Good morning! (mwa shibukeni, according to my Bemba cheat sheet)

Well, it’s 2 in the morning. And I’m half way through my morning stretches and work. Jetlag is still having its fun with me.

I go to bed punctually at 9:00 at night, night mask installed. Dedicatingly without any caffeine or sugar after noon. But every night like rule, somewhere after 11 at night (yup, after 2 hours of sleep – which, for the record, is even short for me in napping terms), I am fully awake.

Fully awake. Me and the barking dogs. For the next six hours or so. Me and my yoga, and music, and current book, and an episode or two of pirated video, and my work. And then I’m back in bed around 5, to sleep for a few hours, get up and start the day.

If it were not that I was here in Zambia, I wouldn’t have the adrenaline keeping me running through the days, and I’d probably be a little grumpy. But here I am. Ndola, a large mining town to the north of this beautiful country.

It’s my first time to Zambia, and I’m living with SpanAfrica’s Regional Director Kenneth. Kenneth and I met (most briefly) back in 2007 at an International Prison conference we were attending in Toronto.

Long story short – I broke out of prison about 2 years ago, and have made my way to Zambia to avoid being discovered. But it’s really great seeing Kenneth after all this time.

I’m staying in his wonderful home with his family. For the arrival of myself and Amos (another SpanAfrica Team member, and my good friend from Kenya), the Kasweshi’s had posted “Rule Sheets” throughout the house.  The lists generally stated “We love you, and feel most at home”.  – and we do!

They think I walk too fast, that I talk too much, that I work and study too much, that I need to get fat, and the fact that I use cold water to wash in the morning is hilarious. Every time I attempt a phrase of Bemba, I get a roar of laughter and encouragement from some room in the house

We’re getting along famously. Having a whole lot of fun together. It feels like we’ve been living together for months and months, and this has quickly felt just like home.

I’ll need to take some time painting you a picture of Zambia. It’s one of the least dense countries in Africa. Amos is enthralled by the huge fields of wild grass that are left to grow free, and I’m loving how smooth the roads are, and the fact the Supah-marts sell mayonnaise.  Life is relaxed. You can spend millions of kwacha without breaking a sweat.

I brought my paints, but it won’t be until Amos heads back to Kenya (in six short days) that I actually get a proper break when I can crack ‘em out. Amos, Kenneth, and I are here planning and collaborating all the work SpanAfrica takes part of here in Africa. Our daily sessions are long, huge, give my run-ons quite the space to breathe, and enjoyed by all of us. Enjoyed as long as we can keep our eyes open.

I have paragraph after paragraph of thoughts that I want to share with you all, but will keep this a blog, and not novel. We have lots planned for the day. And I have the feeling that I will also have an entire night once again, to share with my thoughts, my book, and the barking wild dogs.

Mwa shibukeni (I need to keep practicing this…)

Big smile,

Cam