victoriafalls – Chanters Lodge Livingstone

The Mufalali Experience

Quite a lot of the music we played on the latest edition of the Chanters Lodge Experience with the Milli Jam Ingredient featuring George da Soulchild Kaufela was related to the late great Nelson Mandela by way of a tribute. ‘The Experience’ is our one hour regular Sunday night radio show live on Zambezi 107.7 fm, Livingstone’s leading local radio station. We opened with Johnny Clegg with Savuka’s briliant ‘Asimbonanga’, our pick of the week was U2’s latest ‘Ordinary Love’ from the soundtrack of ‘Mandela – Long Walk To Freedom’, the new movie about the great man’s life, and we closed with Tracy Chapman’s 80’s smash ‘Freedom Now’ begging the authorities to release Madiba. It was the least we could do.

Our Guest on this show was the inspirational Brenda Mufalali (above) newscaster and presenter on Zambezi 107.7 fm and the only lady so employed at the station! Brenda told listeners that she enjoyed working with all the men and that at least ‘they had a mother’! George and Milli Jam grinned. Brenda has a long history in news and broadcasting in Zambia having worked for Radio Chengelo, Radio Mosi-o-Tunya, Guardian Weekly and Times of Zambia during various moments in the past. She told listeners she had been with Zambezi 107.7 fm for the past three years. Apart from news casting and news gathering Brenda has her own very successful, government sponsored weekly women’s programme on air ‘Women In Success’ which explores and highlights challenges faced by women in Zambia. From time to time she also hosts the breakfast show and does other spots on air too.

Apart from the tracks mentioned above, George treated us to the brand new Ozzy track ‘Komboni Dugude’ great track though no-one seemed to know the meaning, it is the lead single from his new album. Soulchild coupled this track with B1’s ‘Sikiliti Ku Bed’. Milli Jam was in the mood for Jay Z and Katy Perry. Our oldie of the week was ‘You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling’ the classic from the Righteous Brothers but no-one was able to text us the right name of the performing artist so the prize we give each week was not won.

Brenda told listeners that she was single ‘but dating’ and as yet had no children. It seems that this is the first time she has revealed her social/marital status on air as after the show, the question and answer had clearly produced a buzz around the studios! She revealed her hobbies as ballroom dancing, reading and travelling. She loves the Zambian national soccer team (check the shirt in the picture above) and also seemed to vaguely support Manchester United which did not go down well with the other assembled presenters. She holds qualifications from the Ideal College of Commerce as well as a certificate in journalism. She is a ‘staunch catholic’. Her taste in music is 90’s, slow tracks and gospel. Yes, she does sometimes go clubbing….shock, horror in the audience! The biggest challenge in her job? Confirming stories, and editors, in that order!

Asked where she would like to be and what she would like to be doing ten years’ from now Brenda said she would still like to be involved with the media but perhaps not in her present job which should be for younger people by then. She has a serious and great ambition to start and run an orphanage, she herself was an orphan and she wanted to do something for people in a similar predicament. We were sure that with her driven, dynamic, commanding personality she would achieve that!

12
DEC

activities, Africa, broadcasting, children, entertainment, football, livingstone, media, music, News, Publications, radioshow, victoriafalls, Zambia

Akafekwa Mututwa

Akafekwa (above) stepped in as our Guest on the most recent edition of the Chanters Lodge Experience with the Milli Jam Ingredient featuring George Soulchild – that’s our weekly Sunday night radio show airing at 20.30 hrs every Sunday night on Zambezi 107.7 fm, Livingstone’s leading local radio station. The Guest whom we had booked was a ‘no show’ and we were very grateful to Akafekwa for filling the gap. He was a great Guest too!

Akafekwa told listeners that he is the sales manager of a newly established company selling porcelain tiles in Livingstone – ‘Tile Giant’ and that he enjoys the job. An accountant by profession he holds both a certificate in accounting as well as an accounts technicians diploma from NIPA in Lusaka. Before joining Tile Giant he had worked for Chrismar Hotels in Lusaka and here in Livingstone. Tile Giant is located in the same premises as The Hard Rock Cafe in Livingstone which provoked a few questions!

