What happens to a thief in Kasungu?

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Every time I finish a blog entry I think I’ll not have much to write about next time, and then life happens in Malawi!

So what happens to a thief in Kasungu?

I accompanied Charles on his way to obtain a second signature on a cash withdraw slip, as I needed to go to the bank too to withdraw yet more cash to pay for my accommodation.

As we left the office I could hear lots of children singing very loudly. I asked Charles where it was coming from and why it was so loud. He said 'they are singing feef, feef' so I thought it must be some kind of celebration. As we turned the corner there were around a hundred or more school children on the side of the road and we were heading towards them. I knew this to be quite unusual as there were lots of other people gathered including plenty of vehicles so I asked Charles again 'what’s happening?'. He said they are singing 'feef, feef'. Not content with this explanation I asked again 'what is feef, feef?'. He said 'somebody has stolen something'. OH! 'Thief, thief, I understand now'.

Charles scanned around and pointed across the road in the direction of the thief who was wearing a bright yellow T shirt (not exactly inconspicuous). He said 'look, look, there he is, over there, can you see?' The young man in the yellow T shirt was surrounded by four men who were clearly attempting to retain him. Then all the people start pointing in his direction, the school children saw and OH MY there was a stampede and they’re all screaming. It’s worrying to see because children were falling over into the road with heavy goods vehicles passing!

Charles pointed out the arrival of an official who went over to arrest the young man. At this point we had passed the commotion and it was coming to an end. I said to Charles 'wow!’. Another stamped ensues and I can feel it getting closer. Charles turned around and announced that the young man had escaped and was sprinting in our direction. I spun on my heels to see a man with what looked like a large gun try to knock the escapee over. The police didn’t sprint after him because over a hundred school children were rapidly in pursuit! I wasn’t concerned about the man in the yellow T shirt, there was no getting away from this lot! I was concerned about myself as within seconds we were in the middle of the stampede! In fact if felt like several hundred children!

I wanted to grab Charles but he said not to worry they’ll run around me and something along the lines of ‘you know what children are like’. Charles speaks basic English very well but I still struggle with accents. As they are sprinting past at speed a few children managed to grind to a halt and achieve a perfect hand brake turn to take a look at the white lady! They demonstrated quick decision making skills, as they promptly turned back in the other direction as the pursuit was more interesting!

So it seems they don’t tolerate crime very well in Kasungu!

Nobody’s home

We walked around one kilometer to get the signature only to find nobody’s home!!! Charles suggested we might bump into Susan around town. I suggested calling her so we can definitely bump into her! It didn’t happen, as we ended up having to visit several cash machines before I could get half the money I needed for the hotel (you know how it goes by now)! But thank fully she visited the office later in the day.

Touring Kasungu

I was delighted that Blessings took me on a tour of Kasungu so I could get lots of pictures. I felt a little guilty taking him away from his work as he was under a lot of pressure and looked quite stressed. But he said he was pleased to have a break from work. We visited the back streets of the town, the market and the dam which is in the country. It’s really quite amazing how diverse all the different areas are. There is so much atmosphere here - it’s buzzing. I couldn’t have done it on my own with a camera, as I expected. As Blessings took photos or attempted to, some people started asking for money 'she can pay me for that!' It really makes me feel quite uncomfortable. Blessings explained that some people might think when I go home we’ll mock the black people and Charles suggested they might think I’m going to sell the pictures and make money from them. I explained that it’s a shame they don’t understand that we’re promoting tourism by sharing our photos.

White lady, white lady…

The dam is a beautiful, peaceful place. Blessings took me to a bridge with no floor. I asked the question and anticipated the answer…the locals probably took the wood to make good use of it. As we walked some local children were shouting. Blessings said they’re shouting 'white lady, white lady' so I waved to them. They were SO excited. One tiny little girl even let go of her huge tub of water which was perched on her head to wave back at me.

Bits n bobs….

It’s impossible to remember and write about everything that happens here. I literally could write a book! Here are a few things I’ve reflected on this week….

