This post originally appeared in February 2010
When I first arrived in Lusaka I stayed at the Baptist Complex, which had 8 flats for missionaries as well as the guest house for visitors. I lived there for a while, and then moved out to the Baptist Seminary. I lived in the last little house on the road by myself for a while, and then with a roommate who worked with the communications ministry. Once again I'm dismayed at the pictures I don't have, but here are a few of the ones I do have.
My little house and my truck
I inherited Amber the Wonderdog from the previous journeymen. Under my care she got mange! I had to wrestle her to the vet a few times, but she ultimately recovered just fine. I ended up giving her away before I left to a family who really wanted a dog.
My room. Note the contact lens boiler on the bed (my second one since I fried my first one).The stuffed dog was a gift from my brother my freshman year in college. I took him to have a bit of home with me – and I still have him now! Samuel the Spaniel is a well-traveled stuffed animal!
My roommate Stacy is cooking something (thank heavens she arrived – she could COOK!) and the other Dana (a teacher at the American Embassy School) is laughing with her. Quite possibly at me. That would not have been unusual.
Look – I made a lemon meringue pie!!! With actual lemons from my actual lemon tree! I was so pleased with myself…
This is the road to the seminary. Unfortunately the camera flattened out the ruts so you can't really appreciate just how bad this road was! The state of the road didn't stop me from flying down it & raising a cloud of dust. I have no sense. But, you know, you figure out the best route around the worst of the ruts & it's kind of like a game to see how fast…. Um, I'm just making it worse aren't I?
Next week I'll have a handful of pictures of the people who worked where I did. And I'll say goodbye to Zambia for another while.
I love Samuel the Spaniel. He and I watch a lot of baseball together :-)
ReplyDeleteI've enjoyed the adventure, Dana!
ReplyDeleteWhatever the differences between Zambia and Liberia, it sounds like we shared the same kind of road! Oh, my gosh, they were bad. It was bad enough in the dry season, but when the rains came - often impassible. They were laterite, which is a kind of clay. They got as slippery as ice when they were rain-soaked.
ReplyDeleteThat lemon meringue pie looks marvelous, and so do you.
I know what you mean about wishing there were more pictures. I have got to scan the ones I do have pronto, before they fade into complete oblivion. You'd think I would just do that - ah, well. So many "shoulds", so little time! LOL
Somehow, I just can't picture you as a Baptist missionary. But . . . I've been wrong before.
ReplyDeleteYou've shown me a part of the world I know little about. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteHave you been back to Africa at all since you left?
ReplyDeleteIt's amazing how local drivers learn to navigate such terrible roads.
I wasn't really a very good missionary - I did my job pretty well (bookkeeping), but really I was never comfortable with the evangelism piece of things.
ReplyDeleteI should say that the road to the seminary was unusual - the rest of the roads were mostly paved & just fine (well they did have potholes).
I never have been back to Africa - or anywhere outside the U.S. I'd love to return someday...
I love your pictures of your time in Africa. My sister is traveling to Uganda in a few days, I can't wait for pictures from her, which is significantly easier now, being all digital.
ReplyDeleteI love when you post old photos, and your lemon pie looks delish. Your little house is cute, too.
ReplyDelete