Friday August 24, 2007

"Madame? You look my things?" The overwhelming feeling of vendors washes over me. Every one of these people needs food. How do I choose which bowl I want, which basket?

We enter the blind shop, an amazing place filled with curios and other creations made by those who cannot see.

A young girl has died of AIDS. Cindy had just visited her earlier in the week. Her sister died last August. This poor family.

Shopping in the open market for vegetables to bring to the funeral today.

Yikes! Back away from that open fire when you're stirring that cabbage! I think I have second degree burns on my shin. How do these ladies do this? It's blazing hot, we're wearing skirts, the smoke is getting in our eyes, dogs are starting to fight near us, and wait....the men are sitting under that shady tree over there. Hey! Is Godfrey sleeping? Is Jack writing in his journal? Is that Mark staring off into space? Yet, I wouldn't have it any other way. I enjoy helping these ladies with their chores during this most difficult time - the death of a loved one.

It's an elephant crossing the road in front of us!! Whoa! A whole herd of elephants. Very cool. The elephants have started to wander into the villages in search of water.

Thursday August 23, 2007

These are the forgotten people. Today is a difficult day for me.










After a visit to the secondary school to pick up the art projects, Cindy and I were dropped off at the end of the road to find Joseph, an elderly man who needed drops in his eyes. While there, we massaged his feet with some lotion.






Along the way, people stopped us to ask for help. "My baby is sick. Vomitting and diarrhea." "Could you help my mother? Her back." "Joseph lives right down here."




"What did you do to your foot?" Massive hole and cellulitis afflicted a young woman's lower right leg. When asked how long she had had this problem, she replied, "Three years." THREE YEARS?? How can this be?















A baby with an umbilical hernia (?)









How does this happen? How does a community become completely forgotten? Or a better question, where would these people be if we were not here to help them?






Saw some very serious sores on a young girl in the clinic. Not sure what these are. The string around the waist, we were told, is used to bring about good health and pray for healing.

Dinner tonight at The Safari Lodge. Saw a herd of buffalo at the watering hole. We're all feeling guilty about eating right now, when these people we care so much about are going hungry. Something is just not right here.

Wednesday August 22, 2007

Day 6. The police are lining the streets. At every corner stands a slim sentry guarding his post for the next 16 hours. There are others, walking, over there, carrying rifles. The president is visiting Victoria Falls today.

More art projects today.

The kids made masks to take home. They had such fun seeing themselves in the pictures.

They also made a likeness of themselves by coloring people shapes.

Here's Cindy painting the chalkboards

Home visits via donkey cart again today. Saw little Kudawashe,

one of the boys that mom's salad group is sponsoring. He is absolutely adorable. What a stroke of luck (fate?) that he lived in a homestead near the one that we were visiting. He followed us for a while and I gave him a piggyback ride. He is so cute.

Here's the road we follow each day back to Vic Falls.

Tracked some elephants through the bush along this road tonight (that's them in the bush). That was fun!

Dinner at The Boma tonight. The strolling singers sang Happy Birthday to Jack. Surprise! Had our faces painted and banged on the drums. Such fun!

Tuesday August 21, 2007

Poor donkeys. What a life they have here in the village. Today is our first day to travel to the homesteads with the home health workers. I'm now pushing the cart to help the donkeys plod through this dry, dusty, heavy sand. Who would have ever thought I would be pushing a donkey cart through a remote village in Africa?


Saw some interesting things today on our visits.

• a woman with a goiter





• a woman who fell off a donkey cart and had several gashes to her legs

• a woman with an interesting eczema-like rash on her legs




• A family consisting of a toddler, her grandmother and her great grandmother.

• The women of this 3-member family were cooking some elephant bones that a poacher had left behind (click on the picture for the full effect). Their meal consisted of these bones in water. Godfrey gave them some money. They have no means to find food.

• One of the patients wanted to have her fingernails painted. She was in her glory with her pink nails. It's amazing what pleasure a simple act of kindness can bring.

Dinner at the lodge tonight.

Monday August 20, 2007

Breakfast: egg, toast, cereal, tomato, tea. Yum!

Here comes Godfrey to bring us to the village. He's got 2 friends with him, Mtogo (Happiness in English) and Langton. Very nice guys.

Driving up to the secondary school for my first time. I don't know quite what to expect. I wonder how many kids will be there. Rounding the bend to enter the school. Look at all these kids. They're sitting in little groups on the rocks and under the trees. Talked with the kids a bit - so shy.

