Christmas in Zambia.

Last year I stayed in Zambia for the holidays.  I thought maybe I would be lonely or sad that I wasn’t getting out of town, but it actually turned out to be a nice, quiet time.  So, I did it again this year.  I do like traveling around the holidays but it’s just so stressful (and expensive).  Instead,  I’ve just been working, dog sitting, watching Netflix (I started the series Prison Break which now that I’m telling you this it doesn’t sound very Christmas-y but I’m really loving it anyway), and getting some extra massages and pedicures.  I helped cooked a turkey for the first time on Christmas day which is kind of strange because I’m a vegetarian but I’m enjoying cooking for the first time in my life and it was also made better by drinking some mimosas (and I did cook other veg dishes)!  It would have been lovely to be with family and if I could easily have gotten myself home in a couple of hours then of course I would have done it but sometimes wherever you go, there you are, right?  And Zambia is my home right now.  I mentioned this a few posts ago, but this will be a decade (10 years!!!) that I’ve been living abroad.  That’s sort of unbelievable to me.  I’m not sure what 2020 will bring but I know it will be a memorable year.  I don’t really make new year’s resolutions, but I like the idea of the new year bringing about new beginnings and creating new stories to tell.  So I'll continue to enjoy my holiday time in Zambia this year because who knows what my story will look like next year?!     

Yoga Magic.

I am starting to feel that my involvement in these yoga weekends is a bit selfish.  Being able to hold space with a group of amazing people, in the most beautiful place and share time together that is just so easy.  It's magical. 

I'll stop posting about this yoga stuff...I promise.  

The Greek Life.

I haven’t traveled much this year so was really looking forward to a break.  I talked to my mom at the beginning of the year about taking a trip and she was on board with joining me for a travel adventure.  I was surprised to hear that my sister was also eager to join.  Not because she doesn’t love to travel but because she literally has one million commitments in her life.  But a few months later I was super excited that it was now a thing and we were making it happen.  Little did I know that I was to become a travel agent in the making! 

We decided to go to Greece because, well, it’s Greece, and it was relatively “central” from all of us although I ended up traveling 20+ hours (why isn’t anything close or easy to get to from Africa)?  Anyway, my mom and sister decided they would let me make the decisions about where we should stay and which islands to visit which was an interesting approach because I know nothing about Greece. While it actually turned out to be sort of fun doing all the planning, I did feel a bit of pressure.  Luckily, and mom and sister if you are reading this you can never speak the truth, I think my choices turned out okay.  There were a few missteps (aside from a cancelled ferry trip due to some crazy windy weather), I might have changed the fact that we went in high tourist season.  We were surrounded by tourists everywhere which I personally did not love.  I know that Greece is a popular destination, but I would recommend going when it is not so busy although maybe that never happens?  I just found the crowds a bit overwhelming.  We went to Athens, Naxos and Santorini.  Of course, everything was still beautiful and amazing, but you were just surrounded by people.  Everywhere.    

It was all an adventure though which is what you want when you travel somewhere new.  We visited the Acropolis in Athens, spent the day on the beach in Naxos, took the ferry (a few times and now are probably experts), enjoyed some tzatziki (okay, lots of tzatziki) and saw some pretty amazing sunsets in Santorini.

Thanks, Greece, for a holiday that didn’t disappoint us or your millions of other fans. 

More Yoga.

It does seem like I’m talking about yoga on here a lot?  I’ve made a really special connection with a lodge here in Zambia called The Royal Zambezi (www.royalzambezilodge.com).  If you ever come to Zambia, I will take you to this magical place. 

I’ve taught a couple of yoga retreats at this lodge and did one again last month.  All of them have been great but this was just over-the-top good.  I’ve already raved about the lodge, but I also had an amazing group of powerful, interesting, courageous women who connected really well with each other and were just that fun to be around!  I am not the most flexible or most profound and definitely don’t know all there is to know about every aspect or limb of yoga but I love teaching yoga. Being in the company of such great women reminded me that we are all great teachers and also hopefully great students.  Thank you, universe, for a much needed weekend. 

