victoriafalls – Chanters Lodge Livingstone

David Eliff – From Brazil to ‘The Experience’

Meet David Eliff, an Englishman living in Santos, Brazil, and Guest on the most recent edition of the Chanters Lodge Experience with the Milli Jam Ingredient featuring Kaufela. ‘The Experience’ is our weekly Sunday night radio show airing from 20.30 hrs to 21.30 hrs on Zambezi 107.7 fm, Livingstone’s leading local radio station. It was the first time we’ve had a Guest hailing from Brazil on the show, so Milli Jam and George wanted to know a lot about Brazil, the football, the girls, the Carnival and the Amazon! David did his best to satisfy their curiosity!

David explained to listeners that he had moved to Brazil after meeting his Brazilian wife Yara in Norway where they were both working. The couple had tried living in Scotland for a while but eventually decided to move back to Brazil. He reported that they will have been married for 25 years this year and in May planned to take a trip together back to Norway as part of their anniversary celebrations. David said that he is a geologist by training but when he and Yara moved back to Brazil he had first worked as a teacher of English to advanced level students. These days he works as a translator of scientific documents from Portugese into English, working free lance. His wife is a doctor of medicine and they have three daughters. David speaks several languages.

The music on the show was good. We opened with a track from Nina Nesbitt back to back with PSY’s new smash ‘Gentleman’. George chose Magg 44 with ‘Shipikisha Club’ coupled with Macky 2 ft K’Millien’s ‘No More Love’ for his Zambian tracks. Milli Jam dropped tracks from DJ Vetkuk and Drake. He chose Destiny’s Child with ‘Soldier’ as our oldie of the week. Listeners get the chance to text us the name of the performing artist on the track to try to win a dinner for two at the lodge. It was a tricky one as most people texted ‘Beyonce’. Milli Jam declared himself the winner! David said his favourite bands were Yes and Jethro Tull.

Our Guest told listeners that he had very much enjoyed a one day safari to Chobe NP in Botswana during his stay. He was fascinated to see vultures waiting for a buffalo, killed by lions, to die, so that they could eat the remains. ‘They don’t always wait until you’re dead’ commented Milli Jam cryptically. David had found the Victoria Falls ‘stunning’ and he was very much looking forward to a rhino walk in the Mosi-o-Tunya NP the following day. He told listeners he had chosen Chanters Lodge after research on the internet. He is widely travelled in Africa and has visited African countries as far apart as Ethiopia and Morocco.

Asked where he would like to be and what he would like to be doing in ten years’ time, David told listeners he would like to be in good health, living in Brazil and still having the opportunity to travel.

17
APR

Africa, Botswana, Brazil, Chobe, entertainment, guests, music, radioshow, victoriafalls, Zambia

Heartspring Pulls At The Heartstrings On ‘The Experience’!

Heartspring is a Christian orphanage located in Livingstone, Zambia and is presently the home for 28 orphan boys and 32 girls. It is overseen by a Board of Directors composed of 8 Christian men and women from Livingstone. Jacob Sianungu is the Chairman of the Board. JL Brazell (pictured above with Janice Soudbash) originally met Jacob in Swaziland when they were both involved in a mission there and together started Heartspring. We were delighted to welcome JL (for the second time) and Janice as Guests on the latest edition of the Chanters Lodge Experience with the Milli Jam Ingredient featuring George da Soulchild. ‘The Experience’ is our regular Sunday night radio show on Zambezi 107.7 fm, Livingstone’s leading local radio station airing from 20.30-21.30 hrs CAT, and streaming live on the internet. (In this regard we were delighted to get a message during the show from Esmail Jasat in London who was listening to the stream).

