Life in Zambia: a new home in lusaka

24 Musi Rd., New Kamwala, Lusaka, Zambia

It's been over a month since I moved back to the capital city from Pemba. While it's great to be back in an urban setting, it's not the easiest task to find a decent place to live in Lusaka. Recently, My EWB colleague, Robert Borzychowski, and I found a fairly decent 2-bedroom house in the predominantly Zambian neighbourhood (what I mean by this is that it is made up of locals, not foreigners) of New Kamwala (near Kamwala market). Last Thursday we went out to the Kalingalinga neighbourhood in northeastern Lusaka to purchase some custom made furniture (for a fairly cheap price here in Zambia!).

This neighbourhood is very quaint, friendly, with little shops along the way that sells vegetables, fruits, junk food, laundry detergent, you name it. However; the roads are absolutely awful. Now that it is rainy season, the unpaved roads (formerly paved once upon a time in the 70's) are filled with potholes and giant puddles the size of a lake (I'm exaggerating... but it's still bad). The Zambian government just doesn't have enough money to frequently maintain roads; especially ones in residential neighbourhoods.

We also managed to throw a Chinese New Year / Valentine's Day / Housewarming party. Almost 20 people came over and had a blast! We served Chinese hot pot, had jam sessions, alcohol-sachet boat races, and just great times with great folks.

I must say it feels great to have a base and a place to call home after a long day at work.