Since I have 3months left I think its only right that I make a Zambia Bucket List of things I want to accomplish, see, visit before I leave this place. Some things aren't possible due to time and my inability to travel in my last three months but maybe an unfinished list will give me motivation to come back?!

1)Go to Ukusefya P'Ngwena- the Bemba Crocodile festival ( its in October )

2) See a Rhino ( there are only two places in Zambia that have the rhino. Livingstone and North Luwangwa)

3)Go see the Lozi ceremony/ go to western province (the ceremony is in April)

4)Sign in a Zambian classroom

5)See Vic Falls from the Zimbabwe side of the falls

6)Learn how to "Dance" (village initiation to womanhood)

7)Bike to the farthest school in my zone (over 40k away)

8) Learn to cook Nshima properly start to finish

9) Watch a baby being born

10) Have a baby named after me ( I had a puppy named after me already)

11) Eat a Crocodile Burger

12) Visit Chilubi Island ( apparently there's an Island in Zambia...a landlocked country?)

Ill probably keep adding to this list even though I am running out of time. We'll see how many I can cross off my list!!!!

It occurred to me after a great visit with the Maryville College J-term crew, that I haven't updated many people about HENDRIX! Well, I am no longer the proud owner of that sassy puppy, the local vet is. After Hendrix gave birth to her 6 puppies she started getting VERY sick. She had worms I just couldn't get rid of. So the vet came by to check on her and basically told me that when I leave Zambia he would take her. That was a relief because I wanted to make sure she had a good home before I left or I wouldn't be able to let her go. She got better for a while. Then all the puppies left and she started acting different. The village told me that she just missed her babies (although by the sounds of her growls at them I'm sure she was happy for them to go). For two months she had company in the puppies while I was a way at school. She was lonely now. And that wasn't good for either one of us. I also started getting REALLY busy with work and Peace Corps activities and was never at home. That meant she didn't have me or the puppies to keep her company anymore. So I decided that instead of giving her way in April, it would be better to give her away in November before thanksgiving and our provincial meetings.

To say it was hard to give her away is an under statement. It was a three day process for many reasons 1) Hendrix is super smart and I swore knew what was happening. 2) The vet was not so smart and underestimated how feisty and stubborn my dog could be. 3) Motor bikes aren't very good at transporting a big, scared puppy. Day one- She jumped out of the box we put her in countless times. She tricked us into thinking she would stay but the vet got down the road and she jumped out and started running back to my hut. She bit her first person that day...ME! Day 2- We decided to take her in a car but no one could find fuel to take her to her new home. Day 3- Success! She rode in the back seat of the car and when we got to the vet, she was her normal barking self. The vet has her brother from the same litter, his name is Rainbow, so now she has someone to play with all day! I'm sure after she bossed Rainbow around for a while they became friends.

While I'm so happy that she's happy, my hut is lonelier then ever. I don't come home after a long day and have someone waiting for me. I don't have anyone to keep me company at night which is hands down the hardest, loudest, loneliest, longest part of any day. But I don't have to worry about her anymore which is nice. I am on my own time again and can do what I need and want without worrying what will happen to her while I am gone. I miss her a lot though. We said our last good bye in November because I'm afraid that if I visit her before I leave she would try to follow me. She was such a great (and sometimes stressful) addition to my service and I'm so glad I got to spend my first year and a half with her. She was a great dog for sure and everyone started comparing their love for me to by love for Hendirx. The village has learned how much Americans love their pets and now probably think we're even crazier after watching my interactions with Hendrix. The one good thing about giving the puppies away....three of them are in my village and I get to visit them or they visit me anytime they want!

one of Hendrix's puppies we named her skunky her new name is Tiger

I guess I should be happy that Ive finally made it to the 90 day mark but its really bittersweet. I officially have three months left in Zambia and three months to wrap up two years of work. My time in the village is starting to feel like one long drawn out goodbye. I have so many things that I want to complete but I feel like I have no time to do it. Never thought I would feel this way, but two years is really not a long time at all.

Ive finally got the literacy group started in my village and people are excited for the opportunity to learn. The resource center that I have been trying to stocks since I first arrived FINALLY has some books and there are more on the way, thanks to my Alma mater Maryville College. I feel at home in my hut, maybe too much so as I like to hide away on the weekends. I feel grounded in the village, like I'm suppose to be there.

I wanted to extend. I went back and forth in my mind about staying in Zambia. The program in Kenya I wanted to extend with is no longer an option so I thought about doing something special education related in Zambia. It didn't work out. I'm not ready to go back to Americaland. I have to start speaking proper American English and I'm not sure if I can. I'm scared of all the people, the noises, the cars, the lack of communication on transport, the pace of America and choices. I'm so nervous about choices. I am excited to see my family and friends, to be able to trust transportation, to stand in a line and know for sure that I am next, to eat sushi and to be in Chattanooga again. But it'll be extremely hard to leave this place. This has been my life for 2 years and its become so normal and Ive adapted to this way of life.

BUT on the bright side of things. I do have plans for this term. Instead of trying to extend to do special education work, Ill be working at Musakanya Basic in Mpika Boma in my last three months of service. The school has a Special Education Unit which is specifically for Deaf students up to grade seven. I went to the school and talked with the Headmaster and a few of the teachers. They welcomed me and were very excited that I was interested in working with them but upset that Ill be leaving in April. One of the teachers at the school is Deaf herself and was impressed that I could actually sign. She told me I was a much better signer than the other teachers and I needed to come to the school so she could have someone to talk with. Yup that was the highlight of the day for sure. Since I live 105k from the school it will be a "come when you can" type of situation. I'm happy that they are willing to work with me. This is something Ive wanted to do since my first year but I never felt I had the time.

Since I am not teaching at my school this term, I have more time to do other things. I decided that I didn't want to start something I couldn't finish with this new group of Grade 9s. Ive been able to work start to finish with two grade 9 classes and its something that I loved about teaching here. I got to see the kids grow. I don't want to start in term one and not be able to follow them all the way through their grade 9 year. Ill be there for tutoring, and I want to go in a few days a week and start a reading program with them but I cant be their English teacher. Kinda sad but its better this way. Ill get to work more on teacher training in the schools which is something I enjoy and something that needs to happen. Ill also have enough time to work at the preschool and with the teacher on curriculum development. The teacher is good with the kids, they just aren't learning as much as they could. I guess since this is their start to education its only fair that they start their route memory training now but if I can teach the teacher a new way to set up her classroom and help with new methods then maybe the kids can learn a bit more before they go to Grade 1. Ive seen a few of the preschool kids from last year at Mpumba and they look so cute and eager to learn. Its refreshing!

I guess for the next three months Ill take as many pictures as I can, sit with as many people as I can and eat all the Nshima my body can handle and try not to look at my neighbors like its the last time. I can do this....I can. Its like my first 3 months all over again. Living in two places at once and not knowing exactly where I want/need to be and not knowing how to focus on the here and now. That should really be the goal for the next three...focus on the present and enjoy it for what it is.

This year I had a crazy Holiday Season! After a highly successfully Camp GLOW (thanks everyone who donated and supported)I started my Tour de Zambia. My goal is to travel to all the provinces in Zambia before I leave. So this Christmas, instead of travelling abroad I decided to see more of Zambia. So on Christmas Eve, I made my way to Luapula Province. Home of more Bemba people, a beach, great fish and the best dancers in Zambia. The trek to Luapula was long as with any trek in Zambia. The only transport leaving was a semi truck. The driver was very nice and basically told me I had no other options and of course he was right. So 7 hours later, I reached the capital of Luapula just fine! There I was greeted by some of my FAVORITE volunteers. It was so nice to spend Christmas with friends. We did a "dirty Santa" gift exchange, channeled our inner three-year old by using way too much face paint and had a fantastic meal, all of which cooked with out any electricity. It just confirmed the fact that Christmas isn't about fancy gifts and material luxury, it's about spending time with the people you love and being grateful for the things you have even if it isn't much. I also got the chance to hangout with some Zambians on the dance floor on Christmas night. New experience indeed. The next day,a small group of us went to Samfya and visited Lake Bwangweulu. It was a beautiful sandy lake front where we just enjoyed looking out into the water. We jumped in for a bit but the fear of shisto kept us a bay. We had a picnic there and even got fishing lessons from local kids. We also were warned about the crocs that like to hangout in the water but there were no Croc sightings that day. All in all, a great trip to Lupapula and Id love to visit again.

Then it was time for the 2nd part of my "tour de Zam" which was a 17 hour trek to Eastern Province. Ive been to Eastern many times but this trip was for one reason only. ZEBRAS! I had gone on safari before and never got the chance to see the "rock stars" of the Savannah. So we went to South Luangwa National Park which is one of the biggest and best game parks in Zambia. We were greeted by elephants as soon as we arrived and had monkeys playing on our porch. We only could afford to stay one night but it was New Years Eve and what better way to bring in the new year than with the sound of elephants trumpeting and monkeys playing. We went on a game drive on New Years Eve which was nice. We even got stuck in a huge mud puddle and got the chance to walk around the park a bit. It was beautiful. We attempted to stay up until 12 but since my friend and I are so use to village time, we fell asleep at our normal time of 9pm. The next morning we went on a game drive and the first thing we saw were Zebras! There were so many. That day we saw: mating Lions, giraffe, warthogs, buffalo, elephants, lots of monkeys, impala and hippos. We also saw a beautiful Baobab tree, Ive grown to love these trees since being here. It was a nice vacation spent in Zambia. And to top it all off we had our Close of Service Conference immediately after. So after seeing my favorite animals, I got to see a group of my favorite people!

