Chikumbuso in Zambia

I am sorry that I have not posted since we arrived in Zambia, but it has been a whirlwind!!  The day of our departure as you know there was no school because of all of the flooding.   The connecting road to the airport was closed as was Route 95 from exits 11-14.  The airport is exit 13.  Needless to say, we had to leave very early in the morning and take a different route to the airport;  however, we arrived with 4 hours to spare.  Our flight from Providence to Washington D.C. was uneventful.  On our 16 hour flight from Washington to South Africa, we sat next to a man from Zambia who was now living in the USA and returning to Zambia for his daughter’s wedding.  It was most interesting to talk with him about wedding traditions & foods like nshima which is the staple of the Zambian diet.  He told me it was very easy to make & he would let me know where we could buy the mealie meal in the USA so that all of you can have a taste of it.  He even hung out with us in the South African airport and chatted with Helmut while Linda & I shopped waiting for our next flight to Lusaka, Zambia.

As most of you know I will be visiting the Chikumbuso Womens & Orphans Project in Lusaka, Zambia.  My husband, Helmut, my friend Linda & I will be flying out of Providence, Rhode Island Thursday afternoon and heading  to Dullas Airport in Washington D.C.  From there we will travel nineteen hours to South Africa before our final flight to Lusaka, Zambia.  We will be spending 2 weeks visiting the school, the children &  the women who are a part of the project.   My husband and I are are both very excited that we will  be able to “Pay It Forward” in some small way.  It is our hope that we will work on transforming the kitchen and a storeroom into classrooms so that students will be able to attend school there beyond the 5th grade.  Stay tuned!  Mrs. Steinnagel