Mwinilunga and Solwezi Portraits

Just In Case Butchery... is actually a bar.

Northwestern Province is one of the more 'out there' places to go within Zambia; it squeezed in between Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Geographically/geologically it is more related to the wet tropical forests of central Africa than to the dry Kalhari Desert climates found more in Southern Africa. The mighty Zambezi River begins here in Northwestern: "The river rises in a black marshy dambo in NWern Zambia, in the dense, undulating miombo woodland about 4900 feet above sea level." It sounds dramatic and mysterious. The Zambezi flows into Angola, back to Zambia, and somehow tangles through (or along the borders of) Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe and Mozambique before emptying into the Indian Ocean. The 2008 "River of Life Expedition" has some great photos and information about the Zambezi but also about our favorite topic, malaria. The ROL Expedition was designed to raise awareness about the extreme living conditions along the Zambezi and the difficulty of supplying communities along the Zambezi with appropriate and effective malaria control prevention and treatment options.

On a lighter note, Northwestern Province is known for honey of all things! Over 6,000 traditional bark hive beekeepers sell their honey, propolis extract, and beeswax worldwide....even The Body Shop is a client. Nearly half of the honey coming to the EU from Africa comes from NW. The honey is the reported to fetch prices 50% higher than other imported honey because of its purity (did you know your honey or your honey could have antibiotics in it?) and taste. Yum. There are many poverty alleviation and development projects underway to improve the marketing and management of honey production, beekeeping and sustainable forestry practices, including a 2 year old development project through Gonzaga University which sells the honey under the label: Zambia Gold. If you see it in the shops, let us know if it's as wonderful as they say....we can't get it in Lusaka! In fact, until late 2009 we could only get imported honey or drive 10 h to buy it on the side of the road up in NW.

Apologies for the lack of beekeeper photos, I'm not in charge of the camera once it leaves Lusaka. Here are some 'portraits' from TJs Solwezi/Mwuinilunga Northwestern Province trip.