Home leave

I am now in the beautiful Lake District enjoying the freezing weather and all the delights of the winter here. I arrived on Christmas day and surprised my family, timing my arrival perfectly for Turkey and my favourite, bread sauce!

It feels wonderful to be home but also slightly strange as I adjust from Zimbabwe life. Apart from the obvious differences- food in the shops, no cholera (!), phone & internet that work, temperature etc etc there is also a more subtle difference to being in the UK. Working is Zim is exhausting. Normal activities are difficult and time consuming. You expend large amounts of energy on small tasks that in the UK would take 5 minutes-Filling the car with fuel is a classic example. Being here feels so refreshing but it makes me realise how tired I am. There is this strange atmosphere in Zim that people don't usually understand unless they have been there. It is an oppressive weight that hangs over the country. I was talking to a colleague I work with on the Cholera programme before I left. He has worked all round the world in some crazy places but he said that Zim was by far the hardest place he had been posted in and he regularly compares it to North Korea! It may sound extreme but I don't think the comparison is that far off. The continual propaganda coming from the government and the messages they pour out through state television and radio all contribute to the atmospheric temperature. The people of Zimbabwe truly are remarkable, so resilient and strong in such horrible and intense circumstances- and they don't get the break I am having! It is an enormous privilege to be working with them.

I return to Zim on the 9th Jan and will dive straight back into work.
Before then however, I intend to eat a great deal and enjoy the luxury of British life. The Africa road trip gang will be reunited for New Year (with the exception of Emmanuel & Rachel) so it will be great to catch up and go for some lovely Lakeland walks together.

Hopefully I will get to see as many of you as I can before I leave. I don't have a UK mobile but I am on email and my UK landline.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!

Poo, poo and then more poo

Cholera has arrived in Zim....big time. I have the job of coordinating my NGO's response to this outbreak. We are desperately trying to prevent the epidemic from reaching what the UN has predicted will become a catastrophic disaster. It is proving difficult however when everything seems set against us. The main international agency coordinating the entire relief effort has no fuel, we are short of most other things and interagency collaboration is proving a nightmare. It takes about 15 minutes to get the networks to connect to make a phone call if you are lucky.

Today we started trying to get to every primary school and tell the kids about cholera before they shut for the end of term- 91000 children in 5 days. When you arrive at the schools most of the teachers are absent because their wages don't cover their transport into school and the children just stay for a few hours. Thankfully we were able to find some amazing volunteers who have given of their time for free to help us spread the message. People are so generous with the little that they have.

As the rain gets more intense the outbreak will intensify so although I know Zim is desperate for rain part of me wants it to stop to give us more time to prepare. The sewage system is here has broken down and sewage floods the streets (as the above photo shows). The water company are running out of the chemicals needed to treat the water- it feels as though everything here is grinding to a dangerous halt. The 10 years of decline in Zim have taken a serious toll and this rapid onset emergency is therefore all the more devastating.

I am quite exhausted and there is so little time for a break. I am torn between wanting to keep going but feeling as though my reserves are running so low. I do not want to get burnt out- but getting burnt out seems a luxury that most of Zimbabwe cannot afford. Having said all this I still love it here, it is such a privilege to be here for such a time as this.

Love to you all
xxx

The breadbasket of Africa....

Well this is my local supermarket (no joke). As you can see we are spoiled for choice. (I'm not sure if the sign comes out on the blog- it says shoplifters will be prosecuted)!

Getting food and other supplies is a perpetual hassle and trying to work out whether I need Zimbabwe dollars or foreign currency is another time consuming activity. On Thursday I bought pay as you go airtime for my rarely working Zim mobile- it cost me 50,000 Zim dollars, I had to buy more on Monday and the same amount cost me 500,000 Zim dollars! Crazy crazy especially when I can never get through to anyone on the phone anyway since the networks are so bad (although they still charge you for calls that don't go through, humph).

So life here can be slightly irritating on a day to day basis. My mild irritation is nothing however when compared to the suffering of millions of Zimbabweans as they battle to survive here. I can get food and although it may not be my first choice, I have the luxury of being well fed. For most Zimbabweans the story is so different. Everyday presents new challenges and feeding a family is a hard slog. You wouldn't really know it though- people are so joyful in the most hideous of situations. I am surrounded my people who continually 'make a plan'. This is a well known Zimbo phrase now! The people here are seriously creative problem solvers....although you would rarely find these plans are within the confines of the Zimbabwean government's oppressive laws.

