Brian and Cheri got up early to pack for their noon departure, then, along with Tracey and Jen, took a taxi to Twikitane to collect some chitenge products we had on order before being dropped at the airport. Of the nearly dozen items we had ordered (skirts, pants, shirts), only one was sewn correctly. Everything else was too short, not stitched properly, or just plain poorly made. The experience left us all the more grateful for and appreciative of the talent and care we have in our sewing co-op in Kantolomba. We had brought the order to Twikitane (an official tailoring school!) thinking they would be able to do a good job quickly. We have learned our lesson--it's the team in Kantolomba from now on!
After dropping the departing travelers, Jen and Dave spent the remainder of the morning catching up on last minute paper work, phone calls, and blog prep, while Tracey packed up our "musungu box." As we spend more time here, we have a growing need to be more food self-sufficient through having our own dishes, kitchen utensils, and household items, such as a small oven, hotplate, and hot pots. Fortunately, Theresa can store these for us, but the time we need to organize them increases with each trip. Our ability to be independent in feeding ourselves is well worth the effort in terms of saving money as well as health and nutrition--especially with Tracey doing the packing! An emotional benefit is that having familiar items makes us feel even more that we're coming home when we arrive in Zambia.
In the afternoon Dave, Tracey, Jen and Magnus met Theresa, Georgina and Josephine for a trip to Twapia, a compound famous for its crafts markets. We found some marvelous items to bring back to help raise money for the projects--perhaps a silent auction?
A wooden statue whose expression we had fun projecting onto.
In heavy price negotiations.
Dave, Jen and Theresa returned to town for a "tie up loose business ends" meeting before our departure. It was an excellent meeting, and we were once again reminded how lucky we are to have Theresa. She is an extraordinary woman: bright, dedicated, willing, incredibly hard-working, humble. We hope one day soon to bring her to the U.S. so all of you can meet her and see for yourselves–perhaps Bridge Walk '08. Let us know if you want to help with the "Bring Theresa to the U.S." campaign.
Meanwhile, Tracey and Magnus accompanied Josephine and Georgina to Kantolomba. Tracey had one final meeting with Sam the tailor to pick up monk bags he had been working on. Magnus continued the medical training.
The women are quickly becoming lay nurses.
The ringworm treatment continues.
In the afternoon we got some wonderful news: we have electricity! For the past several days ZESCO, the local power company, has been working furiously to erect the poles and install the wiring necessary to bring electricity to our property. Mr. Kahunga, the head of ZESCO, had promised we would have power before we left the country. He has come through for us in the eleventh hour!
The Zesco Team
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Connecting the wires from the existing ZESCO poles.
Bringing the wire onto our property.
Up the poles on our property.
The guys and gal had dinner on their own, while we old folk ate delicious leftovers at the apartment. We all met for a late-night meeting at Michelangelo to go over logistics and make sure everyone had what they needed before leaving the country. Dave, Jen and Tracey leave tomorrow midday to fly back to the U.S. Troy leaves late afternoon to go to South Africa, where he will be working for the remainder of the summer. Tom and Magnus board a train to Tanzania (a 48 hour ride!) to begin a one-week holiday. Bryn and Rebecca fly out a day later. It's been a great team and a great trip.