From the very moment our plane landed in Zambia, I realised what a different experience this was going to be from anything I’ve ever done before. Our plane, which wasn’t even a quarter full, landed in this tiny little airport, where a big group of airport workers lay on the grass watching the plane coming in. Inside the airport, immigration, passport control, baggage collection, the toilets and the exit were all enclosed in one room. It was so different to any bustling airport I’ve ever been in before. And so our adventure in Livingstone began!From then on it has been a constant stream of new and interesting experiences’, from sharing the shower with a grasshopper, to fifty-eight mosquito bites in one night, to eating ‘nshima’, suspected bed bugs, and the overwhelming heat, Livingstone is very different to what I am used to. However, it hasn’t been too difficult to get settled in and this is mainly due to the friendliness of the Zambian people. Our host, Patrick, told us a well-known saying in Zambia; “treat a stranger with kindness and they will leave a little bit of their heart in your home”, and I am already certain that I will be leaving a little bit of my heart in Livingstone. Every time we walk down the street people greet us; it’s unbelievable how many times a day you are asked “how are you?” because this is the normal ‘street-greeting’.
At first I thought our accommodation was ‘typical Africa’ with its laid back attitude, cushioned ‘chill-out’ areas, and huts for accommodation but Patrick explained that Jollyboys is more “a part of Northern Ireland in Zambia!” At first I didn’t quite understand this (although we felt pretty close to home when we ate breakfast in the bar area and Sky News was on with Eamonn Holmes presenting) but with every day we spend here I am learning more about ‘true African culture’.One of our first real insights into the Zambian culture was going to a local bar to watch a football match in which Zambia were competing. The atmosphere when the team scored and won the match was just amazing, with clapping, shouting, cheering, dancing, singing, hugging, car horns and alarms were sounding, and there was a real sense of pride for their country. This success was shared by males, females and children, and the taxi driver who took us home was even shouting “GO ZAMBIA!” out the window!
Getting around here is quite different to home. The quality of the roads makes for some very bumpy journeys and I will never again complain about potholes in the roads at home! It is not uncommon for cars/buses to swerve onto the other side of the road to avoid a huge hole, even when there are other cars coming, and the lack of traffic lights, or ‘robots’ as they are called here, makes it interesting when you reach a junction in terms of who has right of way. But we have been promised that it is in fact none of these things that make for a rather crazy journey- it is in fact that some of the cars are defect so it is not the drivers’ faults!
Although every day has been exciting, my favourite day so far has to be mine and Harriet’s first trip to Victoria Falls. We set out on our hired bikes and cycled the six and a half miles to the Falls at 8.30am. It was nice to leave behind the bustling town area which is full of people buying and selling on the streets and taxis pumping their horns constantly, and get out into the ‘countryside’ where all we could see was green landscapes for miles around. From our very first glimpse of the Falls right up until we left I couldn’t stop taking pictures of the beautiful sights, even when Harriet kept warning me my camera was going to get very wet! We are excited to go back to the Falls and it can be a very nice, relaxing change from being right in the centre of life in Livingstone.Every day here is bringing new challenges and I can’t wait to see what else our new home has in store for us.
Our first visit to the amazing Victoria Falls
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