My Second Day

Today was a bit quieter than yesterday. I got up around 6 – I couldn’t sleep any longer because of the heat. In the morning Levi, the schools head-master, took us to the town of Salima which is about 7 km away from the school campus. We got some necessities as for instance money out of the atm, which takes me about 20 minutes, because there was a big line. Levi explains that there is such a big line because it is the end of the month, and people now have money again. That’s also why there are more people in the shops. I guess people do live much more day-to-day as in Switzerland. We also got some basic food, some beverages, and a Malawian phone. We also wanted to buy internet (you can buy something like a USB-stick and charge it with a certain time of internet capacity – they call these “dongos”). However, the guy said they had sold out and would get them again on Wednesday. That’s why all these blog entries are online together with a certain delay... ;)

At lunch we ate “nsima” (which is a sort of doughlike porridge made of maize) for the first time. It was very good, together with the sauce and the cabbage salad. I was very glad that I liked it so much, because I will eat it a lot during my time here. Have a look at the menu for this semester: I will eat it 9 times a week. It is the favorite dish of Malawian’s – in farming regions outside the cities people eat maize (most often in the form of nsima) for breakfast, lunch, and dinner (Kamkwamba, p. 67). “Nsima is made by adding maize flour to hot (but not boiling) water until it becomes too thick to stir”, then scooping it into cakes about the size of a hamburger. You eat it by tearing off a piece, roll it in your hand and scoop up whatever is served with it.

This is our menu plan for this term. Mealie Mealie is also made with corn flour, it is just less thick.

After a siesta we walk into our little town of Kapathenga, which is really just the start of Salima. There are guys selling mangos, but they don’t look ripe yet at all. He insists that it is good, though, and gives us one for free to try. However, our suspicions are correct, it is really sour. Henry says that some people like it like that, and they suspect that it is good for pregnant women.

We walk further. There are not many mzungus in Salima by the way. So far I have only seen two. People react to us in different ways – some are very happy to meet us and start talking to us, others look at us with a frown. Once you start talking to them, almost all of them will open up. Some children ask us for money, and sometimes they follow us long distances. In my opinion, you should never give them money, just because they ask for it. That only encourages them. Some kids also just follow us because we seem interesting to them and the seem to have nothing better to do, which is very cute and sometimes funny – for instance when they try to repeat something you’ve said to each other in Swiss German.

We see a game of bawo, which is popular in Malawi. I remember that William Kamkwamba also liked to play the game, and am interested in the rules. There is a crowd of about 15 men standing around the game between the two guys that are playing. I start a conversation with one of the guys standing there – Coris – and he tries to explain the rules to me, but they are very difficult, because the game is played really quickly. He can convince the group that he will play the next game against me, which causes great amusement in the crowd – not only because a mzungu is playing bawo against them, but also because I am clumsy and slow picking up the little marbles from the holes and distributing them into the other pockets, while they are so quick at it. Coris works for a health organization that also does projects to raise awareness about HIV. I have told about the progress that Malawi has made in this field because of such programs, and such a project is also mentioned in Kamkwamba’s book. There, William is asked to do a theater about HIV (p. 232). I would like to talk some more to Corey, he seems like a very nice guy. He said we’ll find him at often at this spot, playing bawo. Unfortunately I was so caught up in the moment, that I forgot to take a picture…

We just missed dinner when we get home. So it is cornflakes, yoghurt, and bread with honey tonight. We also bought some liquor earlier, for 1600 Kwacha, which is less than 4 $. We try a drink with it. It is ok, but not my favourite drink. I prefer Malawi Gin which I had yesterday, that was actually very good. Worth considering another export business, Raphi! Or maybe just on the small scale for my own consumption ;)

It is now 9 p.m. and I am going to bed. I think I will go to bed this early every night now. Most Malawians go to bed around this time. Also because only around 20 % (source: Henry) or 2 % (Kamkwamba, p. 75) of Malawians have electricity, so they don’t have lights at night. Good night.

We are always playing a game about who has to do the dishes...