News
Week One
Well I arrived in Lilongwe airport after a long journey and several connecting flights. It was hot outside and very green. (February is during the rainy season.) After going through customs and getting our tourist visas we went to collect our bags. Mine weren’t there at all. A few others had one bag missing as well – apparently it is quite common and something to do with not being able to re-fuel in Lilongwe. Welcome to Malawi!!
We were met by other serving volunteers and taken to a local hotel for our first week of orientation. Basically we were stuck in the hotel for the week while undertaking several workshops. It was fun to meet all of the other new arrivals that will also be in Malawi with me. We also got a chance to go shopping to buy household goods. Needless to say I spent almost all of my money on things I probably don’t need!
We met of employers who came down on the Thursday to meet us and to collect us and take us to our placements. One of the other volunteers, Jan, who stays further north than me and is a 2 day trek away came with us on the 5 hour journey to Mzuzu then I headed further up to Rumphi.
I don’t yet have a house as another volunteer is still in it so I am staying with Katrine, a doctor from Belgium. She is great and has helped out a lot during my first few days.
I have been a tour of the area and managed to get sunburnt – only on the places that I missed with the factor 40 eg my wrist and feet. My skin is extremely pink, probably something to do with the anti-malaria tablets I am on!!
The routine here is very different to that in Scotland. Generally speaking people get up at half 5 and go to bed at 9. I have neighbours that wake me up with their singing every morning. Yesterday one of them was whistling the tune of Auld Lang Syne which was very bizarre!!
Started work on Monday with Sue the other volunteer. We arrived nice and prompt at half 7 and waited for 15 mins till the District Education Manager arrived – apparently this is a good start as the others didn’t appear till much later! We were introduced and randomly chatted about not a lot. I don’t think he was expecting us. The desk officer arrived (he is the one that collected me from Lilongwe) and we spend the day doing not much!!
The rest of the week was spent opening a bank account (which was a day trip to Mzuzu), meeting a few folk, going to a school and generally planning for the next few weeks! Quite a lot of time is spent not doing a thing!! Hopefully I will have more to do to keep me working!!
My Friday night was spent watching a DVD on a projector, with a glass of wine after eating homemade pizza!! (Katrine is a great cook and has a mini oven!!) I was looking forward to a peaceful nights sleep, but no, the local witch doctor does his healing on a Friday and Saturday night which involves drumming non-stop from 9pm till 5am. This is also accompanied my random chanting and singing by those needing healed!!! Thank god is started raining heavily at half 3 this morning as this shut them all up and I could finally get some peace!!! Well until the neighbours were up at half 5!!
Thanks for your emails – I am reading them, but don’t have the time to reply! My address is District Education Office, PO Box 230, Rumphi, Malawi. So get writing!
Highlights of the next few weeks!
First of all I have to comment on the internet access that I can get – or the lack of it to be more precise!! It is not that I am being lazy and can’t be bothered to write anything, I just don’t have any access!!!
So I have been quite busy (well in Malawi terms) at work – we have met all of our colleagues and have a mini plan for the next few weeks. We have also been to a few schools to monitor (watch) the lessons! This has been really interesting to see. The Standard 1 (youngest age) teachers have just been trained in a new curriculum which has an emphasis on group work. All teachers out there – try this with a class of 100 infants!!
This weekend I have been at a regional meeting further north in Karonga with many other VSOs. We all camped under ‘girl guide’ style tents which was interesting!!! We got a tour of the area and had to climb up a dirt path to meet a tree that the spirits stay at! All I can say is that the spirits certainly didn’t like me as on the way up I just about passed out with the heat and lack of lunch, and on the way down I got several cuts on my legs and a splinter!!! On the way back we stopped off at the lake for a swim. The lake and the scenery is very beautiful and a Sunday Swim was very peaceful!! How is the snow and cold by the way??!!!
This week we are planning to visit all of our Teacher Development Centres and will be staying ‘out on the field’ as it is called! Should be interesting!
Random information!
Still have no house yet! And I have discovered that I own rather a lot of PINK items which is amusing my fellow volunteers!!!
It is still very hot and all I manage to do successfully is sleep! I actually have a slight tan appearing!
A lot of the Malawi lifestyle, bizarrely, reminds me of an extended Girl Guide camp – the constant smell of the camp fire, the pit latrines, the washing of plates etc on the grass with tubs and the laughter of the children and adults together.
Malawi is a very beautiful country, yet has many problems. My first impressions are that the people are friendly. There are many strange cultures that exist including that of marriage that are contributing to the poverty of the area. They are intrigued by the ‘Mzungus’ (whites), especially when they walk around the market plastering themselves with white lotion (obviously sun tan lotion to us!!)
Well I arrived in Lilongwe airport after a long journey and several connecting flights. It was hot outside and very green. (February is during the rainy season.) After going through customs and getting our tourist visas we went to collect our bags. Mine weren’t there at all. A few others had one bag missing as well – apparently it is quite common and something to do with not being able to re-fuel in Lilongwe. Welcome to Malawi!!
We were met by other serving volunteers and taken to a local hotel for our first week of orientation. Basically we were stuck in the hotel for the week while undertaking several workshops. It was fun to meet all of the other new arrivals that will also be in Malawi with me. We also got a chance to go shopping to buy household goods. Needless to say I spent almost all of my money on things I probably don’t need!