How come Akafekwa was on hand to Guest on our show? Well, he had come to the studio with George following a show that George – a rap musician – had been playing at Taonga Safaris who have a great location on the banks of the Zambezi. The place rocks on Sunday afternoons, just ask the elephants! “How long have you known George?” Milli Jam wanted to know and Mr Mututwa explained that they had been school mates together in Mongu, Western Province and had met up again when he, Akafekwa, arrived in Livingstone some 2 years ago. Akafekwa claimed to be George’s manager and Milli Jam immediately wanted to know ‘where’s the album?’ an FAQ in recent months. “It’s coming, it’s coming” we were told angrily!

The music on the show was good, we opened with our theme ‘Feel The Love’ by Rudimental featuring John Newman. The theme will change in the new year and we already have a few ideas for a new theme for next year. We dropped tracks from One Direction and Calvin Harris. George played Zonefam’s ‘Lobola’ noting that this fab Zambian band had picked up a Channel O Africa award just the previous night! He also played his own track featuring Maji – ‘Enter Enter’. Milli Jam gave us tracks from Alicia Keys and Avicii and our oldie of the week from Justin Bieber. The prize we give to the first person to text us telling us the name of the artist on our oldie of the week was quickly snapped up.

Akafekwa told listeners that his favourite type of music is R&B and that his favourite artist is R Kelly. He is, he explained, a big fan of Manchester United and was quite sanguine about the fact that they had only been able to draw with Spurs that afternoon. Milli Jam and I spent a few moments discussing Arsenal’s position at the top of the EPL while others listened! Akafekwa said he had done quite a lot of the tourist activities available in Livingstone but had never done the bungee jump nor swum in Devil’s Pool. He told listeners that he was married with two sons, the youngest of which was just over one month old. “Awwww” we said! His wife is a teacher at Faith Academy Trust School in Livingstone.

Asked where he would like to be and what he would like to be doing in ten years’ time, our lively laughing Guest told us that he wanted to be a happily married family man with a very successful country wide tile company to his name – a real tile giant in fact! We wished him the best of luck.

6
DEC

Accounts, activities, Business, education, entertainment, football, hotels, livingstone, management, radioshow, victoriafalls, Zambia

The Experience On Call!

Meet Lonny Henderson (left) and Simon Tolmie (above), co-ordinator and trustee respectively of On Call Africa, an NGO founded in Scotland and very active in the Southern Province of Zambia in the field of the provision of mobile medical clinics to the villages in the province. Lonny, an American from Connecticut USA and Simon a Scot from Glasgow were Guests on the most recent edition of the Chanters Lodge Experience with the Milli Jam Ingredient featuring George da Soulchild Kaufela – that’s our weekly radio show on Zambezi 107.7 fm, Livingstone’s leading local radio station. The show airs every Sunday night at 20.30 hrs CAT and features latest Zambian and international music, combined with lively chat with our guests of the week. Chanters Lodge and On Call Africa met on Twitter! Is there any better place to meet?

Lonny told listeners that he and partner Ellen (an education co-ordinator with On Call) had been in Zambia since May this year and were thoroughly enjoying their time in the country and the work they were doing. Simon is a full time doctor in one of Glasgow’s largest hospitals and was using his two weeks’ leave to assess progress on the project. He revealed that he’s largely responsible for generating finance for the NGO through donations, and was happy that recently Rotary International and On Call Africa had forged links that should see the organization move forward and expand. Lonny had been recruited through an on line advert and subsequent interviews via Skype. How times do change!

The music on the show was great and featured tracks from Bastille and Killers at the top of the show. Local tracks from Slap D featuring JK as well as Danny rocked the studio! Milli Jam chose Robin Thicke’s summer smash ‘Blurred Lines’ back to back with a number from John Legend. Our oldie of the week was a local track ‘Coca Cola’ by Oga Family and there was a host of text messages correctly telling us the name of the performing artist, so the prize of a dinner for two at the lodge that we give away for the first right answer, was quickly won!