Its been a very exciting few days! I got a call a few weeks ago asking if I would be willing to bring a few of the most active girls in my GLOW club down to Lusaka (8hours away) for an event. I was only told that there were VERY important people coming from America and the event would showcase what we do as a GLOW club at school and what we do at our GLOW camps. At first I declined the offer (although I was very honored to be asked to do the event) since I was waiting to hear about the grant money I applied for to do an World AIDS Day(WAD) event. A week later, I still hadnt recived any word or money regarding the grant for WAD so I decided to see if the offer still stood. I was then told who was coming to Zambia...President George W. Bush and his family. I immediatly started getting in touch with the girls and their parents. The grade 7 and 9 girls had already finished their exams and were preparing to take their holiday. I picked four of the most active girls and my GLOW counterpart to come Lusaka with me. All the girls were excited, except one. 3 of the girls had just completed grade 9 while one had just completed grade 7. The grade 7 girl was nervous about her English. She's the only one in her family that knows any English and the only time she gets to practice her English outside of school is with me. She was afraid that people in Lusaka would laugh at her. She had also never left the village at all let alone gone to the capital. I assured her that things would be fine and she should speak in whatever language she is comfortable with. So we all travelled in the Lusaka as a big group. Along the way we stopped for shawarma and got two flat tires. Eventfull day indeed. The girls got some time to rest then it was all practice for the important visit that was going to take place. The girls also met up with 14 other GLOW girls from differnet schools and different provinces. There were 5 groups in total. We decided to do three activites: a girl empowerment song, a self-esteem activity, and a sugar daddy skit. The girls practiced so hard and it all paid off. They did an AMAZING job! The Bush family was so impressed with what the girl preformed for them today. My girl who was afraid of going to Lusaka even lead the girl empowerment song in her local language!!! I was so proud! We took lots of pictures and this is something the girls will remember for the rest of their lives. They had so much condfidence in themselves by the end of the week. This is why I love GLOW and my job. I feel like I get the opportunity to change people's. These girls experienced new things, met new people and had fun and I got to play a part in that. If feels good. The Today Show came to interview the girls and film the day. There should be a showing of the event on December 12th. Check us out if you can!

Its been an exciting few weeks here in Zambia with work and everything else. I did my first condom demonstration in the village and it went really well. There are 2 more villages on the schedule and when people found out what I was doing they also wanted me to come to their village to do the demonstration. My PEPFAR counterpart (also my best friend in the village) did a GREAT job with our village talks. In addition to condom demonstrations, we talked about HIV transmission, the importance of getting tested and also gave out condoms as well. I was surprised they responded to me so well due to the face that I am young and a female but the were open to asking me questions and willing to learn. I felt really good at the end and so did my counterpart. The village also kept saying how good of a teacher I was. Since I am busy teaching their kids this is the first community event I was able to do, it wont be the last.

Also I had an interest meeting with the women at the Catholic Church. The meeting was initially supposed to be just with the priest to see how he felt about me using the Church but it ended up being a interest meeting about starting a Woman's Literacy Group at the Church. It slowly ended up being a empowerment meeting and all the women are really excited about this group.I told them if they raised to money to buy exercise books for the club I would buy the pens. They told me to get pencils to start. There are women who finished grade 10 and there are also women who just finished grade 1 so it will be a multi-level class but I have a local woman helping me. We start our 1st meeting October 4th. They keep reminding me about the class when I see them around the village.

Our GLOW Camp has been officially funded! It got funded really quickly due to all our friends and families donating (THANKS GUYS). We have already started the planning for the week and its going to be great. Also my neighbor is going to be a peer mentor at the Camp. She wrote a great essay about why she wanted to help the girls and how she was an example to them because she was single and has completed school/grade 12 (which is a big deal in a village where early marriage and pregnancy is on the rise for some reason) and how she believed that girls should have rights. I helped her get her thoughts together but she wrote it herself. I was really proud of her. Now I am submitting a grant for a World AIDS Day event my PCV neighbor and I are doing. I will also be doing a teacher training the same week on HIV and how to care/support orphans and vulnerable children in our Zone. Guidance and Counseling teachers as well as the Anti-AIDS club matron/patrons from each to the seven schools in the zone. One World AIDS Day, people will be getting tested for HIV, school groups will perform, a person living with HIV will speak as well as several other activities. We will also be holding a raffle to encourage people to get tested. The prizes will be....local items but mainly shirts, hats and bags. If anyone sees any hats, bags or shirts with things/scenes/advertisements from America on them and want to send them my way...I would greatly appreciate it. Also I have been getting a lot of support for the resource center I am working on. Things are really coming together.

Last but not least the most exciting thing by far, were the elections that were held last week. Zambia has new president, Michael Sata. Sata is actually from Mpika district so everyone in Northern Province was really excited that 'one of their own' is now the President. The elections were relatively calm and people were excited for change in their country. I went to the school on polling day and except for lines outside, it was exactly the same as home. I walked around the village encouraging people to vote and explaining why I myself couldn't vote. They didn't think my being an American was a good enough excuse. 2days later around 2am, I heard screaming and cheering in the village and knew that Sata had won. I was very proud of Zambia. The former president stepped down gracefully and showed the world that there can be free and fair elections in Africa. Zambia remained to peaceful nation that everyone claims it to be. I constantly find reasons to fall in love with this place, and this is one of them for sure. I am excited about how things are going in my life as a volunteer and in general and Zambians are excited about the route their new government is going to take!

School is out and I am still running around the village like a mad woman. I went of a mini vacation to Eastern Province to visit friends (picture soon) before they finished their services. I got back to the village and had programs in the village scheduled but they got canceled due to 'lack of materials'. What materials? CONDOMS! I will be doing village talks on HIV, VCT (voluntary counseling and testing for HIV) as well as condom demonstrations. In conjunction with this I also want to do condom distribution in these villages. I searched everywhere for condoms. No one has them. I finally went to my provincial capital (where I have the luxury of typing this entry)and got more condoms than I can carry home. I'm excited to do these sensitization in the village. It will be interesting to see how people respond, especially to the condom demonstrations. Ive have more people recently asking me for and about condoms, especially the female condoms, so this is a great chance to educate my community. The topic is taboo in the sense that I am a women, HIV has a huge stigma and the people in my area are very traditional. They all think I'm crazy anyway essentially because I left America to live in a rural village in Zambia, but they do respect me and what I have to say. My PEPFAR counterpart/ best friend in the village will help me with translating and also discuss VCT. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it goes well! In addition to this little project I have 2 HUGE projects I'm still working on. Camp GLOW and books for the Resource Center.

Its time for Camp GLOW planning and fund raising again. This year the Camp will be held during the week of December 11-17 in my district of Mpika. Camp GLOW is a week long girls empowerment camp where each volunteer brings two girl and a counterpart to learn life skills, increase their confidence, instill leadership and to begin developing girl groups at their perspective schools. There will be separate sessions for the counterparts and the girls and all the sessions for the girls are done in local language. Last year the sessions for the girls dealt with self-esteem, assertiveness, sexual violence, early marriage/pregnancy and establishing goals. All of the counterpart sessions were focused on how to facilitate these sessions in their school clubs. Along with the sessions there are a lot of games, songs and my personal favorite....CRAFTS! The Camp was very successful last year and has been one of my favorite projects so far. BUT all the money from the camp is donated. This is where you all come in. If you are interested in helping me, there is a link on the peace corps website where you are able to donate. All money that is donated for the camp will go through this website and we will receive it in one lump sum. If you want to send materials for the camp you can mail them to me. Last year Little Debbie donated snacks for our big party at the end of the week and several people donated art supplies for our crafts and balls/games for our activities. Please help us out. This camp is great for the girls. My girls are more confident since the camp and it really is something that is uplifting and empowering for everyone evolved! Here's the link to the donation page:

https://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=donate.contribute.projDetail&projdesc=611-071

If the link doesn't work the project number to enter on the page is 611-071 and the volunteer name is SMITH.

Another BIG project I am doing is gathering books for our Resource Center. I have been trying for months to gather books locally and I have received a few but we need more. The Resource Center is still empty. This Center is in the middle of my zone that covers 5 government schools and 2 community schools. The center is open to everyone in the community so the books will be utilized by several people. I envision the resource center as a place to gather materials for the teachers developing lesson plans, for continuing professional development, possibly having a reading corner where teachers and parents can read to their pupils, where pupils can study and increase their reading interest. While the gathering of the books is "easy" in the sense that textbooks, resource books, fiction and non-fiction book and any other type of books are welcomed but the shipping of the books from America to Zambia will be costly. Maybe if any groups are wanting to do projects for Christmas/December or just want to take on any volunteering projects this would be something they are interested in. Everything is welcomed and helps in the stocking of this Center. Once the books start coming in, I will train teachers at the school where the center is located in how to catalog and store the books so they can even be checked out. If enough books get donated, there is even the opportunity to develop class libraries at the community schools which are several kilometers away from the center. I have 8months left and this is one of the major projects I am taking on and its very important to me to see a Resource Center with resources before I leave. Not for my sake but because I know what an impact this will make on teaching at these schools. If you have any questions please email me at raekenya.walker@gmail.com.