Janice and JL told listeners that they were tired from dancing with the children at the Orphanage almost the whole of that day but that they had loved the interaction. They were delighted with the way the orphanage was growing and developing and they felt that the future was bright for the children in care. They emphasised that none of the children would be ‘thrown out’ of the orphanage at a certain age unless they had a secure future. Janice and JL were part of a group of six sponsors of the orphanage staying at Chanters Lodge, and in Zambia to check on the progress of the institution. JL, fund raiser supreme, told listeners that the best way to get people to help sponsor the project was to bring them over to show them the work being done. Janice lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico while JL lives in Kansas to be close to his grandchildren. We learned that both JL and Janice have been married to their respective partners for more than 50 years!

We opened the show with Zambia’s latest smash hit track ‘Sinjonjo’ by Zonefam which surely had the Chanters Girls dancing back at the lodge – and the children in the orphanage too if they were listening! Sinjonjo was played back to back with Charlie Brown’s ‘On My Way’. George featured tracks by Zambia’s JK and Salma. Milli Jam favoured Davido and Taylor Swift. George’s choice of Elton John’s ‘Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word’ as oldie of the week had everyone fooled and no-one won the prize we give each week to the first person to text us telling us who is the performing artist on the track! We won!

JL and Janice told listeners that they and their group had spent some days in Kruger NP in South Africa before coming to Zambia on this trip and had managed to see ‘The Big Five’. They had also visited Swaziland. It was Janice’s first visit to Zambia and she had been suitably impressed by Victoria Falls. She told listeners that she had a daughter living in Burkino Fasso whom she hoped to visit next year. Her son-in-law was involved with Living Water International in that country.

Asked where they would like to be and what they would like to be ten years’ from now, JL said he would like to be driving his own car with grand-children in the back screaming and yelling, Janice that she hoped still to be in good health and travelling. We thanked them for their work with Heartspring and for giving up their time to appear on our show.

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APR

activities, Africa, charities, children, education, entertainment, livingstone, music, radioshow, rsa, travel, usa, victoriafalls, Zambia

Jobless, Homeless But Live On The Experience!

No, not George Kaufela, Milli Jam or even me! But the Guests on the most recent edition of The Chanters Lodge Experience with the Milli Jam Ingredient featuring Kaufela, our weekly Sunday night radio show airing on Zambezi 107.7 fm in Livingstone, Zambia. Australians Lyn and Malcolm Macdonald (pictured above with Milli Jam) explained to listeners that before setting off on their round the world trip which had brought them to this country, they had given up their jobs, sold the boat that had been their home and taken off! They’d arrived in Zambia a few days earlier, having taken the Tazara train from Dar-es-Salaam in Tanzania to Kapiri Mposhi in Zambia. The journey takes days – the Macdonalds described it as ‘a great adventure’.

Malcolm had been a doctor specializing in tropical medicine in the far north of Australia, wife Lyn was a nurse by training, subsequently involved with public health. They had been living in Cairns and working in remote places mostly involved with treating Aboriginal people. They were also engaged in an humanitarian refugee programme. Our Guests told listeners that this was the first time either of them had been to Zambia. They had visited Tanzania as Malcolm had worked in that country more than twenty years ago and had wanted to go back and see old friends, which they had done. They had stayed for one night in Lusaka after their epic train journey, choosing Wayside Guest House with which they declared themselves to be very satisfied. They had flown to Livingstone on Proflight.

The music on the show was appealing to various tastes. We opened the show with tracks from The Saturdays ft Sean Paul (‘How About Us’ number one in UK as we went on air) and Madcon. George chose Zambian music from Roberto featuring himself (!) and then a track by T-Sean. Milli Jam went for Alicia Keys and Jessica Sanchez ft Ne-Yo. He chose a track from Eric Benet as the oldie of the week and the prize of a dinner for two at the lodge was quickly snapped up! My pick of the week was Kodaline’s ‘High Hopes’. We closed with John Legend’s ‘The Beginning’.

