Headed home!

Initially I had a hard time adjusting after Kyusik and the boys left. Not only was I lonely, but I had to check out of the cottage and into a hotel. My room was quite small and not terribly nice. While there was a garden, it was not nearly as lovely as Viv’s yard. It was also set on a very busy road with only a few restaurants within walking distance. Things improved immensely on Tuesday when I went with my colleagues Precious and Tatenda to a meeting at the office of Population Solutions for Health, a partner NGO. PSH is now scaling the work we’ve piloted in 5 districts (63 in the country) to an additional 4 districts in collaboration with the Ministry of Health. If all goes well, the plan is to expand it to another 8 districts next year. I am also trying to work on how to convince the big donors like PEPFAR (US Presidents Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief) and the Global Fund for TB, HIV, and Malaria to fund it. After the meeting we went to lunch. I’ve been craving Asian food and particularly shrimp rice paper rolls, so seeing them on the menu was a welcome surprise. Lest you think the meal prices are cheaper in Zim, my lemonade was $5 and the 2 rolls were $17. For dinner that evening I was joined by 3 women who work at UCSF. They were here for a conference, the same one Ndola, my UCB Qualifying Exam Chair was attending. They picked me up along the way to a Portuguese restaurant that I’d eaten at the day before for lunch, when I had “crumbed” or fried calamari with rice. This time I had the peri peri chicken with chips or fries. 

The next morning my colleagues came to pick me up to make the 4 hour drive SE to Nyanga, one of our five pilot districts. We were hosting our 6th and final Task Team meeting before our close out workshop in September. The hotel in the Eastern Highlands is a nice getaway from Harare. With its mountains and lush greenery, the area is known as the Scotland of Zim. It’s also much cooler and can be misty. Thankfully the rooms all have electric blankets. The workshop went well. We were joined by my third colleague Joseph, who had flown into Harare the night before from another project he is working on in South Africa, and then made the drive early in the morning. I managed to go for a run before it got dark but definitely felt the elevation at 6500 ft. Even Harare is at over 4900 ft.

On Friday we headed back to Harare, where I was dropped off at a fancy lodge for my last night. The property had 16 rooms set within beautiful gardens with outdoor lounge areas scattered throughout. I was so glad Kyusik suggested I stay there, as it was a perfect way to end my trip. I got a hot stone massage and had a very fun 4 course prix fixe dinner with Ndola where we shared everything since there were 2 options for each course. The wine pairing seemed like a steal for $25 with 2 South African wines, a Spanish red, and a dessert wine. 

I’m currently on a plane to Joberg, where I will have a 5 hour layover. Ndola has a similar schedule but is on a different airline from Harare. I sat with her in the departure area and we will also meet up in Joberg. She’s taking the flight to Newark and then SFO that I took last April. This time I’m flying through London, with a 7 hr layover, as I was hoping to meet up with Emily, who was supposed to have moved there with her family, but they are still waiting for their visas. 

While in Nyanga with Joseph and on the road with Precious and Tatenda, we talked about Zimbabwean names because one of our servers was named Previous, while a workshop participant was named Furthermore. An artist recently died who went by Cont, which was short for Continue Loving. Two famous soccer players are named Marvelous and Knowledge, while another man’s name was Preacher. 

I also learned more about Zimbabwean weddings. Before the “white” wedding, a traditional practice is for the groom to pay the bride price in the form of cows, groceries, and other items. The grocery list isn’t an ordinary list but rather one made by the bride’s mother that will include large quantities of food, such as 25 kg of rice, that can then be distributed to the extended family. Since Tatenda’s mom is “late”, meaning she died when Tatenda was younger, her aunt Precious stepped in to raise her. In Zimbabwean culture, there isn’t a naming distinction for aunts, so I’m assuming that also applies to men.

Driving is very dangerous and roads outside of the major cities are often 2 lanes. People going long distances drive very fast, sometimes driving in the lane going in the opposite direction to avoid a pothole, person, or animal or because they have not properly gauged the time and distance needed to overtake someone in front of them. Apparently at night in Harare, you will likely get hit if you stop for a stoplight. And don’t even bother trying to call the police to the scene of an accident because they probably won’t have a car to get to you. Instead you have to report the accident when you get to the nearest town with a police station.

Once in the Joberg airport I was excited to use my credit card for purchases again. I got some bad sushi that had rice that was too wet but was desperate for something different. Fortunately I managed to make it out of Zim with cash to spare. I cannot wait to get home!