So, as promised, it's time now to chronicle the adventures of my trip up north last week. Since my last post was all pictures and few words, this one will make up for that by featuring several (ok probably TONS) of words and no pictures. Because uploading pictures can be quite time-consuming, especially since I took many, many pictures during that trip, I'll save that for later, and likely will upload them bit-by-bit, so keep on checkin for those!
Our trip began on Saturday, Mar. 29 with a short stop at the Village to Village orphanage to check on the project. While there, we met up with our two artists/painters in charge, Essau and Alfred, who were laying the foundations of the scenes and characters for the dividing wall and inside walls of the reading room so that the kids could help out. Once we (Deliwe and I) arrived, we enlisted the help of Village to Village director Alfred to round up a few kids to help out with the painting. Of course, not only was this great fun for the kids, it also provided a few perfect photo opps. as you can see to the left of this post. Since we had such a great time watching the kids, a good hour had gone by before we left them to finish the project. After coming back from my trip on Friday, April 4, I did check on the project again, and oversaw Essau taking care of some final touches. So, now the painting phase is finished, and we can concentrate on stocking the area with furniture, and of course, BOOKS! YAHOOOOOOOOO!!!
As I've mentioned, some requests I've made by e-mail have turned out very fruitful results, especially due to a book drive held at the Pine Ridge Middle School in Naples, Florida. I'm especially looking forward to receiving the 12 large packages of books their geography instructor Kim Gonder managed to send off last week. As I said, you guys ROCK! Thanks so much!! And, of course, thanks also to my various friends who have sent books... even small contributions are a big help to us, and the kids are SO excited. I took more pictures of them on Friday as proof of their elation, so watch for those as well this week.
So, after our visit to the orphanage, off we went to Lilongwe for just an overnight stay at my favorite hotel, the Kiboko Town Hotel, where I've stayed four times so far while in transit in Lilongwe (the first of which being my visit for purchasing my car). The night in Lilongwe was rather uneventful, except for a visit to a nice Indian restaurant there, where we both enjoyed a nice lamb kharma dish and some traditional Indian-style bread (both were firsts for Deliwe, so she was very thrilled.) After that, just back to the hotel for a beer on the balcony and a chat while watching the not-so-busy street (ya, even in the cities, things pretty much die down after 8 p.m.), followed by a liesurely evening watching T.V. in the room. This was the only hotel room on our journey featuring a T.V., and since we don't have one at home, this was rather exciting for us. Despite that, the viewing choices were a bit limited -- BBC World News was the highlight for me (Zimbabwe Election Mess!), and the "Super Story" soap opera from South Africa was Deliwe's favorite (though I don't really 'get it' myself-- definitely a cultural difference.)
In the morning, we enjoyed a lovely free breakfast-- this is worth mentioning because each time I've stayed at this hotel, I've somehow missed the breakfast. I don't think it's because I've been particularly lazy, only because I've had to run off to somewhere early in the morning, and didn't realize breakfast was included (as it often is at hotels here). AARGH! I finally got to see what I'd been missing! They even had fresh coffee served in one of those French Press things (ya, I'm so cultured, eh?). Wish I could make up for all that missed food somehow, but alas, now I'll know next time.
On Sunday morning, we headed north to Mzuzu, which is a good 4-5 hour drive north of Lilongwe (which, by the way, is about 4 hours north of Domasi--though I made it in a little over 3 hours this time... leadfoot, perhaps?). So, we knew we had to get going pretty early in the morning. We managed to start our drive out of town by about 9 a.m., which was pretty good after a liesurely breakfast-- those who know me well may be very shocked, as back home I'm scarcely awake by 9 a.m. on weekends or holidays... Malawi has certainly changed me in this aspect. Before leaving Domasi, I'd been in touch with a couple of my Distance Learner students whom I taught at Domasi College of Ed. (DCE) in November. Both had told me they lived in the Mzuzu region, and I had agreed to visit them if I ever made it up north. One of these two students, Gillo Moyo (whose class will also be participating in a pen-pal program with some students at Pine Ridge Middle School) kindly invited Deliwe and me to stay with her family. After asking her a couple of times whether it was really o.k., I decided to take her up on her offer, and was very pleased that I did. More on that later.
