dedza

Hit the road again yesterday and headed to Dedza pottery shop and Dedza mountain. It was about an hour and 15 minute drive outside the city to this small village. I took a few of my co-workers with me (who are about 1/2 my age).. and we headed out. Again, once you get out of the city, the landscape changes immediately. Lilongwe is a rugged, dirty city and you tend to forget all of the beauty that surrounds you.

We headed out with no problems on our drive and made it to the Pottery shop.. at the shop is there also a cool little restaurant that we had a quick bite to eat after our hike(it took 50 minutes to get our drinks and food). I bought a few lamps for the house and we headed down the dirt road toward the mountain... On the road, you get a sense of what life is like out here in the middle of nowhere.... very peaceful, quiet and simple.. Living off the land, getting your water from a well.. We saw tons of children running through the fields, men dancing outside their huts to the transistor radios, women washing the clothes, etc.. Walking through the hills there were random tilled plots, growing squash , pumpkin, maybe onions, etc....  There was no marked trail for our hike.. When we left the pottery shop, I asked the lady how to get to the mountain.. She said we could use a guide for 7$ if we wanted. We opted to hike it ourselves... She then looked at me and said..."then turn left and go down the road.. you'll see the mountain. "

We started down the road, took one of many carved out paths through small villages and made our way slowly up the hill. We had to stop a few times to assess the situation.. On one of those stops, two young boys started to follow us.. Eventually I stopped to ask if they could help us.. Of course, they did not understand english except to say.. "Can we have some money?"..  They continued to walk with us and eventually helped with direction..  We headed up the mountain and I was probably 10 minutes from the peak.. Then reality set in.. I started to feel pretty nauseous , weak in the knees and short of breath.. I'm sure it was due to the altitude... because I am in peak shape.  The young guys continued and I took in the view from where I sat..  I envisioned me passing out, hitting my head on one of the huge boulders surrounding me, and dying a slow death..  I think I'm getting old and was totally content with where I was on the hill.  So I sat, took in the view and soaked up a little african landscape.. Then I started to think about all those National Geographic shows, where they show deadly snakes snapping at the camera.. Of course, this is prime country for those snakes.. I saw a few lizards climbing the rocks, but no snakes.. Sometimes you get too much time to meditate on life, and your fears set in and you start to become irrational. Fortunately , my 8 year old guides and my co-workers came down and we headed back to our car.. All in all about a 3 hour hike...
And we ended up giving the boys 7$..

On the way home, we picked up some giant potatoes on the side of the road, made good time back to the city, only to get stopped in traffic for about an hour (10 minutes from my house).... yep, the soccer match just finished and there was a mass exodus... Great people watching though.... Nothing here goes as planned... nothing..  you have to be patient every day.. When it does go accordingly, it is such a rarity that you don't even realize it.

Sunday is upon me and I have no plans unfortunately.. anyone want to come over and grill out??
On a post it note I have written - "school work, boil potatoes, grill boerwurst"... those are my goals today.. aiming high.... hope all is well at home...

Dedza potters

dirt raod to hill

2$ for a giant container of potatoes

only in Africa

Got home from work... pay day today so everyone is in a great mood.. Unfortunately it is the end of the month and everybody is also paying some bills, out shopping with the cash in their pocket, etc..
I got out of my car today, and had it all planned... get on some new clothes, take a long walk , and relax.. Cam our gardener tells me I am low on energy here and need to go prepay for my electricity.
the whole prepay thing is actually great.. If you want to use electricity , you have to prepay for it... if you want cable tv, you have to prepay,.. if you want internet.. prepay.. So if for one month you'd rather live without some of these luxuries and pocket the money instead, there is no pressure.
But Cam informed me it would be best to pay for the service. This was around 2:30. We got to a small stand at a gas station and saw the line. Cam laughed and said we will have to wait for a little bit.
We waited, waited , and waited.. making some progress towards the booth and then it came to a screeching halt. The network was down and they weren't sure when it was going to come back on.
People got out of the line, I assumed to go home and try again tomorrow... not necessarily.. Here, as it was in Botswana, just because you got out of line, doesn't mean you lost your place in line.. so people would reappear and slide right back in their place after 20 minutes absence. No one says a thing..
Coming from the US, you just have to take a deep breath and realize this is an experience.. you are a breathing human being, and an hour or two of waiting in a line to nowhere is fun.. it is a way of life here.  People have great patience.