My conversation with Shai at Tongole - We were discussing the education system in Malawi. As I understand it primary education is free but anything more has to be paid for. He told me he is an artist. His father taught him how to carve things from wood (and way back from ivory!) then he’d go to the beach at the lake to sell his work. He said 'it was so, so, so hard in those days '. He said it was to pay for his education! Really? He said it took many hours of working to be able to pay for a term and it was always at the last minute he would have enough money. I asked how much he had to save…I’m sure he said 150 MK (75 pence). And you know what? Many don’t drop out of school, despite the hardships, they really value their education. Of course some do which is usually related to poverty. Yet in developed countries too may throw away free education and training opportunities.

I had another laugh out loud moment this week too. I decided to take breakfast in the restaurant as it wasn’t very busy (I usually avoid it if it is) and a Malawian gentleman joins me and introduces himself as a civil servant for the President’s office. This hotel is used by a lot of important business people. He asked me where I am from then if I still go to school in the UK! I explained that I work and he lifted his head from his breakfast and took a really good look at me. ‘OH! Really? So what work do you do?……' He made a 41 year old lady very happy for the day.

Oh and my little room steward…he is delightful. When I returned from Tongole he took my muddy boots and washed them (they’re like new) and today he took my flip flops and washed them (after my town tour). All the staff her are delightful. Most know my name and even the manager greeted me today by my first name!

Finally I gave Gentry a very big surprise today. He thought that AFID pay me to come to Kasungu and that they pay all my expenses. When I explained I paid AFID and I pay all my expenses he was really, really surprised! He couldn’t understand it at all. There are a lot of American Peace Corps here and apparently they are paid to come! He asked why I would do that. I explained to him that I feel blessed to have a comfortable life in the UK and so I want to share some of that with others and do some good. He said he felt really humbled!

No work and no play

I’ve been sooooo bored in work this week. We have covered so much in the last two weeks that I decided to spend this week observing to ensure the procedures that were agreed were put into practice. However, GHYO had good news this week. They were offered further funding from a donor and were invited to apply for potential funding from another donor. So the team have been very busy preparing all the information. I have chipped in where I can but I do find the ways of working here very different. Today I actually resorted to playing sonic the hedgehog on my phone!

I'm finding it frustrating because I’d rather be touring than sitting doing nothing. I’m used to working hard during working hours! There is a national reserve full of hippos only 45 minutes away. The only way there is by private taxi and I was advised this week that they’ve run out of fuel and are buying on the black market at £2 per litre!!! Don’t forget they earn around £1 a day here! So imagine the cost of a trip and the risk of actually getting there and back in a day without running out of fuel. I decided not to chance it.

Today I saw my first Christmas decorations for sale which caused quite a commotion in town. It reminded me of home and what I am returning to. Tomorrow I need to make arrangements for my transfer to Lilongwe. It’s 1 hour 30 away but as it took me 4 hours to get here I need some form of guaranteed transport. My first question is 'is there such a thing?' We’ve had a number of discussions but still no decisions have been made! Tomorrow a decision will be made…I cannot miss my flight!

I will miss the team here they have been so kind, helpful, friendly and welcoming. They're very bright, clever people who are willing to work hard and are very keen to learn new skills, grow and make a difference. It's such a shame that they don't have the opportunities we do because they certainly deserve them. I hope more people can visit GHYO in Kasungu, Malawi and share their experience and expertise too.

As I have one day left and a 9 hour layover in Kenya airport….perhaps I will be able to write another blog! You never know what’s going to happen in Kasungu and Malawi!

Make sure you scroll all the way down to the bottom of each page as last time the pictures spilled over to the bottom!

Bye for now….

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Photos

Inside the market
One of the alley ways in the market

The market
A gentleman who asked to be pictured with me! I showed him and his friends the picture which caused a lot of laughs.

Another part of the market
The market is in segments, around here they sold lots of food including bananas which where ripening under piles of leaves, and piles of dried fish (like sardines)

The primary school
The primary school in Kasungu is quite large with quite a few classrooms.

Inside the classroom
No children around at this time of day.

Country houses
Country houses out of town.

Country lane
It's a common site to see ladies carrying things on their heads.

No fences here
Cattle graze freely - no fences here! Drinking from the dam

The dam
It's a reservoir, I was amazed how big it was!

The dam to Kasungu mountain
My hotel is by that mountain!