Weeks 55 & 56 - 21.4.13

Week 55

Welcome back to Lumwana.

Things here are looking very dry. Instead of lush green and mud surroundings, we are back to brown, dry and dusty. The wet season came to an end earlier than hoped and everything has dried off very quickly. The garden was beautiful and lush when I left, now it looks dry and half dead. We are not getting water delivered and so it is back to saving bath water and washing water, so that we can use it on the garden. Unfortunately, we have a huge garden and so the water does not go far.

There are also a lot of fences up, which is surprising as we have been told that we are not to have fences on site. But now several houses in the township have huge chicken wire fences and gates and the pool, car park, bar and gym area is now surrounded by a huge fence as well. Not too sure why these have gone up and the rumours are flying.

There is also a wild animal on site. It is a Jackal / Wild Dog / Hyena / Lion depending on whom you talk to. There are a couple of traps on site, but so far they have not been able to catch it. My guess is a Jackal. The prints have been quite large, but a lion seems unlikely. Thankfully, no crocodiles have been seen either although the amount of snake sightings have been numerous. So have the photos of them sliding into people’s houses. Touch wood we have not come across one yet.

On my first day back, Michelle came to say hi and we spent several hours catching up which was lovely. She is a dear friend. I also thought I would cook a braai for dinner as it was hot in the house and I thought I had better get back into the swing of African life. However, when Phil and Luke came over at 5pm I was still struggling to light the damn charcoal! After 40 minutes of trying and then Luke and Phil helping we got it done and I was able to cook the chicken. Give me gas any day! For cooking that is. Lol…

Tuesday I did a quick trip to Manyama to grab some peanuts. The squirrel’s had not been fed in a while and I was hoping we still had them around.

Wednesday saw me cleaning the play group area with Michelle. This was my undoing. As I was still not well this knocked me around quite a bit and had me in bed early. But at least the play group area was ready for the next term. We also had Andrew around for the morning and then Sally, Ethan and Ella for the afternoon.  I was told by Rose, one of the newer ladies here that I had “put on”. That was lovely to hear, it is nice to know when someone thinks your fat. When I feel better I will be up at the gym every day!

On Thursday we headed to Kitwe to do some shopping. The shop on site is fairly poor with things, it has not improved in my absence and so we went to do a huge shop. The road was actually in better condition than when we went through previously. Most of the pot holes had been filled with dirt and rocks, so it was a better drive. We could not believe our eyes when we arrived,  what should we see but another truck crashed in the same spot as last time.

Thankfully, the truck had not tipped over and no crowd was gathering. I could not have gone through tear gas again, especially with the kids. They still remember last time. 

We managed to get our shopping done and even bought some more masks and have ordered some really big ones. Goodness knows where we will put them. We were back on site Saturday afternoon and on Sunday I lost my voice. As we had bought a huge amount of sweet potatoes, I made up a sweet potato, butternut, bacon and garlic soup. I thought this would help the throat.

Week 56

On Monday  it was up to the clinic after dropping Tom off at school. I was diagnosed with Laryngo tracheal bronchitis. Yeah! Home I went with some antibiotics. Let the Lumwana sicknesses begin again!

Tuesday I made some bread and rolls for Tom for school. After seeing Virginia make bread I kneaded the dough a bit more and it turned out delicious. I also used my new bread pan for the first time and it was a great looking loaf.

I went crazy in the kitchen on Wednesday and should have taken it a bit easier as it really wore me out. But we had no snacks for Tom’s lunch box. So I made some Weetabix balls, honey oat muffins and Anzac slice instead of biscuits. I also made a Lasagna for dinner. I don’t even think Tom likes the muffins or slice, but he is fussy. Laura will eat them.

Thursday was truly a day of rest all round.

On Friday I made pizza for dinner. I had also invited the usual group around for drinks so I made a Focaccia, some banana bread (Recipe from Michelle)  and also another loaf for dinner the next night as we had guests coming over. I also made a caramel custard ice cream. It did not turn out too bad, but it is no Peter’s ice cream!