So Cam decides it would be best if I give him the money, and he pay the bill. this is after about 90  minutes..He tells me to go home..
Well, I tried to go home, but of course the place is jammed with cars and I can't turn right because no one is obeying the traffic lights.. so I decide to go to the shop and buy some light bulbs instead.. Surprisingly, there is a traffic cop directing traffic in what is probably the most busy intersection in the city.. I pull right in, find my bulbs, wait in another huge line and then get in the car..

The traffic cop is gone.. it's almost 5 pm and there's no way to turn left.. I can't believe people aren't killing each other.. but people just keep driving, blocking major intersections, and driving right through red lights.. I take a chance, find a hole in this whole debacle and make a run for it.. I just got home.. and instead of exercising, and am enjoying a Carlsberg beer.

Tomorrow I hope to take about a 2 hour hike.. I need to find directions though as it is a bit off the beaten path.

One last thing... the Comboni Missions  (which any graduate from Cov Cath or NDA from my era would remember from Christian Awakening) have a very big presence here.. There are a few Comboni missionaries I have met who actually went to train at their location on Beechmond avenue before coming here..This made me think of my mom and dad.. Many a day we spent at the combini retreat house as kids and adults... In some way it was comforting knowing I was in the same country as the Comboni missions.. I wonder if they can do anything about the traffic and line waiting issues here in town...

Last night I was able to listen to the reds and Marty Brennaman since it was a day game.. i miss the reds and my grill at home. Here's me in my new fishing hat.. hand made grass hat.. cost me 50 cents.. better than the hats at the "flying J" or whatever gas station/ truck stop that is called at home.
Headed out for a dinner with colleagues from my work.. of course, it's a beautiful evening.

Hope all is well at home. Happy birthday to Kate.. I will see you soon and I love you.
Happy Friday everyone.. Cheers.

countdown is on

Not much to report today.. I took a walk this evening. decided against shorts, but was still laughed at by the neighborhood children.. they are relentless. I think they just wonder what in the world is this foreigner doing?? The countdown officially begins as Michelle and the kids will be departing next friday. I miss Jacob a lot , but i know he will stay busy this year with college. Things seem to be going well the first week.
Kate's birthday is tomorrow and I am looking forward to seeing how she adjusts at her new school. I know missing her 8th grade at st. thomas will be rough, but I think she will be greeted here with open arms.. The school seems very inviting and accepting(as most kids have been transplanted).
Trying to figure out what to do this weekend and I think (as stated last post) I will take a hike. About an hour outside of the city is Nkhoma.. it has been advised to me that I should go hike it.. picture below....
Other than that, I have some work to do for school and maybe get in a round of golf. also, might try to set out for my first run here in Malawi.
soft drinks here usually come in bottles.. instead of getting cokes in a cardboard box, they come in crates.. like milk crates.. Here's a photo of my lunch break.. the tea here is nice and home grown.

The other photo is my students sitting outside drawing the drees on campus.. Everyday here is sunny and warm.. not humid .. yet.

Hope all is well at home

drawing

Hey!!! you ain't gettin no coke! know what i'm talking about?

will try to hike this saturday

biting off more than i can chew.

Today was a full day of teaching . I taught nursery school kids, 6th graders, 2nd graders, 5th graders, 9-10th graders and 11-12 th graders...
The high school students here are excellent. A great diverse bunch who seem to have the patience and open mindedness to do great things this year. I hope it goes well. The other kids are great as well and very eager.. It is the nursery school kids that are scaring me. I have little to no experience with this age and 50 minutes of art with this group is alot. I had a plan, was ready to go and within 10 minutes I was getting bombarded with "I'm finished" and "I have to go wee-wee" and students ripping up their drawings for no apparent reason. I was completely out of my element. But somehow, some way I received hugs as they departed my classroom.

Not much else to report today. At 5:20 I took a walk. If you walk a particular route through our neighborhood you can walk and watch the giant ball of fire set over the horizon.. It is amazing.. and people here aren't walking to keep the weight off. They walk with authority. Michelle will be the first to tell you I am a slow walker, and it shows here. Everyone is walking at a quick pace, as I am hobbling along. I miss running but it just seem life the right thing to do considering shorts really aren't worn at all here.

I did find a great place to get my hair cut and I picked up a table built by a local carpenter (Jonas).. it is of great quality and cost about 15$. He asked for an extra tip because I think he knew he did a great job.

