Day 17 - Linda Farm

In the distance: volunteers on the edge of the Falls

For some of the volunteers it was a morning spent in heaven. For anyone that travels to Zambia we highly recommend Devil's Pool as an activity. The excursion involves you placing your trust (literally) in the hands of your guide when he holds onto your ankles as you peer over the edge of Victoria Falls. With water cascading around you, this birdseye perspective truly is an exhilarating experience. You are then treated to a "magical" breakfast on Livingstone Island. 

The boat took the volunteers back to Royal Livingstone Hotel where staff were busy preparing for the arrival of the President. The existing divide of the rich and poor was once again highlighted when returning in the late morning to Linda. Upon arrival, the 4 other volunteers were making progress with the teenagers from the Farm. They had successfully held a mixed focus group on STIs, HIV and preventative measures. Armed with more volunteers, the decision was made to separate boys and girls so as to discuss gender-related issues. For the volunteers it was another surreal moment as some of the traditional customs were brought forward by the teenagers and some interesting discussions arose . . . there was no room for our prudish British ways. Biology GCSE teachers, we thank you! Regardless the focus groups produced some fascinating research and it was unanimous amongst volunteers that this age group showed huge potential for an intervention.

As requested by Thomas, we headed into the wider compound to continue our sanitation and household research. This enabled us to reach the farm workers with disabilities who, due to capacity, don't live on the Farm. By splitting into groups we managed to cover 8 (.5) houses, gathering a lot of information. 

Volunteers headed off in different directions in the afternoon. Elea, Ben and Jeff escaped the African sun in a local pool while others chose the more cutural option of Livingstone museum. Beth and Kate tracked down the Public Health Officer for the Livingstone area. Her information was invaluable: providing statistics on the prevalance of various health conditions and details of current outreach programmes. It was uplifting to hear of the dramatic differences they have made in the past decade. The data will be highly useful when we analyse our research and identify an intervention.

"Let us rather run the risk of wearing out than rusting out." Theodore Roosevelt