Poor Tom and Laura are feeling a bit down. Laura’s friends all go to school and so she has not really had any one to play with during the days and Tom is desperate for more to play with. Fabian is sick and Andrew has been playing with another boy and Tom feels left out. It is quite sad really.That's the thing about a small community. Sometimes there just aren’t enough kids. We also found out today that one of the biggest contractor’s on site has to leave. Not too sure why, but I think the work that they do is coming to an end. This means that Fabian will be leaving in the near future and so will about 8 other kids from the school. This is a real shame as I like his Mum and Tom and Fabian get along really well. The school is getting smaller and smaller as no kids are coming in, only going out.

On Saturday I was back at the clinic with the kids as Tom had a fever. Phil had gone to Solwezi to get some things for dinner. Tom had to be checked for Malaria and the poor thing screamed. He was put onto antibiotics as his chest sounded a bit wheezy. I was also checked again and put on another dose of antibiotics. My chest was just not getting better and the doctor was worried about it developing into pneumonia. We then had some people over for dinner, Jan and Michelle with kids, Luke and Sally, Pete and his daughter Sonja. Phil cooked a braai and we had the fire going. I tried a new chocolate cake recipe for dessert and it was delicious. By this time I had most of my voice back, but was still coughing like crazy. I was also finding it incredibly hard to breathe. During the night, Janni managed to pull a chair over to the counter, climb on top and pour out the chocolate sprinkles I had left out after decorating the cake. Phil came in to find chocolate sprinkles all over the floor. I came in to find the kids eating them off the floor! 

Sunday was well and truly another day of rest and relaxation. We have been back 2 weeks and I have been ill the entire time and now Tom is as well. I give Laura until Wednesday before she has a fever also. I am wondering whether it is the house. It was full of mould when we got here and Carol did a great job of cleaning most of it up, but I still wonder.  I don’t want another year of the kids being sick and they certainly don’t need the constant antibiotics. I still have them on a multi vitamin and probiotic every day. The Sister at the clinic says we don’t like Zambia, but as I say, Zambia does not like us! We are the only family on site to have as much illness as we do. WHY? I wish I knew.

So as I said at the start. Welcome back to Lumwana!

Whilst I was home, my sister Jo was complaining about a couple of ants that were inside. I have included a photo to show what can happen when more than a few come inside. Now this is something to complain about!!!!!! By the way, our blankets were in this cupboard and I received a big surprise when I pulled one out.

Weeks 53 & 54 - Photos

Sunset Somerton Park Beach on my 6th Wedding anniversary.

Grandad, Tom, Daddy and Laura at airport.

Easter Bunnies footprints.

Tom collecting eggs.

Laura with her stash.

Counting them out with Grandma.

Look we are riding an Elephant! Botanic gardens Melbourne.

Beautiful kookaburra at Badger Creek.

Tom and Daddy with the parrots.

Laura screaming to get the bird off her head!

Brave boy. Watch out it doesn't poop!

Cousins: Megumi 3, Oliver 10, Thomas 4 and Laura 3.

On the plane coming back to Johannesburg.

Weeks 53 & 54 - 7.4.13

Our last week in Adelaide was spent the same as the last few, going to the playground, riding bikes, enjoying the beach and last minute shopping. We did get another chance to go bowling. Anthony, aka Uncle Ago and I took the kids minus Sophie, to have a game. We had a great time even if Ago thrashed us all, and Laura did really well beating Tom in last place.

Monday night was my 6th Wedding Anniversary to Phil. I went to the beach and watched the sunset to celebrate. He was in flight somewhere and so we were not able to talk. It was a beautiful sunset and I have included a couple of the many shots I took. Six years has gone quick, but my gosh we have done a lot in that time!!!

It was a shame to leave Adelaide. I have enjoyed spending time with my family. Especially since I had not seen most of them since my wedding and that was 7 years ago! My sister is lucky to have such a wonderful network of family around, now that she is in Adelaide itself. Thanks Jo for allowing us to stay with you all that time and completely messing up your house. A big thanks to my nephew and nieces for entertaining the kids. They really enjoyed themselves. Thanks to Uncle Neil and Linda for their delicious dinners and help when I needed it.

