Monday in Lusaka

MONDAY 22ND OCTOBER 2007

We had a large breakfast at 7.30am – omelette, eggybread, ham, and tomato, toast, cornflakes and orange segments! Rodgers and Esther popped in to see us and told us we were to be at the Cathedral at 8.40am ready to be taken with Bishop Peter and Liz to the British High Commission. We left at 8.30am with 2 of the ZAC staff who were going to drop us off at the Cathedral, so we could meet up with the Bishops to go to the High Commission together in Bishop David’s car. Three times the car alarm went off as we were driving and the car lost all power! As it happened on a dual carriageway it wasn’t very pleasant with cars whizzing past us. They tinkered under the bonnet and the car worked again for a while. The 2nd time we managed to veer off into a side road to get out of the traffic’s way. We went along the back roads after that to the Cathedral.

We walked through the Cathedral grounds to the Diocesan office and met up with Bishop David. We also saw Constance who works there- I’d met her last night at the ‘pot luck’ supper. We discovered that the High Commissioner was expecting us at 10am, not 9am as we had thought, so Bishop David showed Bishop Peter, Liz, Ken and I around the Diocesan land and property. We met Molly Wadey, who works for ‘ Voyageurs’, a tourist company. They rent an office from the Diocese and her husband Gordon, was involved with Rod Humphreys (Jenny his wife, is the World Mission Advisor for Bath and Wells Diocese), to develop the land that the diocese own, so that the church is able to have an income.

Then we drove to the British High Commission and met with Charley Thomas and William – Dean and Sub dean. Bishop David drove separately and Bishop Peter, Liz, Ken and I went with Bishop David’s driver in another vehicle. Bishop Peter has the use of Bishop David’s driver and car while he is in Lusaka. We all trooped into the building and while in the queue waiting we met an elderly lady, who’d come here from England when she was 2 yrs old, and lived here ever since! The High Commissioner was nowhere to be found, and so the man in the office phoned and discovered we were expected at his residence!! So we all hurried back to the cars and arrived late!! We arrived at his lovely house and beautiful garden, and found him very welcoming to us. We all sat outside on his veranda and enjoyed ‘English’ tea or coffee in china cups and saucers, with brownies and homemade chocolate chip cookies! We were there for at least an hour and it was a good contact for Charley. He was able to offer the use of the Cathedral for any official services.

Then Bishop Peter, Liz, Ken and I went to the Craft Village, which were selling a variety of arts and crafts, in a number of circular mud brick shops. All the people who had made the crafts were keen to sell to us. Mr Katema, our driver kindly came with us when we were ready to buy to make sure we weren’t ‘ripped off’. I was the last to get back in the car, and we hurried to the Kainga Lodge (where Bishop Peter and Liz were staying) where there were lots of clergy, wives and Diocesan workers for an informal lunch under a tree in the garden. Several of the Lodge staff were barbequing chicken and there was beef stew, rice, nshima, salad, Chinese cabbage (delicious made with crushed peanuts) etc. Pudding was a delicious fresh fruit salad. After lunch Bishop David asked Bishop Peter to speak for about 20 mins on ‘Changing Lives’, which has been an initiative in Bath and Wells Diocese for the last few years. Ken also spoke followed by questions.

Afterwards Ken and I went back to ZAC, and Esther, Enelesi and I went to buy some material for me to get a Zambian outfit made. The shop was full of materials and I felt overwhelmed, I just didn’t know what would suit me. Also the shop was about to close, so I didn’t have any time to dither and made a rushed choice! Across the road by the car was another shop also about to close. I quickly bought another material there, as enough for an outfit only cost about £5. Then we drove to a tailor. She is a Mother’s Union member, and I was pleased to be able to give her some work. She measured me and I chose 2 different styles. The pink material cost me 35,000 kwacha (about £5) and the orange/ yellow/ blue material cost 50,000 Kwacha. To make up the outfit is 80.000Kwacha each – about £11, so very good value. Then we made our way back to ZAC, Esther driving in very heavy traffic, everyone going home from work.

We got back at about 6pm and I went in search of Ken, finding him relaxing under the pagoda. We had supper together in the guesthouse dining room – noodles with chicken and mixed vegetables. It was tasty, followed by a banana and orange segments.
We sat in the lounge to wait for Malele, who was going to pop in to see us after work with one of her daughters, Saraiya and granddaughter, Ariana. While we were waiting Christine Muyawala, the People’s Warden at Holy Cross Cathedral arrived and presented us both with a present – a shirt, with ‘church of the Holy Cross’ printed on it. Also for me a chitenge, and Christine taught me how to put it around me to secure it like a sarong. I loved them and was so pleased with the gifts!

After she had left, Malele, Saraiya (24yrs) and Ariana (18mths) arrived. It was lovely to see Malele again, and to meet for the first time, her daughter Suraiya, and granddaughter, Ariana. Suraiya was so eager to learn all about the family she belonged to, and I was able to show her a few photos, one with Mum and Dad (Pat and Marion Ashe) and children at Dad’s 90th birthday celebrations.

Malele told us that Mulilo’s house is chaotic and Mulilo is devastated, because a really good friend of his died the night of the Rugby final, in a car crash – 3 people killed altogether. His Swedish wife and 4 month old daughter was out of the country at the time.Mulilo had to go to the airport to pick her up, and since then she has been at his house , his wife Donna trying to protect her. In Zambian culture, when someone dies, relatives turn up from all over the place , so her home is inundated with people. They are now turning up at Mulilo’s, so he has lots of people now around at his house trying to see his dead friend’s widow. Mulilo and family and Donna’s mother never made it for their holiday break in Tanzania. The funeral is on Thursday.

Ariana was quite active and a real ‘sweetie’. Suraiya would love to meet family and visit England. She has visited once but didn’t know about her large extended family!! Their taxi (one of Mulilo’s taxi firm) didn’t turn up for ages and Malele was getting crosser and crosser!

The Ken and I packed, left a few things we didn’t want to take on the plane to Ndola, and went to bed under our mosquito nets.