Saturday, February 13, 2010

Can't bare another beer

Isaac from the office invited me out for a river cruise in Kafue just south of Lusaka. We went with his fiancĂ©e, Chana. They are both very nice and were born in Zambia. However, they met each other in Atlanta in the US. So I was bringing them a little “yankee” slice of memory lane. The river area was beautiful. We enjoyed the local specialty, grilled Sea Bream, which was delicious. I also tried the Zambian staple, nshima (also called “pop”). It's a steamed cornmeal mash made from ground maize (corn kernels). It looks like a big ball of mash potatoes but has more of a doughy consistency. You pull off a wad, ball it up in your hands (I was told to “play with it”) and then dip it in a variety of dips including a tomato and onion relish (chutney) and a vegetable sauce.

We enjoyed a few cold Zambian beers with lunch. And more after lunch. And more after we moved over to the bar next to the river to watch the soccer match (football to the non-yanks). And more beer as we sat on the river cruise. And still more after the river cruise as we sat by the river watching the sunset. And even more at the club we went to after the river cruise. And on it went into the night. Needless to say, I had too much beer on this day.

But the cruise boat was beautiful. It was small holding perhaps 7 tables on each of its two decks and everything was made of a gorgeous stained wood. I have to say it was all very polished and felt pretty high class. The tables were fancily set for a posh and refined luncheon, which we philistines turned into more of a liquid luncheon. It was so peaceful out there on the river. I finally felt part of the natural beauty and peace that Zambia has to offer. It was wonderful.

12 hours after we first set off for the day, we headed home. After driving in circles trying to locate the guesthouse (I did remember the name which I was very proud of), we finally located it and after honking the horn several times, awakened some poor soul who scurried over to open the large steel gate that was firmly shut to ward off any potentially troublesome intruders (like us). My bed was heaven that night.