Sunday 10th July - Market and visit to our schools

After a good nights sleep we were up and ready for our first real day in Zambia. After breakfast we went to a local market which sold a variety of goods ranging from bracelets and necklaces to hand made dining tables. The Welling Team had to use their skills at 'haggling' and 'bartering' and many came away with some real bargains while a number of them, including Mr Shears, lost their socks as part of the agreement.

After a quick lunch on the go, we visited the schools that we will be coaching in over the next 5 days. Some of the schools were well maintained Government schools while others were run by volunteers for the local community and extremely poor and run down. Some of the sights we were faced with today brought home how important our trip will be to the children out here. Even though the schools were closed today, many of the local community came out to greet us. Many of the children were from extremely deprived homes but were so happy to see the Welling students. It was an amazing day and everybody is so looking forward to the week ahead.

During a visit to one of the schools, we were invited into a church service held in the Main Hall. It was a fantastic experience and the people were so welcoming towards us. So much so that three of our team, George, Abbi and Grant, completely embraced the situation. We will try to get the video onto the blog soon.

Tomorrow we begin our coaching. We have hundreds of photographs to show and are trying to find a way for you to access them.