Simon told listeners that he and his fiancee were planning to get married in June or July so 2014 would be a big year for them. He professed no real interest in football but told us that he followed rugby and cricket. Music wise he said his tastes were very broad. Lonny said the same thing, but in a surprise turn of events he revealed that he was a dedicated Arsenal supporter – ‘unusual for an American but very welcome’ thought Milli Jam! So, we discussed Arsenal’s current place at the top of the EPL while George, a Liverpool supporter, listened! The guys said they had enjoyed a night or two at some of Livingstones’ clubs since they had been in town and enjoyed Zambian music and night life.

As far as challenges were concerned they said that the biggest challenge for On Call Africa was distance. Both the distance that people had to walk to the villages to get basic medical assistance and the distance that the NGO’s not new Land Rover had to travel to meet the needs of the people. The NGO is very much involved in training clinical officers to help meet the rural peoples’ medical needs.

Asked where they would like to be and what they would like to be doing ten years’ from now, both Lonny and Simon said that they would like to be part of a a very successful expanded On Call Africa. We thanked them for appearing on our show and for the great work they were doing for the rural population of Southern Zambia.

28
NOV

2014, Africa, Arsenal, Chanters, cricket, education, entertainment, health, livingstone, medical, music, radioshow, training, Twitter, victoriafalls, Zambia

The Latest Norwegian Experience

Since 2007, when we first launched The Chanters Lodge Experience with the Milli Jam Ingredient featuring George da Soulchild Kaufela, our regular Sunday night radio show, on to an unsuspecting Livingstone public on Zambezi 107.7 fm the city’s leading local radio station, we have had many Guests from Norway on the show, but few as bubbly and lively as Mariell Konstanse Rydningen (and you try saying that on radio!) (left above) and Marita Isaksen!

Mariell and Marita are third year students at the University of Tromso in northern Norway studying for a bachelor’s degree in pre-school teaching. They told listeners they had been in Livingstone for the past two weeks, part of a proposed six week stay, to gain experience at Rainbow School as part of their course. They were staying at Chanters Lodge. Milli Jam wanted to know how they were coping with the extremely hot temperatures the city was experiencing but the girls gave the impression that they loved the hot sun! Marita had been to Africa before (Egypt on holiday) but for Mariell this was her first trip to the continent. Was it what they expected? They weren’t sure but they were loving it, especially the warm and friendly people, if not quite so much the traditional Zambian food, though they had enjoyed eating crocodile meat at Cafe Zambezi in town.

Milli Jam wanted to know how the girls’ families had felt when they had announced that they were ‘off to Africa for a couple of months’ and the girls replied ‘happy’, ‘scared’ and ‘worried about losing control’ in no particular order! George wanted to know if the girls were married or single (he would wouldn’t he?). Mariell announced forcefully ‘I have a boyfriend’ which made Marita laugh at her friend Konstanse, then revealed that she too had a boyfriend back in Norway.

The music on the show was latest with tracks from Martin Garrix, Lily Allen, Exile, B1, Rihanna, Avicii, James Blunt and Dido. Our oldie of the week was Ray Charles’ ‘Hit The Road Jack’ but listeners found it hard to tell us who was the artist on the track and the prize went unwon. My pick of the week was James Blunt’s tribute to Whitney Houston ‘Miss America’.

Milli Jam wanted to know if the girls had had the chance to do any of the many tourist activities available in Livingstone and they replied that they had taken the one day safari to Chobe NP in Botswana, spent a night on Bovu Island and that afternoon had been quad biking. Mariell replied that she’d been quite scared on the river and at night on Bovu Island. They had plans to do quite a few of the other activities available and would also be spending four nights in a village on a volunteer project. They also convinced George and Millii Jam to take them clubbing!

Marita revealed that she was a fan of Manchester United but Mariell had no interest in football. they both loved rock and pop music and Mariell told us that her brother was a successful musician with Tellus Requiem currently touring in Germany warming up for Kamelot.

Asked where they would like to be and what they would like to be doing in ten years’ time, Mariell said that she hoped that she had a good job and the chance to travel, Marita the same but added that she also hoped to have a husband, children and to be driving a station wagon!

Nice show!