Puppies being born, friends coming to visit, meeting up with my favorite village kids and their parents. Things are going well on this end just busy with work. I am working at two schools and teaching grades 7,8,9 English. Hard to believe that I only have 9 months left in Zambia! Im not to happy about that. So much to get done and so little time. My next big projects will be a book drive (which everyone can help me by sending me books!) and writing a grant to get funding for a HIV/AIDs, Guidence and counselling workshop for te teachers in my Zone, and the planning of a World AIDS Day event. Ill keep everyone posted on these things because I will need help (and frequent pep talks) for sure. Love you all. Ill write soon I promise.

LONG Time! It’s been a while yet again since I’ve written. Since I’ve officially been in the village and in Zambia for a year, seems only right for me to do some sort of review of what has happened. But instead of spending countless hours at the computer Ill just review in a list… a top 10 of sorts.

Top 12 realizations of the year (in no particular order)

1) You can’t live in two places at once- In the beginning, I was really upset about being so disconnected from family and friends. I tried to live in America and Zambia at the same time in the sense that I tried to stay the person I was in American while living in Zambia. That didn’t work too well. As soon as I let my American life go - in the sense of accepting the fact that I’m no longer the person I was living the life I use to- I started to find my place here. I want to be a part of everyone’s life back home and I can, but I have to be HERE in order to make the most of the experience. I’m glad I learned that!

2) “Take chances, Make mistakes, get messy"- Ms. Frizzle from the Magic School Bus said it best I think! You only get one life, might as well live it up and take anything for granted. I have the rare opportunity to do some amazing things that people only dream of. Seeing one of the 7 wonders of the world, petting a lion, living in Africa, meeting the ambassador, taking showers under the stars, seeing the 2nd longest waterfall in Africa those types of things. I also live a life most would hate. Black mambas, flesh eating ants, unreliable public transport, leaky roofs and of course no electricity or indoor plumbing. But really what is life without risk. I get bored easily and I haven’t been bored yet here. This is literally a dream for me even with the occasional series of unfortunate events but that’s anywhere. So long story short....I wouldn’t trade this for anything!

3) Don’t forget to say thank you- Many times in the hustle and bustle of my former life, I rarely took the chance to stop and take in the world around me. Here, it’s completely different. This place reminds me to stop and be thankful for the little things. One morning around 6am I was awaken by my dog, chickens and the sounds of the village. I was angry that I was up at 6am and I walked out my house grumpy. I looked at the sun rising over my yard and I quickly said sorry (for being grumpy) and thank you because I was up early enough to experience the beauty of nature. We ask for a lot and forget to be grateful for the little things and what we have. I catch myself saying thank you more often now.

4) If you bring them sweeties, they will come- When I first went to the village, I took so much pride in doing all my own chores. I felt independent and it kept me busy. As my service continued and started getting busier, I realized that there were just some things I hated and really didn’t have time for. I hate fetching water! It’s not like its far or anything I just really don’t like doing it. About 5 months in, I realized that the kids in my village wanted candy and they would do ANYTHING to get said candy. So now I give them candy in exchange for jerry cans full of water!!! Its perfect and now since I’ve started my garden the kids come around everyday to get me water. Too bad they can’t write my lesson plans ;)

5) Always bring a book to a meeting- Meetings never start on time…ever. So instead of being annoyed or angry I just bring a book or something to do. I like to think I’m multi-tasking. There really is no exception to this rule.

6) The secret ingredient is cheeky chili/ sweet chili sauce- I’m no chef but I do enjoy cooking. I like trying new things and making culinary creations. But I’ve noticed that literally everything I cook has either cheeky chili (hot sauces) or sweet chili sauce. Zambians love salt and I love spice. My teachers make fun of me because I like cheeky chili so much and use to carry a bottle in my purse.

7) Just because it looks or smells good, doesn’t mean it taste good- no explanation needed especially because this is in reference to what I make. I guess that’s why Zambians don’t smell their food….its deceiving.

8) Fat is a term of endearment- In the Zambian Culture, it’s a good thing to be called fat because it means you have enough food to eat and you are healthy. In American culture, it’s obviously a bit different. Even after a yr I cringe a little when I’m sitting in the village with the women and they can’t stop talking about how fat I am, especially after I’ve just come from Lusaka and Kasama where I’ve eaten my weight in cheese and they can tell. I’ve started telling people that it’s an insult in my country to tell someone they are fat. So now they say I’m just a “bit” fat.

9) “If soya pieces were in America, this is what America would taste like”- This is what one of my PCV friends said after we had Mexican night at my house and I used soya pieces. Soya is the new chicken! Soya pieces are basically tofu/soya bean chucks. You can cook them like chicken and add them to anything. I eat them at least 3 times a week. You can put them in pasta, curry, tortillas, or even eat them straight out of the bag (I haven’t gotten that desperate yet). To top it all off, they are a great source of protein! I’m bringing some back to the states.

10) After a long day, nothing hits the spot like a bucket bath- Bucket baths are so nice for some reason. I rather bucket bath then take a shower, especially when you can take a bath under the starts.

11) Hitch Hiking is an art…and a sport- People are so nice here and are willing to help you anyway they can, for me that normally means driving me somewhere. I’ve met a lot of interesting people getting a “lift” and it’s not as dangerous as it sounds. I get the seat with a seat belt 8 times out of 10 and the drivers are super nice. I even get free rides sometimes. Transport is the biggest problem in this country and since I live 10 hours away for Lusaka (Nations capital) and 6 hrs from my provincial house, I do what I can to get where I need to be. Especially when vacations are concerned.

12) Music is the universal language and dancing is how you communicate- I love dancing and I love that I am in a country where people express themselves with music and dance. My dancing abilities surpass my Bemba speaking abilities and at every function I go to (even school meetings sometimes) I’m required to dance. The women in my village even know my favorite Zampop song! Here you dance to tell stories also. During Camp GLOW, the girls did a dance showing how to say no when a sugar daddy approaches you. It’s also fun to dance to my American music with people in the village; they don’t know how to dance to Jay-z or Adele.

Top 10 highlights of the last year

10) 4hr hike to Kalombo Falls, the 2nd tallest waterfall in Africa

9) Gratitude Sunday (every Sunday)

8) KITCHEN PARTY!!!

7) Grade 9 Debates- it was the first time anything like it had happed at my school

6) Seeing Victoria Falls

5) Northern Province house days/ Camp GLOW

4) HENDRIX!!!!

3) TGM on teaching and learning aids

2) Village Birthday Party

1) Safari in Botswana/ Petting a LION

It’s been a great year in every aspect. There have been some ups and downs for sure and they have made me stronger to say the least. I’ve had some success in teacher training in the form of leading teacher group meetings. I’ve seen and improvement in the kids as they were able to hold debates in English. People say it (teaching pupils in the rural areas) can’t be done but it can. These kids were able to pick topics, develop arguments, counter arguments and express themselves verbally in what is probably their 3rd or 4th language. The teachers now know it can be done and want to implement these themselves. I’ve developed relationships with the women in my village and I’m seen as a daughter to them.

This week I helped with training of the new volunteers and watched the volunteers 1 yr ahead of me leave. It’s been a mix of; look at where I was a year ago and look where ill be a year from now. I’ve learned a lot about a lot in the last year and hopeful I could help the new trainees learn something too. I also visited my host family from training this week. It was emotional in the sense that with some rough patches in my current village, I wish I could have this family near and it was comforting to know they still remember me and have room in their heart for me. It’s great that they still love me even though my Bemba has gotten worse. Someone from home told me in a letter that this is an amazing journey that most people only dream of. A journey of happy and sad times, of growth and learning and she was right. She also told me to enjoy my journey….and I’m doing just that. I’m excited for what the next year of service will bring. Hopefully it will bring another great Camp GLOW, a resource center full of books and computers, more condom demonstrations, more trips to beautiful places, more village shin-digs, less books in my personal library because I would have read them all, more Bemba and more growth, strength and happiness.

When I last wrote, I was attending the PEPFAR workshop. It was amazing! I learned so much and our counterparts did to. We took people from our village that we intend to work with so we would both be trained in talking to our communities. We all left the workshop with new knowledge and experiencing new things. Several counterparts had never been tested for HIV so the option was given to everyone at the workshop. Majority of all of us got tested which is a step in the right direction. Also one counterpart had never seen a condom until the workshop...she has 10 children. Now she knows how to correctly put on a condom! My counterpart (Julie) and I have already started our work. She is talking to mothers at the under 5 clinic for babies and I have taught about 4 HIV/AIDS prevention and awareness lessons in my English class. The kids really think im crazy now but they are learning! They now know that you CAN NOT get HIV from mosquitoes and from kissing!

In addttion to wrokshops, I taught a TGM (techer group meeting) on Teaching/ Learning Aids for the teachers at Mpumba. I have yet to feel more accomplished in my service as a RED volunteer! They loved the presentation. The were active from start to finish, asked questions and even participated in making teaching learning aids.They did a GREAT job making teaching aids, I was so proud of them! I made a few T/L aids of my own to show them how they can use local resources. I made a computer form cardboard, place value chart with removable parts (cardboard), a solar system mobile from sticks, powedered milk lids and string, sentence cards and HIV transmission pictures. The teachers all said this was the best TGM they had ever done and that I was a very good teacher/presenter! The said that I should start leading all the TGMs. As a result, I am leading a TGM on learner centered teaching, the headteacher bought glue for the teachers to make materials and Ive already seen more T/L aids in the classroom!!!! YAYAYAYAYAYAYA. I love my job!