Lamu Yoga Festival

I finally got out of town in 2019!  I was feeling a little blue…we call them the Lusaka blues here.  I love Zambia and am quite content but breaks are a necessity.  I suppose that’s true anywhere you live. Anyway, I had heard about this yoga festival from a friend that takes place off the coast of Kenya on a little island called Lamu and was intrigued.  It looked legitimate although I had just watched the documentary on Netflix about the whole Fyre Festival (if you haven't watched you definitely need to!) so was a little bit skeptical about flying to some remote island for a festival.  But, I’m here to say that we survived and there was actually a semi-organized festival (I mean we are in Africa so I was expecting a minimal amount of chaos). 

To get to this island we had to take two flights and a boat ride.  There aren’t any cars on the island.  But there are lots of donkeys.  The majority of the island's population is Muslim and we saw some of the most beautiful mosques.  The yoga classes were sort of spread out throughout the island so you never felt like it was too packed and it was fun to see and experience a bunch of different spaces and classes.  It was very hot so most of the classes were pretty sweaty but it was manageable.  I took my first Acro Yoga class (so fun!), learned how to do a little Thai Yoga massage, played around doing some SUP Yoga (this is where you do yoga on a surf board) and then did some fun flow classes.  It really was a great week despite a few minor glitches and I’d recommend checking it out if you ever make it to this side of the world (www.lamuyoga.org).  I did learn that Kenya is quite the hot spot for yoga (much more than Zambia) so if I ever need a little yoga fix I know where to go!

We also spent a couple of days in Nairobi which was interesting.  That city is hectic!  It’s just so big.  It took us several hours to navigate the city (although we were stopping to shop along the way) and I enjoyed seeing another part of Africa.  If you don't already know this…Africa is huge! :) 

Almost a decade in Africa.

I have spent almost a decade in Africa.  I left the states in January of 2010 and I'm feeling quite sentimental about this for some reason (just wait ‘til I actually hit the 10-year mark).  That’s a long time.  When I got on that plane in 2010, I never thought that it would lead to this…that I would make a life for myself so far away from my family and friends.  There are things that I have definitely missed (and I’ve probably written about these on here at some point) but I also can’t imagine being  anywhere else right now.  I decided to stay in Lusaka for the holidays and enjoyed some quiet time with a few friends and this is just what I needed.  I’m ready to start the new year…and lookout 2020.  You never know what’s around the 10-year corner. 

London. Paris. Washington DC. And Back to Zambia.

It’s September!  How did that happen?  I haven’t posted here since June.  I just came back from an amazing weekend of teaching some yoga and figured it was time to get back on the blogging.  It’s always difficult to go back in time though and figure out what I should tell y’all on here (because I know you have been anxiously awaiting my next post).  But I’ll pick out a few of the good bits to share.

At the beginning of July, I went to London and Paris.  Not so bad?  I met a friend from the states there and we made the most of our 5 day holiday.  We shopped, ate lots of good food, and did an incredible amount of walking (to shop and eat).  I hadn’t seen her in a couple of years and it was mostly lovely to just hang out!  I did manage to get stuck on the train back from Paris to London for many long hours (where they only fed us Twix bars for some odd reason), and then missed my flight back to Lusaka.  I eventually got back but it was a real process. Sometimes I have to remind myself how much I love traveling.  Sigh.    

In August, I went back to the states for a wedding!  My friend from Peace Corps was getting married so I decided it was necessary to make the trek back.  While seeing her so incredibly happy was worth it, I can’t say that I love making that journey across the ocean more than once in a year (again, the reminder to myself that I love traveling).  But, I did get to see some amazing friends (including my mom!), spend time in a city I’ve never been to before (can you believe this American had never been to Washington DC before?) and drink an incredible amount of chai tea.     

Since then I’ve been back in Zambia.  It’s getting very hot.  Although I shouldn’t complain.  I now have a lovely air conditioner in my bedroom and the power cuts are minimal.  This last weekend I also got to to lead a lovely group at a yoga retreat at one of the most amazing lodges on the Lower Zambezi.  I’d have to say life is pretty good.