 |
| Lilongwe - Lusaka |
Monday, April 12, 2010
The Tour d'Afrique - Not for the faint of heart! - Lilongwe to Lusaka
The Tour d’Afrique – Not for the faint of heart!
On January 16, 2010, 60 or more cyclists left Cairo for a 4-month, 12,000 km ride to Cape Town. These were the full tour riders.
The Tour is divided into 8 sections, bounded at each end by an International airport. Sectional riders can join any one or more of these sections without having to complete the whole Tour. On April 7, Jessica Lianne and I joined in when the Tour reached Lilongwe, Malawi. By now the riders had completed 7,500 kms.
They were lean, fit, conditioned and grizzled.
We were about to find out what other sectional riders before us had learned and written about when it came their turn to join, mid-stream, this relentless determined expedition – it’s tough.
In the 5 days it took us to get from Lilongwe, capital of Malawi to Lusaka, capital of Zambia, we covered a distance of 726 kms, with daily rides of 153, 197, 124, 148 and 104. the 148 km day included a 1900 metre climb!
The Tour was in full flight, and we hung on like kids having boarded a moving train! For the last three months, I’ve been reading all of their blogs. It was fun to recognize so many of the riders and to see them in action.
It’s a certainty – the Tour meets Harry’s first rule, “Break a sweat six times a week.” And then some!
The Tour d’Afrique is not for the faint of heart – especially when you're 70 years old!
On the first day across the Malawi border, I had to keep my heart rate at 150-155 just to keep up with Lianne and Jessica.
Mrs. Jones and Mrs. Barker, your daughters are doing very well - they are strong and fit. As we say in Zambian understatement - “they are fine.”
Early on, a Zambian man, wearing our new Okanagan Zambia Health Initiative biking jersey, was seen standing at the side of the road. Many Tour riders noticed him and recognized the jersey, with surprise.
As Lianne and Jessica approached, this total stranger greeted them; “Hello Lianne – Hello Jessica. Welcome to Zambia!”
For the first time in their lives, they were utterly speechless!
After a time for recovery, they asked, “Who is this stranger? How come he wears our jersey?”
As I rode up, Jim said; “Hello Bill. Nice to see you – again.”
Zambian Jim and I sat next to each other on the Amsterdam – Lusaka flight. When he told me that he lived in Chipata near the Malawi border – together, we arranged this prank for the girls.
For me, my riding on the second day was diverted to the care of one rider who had experienced a head-on collision with a local cyclist. He had suffered a midline full thickness laceration of his upper lip, the tear extending to the base of his nose. From one side, a 7 milli-meter tag of vermillion lip, de-vascularised, hung precariously by a thread. Both upper incisor teeth and one lower incisor had been knocked out. This was certainly a repair for a Plastic Surgeon. A phone call to Lusaka, 500 kms away, informed us that their only Plastic Surgeon was away on holiday.
The Italian Orthopaedic Hospital declined his care; “We don’t do that kind of thing here.”
The on-call General Surgeon at the University Teaching Hospital in Lusaka refused to accept him, “I don’t do that sort of stuff.”
A call to an American Trauma Surgeon, volunteering in Lusaka, was quite instructive, “Don’t bring him here. He will likely be sutured by an Emergency physician or a Clinical Officer.”
Well OK, then let’s get him to South Africa. A further phone call informed us that the earliest flight to Johannesburg would depart the next day, leaving at least a 36 hour interval from injury to potential repair – decidedly too long a wait.
And so it came to pass that my Plastic Surgery career was launched.
Armed with some 5-0 sutures and some local anaesthetic taken from the Tour’s medical kit box, the patient, Tour nurse Carolyn and I proceeded 4 kilometres down the road to a mission hospital run by Irish nuns where we found a Spartan but spotless operating theatre, and all the tools we needed.
We did a little operation - and we fixed him up!
At least I dodged most of the 197 km ride that day.
