12 Months In Africa

Jan and Mike at a very dry Victoria Falls January 2016

Well that went fast! 366 days/12 months/1 year or however you like to put it. Jan and I came out from London UK and arrived in Ndola on 6th June 2015 and have enjoyed every moment of it (OK perhaps not quite every moment) but all of the time working in the schools that Beyond Ourselves partner with.

Jan retired from her job as Head of an inner London primary school and I finished my construction business in the UK at Christmas 2014 and we both spent the next 6 months sorting out our family home ready to rent out to give us an income while working with Beyond Ourselves for an unknown time but probably around 12-18 months in total. (remember that timescale)

Since coming out here we have got to meet some fantastic people who we can now call our friends. Beyond Ourselves Zambia has a really great team of people, but to us they are more like an extended family as it is not just Dan, Melissa and Emily but their families and many other friends in the Ndola area that we have met through them.

What have we been up to? Well to start Jan has been working with the teachers but more often with the Heads of the schools to offer assistance and advice, enabling the schools to continue to develop their teaching skills.

Working with the children in early years

Jan working closely with Mary, Head Teacher at Kawama School

I started off working on “construction” type projects such as the borehole and toilets at Kawama but that progressed into spending a lot more time assisting Dan and Melissa with more general things to do with the admin, finance and specific early organisation of different projects they are working on. Both of us can often be found in other schools and organisations in the area assisting with various activities.

Mike playing an "alternative role" at another Ndola school

When not working with Beyond Ourselves we can often be found “on the road” or “off the beaten track in the bush” in our trusty “Off road camper” in one of Zambia’s National Parks or perhaps a little further afield in one of the neighbouring countries photographing the amazing wildlife that the area has to offer.

On holiday with our family in The Makgadikgadi Pans, Botswana, at Christmas 2015

Mike enjoying what he likes best, getting down and close photographing
a Puff Adder here at our home in Ndola with Jan filming him

The highlight of our time here has to be the people; whether it is the children in the schools enjoying learning and seeing the fantastic smiles as they discover something new or perhaps the teachers putting into practice the training that they are being given. We have also enjoyed getting to know the children on the farm where we live. They are an extremely poor community but by talking, playing and sometimes buying a small present of a lollipop or sweet each or a ball from the local shop we watch their faces light up.

Of course the community and friends we have made here are also a fantastic bonus. The “Ex-Pat” community has a great wealth of knowledge and welcomed us immediately so we have made many new friends.

Lowlights…. Well sadly it is only one I think for both of us and that is dealing with the often extremely slow and inefficient bureaucracy of the Zambian system. We have both had enough of that but we do now have work permits, a Zambian registered car and Zambian Driving Licences.

Now earlier I mentioned the timescale. Yes we have family at home and they are a great part of our life so we would not want to be away forever. A short while back Jodie and Dan asked Jan and I if we would consider staying on and helping a little longer until September 2017. After chatting with our children back in the UK we have agreed and with immense joy we look forward to working with the whole team at Beyond Ourselves and with all of our friends, both in the schools and in the Copperbelt area for some time yet.