Making arts and crafts with kids

I went a few times to a school for orphan kids (Magazine Christian Mission Academy) in Chipata, Zambia to do some arts and crafts with the kids.  We would make bracelets from rope and also make birds / airplanes from empty toilette paper rolls.  The school is run by an Italian guy, Marco, that has basically dedicated his life to run this school, the school provides education to orphan kids without school fees.  To cover the school fees Marco raises funds from Italy.  This is the same school that we donated 12 chickens to 12 kids from this school.

If you would like to help cover some of the school fees, u can send the school money through me.  Just send me an email or a comment and we can figure out the details (I can’t give you a tax receipt since I don’t have an organization registered, but I’ll make sure the money reaches the school).

Here are pictures of some of the kids from the school while making bracelets:

    

    

  

The kids at the school taught me how to make birds / airplanes from empty toilette paper rolls, so I showed some local kids near were I volunteered how to do it too, here are some pics:

 

        

Joined a local Soccer team in Chipata, Zambia

I joined a local recreational soccer team in Chipata, Zambia called Hope United.  They are from the Mchini compound (one of the poorest compounds in Chipata).  I had a good time playing with them, I am glad they let me play with them.  I think they also like having a “Muzingo” (white person) playing on their team too.  They are a very committed team they practice every day except Mondays, it’s also a good way for the youth to keep busy and stay away from “bad” things.  I was trying to get them a sponsor to cover some costs of the team, but I only managed to get them a few soccer balls from Protea Hotel in Chipata so they can practice with and I bought them team jerseys for games.

Here are some pics of the team:

  The team practicing hard

 

 I fractured my finger playing goalie, it is now permanently slightly bent because I didn’t get a splint right away for it.  Every time I went to the local hospital I kept being told to come back next week until it was too late (I should have just used Popsicle sticks, but I couldn’t find any Popsicles in Chipata)

 

I found these soccer shoes made from recycles tires and leather, I just thought they are interesting.

Recycled Toy Cars

Since there is no recycling or garbage collection in Chipata, Zambia (most people just burns their garbage in their backyards), a couple of volunteers and I saw a video on youtube on how to make toy cars from recycled material and decided to make some with some kids from a church.

Link to the youtube video we watched: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S66P0bonAT8&feature=related

Here are some pics of our toy cars:

     Tools I bought in Chipata, they are cheap Chinese made tools that break very easily!

        the kids taking their new toys home

Arabic food in Chipata, Zambia

I found an arabic restaurant in Chipata, Zambia that is owned by 2 lebanese guys (I am told that they are the only 2 arabic people that live in Chipata and I’m number 3 now).  The food was great it really hit the spot, the owners were really nice and made me any dish I wanted, I got some lentil soup, fateh (made with chick peas), falefel, lahmeh bi-ajeen (meat pie), chicken/beef shawarma (but not all at the same time)!  So I thought I would get my co-workers at CDFA to try some arabic food, I got them fateh and falafel, they have never eaten it before, I don’t think they liked the fateh too much but they really liked the falafel.

I also decided to use the outdoor pizza oven that a past volunteer has built to make Lahme BiAjeen (Flat arabic meat pies).  I’ve never made them before, so I had to do some research, I found these websites helpful

http://www.dedemed.com/mediterranean/lahme-bi-ajeen-recipe-flat-meat-pies

http://www.dedemed.com/mediterranean/easy-dough-recipe

I also had to mix my own “7 spice” since they don’t sell it here.  But first I had to fix the pizza oven, as a Papaya fell on it and broke it.  So I mixed some cement and finally fixed it, hopefully another Papaya doesn’t fall on it again.

  

Heating the pizza oven

Making Lahme BiAjeen (Flat arabic meat pies)

        

It was very tasty!!

15 Chickens delivered – thanks to everyone that sponsored a chicken

Thanks to everyone that has sponsored a chicken.  The chickens have grown very big, everyone was amazed on how big they got.  As promised I have raised and given 15 chickens to various families in Chipata, Zambia that need some help.

Here are some pics of the chickens and how big they got:

Here is me delivering a chicken on my bicycle (this is how most people here carry a chicken on their bicycle or they hang them upside from the handle bars, but I thought this is a bit more humane) and the rest in a taxi:

  

I donated 12 chickens to orphan children that attend “Magazine Christian Mission Academy” (The school is run by an Italian guy, Marco, that has basically dedicated his life to run this school, the school provides education to orphan kids without school fees) I took the chickens to the school and then I walked with some kids to each of the 12 houses to deliver the chickens.  The 3 other chickens I donated to some families that I got to know in Chipata.  I couldn’t get a picture of everyone, but here are some pics:

  

  Precious Mwanza, Grade 5

    Mary Newa, Grade 8

  Samson Thole, Grade 1

  Kenedy Mwale, Grade 4

  Japhet Njobvu, Grade 6

  Elizabeth Banda, Grade 9

  Renald Mwale, Grade 2

  Sarah Banda, Grade 3

  Florance Daka, Grade 5

  James, Grade 4

  Mabvuto Sakala, Grade 5

  Given, Grade 9

Some nice pictures of the Magazine compound while delivering the chickens:

  Ester, 4 years old

All 15 Chickens sponsored! (raised $660)

Thanks for everyone that has sponsored a chicken, all 15 chickens have been sponsored, we have raised $660!  Please stay tuned for pics of your chicken and the family receiving the chickens.  My fundraising page will stay open even after I surpass my goal, so other donations are always welcome, thanks. 

These chickens grow so fast here are some more recent pics:

12 out of 15 chickens sponsored

Thanks for everyone that has sponsored a chicken, 12 out of the 15 chickens have been sponsored!  3 more left!

