June 26, 2016
Hello Family, Friends & LearnServe Supporters,
So far, the areas I have seen of Zambia are beautiful. I’ve seen areas rich with historic black African Culture, places affected by western imperialism and places struck with extreme poverty; all of the areas we have visited, however, have been filled with kind and welcoming people. Many people we have met have never talked to an American before; because of this they ask us many questions but the first three are always the same; “What is America like?”, “How do you like Zambia?” and of course, “How do you feel about Donald Trump?”
Today we went to Victoria Falls, a tourist attraction that sits on the border of Zambia and Zimbabwe. Seeing the Falls is one of the most memorable experiences I have ever had. The sights seen there are so gorgeous it’s almost unrealistic. Something that I found interesting about Victoria Falls is that it got its commonly used name from British Colonizers. Its original name that the original Black African inhabitants gave it was Mosi-Oa-Tunya. (Smoke of Thunder). In fact, the name of the city is named after a British man (Livingstone) who supposedly discovered an area already inhabited by a population of people. (May remind you of Christopher Columbus). Livingstone named the falls, Victoria, in order to pay homage to Queen Victoria. In a sense, this can be compared to the gentrification happening in the U.S., specifically DC. It’s similar in the sense that there was a specific culture that dominated the area. The British colonizers can be compared to gentrifiers in the sense that they came to live in an area dominated by black African culture. Then when they made this place their home, the colonizers started masquerading the area with their culture to the detriment of the black African’s culture. By doing so, the falls is now called Victoria Falls and the culture and history behind its name doesn’t give its visitors the full effect of its history. Similarly in DC, once referred to as Chocolate City, is now losing a lot of black residents due to gentrifiers – most of whom are white. When these gentrifiers populate areas once dominated by black culture, they start to develop new stores and attractions in their communities. To make room for these new attractions, old attractions are torn down and the environment and culture is changed as well. Places like 14th street, the Shaw area, and other places look nothing like they used to look. They are now filled with restaurants and attractions to lure in a specific group of people – young, white gentrifiers. The British that gentrified the area, now known as Livingston, added developments appealing to their people and culture to attract more British colonizers. However, the British colonizers forcefully moved the black Africans; whereas the manner of how black African Americans effected by gentrification is debated — but they are forcefully moved as well; them along with the culture they created in the area
We also visited one of Zambia’s safari tours where we saw many animals like elephants, buffaloes, giraffes, hippos, zebras and rhinos. This was also a beautiful experience; it’s one thing to see it on Animal Planet but as you can probably assume, the TV has nothing on first hand experience! Two things I found interesting were the buffaloes, who are actually one of the most (if not THE most) dangerous animal in Africa’s animal kingdom. They, unlike many other animals, give little to no warning signals when they are about to attack. The other thing I found interesting was that even though Buffaloes are dangerous, an elephant walked right past them and there was no sign of any negative hostility or interactions. I asked the tour guide why that was; I didn’t understand, the elephant was huge it would make sense that the two would fight because they are different. The tour guide replied, “They don’t fight because they respect each other.” This simple response came off very deep. I mean, think about it. In our society, in the DMV area, we are all human beings fighting and killing each other for petty stuff. Yet these animals can get along fine just by letting each other be themselves. Maybe, just maybe, we should learn to live with and respect each other like these “animals” do.
We’ve been in Zambia for a week now and I can honestly say that I have already learned a lot about myself. Unfortunately, I’ve been struggling with home sickness for most of the trip. I blame it primarily on the fact that this is my first time out of the country. I miss making my mother and aunt laugh, my own room, listening to music with my dad and painting with brother and many little things. The trip has helped me realize how blessed I am. One can really see how well they are living once they begin to live with the less fortunate. I never thought I would miss things like ice, brushing my teeth with sink water, etc. (tap water isn’t healthy to drink). I know they will mean that much more to me when I get back though. Fortunately, I haven’t let my home sickness affect my trip. I continue to laugh and learn among a great group of individuals who are now all my friends. In closing, Mom, Dad, Gigi and whoever else is reading this; I love you and I miss you. Please be safe and I cannot wait to see you.
Yours truly,
Christopher C.
School Without Walls