We met of employers who came down on the Thursday to meet us and to collect us and take us to our placements. One of the other volunteers, Jan, who stays further north than me and is a 2 day trek away came with us on the 5 hour journey to Mzuzu then I headed further up to Rumphi.
I don’t yet have a house as another volunteer is still in it so I am staying with Katrine, a doctor from Belgium. She is great and has helped out a lot during my first few days.
I have been a tour of the area and managed to get sunburnt – only on the places that I missed with the factor 40 eg my wrist and feet. My skin is extremely pink, probably something to do with the anti-malaria tablets I am on!!
The routine here is very different to that in Scotland. Generally speaking people get up at half 5 and go to bed at 9. I have neighbours that wake me up with their singing every morning. Yesterday one of them was whistling the tune of Auld Lang Syne which was very bizarre!!
Started work on Monday with Sue the other volunteer. We arrived nice and prompt at half 7 and waited for 15 mins till the District Education Manager arrived – apparently this is a good start as the others didn’t appear till much later! We were introduced and randomly chatted about not a lot. I don’t think he was expecting us. The desk officer arrived (he is the one that collected me from Lilongwe) and we spend the day doing not much!!
The rest of the week was spent opening a bank account (which was a day trip to Mzuzu), meeting a few folk, going to a school and generally planning for the next few weeks! Quite a lot of time is spent not doing a thing!! Hopefully I will have more to do to keep me working!!
My Friday night was spent watching a DVD on a projector, with a glass of wine after eating homemade pizza!! (Katrine is a great cook and has a mini oven!!) I was looking forward to a peaceful nights sleep, but no, the local witch doctor does his healing on a Friday and Saturday night which involves drumming non-stop from 9pm till 5am. This is also accompanied my random chanting and singing by those needing healed!!! Thank god is started raining heavily at half 3 this morning as this shut them all up and I could finally get some peace!!! Well until the neighbours were up at half 5!!
Thanks for your emails – I am reading them, but don’t have the time to reply! My address is District Education Office, PO Box 230, Rumphi, Malawi. So get writing!
Highlights of the next few weeks!
First of all I have to comment on the internet access that I can get – or the lack of it to be more precise!! It is not that I am being lazy and can’t be bothered to write anything, I just don’t have any access!!!
So I have been quite busy (well in Malawi terms) at work – we have met all of our colleagues and have a mini plan for the next few weeks. We have also been to a few schools to monitor (watch) the lessons! This has been really interesting to see. The Standard 1 (youngest age) teachers have just been trained in a new curriculum which has an emphasis on group work. All teachers out there – try this with a class of 100 infants!!
This weekend I have been at a regional meeting further north in Karonga with many other VSOs. We all camped under ‘girl guide’ style tents which was interesting!!! We got a tour of the area and had to climb up a dirt path to meet a tree that the spirits stay at! All I can say is that the spirits certainly didn’t like me as on the way up I just about passed out with the heat and lack of lunch, and on the way down I got several cuts on my legs and a splinter!!! On the way back we stopped off at the lake for a swim. The lake and the scenery is very beautiful and a Sunday Swim was very peaceful!! How is the snow and cold by the way??!!!
This week we are planning to visit all of our Teacher Development Centres and will be staying ‘out on the field’ as it is called! Should be interesting!
Random information!
Still have no house yet! And I have discovered that I own rather a lot of PINK items which is amusing my fellow volunteers!!!
It is still very hot and all I manage to do successfully is sleep! I actually have a slight tan appearing!
A lot of the Malawi lifestyle, bizarrely, reminds me of an extended Girl Guide camp – the constant smell of the camp fire, the pit latrines, the washing of plates etc on the grass with tubs and the laughter of the children and adults together.
Malawi is a very beautiful country, yet has many problems. My first impressions are that the people are friendly. There are many strange cultures that exist including that of marriage that are contributing to the poverty of the area. They are intrigued by the ‘Mzungus’ (whites), especially when they walk around the market plastering themselves with white lotion (obviously sun tan lotion to us!!)
posted by Caroline Pitcairn at
5:28 pm
2 Comments:
Well Caroline - it is great to hear how you are and that you are coping with life in malawi - well mostly! You didn't actually mention if you got your luggage eventually?? I do hope so. Hope the sleeping patterns improve and I am sure you will get used to some of the nocturnal noises in time! Hope the time "in the field" goes well and it looks like your camping skills in Guides are really beneficial. Have many of the other Volunteers been in Guiding or Scouting??
Anyway weather here is wet but not cold today and no snow in Edinburgh as forecast, although I believe there was snow outside of Edinburgh early today.
Hope you may have your own house soon, although having company and a good cook is a benefit!! Not that I think you cannot cook for yourself - I am sure Mum made sure of that before you left home!
Take care
Sheila
By
Anonymous, at 10:57 pm
Hi Dear
Dad and I laughed ourselves silly with all your news..especially the bits about you having to get up so early and also the nocturnal chanting! For someone who likes to spend a lot of their time in bed, we thought this was well deserved.
Sounds as though things are settling down and that work is beginning to take some shape?
Enjoy and take care.
Love Mum
By
Anonymous, at 8:20 pm
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