Women's day is a national holiday here so we decided to go away for the weekend. Lake Kariba was our destination, I'd been before and remembered it being lovely and not too far from the big smoke.
The drive down went from pretty to spectacular as we navigated winding roads overlooking the lake – it reminded me of the Gargano in southern Italy. While we drove we talked about whether there were any Peace Corps or VSO volunteers there and how lucky they would be to have such a placement.
Lake Kariba is home of the Kariba dam, a huge reservoir that spreads over the border to Zimbabwe. It used to supply about 50% of Zambia's electricity back in the '60s. It was built by Italian engineers and I really like the design, it feels like a Bond film should be set there. As lovely as the lake is, there are plenty of crocs and hippos so we didn't take the plunge and stuck to the pool instead which was more than adequate. We spent 3 days lazing at the bar, playing card games and relaxing.
While there we ran into someone we knew in Lusaka and she introduced us to some VSO volunteers who live in the area. We chatted and I remarked at what a great place it must be to live and one shrugged and said it was alright. Now this surprising remark – seriously look at the pictures! – made me think it was a result of one or both of two possible factors. First – they were British and we British and not really known for going overboard with praise or joy. I first realised this when I started to spend time with more Americans who are much more enthusiastic. Second – they have problems with their placement, who doesn't? But what they don't realise is how much worse it could've been. There are some really isolated and boring places in Zambia, I lived in one and although I was glad to leave, I still managed to enjoy the experience. I knew volunteers in even more out-of-the-way placements than mine, 12 hours from Lusaka on terrible roads in the middle of the bush and still they were desperately sad to leave.
Volunteering is all about your attitude and knowing your limits. If you have chosen to volunteer in a developing country you must decide yourself whether you really can manage to be in a different culture and the struggles that entails. Moreover, are you open enough to learn from the experience and look beyond the difference to see the beauty? It's hard for a reason but just sticking it out and becoming resentful proves nothing. I don't know the background of these volunteers and maybe they had very valid reasons for being nonplussed. I hope so, otherwise they will look back and kick themselves when they realise just how good they had it.