Not much else to say... I hope to make a trek out of the city again this weekend and find a good place to hike.. ALot of grew trails outside the city.. just need to remember to wear my boots.. as snakes are abundant.. and not the regular kind.. Mambas, cobras, adders. etc..

All for now.. here's one of my nursery school classes. Hope all is well and my thoughts and prayers go out to Huseman family. Great friends.

Bruce Springsteen or the Eagles?

 The music that accompanies to work always surprises me.. Actually the music in general here is like a flashback to childhood.. While shopping in Chipiku ( my new grocery store).... debbie gibson, the Bangles, John Waite.. they can all be heard.. it's kind of nice.
This morning, the Eagles were jamming as I pulled out of my driveway. It was great..  I'm more of a California country eagles fan... none of the "take it easy" or "heartache tonight" sort of thing.. so when " I can't tell you why" came on.. i was excited... the great about it was that the disc jockey said it was Bruce Springsteen's "Human Touch".. which would have been welcomed in my car. One of those weird things that makes you happy while living here..... hearing songs you would maybe bypass at home.

Anyway, I've attached the video of me driving ...

School today was interesting.. the first time I've taught kindergarteners in a long time.. I think I may have let half the class go to the bathroom. This is due to the fact that last time I taught kindergarten, one of students asked to go to the bathroom and i politely said "no". he had been at least 5 times prior ... turns out he ended up peeing his pants.. Ever since then, I usually let my students go to the bathroom.

After work, I went to get some cushions made for the wicker furniture i bought the other day. I went to a little store that sells ... yep, you guessed it.. foam. In block format, mattress format , etc..
I bought enough to fit the seats of our couches and then went to a fabric store called "Galaxy".. I was convinced to purchase this particular fabric.. I bought 3 meters, walked outside and there was a tailor waiting to help cover the cushions... I asked him how much for him to cover the cushions, he quoted me a price of about 7$ for the job. I agreed. Then I could here a group of women laughing at me for paying that much money for the job.. I felt duped ..

The fabric store is in a very busy market area of town where people are set up selling used clothing, shoes, food, radios, etc.. It's a cool place to browse, but I stood out like a sore thumb...While I waited for my cushions to be made, i just kind of sat and people watched ..... perfect place for it.. In front of me, two women were unloading a giant bag of suit jackets... selling for 1000 Kwacha they were yelling ... that's about 2.50$ .Men were swarming trying on jacket after jacket.

Around 6pm I went to to have dinner with a South Africa couple I teach with. .. great South African charm, good food and conversation.
I think that is all today.. I promised myself I wouldn't drive at night, but i had to since I was out for dinner.. The sky at night here is amazing..

Tomorrow I move into my classroom and begin teaching in an actual classroom.. things are moving in the right direction..

All for now.

Never again

Last night was a bit of a debacle. I was expecting a delivery of my wicker patio furniture during the afternoon. Why did I possibly think it would go smoothly?The gentleman texted me and said he would be here after 2... I waited and then decided to take a long walk ... it was getting dark when I got back to the house and Joseph the guard stated that he never came.. I had Joseph call the delivery man for me as to not lose anything in translation. Turns out, the guy was actually just outside of the city with my furniture but was in need of a car to get the items to me... It seems he was in an accident and may or may not have hit someone on the side of the road.. Joseph said, "he is a good man".. i ask how he knew and he said because he stopped for the accident.  We have actually been advised not to stop if you hit a pedestrian.. What we have been advised to do is drive to the nearest police station and tell someone. On occasion, a mod scene will develop at a site of an accident , or some other occurance, and people will take matters into their own hands...

Well it is now pitch black, my car is tiny and I'm not exactly sure where we are going. Joseph goes with me, we drive through the city and about 10 minutes outside the city. Most guide books will tell to never drive at night here.. and they are right.. there are no lights, cars with no lights, people riding their bikes, walking, etc.. It is frightening and I will never do it again. Aside from the darkness, people have no regard for traffic rules.. some of the traffic lights work, and if they do, they are optional. If you are too slow, people will go right around you.

We were finally successful in location the guy and strapped the couches to the top of my car as other vehicles whizzed past us..

Glad to be alive and will never go out again. It's funny, you have to really plan your day up until 5:30.  after that, shut it down.

Today was a good full day of teaching. The kids are great. My classroom is still not ready but we did receive all of the personal items we sent over in April. They have been cleared and I will sleeping with a brand new pillow this evening.