Malcolm and Lyn described their first view of the Falls as ‘a bit of a fairy tale’. They had loved the full flow of water prevalent at this time of the year and described the experience as ‘spectacular’. They had climbed down to the Boiling Point as well going on to the main bridge between Zambia and Zimbabwe, resisting the temptation to bungee jump – they had a myriad of excuses for not doing so! As one does have! They had rounded off their day with lunch at The Royal Livingstone which they had loved. They were looking forward to a microlight flight over the Falls as well as the sunset cruise on Lady Livingstone the following day. They were planning a few days in Botswana before flying back to Australia for a short break, then heading off for China and the Far East.

This lively, interesting and outgoing couple told listeners that they had been married for 12 years and that there had been nothing like love at first sight! Between them they had seven children and six grandchildren whom they adored! Asked where they would like to be and what they would like to be doing in ten years’ time, they said they would like to be retired, living in tropical Northern Australia, raising chickens, growing fruit and vegetables and all the while spoiling their grand children.

Sounded like a good idea to us!

29
MAR

activities, Africa, Australia, Botswana, Chanters, Chobe, entertainment, Lusaka, medical, music, radioshow, Tanzania, travel, victoriafalls, Zambia

Solborg Folk On ‘The Experience’!

Once again we were delighted to welcome a group of Norwegians as Guests on the latest edition of ‘The Chanters Lodge Experience with the Milli Jam Ingredient featuring Kaufela’, our regular Sunday night radio show airing on Zambezi 107.7 fm, Livingstone’s leading local radio station, from 20.30 – 21.30 hrs live each week. Meet (from left to right above) Caroline Nordahl, Terje Todnem and Simen Hauge, all from Solborg Folk High School in Stavanger. Terje explained that “Norwegian Folk High Schools are one-year boarding schools offering a variety of exciting non-traditional and non-academic subjects, as well as academic subjects. The idea of folk high schools is learning for life, an opportunity to grow both individually, socially, and academically in small learning communities”. He also informed us that Solborg has 150 students and 8 courses. Caroline and Simen were part of a sports course.

Terje is one of the teachers at Solborg and Caroline and Simen students at the same institution. The three were part of a group of fifteen staying at Chanters Lodge as part of their visit to Zambia. Terje told listeners that he usually took a group to Kenya during the Norwegian winter, but had hesitated to do so this year due to the elections in that country and the possible threat of violence. He had chosen Zambia instead. He said he was happy that he had done so and that he and the students were having a great time in this country.

The students told listeners that they had spent time in Lusaka as well as in Kafue National Park before moving down to Livingstone where they had, amongst other activities, spent two nights living in a village some 20 kms from Livingstone. “How was it?” We wondered. “Interesting!” Seemed to be the reply! “No electricity and purely Zambian food” They added! The group had also had a wonderful two day one night safari to Chobe NP in Botswana and had been excited to see both lion and leopard, as well of course, as hundreds of elephant. For all of the group it was their first visit to Zambia.

The music on the show was great, featuring tracks from Maroon 5, Bastille, K.Koke ft Rita Ora and Justin Timberlake. George dropped tracks from Mampi – ‘Nikutantule’ (‘let me put you out of stock’!) and our very own Shyman’s ‘Longa Katundu’ (‘pack your bags if you’re being abused’). Milli Jam featured awesome tracks from Emeli Sande and Brandy. Our oldie of the week was a Buddy Holly track ‘Peggy Sue Got Married’ but no-one could text us the name of the artist on the record to win the prize of a dinner for two at the lodge! I won! (I’d watched the movie of the same name during the week!).

Whilst in Livingstone for a few days following the show, the group would have a ‘Surprise Day’ the next day and then would continue with school visits and interacting with the local population which was part and parcel of their visit to Zambia. Surprisingly Milli Jam did not start interrogating our Guests about relationships on this show! Our Guests did not show a huge amount of interest in football, though Caroline admitted to being a Manchester United fan and Simen Real Madrid. Simen, Caroline and Terje told listeners that they were very excited to have been granted an audience with former Zambian Republican President Dr Kenneth Kaunda before their return to Norway, and that they were very much looking forward to the meeting in Lusaka.

