The Beer Cricket Tournament

Justin and I caught the 5:00AM bus to Serenje, Central Province for a 4th of July Party and the Bembaland Beer Cricket Tournament. (I've mentioned beer cricket a few times in previous posts and will suffice it to say that it is the single most entertaining drinking game I've ever played. I won't attempt to explain the rules and regulations here, but if any of you ever wish to play this respected national sport of Peace Corps Zambia, you've to do nothing more than ask and I'll be more than happy to teach it to you.)

After 14 hours of transport, we finally arrived at our destination and were the 16th team to enter. We were Team PC Loadletter. In preparation I had taught Justin the ins and outs of the game while in Livingstone so he would have a good idea of what he was getting into. Some athletes eat pasta and get a good night's sleep before a full day of competition, we (as well as many other teams) decided it best if we went into Serenje to the bar 'Cafe de la Restaurant' (no joke) to have a few libations. After one beer they ran out of all alcohol in the place. The party decided to shift to always shady, always disgusting, 'Bantus.' They too were out of beer, but had Nikoli Vodka. In my slightly jovial state, I decided it best to buy a $4 bottle of vodka and just pass it around to everyone so we could drink it straight. That bottle was empty in an hour. It was about that time that everyone started migrating back to the Peace Corps House for a deep slumber for the night.

Early the next morning around 9:00 am after a hearty breakfast of bread, all players and spectators gathered on the cricket pitch for an explanation of rules of the tournament. (Since there were players from all over the country, some rules are used there that aren't in other areas). The first game started at about 10:00 with excitement and tension at the maximum. Justin and I weren't to play until the fourth bracket, so we had about 6 hours to kill before then. What better preparation than to split a crate of Castle? None. When it came time for our first game, we were ready and excited. I'd be lying if I said there weren't some butterflies in my stomach. We played Team WolfTank and had an overwhelming victory of 6-0. The next game we lost to Team Meathead 6-3 who would eventually go on to be champions. In our final game, two Luapulans came out with guns blazing and beat Justin and I to knock us out of the competition. I was disappointed in myself because I think I can hold my own with most any players in the country, but today I could not. As a consolation however, Justin and I looked great. If there was a prize for handsomeness we would have won.

The next day, play continued with those 8 teams that advanced and ended with Team Meathead beating a Northern Province team of Montana and Daaron. After that, we removed the pig that had been buried and was cooking for the previous 24 hours and we ate some of the best pork I've had in my life. Shortly thereafter, Justin and I had to take our leave, because we were to catch the TAZARA train to take us to Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania en route to Zanzibar.