Andy and Ashlee were watching Fargo when we spoke to them on Sunday. They were placed at their new site in Mansa, Zambia last week. They will be living in the Provincial House from now on. They are thrilled to be living in a house with running water, electricity and a working kitchen. There will be people coming and going so that will take some adjustment, but their room is at the end of the hall and they can close off a door to their area and have some privacy if they need it.
Their room is a good size and they have two closets and storage above the closets where they have put away all of their camping gear. They also have their own bathroom with sink, toilet and shower. They will share the kitchen but do have their own pantry and small refrigerator. They also have a maid and gardener that cares for the house and grounds so they mostly just have to keep the office in order. Ashlee said she will probably still do her own laundry except for the bedding which is still a daunting task. My how things change!
They have to house dogs, Stupid and Dammit, and a house cat, Chuck Berry. Ashlee said she was going to have to rename the dogs, but she said after being there for a week she now see how they got their names.
They already stocked up on groceries at the local ShopRite with green peppers, green beans, snap peas and baby corn. Ashlee was thrilled to have some color on their plates. They are very excited to have a well stocked grocery store at their disposal. They can't get bread at the market so Ashlee plans to make their bread. Flour is a provided house supply so she will be able to make the bread for next to nothing. They also get to have all of the excess food that the volunteers leave behind after their visits, so far Ashlee had made a carrot cake and some brownies with leftovers.
They don't speak any of the local language so they have been trying to pick up a few words of the local tongue. Ashlee has found several places that she may be able to volunteer including an Adventist school and a couple of orphanages. The maid and gardener also run an orphanage that she may help out with from time to time. Andy has been working on getting a bank account set up and getting the office organized. He will now have a vehicle, a Rover like the one we had while there, but it is currently in Lusaka, but it will be returned this week. One of the volunteers has been helping a women's group that makes and sells pottery. He was happy to learn of Andy's skills and admitted to faking it with the ladies and is happy to turn the reigns over. Andy is excited to help them with their techniques. They currently fire their pots by filling them with sticks and putting sticks around them and starting a fire. The fire doesn't get hot enough to make the pots very strong, so Andy is going to help them build a kiln.
Ashlee commented that the houses have much more creativity put into them in this area. The have decorative brick work in different colors and they have nice front porches with columns. They also make an effort to plant flowers and plants in the yard. There is actually variety in the design of the homes. Downtown Mansa has several three story buildings and paved streets which is also a change.
The drive up from Lusaka along the Luapua River Valley was incredibly beautiful. There were people in dugout canoes fishing and rowing around the marshy areas similar to the Chobe River. It is a totally different landscape than the Kasempa area.
Jeff update: Jeff is now back in the States getting physical therapy. As stated in the last entry he was run over by truck in Solwezi, we now know that the truck had absolutely no breaks and the driver has been arrested and will serve time in jail. Jeff's injuries include a broken cheekbone, nose, sternum and damage muscles where the vehicle ran over his legs, which is why he needs the therapy. It will be his decision if he wants to come back to Zambia. At least it looks like he will have a full recovery. Not sure I could make myself go back after that kind of trauma. Amazingly the truck did have insurance so it will cover all of the medical costs and he will get a cash settlement.
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