April 12, 2013--Part One:"I am Special! I am Unique! There's Nothing Wrong with Me!"

Okay, last night was not restful. Partying--and accompanying raucous fights--carried on far later than I would have liked. Oh well.

Today, though, is time to travel to see Jane and the compound where she works. I'm still not that hungry, so when Dominic and Ollie show up, we take a taxi to The Garden Basic School. Right now, Zambian schools are on break and the only children attending Jane's literacy class are there voluntarily.

We arrive to children jumping up and down in a rondoval and screaming, at the top of their lungs, "I am special! I am unique! There's nothing wrong with me!" over and over again. They're laughing, and in the middle of them is Jane--4" heels and all!

Library is the back left building and the rondoval is center

The children then manage to pull us into their games. It's so much fun--all of us are laughing at my, Ollie, and Dominic's inept attempts to play along. I can't help but think how much more community and joy these games bring in comparison to Halo, play station, and the like. Oh, and do they ever give you a work out--my quads were BURNING! After group games, I head inside with some of the girls to look at the library. I'm really quite impressed with the selection. There's a lot of pride taken in the books and resources belonging to the school.

As inept as Ollie and Dominic might be at the games, they more than make up for it once it comes time to play futbol (soccer). Dominic, though, is less than amused that they don't follow regulation rules--his competitive spirit gets him just a wee bit worked up! Once we're done--and totally exhausted--we head to Jane's for lunch.

We arrive at her home where her mother and sisters warmly greet us and bring us inside. Jane's home is lovely, and, after the bootcamp-ish workout/games with the kids, it's delightful to sink down into a comfy couch and sip some ice-cold water!

The nshima and beans Jane feeds us are incredibly tasty! It's a bit like going back to favorite childhood memories. I've been lucky enough to have nshima since I left Zambia, but what's available here is different from what is in the US.

After lunch, Ollie and Dominic decide they need to try the local drink, "Shake Shake"," a highlyfermented, cheap alcohol that pretty much anyone can afford. We have to travel through the market to the nearest Shake Shake store and the wazungus carrying a large carton back to Jane's house cases quite the stir. Then it comes time for Ollie and Dominic to try it out; even if I did drink, the smell of it alone would keep me from it! After adding QUITE a bit of sugar, they, though, find it tolerable. Then it's time for Jane to show off the parts of Lusaka that most visitors don't get to see.

(Though this post is lighthearted, the easily 100+ empty containers of Shake Shake we found lying around, as well as more than a few encounters with severely inebriated people, make it clear that alcoholism is no laughing matter.)

We travel through several different markets and compounds--attracting, of course, lots of attention. The neighborhoods vary in their degree of prosperity or poverty. A peak through an ajar gate reveals a home that might fit into an upper-class residential area in the US. On the other hand, there are areas where houses are nothing but rough cinder block.

Most houses are surrounded  by walls whose gates are emblazoned with "Beware of Dogs" but few actually seem to have any. Nonetheless, Ollie finds it important to document each and every "Beware of Dogs" sign we pass.  Can't wait until I get the pictures! ;)

The next stage of the day, however, doesn't exactly go as planned...

We end up in on of the poorest compounds when Ollie and I decide we want to see the stream. Well, we get lost. Lost to the point that even Jane doesn't know where we are at! We stumble along a small, narrow pathway between even smaller homes. First one child and then another greets us. My innocent muli shani; how are you?" sets off a round of: "Muzungu, how are you! Muzungu, how are you! Muzungu, how..." you get the idea. Soon there are probably around 50 children of all ages trailing along behind us. It moves from cute to annoying, but I don't realize how problematic the situation is until a bit later.

"This is how traffickers catch children," Jane says.
"What?"
"This is how traffickers catch and trick children. Traffickers will get them to follow until the children are beyond the areas they know, and then, well..."

Suddenly, my friendly: "Muli Shani!" takes on a malevolent air. I am potentially feeding a situation that might one day endanger a child. It is hard to do, but from then on out I pointedly ignore any child that approaches me and don't look a single on in the eye.

Unfortunately, trekking through the compound has only gotten us more lost. Read the next installment to find out what happens next.