After two months off (with lots of actual traveling of our own!) we are finally back on Playroom Passports to wrap up our first run of the alphabet with Zambia! It was between this landlocked southern African country and its neighbor Zimbabwe, and the boys agreed they’d prefer the lesser know country north of the Zambezi River.

Zambia, which is about the size of Texas, is home to some of the earliest stone age settlements, and for hundred of years was inhabited by Bantu people and then the Shona empire. And while the British claimed the area as their own in the 1800s it was not until the 1920s – when rich cooper deposits were discovered in the country – that foreigners took interest.

And in 1964 what was then Northern Rhodesia, finally gained its independence from Britain (and separation from Southern Rhodesia/Zimbabwe) and adopted the name Zambia (adapted from the Zambezi River).

Zambia is located on plateau, averaging 3,500 ft. above sea level, and it home the famed Victoria Falls (sharing it with Zimbabwe). Zambia is home to many unusual animal included a distinct breed of giraffes only found here and a small anteater -like animal called the pangolin.

Other interesting facts of Zambia include:

•  Zambia is among the 10 top countries with the highest fertility rate, as on average a
  woman gives birth to 5 to 6 children.
• English is the official language in Zambia, but more than 72 languages are spoken
• Protected wildlife areas make up one-third of the country.
• In Zambia there is only one doctor for every 20,000 people!

FOOD

Like most central African nations, Zambia also has a traditional starchy mush/dough eaten with every meal. Theirs is called nshimi, its corn-based and should really be used in place of utensils. (We learned that it’s considered polite to actually leave a little nshimi on your plate when you a done eating – apparently for the little kids in the kitchen!) Like many of its neighbors, Zambians  also love their peanut sauces and greens and unlike some there neighbors, they do like a little spice!

Breakfast

Vitumbua (or Zambian Fritters) – Generally eaten for snack or tea time, we decided on them for breakfast These are delicious and nearly exact to the fried dough treat eaten in LeSotho. We just rolled them in sugar!

Porridge with Peanut Butter and Honey – More of their traditional breakfast and we just used grits instead of corn porridge. Pretty yummy, still.

Blueberries – Apparently berries are a popular fruit in Zambia

Dinner

Nshima – We made this mixing some salt, corn flour and grits together and adding water and cooking it on the stove until it was a thick blob.

Village Chicken – We followed this recipe pretty exact (except used chicken thighs and not the local village chicken!) and it turned out pretty delicious.

Ifisashi – Basically greens (we used kale) stewed in a peanut and tomato sauce. Isaac and I really found this to be quite delicious but Andrew and Eve weren’t as sure!

CULTURE

As the women of Tongan tribe in southern Zambia are know for basket making, we
decided to learn more and try our hand at it as well. As their baskets take nearly two weeks to complete, our 30 minutes of basketmaking was not nearly as successful but fun!

The Tonga baskets are apparently known for their distinct square bottom and wide sides and elaborate designs. They make them out of ilala palms that grow in the region.

We decided to try and make baskets with the same look but just by using rope, a glue gun and markers. Andrew also wanted to learn how to properly weave a basket so we tried our best Tongan design just with paper. And after two rows of weaving, we figured out why they do need two weeks to get it properly complete!

 

….And now that we are officially through the country alphabet, there has been demand from the boys (specifically Isaac, who insists he will write a post every other letter) to continue on with another round of countries. So the next entry – in two weeks – will be… Armenia!