Zambia Gott Katie

Image hosting by Photobucket I hope everybody enjoys my site. I will try to update it as often as I can but since internet is limited, it may be hard but stick with me. Thanks everybody!

Sunday, February 26, 2006

Disco Night and Cultural Day

Hello guys,
I hope you are all doing well. I decided that my last post wasn't all that informative about my life and so here we go...
I wake up every morning around 645 by my mom. She does not understand that I have an alarm clock and if afraid of me sleeping in. I take a bath most mornings which consists of me walking like 30 feet to a little bushed in area. It is private except for all the lizards that bath with me. I dump water over my head and go from there. Then I eat breakfast which is a half of a hard boiled egg and some bread of some sort. Then I ride my bike throught corn fields to my language class. Class is from 8 to 12. Then I come home and have lunch which is some sort of leaves with rice or corn meal with something else. Then I ride my bike to tech class which is from 2-5. Tech class is where I learn about what my job is going to be when I get posted. Then I come home have dinner, play games with my family and go to bed.
Life is good except that I have chicken fleas which sucks big time. We had cultural day yesterday where all of our moms cooked food...anything from rice to chicken feet to termites and catapillars. I tired it all but did not like most of it. Then we all went to disco night which was sooooo fun!!!
Most of us get together on Sundays to come into town. I just ate a pizza which was soooo yummy. Most to all of the stores are closed on Sundays which is a bummer but at least internet is open.
Communication here is very hard. It is hard to get stamps..paper..enveloped and stuff. I am excited to get to my site so I can have more free time to communicate.
Oh I forgot to say this earlier but I killed a chicken a few weeks ago during my site visit. It was pretty gross and blood went all over my legs and shoes. They gave me a very dull knife to cut its head off then I had to stand on its wings while it died. Something that I won't do again but it is part of life here in Zambia.
What else...I will find out my site in 10 days....so exciting!!! Everybody is my group is great and it will be hard to say good bye to them when we all depart.
Please keep me posted on everything...I love you guys and miss ya

Saturday, February 18, 2006

Life in Zambia

Hello everybody,
Geez I have not sat at a computer in so long. Life is so great. Zambia is a great country. I just had my first language test in Bemba... I passed:) My host family consists of my Dad Kelvin, mom Mary and two brothers who are Thomas (who is 2) and Simon (who is 4). My family is pretty amazing. My mom gives me a bath every morning which means I take a bush bath. I get a bucket of hot water and shower in an encloser which is made from grass. I have mastered the task of going to the bathroom in a hole but haven't been brave enough to go at night. I have class 6 days a week, language in the morning for 4 hours then tech for 3 hours. Language is hard but it is fun. The food is interesting. I eat corn meal everyday with some relish what is mainly leaves of some sort. I have had chicken twice and fish twice. I am getting used to eating with my fingers and making a mess. Oh, I live in the middle of corn fields. Think of field of dreams...that is me. I sleep with crickets and lizards every night and wake up with even more mosquito bites. Zambia is sooo beautiful and the people are so nice. Peace Corps has told me that Zambia is one of the most if not the most rural country that volunteers go to which is interesting. I had my fist site visit awhile ago and the volunteer I stayed with was in the BUSH!!! Basically there wasnt a market or store for a good 100 km. You grow what you eat. It was a great experience but I dont think I want to live in such a rural site but we will see. I will find out soon.

Thank you BAILEY for all the letters
Thank you AUNTIE SHARRON, MOM, MAGGIE AND JENNY. You guys are great.

Communication is hard here. WE get one day off and all the stores are closed in the main city Kitwe. I was hoping to get some air grames which is the cheapest way to send letters but we were just told that ZAmbia isnt making then anymore. Everybody please stick with me!!

If you guys can please send snacks, soccer balls, crystal light and fun games for kids.

Miss you all and love ya.