I also had my 1st birthday in africa! It was too fun. I basically had 3 parties, one in the village, on in the boma and one at my house. The one at my house was just a dinner with 2 other volunteers and the boma party was to celebrate my b-day as well as another volunteers and to celebrate our one year mark. But the village party was something else. We had it the Sunday before my b-day since I had to teach. I was given a chitenge suit to wear for the occassion (ironincally enough it had little crowns which was appropriate since my Bemba name Mwaba means princess). I bought a chicken and was just expecting me and a few other women to just have a good time cooking. I was wrong. Not only did we have chicken but we has all my Zam favorites: chicken, Nshima, chibwabwa(pumpkin leaves), beans, and ifishashi(ground peanuts & veg! It was a feast! The women kind of let me help. After we ate out amazing meal it was time to dance because no party is complete without dancing! But before I could dance, I was given a cake! Julie made me a cake!!! It was in the shape of a heart and had my name on it :) It was a great day. When the dancing started all the kids came to dance with me. They even sang my favorite ZamPop song so I could dance to it!!! The women even commented on how nice my hips are and how well I can move them. Yup I love my Job!!!

Thanks to everyone who wished me a happy birthday...I couldnt have asked for anything better!!!!

So Ive almost been here a year and while I learn something new everyday(about my village, my job and especially myself) I feel like I have a handle on things....today. Its almost time for the new intake of LIFE(agriculture)and RED(education)to come and Ive been thinking a lot about what it was like preparing for this amazing yet unpredictable journey I am on. I know one thing I spent a lot of time doing was reading blogs from current volunteers to see what I could possibly expect. So in the event that this will probably happen to me, I want to be prepared. So these are list of things Im glad I brought, had mailed to me or wish I would have brought:

In the context of being a RED Volunteer:

- a blazer- Zambian teachers dress better then I ever will so it would've been nice to bring nicer clothes to teach in. Not just skirts or trousers I expect to never wear again but nice clothes.

-Index cards- Sure you can make your own index cards from paper and I have but index cards have been great for teaching/learning aids, remembering pupils names and making flash cards.

-Craft materials- You can buy colored paper here and some arts supplies but having my arts and crafts things have been nice because you can incorporate them into lessons and Ive also have a few pupils meet me on the weekends to color/draw which has been fun.

-Children books: These are good for the younger grades and to test English literacy for the older grades. Also when the kids are yelling at you and playing in your yard its great to sit them down and read to them. A lot of PCVs have kitchen libraries where they loan out books to the kids.

-Scissors- all the zam scissor break

As a PCV:

-extra headphones- headphones break and things are expensive in country

-batteries- expensive in country

-tevas/watershoes- I wish I would have brought them it would've made a few vacations more fun

-FITTED SHEETS!- just trust me! One set is nice. You are given a pair of sheets and a blanket when you get here but fitted sheets just make life a little easier

-Crystal light/flavored water packets- water can get boring

-Tea- Yogi tea hasn't hit Zambia yet

- Sweat pants- sure we work 24/7 (technically) but you can never have too many sweat pants in rainy and cold season when you cant go anywhere or when its too cold and you don't want to go anywhere

-bras- sorry but don't just bring sports bras....bad idea and don't just bring one...even worse idea

-home decor- pictures, posters, anything to make your hut feel homey.

-Tennis Shoes- good for running and vacations

-"Town" clothes- so yea we live in the village but we aren't there all the time. You travel all over the country and don't want to look like a bush rat all the time.You can keep your nicer/vacation clothes at the provincial house.

-Jacket/coat- cold season and rainy season can get pretty chilly. I have a raincoat and a light fleece jacket and that's fine.

-Whatever makes you feel comfortable!!!!- I brought my stuffed animals (yea I said it) because two years is a long time and some days you just need something from home.

-IPOD/MP3 player- duh! Music is a must and CD get scratched really easily

-Laptop- ok so I didn't bring one and I kinda wish I did. So if you bring one bring a converter/ voltage changer to charge it. We have reporting we do every quarter and a laptop would make it easier but you can do fine without it. A lot of volunteers have small laptops they've brought and they can update blogs, shrink pictures and watch movies in their hut. It really is a convenience thing but think about it.

-Solar Charger- its just a good idea.

Things I freaked out about:

-Phone!!! getting a phone is literally the 2nd thing you do in country! Bring money to buy a nice phone(with internet)and you'll get your sim card and everything here. Communication by phone is easier than I thought!

-Post- The post office is a crazy. It takes 2 weeks for letters and about a month for packages. Bring stationary :) I spend a good bit of my free time writing letters home. This form of communication can be frustration hence getting a phone with internet. Ive not have a huge problem with the post while Ive been here.

-light- you can buy a solar lamp in Lusaka when you are getting posted and you can buy candles in bulk...no problem there

-length of skirts- so they say don't wear anything above the knee, which I think is a good rule of thumb. As for shirts, showing arms is not a big deal.

-Water- A water filter is provided and you can buy chlorine in country

-Food/Spices: Ive have gotten just about all my species in Zambia and I cook all my meals so I use spices often. The only spice I haven't found...seasoning salt. Some things are harder to find but you can get anything in Lusaka even crushed red pepper :) Parmesan cheese is nice to bring or get sent even if its in little packets from fast food restaurant. You can get dairy in this country in town not really in the village but powdered milk isn't so bad. You can make some pretty fancy things in the village with local ingredients you just have to look or stock up in Lusaka. Ive always asked people to send me M&Ms, junk food or things where you just add water. If you are a tea or coffee drinker...bring that!!! I have people mail me tea in every package. There's good tea in Lusaka and some bomas but I hear if you are an avid coffee drinker to bring that. You can buy a french press in Lusaka.

I think this is it for now! No matter how you pack you will always have someone offering to send you something which is great because there will always be something you forget! Feel free to email me or ask me questions here. Happy Packing!!!!

So one of the best things about my new job is ….TRAVEL! I finally got the chance to see some more of Zambia and a bit of Botswana. So a group of 5 of us spent 2weeks in Livingstone, Zambia, home of Victoria Falls. It was an amazing trip. It had not so great begins though. I was stuck in Lusaka for a few days by stuck I just mean spent more time there then I planned and got stopped at the Botswana boarder. I was just searched but I was the only one in my group who was searched….ill let you guess why! (Sorry I don’t look Zambia just because I am black!) But that was nothing major and I went on about my day. Strange how that happens to me here, I would’ve never imaged being singled out for my “race” here but that’s another story for another day!

So we started out trip at Chobe National Park. Highly recommend it. I’ve never seen so many elephants and so many different types of animals. W stayed for 2days and 1 night in the park. The first day we did a boat game drive and saw the most amazing birds, hippos, and elephants. We even got to see elephants swimming, that was probably my favorite thing. I learned that hippos can only stay in the water for about 5 mins so every so often you would look in the water and see noses sticking out. We were on the water for a few hours then had an amazing lunch and went back into the park but in a jeep this time. That’s when we saw the lioness. She apparently had just given birth and was alone. The cubs were hiding in a bush (we never saw them). After seeing more elephants and the occasional warthog, we went to our camps site. Tents with beds were set up for us and we had a great meal. It was Christmas Eve so we volunteers came up with our own version of the 12 days of Christmas. It was fun. We even meet some RPCV (returned Peace Corps volunteers) from Namibia which was great! They are still involved with Peace Corps and still living in Africa! So Christmas Day we did our final game drive and it PORED! We got soaked but it was ok because we say more lions, giraffes, every species of antelope /impala, a leopard, and crocodiles. We went back to Livingstone, Zambia and had MEXICAN for Christmas Dinner! That’s a tradition I can live by!

So while in Livingstone, we saw so many things and met tons of new people. We met volunteers from other countries, ran into more volunteers in Zambia, more Americans and great great staff at the hostel. We stayed at Jollyboys Backpackers…NICE and a good price too. They helped us set all our activities for the week. So I went to Victoria Falls twice, went to a local concert, pampered myself, ate lots of Mexican and other good food, spent to much at the market, went to the Livingstone Museum went on a Sunset/Booze Cruise and the best ever…..walked with lions! LITERALLY!

Victoria Falls was of course amazing. It’s beautiful. The water is tricky. The first time I went the water was low for some reason the 2nd time I went I got rained on from the mist of the falls  There’s really not to much I can say about the falls expect for words and pictures don’t do the place justice! It was also nice to go to the Livingstone Museum and learn more about Livingstone, the Tonga people and Victoria Falls. We did the Sunset Cruise for New Year’s Eve and it was a nice way to bring in the New Year and to end our trip. But the highlight of my vacation…LIONS.

