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Hello my dear friends!
I hope this e-mail finds you all happy and healthy!
It has been a long time since my last e-mail dispatch. Many people have
asked me, 'What happened to your e-mail updates?' It's so wonderful to think
that there's people out there that are genuinely interested in my adventures
here in Africa! Each week has brought with it a lot of work and has kept
forcing me to put off writing a proper e-mail. Instead of writing a huge
e-mail this time, I'll content myself with a brief synopsis of what's been
happening in my neck of the woods. I've also attached some more pics since a
picture is worth a thousand words!
I realize that in my last e-mail dispatch, I failed to really explain why I
was in Zambia in the first place. I mean, you know that I'm volunteering at
both the Banani International Secondary School as a teacher of computer
classes, and at the Health Education Programme of the development foundation
here. But why come to Zambia in the first place? Why leave Canada?
As most of you know, I'm a member of the Baha'i community. As a Baha'i, the
concept of service is an important one, and much of a Baha'i identity
depends upon it. Bahá'u'lláh, the Prophet founder of the Baha'i Faith,
wrote: "That one indeed is a man who, today, dedicateth himself to the
service of the entire human race." Again among the Baha'i scripture we find:
"Think ye at all times of rendering some service to every member of the
human race." In fact Baha'is believe that any work or occupation done in the
spirit of service is elevated to the rank of worship!
Among young Baha'is, there is a common practice of dedicating a period of
time away from school and work (for some, it may be up to one or two years)
to be of service in some way in the local, national, or international
sphere. The National Baha'i Centre in Canada stores a database of hundreds
of projects and opportunities for service throughout the world. In this way,
I found Zambia and decided I liked the programme here.
So, what have I been up to?
In late November a bunch of us had the chance to visit an AIDS orphanage
just outside Lusaka. The orphanage thankfully was well funded and run by a
large group of dedicated nuns. When we entered one room full of children,
the children were standing and singing a welcoming song for us, complete
with actions. It was the cutest thing!! The children each had their own
beds, stuffed toys, etc. The cafeteria had enough room for everybody and was
fully equipped. There were medical staff, on staff. There were small rooms
with clinical equipment and diagnostic tools; HIV+ positive children would
be given medical attention and drugs to help them. The atmosphere in the
orphanage was one of love. But, of course, being there was also a
heart-rending experience; seeing skeleton-thin children suffering from the
effects of full-blown AIDS, toddlers that were happy and smiling but who you
knew may one day succumb to this awful syndrome, children who had no parents
and nowhere to go and who relied on the kindness of relative strangers. We
played with the kids and took a tour of the place. We learned that there
were many, many other orphanages in the capital that were in much, much
worse condition than this one. One orphanage for AIDS orphaned boys was
described as a large room with rows of beds, and another room with no
furniture of any kind where the boys would sit on the floor and eat their
meals and play. I'm so thankful for having had this experience.
This past December, the school was on holidays, giving the youth volunteers
at the school the chance to travel throughout southern Africa. Our first
trip was to Botswana in the beginning of the month. The trip took approx. 24
hrs by bus, and we stayed in the capital city, Gabarone. That country was
celebrating the 50th anniversary 'Jubilee' of the Baha'i Faith having been
established there; 50 years ago, a Canadian Baha'i family, the Robarts,
moved to what was then known as 'Bechuanaland'. It was a huge 3 day
celebration, with moving presentations, VIP guests, and wonderful people.
One of the cardinal principles of the Baha'i Faith is that humanity must
begin to recognize its inherent unity; that all people begin to see each
other as brothers and sisters. This principle was fundamentally opposite to
the attitude of Apartheid that prevailed in Botswana at the time. The first
Baha'is of African descent in that country were present at the Jubilee
celebration, tearfully telling stories of meeting the Robarts' (a white
family) late in the evenings, under total secrecy, and in fear for their
lives, in order to hear more about the Baha'i teachings such as that of the
unity of humankind, so vigorously opposed by the government of the time.
