Lianshulu School and cultural visit

We took our 1 1/2 hour boat ride over to the main lodge at Lianshulu and got on our game drive vehicles. We had to drive through Mudumu National Park to get to the communities on the side of the park. It was a Sunday so the school was closed, but we visited the school anyway and met the school principal. The school was clean and neat but had very little. In fact, one grade even had to meet in a building that had not been finished-it had no roof. We all wished we had known what they could have used instead of the basics like pencils and pens. I would have liked to go to the teacher store and bought some posters for the walls, maps and such. The school was doing the best it could with what it had, but they had very little. It began to drizzle rain a little and we all got amused when we noticed the goats that belonged to a nearby family had all gathered under the eaves of the school to stay dry. From there, we went to visit a mock village that was opened to show what these tribes lived like a generation ago. Then we went and visited a family homestead of today to see how they live. The mock homestead was very interesting and nearby there was a Christian church that people were going to-barefoot and you could hear them singing and praying -it was a rather awesome experience to see their joy in the simple things of life and their joy and faith. At the village, Rosanne and I got a chance to grind the meal as they sang and beat the drums. We decided we were better at that than the dancing. Then we got to go to a market where crafts from all the local families were displayed. The items were spread on cloths on the floor and their workmanship was amazing. The baskets and carved wooden pieces were just beautiful. It was nice to help the local economy as we knew this was a definite way to help the families and show our appreciation. We went to one family's homestead and were welcomed and shown their huts and how they lived. All generations live and work together and are very close.

We went back to the main lodge for lunch and then headed back to our lodge and saw many hippos and other animals along the way-elephants coming to drink and eat the bushes by the bank-they just tear the whole plants out of the ground. The birds here are amazing and we passed the carmine bee eater location each time we went out which was just covered in them-see the photos I posted last night. They are beautiful. We went back on a sunset cruise and came back after it was totally dark which was really weird in the boat with no lights. But our guide knows these waters and lagoons like the back of his hand and can just zip right back. The last night in each camp we had a special dinner and performance by the camp staff. As always it was both a good meal and a great entertainment. The last night "Herman" hippo decided to come out of the water and tromp by the tent-we could not see him but we could hear what he was doing and got a big kick out of it.