Christmas words of wisedom

One thousand apologies for not having updated the blog since 3 OCTOBER! I have no excuse apart from a month's holiday in Arusha and Dar es Salaam and pure laziness.

A very dear friend, Louise Alsworth-Elvy sent us the following words of wisedom that I thought I would share with you over this Christmas time - enjoy:

• Go placidly amid the noise and haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence.
• As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons.
• Speak your truth quietly and clearly and listen to others. Even the dull and ignorant have their story.
• Avoid loud and aggressive persons. They are vexations to the spirit.
• If you compare yourself with others you may become vain and bitter, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
• Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
• Keep interested in your career, however humble. It is a real possession in the changing fortune of times.
• Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is. Many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism.
• Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love, for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is perennial as the grass.
• Take kindly to the council of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
• Nurture strength of spirit to sheild you in sudden misfortune, but do not distress yourself with imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
  
• Be gentle with yourself.
• You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars. You have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
• Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive him to be. And whatever your labours and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace with your soul.
• Be careful, strive to be happy. With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a BEAUTIFUL world.

During this festive season, we wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. May 2007 be a year of dreams and may all your dreams come true!

The Benedictine Mission

At the beginning of the 20th Century, the Benedictine Monks built a Mission on the mainland just outside the village of Kipili. Today this magestic, old, Italian style building is no longer in use. It still stands, as regal as ever, on one of the hills overlooking the lake.

The front of the old mission building.

The inside of the mission with its beautiful columns.

The past few months have been focused on thatching at the lodge site. We have had to buy LOTS more grass, and this has been coming in at a steady rate. All the guys have spent their days walking up and down the hill carrying huge bundles of grass on their heads and packing them neatly, ready to be used by the thatchers. I feel so sorry for them as they repeat the monotonous work day in and day out. As you can see from the photos below, the common area is starting to take shape.

From left to right are the kitchen, bar and laundry storerooms, the bar and lounge area, the gamesroom and the office, shop & dispensary. This photograph has been taken from the back of the buildings as they all look onto the lake which is in front of them. 

The back of the dining area can be seen on the left of this picture, with a walkway to the kitchen and the roof of the kitchen.

The thatching for the double story lounge and bar area is finally finished and now all that remains is for the wooden floor of the top area to be completed. 

More strong winds leave their mark

Last Sunday we returned from Sumbawanga to find that strong winds had sunken one of the two large boats that transport all the fundis and building materials over to the island each day. What a sad sight. On Monday morning everyone helped to haul the heavy boat out of the water and after a few repairs, she was back in business ferrying everyone back and forth to Lupita. 

Bart and a vervet monkey

Bartholomew (or Bart, as he is affectionately called), is really becoming one of the family. Of late he has taken to sitting in the garden in the mornings with our dogs or surveying his island from the top of our chicken house. He still shows absolutely no agression towards our animals or us (which is a great relief). This afternoon I returned to the house to find a vervet monkey in our garden, no doubt trying to eat our newly planted vegetables. I wonder if this will be a new friend for Bart?

  

 

The Otters of Lake Tanganyika

In the early morning and late evening we often see otters fishing and playing in the lake. They are very shy but if we go kayaking in the morning we are able to get very close to them before they realise what we are. Believe it or not, this photograph was supposed to show one of our little otter friends, but you will have to just use your imagination and enjoy the view of the sunrise instead. 

My little helper

Containers have been arriving from all corners of the globe with various fittings and finishings for the lodge. Maverick decided to help me unpack and count all the linen. As you can see, it was an exhausting job! 

Full moon

Full moon taken from our patio at 7am. 

 

The August sunsets

August is one of the dry months at Lake Tanganyika. The grass turns brown and everyone starts burning firebreaks around their villages. This gives us the most beautiful, firey red sunsets. 

 

Chris' 40th Birthday

Friday 28th July was Chris' 40th Birthday. To celebrate we spent a few days in the Katavi National Park, which is a 4 and a half hour drive from Kipili. 

We stayed with Steve in a tented camp, called Sable Camp, which is in the north of the Katavi National Park. Steve arrived from South Africa in February this year and stayed with us on Lupita for 5 months helping Chris. He is now setting up Sable Camp, so it was great to spend time with him catching up. 

Sable Camp is also owned by the same investor as Lupita Island. After being there for only a few hours, we all agreed that it should be called "Fish Eagle Camp" because there are 6 resident Fish Eagles that sit in the palm trees and call all day long. The Fish Eagle happens to be my favourite bird, so I was in heaven. 

The birding was superb, but Katavi has more than just birds to offer. Our game drives were filled with gin & bitter lemon, kilimanjaro beer, redd's cider and plenty of fun. By the time we arrived back at Lupita we really felt as though we had been away for weeks instead of a few days. 

 

 

 

Mr and Mrs Fix-it, Doc & his Assistants

Sorry about the fact that we have not updated our blog for so long. Our house was struck by lightening in June and we struggled for several weeks to sort out our power again. Then we found that the satellite dish for our internet had been bumped and our connection was so poor that it was difficult to send or receive emails, let alone post photographs on the blog.

On the 7^th July, Mr and Mrs Fix-it (Alfred and Kirstin) arrived to install Lupita’s new communication system and radar security system. They worked from sun up to sun down during the 4 days while they were here, and so we are now back in business.

Alfred and Kirstin were also accompanied by a surgeon, David (or Doc) and two assistants; Katharine and Michell. Like Alfred and Kirstin, they had come all the way from America to help us. Doc, Katharine and Michell had offered their services and were here to perform free operations for the villagers in the communities around Lupita.

On the first day that they were due to see patients, they were handed a letter stating that they would not be allowed to perform any operations in Kipili. This was because the health department wanted them to perform operations in the nearby Kirando hospital (a 45 minute boat ride away from Kipili). This was contrary to the purpose of their visit. Their intention was to provide complimentary medical assistance to the communities around Kipili who do not have access to the hospital in Kirando. Almost 100 people turned up that day to see Doc and his assistants and as you can imagine, everyone was very disappointed that due to red tape, they would not be allowed to receive treatment. Luckily Tom was able to contact the health department and finally the Doctors were given permission to continue with their work.

For the next 3 days Doc and his assistants went over to Kipili each morning and worked their magic. They helped a child with a club foot, removed a hernia, cleaned a bayonette wound, set a broken ankle in plaster of paris any many, many more. The villagers were so grateful for all that Doc and his assistants had done that they presented Doc with a goat.

From all of us at Lupita and the surrounding villages, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU! Your kindness and generosity are appreciated more than you will ever know. From left to right: Michell, Doc, Katharine, Kirstin & Alfred.

Chris' kayak

After many months of frustration, Tom and Belinda finally managed to clear the first of many containers from Dar es Salaam. The containers have been arriving with much needed sanitary ware, electrical and plumbing fitting and Chris’ KAYAK. We bought the kayak in April 2005, so you can imagine how excited Chris was when it finally arrived here, 14 months later. Needless to say Chris is out on his kayak every day for at least an hour. Instead of taking one of the motorized wooden boats to Kipili to issue goods to the staff for their day’s work, Chris hops onto his kayak as the sun is rising, and paddles across to Kipili and back. What a great mode of transport for getting to and from work!

Kitchen

The Main Kitchen has receive tiles and is looking PUUURRRRFECT!