We flew to Melbourne on the 20^th and it was sad saying good bye to my sister at the airport as I have no idea when we will see each other again. The joys of living over sea’s, I guess.

The flight to Melbourne went quickly and the kids were surprised to see Daddy waiting for them. I had not told them he would be there and they screamed and ran to him, giving him big hugs. It had been about 6 weeks since we saw him in person and not on Skype. Grandad, Auntie Heather and kids were also there to greet us. We collected our luggage and then headed to the Departure gates as Grandad was leaving that day also. It was lovely to see Bill again, even if only for 15 minutes!

By the time I got to Heather’s I was emotionally and mentally exhausted. It was great to see Phil again and we had so much to talk about. Mainly, what the hell were we going to do?

The next day after hardly any sleep all round, everyone went out and left me at the house. I went back to bed and slept for 3 hours! I felt like a new person the next day, after another full night’s sleep as well. It is amazing how sleep deprivation can make you feel so bad.

The next day, Sunday was Easter. Tom and Laura were extremely spoilt as EB (easter bunny) again brought more eggs for them to find. He even left some foot prints on the verandah! It was lovely to sit around and catch up with Heather, Danny and Virginia.

Monday was spent relaxing and enjoying chocolate and then on Tuesday we caught the train into Melbourne. We then walked to the Botanic Gardens and had some lunch before the kids played in the kid’s garden. Thankfully Heather had told us to pack a change of clothes as the kids got thoroughly wet. It was then back onto the train. We all believed the kids would fall asleep on the train as they were so exhausted, but they managed to stay awake for the entire ride home. We were all into bed early that night.

Wednesday was another day at home and Grandma headed off back home to Tassie. It was a shame to see her go. I was enjoying spending time with her again as were the kids.

Then on Thursday we headed to Badger Creek. This is a wonderful place to take kids. The kids had a great time playing in the water, even though it was cool and the birds were amazing. There were Red Parrots, Kookaburra and Bronzed Tip Doves / Pigeons. The parrots were eating out of our hands and the kids loved it when the birds landed on them. Except Laura, she screamed when one landed on her head. We tried coating Oliver in seed to see how many would land on him, but I think they were well and truly full by that point. We had a lovely picnic lunch and a walk and then headed home.

Friday was spent packing. Thankfully Phil did not bring too much with him as we had accumulated a lot of stuff and needed his suitcase space. 

On Saturday it was up early and into the car. We had a hire car so said good bye to everyone back at the house. It was sad saying good bye, the girls had become best buddies and all 4 of them had gotten along tremendously. It was lovely watching our kids play together.

We flew from Melbourne to Sydney, then we caught a bus to the International Departure gates, then it was onto Johannesburg. Once we were on the plane, I realised how lucky we had been going to Australia. We were booked into Premium Economy, but it was Business Class seats. So going back to Africa was not as comfortable as that, but Premium Economy is definitely better than cattle class for long haul flights (13 hours). Just being able to spread out was worth the extra cost. Unfortunately, by the time we got to Johannesburg I could tell I was coming down with something. On the plane I felt a cold draft down my neck and new this would not be good. My throat was sore and dry. Just what I needed!

We checked into the hotel and headed down for a quick dinner. I had to go back to the room and realised I could not shut the door. It looked as though someone had pushed down the door previously and it was barely lockable if it would only close. I had to wait for maintenance to come and fix it before I could head back down. Even then they arrived with no tools and so had to go and get some before coming back to fix it!

The next day we had more joy checking in, as the airport was so busy and chaotic we were called to the front as they were closing the flight. Phil’s flight had not been paid for (we did not book our flights) and so he had to run off and pay for this before he was able to get a seat. They checked our luggage through so at least we knew that our suitcases would be on board, we just needed a seat for Phil. It was then a run to clear customs and a run to the gate. Thankfully, we got there in time and made it to the plane. We were then able to relax for 2 hours before landing in Lusaka. We actually had a big plane from Lusaka to Solwezi, 29 seats! This was the biggest one we have had to date. It was fairly full and we had to ask some people to share seats so that the kids and one of us could be together. By this time I was feeling well and truly unwell. The kids and Phil were also tired and we still were not home.