Asked where they would like to be and what they would like to be doing 10 years from now, Simen said he wanted to be involved in sales and marketing as well as boxing, telling listeners that he was a former junior amateur boxing champion back in Norway. Caroline wanted to be involved in helping people with special needs such as Down’s Syndrome. Terje hoped to be retired but still bringing groups to Africa twice per year and given their great experience this year in Zambia, he hoped this country would be very much on their itinerary!

We wished the group the best of luck for the rest of their visit to Zambia, and in the future.

24
MAR

activities, Africa, Botswana, Chanters, Chobe, education, entertainment, Kafue, Kenya, livingstone, Lusaka, music, Norway, victoriafalls, Zambia

Norwegian Educators On ‘The Experience’

“How do I pronounce your surname?” I asked Geir and Brit Hoass (pictured above) on our way to the studio last Sunday for the latest edition of ‘The Chanters Lodge Experience with the Milli Jam Ingredient featuring Kaufela’. “Hoowass” was the reply. “It means ‘high hill’ in Norwegian” they added helpfully! ‘The Experience’ is the radio show we sponsor weekly on Sunday nights from 20.30-21.30 hrs on Zambezi 107.7fm, Livingstone’s leading local radio station. The show is a mixture of latest international and Zambian music, interspersed by chat with our weekly Guests.The show’s popularity is enhanced locally each week when we give away a dinner for two with drinks at the lodge to one lucky listener – usually to the first person to text us the name of the artist singing our ‘oldie of the week’.

Geir and Brit told listeners that they had been in Zambia for some ten days and in Livingstone for the past week. They were in the country to renew links between Oslo University College in Norway and Mindolo Ecumenical Foundation on the Copperbelt, as well as David Livingstone College of Education in Livingstone. This humble and friendly couple are both teachers of student teachers in Oslo, specializing in ‘early childhood studies’ – kindergarten they explained. There is a programme of student exchange between Zambia and Norway – Geir and Brit were happy to report that they had successfully concluded negotiations with both Zambian institutions. It was Geir’s fourth visit to Zambia but for Brit it was her first time to visit the country and she reported that she was ‘loving it’! They said that twelve students from Norway could be expected soon in Zambia, split between Kitwe and Livingstone.

The music on the show was good. We opened with the latest from Iyaz – ‘Da Da Da’ (brilliant title!) back to back with Justin Timberlake’s ‘Mirrors’ – number one in UK as we went on air. George chose Zambian tracks from Salma ft O. c and their track ‘Folo Folo’, as well as MackyZ ft K’Millian with no more love. Milli Jam dropped Thrift Shop by Macklemore and Ne-Yo’s ‘Get In’. We closed with Bastille’s smash ‘Pompeii’.

Brit and Geir told listeners about the one day safari to Chobe National Park in Botswana they had enjoyed the previous day and thrilled our audience with their account of seeing a lion on an impala kill – though they admitted to having some sympathy for the impala. “Lunch!” I said. They had also seen a multitude of elephant – as you do in Chobe and a plethora of other animals too. They had loved the Victoria Falls and said that although there were waterfalls in Norway there was nothing like that! They were very much looking forward to their lion encounter and sunset cruise the following day.

Asked why they had chosen Chanters Lodge Geir said that on previous occasions he had stayed at backpackers but as this time he was travelling with his wife, he preferred a higher standard of establishment. They said they had been very happy at Chanters, especially with the food and the staff. They greeted Patrick Kayawe at David Livingstone College Of Education, telling listeners that he was one person in Livingstone who had done so much for student exchange visits.

Asked where they would like to be and what they would like to be doing in ten years’ time, they replied that they would like to be retired, enjoying their grand daughter, travelling and perhaps volunteering back in Africa.

8
MAR

activities, Africa, Chobe, education, entertainment, livingstone, music, Norway, radioshow, victoriafalls, wildlife, Zambia

‘Nearly’ Doctors Rock The Experience!

