Malawi & More

  Our last full day of the away holiday was a muggy one, the air thick with the pressure of a coming storm. I had a pleasant breakfast and did another short workout - pleased to see I'm now 5 weeks in a row on my app and planning on keeping it up. I've been neglecting my fitness levels and I'm determined to be better at looking after my body in readiness for cold winters and the germy children of London. Happily the storm kept away and we had a nice time by the pool and relaxing, looking out over a beautiful bay scene. Annoying though that none of us slept very well and so the early set off the next day must have been hardest for BigA ahead of another long drive. Perhaps it's because there has been so much rain but the baobab trees are full of leaves, I never think of them this way, for most of the year they look ghost-like, skeletal. The whole country seems to be so full of potential and life and yet we know just how the season will change as the dry season should be o...

 We set off, a little sad because Gizmo hadn't returned. The journey was fine considering the state of the roads, navigating pot holes, goats, 3 little pigs and of course people. We made good time, Malawi looking its most lush and green, the orange earth mostly covered, long grass and ready to harvest maize mingling with the trees showing their yellow brush like blossom. This time of year the sugar cane is in full supply and those that can afford it chomp away, chewing the hard substance to get the sweet sap.  The closer to the lake the more cars you see when fish dangling from their wing mirrors or windscreen wipers. Some huge campango - a type of catfish, almost as long as I am tall. The sky was the kind of blue primary aged children always seem to pick with fluffy clouds spreading far and wide.   Upon entering the wildlife park the scenery changed to the expected dense layers of grass and trees. We saw just one small family of water buck before we got to the lodge...

  It's still been raining, very unusual for this time of year and not welcome for many in Blantyre. The money and resources raised have all been given now and so we hope that has been enough to at least get people back on their feet. But still the tragedy of it all is clear. The death toll increasing as more bodies are discovered in mud. And it is of course a useful reminder of the fragility of life and just how lucky we are to have each other.  Saturday was full on busy, I made a dessert for the evening I was going to, went into school to do the last of my year 11 catch up sessions, none of them turned up on time and the yr 13 were nearly an hour late. I was not happy. At least all I had to do was walk from my home which took less than 5 minutes. And I got a lot of work done on policy updates. (I quite like it when it is simple stuff). I did the usual getting a wash on while we have power and BigA made us a slap up fry vegetarian fry up. Checked on the sorbet, not w...

Scorpions Mosquitos  Mosquito nets on beds Power interruptions  Water that you can't drink from the tap - and then when it goes off  Expensive and rubbish cheese Devaluation of the kwatcha  Cards not working easily (getting better) The roads The pavements - making it hard to walk anywhere without risk of injury  The poverty The cyclones The bizarre way things can be organised  The list maybe is longer but these are all things that it is fine to live with.  There is so much more I'll miss   

 My Saturday started with a nice cup of tea and BigA  made a delicious pumpkin soup and I pottered about thinking of my beautiful garden. I picked lemons and walked into far too many spiders webs, talked to my lovely mum and my lovely Rosie on line and a live appearance from Keith. I held the catch up session for my year 11 class - 7 came such was great and then the show. I cried at the end when A got an extra bow for it being her last show at SAIntS. We then headed to Becky and Duncan's for after show pizza and drinks.  Maybe one too many on the drinks front as I had a thick head on Sunday morning but it didn't stop me doing a little morning work out. The garden has been very happy with the rain, and I've been delighted to find passion fruit ready to be picked. It was something I had really hoped I would see - the literal fruits of my labour. I can more happily now leave this garden to a new owner knowing I got the first ones. They will have soooo many next year they cou...