So I got to walk with and pet lions. Yep I petted a lion! The lions (Rwanda, Rama and Raja(?)) were 17months old. They were huge. They were very playful and Rwanda was a big baby when is two sisters were beating him up….well they were playing. The program I did the walk with is trying to re-introduce lions into the wild with a 4 phase program. The lions I was with were just on phase 1 still. They are learning how to hut on their own and fend for themselves. It was fun and educational! On this trip I saw 4 of the big five (Rhino, leopard, lion, elephant, and buffalo). We didn’t see any rhino because they are extinct in the area we were in. It’s amazing how beautiful these animals are in their natural habitat. It also amazing how much beauty there is around us and we forget or were to busy to notice it! This was a great Holiday! Wonder what Ill do next year!

Wow! LONG TIME. First off let me say HAPPY NEW YEAR! I’m glad you all enjoyed your Holiday Cards and the pictures. I just got back from my 2week holiday in Livingstone/Botswana. I was in the village for two weeks, started teaching for the term and now I’m away again. This time I’m in Kasama for PEPFAR! I’m really excited about this workshop. We all are bringing counterparts from our villages we can work with. I'm bringing BA JULIE! Ba Julie is my best friend in the village. She’s the one who teaches me how to cook, how to dance, she feeds me every time I see her and she’s even given me a Bemba name(Mwaba which means Princess). After the workshop, hopefully we can work on HIV/AIDS related projects in the village. I’ve been waiting for this; I’m really excited and hope it goes well. I’ll update you for sure. Speaking of updates…..GLOW!!!

Camp GLOW was AMAZING! The girls really had a great time! The week was filled with arts and crafts (headed by yours truly), camp songs, sessions on rape/ sugar daddies/ confidence/assertiveness/gender roles/goals and s’mores. As far as arts and crafts go we made: journals, picture frames, menstrual pads from local materials, thank you cards and painted with edible finger paint. So much fun. I'm inner camp counselor showed up and had too much fun! Camp GLOW (Girl’s Leading Our World) is a Peace Corps Zambia project as well as a Global Peace Corps initiative. The goal is to help give girls a space where they can be open about issues that concern them as well as learning new skills and tools to help them achieve their goals in the societies they live in. In Zambia, one of the missions in the Ministry of Education is to focus on the education and development of the girl child. The Ministry, as well as the Nation, has noticed the lack of education for/ given to girls as well as the distinct gender roles assigned to girls that limit them from getting a proper education. Camp GLOW speaks on this by having sessions centered on these sensitive issues. I’ve already noticed a change in the girls I took from my village. I took a grade 6 (now grade 7) and a grade 8(now grade 9). The grade 7 is more outspoken with her leadership and the grade 9 is more confident in herself. This is the 2nd term I’ve taught the now grade 9. At first she never spoke in class and never raised her hand, I had to tell her to put her hand down and let someone new try last week!

The girls weren’t the only ones who learned new things this week. The teachers also learned a lot about how to start clubs, facilitate, be open and create a safe environment for the girls. The warmed up to the idea as the week went on. They all have the potential to be good facilitators.

Camp GLOW has been one of my favorite activities so far, can’t wait for next year. It was a lot of planning, lots of meetings, and a lot of stress at time but we pulled it of. The 7 Mpika volunteers did an amazing job and I can say “I love my team”! Also a huge THANK YOU!!!!! To everyone who helped donate money, give ideas, sent goodies and was supportive. You played a huge part in the success of this camp and I hope you’ll be on board next year! NATOTELA SANA MUKWAI!!! Thanks everyone.

Quick CHRISTMAS POSTAGE ANNOUNCEMENT: if anyone is planning on sending anything to Zambia for Christmas, you should mail it by Nov 20th if you want me to get it before Christmas. This includes letters. I will be away from the post for 3weeks on my Christmas vacation! If there is anything you want me to have before I leave the village around Dec 21st, Nov 20th is your deadline for mailing everything...even cards/letters!.... Hello all! The end of the term is approaching filled with 9th grade exams and one nervous volunteer, revisions, final touches on events and transfers that cometh! More on the last one later. Last week in grade 8 and 9, we played English Jeopardy for revision. They had so much fun. 9b (the too cool for school class) wanted to play more and even do a debate! This week we had a Camp Glow meeting. Things are coming together nicely. We are $350 away from our goal! Thanks to everyone donating and if you havent its not to late ;-) but the highlight of the week was the Kitchen Party yesterday. Ba Julie's (my go to/bff in the village) brother is getting married and I got invited to the kitchen party. This was my kitchen party so I had no idea what to expect. A kitchen party is a house warming and bridal shower in one. Everyone comes with gifts that the bride will need in the kitchen and things she will need to be a good wife. I went to Julies at 10hrs and was feed beans, nshima and katapa(casava leaves) ifisashi with a cup of moncoyo. I then sat and waited for directions which ended up being to sit and wait. While waiting: a mayo told her baby to stop crying and look at the "Muzungu", I was told that the kids were so happy to see me that they didnt want to bath and I met the most adorable little girl ever. She was trying to wear a chitenge scarf around her hair like mine so I tied it for her...her eyes lit up. I also practiced dancing. At kitchen parties the owner of the gift dances the gift to the bride, dances while showing the gift off and then explains the gift. I cant dance like a zambian women but I tried! The ladies at Julie's were happy I tried and they were even semi impressed. The party was at a guest house in the next village and there were over 100 women there. Girls arent allowed to go because the dancing taught and done is mainly

the dancing you do for your husband. The community sets up a commitee to arange everything for the party it was really nice. I even had chicken and a CORN MUFFIN which is rare in the village. The party started out with the bride and her 2sisters crawling in with a chitenge covering them. Every few steps they would lay to the left and right and clap 3times as a sign of respect. We all did this throughout the party. Then a women lights a match and the bride unvails herself. The groome even makes an apperance to give the bride a gift of flowers. The bride also give the groome and three high women in the village(1 being future mother in-law and 1 being the Chief's wife) a cake as a sign of love and respect. The whole time matrons are guiding the bride through the ceremony. The bride doesnt talk or smile during the party to show that she's humble. The party was so much fun! All the women had a good time, even the chief's wife danced. When it was my turn to dance the Chief's wife gave me her chitenge (HUGE DEAL). All the teachers got up and danced with me to make me feel more comfortable and everyone cheered! It was fun. I ended a great day riding home staring at the stars and listening to the songs zambian women have been singing for generations. I hope I get invited to the wedding!

Hey Everybody! Hope all is well with everyone. Im in the boma using a computer but don't have much time to type so I apologize in advance for the short post. Things have been going great in the village. Finally got a bookshelf and will get the rest of my furniture just in time for a visit from PCMO(medical officers)! I have started teaching grade 8 English and its really fun. Ive seen so many improvements to my 9a English class and I am so proud of them but my 9b class think they are too cool for school! They have exams in Nov and its crunch time. I really want them to do well. The

We had Honours day(awards day) at my school and it was great. I made certificates for club members, smartest dressed, best actor, best literacy and 1st position in class. The school wrote letters to the community and asked for donations and the day was a success. The teachers loved it and the parents saw value in their child's education. It was sad to see that some parents did care enough to come and accept awards(more that just certificate) with their children but it was amazing to see the teachers step up. You could tell some of these teachers really care about their pupils!

I also went on a field trip to Nachikufu Cave which is the largest Cave in Zambia and its in my district! It was amazing to see these kids go on a "field trip". I didn't even know that was allowed! The wanted to know and do everything. We had to climb up the cave to see somethings and they loved it, even the girls in their skirts and ties had a blast. My co-teacher impressed me, she even did some climbing too. We sang songs on the way to the cave and ate lunch there. There were even rock paintings and tools at the cave that were used and made by the Bush people there. We learned about the spirit of the cave and the wars fought in the area it was nice.

I then headed off to Isanga Bay at Lake Tanganyika Zambia. AMAZING! I did a 4 hr hike to Kalambo falls to see the 2nd tallest falls in Africa and I got to lay on a beach for a few days. R and R was needed. It was nice to see new parts of the country. Zambia is so beautiful is unbelievable.

ok im getting kicked off the computer now. BUT!!!! PLEASE remember to donate to CAMP GLOW throught the Peace Corps website!!!! We are half way to our goal. Also if you are still interested in having a Zambian penpal (other than me) please let me know. I am mailing the first batch of letters next week!!!! So proud of them! Love you all and talk to you soon. Thanks for all the love, support and help that you all continue to give! It means the world to me!!!!

To donate to camp glow to go: http://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cmf?shell=donate.contribute.projDetail&projdesc=611-062 or just go to www.peacecorps.gov click "donate to voulnteer projects" and search under the name "FRITZLER"

Chishimba falls with Christine

Chishimbe falls (yes I love this place)

Sunset on the Savanna...literally

Hendrix and her favorite ball

Do you see it? Its a rock painting of an elephant at Nachikufu Cave

Jess and I on the boat after our 4 hour hike to Kalombo falls

Honors day! The school's cultural dance club performing

Mpumba Basic goes on a Field Trip!!!

Grade 8 girls getting ready to explore Nachikufu Cave

All of the grade 8s outside the cave

Ceclia and I after Honors day. She is one of the leaders in the Girl's Club at my School

At Honors day. She won an award for best literacy and she's only in grade 2! She is super smart but since her parents werent there to help her get the award the teacher accepted the award with her....

Honors day!!!! My teachers dancin' it up...

Two of the leaders in the Girl's club reading a speech they wrote for Honors day...I was so proud. I got so nervous when all 4 leaders got up and read a poem we wrote together that I forgot to take pictures....oops!

