We really did Zomba right for day 1.
We started by going to church. Patti said we could sleep in
a bit so we met at breakfast at 8:30. Breakfast is SO GOOD here- Spanish eggs,
beans, chips, toast with marmalade, bananas, everything. Before getting there
though we were greeted by the ultimate welcoming committee- about 10 monkeys
were playing on one of the balconies we pass on the stairs down the mountain to
the lodge restaurant. They. Are. Amazing. They are just tiny fuzzy people. They
played peek-a-boo with me and have little fingers and toes and love pulling
things off of tables and high surfaces. They just played and ran around and
absolutely mesmerized me. And they’re here every morning! One seemed to like my
necklace because he kept coming right up to me.
the stairs up to our room at Annie's Lodge
It got better at breakfast. The thing about monkeys liking
bananas- it is not a joke. They swung down from the roof of the breakfast
veranda to snatch bananas off our tables, and then eat them on the railing
right in front of us. They are relentless, sneaking up from every direction to try
and grab them. Everyone shoos them away and calls them pests. I do to but
secretly I bring tons of bananas to the table hoping they will come get them.
They are my true love. The monkeys, not the bananas. But the bananas are really
good too. Never leave me monkeys.
my friends
Then we went to church. Some street vendors post up outside
the lodge because they know people like us stay there, so I got a pine cone
necklace on the way to church. It’s classier than it sounds. We walked to the
chapel. Girls sit on one side and boys on the other. It was such a great time.
It was a Presbyterian service in English, though we were the only white people
there. Everyone learns English in elementary school here, which is so nice for
us because there are at least 4 languages in Malawi, so Chichewa (which we
barely understand anyways) doesn’t always cut it. The hymns were beautiful,
sometimes accompanied by a band and sometimes by a really incredible a cappella
choir. The pastor was too much also- he had so much energy and called for lots
of hallelujahs while he told us about what is says in Deuteronomy 22:6-7, some
general things in Numbers, and Malachi 3:10-12, all about not being greedy and
discovering the holy portion, and God’s promises about that. There was even
some dancing during a hymn, and they invited visitors to participate in the
offering, which is done by processing to the front of the church. My favorite
part was this song I had never heard before but loved, with the chorus
“Bringing in the sheeps, bringing in the sheeps, we will come rejoicing
bringing in the sheeps.” Since sheeps and rejoicing are both in my top 5
favorite things ever, I was completely on board.
After church we took a walk around Zomba to get our bearings
and scope out the store, called Peoples Mart, as well as another smaller store,
and the restaurant Tasty Bites (which is indeed tasty, and for biting). Ashley
and I got ice cream though that was risky because milk isn’t pasteurized in
Malawi, so it isn’t guaranteed to be safe unless it’s hot. The thing about ice
cream is it is milk and it is cold. But we were comforted by the fact that if
one of us got sick we’d both be going down together. Spoiler: we were fine. And
it was tasty
After eating we stopped at The Wall- a market in an open lot
where vendors have gathered and opened stalls. They sell wood carvings and
paintings and all the things Americans bring back from Africa. It feels a bit
like when people try to sell you purses in New York City until you realize
these men are artists-they make these things. If you don’t love a painting they
have, they’ll ask you how they can make it what you want, and they’ll paint a
new one and simply tell you to come back in 2 days. They sell things their
fathers and grandfathers carved. It’s really incredible, and absolutely
everything is beautiful. Necklaces, bracelets, paintings, cards, chess boards,
every African animal you can think of, masks, boxes, chairs, tables- it’s all
there and it is all beautiful. The problem is Africans don’t buy that sort of
thing, they live here. So when they see us and can make a safe bet we aren’t
from here, they get really excited. They’re all respectful but it is a little
difficult to really connect with them because they so want us to love their
work and support their business. Luckily it is all really affordable and I have
a lot of loved ones so I think I can support each artist in some small way.
I’ve learned their names though and really love them all.
We took a shortcut home through the “golf course” which was
a pretty field at the foot of the mountain.
Back at the lodge we had to rush to get ready because..
Annie invited us to a party! At her house! We piled in our SWEET bus, joined by
the other group of educators: 6 students from UNC Wilmington and their two
professors. So together we are 3 universities, 14 students, and 6 professors.
Not too shabby. Anyways we got on the bus and were driven up the mountain to
Annie’s. We know Annie does pretty well because she owns a lodge in most major
cities in Malawi and as I said, she is Beyoncé. Her house is wonderful though,
if not just for the view. She has a MASSIVE deck, the size of a ballroom with
the most incredible view of the mountains outside Zomba. That is why this place
speaks to me, it is a mountain town. They are always around us, curving up out
of the earth to hold us. I couldn’t breathe when I saw this view. We all took
pictures and talked to each other and Annie’s friends/lodge staff who came up
to help her cook for us. We drank sodas (and beer and wine but the soda is way more
fun) out of glass bottles and ate bananas. Soon Annie brought out the massive
meal and we ate while the sun set. There was some INCREDIBLY spicy sauce with
it, and anything that the oil of the sauce touched just engulfed your mouth in
flame. I was basically sobbing as I ate when I found this stray kitty. I named him
Spicy and he is my friend.
Then, we danced! There is a musician that plays during some
meals at the lodge named Amos. I didn’t learn his name until the party at
Annie’s, but I had been dying to talk to him because his music is so wonderful,
and he knows this song I heard when I was an exchange student in Germany. His
is so talented. He played American and Malawian songs while we danced. Our main
dancing partner/instructor is a friend we made named Hastings. He is a graduate
of the Malawi Polytechnic university and an entrepreneur. He taught us some
really, really fresh Malawian dancing. TWO things about all Malawians: they are
nice, they can dance. Fact. All of them. After we gave it the old college try,
Hastings wanted to learn our dances. A UNC girl went straight for the hokey
pokey, so that is what we taught. Then the electric slide. What a strong
showing for the dancing of our country. It was such a weird thing to step back
and realize “I’m doing the electric slide to ‘listen to your heart’ played by a
Malawian in Zomba. How did my life get here?”
the preposterous view from Annie's house
It was so sad to leave Annie’s but on the bus ride back I
got to talk to Amos finally. He plays music because his father did. His father
died on Amos’s knees and told him he had to keep the music going, so he plays
guitar and sings and wants to make a CD and travel to different countries to
play. I promised I’d be the first to buy it, he is so so talented.
That night Ashley and Penny and I did a lot of planning in
Ashely and my room for Zomba Central hospital the next day. It is intimidating
to head back into the hospitals after a weekend of what has felt like
vacationing but the work is why we are here and what really makes our hearts
grow.
With love and cat diseases,
Lauren
I am grateful for…
1. Monkeys 2.
Photographs 3. Annie’s lodge Zomba and
it’s mountain
What will I do to make
today great?
1. Go to church 2.
Ask people their names (doandani?) 3.
Laugh freely
Daily affirmation. I am…
An animal lover
3 Amazing things that
happened today…
1. Church in Zomba, and Amos’s grace before dinner 2. Dancing with Hastings on Annie’s
porch 3. Pet Spicy the cat and being
harassed by monkeys
How could I have made
today even better?
Had more courage to talk to Amos sooner
Edit: after reading Ashley’s blog it seems the song
mentioned above may in fact be “bringing in the sheaves.” I think I will
continue to sing it my way because if everyone is bringing in the sheaves
someone needs to take care of the sheeps anyways. Also what the heck is a
sheave
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