Food distribution.

There's a tree that has some interesting fruit. It appears to be a type of pomegranate. One of the boys had a ripe one (in the photo, it's the one on the right.) The second picture is of Langton with the fruit opened.

Paul would be so proud - I'm teaching an art class! The kids had never used watercolors, so I had them brainstorm some ideas. They're doing a great job. The teachers wanted them to draw in pencil first, then color, but we thought it would be best to use the watercolors without first drawing. Good idea, as the kids probably wouldn't have known how to paint without us there. I had a ball with this project.

On to the village where we picked up another "friend" along the way - who Jack wanted to take a picture of. Not a good idea, Jack. I don't think his boss would appreciate that!

Played with the kids until food distribution time - bread, beans, cookies.

Did art projects with grades 6 and 7, then grades 5 and 6. Great pictures of some of our sponsored children, Joseph and Lyves. It's so great to see them. Joseph (he's in the picture below holding his artwork) looks so sad and I just want to pick him up and give him a hug. I can imagine how he'd love to be playing in a swimming pool right now. The poor child looks like he hasn't been bathed in months.

Cindy, how's that floor cementing coming along?? Poor thing. Jack was hanging out in the men's workshop teaching advanced woodworking, I'm having a blast with my art project, Mark's wandering around shooting video, and there's Cindy on her hands an knees cementing floors in the classroom!

Cindy and I took a walk to the end of the road and Lyves came with us. He is in such desperate need of shoes. I'm hoping my running shoes will fit him.

"I want to go home with you to America." Bibiano's friend Patience came to the clinic today when Cindy and I were in there. She said she had a headache. We gave her some meds and asked her who was at home with her. She said it was just her grandmother. Her mother was not around (working in Harare or Vic Falls). So sad.

"Hop in, ladies!" Took 5 church ladies to Vic Falls tonight on our way out of the village. The team rode in the back of the truck. Wow it gets nippy after the sun goes down! A little different than it was in February!

Dinner tonight at the lodge: Fish, fries, salad, veggies, pudding.

Good day!

Sunday August 19, 2007

Ah...home sweet home. I love The Guest Paradise Lodge in Victoria Falls. I'm in the Leopard Room.

Here are 2 of the members of the staff, Rosemary and Benele

Here's the dining area

"Nancy?" It's Bibiano, my little friend from February. What a sweetie. We have arrived in the village of Chikadakubi once again.

There aren't many children in the village today; school is not in session, but those that are here came to see us, and to get some food. Those that are here are SO happy to see us. I realize how much I missed this village and these wonderful people.

We went to 4 churches to pay our respects and deliver small gifts of incense and candles

Then we went to the men's workshop - they're doing some marvelous work. Here's a picture of several of their pieces.

Lots of the guys in the village were working on one of the wells near the school.

Met with the home health nurses and taught them how to do BPs.

Met with Trynos, the only teacher here.

Oh no!! Giant spider in the corner of my room! Gotta get the guys to remove it. HUGE! I'm back. In the process of arachnid removal, Jack decided to capture a chameleon that was climbing up the wall. He's a crackup - Jack, not the chameleon.

Great day today. Took lots of pictures.

Mokai and Herbert

Crispo - little boy who rode in truck and held my hand as we looked at his grandmother's garden. I gave him the rest of my water and he drank the entire thing.

Dinner tonight was macaroni, vegetables and a delicious pudding the name of which means "scrumptious in the mouth". And it was.

Saturday August 18, 2007

Well the flight from London to Johannesburg turned out to be quite fun. I was seated next to a guy who is originally from South Africa so we drank wine and chatted for hours -the perfect seatmate for a loonnngg plane ride. Time to get some much need sleep for the big day tomorrow...

Friday August 17, 2007

Tiring night. Slept a bit on the plane and now we're in London! It's 8:30AM and we don't have to be back here until 6 or so this evening for our 8:30PM departure.

Stowed the carry on bags and we're off! Decided to take the London Underground Piccadilly Circus line to Piccadilly Circus then catch the double decker bus. Adam, our Canadian tour guide was terrific. Learned a lot about the city and saw lots of the sites that Denise and I saw in 1999. I love this city!

There's Big Ben!

There's the Tower of London!

Look! It's the London Eye!

Visited The Minories Pub

near the Tower of London for fish and chips and a frosty beer. We're

all a bit tipsy since we haven't really slept.

A lovely boat ride on the Thames River, then it's back on the tube for our trip back to Heathrow.