For today, here's some photos of our house.. it's a nice place but you have locks for every single door. There are padlocks on the doors on the porch, padlocks on the entrance door. A lock for the hallway door,  and locks for each bedroom.  Not used to that aspect of life here. The house is wonderful though and in a great neighborhood. Quiet and not too busy..  also, during my walk i witnessed an amazing sunset.... 5 30 is the time... the video does no justice ..

All for now.

Drive to Senga Bay.. day trip

Yesterday about 6 am I woke up and decided to make the trek to the lake. I had nothing else better to do so I figured it would be a good opportunity to hit the road.  In classic African style, I was stalled for about an hour.. I had withdrawn about 100$ to take the trip.. I was about 1/4 tank filled with gas so the first stop was the gas station... i drive a time Toyota Scalia, so I figured I'd just have it filled up and take off.. Little did I know it cost me about 90$ to fill.. The guy pumping the gas just kept going and going and going... when the bill hit 35,000 Kwacha I knew i had underestimated the cost of fuel.

So, i hit the local ATM machine.. it was out of money... I hit the next ATM,... the security guard told me it was broken. Then another, and another.. Finally I drove back near my home and eventually was able to find an ATM that would dispense cash.. Success!!

... I was told that the road to that part of the lake was right off the main road (M1).  Take a right where there are lots of vendors, booths, busses , etc.. It's not marked, so just turn and that will lead you straight to the lake.

I passed it.. and ended up at the airport. Turned around, backtracked and eventually found it. Once I was on the road I was good to go.. except for all of the people biking in the road, the cows, the goats, the people selling live chickens (holding them upside down and alive), mice on a stick, etc..  Every 4 or 5 miles there was a new village. Women and girls walking with buckets on their head, either returning from getting water from the well or going to get water for the day.  Men, playing mancala, building furniture, making bricks,  chopping sugar cane, etc..

 The drive was slow moving as driving here is a bit hectic.. Two hands on the wheel all the time. Other drivers always pass at blazing speeds , beeping on their way past you. I have turned into one of those drivers that I curse back home. There was so much to see.. It was sensory overload... It was a new country I had not seen and it was beautiful. Once you leave the city,  there are hills and small mountains to the lake with villages scattered across the landscape. Grass roofs, mud huts, makeshift shops.. Again , I felt a little strange getting out and taking photos.. Still feel as if I am intruding on something and Im not all that comfortable with my ability to clearly ask and be respectful. .. I may just have to take a risk and walk around like I did in Botswana.. That took a few months..

I needed some furniture for our porch and was advised to get it just outside of the small town called Salima.. There's a series of 5 or 6 wicker furniture builders that have shops set up on the side of the road.. I stopped at about 3 of them and priced them out... One of shops run by a man named "Bright" offered an extremely reasonable price for two couches for about 80$.. Including delivery(which is 2 hours away).. Some locals might feel like I paid too much, but compared to home, this was a bargain. He gave me a deal and stated "we will work again soon".. so there you go. I also purchased a large circular grass rug for the living room (7$) and 2 grass hats (1$) to wear to the beach..

I finally made my way to the lake.. the road ends at the Sunbird hotel.. You don't have to stay at the hotel.. you just pay 1000 Kwacha (2.50$) and you can use the pool, bar, lakefront.  It was beautiful .. very peaceful , very clean.. but you cannot swim after 5pm. Someone stated due to a hippo and some crocodiles that are in the area.  I stayed for about 3 hours, read my book, got bored, missed my wife and kids and felt guilty about laying around on the beach knowing my wife is working, tending to the kids and closing up the house back home(long sentence I know).  SO, I only treated myself to 2 beers and took off.  Funny thing, I was sitting there and an American with a Cincinnati Marathon t-shirt walked by.. He was from the Wyoming neighborhood... he was here for 2 weeks.. small world.
 I had to get back to town early to check on some things at school as well.

The way back home I was a little more aggressive in my driving but still on the defensive.. I stopped to take a photo of the landscape, freaked out a few little kids (I'm assuming they were intrigued by the color of my skin)..  I did notice a few men dressed up in masks, wearing rags and dancing through the villages.. . I can only assume they were witch doctors or something of that nature... some were dressed in all black, one I noticed had a white mask on as well . Sorry, no pictures as I high tailed it out of there..

I think once my family arrives Senga Bay will be our weekend destination.. you can also snorkel there as well.

