It has been just about two weeks in Zambia, and I finally am just now finally having a chance to update my blog. The first week in country, we stayed in a lodge and were able to start getting to know the cohort as well as to learn some introductory information on Zambian culture and how to respectfully live here. We had fun playing soccer, making friendship bracelets, and we even did karaoke with the hotel staff on one of the last nights there. We also learned a lot, including but not limited to information on the ongoing drought in Zambia, how to use our water filters and solar chargers, and what we can expect for food availability.
Last week, we moved into our host family houses in villages just outside of Lusaka, and we have officially begun language lessons. I am sharing my homestay with another trainee, and have loved getting to know my host family so far. Now that we have moved out of the lodge, we are biking to the training center where we stay from 8-5 every day, where we receive intensive language, cultural, and other technical lessons. I am slowly but surely learning Bemba, and enjoying my time here with new friends and a new host family. Every day I am exhausted by the time I get home, but I am settling into this new routine nicely. With no power other than my solar charger at the home stay, and limited wifi at the training center, this will have to be all for now, but hopefully as I adjust I will be less exhausted and have some more time to post… but we will see.