One day as we rode, Jomumba caught up to us from behind. His bicycle was old and squeaky, but his legs were like iron. He could easily out-distance us, despite our fancy bikes. We rode together for about 5 kilometres and we talked about life in his village of 75. He was on his way to the next village to attend his uncle’s funeral - just another day in the life of the average Zambian.
On another day, I struggled up a hill that thrice dwarfed the Commonage to Vernon by both distance and incline. I pushed my heart rate to 155 for as long as I could. Then I tried zigzagging back and forth the way that Alistair and Stan had taught me. Finally, as a last resort, I walked and pushed my bike. Behind me I could hear a vehicle labouring up the hill. I stopped and watched as a heavily overloaded Mercedes Benz truck inched its’ way up-hill. As the truck approached, the driver waved and smiled at me somewhat curiously. As he passed, emblazoned on the back read a slogan, “Life is a journey.”
As I stood in the heat of the African sun, my eyes blurred with sweat, I mused to myself, “How apt?”
Arriving in Lusaka, the Tour riders, Jessica, Lianne and I included, were grateful for the rest day ahead.
Dr. Chazya Sikambale and Dr. Andrew Silumesii joined us for dinner. They have come from Mongu in Western Province for the media event planned for April 12. It was a joy to see them. We really appreciate their support!
More later.
Bill
On January 16, 2010, 60 or more cyclists left Cairo for a 4-month, 12,000 km ride to Cape Town. These were the full tour riders.
The Tour is divided into 8 sections, bounded at each end by an International airport. Sectional riders can join any one or more of these sections without having to complete the whole Tour. On April 7, Jessica Lianne and I joined in when the Tour reached Lilongwe, Malawi. By now the riders had completed 7,500 kms.
They were lean, fit, conditioned and grizzled.
We were about to find out what other sectional riders before us had learned and written about when it came their turn to join, mid-stream, this relentless determined expedition – it’s tough.
In the 5 days it took us to get from Lilongwe, capital of Malawi to Lusaka, capital of Zambia, we covered a distance of 726 kms, with daily rides of 153, 197, 124, 148 and 104. the 148 km day included a 1900 metre climb!
The Tour was in full flight, and we hung on like kids having boarded a moving train! For the last three months, I’ve been reading all of their blogs. It was fun to recognize so many of the riders and to see them in action.
It’s a certainty – the Tour meets Harry’s first rule, “Break a sweat six times a week.” And then some!
The Tour d’Afrique is not for the faint of heart – especially when you're 70 years old!
On the first day across the Malawi border, I had to keep my heart rate at 150-155 just to keep up with Lianne and Jessica.
Mrs. Jones and Mrs. Barker, your daughters are doing very well - they are strong and fit. As we say in Zambian understatement - “they are fine.”
Early on, a Zambian man, wearing our new Okanagan Zambia Health Initiative biking jersey, was seen standing at the side of the road. Many Tour riders noticed him and recognized the jersey, with surprise.
As Lianne and Jessica approached, this total stranger greeted them; “Hello Lianne – Hello Jessica. Welcome to Zambia!”
For the first time in their lives, they were utterly speechless!
After a time for recovery, they asked, “Who is this stranger? How come he wears our jersey?”
As I rode up, Jim said; “Hello Bill. Nice to see you – again.”
Zambian Jim and I sat next to each other on the Amsterdam – Lusaka flight. When he told me that he lived in Chipata near the Malawi border – together, we arranged this prank for the girls.
For me, my riding on the second day was diverted to the care of one rider who had experienced a head-on collision with a local cyclist. He had suffered a midline full thickness laceration of his upper lip, the tear extending to the base of his nose. From one side, a 7 milli-meter tag of vermillion lip, de-vascularised, hung precariously by a thread. Both upper incisor teeth and one lower incisor had been knocked out. This was certainly a repair for a Plastic Surgeon. A phone call to Lusaka, 500 kms away, informed us that their only Plastic Surgeon was away on holiday.
The Italian Orthopaedic Hospital declined his care; “We don’t do that kind of thing here.”
The on-call General Surgeon at the University Teaching Hospital in Lusaka refused to accept him, “I don’t do that sort of stuff.”