21
NOV

activities, Africa, Botswana, broadcasting, Chanters, Chobe, education, entertainment, livingstone, music, Norway, radioshow, sport, victoriafalls, Zambia

Honeymoon Experience!

Meet Monica and George Thompson (above), she from Chingola, Zambia and he originally from Leeds and now from South London, UK. The couple were married in Zambia in September and whilst on their honeymoon staying at Chanters, were our charming and entertaining Guests on the most recent edition of the Chanters Lodge Experience with the Milli Jam Ingredient featuring George da Soulchild. The Experience is our weekly Sunday night radio show on Zambezi 107.7 fm, Livingstone’s leading local radio station, on which we play latest international and Zambian music, chat to our Guests and give away a prize of a dinner for two at the lodge – if a lucky listener can text us quickly telling us who’s the artist on our ‘oldie of the week’. Mutinta won the prize on this show telling us that ‘Lonely’ was recorded by Akon! We also give pertinent social media updates and international chart news on the show.

George and Monica told listeners that they had met about two years ago on a dating site on the internet and had corresponded regularly throughout the intervening period. George had promised Monica that when he came to Zambia, if everything was well between them, they would get married and so it had come to pass! Monica is a nurse at the Nchanga School of Nursing on the Copperbelt though she revealed that she had recently resigned her appointment after 18 years of service. George is semi-retired though he still follows his passion of restoring classic British motor cycles of which he now has as many as fourteen in his personal possession. He revealed that his sons buy him old motor bikes for about 15,000 pounds which sell for as much as 35,000 pounds when restored. Before retirement George had been in the armed forces and then involved with heavy plant shifting for Britain’s sea defences.

The music on the show was nice with latest tracks from Storm Queen, Taylor Swift, Draf-X, Slap D, Miley Cyrus and Chris Brown. My regular ‘pick of the week’ was Future’s ‘Real and True’ featuring Miley Cyrus and Mr Hudson. We closed with Britney Spears’ ‘Perfume’.

We wondered whether George had paid ‘lobola’ to be able to marry Monica and she confirmed that he had – ‘under protest’ – but the amount was not revealed! We also asked whether he had been served the traditional food by Monica’s family that he could expect to eat once they were wed, together with the traditional washing of his hands and feet, and it was confirmed. We laughed when George declared that he could only eat nsima, Zambia’s staple food, when it was ‘treated’ with salt and tomato sauce! Heresy to those Zambians present in the studio! George told listeners he had two sons by previous relationships and Monica two boys and a girl. While they had been in Livingstone they had visited the crocodile park and had taken a game drive in the Mosi-o-Tunya NP as well as going to see the Falls. Monica had been excited to see a giraffe for the first time!

George revealed that his son takes him to watch Arsenal when he’s in London, but as he originated from the north of England he also cares about Leeds United and Manchester United results. He was queried by Milli Jam for such disloyalty to Arsenal! He told listeners that his favourite music is 60’s and that he had recently enjoyed a Rolling Stones concert in Hyde Park, London. Monica said she had no interest in football and when it came to music her taste was gospel music with ‘praise and worship’.

This lovely couple revealed that in ten years’ time George hoped to still be married to Monica, riding motor bikes and eating nsima, Monica that after some years working in UK that they would be happily settled together back in Zambia. We wished them the best of luck!

15
NOV

Africa, Arsenal, Chanters, copperbelt, crocodiles, entertainment, livingstone, music, radioshow, uk, victoriafalls, Zambia

Butterfly Tree Volunteers Rock The Experience!

We were delighted once again to be able to host representatives of the Butterfly Tree Charity on the latest edition of the Chanters Lodge Experience last Sunday night. The Butterfly Tree charity was founded by Jane Kaye-Bailey after a business incentive trip to Zambia with her late husband, Lawrence, in February 2006. During a visit to the Mukuni Village, Jane was determined to find a way to raise funds to help these vulnerable village children.The Experience is usually co-hosted by Milli Jam and George Kaufela but this week George was on his own as Milli Jam was attending his brother’s wedding in Lusaka. Our Guests Jess Varley (left above) and Emma Kennedy from England have been in Livingstone for a few weeks volunteering at the Butterfly Tree. Jess, a nursing graduate has been busy helping at the rural health centre in Mukuni Village whilst Emma, a final year International Development student at the University of Suffolk in Norwich has been more involved with the orphan sponsorship programme.