Saw this little guy while walking home from school...villagers are soo afraid of them. It has something to do with juju (witchcraft).

This ball saves my life!!!

The end result of my 4 hour hike...up a mountain...in hot season....so worth it...but ill never do it again!

playing on rocks at Kalambo Falls

View from Kalambo Falls

Cooling off after our hike!

Rainbow at the top of Kalambo Falls

Isanga Bay- Lake Tanganyika Zambia

Paradise!

The kids in the village where the falls were giving us a send off!

Left to right: 1) My 9th graders joining me for some craft time. 2) At the waterfalls. 3) Hendrix and I. 4) Me stirring Nshima in the biggest pot ever. 5)Jen and Julie my unofficial Bemba/Zambian culture teachers. 6)Sunrise on the Savanna...waiting for a hitch to the boma. 7)More water falls. 8)Hendrix falling asleep in my backpack. 9) My HOUSE! See told you I had a bright blue door. 10) My bathing shelter and Chimbusu (toilet)

First let me say thank you to everyone taking the time to donate to the Girls Leadership Camp(camp glow) and for the interest in pen pals! You can still donate to the camp through the PeaceCorps website and let me know if you want to be a pen pal! This week was crazy busy! Wednesday I co-lead a community training. This week was about my role and expectations as a pcv and the concepts of development and sustainability.Thursday i taught 3 classes and had 2 meetings all before 11:30am! Friday was open day, think parent teacher conference! But it was a good week even found a new carpenter and tailor this week. The new carpenter was cheaper and is less busy so maybe just maybe by halloween ill be sitting in a chair and not on a jerry can. The tailor is pretty good. I ordered a skirt and a dress from her. Of course they are made from chitenge material. I love both my skirt and my dress but it looks like I need to ride my bike more and fry my soya less! So on thursday I taught all 3 classes by myself all grade 9. I co-planned 1, talked about the other and the 3rd class that was really just for fun. The 1st class was a 80min english comprehension for 9b. The subject was our favorite animals and the passage was about my favorite animal the giraffe. It went well and they did a good job with the lesson. They also wrote about their favorite animals. Their stories were fun to read. In 9a we worked on structure in English. The lesson was on present continuous and present perfect continuous(hince the title of this post). Role play/acting was involved in this lesson and they loved that! They had to create sentences using our new tenses and they got all fancy on me. They really tried, I was proud of them. I continued teaching English when I realized (after the pupils pointed it out and begged me to stop teaching English..hehe) that the period was over and it was time for Religious Education (RE). The teacher was out so I asked them if it was ok for me to teach RE and they said yes. Id never taught RE before and didnt know where to start. We spent approx. 2mins reviewing their previous lesson on sexual feelings but I switched topics because I knew where that was heading! I started by asking them their thoughts on spirituality and religion just to get their opinion. They then started discussing religious text. They told me all the ones they knew and I added 4 noble truths just to see if theyd heard of it. This lead to questions about Islam. We then created a "characteristics chart" of Islam, Judaism and Christianity. For each faith we discussed: phrophets, name of the creator and the meaning of the name, who wrote the text and the language, place of worship and name of worshippers etc. It was AMAZING! They filled in what they knew and I helped with the rest. The topics came from their questions. The whole class was based on their questions and interest. HANDS DOWN THAT WAS MY FAVORITE CLASS/LESSON SO FAR! (Also partly due to the fact that I knew the answers to their question without looking at notes or a book!) I even had 7 pupils come to me during their break to ask me MORE question about the 3 faiths and Buddhism/4 noble truths. Ah cisuma sana! Ill teach that class until the teacher comes back next month. For a Hendrix update: Hendrix is a girl! Long story but my puppy is a girl and her name will stay the same. She had her 1st visit with the "vet" and she did well except for using my hand as a chew toy! The pigs near my house gave her maggots in her paws but shes all better now. She has started staying on a chain when Im at school so she stays out of trouble and doesnt reck my house. All is well this side and Ill be traveling to Kasama next week for a workshop and to visit other pcv's sites. LOVE YOU ALL! P.S. I hate ants and the mouse in my roof! Ants are much worse here and come out of no where and the mouse is annoying and keeps getting louder! T.I.A! AMAPALO...

Greetings from Bembaland! Its been a busy day. I had a convo with a elderly bamama (grandmother) on my way to school. She was impressed with my Bemba, so was I. I co-taught an 80min 9b English class. The lesson was on past simple/past continuous tense and comprehension. We played a game called "Think fast" where I threw a ball to a student, told them a verb and what tense I wanted them to put the verb in. They had fun with the game. Then I told them a story I made up (but prepared before hand) where they had to identify the verbs, tell me what tense (past or past continuous) the verbs were in and give my story an ending. Lets just say the story ended with Hendrix being eaten by a lion. I will teach the same lesson tomorrow to grade 9a, hopefully they wont kill off my dog. Also tomorrow, we have our 1st Girl's club meeting of the term. Im excited to talk to all my girls again! Im also preparing for a workshop/ community sensitization training im co-leading with the Community Development Officer next week. The training is on my role as a volunteer and community mobilization/development. Super busy but busy is good! So...the real reason for the update. I need help from Americaland! Ive gotten a lot of people asking me what I need or need help with. I added a wish list of sorts on here but there are 2 things I really need help with now now (Zambian for ASAP) : 1)DONATE TO CAMP GLOW! - My district is putting on a empowerment/leadership camp for girls in Dec. Its up to the volunteers to find a hosting site, speakers, materials and funds. All 7 of us have a role (Im helping with arts and crafts and ideas are welcomed) and we all are bringing 1 teacher and 2 studentr to the camp. We have already started planning but we still need to raise money. This is where you can help! But DON'T SEND THE MONEY TO ME! Go to www.peacecorps.gov -then go to "Donate to volunteer projects". You can then either search by volunteer name, in this case its "FRITZLER" or search by the project number, which is "611-062". The project title is "Girl's Leadership Camp". Any amount is helpful! I really appreciate it! Plus its a tax write off! You would be helping at least 14 girls gain self esteem and they will in turn become leaders in their schools & communities. This is why I started the girl's club at my school. 2) PEN PALS!- So my classes are learning how to write letters and they want American pen pals. My classes are grades 5-9 and are between the ages of 10-16. If your kids, family members, classes, youth groups, student teaching classes, the sports teams you coach and even if you want to write to a child in Mpumba Zone PLEASE email me (raekenya.walker@gmail.com) and let me know! We all would appreciate your help with this one. Its also achieves pc goals 2 & 3...CULTURAL EXCHANGE! They have so many questions and want to be heard. It could turn into a good outlet for them too. Im working with 7 schools so the more interest the better! Im willing to sacrifice getting my own letters if it means letters for the kids ;-) Thank you all in advance! I have amazing friends and family back home who I know will help if they can! Ill keep you posted on the Camp. Feel free to email me any questions, suggestions, quotes, positive vibes, etc. Id love to have them! THANK YOU! As a side note to all of this Hendrix got into a "fight" with a goat and lost! He is fine but he has a battle scar on his nose now. Also after spending a full day cooking with bamayos I was told I am a good cook, a good dancer and that I speak the truth! So there you go :-) ... LOVE YOU ALL and miss you much! Amapalo!

Thats right its been 6 months since I embarked on this tiny little adventure! 3mos in the village. I always say a lot has happened since I last wrote but mid July until now has been a rollarcoaster! In training they told us that the few weeks before IST(in service training) there would be a few "dips" in the rollarcoaster...understatement! So the week I was suppose to cook with my womens group I caught the flu. Yup flu in Africa, it lasted about 2weeks. The teachers at my school told me that I wasnt well and forced me to go home during classes. During this same time puppy Hendrix decided to eat, yes eat, my cell phone charger as well as pages from my journal. I was not a happy camper. Luckly the boma sells chargers. I also hurt my ankle during this time. Im clumsy and tripped twice in one day. It didnt seem like a big deal until my ankle was still hurting 3weeks later. While in Lusaka for IST medical made me get an x-ray and concluded that I tore ligaments and tendons in my ankle. I now have to wear a brace/bandage for 4-8 weeks. To top it all off in the grand scheme of it all I was dreading my trip to Lusaka. 2weeks away from the village and my dog and being blinded by the bright city lights, No thanks! But as a nice send off i had my 1st encounter(hopefully my last) with the black mamba. While walking to school I spotted a "hose" in the path. As I got closer, I noticed the "hose" was really a 6ft long black mamba. I told the kids to kill it and everyone came running. It was already dead the kids just left it there to see my reaction. Nice. But the good thing about being here(guess its really how you look at it) is that just as easily as something can change your day and make it seem bad, the tiniest things can turn it all around and make you realize its all about balance. Like sunsets that remind you to say "thank you", school visits where you are told you are a blessing and feed bush rabbit(my new fav meat). When bamayos come to your house to show you their culture and to invite you to be apart of it. When candy, crystal light and dance parties with local kids are kept afloat by the light of a full moon. When you show up to the post and every letter is for you... Its about taking the bad with the good and knowing that your reaction to it all is just as important as the situation it self. During the time of "the dip" I went to a zampop concert and had a really good time with friends in Lusaka so it wasnt all bad. And despite the fact that I still dont have funiture, apparently there are no more dips in the rollarcoaster untill APRIL! There are good days and bad days just like anything else but its the little things that make it worth it!