The creativity and passion of the people here is amazing. I am loving working with my colleagues- so much joy and enthusiasm despite the situation. The problem is that the people are drip fed messages that they are worthless from their own Gov. There has been no investment here in health, sanitation, education for years and things are unravelling. The messages coming from Harare are that you are not worth our time and money and you certainly are not worth any form of justice. Instead the money goes on 'personal' projects while the beautiful people of Zim continue to die and suffer. I am about to start working on a cholera prevention and preparedness programme because we have cholera here and it will devastate the township areas. Cholera is in Zim because the money that should have gone on water treatment and the sewage pipes has been stolen. Try encouraging a child to believe in themselves and take care with hand-washing etc when no one has bothered to treat their water. The lie here is that 'you are worthless'- I can't wait to see that lie exposed for what it is.

Love to all of you- thank you for all of your messages- apologies for not getting to reply to them more or getting onto Facebook- internet is hard here. x

Everyday life

Hello all!

My first post from Zim! So exciting. I have been in my new job about 10 days now. It is going well, I am super busy trying to implement a health project in 2 only months. Zimbabwe is an amazing place with such beautiful people. The situation here seems stuck in a dangerous stale mate and people are really suffering.

Everyday activities that I would take for granted back home are long drawn out affairs. Filling up with fuel is a perpetual hassle requiring serious planning. You have to get coupons- which means getting money- they you have to by them through a bank (or get them from a "commodity trader") then you wait in a queue for a long time and finally you get a set amount of fuel only. I carry 60L of diesel with me on my roof and then as this picture show,s top up when needed. We made a funnel from a water bottle- since most of our precious diesel was ending up on the road not in the tank.

Every day office life can be equally frustrating- we have no printer cartridges or photocopy toner so we are reliant on friends going to neighbouring countries to bring them in for us. Hopefully we will have as of next week.....

Trying to phone people is the most enormous palava. The networks are completely overloaded so you can try to ring someone for 40 mins before you get through. Today they crashed and all phone calls suspended- here is hoping tomorrow it is back up and running again.

Incredibly the people here are so resilient. They keep pressing on in the face of overwhelming adversity. It is a great deal harder for most people, they are not worrying about photocopy toner instead they are worrying about getting food. More on that in another blog entry....

For now though I have to dash off- love to you all

Hatts

And then there was one

Hattie: Tomorrow 'ART08' comes to an end as the remaining few; James, Anna and Amy leave me to go on to their various destinations. Amy returns to the UK and James & Anna go to Namibia, Uganda and Oman. I am driving back to Zimbabwe in the morning to my new home, Bulawayo. On Monday I start a new job coordinating DFID's health education programme for an NGO. I am excited about this opportunity and am looking forward to getting my teeth stuck into a new challenge.
Currently we are in Botswana and have spent an amazing and super hot week in the salt pans. I am running around today trying to stock up on food and supplies for my return to Zim. There is a lot to buy since the shelves in Zim are bare and any food there is available is unbelievably expensive- $129 for a bottle of squash!!
Hopefully I will be able to arrange some sort of internet in Zim, the internet cafe I found was $120, so obviously I couldn't use it! But if I find somewhere I will be updating this blog more regularly and hopefully be able to stay in touch with you all better than I have been.
Lots of love to you all
xxx

Zimbabwe

Anna:

So apologies for the infequency of our updates. Internet in Zim was prohibitively expensive we are now in Botswana having spent three weeks in Zimbabwe. We had a very special time there. Writing about the awful situation there will take another post when I have more time.

