All work and no play....

All work and no play….

  Whilst working at UTH, putting in the hard yards there is an inevitable need to let off steam and enjoy life as well. At the minute it’s a great time to be in the anaesthetic department  (with one honorary medic!) as there are lots of us here all working on different projects but with one common aim – to try and drive forwards the standards of care. However we also have another common aim – which is to make the most of our time here and have some fun!

 Last weekend was the starting point of this with a Friday night foray into the world of the casino in order to farewell with two consultants that were leaving after teaching on the Lifebox and SAFE Obstetrics course. It turned out to be a profitable evening for me – with a grand total sum of £8 won on the blackjack table! I wont be giving up the day job any time soon!! This was measly however compared to our medical colleague Simon who swept the floor with a £400 win. No wonder they shut the table before midnight as he was well and truly on a roll so to speak!

  Nevertheless, always the gentleman he treated us to a bottle of champagne and a kebab and the nearby Club! He then managed to undo his good deed by dragging two of us to a further classy establishment as modeled by Helen: Klub Vegas. As the only three Muzyngo’s there we were treated as royalty and given a decent introduction to some ‘interesting’ African dancing! Anyhow arriving home as dawn was breaking was beautiful and certainly more of a highlight than watching the Wales v Scotland match on the TV at O’Hagan’s pub up the road later on that day. I guess a win’s a win!

Simon and Helen with the Casino spoils!

Helen outside Klub Vegas!

 This weekend though saw the 9 of us (well 8 and a baby!) head off early doors to Lilayi Lodge on the outskirts of Lusaka. It was great to get out of the city for a bit and walk through the greenery, bushes and trees surrounded by nature. It is a created reserve but does have a large amount of roaming wildlife. Sadly the antelope were distant spots but we did stumble, unassumingly upon 4 baby elephants! These belong to the elephant orphanage programme and they were walking towards their shelter, so it was great to see them interacting in the wild before heading back to be fed by their wardens. It’s a great project that rears the orphans of either poaching, disease (anthrax) or relocation to enable them to be reintroduced in the wild of Kafue national park when they are old enough. It does this by enlisting the help of many local communities and supports not only education but agricultural development as well as anti-poaching measures. The four of them were all under the age of 2 and a half and behaved very much like children of that age group. It was fascinating to see the youngest of all copy his new siblings. Here’s hoping they will be successful in their reintegration.

Feeding time at the orphanage

Brotherly love!

  The rest of the 10km walk yielded a very exciting discovery of some dung beetles. They were working very hard in moving their ball of dung along the path. Amazing skills of balance and of strength. Also fascinating watching them push in a handstand position! Ok, so they weren’t one of the big five’s but hey they are pretty amazing to watch!

Amazing dung beetles

Dung beetle handstand

 After a timely lunch to shelter from the large resounding thunder clap above our heads and torrential downpour we headed home to shower and change ready for the evening’s festivities. We ended up at the British High Comission no less at the Caledonian Society celiidh. A few dances in and the old Dawnsio Gwerin routines of primary school kicked back in! Fantastic fun and  a great way to spend the evening, especially as the bar was amongst the cheapest in Lusaka! We have all stocked up heavily on our quinine levels! Half way through the exhausting dancing sustenance arrived in the form of fish and chips in newspaper! Delicious! And then a wee dram of Whiskey to help us all back in the mood for the finale of the reels!!

Papari and Anna tucking into fish and chips!

Simon and Jane enjoying mid reel!

    This morning was surprisingly good, considering! And what better way to wake up properly than to go for a 10 mile run on empty(ish) streets before the heat of the day. The afternoon was spent chilling at an establishment called monkey pools. This is a housing complex outside Lusaka which has a large grassy expanse and a swimming pool.  A quick game of football and a picnic before a swim was very welcome again before the torrential downpour that seems to happen like clockwork in the afternoons!

Monkey pools

  A bit more exploring actually showed us the reason its called monkey pools – a few natural pools filled with fresh stream water and plenty of fish swimming around. Seemed rude not to join them for a bit! It was certainly more refreshing than the actual swimming pool and more interesting sharing with some fish and a frog than other grown ups!

 

Blue waxbills

Follwing arrival home a cup of tea  on the verandah looking out on the beautiful garden now glistening with drops of sparkling rain in the sun. Watching the amazing birdlife flying in for the seed including the blue waxbills, finches and firebirds.

  So all in all a pretty great weekend that was just the ticket before the start of a new week…..