So I was trying to explain what "hippies" are to Ivor the other day and clearly I pointed to the tie-dye shirt I was wearing. He said that the people in Senegal like them, but people in Zambia don't really wear tie-dye. To enlighten the rest of you on Zambian culture, here are some fun facts...
- The staple food is nashima (pronounced "shima") and it is made from ground corn. Everyone is always so surprised that we've eaten it and like it. Ivor said the longest he's gone without nashima is 1 day. What?!?
- English is the official language but only in theory. Each province has their own language- Bemba being spoken where we are now. "Muli shani" means "How are you?" and "Bwino" means "I am fine". That's the only response we've learned so if I'm not fine, I guess I just lie.
- Drivers have no mercy and crosswalks mean nothing. We've almost been run over a number of times.
- In Bemba, "white people" is "Musungus" and people have no problem pointing and yelling that as we walk down the street.
- We are the first white people some of these Zambians have ever seen.
- Everyone here loves Obama and Zambia as a whole seems to have followed the election pretty closely. Makes me feel a little bad for being American and not liking American politics.
- The education system is not so great. Kids can pay their teachers to pass them even if they fail exams. Children don't learn to read English until 5th grade! Plus they only go to school from 8:30 am to noon.
- After a couple has been dating for 3 years, the girl can sue the guy if he hasn't proposed yet.
- Today we were accused of not wanting to make friends in Zambia because we didn't have a phone. We told the random guys who offered us their seats in the park that we (Ava Michelle and myself) are always together and our Zambian friend (Ivor) knows where to find us.
- The bigger the corporation, the more expensive the product. So I guess McDonald's and Wal-Mart have it all backwards.
- The mosquitoes that carry malaria bite between 02:00 and 04:00 am.
- Most people rotate between 2-3 outfits because that's all they have.
I'm trying to upload pictures but it's proving difficult so hopefully they will be available soon.
No comments:
Post a Comment