Vacation Part II

The Great African Dueck Vacation: Part II (July 24 – 28)

I love the dual carriageway on the way to Ndola. It is the only highway in Zambia that has two lanes going each direction. Too bad it only goes for 60 km and then it is back to two lane highways with broken down trucks, potholes, and people walking on the non-existent shoulder. But I enjoyed it while I could and kept reminding Kevin of how much I loved the dual carriageway on the way to Ndola.

We stopped at the Dag Hammerskjold crash site, the UN Secretary General whose plane went down in the 1960s under suspicious circumstances after working towards peace in the Congo. From there we drove on to Nsobe Game Camp where we had rented a large cabin right on a little lake. There were no little boys selling worms on the side of the road so the camp gave us a ball of dough to use for bait. The kids fished and canoed and we all relaxed by the water’s edge. In the final hour before dusk, we embarked on a game drive, using our own vehicles. There are no predators in the camp, but a variety of different antelope and other animals. It wasn’t long before we spotted the giraffe and everyone followed them on foot. Since our last encounter with the giraffe in April, a baby giraffe was born so now there were five. It was a relaxing two days with all of us under one roof instead of spread out.

Next stop was Lusaka, the big city! We were all able to stay at the MCC Guesthouse and enjoyed the time we had with our new MCC Reps, Eric and Kathy Fast. We had dessert with them one night and had a braai (BBQ) together another night. On Saturday morning, I had arranged a consultation between my father and an independent Pentecostal church that wants to start a counseling center, headed by my friend, Issa. I was hesitant to plan this meeting, knowing that Issa has a knack for making the most of an opportunity and I knew our family would need down time by that point. It was agreed that we would meet in the morning and then have lunch. According to the schedule, we would be done by 1:00 which I knew would be more like 2:00. Mom, Dad, and I met with Issa and about six other pastors and listened to their vision for meeting the needs of refugees in one of the poorest compounds in Lusaka. It was evident that they really wanted to make a difference in the lives of these people who are really struggling to survive. In the middle of the meeting, Issa informed us that we would all be attending a wedding right after the meeting and then we would lunch afterwards. There goes the plan for a free afternoon. Peter brought the rest of the gang in time for the wedding and it was kind of cool that they got to see a Zambian wedding but fifteen minutes of it would have sufficed instead of a few hours. The women of the church had been cooking all night for the wedding guests and we enjoyed a traditional Zambian meal of nshima, potatoes, fish, chicken and coleslaw. By the time we arrived home, it was late afternoon, I needed to get groceries, and I was exhausted. Ah, Issa. I should have known better but I hoped for the best.

Issa is the gentleman next to me and his wife, Anne, is between my parents.

Sunday was Justin’s 13th birthday and we decided to get donuts for his birthday breakfast. I had done all the research and knew that the donut shop that makes great donuts was open at 8:00 so we got there a little after. I forgot that, in Zambia, opening time means when the workers get there, not when they are ready to sell anything. No donuts. We got some at a nearby bakery instead but they were not so delicious and very expensive. We tried. After a few hours souvenir shopping at the curio market, we went to Kalimba Reptile Park where they have lots of crocodiles as well as a few snakes. We ate croc burgers and relaxed in the scenic surroundings.

One of the workers got a giant python out of its holding area and the different members of the family took turns having it draped across their shoulders. Even Rhonda, though significantly freaked out, managed to overcome her fear and become chummy with the python.

When we arrived back at the MCC guesthouse, it was decided that we would have a game of hide-and-seek with all members of the family participating. Max, the German Shepherd who supposedly guards the guesthouse (even though someone stole the patio furniture the night before) was eager to be part of the action.

Pre-game instructions . . .

Kevin was “it” and I had found the perfect hiding place. I saw that he had strayed from the “home free” tree so I took off running, and man, I was really booking it. My legs were fueled by an age-old sibling rivalry and I was not about to get caught by my big brother. But then, Max, who was circling the yard excited about all the activity, crossed paths with me (that is me trying not to blame the dumb dog for what happened next). Max cut my legs out from under me, and remember I was moving very fast, and my feet flew up into the air. I twisted in the air and then landed hard on my, shall I say, upper right cheek. I continued to fall backwards and hit my head on the ground and got the wind knocked out of me. I guess I was a sight to behold but the fact that I was moaning on the ground was enough to silence any laughter. I knew I was in for a humongous bruise at the threshold of where my lower back meets my bottom. Thankfully, I have a little extra padding there so nothing was broken. With a lot of ice and ibuprofen, I was able to move about tenderly but I must admit that my feelings toward Max are about as hard as the ground I landed on.

Our final day in Lusaka was spent visiting two partner organizations of MCC, Chisomo Drop-in Center for streetkids and a community school called Needs Care. The highlight of our day was the time we spent with Esther and Mary at Needs Care. I love these two women who are so warm and wonderful and who genuinely care for the children in their compound. When we arrived, all the children were waiting for us and they greeted us with a special clap that ends in them “throwing” their greeting to us.

We then have to act like we are catching it and if we don’t do it well enough, they will tell us that we missed and have to do it again.

The children sang songs for us and performed a sketch about HIV/AIDS. Then they got the drums going and performed a few traditional dances for us. To my horror, Esther called Peter and I up to try our hand at the traditional dancing. I can’t wiggle my bottom like they do, even in the best of times, and with my bottom being extremely sore, there wasn’t much I could do. While I feebly attempted some sort of dance, Peter came to the rescue and stole the show. Having never done traditional dancing of this sort, he chose to do a mixture of moves that he learned from watching 70s TV shows and basketball drills that kept his legs moving. He was hilarious! Brendan was laughing so hard that tears were streaming down his cheeks. The whole place was shaking with laughter.


When we all recovered from this spectacle, we went outside and played a few group games. Kevin, a middle school Physical Education teacher was amazed at how resourceful they were with no equipment. It was a wonderful experience, getting to interact with these children and teachers, and seeing how desperately they want to learn.

Trying my best to keep up with the rest

Mom visiting with Mary

Laughing with Esther after the games

And that was the end of the second phase of our vacation. We packed up all our things one more time and prepared ourselves for the final phase: Victoria Falls and the safari.