“Is there a doctor in the house?” We wondered at the start of the latest edition of ‘The Chanters Lodge Experience with the Milli Jam Ingredient featuring Kaufela’. That’s our weekly Sunday night radio show airing at 20.30 hrs CAT for an hour on Zambezi 107.7 fm, Livingstone’s leading local radio station. Why? Well Adam Moody and Courtney Fiebig (pictured above) are both medical students in the final phase of their training and hence are ‘nearly doctors’!

The guys explained to listeners that as part of their course they have to spend eight weeks working in hospitals overseas, and they were spending four of those weeks working at Livingstone General Hospital while staying at Chanters Lodge. Adam said that his first four weeks he had spent at a hospital in Soweto, South Africa while Courtney had worked in Hanoi, Vietnam. Did they enjoy South Africa and Vietnam respectively? ‘Challenging’ seemed to be the word.

Both Adam and Courtney hail from Sydney, Australia and are single. Courtney has a fiancee back in Australia, also a doctor, while Adam admitted he’d been going out with the same girl for a mere 13 years. We teased him as to when he would tie the knot but didn’t really get a satisfactory answer! Adam and Courtney are both students at the University of Sydney, and for both of these bright, cheerful and clever young people, medicine was their second university degree. Adam had run away from engineering, while Courtney had found herself working in a hospital after her first degree and realised that medicine was what she wanted to do!

The music on the show was good. We opened with One Direction’s charity single for comic relief – a cover of Blondie’s ‘One Way Or Another’, back to back with ‘Falling’ from Haim. George chose Shyman’s new single ‘Longa Katundu’ featuring Shimasta, coupled with JK’s ‘Allow Me’. Milli Jam played Justin Timberlake’s beautiful ‘Mirrors’ along with Rihanna’s ‘Diamonds’. Our oldie of the week was ‘Guys Do It All The Time’ a tribute to Mindy McCready the American country star, recently sadly passed away. I picked Mariah Carey’s ‘Almost Home’ as my track of the week.

Adam and Courtney told us that Adam had been doing more of the tourist activities available in Livingstone than Courtney, as Courtney was visiting Livingstone for the second time and had done many of the popular activities before. They had both, of course, been to Victoria Falls – and gotten drenched – as you do at this time of the year. Adam had taken the helicopter flight over the Falls and had also done the rhino walk in our local Mosi-o-Tunya national park and thoroughly recommended this great activity. The guys had been to Chobe in Botswana for an overnight with four safari activities and had enjoyed that too! They told the presenters that they had chosen Chanters Lodge for their four week stay in Livingstone based on the lodge’s reviews on Trip Advisor, its location and the good rates on offer for a long stay. They said it had worked out well.

Asked where they would like to be and what they would like to be doing in ten years’ time Adam said he would like be only working part time and to have plenty of time for fishing, while Courtney hoped to be married with two children and living by the beach. They both favoured going into general practice when they had qualified rather than any specialization. They went on to thank the people of Livingstone and in particular the staff at Livingstone General Hospital for being so welcoming and hospitable toward them during their stay.

1
MAR

activities, Africa, Australia, Botswana, Chanters, Chobe, entertainment, livingstone, medical, radioshow, training, victoriafalls, Zambia

‘Boss Lady’ Bosses ‘The Experience’!

“You’ve brought ‘The Boss Lady’ to the show!” exclaimed Milli Jam happily when Annastasia Katele and I walked into the studios of Zambezi 107.7 fm, Livingstone’s leading local radio station, for the latest edition of the ‘Chanters Lodge Experience with the Milli Jam Ingredient featuring Kaufela’. The Experience is our weekly Sunday night radio show, comprising a cool mixture of international and Zambian music with lively chat between tracks, airing from 20.30 – 21.30 hrs CAT to a 70 km radius around Livingstone, as well as streaming live on the internet.

