Loitering in Lusaka

20 minutes’ worth of walking

Ronald Smit
Globetrotters
3 min readDec 16, 2022

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Tarmac road between high walls and higher trees, with electric cables in the sky.
A street in Kabulonga, Lusaka © Ron Smit, December 2022

I recently promised Janice Macdonald to write something about a walk through Lusaka, inspired by her story, linked here:

As I set off this morning, for a short walk, I knew that I would not find any chateaux and that I’d need different views to help inspire my dry well of creative juices. Usually I post images from more exotic locations — National Parks, waterfalls, mountains, etc. But here are some images and observations from with a short walk from our current abode.

Tarmac road between high walls and high trees, with a deep concrete ditch by the roadside.
Caution — ditch! © Ron Smit, December 2022

When it rains here, it really pours. On the spectrum between “Drizzle” and “Tropical downpour”, rains here tend to be on the latter end. So then a lot of water has to go somewhere, quickly. We therefore have pretty deep ditches by the roadside. Which can become a hazard for drivers (and pedestrians!) who are not careful. Whoever lives behind that wall in the picture above, is obviously tired of being called out at night to rescue people.

Little shop with “Unique Heavens Enterprise” sign on white walls, under a tin roof, seen through a gate.
No so Unique. © Ron Smit, December 2022

Hiding just inside this gate, was an intriguing establishment. One wonders if they are a religious enterprise (?) or if they are selling something, what it might be. And how can their heavenly enterprises be unique, and mentioned in plural? Bit of an oxymoron, I think.

Let’s show you some colour (or color, if you prefer). Although our suburb suffers from the disease of high walls, allegedly protecting but in any case hiding the houses behind them, these walls do provide a canvas for art and advertisements:

Colourful yellow sign painted onto a white wall, advertising a QFM and ZNBC radio programme.
Advertising a QFM and ZNBC radio show, on the walls of the BBC Media Action (a charity here in Zambia). © Ron Smit, December 2022
Colourful sign mentioning “Anthony & Changu Corner” on a white wall.
I have no idea who Anthony and Changu are, or why they advertise their camera and their basketball on this corner, but it’s apparently a Love Story. Intriguing. © Ron Smit, December 2022.

Now, the question is, did I get inspired to write something as a result of this short walk?

Well, I posted this story, didn’t I?

It would be great to see some samples of all your own living surroundings!

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Ronald Smit
Globetrotters

Husband, father, geologist, consultant. I love travelling and learning, sharing feelings about all that, sometimes funny, always positive.