A call to an American Trauma Surgeon, volunteering in Lusaka, was quite instructive, “Don’t bring him here. He will likely be sutured by an Emergency physician or a Clinical Officer.”
Well OK, then let’s get him to South Africa. A further phone call informed us that the earliest flight to Johannesburg would depart the next day, leaving at least a 36 hour interval from injury to potential repair – decidedly too long a wait.
And so it came to pass that my Plastic Surgery career was launched.
Armed with some 5-0 sutures and some local anaesthetic taken from the Tour’s medical kit box, the patient, Tour nurse Carolyn and I proceeded 4 kilometres down the road to a mission hospital run by Irish nuns where we found a Spartan but spotless operating theatre, and all the tools we needed.
We did a little operation - and we fixed him up!
At least I dodged most of the 197 km ride that day.
One day as we rode, Jomumba caught up to us from behind. His bicycle was old and squeaky, but his legs were like iron. He could easily out-distance us, despite our fancy bikes. We rode together for about 5 kilometres and we talked about life in his village of 75. He was on his way to the next village to attend his uncle’s funeral - just another day in the life of the average Zambian.
On another day, I struggled up a hill that thrice dwarfed the Commonage to Vernon by both distance and incline. I pushed my heart rate to 155 for as long as I could. Then I tried zigzagging back and forth the way that Alistair and Stan had taught me. Finally, as a last resort, I walked and pushed my bike. Behind me I could hear a vehicle labouring up the hill. I stopped and watched as a heavily overloaded Mercedes Benz truck inched its’ way up-hill. As the truck approached, the driver waved and smiled at me somewhat curiously. As he passed, emblazoned on the back read a slogan, “Life is a journey.”
As I stood in the heat of the African sun, my eyes blurred with sweat, I mused to myself, “How apt?”
Arriving in Lusaka, the Tour riders, Jessica, Lianne and I included, were grateful for the rest day ahead.
Dr. Chazya Sikambale and Dr. Andrew Silumesii joined us for dinner. They have come from Mongu in Western Province for the media event planned for April 12. It was a joy to see them. We really appreciate their support!
More later.
Bill
Monday, April 5, 2010
A letter to Kate, Lucy, Willem and Alexander - The Code for the blogs that follow!
Hello my 'fabulous four' grandchildren, Kate, Lucy, Willem and Alexander.
This is your Grandpa Bill, sometimes Grandpa Beef, checking in from Africa - Sub Saharan Africa, that is, to my Tunisian babies.
I'm in Zambia today, fly to Lilongwe in Malawi tomorrow, where Jessica, Lianne and I will join the Tour d'Afrique. We start our ride April 7.
So why, kids, am I doing this ride?
First of all - taking a page out of your book Lucy - it's fun - it's an adventure. I can just see you sitting on my handlebars, grinning, laughing, enjoying every minute of it! Every day as the adventure unfolds, I'll be thinking of you, Luce.
(Code L = Lucy = Fun and Adventure)
Second - As I ride, I'm going to have time to think. You're a great thinker Kate. You always make amazing observations and then you follow that up by figuring out how everything fits together. As I ride along, I will be thinking, contemplating, pondering about the world's most pressing problems. You are incredibly smart, I'll draw my insights about thinking from you Katy-Kate.
(Code K = Kate = Thoughts, thinking, Understanding)
Third - riding my bike is going to be a time for creativity - a time for a little of Edward de Bono's 'green hat' stuff. When it comes to creativity, Will Will, you are my hero, my source of inspiration. As I ride, I'll think of your imaginary 'lung cutters' and the fun we had 'operating' with them. I'll remember how you can spend hours creating environments, societies, mythical characters, adventures. You live in a world where nothing is impossible. Alternately stated - Everything is possible. It's going to take creativity to solve some of the world's most thorny problems, but you will be with me Will as the solutions for these challenges unfold.
