T.I.A.

I'm here in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe visiting my new boyfriend, my darling, dimpled David. It has been two weeks since I left so I thought you were due for an update.

David helped me find a one bedroom flat right in the main area of town on the top (4th) floor. It's run like a hotel. They come in every day and clean the apartment, wash the dishes, give fresh linens, etc. The flat has a living room, full kitchen, bathroom and bedroom. It's really nice by third-world standards. I did not like the cockroaches that I encountered on day one but some spraying took care of them and, of course, nothing works perfectly, like the shower that comes out at a trickle, but that's how it is here. They have an acronym they use called "T.I.A." It stands for "THIS IS AFRICA". And that's just how it is.

The view from the living room is of the mist coming off of Victoria Falls and that's where the sun comes up so it's really pretty. I sit in a big comfy chair every morning with my coffee and watch the sun come up or the rain come down. Either one is nice. The weather has been hot and humid the last few days which means today I hope we will be walking the cubs to Croc Rock--my favorite place on earth. It's located along the Masuwe River and where we swam all the time when I was a volunteer. We would just jump right in, fully clothed. It was so freakin' hot that it was a welcome relief to get cool in the cold river. If you watch the video I did, you will see how beautiful Croc Rock is.

I have been trying to cook at home but I'm still in the habit of going out to eat every day. The daily staple here is called sadza and it is basically a very thick corn meal, sort of like mashed potatoes, that they eat at lunch and dinner with meat and vegetables. David has wanted me to make him a sadza dinner (is he already thinking of me as an African wife??) so I'm going to attempt it tonight. I'll let you know how it turns out. I don't really see the point in spending hours in the kitchen slaving over a hot stove when a nearby little hole-in- the-wall restaurant makes the same thing and it's delicious for $1 a plate. It always amazes me how cheap it is. 

Everything is eaten with the fingers--the sadza, meat, vegetables, etc. They don't use napkins, which just bothered me to no end for the longest time. I guess I'm used to it now. They always wash their hands before and after the meal, but not with soap, so I'm always putting on Purell hand sanitizer. However, that's going to stop soon because I'm running out of it, and they don't have it here. Guess I'll have to adapt completely to the African way.   

I'm here in a local restaurant eating sadza (with my fingers) and a white woman just came in. We are the only two white people in this crowded restaurant. She ordered sadza and is eating it with a fork! Hmmph....foreigner! :-)

Daily life in Vic Falls is so simple, although I do complicate it by complaining to the management that the faucets don't turn on and off properly, that I don't have enough toilet paper (you have to ask the management for it every time you want a roll! I said forget it, I'll just buy my own) and get frustrated that I can't get things I want at the market. No cake mixes, brownie mixes, olive oil, light butter, cheese, brocolli, etc. The locals seem to get along just fine without my missing "luxuries." 

But I love it here. The people are so helpful and friendly. And they run on Africa time so everything takes a reeeeally long time. But since I don't have meetings to get to or projects due, I don't stress about it too much.

I just finished making an iMovie that compiles my video and some photos of my time as a volunteer with the Lion Encounter program (the first time I was here in January). It shows you how we fed the cubs, walked them, played with them, etc. I hope you'll like it. 

Here is the link:  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hb-kJAXt9B0