The other student's name is Ken. I'll keep his surname out, as the situation with him turned out to be one of those 'culture-clash' issues. Without elaborating too much, it turned out that this student lived a good 200 kilometers south of Mzuzu, but had led me to believe that he lived just outside of town. Of course, I was visiting him at his house before I realized this, and once he was in my car, he confessed to me that he expected me to bring him all the way back home from Mzuzu, and didn't have transport money to come back on his own. Since we were planning on returning home via the M5 highway along the lake, rather than the M1 which goes through his town, I knew I wouldn't be able to bring him back home.
In the end, I reluctantly agreed to pay his transport, but the miscommunication issue was a bit bothersome. On several occasions that I'd spoken with him, he described his home as being 'near Mzuzu,' but it's about as near to Mzuzu as Domasi is near to Lilongwe. I'm not sure whether this was a language barrier or a communication barrier, but based on his command of English, I'd say it was the latter. Sometimes these things happen here, and I'm learning not to overreact, but let's just say I was a little more than annoyed with him that day, and of course reminded him that he is my student, and I have yet to assess his grades. Of course, I was joking, but it did get him thinking a bit...
So, after about a 1-hour delay at Ken's house-- also a miscommunication, as he wasn't quite ready to go--we headed on to Mzuzu, and about 2 hours later met up with Gillo and her husband Mac. They were so happy to see us, and very grateful that we'd agreed to stay with them. In the end, I stayed with them the first night, while Deliwe stayed with Jen, the sister of one of our neighbors at Domasi who's a good friend of hers. Jen's living and working in Mzuzu, and her younger sister Theresa also stays with her, so they had a nice time catching up that night.
After dropping Deliwe at her friend's house, Ken and I went with Gillo to her house, where a huge spread of food was waiting for us. I was soon to find out that this was the norm at her house. Almost every meal had about 5 dishes or more, all very delicious and abundant. I joked that if I stayed too long, I'd gain a good 20 pounds. Most of the time we had meat, one or two vegetables, rice, nsima, and sometimes potatoes, all in one meal. Wow. This was very dangerous for me, now that I'm trying to keep the extra weight I've lost since coming here from coming back! It was very tough, but I think I've succeeded. Sometimes it's a blessing not to have a scale around...
After our meal, we took Ken to the bus stop, and then went to the vegetable market, and walked around a bit, talking about life, Malawi, and the pen pal program. Gillo is very excited about it, and is anxiously awaiting the arrival of the letters from Florida, which Kim tells me were sent late last week. Good stuff.
After we got back to the house, we spent some time researching what to do the next day, which was a bit of a challenge, because we were in the middle of an electricity blackout which had lasted all day. We eventually decided to go to Vwaza Marsh, which is a small wildlife park about 2 hours' drive from Mzuzu, and much closer than the big Nyika National Park, the largest National Park in Malawi. Of course, I'd originally planned to visit Nyika, but upon further research found that it would require much more time than I had, as well as more funds, since the roads there require a 4-wheel-drive vehicle this time of year due to rain damage. In the end, Gillo's husband Mac convinced us to rent a truck and go to Vwaza for the day, then stay with them one more night in Mzuzu. This turned out to be one of the best decisions I've ever made. More on that later, too...
So, once those plans were figured out, by that time the lights had come on again, we had another huge, amazing meal, and then it was bible-reading time. I was a bit wary of this, as I'd just revealed to Gillo and her kids (Mac was out at a meeting) that I don't follow any organized religion. I think they were worried for my soul, even though I explained that I'd been baptised and raised in the Christian faith (assuming that such activities save one's soul). In any case, the reading was interesting, as the family got together to read a passage and give their own interpretation of it, rather than just reading it and dictating an interpretation. The kids were also encouraged to discuss, though they did stay rather quiet. I'm not sure if my presence caused that or not. But, in any case, I thought anyone of any faith should be encouraged to do this sort of thing, as it encourages people to find their own meaning in the teachings of the 'holy books', rather than being told how to interpret what is said or what rules they must live by. Now I suppose I've revealed one reason I no longer follow a prescribed faith. In any case, I found their approach interesting and refreshing.