Anny doesn’t need much introduction (there she is in the photo above with ‘Kaufela’) to regular blog readers and supporters of Chanters Lodge. She told listeners that she’d been the assistant manager at Chanters for the past three years and had actually been employed at the lodge for the past 10 – it would be her 10th anniversary in May. “The lodge will have been open for 15 years in July” I said, “we’d better have a party in June to celebrate both ‘birthdays’!” “Oh yes!” said the presenters eagerly, who are always up for a party, drinks or lunch, whatever might be available! Anny explained that she had first joined the lodge as a trainee, following her catering course at the Youth Community Training Centre in Livingstone, and had then proceeded to work in the kitchen, restaurant, housekeeping and reception sections before her promotion to assistant manager. Milli Jam wanted to know the biggest challenge in her job. “Those girls!” Anny exclaimed apparently referring to the rest of the ‘Chanters Girls’- our staff! “They don’t give me any problems” I commented helpfully, some would say snidely! “You’re a man!” said Anny, pointedly.

The music on this edition of the show was seriously ‘latest’. ‘White Noise’ from Disclosure back to back with Gabrielle Aplin’s ‘Please Don’t Say You Love Me’ opened the programme. George played two tracks from Pompi’s popular new Zambian album ‘Mizu’ meaning ‘Roots’ – a charming blend of songs sung in both vernacular and English. Milli Jam dropped tracks from Swedish House Mafia and his favourite Ne-Yo. Our oldie of the week was ‘Step By Step’ from Whitney Houston and the prize awarded to the first listener to text us the name of the performing artist was quickly snapped up. My pick of the week was Avicii vs Nicky Romero’s ‘I Could Be The One’ – debuting at number one in UK as we went on air.

Anny told listeners that she has a daughter Maryam age 14 currently in Grade 9 and doing well in school. Her favourite music is gospel (despite her Islamic faith) and R&B – her favourite singer Chris Brown – and her favourite football team Arsenal. She told listeners that a large part of her job was recommending and booking activities for Guests, saying that the sunset cruise and one day safari to Chobe were amongst the most popular, as well as swimming in Devil’s Pool in the dry season. She expressed the wish that operators were more timely with their payments! I concurred! The presenters wanted to know why ‘The Boss Lady’ spent more time at the front desk than in her super office. “I love company!” she said and so she does.

Asked where she would like to be and what she would like to be doing in ten years’ time, Annastasia said she would love to own her own restaurant as she loved cooking! I’m sure she will – in the meantime we hope she continues to be the loyal, honest, hard working and talented manager she has become at Chanters Lodge!

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FEB

activities, Africa, Arsenal, Chanters, Chobe, entertainment, livingstone, management, music, staff, training, victoriafalls, Zambia

Tromsoe University Rocks ‘The Experience!’

After the opening theme of our Sunday night radio show – ‘The Chanters Lodge Experience with the Milli Jam Ingredient featuring Kaufela’ which airs weekly between 20.30 and 21.30 hours on Zambezi 107.7 fm, Livingstone’s leading local radio station – Milli Jam always asks me to introduce our Guests. Usually this is not an issue but on the most recent edition the Guests (pictured above left to right) were Oystein Lund, Tove Leming and Lars Rotvold and if you’re not Norwegian, as they are, one can struggle with the names, and one did!

Oystein, Tove and Lars are lecturers at the University of Tromsoe in the far north of Norway where temperatures can drop to as low as -20C and where in mid-winter the sun does not come up and in mid-summer it does not go down! “A very different climate from Livingstone!” I remarked to which the response was “yes this place is hot!” Oystein is an expert in information and communications technology, Tove in social sciences and Lars in organizational skills and leadership. The group were visiting Livingstone to follow up Tromsoe University’s long standing links with the David Livingstone College of Education – DALICE, which has seen Norwegian student teachers visit DALICE and Zambian teachers trained in Tromsoe in the past. “Gosh!” I wondered “how did the Zambians cope with those cold temperatured?” With difficulty seemed to be the consensus of opinion.