(Code W = Willem = Creativity, Intuition, Problem solving)
Fourth, riding my bike through Africa will be a time for me to emote, to express and to experience my feelings, my gratitudes. I may not have told you this before, Ander, so I'll do so now. I don't know anyone else, regardless of age who is so connected to their emotions, their feelings, as you are my oldest grandchild. Conventional wisdom suggests that we look to the old, the published, the worldly, when it comes for advice or insights into our emotional world. For me, Ander, I look to you. I learn from you every day. When riding my bike, whenever I feel happy, ecstatic, sad - I'll be thinking of you. By the way, I see that the Rockets won their series with a 7th game win, but now they are behind with the Tri City Americans - go Rockets! Also, your science project was beyond brilliant - well done - I am so proud of you.
(Code A = Alexander = Emotions and Feelings)
So now you have it - the CODE!
Each day will be an experience, a quest, a journey of great significance.
Each day I will experience all aspects of the CODE.
It will be like a WALK in the park,
Get it? The CODE
WALK
W = Willem = Creativity, Intuition, Problem solving
A = Alexander = Emotions and Feelings
L = Lucy = Fun and Adventure)
K = Kate = Thoughts, thinking, Understanding)
Each day I will experience all of these codes and I will think of each of you.
I will write about all of these in the weeks ahead......
Some creativity...... a little gratitude........ a little fun...... many thoughts.....
For those of you who don't know my second generation babies, suffice it for you to know that Kate is the most intellectually alert person on the planet.
Lucy is the most fun-loving and most adventurous person alive.
Will gets the universe's gold, silver and bronze medals for imagination and creativity.
No one, any where, all ages included, has more emotionally intelligence than Ander.
One thing that you, dear reader, needs to know about me - I have no biases!
This is your Grandpa Bill, sometimes Grandpa Beef, checking in from Africa - Sub Saharan Africa, that is, to my Tunisian babies.
I'm in Zambia today, fly to Lilongwe in Malawi tomorrow, where Jessica, Lianne and I will join the Tour d'Afrique. We start our ride April 7.
So why, kids, am I doing this ride?
First of all - taking a page out of your book Lucy - it's fun - it's an adventure. I can just see you sitting on my handlebars, grinning, laughing, enjoying every minute of it! Every day as the adventure unfolds, I'll be thinking of you, Luce.
(Code L = Lucy = Fun and Adventure)
Second - As I ride, I'm going to have time to think. You're a great thinker Kate. You always make amazing observations and then you follow that up by figuring out how everything fits together. As I ride along, I will be thinking, contemplating, pondering about the world's most pressing problems. You are incredibly smart, I'll draw my insights about thinking from you Katy-Kate.
(Code K = Kate = Thoughts, thinking, Understanding)
Third - riding my bike is going to be a time for creativity - a time for a little of Edward de Bono's 'green hat' stuff. When it comes to creativity, Will Will, you are my hero, my source of inspiration. As I ride, I'll think of your imaginary 'lung cutters' and the fun we had 'operating' with them. I'll remember how you can spend hours creating environments, societies, mythical characters, adventures. You live in a world where nothing is impossible. Alternately stated - Everything is possible. It's going to take creativity to solve some of the world's most thorny problems, but you will be with me Will as the solutions for these challenges unfold.
(Code W = Willem = Creativity, Intuition, Problem solving)
Fourth, riding my bike through Africa will be a time for me to emote, to express and to experience my feelings, my gratitudes. I may not have told you this before, Ander, so I'll do so now. I don't know anyone else, regardless of age who is so connected to their emotions, their feelings, as you are my oldest grandchild. Conventional wisdom suggests that we look to the old, the published, the worldly, when it comes for advice or insights into our emotional world. For me, Ander, I look to you. I learn from you every day. When riding my bike, whenever I feel happy, ecstatic, sad - I'll be thinking of you. By the way, I see that the Rockets won their series with a 7th game win, but now they are behind with the Tri City Americans - go Rockets! Also, your science project was beyond brilliant - well done - I am so proud of you.
(Code A = Alexander = Emotions and Feelings)
So now you have it - the CODE!
