Blogs from Northern, Malawi, Africa - page 7

Hier ben ik dan weer, en dan wel op een supertraag internet. Ik ben dus vorige week maandag eindelijk aangekomen in Mzuzu, na een helse reis. We zaten om 8u op de bus en we kwamen toe om 17u, 9u op de bus dus, zonder eens af te stappen, want anders waren we onze plaats kwijt. De bus stopte bij iedere mens die op de straat stond te zwaaien. Ook in ieder dorpje waar dan mensen van alles probeerden te verkopen door het raam, van eieren, groenten, frisdrank (die in de zon stond) tot ondefinieerbare dingen. Man, man, man mijn achterste deed serieus pijn. Wat we niet wisten, en dat ze ons pas vertelden toen we op de bus zaten, was dat er een andere bus is, voor maar 1000 kwacha (5euro dus) meer die niet ... read more

Hallo, Morgen vertrek ik naar Malawi, via deze site zal ik de thuisblijvers zoveel mogelijk op de hoogte houden. Groetjes en tot binnen 4 maand! Stephanie... read more

Narrow strips of sunlight broke through the badly constructed walls of the shack - which according to its’ sign - claimed to be a RETSULAUNT. The floor consisted of evened out cow-dung, a greyish-brown sense of cool, on which I lay flat on my back, trying to soak up as much coolness as possible. Outside the day was sweltering and languid. The men of Karonga sat chattering on rickety benches in the shade while the women sat in the belching sun outside the rice mill, with their heavy sacks of produce. Aili lay next to me on the ground and was already fast asleep. She was just as exhausted and over-heated as me, if not more. The kind owner of the “retsulaunt” walked barefoot back and forth a few inches from my head. She had a ... read more

Mon 28 May Emerged from our dingy Travelodge and gave the battery another wallop and Jonathan appeared to guide us to a local mechanic who charged £2 for parts (new connectors) and a £2 tip for his time. But for the rest of the trip I was never 100% confident about the go-anywhere reliability of the 4x4, especially as the back door kept jamming, the exotic gauges (altimeter, compass, angle we were tipped at, etc) all had very wild readings, and a few other niggles. And we were to travel miles from anywhere on some very poor roads. Spent the morning shopping for Tamsin’s ‘teacher aids’ - door locks, lamps, clocks,etc. Then farewell to Jonathan and Cecilia who headed off to catch the evening ferry, and we headed the other way for an hour down ... read more

Back Again... This time just a quick note.. The last week i have been spending my mornings at the local nursery school with the tiny tots whom are adoreable. The first days i was there i would make at least one of the kids cry when they saw me.. ow :( but thankfully their getting used to the Mzungu. The poor teachers have no supplies including sugar which is the main drawcard to get the kids to school as they give them tea, but lately have not been able to. From the picture you can see their toy cupboard consists of a mere couple of pieces of lego so we struggle to keep them entertained. I've chipped in as much as possible but if anyone has any old toys, clothing etc that they no longer ... read more