The girls told listeners that they were thoroughly enjoying their time in Zambia and on 11th November intended to undertake a sixty kilometre walk in the village of Chunga in Chief Mukuni to raise money for the Butterfly Tree. They had chosen this location and route to highlight awareness that some of the children and expectant mothers in that area were obliged to walk 30 kilometres from their homes to school and clinics respectively and then the same distance later in the day to return home. Butterfly Tree hoped to establish a boarding home to help alleviate this situation and funds were required for that.

The music on the show was great as usual. We opened with latest tracks from One Direction and The Wanted, before George dropped Zambian numbers from T-Sean and Exile. After another chat with the girls we moved on to music from South African star Danny K and then Drake. Our oldie of the week was Nelly’s ‘Ride With Me’ and the prize of a dinner for two with drinks at the lodge was snapped up by a certain Chris! My pick of the week was Avril Lavigne featuring Marilyn Manson – Bad Girl. Shades of Suzie Quatro there. We closed with Lady Gaga’s ‘Venus’ which contains the classic line ‘Uranus – Don’t you know my ass is famous’!

The girls told listeners they had been enjoying life in Livingstone and had done loads of the tourist activities including Devil’s Pool on Livingstone Island, the one day safari to Chobe, the microlight and white water rafting. They had not done the bungee jump (George has) but they were planning to do a tandem gorge swing very soon. The had enjoyed some of the Livingstone night life. George asked them about football, Emma supports Norwich where she is at university, Jess Chelsea where she works and George is a Liverpool fan. I, a Gooner, was happy to be able to report two nil, two nil and seven nil defeats for their teams the previous afternoon.

Asked where they would like to be and what they would like to be doing in ten years’ time, Jess hoped to be working for Medicines Sans Frontiers, and Emma to be a project manager with a small NGO – neither of the girls mentioned husbands or children……

7
NOV

activities, Africa, charities, entertainment, health, livingstone, radioshow, victoriafalls, volunteers, Zambia

Like Daughter Like Parents!

A few weeks ago we had the pleasure of hosting Frida Haavik with two of her friends, as Guests on the Chanters Lodge Experience with the Milli Jam Ingredient featuring George Soulchild, our weekly Sunday night radio show airing at 20.30 hrs CAT on Zambezi 107.7 fm, Livingstone’s leading local radio station. Frida is a Norwegian student living in Zambia for some three months as part of her university course in occupational therapy. It was great therefore to be able to welcome Frida’s parents, Janne and Trond Haavik as Guests on the most recent edition of the show. Janne and Trond told our listeners they had jumped at the chance to come to Zambia – visiting Frida making an ideal excuse!

Janne, a kitchen designer and fitter, as well as a part time tour guide in Norway, and Trond, a business consultant live in Nordfjordeid, a stunningly beautiful part of Norway north of Bergen, and have been married for twenty four years, though they have been together for thirty three. “It took her a long time to agree to marry me!” Laughed Trond. “Was it love at first sight?” Milli Jam wanted to know, “for me it was anyway” said Trond. They told listeners they had only arrived in Zambia two days before the show but that they had already been busy. Their first day they had spent in and around Livingstone’s markets shopping, then on the afternoon of the show they had taken a trip out to ‘The Secret Island’ upstream from Victoria Falls where they had a great time with Frida and some of her friends. Janne admitted to having been ‘rather worried’ about the proximity of hippos. They had a two day/ one night safari to Chobe NP in Botswana planned for the day after the show and then they would spend a night in the village with Frida, seeing where she was working and what she was doing.