Each day will be an experience, a quest, a journey of great significance.
Each day I will experience all aspects of the CODE.
It will be like a WALK in the park,
Get it? The CODE
WALK
W = Willem = Creativity, Intuition, Problem solving
A = Alexander = Emotions and Feelings
L = Lucy = Fun and Adventure)
K = Kate = Thoughts, thinking, Understanding)
Each day I will experience all of these codes and I will think of each of you.
I will write about all of these in the weeks ahead......
Some creativity...... a little gratitude........ a little fun...... many thoughts.....
For those of you who don't know my second generation babies, suffice it for you to know that Kate is the most intellectually alert person on the planet.
Lucy is the most fun-loving and most adventurous person alive.
Will gets the universe's gold, silver and bronze medals for imagination and creativity.
No one, any where, all ages included, has more emotionally intelligence than Ander.
One thing that you, dear reader, needs to know about me - I have no biases!
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Hey.. It's Lianne.. also checking in from Mongu
When I was a kid I enjoyed going for strolls around the block on my banana seated Strawberry Shortcake bike. It was a way for me to occupy my time and spend quality time with my friends and neighbours.
Now that I am almost 25 years old the face of biking has changed for me…or has it? I enjoy taking my bicycle for a stroll down by the river having the air whip at my hair and the beautiful scenery all around me as I take my bike down a new path on the search for a new adventure. When I look back and relate my experience of biking as a child on the banana seat to me on my much smaller seat now, I see the same excitement and joy, the same yearning to find a new adventure!
The beautiful thing about biking is how practical yet versatile it can be. It can fit almost any lifestyle. I enjoy biking to work – it is economic, cuts down on transmissions, and fits with my hippy side of life. I enjoy the exercise – it creates endorphins after a stressful day and helps with the guilty feelings you may feel after eating those Timbits. I enjoy the rush – downhill biking allows me to feel the rush as I manoeuvre my bike through trees and up and down ramps. I enjoy the challenge – pushing myself to bike from Lilongwe, Malawi to Victoria Falls is something I never doubted biking could do, but something I never saw myself caring out. Once again, biking is taking me on a new adventure.
I was recently training for this bike ride in Inuvik, NWT. The one gym in town was open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. After a shift I would head to the gym and ride for 1-3 hours. I would sit there and watch the gym community at large “climbing Kilimanjaro” on my bike. A month ago I arrived in Mongu, Zambia. Awaiting me was 9 Canadian nursing students, two instructors, and 13 yellow Zambikes. I must admit in the first few weeks the bikese didn’t see much of me. However in the last 3 weeks I have been biking almost daily and remember the pure joy of biking. It has also reminded me how HOT it is in Africa! Nonetheless, I am ecstatic to embark on this journey with my good friends Jessica and Bill. It won’t be easy, but we will do our best to have as much fun and as many adventures as possible!
~lianne
Now that I am almost 25 years old the face of biking has changed for me…or has it? I enjoy taking my bicycle for a stroll down by the river having the air whip at my hair and the beautiful scenery all around me as I take my bike down a new path on the search for a new adventure. When I look back and relate my experience of biking as a child on the banana seat to me on my much smaller seat now, I see the same excitement and joy, the same yearning to find a new adventure!
The beautiful thing about biking is how practical yet versatile it can be. It can fit almost any lifestyle. I enjoy biking to work – it is economic, cuts down on transmissions, and fits with my hippy side of life. I enjoy the exercise – it creates endorphins after a stressful day and helps with the guilty feelings you may feel after eating those Timbits. I enjoy the rush – downhill biking allows me to feel the rush as I manoeuvre my bike through trees and up and down ramps. I enjoy the challenge – pushing myself to bike from Lilongwe, Malawi to Victoria Falls is something I never doubted biking could do, but something I never saw myself caring out. Once again, biking is taking me on a new adventure.
