Zambian Food: What can I expect?

In the world of Beyond Ourselves, this time of year usually means we are knee-deep in preparations for the student trips we have coming over to Zambia in June and July. And this year is no different! There are logistics to finalise in Zambia and students to prepare here in the UK.

When briefing the students before their trip, one of the questions that is most often asked (and usually in a nervous voice!) is:

“What will we eat?”

The answer gets mixed reactions…!

The students will eat two of their meals a day at the guest house they will be staying at, and for the most part it will be food they are fairly familiar with.

But lunch each day will be at our partner schools and that’s when they’ll be able to get stuck in to some of the local Zambian food!

They will most definitely be served Nshima, the staple food of Zambia. It is a kind of porridge made from ground maize with the consistency of polenta. It is often served with a tomato relish and meat or fish.

The fish served with Nshima might be Kapenta. They are tiny, dried Tanganyika sardines salted, dried and fried. I’ll be honest, they’re not my favourite! On the plus side they are cheap and a great source of protein!

And then as a special treat they might get served the Zambian delicacy that are Caterpillars. I’ve only ever had them fried, which makes them crunchy on the outside but soft on the inside. Yummy! Again, they are a good source of protein and lots of other vitamins and minerals too.

Bon appétit!

An update from our gap year students over in Zambia!

Who are you?
We are Charlie La Fosse and Alex Foster, currently the best lads in Zambia.

We left Cranleigh School in July 2013 and are on our gap years. We both have places at university for next year at Oxford and Bath, however that seems a long way in the future!

Why did you want to return to Zambia with Beyond Ourselves?
We both hugely enjoyed our respective trips in the July and October of 2012, however just one week left us feeling like there was a need for a more long-term and hands-on contribution, and the difference that Beyond Ourselves was making made us want to get involved. Zambia is a great place to be – the people are so lighthearted despite their difficulties, and appreciate what we’re trying to do.

What have been your first impressions – second time around?
Being here for a longer amount of time means that you really have to try to understand the culture – during our week in 2012 we really only spent our time between the accommodation and the school, whereas now we are having to adapt more to the Zambian way of doing things!

Also, since arriving, teacher Irene from Janna school has taken on the brave task of teaching us Bemba – we thought we were getting to grips with it, but most of the kids just laugh at us and correct us!

Any highlights (or lowlights!) from your first two weeks?
Three months is turning out to not be as long as we’d thought, and the laidback Zambian approach to getting things done had us worried that we wouldn’t have as large an impact upon the schools and charity as we’d hoped!
However, now most of the children are back at school and we’ve started getting underway with building the outdoor learning area at Janna. This, combined with the innate friendliness of the people here, and the support of Dan and Melissa, means that we really feel like we’re making progress in supporting Beyond Ourselves!

Charlie: My personal highlight has to be Alex swinging a pickaxe into his ankle on Day 1 of manual labour. Great stuff.

Alex: Charlie’s highlight is obviously a low-point for me – despite bringing him unreasonably high levels of enjoyment, it did seriously hurt! But my highlight has to be seeing the Reverend and Bishop from the Janna community getting personally involved in the construction of the new classrooms and wall fence. The fact that all members of the local communities are chipping in alongside Beyond Ourselves, to better the learning environment for their children, is humbling and quite a far stretch from the UK.

What are you looking forward to doing?
We’re both really looking forward to the Roding Valley and Cranleigh teams coming out  - we hope that by this time we will have some wisdom to impart, and that the students will have the same experience that we had and will want to return!

Also we’re excited to get involved with classroom assisting, and potentially assessing the Grade 2 children on their high frequency words, in an effort to get them up to the national standard. Furthermore, we can’t wait to start a bit of football coaching at Kawama, Janna and Greater Joy, with the possibility of a tri-school tournament in July!

Lastly, on Dan’s recommendation, we’re going to try Chibuku – a maize-based beer sold locally in warm cartons, although some of the reports indicate we might regret it.

What's next for Beyond Ourselves?

Over the past few years we’ve been focused on establishing our partnerships with the community schools we work alongside in Zambia. As a part of that journey we have helped build classrooms, toilet blocks and kitchens, as well as effectively launch feeding programmes at each of the schools. 

With the basic school needs now being met, recent months have seen a shift in our focus to the quality of teaching and learning at the schools. We feel strongly that we don’t just want to offer these children an education but to offer them a quality education that will go on to provide them with real opportunities in the future. One of our main areas for development is literacy, but more on that another time! 

Right now there is a huge lack of resource for the younger children at the schools and so it is with much delight we can announce the plan to create an Early Years Outdoor Learning Area in the next few months at two of the schools!

We are BEYOND excited!

Areas like this are standard here in UK schools and nurseries and are known to be invaluable in children’s learning and development. 

The very first pencil plan looks a little like this:

But already the plans are growing and becoming more creative and we can’t wait to share more of this with you in the coming weeks!

Alternative Gifts in Action!

May is a busy birthday month in my diary; family, friends, children of friends – which means a lot of my month is spent looking for gifts for all these people! Some people are really easy to buy for, but others I have to look that bit harder to find something. What I really love is when I find a gift that I know is something that person really needs or wants and I know they will love it!

That’s also why I love our Alternative Gifts! 

Throughout the year we distribute these gifts to families who are in desperate need.  Gifts like a brazier and charcoal that means a family can cook without being dependent on firewood, especially in the rainy season when the wood is too damp. Or a bicycle, which enables someone to travel further for work or to the market. Or a mosquito net, which will help protect a family against malaria. Or food parcels, maize farming, blankets, flip flops and school resources…

All of these gifts meet the immediate need of individuals and families while we continue to work on developing long-term sustainability.

So you can share in the joy in giving a gift that someone really wants or needs, here are a few great reactions from people who love their gifts!

If you’ve ever bought an alternative gift from us, thank you for helping to make this happen! 

Here is a link to the Alternative Gifts page on our website: http://www.beyondourselves.co.uk/donate/alternative-gifts/

Exciting Development for Beyond Ourselves!

Today is a very exciting day in the history of Beyond Ourselves, we are welcoming our very first Gap Year volunteers to Zambia!

So, who are they?

Alex Foster and Charlie La Fosse have both visited Zambia briefly before when they were students at Cranleigh School. This time the boys will be in Zambia for three months working alongside Dan, Melissa and our partner schools in Ndola and Kitwe.

And what will they do?

Their tasks will be many and varied. Some tasks Alex and Charlie will start and see finished during their time with us and others will be part of our ongoing work at the schools. Here are a few things they’ll be involved in:

• Assisting Dan in running ‘catch-up’ phonics classes

• Prepping for the UK school teams visiting in June and July

• Helping to build a perimeter wall

• Teaching playground games

• Coaching football

• Creating a media presentation

• And anything else that comes their way…

Underlying all the practical jobs that need to be achieved, it is our desire for Alex and Charlie to invest in the relationships we have at the schools, with the teachers, cooks and children.

These three months may well fly by for the boys but we are convinced that their contribution to our longer-term vision will be invaluable.

Welcome Alex and Charlie, we’re so pleased to have you join us!

Charlie

Alex