Zambia 2013, Day 12 - Africa Directions
July 6, 2013. Today started with an early morning bus ride back to Lusaka. The principal of the the Malambo School visited out campsite early in the morning to bid us a final farewell and thank us for the work we did over the past few days. You really end up feeling a connection to the kids at the Malambo School so our visit helped a good deal. But, still, we had to leave Monze and get back to the city on another 3-4 hour bus ride.
We arrived back at our original “compound”, Juls Guesthouse, mid-day. Strangely, Juls has a slight air of home at this point, especially after camping for the last four days. At least I’m happy to get a decent shower again. But we didn’t have much time to get situated because we quickly left to Africa Directions, a youth and community center in Mtendere, another nearby compound/ slum. It is basically a Zambian version of the Boys & Girls Club except it has HIV/AIDS counseling and testing, a microfinance program for women who have been affected by gender-based violence.
A cool looking mid-twenties man with dreads came out to meet us. His name was Japhet and he was one of the program directors at the center. He gave us a quick description of the place and its mission. There facility consisted of a basketball court, a place to practice martial arts, a day care, a quiet place to study and even a pool table. As Japhet explained, many kids that want to play pool have to go to the bars to do so because they can only be found in those kinds of places. Here they can shoot pool in an environment free from temptations. A pretty good idea in my opinion.
From the center we bussed to a dirty soccer field with Japhet and his fellow Africa Directions performers. Four men began banging drums and in a matter of 10-15 minutes, a large group had circled the workers. They started dancing and a carnival atmosphere developed with what I can only guess was around 100 people. They then did a skit for everybody which was not in English but we could all still understand the message behind it: teaching against spousal abuse in a way that drew laughs throughout the show.
As a quick side note, on the ride to the field the U.S. embassy was visible from miles around. It was the tallest building on the tallest hill in the area, which I’m sure was deliberate. Guess you can’t get too far away from American influence.
The day ended with a half hour at the African Directions center. We all had a three point shooting contest with the entire center either watching or participating. Malik got the most shots in and was cheered on by all the kids. Overall, a great day and introduction to Africa Directions where we’ll be returning again tomorrow.
Matthew B., Bethesda Chevy Chase High School