Zambia World Wide

At Victoria Falls another watering hole taxi drivers welcomed you. At a small cost they were prepared to take you sight seeing at the falls and ensure that you would be in time to board the train again in Livingstone. Our first stop was at Soper’s curio shop, which was then situated close to the station. Yes without any doubt the Vic Falls occupied most of my attention but the locals pushing the trolleys between the Vic Falls and the Vic. Falls Hotel also caught my attention. The locals dressed in Khaki shorts and jacket sporting with a Fez on their head was also a first for me. I made myself a promise that I would one day ride on one of the trolleys

The Northern Rhodesian immigration and customs officials had set up office in the shade of some trees which was very convenient for us.

My stepfather collected me at Ndola station as the train journey to Nkana could take the best part of a day to cover the 41 miles.

My first holiday spent in Northern Rhodesia.

While motoring to Nkana I was taken in with the narrow tarred strip just wide enough for one car. Then there was this endless forest on either side of the road. The mileage markers every five miles gave you the distance to all towns on that road. You could therefore also determine within five miles if you were traveling in the right direction.

The single quarters were conveniently situated near the club, cinema, swimming pool and mine mess.

My stepfather showed me around the club and here again they claimed to have the longest bar counter in the Southern Hemisphere. To be part of history I had to have a beer served at the counter. From there we went to the Mine Mess for dinner. After the visit to the club and mine mess one can understand why the Northern Rhodesians were known for their friendliness. Those I met knew that my stepfather worked shifts and they offered to show me around the town and to join them at a game of snooker. The first night he was on night shift. Early the next morning before sunrise I woke up with a noise under the bed. The next thing there was this person standing next to the bed. I shouted at him and as I was getting out of the bed he was off like a shot. To my surprise when he got to the door he stopped and switched on the light. The expression on his face and his behaviour clearly indicated that he was not prepared to put up a fight. He just stood there waving the shoes at me and what he was saying meant nothing to me. I grabbed the shoes from him and started pushing him out the door. Another resident joined us after hearing the commotion. I informed him that I had caught this guy trying to steal our shoes. To my surprise he burst out laughing and he then told me that the intruder was actually my stepfather’s houseboy. Good old Dyson remained with my parents for many years

Later that morning my stepfather and I went and had breakfast at the Mine Mess. He loaded me with coupons that I could use at the club and the mess. About 10h00 he went to sleep and I went for a swim. The size of the pool with its 5-tier water fountain at the entrance and the neat surrounds were certainly impressive but it was the high diving platform that caught my attention. On my way up I chickened out and made a detour to the lower diving board. I wonder what Pop Patrick would say if he saw the pool today. From here I made my way to the club for a haircut. Halfway through the haircut someone came looking for two snooker players to make up a foursome. The barber on ascertaining that I could play removed the napkin and off we went. Yes certain comments were made but all in good spirit. He completed the haircut after having played at least four games.