We were hosted by a very kind family in Bulawayo. Sadly said goodbye to Rich and Sophie who flew back to the UK and Emmanuel who returned to Uganda. That left the four of us - Hattie, Amy, James and I we were joined for various trips within Zimbabwe. Oria came with us to Vic Falls which was simply stunning. We took thousands of photos and had an amazing sunset cruise on the Zambezi where we saw crocs, hippos and a herd of elephants with babies swimming across the channel. Hopefully we'll get a chance to put the photos up. It was great to be there some of us had been slightly sick before we left for the falls but we all have now made full recoveries :-) No more V and D! We then went up to Mana Pools in the very north of Zimbabwe this time we were joined or rather we joined Matt and two of his church friends Doug and Min. They took us camping in style! We spent four days there and had cooked breakfasts every morning snacks throughout the day and delicious bbqs and other amazing meals at night. It was about 40 degrees so days tended to be up at 5 for an early game drive. Then lazing in the shade by the Zambezi till 4 when we did another game drive, had drinks and snacks watching the sunset over some beautiful area of the huge national park and then dinner and bed. What made the whole time so special apart from the food and the company which were amazing was the place itself. It is the only place in Zim where you can do walking safaris without a guide - although Doug has just taken his exams to be a guide and had a massive knowledge and love of the place and the wildlife. Also, there are no fences around the campsite so the wildlife are free to wonder in - and do! We had elephants, buffalo, hippos, hyenas all inches away from our tents at times - going to the toilet was an adventure - literally every time and at night required massive torches to make sure we didn't walk into a sleeping buffalo on the way. So much happened there but I'm running out of time but the highlights were a massive bull elephant walking inches away from us as we sat crouched in awe under a tree at our campsite playing cards and praying it would continue walking and not crush us! Also, seeing a pride of lions witha kill that was then stolen from them by 20 + hyenas. Doug said he had seen it on tv but never in real life. Other highlights was the stunning park itself, the mountains of Zambia across the Zambezi, the huge herds of impala (deer) and warthogs and numerous other types of game. However, I have run out of time to elaborate. We then spent a few nighs in Harare, returned to Bulaway and are now in Botswana. As a group we have a week left before Hattie returns to Zim, Amy returns to the UK and we continue north to Uganda. Much love to you all.

Now we are only 7

Hattie: Well today Rachel left to go to Beira and the 7 of us remaining are on our way to Zimbabwe. We had an amazing time in Mozambique and met some truly beautiful people- we will post some photos from Zim. Time is always a pressure for us as we rush to make various deadlines. Today it is getting to the border before it closes.
We plan on spending the night in Mutare and then getting down to Bulawayo tomorrow. Looking forward to having some time to update the blog properly!!
Lots of love to you all.
xxx

Photos

Hattie: Finally we get to the internet and can put up photos and write the blog!
Everything has been going well, we are quite near Mozambique and are very excited. Sending love to you all!
xxx

Photos are of Rachel Christening the Car Ruach, Rachel Flying the Kite on Wilderness Beach, Rich & Sophie in the car, The Stone Cottage where we stayed early on and driving with people on the roof!

Hopefully more photos to follow!

A quick update:

Anna: So the first week - there have been many highs and fewer lows on this trip. That's actually a rhythm we've got into every evening we've been telling eachother the best and worst parts of the day Perhaps it might be interesting to here some. The highs have involved an amazing afternoon at the beach, where we raced on the beach, played tag with the waves, attempted to fly a kite and had a lot of laughs. We've also been sharing our life stories with eachother as we don't all know everyone and that has been really special We've spent some beautiful times with God and driven through some breathtaking landscapes. We've watched whales playing just beyond the breaking waves and stayed in places where deer roam freely and right up to our balconies, last night the hostel had it's very own pet Zebra! Oh yes and the offroading has been awesome especially when we road on the top in the middle of the mountains and horses surrounded the vehicle (very man from snowy river!)

The lows have included gigantic spiders, waking up in the night screaming possibly because of one of those spiders on my head. We've had two flats and an incessant beeping on the blackbox in Ruach ( we named the landrover Ruach - Rich dreamed it in the night - it's Hebrew for breath of God) which we have now learnt to shut off. Our communication with eachother has had some teething issues but we're getting past them.

We've begun to drive through more "African" towns where people stop, smile or reach into the car simply to shake our hands and I've begun to dream of a new way of relating to God and others. Much ove to you all :-)

Travel Update

Hi there,

Just thought we'd give you a quick update as to how far we've got! We are currently in Durban getting some stuff fixed on the car and watching some surfing. Hoping to move on tonight further north. It's been a good first leg - we have all learnt a lot about landrovers, off road driving, cooking for 7 and living in community! After a few days of preparation in Cape Town we finally set off last Wednesday. We spent 2 nights in the western cape on a farm near Riverdale where we stayed in a little stone cottage with no electricity. Really enjoyed cooking on a big fire and just living 'simply' in beautiful surroundings. Amazing bird calls and insects - had some rather close encounters with (very) big spiders! Had a chance to do some off roading with the landrover on the farm which was ace - definitely where the car feels most at home!