Last thing..... I was exhausted when I came back to the city.. not sure why, but I think the African sun can take its toll.... all I wanted to do was get back to the house and have dinner.. But a soccer match had just let out and I couldn't make the turn to my house due to the crowds.. I was tired of waiting so I drove a little further, stopped and ate a local hotel instead .. waited out the crowd.

Today brings nothing.. I may take another drive, but I am currently rearranging some furniture. Ill stop back at school to see if our personal items/ art supplies have been cleared by the government officials..  I may just get back on Facebook... I haven't spent this much time perusing Facebook in a long, long time.  Listening to Jackson Browne and thinking of home.
Hope all is well.

Senga Bay

Landscape/ man walking home

Village on the road

Handmade Wicker furniture on the road

This one is for my kids... 

buying floor mats

I asked Cam the gardener to accompany me to a place to buy grass woven floor mats.. Carpets here are really expensive, and this seems like a great alternative. He knew where to get the best prices and we took off about 15 minutes outside the city. The name of the village was called Chisepo (sp?). It was a piece of african life that I love. A goat butchers shop, carpenters selling makeshift furniture, bars,barber shops , etc. Next time I go I will be sure to get better photos. The place was colorful, dirty and full of life.  When we pulled up to the shop and stopped the car, Cam said.. "Maybe I should go and you give me the money .. when they see your skin they will up the price. " I wanted to go and be part of the production so he reluctantly agreed.. For about 800 Kwacha (2$), you can get a hand woven mat.. it's about 6 ft in length and 3 ft. wide.. It would probably go for 150$ at pottery barn. Negotiating and going back and forth on prices is common here.. but I didn't really feel like talking the guy down from 2$ to 1.50$ was worthwhile.
All is well here and I am taking a day trip tomorrow to Senga Bay.. I m not sure if Ill stay the night. I have reservations at "cool runnings".. the great thing about making reservations here is you just call and reserve a room and give them your name.. no down payment necessary. Probably appropriate if i call and cancel... Apparently the terrain changes as you move outside the city. Lilongwe is very flat and as soon as you get out into the country, hills abound. Everything here looks dead, but they say the place becomes fully green when the rainy season hits in November.  All for now..

on the road

chisepo market

cessava

 I did not get the name of the vendor in the picture below, but he is just around the corner from my house. One thing that is different here in Malawi than in Botswana is the huge supply of fresh vegetables and fruit. Just about every street there are people sitting on the side of the road with various types of food. This man was selling corn on the cob (in the husk or fresh off the grill), potatoes, bananas and cassava... i have not heard of this before, but he told me it tastes like a sweet potato. I pulled over, grabbed 4 corn husks and 4 big potatoes for about 1$.  And the quality is very good

. 

Last night, I went back to the golf club for dinner. I stayed way too long as everyone at the bar was buying drinks for each other. I didn't want to disappoint and leave, so I hung and talked to many of the local men. Most of them had been to the US, and one had visited the Hofbrau house in Newport. He had a brother who worked for GE. 

A nice day at school today.. Kids are very well behaved and well spoken. I ate at the tuck shop (cafeteria) and they have a great selection of food... like a philly cheese steak and chicken ranch pizza!! Who knew? 

We are in the process of purchasing a van for the kiddos before they arrive. I am going to have a luggage rack welded to the top of it for our many excursions.. Keep your fingers crossed that everything works out..  I think that's all for now.. didn't get pulled over today, but I have some plans to go out and purchase some items for the house. Hope all is well at home. 

Here's to my son Jacob who I believe is moving off to college this afternoon.... big day

blind contour drawing! 8th grade

cessava

Constable Andrew

6th time pulled over, 5th time  at this same location. This morning on my way to work I was flagged by a police officer in a yellow bib and camouflage . He looked to be about 18 and was sporting a giant rifle.. His name was Andrew.. We shook hands and I told him to be careful getting into the car with a giant gun.. He assured me it wasnt loaded.. yet... Since he had a giant gun, I felt like I should pull over. Here, police do not drive around in cars with lights.. they hang out on the side of the road and freely pull you over... I'm not sure what happens if you don't stop, considering they have no real way of catching you since they aren't in cars.. but I don't think Ill take my chances....  Several people get pulled over all the time and simply pay off the cops..
Everyday is an adventure here and it doesn't get old.. yet.. I'm sure after 6 or 7 more times of getting pulled over it might get a little frustrating.

Had my first class today.  12th grade art appreciation. it was great. Think I'm going to enjoy teaching the high school kids here.  Not much else going on today. It's still sunny and pleasant. I haven't seen any sign of rain since I landed here. Missing my kids as I know Jacob is getting ready to take the plunge into college life and the rest counting down the days until the arrive here. I think they will really enjoy their time at this school.