Our Norwegian visitors were very much into the music we played on the show, and reminisced about a 2005 concert in Tromsoe featuring Peter Gabriel and Johnny Clegg which Nelson Mandela had attended in person, at which they had been excited members of the audience. On this edition we opened with tracks from Bingo Players featuring Far East Movement then Muse. George played Zambian tracks by Mampi and Bryan. Milli Jam chose Usher featuring Will.i.am and Timbaland. Our oldie of the week, when listeners can win a dinner for two at the lodge if they can text us correctly naming the performing artist, was by Mario Vasquez and to my surprise the prize was won. My pick of the week was Ellie Goulding’s ‘Explosions’ and we closed with Amelia Lily. Our Guests told us about the popularity of Admiral P in Norway, a rapper with a Zambian mum and Norwegian dad who rapped in Norwegian. “Bring it on!” We said!

Tove told listeners that at one time in the 80’s she had worked in the north of Zambia in the agricultural sector and had a love for the country and its people. Lars had visited the country before but it was Oystein’s first visit. The group had enjoyed a sunset cruise on the Zambezi and a visit to the Falls during their stay, and that day they had taken the one day safari to Chobe NP in Botswana which they had very much enjoyed, despite not being lucky enough to see big cats. Talking about tourist activities we took the chance to update listeners on the ‘Red Nose Hell And High Water Challenge’ which will see five UK celebrities travel 100 kms of the Zambezi by canoe, raft etc camping on the banks of the Zambezi all the way in aid of comic relief. The challenge was being fully covered by BBC Radio 1. Mel C, Greg James and the other participants hoped to raise a million pounds for the education of children in Zambia.

Asked where they would like to be and what they would like to be doing our cheerful, and happy Guests told us they would still like to be working at the University of Tromsoe and fully involved with Africa. Great Guests, good music, nice show – as usual!

31
JAN

activities, Africa, Botswana, Chanters, education, entertainment, livingstone, music, Norway, radioshow, victoriafalls, wildlife, Zambia

Dr Margaret Sherrat

Dr Margaret Sherrat (above), Guest on the most recent edition of The Chanters Lodge Experience with The Milli Jam Ingredient told us before we went on air ‘I don’t want to talk about myself’! And indeed she did not! We did manage to garner that she was a doctor in an inner city practice in the city of Newcastle in the north east of England, that she had been doing the job for some thirty years and that it was a pretty tough assignment. We also gathered that she was active in her church and that one way or another she had done a lot for charitable causes, the vulnerable and for people with problems. We loved her humility as she started to tell listeners all about how difficult it was to live in the north of England in the middle of winter when all the ice and snow made getting to work so difficult!

Margaret was staying at Chanters Lodge with a friend from England of Zimbabwean origin and told listeners that she had found out about our lodge from two guide books – Lonely Planet and Bratt’s Guide to Zambia. She and her friend were happy with the lodge and the friendly staff. They had been to see Victoria Falls from both sides of the border and had been amazed at its size and beauty. They had taken a sunset cruise on the Zambezi from the Zimbabwean side which they had enjoyed, especially as they had seen a lot of wildlife in and on the banks of the river. They had clambered down to the boiling point by rapid number one on the Zambian side, and Margaret told listeners that this had reminded her of fell or mountain walking in UK which was one of her hobbies.

Dr Sherrat explained that she preferred classical music and that her favourite composer was Chopin. On this show we gave her some of the latest international and Zambian popular music from artists such as Justin Timberlake, Jay-Z, 50 Cent, Eminem and Adam Levine. George dropped tracks from Mampi as well as Angozed a Zambian/Angolan combo with a great track translated as ‘Move Your Body’. We speculated that the Chanters Girls listening back at the lodge would be doing exactly that! Milli Jam featured tracks from Flo-Rida with Sia and Far East Movement. Our oldie of the week was Redemption Song by Bob Marley and the prize we give to the first person to text us the name of the performing artist was quickly won. Our pick of the week was Biffy Clyro’s ‘Black Chandelier’ and we closed with Robyn’s electrifying ‘Dancing On My Own’.