Soon after that it was bedtime, and on to the adventures of the following morning (Monday). We'd arranged for the truck the night before, so we were all set to go. However, before setting off, I needed to take a bath. Now, this is where it gets really interesting. I took my first true Malawian bath that morning. The Malawians know what I'm talking about, but I must describe it for the rest of you. Gillo led me to the bathroom, and inside there were two large plastic buckets, like laundry buckets. I just looked at them, and my puzzled expression was a bit obvious. "How do I do this?" I asked as politely as I could, to which Gillo responded, "You've never taken a bath like this?" "No," I replied. "Oh, ok. Well, this bucket has cold water, and that bucket has hot water, and you use the ladle (big plastic one) to splash the water on your body." "O.K. Can I wash my hair?" I asked, still bewildered. "Of course! Just rinse off with the water!" "OK, Thanks," I said. And then she shut the door. It was shortly after that when I realized I also only had a small towel with which to dry off. Luckily, I'd worn my clothes inside, so I wouldn't have to streak naked through the hallway afterwards.
As for what happened next, I'll leave some of it up to the readers' imaginations. I fumbled with the ladle, trying to get the right mix of hot and cold, crouching down, then standing up, not sure which one was better, hoping no one could somehow see me through the door, because I knew I must've looked really strange through it all. In any case, I did this twice... Monday and Tuesday morning, and it was quite the experience. Though Gillo and Mac do have a shower, they're renovating their house, so it wasn't quite all set up yet. Hence, my makeshift Malawian bath. This, by the way, is how they bathe in the village. I was glad to learn this, as I'd often wondered how people bathed without running water, and especially when not living near a river or lake. I'd noticed since coming to Malawi that people are usually very clean, regardless of their standard of living. Now I know, first hand, how it's done. But, they don't use the ladle... just water and hands. I guess I was spoiled.
So, after my interesting bath experience, it was time to head out. I was especially excited about this trip because Mac was driving. AAAH... a whole day without having to drive... this was like Heaven to me. We stopped to pick up Deliwe, and off we went. Now, this story has a major highlight, so I'll just cut to the chase. We drove to the park, and spent a bit of time there, found a guide, and not many animals. However, we did see a decent herd of elephants from across the lake in the middle of the marsh, so we knew there was potential there. Vwaza Marsh has quite a few elephants, so we'd heard. Mac and I were very intent on seeing some up close, especially since he'd never gotten a close look at an elephant before. Soon, he'd be in for more than he'd bargained for.
After our initial sighting across the lake, we decided to head to the 'camp' area of the park, where our guide (Stewart) said the elephants often could be seen more closely. Sure enough, we could see a couple of large bulls in the distance. The guide then told us we should actually exit the park and head for the bridge across the river, as the spot where we saw the elephants is a popular crossing point for the herds. So, we did just that. And that was it. We saw the most amazing thing ever. The two original elephants became three, and four, and five, and more and more and more. Eventually, a good herd of about 40 elephants emerged from the marsh, and one by one got into the river. While a couple of them simply crossed the river, several others stayed in the water and swam, played, ate, and did everything an elephant could possibly do (well, almost everything...). Eventually about 20 elephants were in the water at once. Right under us... We could see them so well, and safely, because the slope of the land around the bridge was too steep for them to climb. Wow. Of course, I took a ton of pics, many of which I'll upload later on... of course, those will be worth more than any of the words I could use to describe it. Simply amazing.
Mac and I stood there gaping for at least 2 hours, while Deliwe and Gillo actually had gotten tired and sat along the side of the road. We'd have stayed longer, but most of the elephants were females and their young (since this is how they're organized... Females travel together with their young, and older males travel separately-- sometimes alone, sometimes with other males), they'd eventually picked up the human scent from the bridge, and decided it wasn't a safe place to cross, so turned around and crossed the river further upstream (or was it downstream? I'm not quite sure).
It was after this movement of the herd that things got very, very interesting, exciting, but also a tad bit dangerous (I use 'tad' to mean 'huge'). Now, I think I'll save the rest of the story for tomorrow's post, as it is now past 10 p.m., and definitely very close to my bedtime... well, actually past it. So, what do you think will happen next? Tiwonana Mawa and I'll tell you! Stay tuned!
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