Lizards, grasshoppers, snails and 100-year-olds...

We had our first experiences with Malawian food today, as well as family-style meals. The actual meal is very quiet and no conversation really goes on. We can sit down and eat with any of the families here; one of the children usually will come and invite us as we walk in the door.

For lunch I sat with a family of six children and their Mama; these children are between the ages of 3 and 5. They were very quiet and looked at me with interest and confusion mostly. The mother asked how my trip was and how I liked Malawi so far.

At dinner the children were much more lively and receptive to us; they crowded around us after the meal to shake our hands and look at us. I had my table's children (10) telling me how old they were by holding up their fingers, and they really liked that game because I took a vested interest in them and they can tell me about themselves. Before I knew it, all of them wanted to tell me how old they are! The oldest one I could find, who isn't 100, is eight years old. The majority of them are between 3 and 5, though. They speak 3 languages, so none of them very well, but they like to tell you words in their native tongue; I found that out at dinner. There is a set of twin girls here too, which I think is pretty rare, but I don't know anything else about their family history; they are fraternal, but when they stand next to each other, you can see the resemblance.

There is no wild game anywhere in the vicinity, but there are impressively big bugs! Lots of species like to come into the house when the lights are on, and things hop around in the tall grass when you walk outside. The children pointed out a snail to us on the way back from dinner and the snails here are also impressively large.

Its about bedtime for us, since we can't really justify sleeping until lunchtime tomorrow. We decided that our sleep last night was justified, but our general slothfulness is unacceptable, so we'll be turning in soon in efforts to get up with the rest of the staff for meetings tomorrow. :)

We Made It!

Emily and I are officially settled in Mzuzu, Malawi where we'll be staying for the next month. We arrived in Lilongwe (about 4 hours' drive south of Mzuzu) about 3:00 pm our time, and all of our bags managed to make it, too, which is a bit impressive, considering Malawi's track record with checked luggage.
We then rode north for most of the late afternoon through the countryside, which is really beautiful. It's the rainy season here, so everything is green and growing, and the mountains are really beautiful. The roads were pretty clear, as the primary form of transportation for the average Malawian is walking, or maybe a bike. We saw lots of both along the way, as well as the occasional matolo (a minivan that people can pay for rides in, often very crowded)
While we're here, we're probably going to be mostly working to prepare for the community medical clinic at the end of January, beginning of February, and helping with the kids' activities until school starts in a couple of weeks.
We'll have more to tell soon!

Frankfurt!!

We have made it as far as Frankfurt, Germany and are waiting for our plane to leave for South Africa. The Frankfurt airport is decietful in that it is actually really boring and all the cool things are nowhere to be found!!! Otherwise, we are dealing reasonably well and fighting the urge to sleep. The next flight is ten hours, so we are looking forward to the sleep potential that accompanies such a long time in a cramped space. But, the bright side is that by this time tomorrow we will be in Malawi and can take a shower!!!

First Post

On December 28, Emily and I will be leaving for Malawi where we'll be working with the Rafiki Foundation in Mzuzu.

A Map of Malawi's location:

For more information about Malawi:

The Cia World Factbook