After Riverdale we headed east along the coast and the garden route. Very lush and beautiful. Found a gorgeous beach at the Wilderness national park where we had the place to ourselves and a great time to chill out. Stayed a night at the Tree House lodge near Knysna which was very peaceful - cabins in the woods with deer wandering around. Plus a jacuzzi bath - which Emmanuel enjoyed a lot! ;-)

Next day we drove through Plett and Storms river and had our first puncture! Infact a full blow out on the front tyre when we were going about 80kmh, but praise God the car did not veer at all and a guy stopped to help us change it so it didn't take too long. That night God brought us to a nature reserve by the beach just past Jeffrey's bay - a perfect place that was free. We deliberately didn't make any plan on where to stay and felt we should just pray about it and trust God ...and he totally came through for us. So learning about that has been good.

Similarly the next day, after driving past Port Elizabeth and stopping for lunch in Grahamstown (where Soph's Mum grew up) we ended up near Port Alfred. After carrying on a bit further we turned off to the little villiage of Klein Monde and went down to the beach. There were a few guys there and Rich felt we should get out and ask them about some where to stay. The only guest house was closed but one of the guys gave us his mum's number and said she rented out holiday cottages and may be able to help us out. After ringing her twice she didn't pick up and we were a bit stuck as we had no where else! Then we prayed about it as a group, tried again, and within 20 mins we were settling into a 3 bedroom house with a jacuzzi outside!!

Yesterday was the longest day of driving as we went all the way to durban. Amazing to see how the landscape changes so quickly. Went through some areas inland which were high up, very hot and dry and not a white person in sight. Felt more like Kenya or Uganda! Lots of small bustling towns full of school kids and people catching minibus taxis back to their villages heavily laden with a week's shopping. Also lots of people and livestock on the roads and crazy drivers which made the experience a bit nervewracking at times! Felt totally different to the wealthy, lush garden route. South Africa is certainly a country full of contrasts and almost a country full of different worlds that don't necessarily ever meet.

Glad to finally get to Durban and be united with Amy! Just some laundry and car stuff to sort out and we'll hit the road again. No idea where we will stay tonight, but that's kinda fun!

Soph Xxx

Ps. We're staying safe :-)

Catch up

The Redistribution of Wealth

Hattie: There is a well known phenomenon in Cape Town called the redistribution of wealth. I unfortunately fell fowl of this yesterday while writing my previous blog entry about Sparky. Oh what irony. As I was sitting here bemoaning my little VW Chico someone was helping themselves to it right under my very nose. I returned to my space to find another car in its place and no Sparky. The saddest fact of all is that Mr Penguin my mascot made by my diligent niece has been kidnapped. The scoundrels have also driven away with my newly installed and paid for radio, my jacket and the newly purchased winter clothes I bought to survive in freezing Cape Town.

A nice passer by lent me her jacket and drove me to the police station where I made my statement. The policemen then drove me home- my first ever ride in a police car. Half an hour after arriving home there was a knock at my door and it was one of the police officers I had seen at the station. He asked if he could come in and asked me for the same details I had given at the station. I was a bit suspicious and then he cheekily continued to change the subject….it became blatantly apparent he was not interested in the car! You can imagine the hilarity as he asked me if I was married, then if I had a boyfriend (I am afraid I lied- his name is ‘Jack’, he lives in Zimbabwe and he would be terribly disappointed if I broke it off)!

I am wondering whether I should have done a deal with Police constable Sharif. Something like ‘if you find my car, with my belongings inside, we can go for a coffee’.

Joking aside I am not surprised crime is high here although it is not nearly as high as it is in Joburg. Richard and Sophie wrote in a previous blog entry about the inequality here, the continued divisions in society where people are still segregated in their racially defined areas. People try to insulate themselves against poverty and crime behind their big alarmed fences so distanced from the reality they live in. I have come back to where I am staying most days to find local women and children rummaging through our wheelie bin to find food or anything they can reuse. Our global economic system is failing the poor- the homeless and slum dwellers left to rummage through our waste. These women are blatant about their activities- they don’t stop when I arrive, some don’t even look at me, they just continue in their desperate attempts to find food. I feel, deep down, that there must be a better way. Surely there is enough to go around? Can we not share a bit more and be less greedy? I am not a communist but I know we were not designed to live in this self-imposed isolation from each other.