I was recently training for this bike ride in Inuvik, NWT. The one gym in town was open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. After a shift I would head to the gym and ride for 1-3 hours. I would sit there and watch the gym community at large “climbing Kilimanjaro” on my bike. A month ago I arrived in Mongu, Zambia. Awaiting me was 9 Canadian nursing students, two instructors, and 13 yellow Zambikes. I must admit in the first few weeks the bikese didn’t see much of me. However in the last 3 weeks I have been biking almost daily and remember the pure joy of biking. It has also reminded me how HOT it is in Africa! Nonetheless, I am ecstatic to embark on this journey with my good friends Jessica and Bill. It won’t be easy, but we will do our best to have as much fun and as many adventures as possible!
~lianne
Monday, March 15, 2010
Jessica - checking in from Mongu, Western Zambia
My name is Jessica Barker, and I am a Registered Nurse from Kelowna, British Columbia. I have been working in Africa for the past three years, mostly with the Okanagan Zambia Health Initiative in Mongu, the capital city of Western Province, Zambia. My Zambian colleagues tell me each time I come back to Mongu that I am returning ‘home’. Now here again I find myself back in Mongu…. and I’m really starting to feel like a local! Zambia truly does feel like a second home, and I love that. In three weeks I will be embarking on a bike ride through Zambia with a couple other Zambian ’locals’; Bill and Lianne! There are many reasons why I am doing this bike ride, but think the most important personal reason is that I get to do this for the Zambians I have grown to love most, those living in Western Province.
This time around I have been in Mongu since February and have been continuing my training for the bike ride on the ground here. I am glad to have had some time to acclimatize…it is hot! Biking in Africa has been an experience. But I would not have expected anything less! From my time spent living and travelling here, I have realized that doing anything in Africa is always an experience. That is the beauty of this continent.
Six weeks ago I came with fellow teachers, Fay and Lianne, and with nine nursing students from the University of British Columbia-Okanagan, and helped guide them through a clinical placement at Lewanika General Hospital, our local hospital here in Mongu. With funds raised by the students they were all able to purchase ZamBikes to use around town. I will never forget the first day we all went down to the bus station to pick up our ZamBikes. The bikes are quite flashy looking compared to any other bike you usually see on the road here. First, they are brand new (compared to most of the other rickety bikes you see on the roads here) and the other is that they are painted a very bright yellow! We were quite the talk of the town riding those bikes home from the bus station that day. I don’t think Mongu had ever seen a sight quite like it…imagine ten Makuwa’s (the Lozi name for white person) riding through the streets of Mongu all together on bright yellow bikes! It is uncommon in Mongu to see even just ten young female Makuwa’s all standing together, never mind them all riding bright yellow bikes together.
Biking through the roads in Mongu can be a bit dangerous at times (sorry Mom!). The taxis and minibuses drive so fast, barely paying attention to the mass amount of people walking and biking up and down the roads. The roads are also slowly falling away, leaving jagged edges and potholes in the pavement. This means you have to avoid these dangers all at once! The other thing about Mongu is the sand.
Any Zambian can tell you that Mongu is famous for three things…fish…rice…and the sand! This is a very sandy place, and riding or driving around in it reminds me a lot of navigating through snow. You can see how this would be an added challenge; because you are constantly having to swerve your bike tires around so you don’t get stuck!
Lianne and I have been working in Mongu since 2008, and from the beginning we were one of the few female ‘Makuwas’ in town. This means we usually always have people coming up to us to introduce themselves; we can’t help but stand out! But the beauty of it all is even if we’ve met someone just once…they always seem to remember it and now us means we are friends for life! (Just yet another reason why I love Africa) I am constantly amazed at how many people remember my name; even I only shook their hand once. This has also been reflected in my biking experiences here. It seems that every time I hop on my bike and start biking anywhere in town, I have multiple people coming up and saying hello or wanting to carry on full conversations! I can be biking on any road, and will often hear Jezzzzzzzka! Jezzzzka! (That is how they pronounce my name here). Each time I hear my name being called I never know who it is going to be…. maybe it is one of my taxi drivers, maybe it is a lady from the market, or maybe it is a patient’s family member, who knows who it will be next time?
