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!