Thats the phrase teachers use to make sure pupils are paying attention! Its been a busy month since I last wrote. Ive started co-teaching and meeting with my girls club. Im also meeting with a women's nutriton club and they are too funny! Ive done some school observations, meet some awesome people who let me hitch for free, saw a snake, got a puppy which i named Hendrix and went on my 1st Zambian vacation. I went monitoring with the zonal head aka my head teacher and went to the farthest school in my district Muchelenje it 30k away. The school is a government school but looks like a community school. The school has US sponsors so they have the most materials in the zone but with 4 teachers (literally 4!) theres only so much you can do. When observing the 9th grade class, the deputy head(vice principal) asked me to encourage and motivate the class especially the girls. I didnt do much, my motivational speaking skills need work. I just asked them all to tell me what they wanted to be when the grew up(everything from driver to female pilot to male nurse) and i just explained to them that you need an education for those things. Im sure that was probably the 1st time anyone asked them that question and I hope the teachers remind them of those goals. 2days ago I went to the 2nd closert school (15k bike ride) to do observations. In the middle of my 8th grade English observation the teacher asked me if i had anything to add. I couldnt help myself...i got up and taught! Just a fill in the blank activity but it got more pupils participating which is why im here. Ive co taught 4 classes so far at my center school. I taught 2 civics and 2 english classes all grade 9. Im loving it so far! The kids have fun laughing at my handwriting and my accent (hince the are we together) but i feel like they are getting something. Ive had students ask me to teach english when the teacher is absent and beg me not to leave the class when the period is over. Great feeling. I co taught an unplanned (shhh!) english lesson with the head teacher. It was crazy how we filled in each others gaps and how quickly i thought on my feet. I impressed myself. The head is now a huge fan of co teaching! The girls in the club are opening up and are "being free" with me. Ive had puppy hendrix for a week. He is a feisty yet adorable pup. He eats nshima and kapenta like a true zambian. Saw a snake walking home yesterday. I think it was a boomslang but i didnt stay to find out. For 4th of july 5th of july (hero day) and 6th of july (unity day) i and 4 other volunteers went to kapesha hotsprings in my district. It was a good time with good people. Oh i almost forgot. My too much fun womens nutrition club is coming over monday to show me how to dance, cook, and how to keep my husband. Wonder if i can opt out of that last one for now :-). My phone is telling me im done typing! Sorry for my spelling and if any of this is a repeat. Love you all and hope you are well. Keep the letters coming they are good hut art!

Muli Shani Bonse! I just wrote this blog once and it erased! Joys and curse of writing on a Computer I guess (beware of spelling and grammar mistakes anyway)! It has been a while since I have written, a lot has happened! I’ve been in the village for about a month now (4 months in Zambia) and I am getting “adjusted”. I am cooking all my meals on the Brazier (thank God for fire starters) and I only use my cook stove for reheating purposes. Cooking is my new favorite past time for several reasons. 1) It takes up so much time 2) Its cold season so being by the fire is nice 3) Its always an adventure to see how my food will come out. So far I’ve made: sweet and sour soya stir fry, spicy veggie lo mein noodles, goulash, spaghetti, “chicken” and rice, “French toast”, Mac and cheese and or course the staples of tuna, egg and oatmeal. I get chicken during my bi-weekly visits to the Boma or when the teachers feed me. They get a kick out of the fact that I like Nshima besides the fact of trying to make me “fat”. I fetch water and do laundry every week and I’m getting into a routine. My hut is becoming a home despite my lack of furniture. I’m going to the carpenter this week to make a deal. The only furniture I have in by house is my bed, a table and jerry cans that double as water carrying containers and chairs. My kitchen (insaka) is also still in the remodeling stages. Once I get a table, a spice rack an someone to put the chain on my door I will move all my food in there and it will be a proper kitchen. At least I’m no longer living out of a suitcase; except for on laundry day (we keep our laundry in our suitcase for 3days after drying to avoid bot flies). I get my water from a boar hole/mono pump and it’s relatively clean but I filter it nonetheless (there are still parasites in the water, unfortunately from experience). I have also developed the habit o f sweeping at least twice a day. Yes it gives me something to do but it is also very sandy in this area. I love my white house with the bright blue door! Although that blue door will become purple in due time. I’ve been had countless introductions with my community where I explain “I am a Black American from the United States Peace Corps and I am here to teach and work in the community for two years. I live in the village just like you and I have no money only knowledge and skills!” Of course I’m supposed to say this in Bemba which is fine until someone screams at me. It’s tricky because the kids want me to speak in English because they want to practice their English. All the adults want me to speak in Bemba 1) because they don’t know English; 2) they want me to be fluent in Bemba, 3) the get a kick out of my accent. Either way someone is always screaming at me. I understand Bemba I just can’t speak it very well. So when a Bamayo came over to visit the other day and told me I needed to sweep my yard in Bemba, she was shocked when I responded.

Since I am in Community Entry (CE) and techniqucally not suppose to work, I’ve just been having a lot of meetings with local leaders, the Community Development Officer and the Clinic staff. I am in the classroom 4 days a week and once a week I will be doing community work. All the projects that I want to do (HIV/AIDS counseling and testing (VCT) days, Child health and nutrition edu, HIV/AIDS awareness, working with women’s groups, local group registration, literacy and food security) will be working with these people. I’m sure they will get tired of me quick. Since I’m still in this integration/CE period I have not done much traveling to schools in my zone. I am a Zonal Volunteer meaning I will eventually work at all the 7 schools (5 governments and 2 community) in my zone in the next two years...in theory. I will work at the 3 closest schools the first year. They are 7k, 9k and 1k away. I am lucky because my Zonal Center School is in my front yard almost (1k) and the ZIC (Zonal In-service Coordinator) and Zonal Head are based there so I get to tag along on all their official zonal meetings/business. A few weeks ago I went to the GRACE mtg. This is where all the schools in the zonal talk about the possible challenges and solutions facing each grade. I will be doing monitoring with the ZIC and Zonal Head for the next 3 weeks which gives me a chance to go to the schools that are the farthest away (24 and 30k). I won’t be riding my bike to those schools just yet…maybe one day.

In addition to co-teaching Ill also be working with the after school clubs. I start my clubs this week! There is only so much I can do in a classroom (laws and such) but these clubs are a way for me to do something positive. I am “starting” an Art club to identify those kids with talent and interest in the arts. There is already a cultural dance, music, and drama club but I am not sure how well they are doing. If they are active then my “art” club will turn into a “sit and write with Ba/Madame Rae “club. Or maybe even a “help me make teacher/learning aids” club. I just want the kids to have an outlet. My “baby” is the girls club, the GLOW club. GLOW stands Girls Leading Our World. It is a club based off of a Camp that Peace Corps Zambia puts on. The camp is for girls grades 6 through 8. The Camp is to empower girls, give them a safe space to discuss any issues or problems they have, to show them they don’t have to feed into the roles that society gives them and to give them a break because they work so hard and do so much. My district (Mpika) is sponsoring the club in December. Each volunteer will bring 2 girls and one teacher to the camp. This is why I’m starting the club so early so I can send the right people in an attempt to find peer educators for the club once I am gone. Clubs started last week and I announced I was starting a club last Monday. I was in Kasama for PC business last Friday but found out today that there were girls looking for me on club day. Sounds Promising! I really want to be there for these girls. They are dealing with way more then I could even imagine at 15 (and in grade 7!). If you all want to help with the Camp, there will be a way for you to donate trough the Peace Corps website, and Ill add a link to blog. We have to submit the grant so Ill keep you posted. Also if anyone has any craft ideas throw them at me, I’m in charge of crafts for the district camp…imagine that.

My bike skills are improving and I blame it all on my Peace Corps neighbor Annie. LOVE HER! It’s so nice to be near someone who gets it. She lives about 2k from one of my schools, which is nice until she leaves me in Sept! good thing she’s getting replaced. It’s good to talk to someone who’s been here for two years and isn’t completely over it yet. She’s my dose of reality. We talk about what can and can’t work and the challenges that are inevitable. I’ve already discovered that some of my goals and ideas just wont work here be it due to law, culture, apathy, language barrier, ignorance or what have you and its better to realize that now. Within the last month I’ve realized that there are something’s that I have to get use to like COLD SEASON, iwe (kids) going through my trash, and random farm animals paying a visit (in fairness I like the random farm animals.) There are something’s I will never get use to like corporal punishment, gender disparity and people staring at me and not speaking even when I greet them in English, Bemba and sometimes Spanish(just to make sure). There will be more challenges then successes but that will just make me savior/cherish the successes that much more.

Things are going well. There are ups and downs, and good days and bad days just like anything else. With every bad day (or sick day) I remember that anything worth having is worth fighting for and that with each rough day comes an indescribable beauty in some way shape or form. My intake (PCV 2010 RED and LIFE) has a saying “TIA- This is Africa”. We always say this when life here does what it wants without talking to us first (good and bad). TIA this is Africa where the stars twinkle, the sunsets are purple and you find happiness/beauty in the simple things. TIA-This is Africa where iwe go through your trash, it takes 2 hours to make pasta, and there is a COLD season…COLD season in AFRICA! Really?! Finding humor in everything is another thing my intake does….

