Note: Accessing the internet in Zambia is more challenging than I thought it would be. Hence, I’d have to do this “diary” style. Here goes:

April 20 (Fri): First Day High

I finally am in Zambia! After spending 23 hours in transit, I happily reached Lusaka—the country’s capital city—safe and sound. My first impression of the place is that it is very similar to the Philippines in a lot of ways—only with a lot more wide open spaces and a lot less traffic.:) The people are very warm and accommodating, and communication is not a problem since almost everyone here (even the street vendors) could speak good English. It’s a lot cooler here too compared to Manila at this time of the year, so that is definitely a good thing. The food is good as well—lots of potatoes, beans, chicken, and tilapia! They have really large serving sizes, so I think I might have already gained a few pounds on my first day alone.

I am currently billeted at the Protea Hotel—my “home” from the next couple of days as I undergo my In-Country Orientation. It’s considered a posh hotel in this city, so I really couldn’t claim to have seen the “real Zambia” just yet. I guess that part (seeing the “real Zambia”, that is) is reserved for the next two or so years of my life.:D

April 22 (Sun): Just Like Home

I’ve had a great first weekend in Zambia. Everything and everyone seems eerily familiar. I guess it helps that there are a lot of Filipinos based in this country. First off, I am currently rooming with Bess, another Pinay who was my batchmate in the VSO training courses I attended in the Philippines. Second, one of the members of VSO Zambia’s office staff is Filipina as well. Third, there a lot of Filipino VSO volunteers working in Lusaka. The best part of it is that every Saturday night, a Filipino couple (Fred and Dina Velasco) hosts a small gathering attended by Filipino VSO volunteers and a few other kababayans from other organizations. Bess and I were glad to be part of that intimate gathering. Of course, just like any other Pinoy party, the night was filled with good food (and alcohol), much laughter, and non-stop videoke!:) It’s like I never left home at all.

It doesn’t stop there though. This morning, I heard Holy Mass at the St. Ignatius Church—run by the Jesuits of course.:) The service was very much like how it is done in the Philippines—only with a livelier choir! In addition, if one would look up the Church structure, one wouldn’t miss the big letters that spell out “A.M.D.G.” Seeing those four letters never felt so good.

From the Church, we went shopping for household items at Manda Hill—sort of like the Ayala Center in this part of the world. Then, after that, we spent time again at the Velascos where another impromptu gathering was held.:)

It’s strange to feel so at home in a foreign land, but hey, I’m not complaining.:) I’m sure that when I get to my placement in Mazabuka where I’ll be the only Filipino resident, reality will set in and I’ll feel stranger than I ever been in my life. For now though, I am just enjoying that feeling of being at home away from home.

April 29 (Sun): Settling In

It’s been exactly 10 days since I arrived in Zambia, and five days since I first set foot in Mazabuka—a “big small town” 120km south of Lusaka. I am settling in quite nicely at the three-bedroom house (pretty big by Zambian standards) that I share with a Dutch volunteer who has arrived here in February. My work at Mazabuka Municipal Council’s Finance Department as Resource Mobiliser has also started—right on my first day in town, in fact. Most of the week was spent familiarizing myself with the people, the programmes, and the systems of the Council, in between monitoring house repairs, arranging my bedroom and bathroom, doing my laundry and—hold your breath—cooking.:) So far, the most difficulty I’ve encountered had something to do with figuring out the scores of padlocks for securing our house, deciphering the Kwacha (i.e., the Zambian money), and keeping my black shoes from turning into a dusty brown after a day spent walking to and from the office. I, however, am slowly but surely getting the hang of those.

Now, if only I could learn at least three of the major dialects (i.e., Tonga, Nyanja, Bemba) that are spoken here in the Southern province…:)