The music on the show was great, we opened with tracks from Wilkinson and Lawson. George chose Zambian tracks from Crisis Mr Swagger featuring Paul Ngozi as well as Izreal. Milli Jam preferred numbers from Drake and Avicii. Our oldie of the week was ‘That’s What Friends Are For’ a compilation single from the 80’s in aid of HIV Aids support. The track is generally credited to Stevie Wonder and we gave the prize of a lunch for two with drinks and a swim to the listener who texted that answer! Well done Musa! My pick of the week was Katy Perry’s super ‘Legendary Lovers’ and we closed with Eminem’s ‘Rap God’ for George, who raps.

Trond told listeners that one of their favourite artists is Bruce Springsteen and they were lucky enough to have been able to attend two of his concerts in Norway. Sports wise Trond admitted to being a Liverpool supporter, which pleased George and which allowed Milli Jam and I the chance to discuss the relative league positions of that club and Arsenal! Janne explained that back in Norway they love the Biathlon, a combination of cross country skiing and shooting. In certain months of the year at home in Norway, due to the warm water in the fijords from the gulf stream, you could swim and then go skiing, they told listeners. They were happy they had chosen to stay at Chanters Lodge during their visit to Zambia.

Asked where they would like to be and what they would like to be doing ten years from now, Trond replied that it would be nice to be in Zambia helping Zambian businesses develop and grow, while Janne said she would be at home in Norway looking after their small farm and their horses.

What funny, loving and happy parents Frida is lucky to have!

25
OCT

activities, Africa, Chanters, entertainment, music, Norway, radioshow, tourism, victoriafalls, Zambia

Rates

At Chanters Lodge we are happy to announce, for the first time, low season (now until March 31st) and high season (April 1st 2014 – October 31st 2014) room rates!

Our room rates are all inclusive of taxes, service charge, English breakfast, free transfers within Livingstone on arrival and departure if required, as well as free wifi (subject to availability).

Low season rates are here
High season here

We do give discounts for groups or for long staying Guests, and also grant commission on these rates to bona fide travel agents.

There are special rates for Zambian Guests whatever the season!

We believe our well established and recommended lodge represents great value for money in Livingstone and hope you agree!

23
OCT

Chanters, livingstone, rates, victoriafalls

Kaufela Close Up!

Milli Jam and I decided to turn the tables on one of our co-presenters on the latest edition of the Chanters Lodge Experience with the Milli Jam Ingredient featuring George da Soulchild and put George (above) in the chair as the Guest! It was not the first time he’s featured but it had been a long time since we heard from him and we felt our newer listeners should get some insight into George, his past and his ambitions. It was fascinating stuff! ‘The Experience’ is our weekly Sunday night radio show airing on Zambezi 107.7 fm, Livingstone’s leading local radio station, for an hour from 20.30 hrs CAT.

Milli Jam wanted to know how long George had been with Zambezi fm and how he came to be employed in the first place. George told listeners that he’d served for between four and five years. He had been on holiday in Livingstone and had been making some guest appearances at one of Livingstone’s other radio stations when he received a call from the then general manager of Zambezi fm, Chanda Mfula, who had asked him to come and audition with Zambezi fm. He had been successful, following which he was sent to SkyFM, another Southern Province radio station, for further training. George had worked for an organization called Africa Innovations before this lucky break. I offered the opinion on air that I was not surprised that he had been quickly snapped up by Zambezi FM as he had a natural radio voice – and he has!

“How long have you been singing”? Milli Jam asked, and George told our listeners that he had first started rapping in secondary school, covering hits by the likes of Snoop Dogg and others. He had recorded his first single in 2003 with Leo Muntu and subsequently had recorded about 12 singles. He rated the best of these as his new one ‘Enter Enter’ as well as another called ‘Your Smile’. He rated his best live shows as ones that had happened on the Copperbelt, Sesheke and one he had played across in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe.

The music on or show was good. We dropped tracks from Conor Maynard and Miley Cyrus (who else) at the top of the show. Before he knew he would be appearing as the guest George had chosen work from Exile as well as Mr Vezzy. Milli Jam played numbers from Justin Timberlake and Katy Perry. Our oldie of the week was Alicia Keys’ ‘Sleeping With A Broken Heart’ and the prize we give to the first listener to text us the name of the performing artist was quickly snapped up by Raphael amongst a flood of contestants. My pick of the week was James Blunt’s ‘Heroes’ and we closed with a track from The Saturdays.