While in Botswana, we formed friendships that I hope will last us our
lifetimes!
Later in the month, a group of 4 of us youth volunteers took a trip to
Kampala, Uganda, to visit the Baha'i House of Worship there. This House of
Worship is the first and only one in Africa, and like all Baha'i Houses of
Worship, is open to people of all faiths, races, and classes. It is built on
one of the beautiful hills of Kampala, overlooking the city.
We travelled by train from here to Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. This leg of the
trip took 3 days and 2 nights; we stayed in a sleeper cabin, which made the
trip much more comfortable than would have been possible on a bus. The train
was equipped with shower and toilet facilities, a kitchen on board which
served meals right to our rooms, and had a lounge with comfy chairs and
videos/music. Of course, the shower and toilet facilities often lacked
actual water (the toilet being a glamorous hole in the floor through which
one could see the tracks), and the whole train looked and sounded to be ~30
years old. But, we arrived safe and sound. And the scenery was
breathtaking!!! Rolling hills of green, mountains in the distance, flat
plains, villages and people popping up everywhere, lush valleys! Hehehe,
there are so many stories associated with the train!! I wish I could tell
them all; alas, time is of the essence.
We stayed two days in Dar es Salaam before taking a bus to Kampala. We
stayed at the Baha'i National Centre in the city, which in addition to
housing all the offices of the Centre and an adjacent nursery school, also
had dorms with bunk-beds and mosquito nets included. My impressions of Dar:
***HOT***, and ***HUMID*** most of the time, even in the dead of night, lots
and lots of mosquitoes around, and lots of hustle and bustle. Many of the
streets in the middle of the city, I was surprised to see, were so full of
potholes they resembled waves of sand and dirt and mud. Interestingly, the
city is a mix of Muslim, Christian, and Hindu communities, which seem to
live in relative peace. We couldn't afford to visit Zanzibar, but we saw
pictures of it from some friends we met there, and from what we saw the
beaches on that island are stunning! We met several wonderful people in Dar,
which we can add to our life-long friends list!
The bus ride to Kampala was quite interesting, and long; it was supposed to
take approx. 24 hours. First of all, the bus arrived at the depot 5 hours
late. Then, once we headed out, we were told that the bus was not equipped
with a toilet and A/C as we had been promised, so everyone got a refund. Not
bad. We stopped briefly in Nairobi, Kenya, during which time we changed
buses. This bus decided to break down not once, but twice, somewhere in the
bush of Kenya. All together, we were perhaps delayed 10 or so hours on this
trip. Africans by nature seem to be very spiritual people, as demonstrated
by the fact that during our second breakdown, most of the people on our bus
decided to go by the roadside, sit down in the grass, and say prayers and
sing songs! It may not have helped to actually get our bus going again, but
it did make the wait more pleasant.
Along the leg of the trip, we were privileged to see something of Mt.
Kilimanjaro. If we hadn't been so delayed, I may have been able to get some
really nice pictures of it :( Kilimanjaro is the tallest free-standing
mountain in the world (meaning it is not attached to any mountain chain). It
is an inactive volcano. Let me tell you... it was absolutely BEAUTIFUL!!!!
And ****BIG**** and majestic!!! WOW!!! I was SOOOO impressed by its sheer
presence! Those that have actually climbed the mountain (which takes 7 or 8
days) tell me that it's even more amazing when you're actually on it.
Imagine, an enormous volcano springing out of a relatively flat and open
plain! The Serengeti plain is dotted with tall mountains springing up out of
flat and sometimes rolling fields of shrubbery and trees. To me, one of the
most beautiful places on Earth. We also drove through the famed Rift Valley
in Kenya, but as it was nighttime, we saw little.