Margaret told listeners that she and her friend had really enjoyed their game drive in the Mosi-o-Tunya NP that day and had seen a whole variety of different game including elephant, giraffe and hippo. She hoped that when they went to Chobe NP in Botswana the following day they would see lion, but I warned her that it was a bit of a lottery. She explained that she had travelled quite widely to countries as far apart as America, Bangladesh and South Africa, including visits to India. She rented rooms to students in Newcastle and had made lots of friends that way. She explained that she was involved with Food Banks in England and told us how the system operated to help people with financial challenges to eat regular meals.

Asked where she would like to be and what she would like to be doing in ten years’ time, Margaret said that she was not sure, but volunteering in Africa was one thing that came to mind.

25
JAN

activities, Africa, Botswana, charities, entertainment, medical, music, radioshow, religion, staff, victoriafalls, wildlife, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Miss Hope UNWTO 2013

Meet from left to right (above) Matongo Limwanya, Hannah Lubinda and Mavis Mulyata. As you may know Zambia and Zimbabwe co-host the United Nations World Tourism Organization general assembly in the two countries in August 2013. Victoria Falls and Livingstone are the venues. Matongo and Hannah are on the organizing committee of the Miss Hope UNWTO 2013 pageant, in which ten girls will compete for the title in a final to be held in August 2013 at Sun International in Livingstone. Mavis, second placed in Miss Lusaka 2010, is one of the contenders for the title. The prize for the winner will apparently be a car and there is K10,000 (rebased) on offer as well. All three ladies were Guests on the most recent edition of the Chanters Lodge Experience with the Milli Jam Ingredient featuring George da Soulchild Kaufela. This was the last edition of the show in 2012.

Hannah, chair and main mover of the committee explained that the Miss Hope Foundation together with their partners DILab Africa would present a unique pageant concept that is positioned to complement the forthcoming general assembly. She said that the show has the financial backing of the Ministry of Tourism in Zambia, as well as several other commercial sponsors. Several Livingstone lodges and guest houses were also assisting. Contestants would be drawn from all parts of Southern Province in Zambia. Some of this country’s important musicians including Judy, Shyman, Sakala Brothers and Amayenge would be involved.

The music on our show was great, we opened with latest tracks from Ke$ha and Frank Ocean. Zambian tracks were from Bryan featuring PJ and the ever popular SlapDee. Milli Jam dropped numbers from Rihanna and Chris Brown (linked together even on our show!). Our oldie of the week was the obscure ‘There’s A Guy Down The Chip Shop Thinks He’s Elvis’ by the late Kirsty McColl and predictably no-one won the prize on offer for texting us the name of the performing artist. Our pick of the week was Killers – Miss Atomic Bomb and we closed with Redfoo’s ‘Bring Out The Bottle’.

The ladies told listeners that the committee were looking for girls with both beauty and brains for the pageant, and that contestants would receive education about HIV/Aids and cervical cancer as part of their participation. The judges would be looking for girls with confidence. “Who are the judges?” Milli Jam wanted to know, and Matongo explained that their names would be a closely guarded secret to avoid the corruption that had occurred in the past over such issues. We laughed though perhaps we should not have done! The contestants would gather together in a ‘boot camp’ prior to the final. Designers would be involved in dressing the finalists.

Asked where they would like to be and what they would like to be doing in ten years’ time, Mavis said she would like to be a professional model ‘known out there’, Hannah said she would like to be a visionary promoted by big business to empower young Zambian girls, while Matongo said her ambition was for Hope Foundation to be known initially throughout Zambia and later internationally.

We wished the ladies the best of luck in their excellent initiative and took the chance to wish all our listeners the best for 2013.

3
JAN

2012, Africa, education, entertainment, fashion, health, livingstone, music, radioshow, UNWTO2013, victoriafalls, youth, Zambia, Zimbabwe

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