Zambian Lions

Zambian Lions
Image from inhabitat.com 1/13/13

Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou

Friday, June 28, 2013

feeling zamtastic

im writing this for the second time as the first time i accidently deleted it while i typed the last word. im laying in my comfy bed under my mosquito net in my hut on my  smartphone. needless to say i wont be correcting spelling much less my grammar. 
i have been in zambia for 15 days now and i love it. i love the food, the super friebdly people, the scenery, the weather, my fellowe pcvs, and especially.how they add zam to the begining of jus about any word. zambitious, zamtastic, tambag, zamtelligent, zambeef. also little stores have.hilarious names like world.trade center, business plan #2. im happy to say i havent gotten sick at all and i really like living with my host mom. although ive never had a.mom with such high standards. haha she makes sure i bathe everyday, sweep my.hut, and eat lots of healthy food. she is very kind and i appreciate her patience as she teaches me a lot about nyanja ( the language im learning).
everyday i wake up about 5;30 to rooster noises and stay in bed till 6 or 7 when i vet up and make my bed, sweep my hut, eat breakfast, and bike to language class with 2 other people. after 4 houra i come gome for lunch and then i bike 3.5 km over seriously crazy terrain. when i get off the bike my forearms are sore from squeezing the brakes haha. 3 hours of technical training later i get to bike home where i bathe have dinner and go to bed.
today we went to a local clinic.where i and 2 other pcvs gave a talk about birth plans to 3 pregnant women. i am inspired to become as fluent as possible because having an interpreter sure makes it harder. one woman said ahe plans to walk 2 km to the clinic, and the other said she will ride a bike to the clinic when shes in labor. cinsidering that nearly half of births happen in home i cant help but think these women were probably also going to not be able to reaxh thr clinic. i hopw the interpretter stressed the importance of saving money for a taxi.
the lions im looking for i will probably see on a safari. but the more realistic lions are what pc gave a whole session about, "being out on a LIMB" Lonely, Isolated, Miseeable, and Bored. i have no soubt i will improve my coping skills, and ability to put others needa before my own. they even gave us a chart of our expected halliness during service. its about 30% not good but i am confident in muself and my motivations for being here. but if i ever call u feeling crappy please be supportive and remind me that it will gwt bettwr and the women ans children and men of zambia need information and outreach.
if u send me a package remember to write god loves all etc on it. check my fb kr instagram for photos and i have internet access on my phone so dont heaitate to aend a message. i love u & miss u all!

Thursday, June 6, 2013

Last weekend in the States

When I received my invitation, I was disappointed I had to wait six months! It seemed like an eternity until I would be breathing African air. Now with just a few days before I depart Reno for Philly, and after two days, I will fly to Lusaka, Zambia to begin my 27 months of Peace Corps Service. I am glad I had as much time as I did though, I was able to attend my Mom's college graduation (which was great!!) and squeeze in more time with friends and family.

I am beyond grateful, and thank you doesn't even begin to express how much I appreciate and love all of each & everyone of you. I will miss you all TONSSS and will laugh at silly memories throughout my service. Thank you all so much for your love and support. I definitely couldn't be as prepared or as comfortable with leaving if it wasn't for everyone's encouragement & good vibes.

Packing has been a challenge, but because I've been working on it a bit at a time, it hasn't been overwhelming. As of now I have a large rolling suitcase with my huge internal frame backpack inside (so I can lock it while flying), a carry on backpack, and my ukulele. I feel ready. I'm optimistic this will be the most transformative and positive experience I could possibly be taking on at this time.

Here's the training sight I will be starting out at. Photo from a PC volunteer currently in Zambia.
 
 
I cant wait to take my own beautiful photos! And actually take Africa into my body & heart.
If you're interested my instagram is ezzie, my twitter is @Ez_ziE, Skype is sezgar, and of course facebook Ezzie Ezgar.