When we got to Solwezi, the kids and I went to the bus. They had overbooked the amount of people and it was a crush of people and luggage, by this point, nothing surprises me. Luckily we all fitted in around the luggage and made the 1 hour trip home, with the kids sleeping most of the way. It was then a bath, dinner and bed.

We are now back in Lumwana for the start of our next year.

Am I excited or happy to be back? NO, but at least Phil has a job and we have a house. The only thing I am happy about, is seeing my friends. What about the kids? It is hard to tell. They are happy to be back with their friends, but then again, they would be happy wherever Phil and I are. I just wonder how much longer it will take to get our belongings. It has been 12 months now, will we ever see our things? We packed so many items for donation to the local villages and I would love to be able to give them out, to the people I now know.

Let the year begin……..

Final week photos

Auntie Kaye, Tom and Laura.

Auntie Kaye and me.

Tom the Tiger!

Laura the Rainbow Butterfly.

Laura feeding a Wallaby.

Tom feeding a Kangaroo.

Luckily we saw Wang Wang the Panda.

Martian Laura.

Sophie and Laura in fort.

Tom and Lottie in theirs.

Sophie is brilliant with braids.

Cousins: Jack, Laura, Charlotte, Tom and Sophie.

1 Year - 24.3.13 END OF CONTRACT

Phil has received his contract. He was given it at 6pm Friday the 22^nd, less than 24 hours before his old one expired. The GM of the mine has resigned this week. This may have been a reason for the delay. I can’t really say much more about this week, except it has been sad, disappointing and stressful. My family should not have had to go through this. 

I said goodbye to Auntie Kaye on Monday and do not know when I will see her again. We had a lovely dinner at The Bay of Bengal (Indian) and then had to say good bye. Hopefully she will come over to Zambia at some time with my Mum, so we may see them sometime this year.

I was not able to get to Forbes this week. Phil was not able to fly over in time, due to the lack of a contract and as a result I was not able to go. I would not have been able to do the 2200km return trip by myself with the kids. They would have been horrendous in the car and I did not want to risk an accident. So I caught up with a couple of my friends by phone and skype instead. Not an ideal situation as I was so looking forward to seeing them in person and to check up on my cat Seb whom is still in Forbes. I am extremely disappointed by this and angry.

On Wednesday we went to the Zoo. It was incredibly expensive for what it was. We walked to the tram station and then caught the tram into Adelaide and then walked to the zoo. We then spent the next few hours walking around the zoo, so by the end of it we were all exhausted from walking. We did have a good time and the kids even managed to get their faces painted. They could not however understand why the animals were in cages. After all, they are use to seeing them in the wild now. Jo then picked us up so we could go and see Sophie play basket ball. Unfortunately, we got their too late and the game had just finished. Very disappointing, but we will see her play one day. That night Linda whipped up some more magic with a wonderful roast chicken dinner.

The rest of the week was the same as the others. We headed to the beach, playground and even made it back to Wiggly Worms. By this time both Phil and myself were getting extremely worried over the lack of contract and were looking into all other options. It was a relief that it finally arrived on Friday. At least we had a ‘home’ to go back to. Mind you, by this stage I do not want to go back.

On the weekend Mum and Dad came over to say good bye. The kids had a ball building forts in the back yard and generally playing. They have had such a wonderful time playing with their 'big' cousins. It is a shame we hardly see each other.

Phil left Lumwana today to meet us in Melbourne. 

I will do a reflection on what it has been like this last year living in Lumwana, but at the moment I am too angry to do one. I need time to look back without the anger being so prominent in my mind. These last few months and especially weeks have taken there toll on me and my family. Lets just say, we have finished the year and our contract. Only time will tell what this year holds for us. I certainly did not expect the end of Phil's contract to be so stressful and exhausting. Mind you, I did not expect much of what has happened this last year.

Thank you all for reading my blog over this eventful year. 

Week 51 - Photos

Laura surfing at play ground. Somerton Park, SA.

Tom having a go too.