This is Sparky! My rental car, until we get the landy on Monday.  The rental company gave him his name; I think I can see why.... it must be something to do with his ignition issues!

He certainly has quite a character.  He is a golf 'chico' for a start, secondly he likes to break down quite a bit and thirdly he attracts CT's car radio thieves. 

Never fear, today we have replaced Sparky's radio- he is now ready to rock the cape again with 'Mr Penguin', his mascot made by my amazing niece Sacha (with some creative input from her dad)!

Lakeside

Soph and Rich: Hey there - been in Cape Town for 4 days now. We have been staying with our friends Ant and Annie and their 2 boys in Lakeside for a few days (friends from Peckham) which has been great. We've hired a car and managed to navigate our way around the city successfully - tho the driving here is quite hair-raising at times! The weather has been decidedly English so far, and we have both had to top up on clothes as its been so cold. But today is lovely, so we are hoping it will warm up enough so that we can have our first surf lesson soon - sharks? shmarks!! We've been able to meet up with some of Soph's family and friends too and yesterday we visited the Heaven's Nest Children's home in Ottery which donations had gone to in memory of Soph's Godmother Helen Orr. The children were lovely and very energetic - hungry for affection. It was great to see them being so well looked after and given hope for the future.

We've talked quite a lot about what it would mean to live a lifestyle of radical obedience to Jesus in this culture, and it has been rather a challenging topic!! There is still so much inequality and so much division even 14 years after apartheid (with some parallels to Peckham!). We'll share a few of our observations and reflections: White people live behind high walls (some with electric fences); there is little if any social interaction between colours; different races live in different places; maids and gardeners earn enough to survive but not to save for emergencies (so they come to their employers when there is a problem). We've remembered that Paul wrote in a culture of slavery, and although some were called to overturn it and change it, others had to live in a Godly way within the system, and I guess it is the same here. We have heard a couple of really good examples of this, particularly using employment and the relationships built with maids etc to support their whole families with education, friendship etc, often involving the whole Church. Anyway, we've got to go now, but it is encouraging to see God's people finding ways to transform something that at first seems negative into something that gives hope and a future.

What Lies Beneath....(part 1)

Hattie: Cape Town is a beautiful place surrounded by glorious ocean.  Ocean equals fish, penguins, surfers, whales and seals amongst other things.  

These in turn = Sharks.  

Now I realise there is a lot of shark related hysteria out there to which I do not wish to add.  However it does seem that there is a genuine risk of being munched here.  Last week the Cape Times newspaper ran with the headline "Vigilance urged after Great White Sharks spotted near False Bay coast".  False bay has its own Shark Spotter group- brave and fearless men and women who search for the Great Whites from the safety of their 4x4s on the mountain road above the bay...they have a danger siren and everything! (Photos- a Shark Spotter in action, one of their huts and 'be shark wise- a guide to the beach).  

The last Great White sighting was in Muizenberg (where I am staying) last Monday.  The last attack was on a surfer a year ago (again in Muizenberg- i'm sensing a theme here).  He has now only got 1 leg but he is still surfing.  The most famous attack was a few years back in Fish Hoek, an elderly lady who swam regularly.  She went out for her usual swim and decided to ignore the shark alarm....all they found of her was her bathing hat!

I think, all things considered, I am not going swimming...it is much too cold anyhow.  

In the space of Muizenberg Village

Hattie:  I have been finding in this un-pronounced space that I keep meeting the eyes of my Father.  

The last 2 nights I have experienced fear.  Fear that I have suppressed in the business of UK life.  Fear and grief that he no longer....

Fear that I cannot remember- that he is slipping further and further from me.  How would he talk to me? How would we converse?

I went for dinner last night and as I sat I tried to imagine or remember what it was like going out for supper with him.  What did we talk about? I cannot remember, but I know that we never sat in silence.  There was always so much to say.  

I suppose this was bound to happen here.  I was in Muizenberg, CT a few weeks before my Father died and we had some of the most memorable phone conversations we ever had.  

This is a place where I feel like a daughter- his daughter ;)

One down...

Welcome to the blog! 

Today Hattie is leaving for Cape Town to begin our journey around Mozambique and Zimbabwe.  Hopefully this will keep you posted about our group and maybe you will even join us along the way?!

ART08 (Africa Road Trip- thanks Penny:) currently consists of James & Anna, Rich & Sophie, Amy, Hattie, Matt, Rachel and Emmanuel.

Bring on the adventure....