We arrived in Kampala and stayed for 3 nights and days. We stayed at the
House of Worship grounds, where some dorms had been set up. The Baha'i
National Centre is on the grounds as well, along with a family that lives on
the grounds 24-7 and acts as caretakers of the land and buildings. What a
wonderful experience!!! This House of Worship, built at a time when Idi
Amin's regime was tearing the country apart, stands as an example of what
love, perseverance, faith, and sheer hard work can accomplish in the face of
seemingly insurmountable obstacles. The very night we arrived, we were
greeted with hand shakes and hugs by several young African Baha'is that are
working or volunteering at the House of Worship and National Centre. They
hail from places such as Uganda itself, Kenya, Democratic Republic of Congo,
and Eritrea. They showed us warm and loving hospitality and friendship. More
life-long friends!
The trip back was relatively uneventful. The 4 of us had become closer than
before, and we were grateful for the opportunity we had to visit all these
places. I hope to someday make more trips in this and other regions of
Africa! It is a beautiful part of the world!
This was expected to be a very long and potentially difficult trip; while
certainly a long trip, we felt that many times we avoided potential pitfalls
by remaining strong, travelling wisely, and saying prayers for protection
along the way. We had heard stories about having to bribe our way through
borders, to withstand bus and train breakdowns which would delay us for
days, and to be careful of thieves along the way. Besides the bus breakdown,
the route was relatively safe and there was no bribery. In fact, we even
managed to save money on our visas. Of course, we were wise travellers who
had prepared for the trip in advance.
The last experience I'll share with you is one that happened very recently.
I had the chance to stay for 5 days in a rural village, and literally live
like a typical Zambian would live. The village was called Kwempa, in the
Mumbwa district, which is about 2.5 hrs from the capital city. Kwempa itself
is about 10 km in the bush from the main tarmac road. When travelling to
there, I was lucky to be in a 4x4 land cruiser, which would bounce up and
down the terrain with relative ease. At some point, we were literally
driving through forest and footpaths! Forget about electricity, shops of any
kind, and tarmac roads. I stayed with a Baha'i family there, which had 7
children and two parents. It's experiences like this that make me feel lucky
to be a Baha'i, where a Persian guy from urban Canada can arrive at the
doorstep of a rural Zambian family and instantly have something deep and
meaningful in common. The Baha'i community worldwide is like a giant family.
They unhesitatingly let me stay for the 5 days with them. I slept in a mud
hut on the floor next to the eldest child, a boy named Mike who was 13 yrs
old. I ate what the family ate. I went to the toilet the way the family did.
I bathed like the family did. I travelled like the family did. We sang songs
and said prayers by the fire every night. The family was wonderfully
hospitable and accommodating! On my last night there, two visitors (complete
strangers) had arrived and began chatting with us until the evening. When
they were about to leave, their tire had a flat, which meant they had to
stay the night. No problem! They slept in the hut with me and Mike, while
the rest of the family slept in a similar sized hut. That night, by the
campfire, all of us including many children and youth from other families
came and we had a great time. Meanwhile, meals were provided for our guests.
Zambian hospitality at its finest; these people have literally nothing in
the way of money or material things, but their hearts, homes, and humble
offerings are open to all.
When am I coming home? It'll be the end of February sometime. Hope to see
you all then!
If you only knew how much detail and amazing stories I left out...!!
Hopefully I can fill in the gaps in person with each of you! Thank you all
for reading through this, and for having so much interest in my travels! In
all honesty and sincerity, it means a great deal to me.
Love,
Misagh
Pictures:
John Sikufwa, father of the family, and me in front of the hut I
stayed in.
A sample of some of the beautiful scenery we saw on the
train
HIV+ children at the orphanage, singing and acting out their
'welcome' song :)
A choir singing at the Jubilee celebration
An elephant in the middle of the road, on our way back home from
Botswana.
Giraffes lounging around on the plains of the Serengeti
One-month-old Womba, youngest child of the family I stayed with in
Kwempa village.
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