Still in Malawi

Trip Start Jul 05, 2006

Trip End Ongoing

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Flag of Malawi Lilongwe, Malawi
Friday, August 18, 2006

August 10th

Well last night was interesting. Went out for a meal to a Indian restaurant me and Mick ordered mutton curry, thinking we would get lamb. But instead we got goat, but not just any goat I would assume by the way it tasted that it was a very old goat and didn't get much exercise. Still I ate it. Yum yum.

Well next couple of days should be interesting. I am sitting in on a meeting Mick is going to, the annual Wildlife Management Group, they discussing topics such as elephant relocation, ecotourism, and the game reserve in Malawi. Then on Saturday he is going to the Hunters Association meeting, that I am not so sure if I will like. But I am going anyway and if its not to my taste I will wonder around the lake, looking at wildlife

. Waiting til I get the opportunity to shot something.
Its weird how a week ago I left the lodge I was at and wondered next door, had a drink, which has lead me to such further circles of people. Well it wasn't as simple as it sounds, I had to talk a lot.

Back to food....I am eating a lot of steak lately and loving it, Malawian's love there meat, just like everywhere in Africa I have seen so far. Which is great.

11th August

Ok well the hunters here use SHOTGUN's. Seems somewhat I little over the top, I mean I have shot .375's and .458's but is it necessary to use a shotgun to shoot a wild pig? It is a culling op but commando style? Do I roll around the ground screaming and shooting off rounds in random directions? I may reconsider. What was I saying about traditional hunting....this aint it.
I keep having to ask myself where I am. Today I young boy tried to sell me some dead rats on a stick to eat

. Mmmm I politely refused and told him maybe next time, I have just eaten. I only hope what I ate....oh never mind. Lets not even go there.

Aug 12-17th

Well lots to write past week been very eventful to say the least.
Me and Mick went to hunters association meeting well the end of it anyway, then I had my shooting opportunity. I must say shotugun was fun but not as much power or a kick as the .375's I have shot before so no injury's. I decided against the whole killing thing, I guess I just don't have that killer instinct in me. I shot a few rounds in the air but not killing any ducks.

After that Mick dropped me at the lake at a campsite to meet with Ester

. I met Ester previous week in Zambia same time as meeting Mick. She from Malawi originally but lives in UK. She invited me last week to see her if I was in Malawi, so I went to the lake beach campsite. Had a great couple of days camping on the beach, swimming in the lake, and drinking large amounts or Carlsberg and J&B.
Ester had a lets say classic old car which she lent of a friend of hers. And the last day I spent with her was the most eventful I have had yet in Malawi. Plodding along, driving around Liliongwe we suddenly heard this fud and a dragging sound at back of vehicle. We immediately stopped and found that the exhaust had fallen off and got rammed top end in the boot and bottom end in the road. This happened in the nice busy road in the middle of Lilongwe. myself and Sean her son lifted the car and kicked it loose. After that we drove to find a mechanic through some of the most rough streets I have seen yet in Africa. We felt to say the least a little vulnerable and very white. Eventually are second attempt we got to a 'road side' or alley way type mechanic who had a gas welding machine. The classic '15minutes' it should only take turned into over a hour. But in that time I was entertaining some kids in the street. There was 6 very young kids and one inparticular was making trumpeting noises from a old pipe, so I decided to start making similar noises with a old beer bottle in the car. To the much amusement they were laughing lots, I then picked up a old exhaust pipe and made some more interesting noises

. This getting some very strange looks from Ester, to say the least.
Ester then offered me a polo mint, and we being me thought 'you have 6 more for the kids in the street?' She gave me 6 so I went around giving all the kids sweet each, one kid however looked at me and ran away. Which I thought was odd. I got back into the car, then 5 minutes later from the distance I see lots and lots of kids running in my direction, all shouting 'sweets, sweets'. Oops so I asked Ester for the remaining packet of polo's, as she laughed at me. Then with dozens and dozens of arms rammed through my car window in my face, I broke up each polo into about 4 pieces trying to share them out to everyone, but obviously running out in the end. Always leaves a sad feeling, but I never learn!

We then went on to find a orphanage as Ester had a load of baby cloths people from the UK had given her to give to a orphanage. Eventually many classic 'Ester' shouts later, we found a orphanage. This certainly left a lump in my throat as I think it did Ester. It really hits home everytime I see such a site, but you can never get used to it. Seeing some of the most basic classrooms, plastic chairs half broken and old blackboards in a very old run down building, with children who have nothing. This puts everything in perspective.
He is me wandering around the world clueless at the moment, having the odd stress, forgetting the opportunities, and the everyday life we all take for granted

.
I see all this too often and sad thing is, Africa is never going to change, with the people in London and New York making millions off the backbone of Africa's poverty. There is too many powerful people in too many rich cities around the world, keeping Africa poor.
As a old man said to me in a beach bar in the campsite next to the lake (who talked far too much, but had been traveling Africa his whole life) "they will only start to sort their problems out when we lot get out. Far too many whites, making far too much money".
Well I went a little side tracked there. As I tend to do.

My week ended having a few beers with Ester on her last night, with Mick and few other people. I was a wee sad to say the least to say goodbye to Ester, had a great week. I did say next time I am in sunny Shropshire in UK I will definitely pop by.
Oh also forgot I managed to get my haircut too, after many months, its very short!

I have managed to attach some of my best pix so far from Zambia & Malawi. Note they have been reduced a lot in size so I could upload them.