All for now.

shops across the river

stuff around the house..

I think I've mentioned the people who work at our house, but Ill do it again since my day was fairly uneventful. It is customary here to have people tend to your house. When we lived in Botswana we were very reluctant to do it , simply because we are from the American mentality of "ill do it myself". But, we were advised to make the change and it was something we got used to and eventually embraced..  In a country where people live on average of less than a 1$ a day, you are employing those in the community. This is how it has been explained to us.. And while things here in Africa take a very long time to get finished.. people do work hard, and take pride in doing a good job.

Cam is our gardener and tends to the yard.. He usually starts his morning by sweeping any fallen leaves off of the driveway, and puts them in piles around the trees. I'm assuming to act as a mulch and absorb moisture when the rainy season comes in a few months. Our yard is huge with many many trees, including an avocado tree.. Every tree has a neatly stacked pile of leaves.. He waters all the plants and flowers and keeps the place looking nice. He is also the only Malawian I have seen who wears a bicycle helmet.

His wife Rabina takes care of the inside of the house. She mops all the floors every day, cleans the bedding and towels, does our laundry and even irons everything.. She will also cook if we ask her. She is accompanied by her 2 1/2 year old son William. He will either be propped to her back, wrapped in a cloth or wandering the house and yard playing with a few handmade toys.. every time I see him he calls me "White man" in Chichewa "Azungu" . I believe she has 2 older daughters.. one I know is my daughter Kate's age.  Rabina usually leaves when all her jobs are finished and Cam usually stays until around 4 30, when the night watchman comes to the home. Cosmas and Joseph watch over the property at night, and take turns staying here during the weekend.
Aside from sleeping outside and opening the gate for us when we arrive or leave, they are teaching me some Chichewa.. They also insist on cleaning my car for me. Cosmas cleans the outside, Joseph the inside..  My car is spotless and I have offered to pay them extra for their time, but Joseph stated last night.. "it is in my job description". It's usually embarrassing because he says to me.... "so, your car is dirty again..." Yes Joseph it is.. I'm a slob.
They each make about 70-80$ a month and are always very happy.  Last night as I was grilling outside, Joseph asked why I cooked with the charcoal.. "don't you like electricity? We cook with charcoal every night.."

They are also the only real Malawians I speak with on a day to day basis. I usually try to give the guards some food in the evening ( eating alone when you're used to 6 other people is a little strange).With that said, even though they seem very happy, I am reminded that life here is really, really hard. Things that we normally would take medication for or seek routine medical procedures for can destroy life here.. I'm sure Michelle can attest to this better that I can. I just went to take Cosmas some food as I was typing, and he asked for an advance on his pay so he could have money to take a bus to his home village.. His older sister and grandmother had just passed away.  He asked for a little more of an advance than usual, because he wants to contribute to the building materials of the tombstone, etc..  I could tell he was shaken. So this blog post has taken a bit of a somber turn. Cosmas has to be one of the nicest people I have met in my short time here......

I would take photos of our everyone who works at the house, but i don't feel comfortable yet. It is hard to gauge how they feel about it.. Im sure it takes time. In Botswana it took a while. They are good people to say the least.. all for now.

classroom getting there

some of our huge back yard..

On another happy note, Malawi is a level 5 threat of malaria.. that's the highest .. Therefore we have to take malarone every day and sleep under mosquito nets

First day of school

It sounds exciting but it wasn't . We didn't have classes today, just an assembly where the administration introduced all of the faculty and after school activities to the students and parents.
The school is beautiful and has so much space for the students to play. Aside from having a huge swimming pool, the place has open fields in between buildings , a gym, 2 or 3 soccer fields, several playgrounds and 6 outdoor basketball goals. There are no hallways.. just covered walkways to each classroom. The kids are outside alot more than at home.. Which is nice. The school has around 300 students K-12.  It has 50% Malawian population and the other half is a mix of expat families..
Once the school day was over and I did some work in the library, i hit a local fast food chain called MaryLane.. It's fried chicken .. it was very good. Did I mention it was a hookah bar too?  It is located in a strip mall that houses 2 other fast food restaurants " Pensacola Spur" and "Debonairs Pizza"... Spur is a South African chain, and it's like a TGIF or something like that.. mmm .. There was a Spur in Botswana, not sure why this one is called Pensacola.. The Spur in Botswana we would frequent quite often, because they had babysitters that would play with your kids while you ate.. It was awesome. And , they offer a wonderful treat called monkey gland sauce..