Milli Jam referred to George’s recent bungee jumping exploits and asked if he had been scared. George replied that he had not, but that his Granny had been very frightened when he had shown her the video of the jump! Asked why he supported Liverpool football club, our guest did not give a satisfactory reply but told us that his favourite player was Steven Gerrard. We asked him how he managed to get up so early every morning to host the breakfast show and he said ‘you get used to it’!. He revealed that he would soon become an uncle as his sister was expecting a baby. He thanked Father Cletus from Radio Mosi-o-Tunya for the guidance he had given him in his early years of broadcasting.

Asked where he would like to be and what he would like to be doing in 10 years’ time, George told listeners that he would like to be highly successful in broadcasting and music, and would like to own his own radio station. We wished him the best of luck and thanked him for his service to our show!

17
OCT

activities, Africa, charities, communications, copperbelt, entertainment, entrepreneurship, livingstone, music, radioshow, recording, victoriafalls, zambezi, Zambia, Zimbabwe

American Girls Rock The Experience!

Meet Kristen Sawyer and Amber Lind (above left to right) – American girls and our Guests on the most recent edition of The Chanters Lodge Experience with the Milli Jam Ingredient featuring George ‘Kaufela’. The Experience is our weekly radio show going out live every Sunday night for an hour at 20.30 hrs CAT, on Zambezi 107.7 fm, Livingstone’s leading local radio station. Both girls are from Pennsylvania though Kristen now lives in Boston, Mass. – they met at school ‘way back’ they told listeners, and although they now live in different places they meet up most years for vacations. Kristen is a physiotherapist and Amber an IT specialist.

The girls had been staying at Chanters Lodge at the end of a two week safari that started in Johannesburg and ended in Livingstone, camping all they way. They were mighty relieved to find big comfortable beds and an en suite bathroom waiting for them at Chanters at the end of their trip! They told of roaring lions outside their tents at night in Botswana, together with honey badgers and other animals running around the camp. ‘Scary?’ We wondered. “Only slightly!” Replied Kirsten! Altogether we gathered they had had a wonderful trip, being their first to Africa. It had included a one hour flight over the Okavango Delta, cheaper we noted than a fifteen minute flight over Victoria Falls. After arriving in Livingstone they had swum in Devil’s Pool on Livingstone Island just a meter away from the edge of the Falls and had even dangled over the edge. They loved it! They had also enjoyed a visit to Zimbabwe to see the Falls from that side and had dined on salad with crocodile meat while they were there!

The music on the show was great. We opened with tracks from Example and Coldplay – both latest, while George dropped new releases from Zone-Fam and T-Boy in his Zambian spot. Milli Jam chose tracks from French Montana featuring Nicki Minaj, as well as Bruno Mars’ beautiful ‘Locked Out Of Heaven’. Our oldie of the week was Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers ‘Running Down A Dream’ but the prize we give on each show to the first person to text us the name of the performing artist went unwon! My pick of the week was Ellie Goulding’s gorgeous ‘How Long Will I Love You’.

To George’s excitement the girls told listeners that they were both single, although Kristen had a boyfriend waiting for her back in Boston. They both loved snow skiing and in their anxiety to leave for Africa had recently been on a skiing weekend to try to curb their excitement. The girls are American Football fans and Kristen a keen supporter of the Red Socks. Amber said she loved country music and ‘like Richard’ was a fan of Darius Rucker. They had chosen to stay at Chanters as they had wanted a downtown location, the price suited them and the lodge had great reviews on TripAdvisor. They had not been disappointed.

Asked where they would like to be and what they would like to be doing in ten years’ time, Amber wanted to be still living in Pennsylvania near her family, hoped to have children and still to be travelling. Kristen wanted to be living in north east USA, working as a physiotherapist and married with children.

Great girls! Great show!

19
SEP

activities, Africa, Botswana, Chanters, crocodiles, entertainment, food, guests, helicopter, livingstone, music, radioshow, tourism, usa, victoriafalls, Zambia, Zimbabwe

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