Holiday Highlights!

We recently had a vacation! My parents came out to visit and we had a great time.

Here are some highlights from our time together:

Blew a tire on the way from Lusaka to Choma

Emily (a SALTer) here had visitors coming on the same flight as  my parents.  We borrowed the MCC van (my family needed it so we'd all fit together).  I drove us from Lusaka to Choma.  About half way we blew a tire.  I think the passengers were more frightened than myself, the driver.  It felt like someone took over the wheel and kept us on the road.  I'm sure it's all the prayers for traveling mercies that you all are praying for us!  It also felt like I had hit black ice - so my Canadian instinct of tapping the break probably helped?  Instead of slamming it on? Anyways - we looked behind us and though it felt like we were all over the road, our tire marks showed us that we stayed in our own lane!  (There were no cars around luckily though!)  I was grateful to have my dad around to change my flat tire!  LOL!  I had just put out the first of our emergency "triangles" that everyone in Zambia is required to carry when fellow MCCers drove by in the opposite direction.  (We knew we were getting close to each other).  They pulled over and Kajungu came over to help.  Jan stayed in the truck with their sleeping baby.  We soon found out our spare tire was FLAT too.  However - Kajungu had a bike pump in his truck!  (Who carries a bike pump?!)  We all took turns blowing up the spare and got it full enough to go the next 30kms into the next town.  We were planning to stop there for a pizza lunch anyways - and so pulled the van into the AutoWorld that was right beside the pizza place.  It took maybe an extra 15 minutes longer than our original planned stop to have a new tire put on and the spare blown up and returned.  Overall - everything went really smoothly for having a blown tire and a flat spare!  

Emily and her guests.  Kajungu and dad taking care of our tire

Welcome to Zambia guests! :)

These people were of course the main holiday highlight
(my parents for us, and the kids for them!) :)

After about 5 days in Choma, in which we read lots of stories, tried to beat jet leg, did a little shopping in town, had some coffee at Wonderbake, got really wet and muddy attempting to walk through the market one day, and just enjoyed hanging out together (it was rainy almost constantly) we went to Livingstone....  to see Victoria Falls!

Victoria Falls, Zambia side

After sight-seeing a couple days it was so nice to sit and relax (and we even
took a dip in the pool once in awhile).

A lunch boat cruise on the Zambezi River (above the falls)

Saw A LOT of these....

A herd of these guys

Watched them for a long time. (Malachi fell asleep just
before the elephants!)

Got a bit too close for comfort...

Only saw a couple of these - the river was too high all their banks were underwater.

Got a bit too close to this too!  That's Victoria Falls... and if you remember, we're on the top! 

Mom and I went to high tea at the Livingstone Hotel. I think
it was a highlight for both of us!  The kids and the boys
went to the railroad museum and a playground.

Yummy!  All you could eat for K140 (About $22 US) There was another table of savoury dishes too!
The chocolate eclairs were my favourite!

The Royal Livingstone Hotel pool - with the Zambezi and the falls in the backyard! 

We stayed for the sunset on the Zambezi River after high tea!

The Zebras grazed by the pool.....

The falls at sunset (not in the boat this time - but in the same place, the Royal Livingstone Hotel)

So beautiful!

After about 5 nights in Livingstone, we went to Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe for a night.  (I believe it's 70% of the falls that is on the Zimbabwe side)... look it up on wikipedia....

Well worth the trip across the border!

I think this was main falls

You walk 1.7kms along the falls - one way! Both kids made it most of the way!

We did see a LOT of mist... compare the beautiful day (right) to the mist of the falls (left)

Huge Baobab tree in Zimbabwe

The Potts family at the Victoria Falls hotel
 (which I thought was much shabbier than the Livingstone Hotel)

The Froms standing in front of the Victoria Falls bridge
- on the grounds of the Victoria Falls Hotel

The "boiling pot" as taken from the Victoria Falls Bridge.
 All the water from the falls ends up in here! You can walk to it on the Zambia side.
 We haven't yet because of the kids. We will though!

Was very excited to cross back into Zambia and be home again!

So, that was our holiday in a nutshell.  There are more photos on facebook if you want to see more... but these are the best of them! :)

Victoria Falls: dry season vs. rainy season

We have been privileged to have visited Victoria Falls, Zambia side, twice since we've moved here.  The first time was at the end of October: about the driest it gets.  And the second time... today!  Mid-April: about the wettest it gets as the rains are ending now.  So - here you go!  And I'd recommend visiting sometime in between if you ever want to go! :)  It's amazing though - so go see this wonder of the world!  Also called: Mosi-oa-Tunya (the smoke that Thunders).  Yesterday we could see the mist of the falls about 20kms away - as we were heading into Livingstone!  And it does Thunder!

Dry season, Starting out walking to the Knife bridge

At the end of rainy season, starting out towards the knife bridge (everyone was stopped here and renting ponchos) 

The Knife Edge bridge in dry season

The Knife Edge bridge in April!

Family photo in dry season

No family photo in April! :)

Victoria Falls Bridge (photo taken from the Knife Edge Bridge trail)

Victoria Falls bridge in April (taken from the photographic trail as the path the Knife Edge bridge lead too was too wet!) 

Bottom of the falls in dry season

Bottom of the falls in April

And another just for fun...

Wet Wet Wet!

Dry season walking path

April walking paths

Some things never change.....

Baboons everywhere!

And to think - back in October I forgot to take my camera to Victoria Falls!  All dry season photos were taken on my iPhone.  I remembered the camera the second time!

More information about the falls here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victoria_Falls

"My" Schools

Sorry for the lack of blogs - if you haven't hear our lovely dependable internet at our house just stopped one day - and hasn't come back.  It's probably been about 3 weeks.  So we've been doing basic e-mail at the internet cafe. So - today I'm taking time to do a blog at the internet cafe too!

Here in Zambia, in Southern Province, I work with 8 primary schools that are run by the Brethren In Christ church (BIC) but are also government schools.  These are the schools that I visit and have gotten to know! :)

Batoka Primary School is on the Lusaka - Livingstone highway, and it's about a 30 minute drive East of Choma

Hamoonde School: Clustered with the 2 Macha schools as it's on the way to Macha (only about 5-10 minutes before)

Macha Central: Looking from the head teacher's office, in the main section of the school, to the primary building

Macha Mission: Macha is about 1 hour north of Choma

Mboole gets two photos because I just love driving up to this school!  (You can see it just ahead!)

Mboole school: To get here you'd drive to Batoka and then turn South and drive for another 30 minutes

Nahumba School: This is the only primary school that is in Choma: though it's still 5kms from our place

Nakeempa: To get to this school I drive on the Lusaka - Livingstone Highway West for 30 minutes and then take a dirt road south for another 30 minutes.

Sikalongo School: This school is another 10 minutes on a dirt road from Mboole.  Sikalongo has a Bible college, a guest house, and a secondary school.


So those are "my" schools! :)