Yesterday I was walking down a quiet street and all of a sudden there was a giant crash to my left. Someone had thrown a bunch of garbage over the wall of the house..  This is how they dispose of garbage here in Malawi.. sort of a out of sight, out of mind philosophy.. or they burn it in the giant storm drainage ditches that line all the roads... The photo is the drainage ditch outside our house.. garbage was burning in it when I pulled up to the gate.  Missing my family alot today, as I sit in my bedroom and prepare lessons for my classes. Art has been cancelled this week due to the fact that I have no classroom or supplies to teach .... Hopefully Monday the room will be ready..
Grilling out tonight, then going to bed early.. Hope all is well at home..
A little chichewa lesson for you today.... Mulibwanji = Hello....  Zikomo = Thank you ... Ndilibwino= I am fine.... Tiwonana = Goodbye... the security guards Joseph and Cosmas are giving me chichewa lessons. I am failing miserably..
Also, here is a video of 2 local market areas within about an 8 minute walk from our house.. check it out. Clink on "local markets in Lilongwe" just below.

Local markets in lilongwe

drainage ditches for burning garbage

first day.. students walking to assembly

MaryLane Chicken..

good day, african pace

Saturday was a nice day. At the school we unloaded boxes and sorted books for the up and coming school year. ABC orders the school books, supplies , etc through companies stateside, has them put on a 40 foot container with personal items (we shipped the kids school supplies, guitar, scooters) and puts it on  a boat to a seaport town in Africa, then it is delivered via truck. The order was shipped in April and just arrived yesterday. Apparently it had been in Malawi for quite some time,but was just cleared to be delivered. On arrival to the school, a Malawian official gave the 'ok' to unload the school books, but none of the personal items. They have to be cleared with customs. All of the art supplies for my classes were considered "personal items". So as it stands today, I have no classroom and no art supplies.  This is how it is here and you have to learn to roll with the punches. Otherwise, you will pull your hair out.

I was able to go golfing at the Lilongwe Golf Club yesterday. The place is a 4 minute drive from our home. A great place I highly recommend. For a little over 60$ per month my family and I can join the club. They have an 18 golf course, bar, restaurant, swimming pool, dirt tennis courts, driving range, playground and cricket field. Your greens fees are 10$ plus a caddy accompanies you for your round. A tip of around 4$ is expected. You pay around 75 cents person to swim(cost goes to chlorine) and about 75 cents per hour to use the tennis courts.. if you want to play at night, it's a little extra to run the electricity. It actually felt a little like Caddyshack.. the caddies are given to you and they find your ball and help with shot selection... We drank bottled cokes and he wore a numbered bib. Roger was my caddy and he told me his average was an 84 for 18 holes..  I played horribly. The course is tight and if you can hit the ball straight you are in the trees. The ground is rock solid and the ball rolls forever .  I didn't care much for looking for the golf ball as it felt like a prime spot for snakes.. spitting cobras, black and green mambas, pit vipers and puff adders... I think Ill just buy another sleeve of balls.

After my round I bellied up to the bar to have a Carlsberg and some biltong. There were cricket matches going on all day as well, so there was a lot of people at the club.  On the three televisions in the bar were South Africa vs.  Argentina in rugby and apparently Saturday was the opening day for the Premier Soccer League. So I stuck around to watch that.. I really enjoy Rugby, and I suppose Ill have to pick a team in the English league to follow.  Maybe Everton will be my team. I love the Reds and they are mediocre, so Ill try to stay the course here in Malawi. It was a nice evening and I was convinced by some locals that we should join the club.

Earlier in the day a few roadside purchases... Fresh vegetables and fruits are one of the many things available for purchase. People seem to set up items at the same place each day from about 8-4... I bought about 12 bananas for 1$ yesterday and a huge sack of homemade charcoal for 5 $ . the charcoal is stacked vertically on the back of a bike.. about 6-7 high. It's great stuff.. see photo below.

