5/11 - Volunteer!

Here is the last of the backlogged Blog entries. After this one, everything should remain relatively up to date and current as I now have internet (slow, unreliable) and access to electricity during the day.

 

                Yesterday was my first real day at site. I live here now! It was a good day, Made oatmeal and French press coffee for breakfast (I see a theme starting here) and had a curried vegetable/egg scramble for lunch and dinner – I swear I am a master chef by Malawi standards! (just teasing, the food here is pretty good most of the time). I played soccer with the local team and met new people, I read, I slept. Life is simple and good here. The only real hassle is starting and maintaining a fire for cooking, which I do 2 to 3 times a day – I am sure I will get better at it. (Update, I did improve, but now finally have a supply of paraffin oil which makes starting a fire so much much easier.)

                My Counterpart leaves Monday for a paid month off so it seems I will spend a lot of time exploring the nearby mountains (enormous hills?), getting to know the area, talking with my neighbors, and watching lizards roam my yard in the morning while I drink coffee and either read or write.

(Update here also – Currently I am spending a good chunk of the day in my office talking with my supervisor and reading while my computer tediously downloads updates and charges up on the solar electricity so it can then again download updates at night. It sure feels weird having electricity and internet again)

                So let’s see… where did I leave off? After our site visit we had a fast and busy 3 weeks to finish up classes, make last arrangements before moving, and take the dreaded LPI – the final language test. I received the grade of intermediate high, a step above what is required to swear in as a volunteer w/o mandated provisions to further your language learning. I plan to take a tutor anyways as it will only help to learn more chitombuka.

OH YEAH! I am now an official volunteer!!!

                The swearing in ceremony was at the ambassador’s house in Lilongwe and was followed by trays and trays of delicious snacks. While everyone else watched the dancers all of the volunteers spent the time following the food around and gorging ourselves on so many tasties – rich food that was a far cry from nsima. Afterwards we had pizza at PC Malawi headquarters and finished the day with pre-departure shopping for our sites. It was a good day.

                That was Wed, April 7^th. The next day we had our village appreciation ceremony for most of the morning. Speeches, certificates for our host families, dancing and the like. Certificates are a really big deal in Malawi and any recipient proudly displays them in a place of prominence in the home. This makes for a handy development tool as it motivates people to fully participate in trainings, really pay attention (we hope) and stay to the end.

                Back to the dancing! We were very lucky to have the Gule Wamkhulu or Masked Dancers present at both the swearing in and village appreciation ceremonies. https://www.google.com/#q=masked+dancers+malawi+gule+wamkulu&spell=1

 It was an awesome site to see and a very special cultural experience. My camera died, so I photos will have to come later as I get them from friends.

                I have started to receive my first letters from people and I very much appreciate them. Now that I am no longer in training and have more time on my hands I shall start responding! Again, Thanks for the letters – If/when you feel like sending any, hard prints of photos are awesome!! They give me something to show of my friends/family and home.

*** An additional note to my climbing buddies – I hope at least one of you has the chance to visit, I am in climbing heaven – There is a huge boulder field with some monster rocks right in my front yard and I am developing as you read this! This country is a hidden gem, Malawi is dotted in boulder fields, and exposed faces of rock. The chance for first ascents abound! There is a smattering of trad routes around the country, and if someone was truly adventurous and willing to put in the time/money, sport routes could be bolted. Bouldering seems to be the best option though if willing to visit this great country.***

                Take care!

Address and...... Suprise Baboons!!

My new address for those of you wishing to send me letters:

Thazima Wildlife Camp
P/Bag #6
Rhumpi
Malawi


As I am writing this, in the office of the camp, I looked out the window to see a family of baboons casually making their way through the grounds. Not 50 feet from my window are several large males and females with young close behind. Too Cool!

4/20 – Ug!

The serenity of meeting this new place yesterday was spoiled last night by a bought of terrible diarrhea. Fortunately I was feeling better by mid-day. Oh well, as they say, Shit Happens.

I have braved the most perilously slow and unreliable of internet connections to bring you this photo. I hope it worked and uploaded. This picture is from the top of my mountain.

4/19 Site Visit!