I think my favourite thing about biking in Mongu is that it brings you so much closer to the people and their lives here in this town. You can see the sights, hear the sounds and smell the smells just that much more. My favourite time to bike is around 6pm, when I am out on the road alongside everyone heading home from work. (Most are usually walking or biking home since they can‘t afford vehicles). This is always good time for conversation with the locals, and they are often shouting out a Hello! Or Kimanzibwani! (Lozi saying for Good Evening).
Dusk comes as the sun begins to set; the women are setting the fires in preparation for bathing the children and cooking nshima (the local dish). There is an air of peace and calm, and I get to soak it all in.
This is only just the beginning!
Jessica
This time around I have been in Mongu since February and have been continuing my training for the bike ride on the ground here. I am glad to have had some time to acclimatize…it is hot! Biking in Africa has been an experience. But I would not have expected anything less! From my time spent living and travelling here, I have realized that doing anything in Africa is always an experience. That is the beauty of this continent.
Six weeks ago I came with fellow teachers, Fay and Lianne, and with nine nursing students from the University of British Columbia-Okanagan, and helped guide them through a clinical placement at Lewanika General Hospital, our local hospital here in Mongu. With funds raised by the students they were all able to purchase ZamBikes to use around town. I will never forget the first day we all went down to the bus station to pick up our ZamBikes. The bikes are quite flashy looking compared to any other bike you usually see on the road here. First, they are brand new (compared to most of the other rickety bikes you see on the roads here) and the other is that they are painted a very bright yellow! We were quite the talk of the town riding those bikes home from the bus station that day. I don’t think Mongu had ever seen a sight quite like it…imagine ten Makuwa’s (the Lozi name for white person) riding through the streets of Mongu all together on bright yellow bikes! It is uncommon in Mongu to see even just ten young female Makuwa’s all standing together, never mind them all riding bright yellow bikes together.
Biking through the roads in Mongu can be a bit dangerous at times (sorry Mom!). The taxis and minibuses drive so fast, barely paying attention to the mass amount of people walking and biking up and down the roads. The roads are also slowly falling away, leaving jagged edges and potholes in the pavement. This means you have to avoid these dangers all at once! The other thing about Mongu is the sand.
Any Zambian can tell you that Mongu is famous for three things…fish…rice…and the sand! This is a very sandy place, and riding or driving around in it reminds me a lot of navigating through snow. You can see how this would be an added challenge; because you are constantly having to swerve your bike tires around so you don’t get stuck!
Lianne and I have been working in Mongu since 2008, and from the beginning we were one of the few female ‘Makuwas’ in town. This means we usually always have people coming up to us to introduce themselves; we can’t help but stand out! But the beauty of it all is even if we’ve met someone just once…they always seem to remember it and now us means we are friends for life! (Just yet another reason why I love Africa) I am constantly amazed at how many people remember my name; even I only shook their hand once. This has also been reflected in my biking experiences here. It seems that every time I hop on my bike and start biking anywhere in town, I have multiple people coming up and saying hello or wanting to carry on full conversations! I can be biking on any road, and will often hear Jezzzzzzzka! Jezzzzka! (That is how they pronounce my name here). Each time I hear my name being called I never know who it is going to be…. maybe it is one of my taxi drivers, maybe it is a lady from the market, or maybe it is a patient’s family member, who knows who it will be next time?
I think my favourite thing about biking in Mongu is that it brings you so much closer to the people and their lives here in this town. You can see the sights, hear the sounds and smell the smells just that much more. My favourite time to bike is around 6pm, when I am out on the road alongside everyone heading home from work. (Most are usually walking or biking home since they can‘t afford vehicles). This is always good time for conversation with the locals, and they are often shouting out a Hello! Or Kimanzibwani! (Lozi saying for Good Evening).
Dusk comes as the sun begins to set; the women are setting the fires in preparation for bathing the children and cooking nshima (the local dish). There is an air of peace and calm, and I get to soak it all in.
This is only just the beginning!
Jessica
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