I found a school here in Chipata that is mostly for orphan kids (its managed by an Italian guy that lives in Zambia now for the school), so I will be donating most of the chickens to the kids.

Please sponsor the remaining chickens, by donating $40 or more on my fundraising page

Sponsor a chicken!

   Thanks to everyone that has donated on my CUSO International fundraising page, I have raised $1355 and I am still hoping to reach my goal of $2,000, the money is being matched 1 to 9 by CIDA and helps CUSO International (Partners with VSO) to send volunteers (like me) to different countries.

 So I thought I would raise the money in a different way and make this a bit more interesting, I decided to raise some chickens, the idea is that you would sponsor a chicken by donating $40 or more on my CUSO International fundraising page and I will donate that chicken to a family in Zambia that needs it.  This way the $40 is being matched 1 to 9 by CIDA, it will help to send volunteers and is also giving some food to a family in Zambia (oh and you get a tax receipt). 

  I have never raised chickens before, especially since I have an IT background and I live in an apartment building downtown Toronto, I just thought why not while I am in Zambia I might as well try it and I have never seen a chicken run around with its head cut off.  I will take pictures of your chicken (when it’s alive) and the family (if they let me) and post it on the blog.

  I am hoping to raise $600 or more by getting 15 chickens sponsored, to get this going I used about $145 of my own money, which I am happy to use since I will hopefully raise $600 or more.

Please sponsor a chicken, by donating $40 or more on my fundraising page

  There was a small unfinished structure outside my house (not sure what it was used for), but I added a few more blocks to it, a roof and some lights.  I did some research on how to raise chickens and I got some info from my co-worker at CDFA as he raises chickens as a side business for himself.  I have to keep the chicken warm, so I installed some lights for a bit of heat and I have to light a braii at night for them (I have to add charcoal to it in the middle of the night too, well at least for the first 1.5 weeks)

I had to buy:

	Kwacha		$ CAD
Cement	Free I found in the yard
15 Blocks	60,000	11.54
Roof	62,500	12.02
Feeders/water	72,000	13.85
Wire/sockets	36,000	6.92
15 Chickens	60,000	11.54
Feed Starter 25kg	76,000	14.62
Feed grower 50kg	148,000	28.46
Feed Finisher 50kg	145,000	27.88
Vaccinations	40,000	7.69
Charcoal / fire starter	55,000	10.58
Saw dust / bag	4,500	0.87
Total	759,000	145.96

Stay posted as I will add pics to this post when you sponsor a chicken

 Here are some pics of the original structure

   

I had to cut down the branch above with my trusty leather man (best thing I bought before I came to Zambia)

Preparing to fix the structure, mixing cement and laying blocks (I got some help from another vso volunteer (Nava) from Nepal, we both have never mixed cement and laid blocks, but figured things out)

 

Installing some light bulbs for some heat and light, there was a small hole at the bottom of the structure it looked like a snake, so I was told to pour some gas in there to kill it, but out popped a frog!

 

The final structure

The chickens

 

 

 

Please sponsor a chicken, by donating $40 or more on my fundraising page

Trip to Livingstone / Victoria Falls, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Chobe, Botswana

April 28 – May 3, 2012:  Since April 30 is a holiday in Zambia, I decided to take some time off and go see Victoria Falls in Zambia and Chobe National Park in Botswana. It’s a little far to get there from Chipata as I had to take a 7-8 hour bus from Chipata to Lusaka, spend the night in Lusaka (since it’s not good to travel at night) and then take another 6-7 hour bus ride to Livingstone, Zambia. But it was worth it! Victoria Falls is only 10Km from Livingstone it really puts Niagara Falls, Canada to shame, it’s huge. I also technically was in Zimbabwe (crossed a yellow line on a bridge) to take another look at the falls. Instead of trying to describe it here are some pics.

Pics from the bridge between Zambia and Zimbabwe (you can bungee jump but I didn’t try maybe next time):

           

Pics from the Boiling pot area:

     

Pics from near the falls (you can get really close and even step into the water), I wanted to go to Devils pool, but it’s currently closed as there is way too much water at this time (At Devil’s pool you can jump into the water and look over the falls from the “pool”):

           

Having a drink at the Royal Livingstone hotel:

 

The next day I headed over to Chobe national park in Botswana, I stayed in a tent in a nice lodge.  I took an evening boat safari one day and the next morning I took a car safari at 6am, It was amazing. I got to see lots of elephants, hippos, crocodiles, impalas, antelopes, buffalos, monkeys, vulchers, a leopard eating an impala in a tree and some lions eating a buffalo.

 

This is a pic of the ferry between Zambia and Botswana:

 

Here are some pics of the lodge/tent I stayed in:

              

There was a wild pig walking around the lodge:

 

 Here are some pics from the boat safari:

  

Bird with yellow feet and a Shy Elephant

 

                

 

Here are some pics from the car safari:

Leopard in the tree eating an impala and lions eating a  buffalo

     

     

 

The rest of the time I spent relaxing/sun tanning by the pool and chasing monkeys away from stealing the lemon from my drink.  It was a Vervet Monkey (a monkey with blue balls), I didn’t get a picture, but here is one I found on the net. 

 

 

 

On the way back to Livingstone, Zambia, there was an elephant crossing the road!

CDFA Piggery Project and Cow Farm visit

One of the CDFA projects (funded by Egmont Trust UK) is to give 2 pigs to 24 different womens group as Income Generating Activity.  Here are some pics from one of the groups and other farms I have visited, I also went to visit a cow farm and saw a new born calf.

Mom cow liking its calf clean