The park also has exercise equipment for adults. Kids legs not long enough.

Jack, Tom, Linda, Uncle Neil, Laura, Lottie (top) and Sophie.

Jack number 40, red and black.

Ouch. High tackle!

Great mark Jack!

Family photos.

Tom, Nanna, Laura and Papa.

All the grand kids.

Sophie 13, Lottie 10, Nanna, Laura 3, Papa, Jack 15 and Tom 4.

Plus Jo and myself.

Week 51 - 17.3.13 ( 1 week to go)

We had a busy, but a fun week.

We caught up again with my Auntie Kaye. I am really enjoying spending time with her and I am glad that the kids are getting to know her as well. She has been and is a special person in my life.

On Monday night, Jo and I plus kids had fish and chips on the beach. It has been great spending such a large amount of our time on the beach. I am really going to miss the smell and sounds. There is nothing like the fresh smell of ocean, a blend of salt and seaweed and the sound of waves. It is always good for ones peace of mind and sanity. Not to mention the sand is a great exfoliant for the feet!

Tuesday was also spent at the beach and having a rest after a busy weekend. With the heat we are not really sleeping all that well. In Lumwana we have the fans going constantly inside and so we are not used to this constant heat.

I managed to catch up with a dear friend on Wednesday and her kids. The kids and I went to the video store in the morning and hired some dvd’s, that is a novelty for us now. Then in the afternoon, Sharee, Corey and Lauren came over. We headed to the beach but due to a storm coming and the wind, there was no beach, only waves and so we headed to the park instead. It was great to catch up. I have missed my friends dearly and I am looking into heading to Forbes next week to see them all. I can’t wait.

On Thursday, we caught the bus to Marion shopping centre where we raced to the movies to see ‘Wreck it Ralph’ only to be told it was not playing that day due to technical problems. So instead we went into the games arcade and played a few games before heading to Bowl land. The kids really enjoyed bowling and Tom even managed a strike, Laura was the queen of the split, and I surprised myself with 2 strikes in a row. It was good fun. We then had Hungry Jacks for lunch and I have to say it must have been 15 more years or more that I had eaten it. Tasted good, and I must say I do love onion rings! That night my Uncle Neil and his wife Linda came over with a delicious dinner. Linda is a fantastic cook.

Friday was you guessed it a day at the beach and the playground. Tom rode his bike and I pushed Laura in the pram. Tom is really enjoying having a bike to ride. I wish he had one back in Lumwana. It’s when I see them having fun on bikes or scooters that I realise how much they are missing their own. It’s a shame that things have gone the way they have in Lumwana. It would have been such a better year, if we had have had our belongings. The place would have felt more of a home, rather than have us constantly reminded of what we left behind. My sister Jo and I went to Montezuma’s for dinner and enjoyed some wonderful Mexican food and plenty of Margarita’s (maybe too many).

I had a day to myself on Saturday. I have not been coping all that well, with the stress of not knowing what is going to happen in a week. I have also forgotten to take my medication and so, now that I have been off it for a week I feel as though I want to push through and quit it for good. The medication has not allowed me to feel certain things and also prevented me from losing weight, which again does not make someone feel good about them self. Is it the right time to go my meds? I am sure it is not. But now that I have started the process, I feel I need to finish it. I almost need to prove to myself that I can cope now without it. We will see.

Anyway, my dear sister agreed to have the kids and so I went off shopping down the Bay and then enjoyed a nice quiet night to myself at a local hotel. It was so peaceful. I enjoyed a nice bottle of wine and some wonderful cheeses, a bath and a comfy bed all to myself. I sooooo did not want to leave the hotel the next morning and back to whingey kids. LOL.

Sunday I was able to watch my nephew Jack play football for West Adelaide. The first game he has played for SANFL. It was only a trial game, but he played well. I wish him all the best in his dreams of playing for the Crow’s and hope to see him on TV one day doing exactly that.

Still NO contract! That means NO job, NO house. What are we going to do???? This just tops off the last few months. I am so stressed I am crying and emotional all the time. How can we be left in limbo like this? I really do not understand.