parents had invited me to stay with them at a lodge up there, so obviously I accepted. When the girls found out we were going in December, they all told us that it would suck. They said that there would be no water. Now, I didn’t believe them, because really, how could a waterfall have no water? Well, they weren’t wrong. The difference between now and August was astonishing. There was practically no water. There were two small streams coming down the cliff and that was it. It was neat though, because we were able to cross the dried Zambezi river and stand on the top of the falls. It was crazy. That was something that I had wanted to do when I went in August, but because the river was so flooded, we weren’t able to.

While we were in Livingstone, we did a few things that I had missed out on last time. We went to the Arts Café, and saw a traditional dance performance. It was called Dancing Around Zambia. It was awesome. They had dances from four of the seven provinces. Here’s their Youtube channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/LiPAFZambia. There’s also a video of flying ants called Insua. They are disgusting and I hate them. Once, when I was going to take a shower, one of them followed me into the ablutions. Then, it went into the shower I wanted to use. GO AWAY. Anyways, they are really good, and I really enjoyed their performance.

We also went to the museum. Now, I just love museums so much. This one was pretty cool too. It had an exhibit on the early people of Zambia/evolution of humans.

Then there was this part called “Our Village” which showed traditional life in Zambia.

Next, it went to “Their City” which was basically just an anti-capitalism section. Showing how much colonists suck, and how they ruin everything.

Then there was an exhibit on traditional Zambian life. It was really interesting. They explained all the rites of passage: birth, puberty, marriage, and death. There were also displays on witchcraft and crafts and stuff. I loved the part about witchcraft. I just think that it is so interesting. I want to learn and learn and learn all about it.

After the museum, we were going to go eat, but there was no power. Such a shame, so instead, we went to Shoprite to buy some food so we could make lunch. Well, I decided I wanted a sausage so I could make a hotdog. I picked it out and then when I went to eat it, it was cold. BAH! I ate it anyways, and it was good. I figured that I was just training my stomach for the next time food poisoning comes to Banani. I also bought some drinking yogourt. Now, usually, I buy Zamsip, but this time I bought Parmalat. Let me tell you, don’t buy Parmalat. It is runny and it has scary colouring in it. Zamsip is far superior.

That night, we went on a river cruise. It was so much fun. I just love boats so much. We saw a bunch of hippos and some crocodiles, too. There were also a bunch of birds, but I don’t really care much for those. When we were going down a channel between two islands, our boat broke down. I thought that the captain just stopped it for some reason, so I turned to Krista and jokingly said that we were out of gas. Turns out, I wasn’t actually joking. We were out of gas. We had to call for help and get someone to come and fetch us. It was ok though, because then we had to drive fast to catch up to the other boat. I was happy with this arrangement.

We got off on an island so that we could eat some snacks. They had the best meat EVER! I ate about five pieces of it, it was so good. SO GOOD! After our snacks, we were heading back to the dock, when our captain turned around. What now? Well, it turns out the other boat left someone behind on the island. They just left him there. WHAT!? How do you forget a passenger? We rescued him.

Oh man, Heather and I were walking down the street about five metres in front of everyone else, as per usual, when this man approached us. He started talking to us and talking to us, and eventually he asked us what church we go to. I told him that, we don’t go to church because we are Baha’is. Well, that was the end of that. He looked at us, said it was nice talking to us and then he sped off. Oh well. Now we know how to get rid of people. We can just tell them straight off that we don’t go to church and they will probably leave us alone.

I totally forgot, while we were in Livingstone, we had one cab driver the whole time. His name was Joe. We liked to call him Joe Fresh. Also, I would sometimes sing the “Hello, my name is Joe and I work in a button factory” song. Ok, by sometimes, I mean everyday. He was good. If you ever go to Livingstone, ask for Joe (Fresh).

Now, I’m just relaxing here at Banani until Tuesday, when I go to Lusaka to meet Olivia and Naveed at the bus station! Man, I am excited to see them. Then, we’re heading for Malawi to see the lake, then to Cape Town. It will be the longest I have been out of Zambia since I got here. And the first time I will be without my Banani friends. It will be strange, but good training for when I leave at the end of February. I dread that day.

LYLT!