I awoke to discover my site this morning. Gorgeous Mountains covered in endless trees and an impossibly beautiful grew up around me while I slept. I left Kasungu district yesterday to travel to see my final living site for the first time. At a crisp 530 am we rolled away from the village of Chinkhombwe with its flowing plains and sparse hills that is dominated by the towering, lone Kasungu Mountain that has watched over us during our training. First stop is the hotel in Kasungu Boma where our counterparts are staying so that all of the people traveling north may cram on a minibus. (Boma is the term used for major cities and trading centers – a remnant acronym from British rule, I don’t remember what it means!).

‘Mini’ is the key descriptor there. We fit 26 people and gear onto a vehicle designed to carry 15 – glad I packed light. Such is travel in Africa, and by now we have become well aware of the regularity of this situation. Unfortunately this makes the situation no more tenable. I find myself precariously wedged between three people’s knees and the back of the front seat. The first stop is a little over an hour away and while we lose 4 people when we get there, we gain 2 more. Now I find myself in nearly the same spot, this time sitting in the lap of Jackie. Jackie is an intelligent and joyful woman who is much smaller than me and remains quite a good sport about the situation.

We complete the second leg of the journey with her acting as the ‘big spoon’ – you really have to be comfortable with your fellow volunteers. She departs at the next stop with her counterpart but the general theme of seating remains the same for the duration of the trip. I also sit on Brittany and Amy’s laps and finish with Matt in mine before we finally part ways 2 hours later as we head towards our respective individual homes. The last leg of minibus travel from Mzuzu to Rhumpi is much more tolerable.

My nearest volunteer will be Ian, another trainee, and we meet up in Rhumpi Boma around 2 pm. I will be working with an extension and education agent at Nyika National Park and my counterpart has arranged for transport the remaining 40k (Ian) & 60k (me) to our sites. I will be living on Thazima Mountain in Thazima village, a kilometer from the park entrance. We expected to be at my site by 3pm or so, but have arrived a little later than planned and our park transport is tied up for the afternoon dealing with some poachers that were caught removing a large portion of park fence from nearby Vwaza Marsh Wildlife Reserve with the intent of reselling it later.

We don’t leave Rhumpi until almost 7 pm. We pass the time talking to our counterparts and to Brooks, the volunteer that Ian is replacing. We learn of specific projects and activities he has taken on and discuss his experiences as well as the general social climate of the country. It is dark and chilly by the time we start the last leg of the journey. The road is a wide, rutted, and pot hole filled adventure – we ride in the back of a heavy duty park truck. My bones are jarred by the time we drop Ian off.

Then it gets interesting. The driver knows an off the beaten path shortcut that surely only the burliest of off road vehicles can take. The twin track we drive up and down requires the truck to be paced in mechanical 4 wheel drive. Much of it resembles mountain bike trails I have tackled in the states. By this point I have ridden much of the way standing while grasping the roll bar, probably the best way to keep from being rattled to pieces by the bumps or tossed from the truck bed.

There was no moonlight. All that I can see is the stars and the small bit of red earth ‘road’ or trees that are illuminated by the headlamps. When we arrive I can see very little of the immediate area around the house. I meet the headman of the sub village I live in and I take a meal with my counterpart. We eat a bit of bread, some nsima, and fried egg before I finally sleep – exhausted.

When I wake the view is, as previously stated, overwhelming. I am greeted by an exceptionally cheerful dog (unusual in Malawi, dogs are typically not treated well here). I later learn his name is lion, no surprise as I have begun to wonder if every dog in Malawi has been named the same. We are fast friends before I am through with breakfast. The house is small, two rooms with a fenced yard. Outside is a nice open aired kitchen, the bafa (bathing room) is reed/bamboo with a cement pad and the chimbuzi (toilet) is a touch removed from the yard. I am a stones throw (ha!) from climbing; there are some marvelously large boulders up the mountain from my front yard. Fruit trees abound and the soil seems good, I hope to have a great garden by the rainy season next November.

This place, this country, and the people here are amazing. In the time I have written this out the weather has turned from sunny to cloudy to foggy and raining and back yet again. My neighbors have brought me fresh cooked corn on the cob, a very common treat here. It is all nearly too much to take in and since arriving in Malawi I often feel many waves of emotion washing over me. The fact that I am fortunate enough to be here never ceases to astound me. I look forward to the times to come!