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May 22nd 2007
Published: May 22nd 2007
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Old Town, LilongweOld Town, LilongweOld Town, Lilongwe

Bata (a Czech shoe brand for those of you not in the know) is HUGE here! How random.
By Tuesday I was starting to feel pretty isolated from real life here. I had only been driven around in SUVs, eaten at places most Malawians could never afford, and been in supermarkets with brands like Heinz and Ceres (= all imports). So I decided to venture out to the Old Town in the morning. Our housekeeper, Mary, walked me to the place where I would catch the minibus to work from then on, and told the money collector where I was going (since I really didn’t know myself!). The minibuses are something else—if I ever feel like the group I’m riding with will let me get away with it, I will take a photo. They are the most unbelievably rickety old things, many of them second-hand imports from places like China and the United Arab Emirates. Most of them feel like they could fall apart underneath you, and there is usually exhaust rising from beneath the seats! They cram four people per row (no aisle, just foldable seats), with the money collector standing and bending over a row between stops. It costs about 45 cents one way. If you’re lucky there is Malawian music playing, which tends to put people in a better mood and reduce the glare factor (needless to say I am the only mzungu I have ever seen on a minibus so I get stared at a lot!). I got out in a part of town that finally felt like a city. There were people everywhere, shops, buses, cars, people hawking newspapers, etc. I ended up going to a couple of grocery stores (I have now been to three and have yet to find fresh garlic!) and heading home to delve into my reading. I stopped around 7pm and accompanied Matt to his weekly volleyball game, which is at a local bar called The Shack. Needless to say I didn’t play—I sat around with a bunch of expats and had a beer instead! It was the first time I really saw so many other foreigners, and I was pretty amazed at the range of people who live here. There were several Americans (Peace Corps, CDC, U of NC med. students), Lebanese (running a hair extension factory), Dutch, British…and also some Malawians of foreign origin. Many were stationed here for a year or two and ended up falling in love with it and staying longer (one has
Craft marketCraft marketCraft market

There are some amazing carvings by the world-famous Makonde and other things like jewelry.
been here for 31 years!). (I don’t mean to imply there is that large a number of expats here—I imagine I have by now met most of them since they all tend to go to the same functions.) There were also “real” Malawians. I found out that Paul Wolfowitz was ousted (finally!), which made me realize how out of the loop I am in terms of current events. I hadn’t seen a t.v. or read a newspaper in two weeks. All of the Malawian papers I have seen so far are printed in English so I should be able to start catching up on what’s going on…

Other than that I am settling in nicely. I have managed to cook myself a couple of really nice meals, though the power goes out pretty regularly and usually right around cooking time (most of you are smiling right now because you know I don’t start cooking til well after most people’s cooking time!). It’s the worst when it goes out at night and I’m home alone, because there really isn’t much to do! (I think I read the Economist I bought in the Joburg airport cover to cover—even the really boring
Walking down the street in Old TownWalking down the street in Old TownWalking down the street in Old Town

This is a very common sight - women almost always carry things on their heads (usually without the support of an arm like in this photo) with their babies on their back, secured by a chitenje.
stories, and somehow my Peace Corps guide to learning Chichewa isn’t all that enticing at 8pm.) But I’m getting pretty used to it 😊.

Love,

Martina

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1st June 2007

Bata
You can go to any corner of the earth, and those damn Czechs will be there!!!!! Bata has been in Southern Africa for at least 20 or 30 years, maybe longer.

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