 It is now about 10 am here and it is sunny and about 65 degrees. The weather has been perfect, but it never changes. Usually hits the upper 70's in the afternoon with a slight breeze and a few clouds, then dips into the 50's for the evening.. every evening closes with a beautiful sunset.  Have some actual work to do today and a lunch to go to at the Golden Peacock... don't get the salad wraps I've been told. This reminds me that you have to wash everything here very well, because most vegetables are covered with dust, and other unhealthy items. Also, you cannot drink the water here as it is very unsanitary. So we've got that going for us, which is nice.
I almost forgot to send out a belated Happy Birthday to Tom Wehby..  sorry I missed the party.
All for now..

hole #3

Roger 

outside bar area

charcoal for sale

Biltong and beer

through the city

shaking hands, holding hands , more beautiful sunsets

I have noticed a few things that I have found similar to our experience in Botswana.. For one, Hellos and introductions can take a while. It is a show of respect to shake hands for a long time as you say good morning, what is your name, how do you spell your name, and what does your name mean.. It is a sign of respect. It is also common to see good friends regardless of  their sex holding hands as they walk down the street.

Nothing really new to report other than that .. I am getting ready for the first day of school(Monday)but my classroom still isn't ready.. There is no tile, no counters, no cabinets.. i may have the week off of school next week.

The kids school is fantastic. People are very kind and accommodating and the campus is huge.. So much space for the kids to run and a lifeguard everyday from 9-5.  there will be a basketball team, swim team,  field hockey, soccer and ballet..

No strange things happened today, but every night i am hit with an amazing sunset. Even the Africans here stop and appreciate it.. They say it is different every night and should be admired. I would agree. it lasts forever and changes every minute.

Headed out to work at school in the morning, then am going to hit the Lilongwe golf club for 18 holes tomorrow afternoon. I have  booked a weekend at Senga bay for next weekend , so my first excursion out of the city will happen next friday. May take some new found friends from school .. I am currently watching "airplane" on the local cable television station... great friday night.

kids cafeteria

swimming pool on campus

my car in the school parking lot

Another great sunset

washing area in our house

1 week, pulled over 5 times by police and 100$ coolers for sale.

I've been here for a week. I've been pulled over by the police 5 times.. but not like they do in the USA.. the police that have pulled me over have been just standing by the side of the road.. They stand on the side of the road and wave me to the pull over .... 4 out of five times i've been pulled over at the same location.. not for violating any laws, they pull me over to ask "where are you going?" .. it's on the way to the school i will be working at, so I tell them where i am headed,.. they say "ok, this girl needs a ride to so and so".... which so far has been further than my destination. the woman is usually very pretty, so I'm assuming he's trying to help out a fellow citizen.. I expect it to continue..

Today was a nice quiet, productive day. I went to school to work, and returned around 4 pm. I realized i needed a few things to grill, so i went down the road to pick up a few items... bad idea.
the soccer game up the road had just let out and the streets were swarmed with people walking home. all traffic rules were violated and I was stuck in traffic for 30 minutes.. I could have walked to the shop, gathered my items and been home ... but there i was stuck in the middle of a road surrounded by people . it got worse as I inched closer to the street light.. which were working today.. that usually doesn't happen as well.  Once I finally arrived at the shop I decided to window shop for a little bit as I knew the street crowds were still filing through the streets.. no rush.. I was at "Game", a sort of wal-mart of africa.. the prices of things are so outrageous it is unbelievable. they were selling regular , hard bodied coolers for 100$.. I couldn't believe it.. some items here are so ridiculously expensive, i have no idea who can afford them.. but local fruits and vegetables (which you can buy from street vendors) are extremely affordable.. just can't afford to keep them in a cooler... the video is some of the crown moving down our street.

sunset at school

bicycle on the road (holding a tub)

Missing home and family a little bit today..

Market visit...

Today I was able to visit the real Market in the middle of town.. it was a giant maze of stalls, people, fruits , vegetables, used clothing, shoes, radios, fabrics, shops , etc.. it was a great experience.. We were asked to go on a scavenger hunt by the school i will be teaching for this coming year.. some of things we had to do were search for tupperware, buy mice on a stick, purchase a live chicken, trade with a vendor,   buy fabric and take it to a tailor to have them make something for you , etc.. It was a great experience, a good way to get a sense of the day to day life and culture.. People were kind and liked to stare and laugh at the white people walking through the market.. It was a giant cluster of goods, people, dirt, people, dirt, garbage, and more people... there's no way i would have been able to find my way out of that place if it wasn't for our guide Tusha.. attached are some photos..  a hair salon, fish stall, walkway through the outside market.... It is late here and I'm tired.  I did make it out to the airport today to retrieve my golf bag.. looks like I will be hitting the links this weekend.. Hope all is well at home.