Sorry this was so long, but I figured I should write as much as I could seeing as I’m typing on a computer and not a phone (for the 2nd time today). Also sorry for my bad English! I’ve been using Zamlish and so I’m kind of stuck in broken English mode. Thank you soooooo much for all the letters, cards, packages, email, text messages, and phone calls. It’s so nice to keep in touch with people back home and to get updates from America Land! I LOVE YOU ALLL!!!!! Amapalo (blessings) elyo shalenipo (stay well).

Sorry no pictures of the house me and my flash drive are having issues :(

Chisembe Falls In Kasama Northern Provience! My Provential Capital

New RED volunteers 2010!

My Swear-In Dress! Had it made out of Chitenge material here in Zambia!

My Bike and morning wait for the curiser buddy....Mallory!

America, Zambia Cimo-Cine! (It means that America and Zambia are One!)

So! People wanted me to post some pictures but its a LOT harder then it sounds so this may be it for now but maybe in June (during proventials) I can upload more. Sorry Im actually not in a lot of these but this is a glimpse of what my life has been like so far...enjoy for now!

Ah! So im an official volunteer now! I got through training, my bemba test and the 1st 2months. I now know why everyone says "just get through training". After swearing in, we took the 11hr drive to kasama in northern district. There i met my "no pro" family and felt a sort of "rites of passage" as i am now apart of the northern provience team. We went to the fall which were beautiful and then prepared for posting. Ive been in my village for a week now and still adjusting but loving it. It takes me a while to cook and to fetch water but as they say i will get used. I live in a white 2room hut with a bright blue door. Im sure they didnt do that to make sure i dont get lost but i sure cant miss my house. My kitchen, bathing shelter and toliet are outside. Ive begun to decorate and it feels more like home. Ive already had a busy week filled with mtgs, laundry, bike rides and practicing the art of sitting. Almost everyday i just sit and talk(or listen or help cook or just sit) with people in my village. I enjoy it especially when i pick up the bemba. Cooking is a new challange. Since the brazier and I arent on good terms i bought a cook stove that uses green gel to run. It works wonders but i still have a new found love for canned tuna. Today i went to mpika boma and had a great day! Any day that hummus is involved its sure to be an awesome day. I got tons of veggies, things for the house and of course more tuna! I hitched into the boma which was surprisingly fun. I started off around 8am this morning and I walked about 30 mins before i got a ride in. Ill leave earlier next time. On the way home the 1st ride i got wanted me to pay 50,000k. Away mukwai! So i got out the car. After 45mins of walking a great hitch gave me a lift. I even had a mini HIV/AIDS lesson with them! Both hitches were free although i bought the 1st lift groundnuts to say natotela(thank you) and apprently im the 2nd lifts new 2nd wife! Staff mtg tomorrow and GRACE mtg on friday. But now sedimenipo mukwai! (good night)

Ah! Muli shani mukwai. So much has happened in the last few weeks! A couple weeks ago after spending an amazing weekend in Lusaka(full of pizza,movies and sunday markets) i had my 1st mini bus experience. And oh was it an experience. We went to the bus loading station and asked "are you going to chongwe?" bad idea. Of course they were going to chongwe they wanted our money. So 9 of us get on a mini bus with the condition of: you get paid when we get to chongwe! Needless to say we never made it to chongwe in the mini bus. We did however get a great(free) hitch from lusaka to chongwe so the day ended well. While in lusaka I met a group of guys singing outside the mall. We started talking and ended up singing together! It was great we bonded over neyo and coldplay. I also had an interesting convo with this one guy about stereotypes/labels. He now knows that southerners arent dump and we dont all have strong accents. We also talked about black americans and all the ideas he had about black american. Lets just say we had a LONG talk about his preceptions of black americans. No my one 40min convo will not change all his myths and misconceptions but he now has seen and met something different. Its kind of sad because they get these ideas from american media and they are not all positive. But cultural exchange was made so thats a start. Had a snake in front of my hut. I also had my teacher evaluation where i taught a 5th grade science class(on the excretory system) alone. The kids thought i was crazy but we had fun! I am trusted to teach now. Also passed my bemba test. Now its the night before swear in. We had cultural day yesterday and cooked for our families and they gave us gifts. Bamayo gave me a broom, a nshima spoon and 3 bowls. In bemba culture every women is given a broom as a sign of coming of age. I gave my family gifts and they were so excited. This morning batata cried and i almost lost it. I will miss them alot. But im ready for the next step. Sorry this is so long but thats whats been going on. Big day tommrow!

Cungulopo mukwai! Good evening. Im trying to update as much as i can but blogging from my phone is not ideal. So i didnt explain the deal behind site visit! So for the past however many weeks ive been in chalimbana ive be staying with a homestay family so last week we went to our actual site for the 1st time! This site is where we go after swear in and where ill be co-teaching for the next 2yrs. I got to stay in my hut,acquired a few unwanted pets but most importantly began to integrate into the community. PC Zambia is one of the last programs where the volunteer lives in the village they work in. While there for 5days i went to 3 school and observed 6 classes and sat in on 3 teacher group meetings(tgm). The teachers seem so eager to improve and to be as affective as possible which inspires me. I feel like i lucked out and i hope the fire is still burning when i go back and when i visit the other 4 schools in my zone. I intially did not know how the students would precieve me but by day 3 i had students comming to my house asking for help with homework. Crazy amazing! These kids are so eager to learn as well. One night after my failed attempt at lighting my braizer while the kids did it for me we had an english lesson in the sand which i never expected to happen so soon. Being back at my homestay makes me want to soak up as much tech and bemba as possible so i can do my best. On a similar note being here changes my whole perspective on classroom teaching. I never really wanted to be in a classroom i am more into outreach ed. The more i co-teach the more i like it. The past 2 day i co-planned and co-taught a 7th grade math and science lesson. i hope this experience doesnt spoil me because it was amazing! I had so much fun and the students seemed to enjoy it as well. I surprised myself. I didnt expect it to go so well due to the language barrier(they speak nyanja here in lusaka provience) and because im so use to the little kids. All in all im stoked and this is where im suppose to be! Now to study bemba and get the mesquito out of my mesquito net! Sendamemnipo mukwai! Goodnight

Muli Shani! Thats how are you in Bemba. So much has happened since i got here a little over a month ago. Ive already been to 4 of the 9 proviences, Ive been proposed to twice and have been adopted by many and beginning to appreciate the African motto of "be free". Ive already been to 1st and 2nd site visit and will swear-in in a month! I went to southern for 1st site visit. I stayed with another RED volunteer and got to see what the old program kind of looked like. There the volunteer's bataata (father) killed a goat for us to eat and we watched. Goat is very salty. 2nd site visit was to my actual site where ill be for 2yrs more on that later! I have learned so much in 4 weeks like how to cook ubwali (nshima), carry water on my head and how to wash clothes the proper way. Ive already co taught a 5th grade math class and have seen where i could help. During 2nd site visit i went to northern provience a good 8hrs away from lusaka. I love my villiage i was afraid they wouldnt accept me because im a black muzungu (non zambian but ofter refers to whites and americans. They were so happy by my presence and my eagerness to learn bemba. The chief did ask why pc sent me not a white person! I had a great time. I suck at cooking and getting the brazier started so hopeful i can get the hang of it or ill be losing a lot more then 12lbs! I am staying with a host family and they are great. My bamayo told me she loved and things are quiet without me. Iam really excited to go back! I will go into more details later but things are well. I love mail so please write to me. Its 6-7 hr7 ahead here so im about to go to bed at 9. Ill try to update more. Ok kafakenipo and sendimenipo! Goodnight

This is it! I think I’ve been in denial these last 3 months since I got my invitation kit in the mail...but this is actually going to happen. I’ve been preparing for this moment for 4 years and now that its a day away I’m kind of speechless and can't label my emotions, which is odd even for me. I’m enjoying the luxury of sitting in Panera and watching the snow fall because I know that in 2 days the internet will be just that a luxury. My world is about to change and I have no clue or control of what’s about to happen. My life will be full of new experiences; teaching middle school kids, learning new languages, no running water and living in my 1st place (even if it is a hut). I’ve made the joke “Is Zambia/Africa ready for me” but its more like am I ready for Zambia? I have no idea if I am but I’m excited to find out.

I am mostly excited. My anxiety about bike riding and plane rides is overridden by my visions of reading to kids under trees, developing my amazing letter writing skills, and teaching 5th-9th graders science. I’m going into this experience with few expectations and with an open mind, an open heart and open eyes. Its funny because everyone is telling me that this will be a life changing experience and no doubt it will be but the whole process thus far has been insightful. I’ve learned that when you’ve tired and tried and feel like giving up…don’t. I’ve learned that packing is a talent not to be taken lightly and that books take up more space then you would think. I’ve also learned that time really is short so make the most of what you have.

So I’ve packed a thousand times and there are still things I HAVE to fit into my suitcases. I eaten at all the places Ill soon crave and I’ve spent time with the people who matter the most. Of course I didn’t get to say goodbye to everyone so be expecting letters. I’ve pondered the mysteries of life and I’m sure for the next 27 months Ill continue to do so. The most important lesson I’ve learned so far is to “Let go and Let God” and as cheesy as it sounds it’s the truth. So as I sleep in my bed for the last time in a very very long time, that is my goal of the night to “Let go and Let God” and not think too much about the journey ahead….all good in theory!