It has been a busy week! We conducted our third camp at Namitete Full Primary School, which is about 45km from Lilongwe. Everyone was a little tired after the previous week of work but there is something about singing the Banana Song that motivates even the most tired volunteer. All of the students were once again ecstatic to have us visit their school. The volunteers have worked hard to develop and hone their teaching skills. Each camp the volunteers feel more and more confident standing up in front of 50 eager students.
The challenge of this camp was working with the teachers. Although initially receptive and welcoming, there was one teacher in particular who felt as though we needed to give more material possessions instead of just teaching. He insisted that it was important for us to give them t-shirts as well as teaching materials. It was very hard to communicate that we just do not have the funds to buy teaching materials for each school we visit even though we wish we could. Though in the end the conversation was extremely beneficial. It led to a productive discussion with the teachers about our reason for being in Malawi and our view that education is empowering and t-shirts are not.
That evening we had the amazing opportunity of staying with host families in the village of Namitete. Each volunteer was paired with a host family who has a child attending the primary school. The volunteers had a true Malawian experience - carrying buckets of water on their head from the water pump, cooking the Malawian staple food nsima, watching and participating in traditional songs and dances, and sharing in the laughter brought on by our inability to communicate with most of the villagers. Our hosts' hospitality is unmatched - they eagerly opened up their homes and lives to us. No one got much sleep on the dirt floors but everyone rallied very well in the morning for another great day of teaching. Spending a night in an African village is an amazing and memorable experience!
On Sunday we drove to Zambia to go on safari! The drive was long and bumpy, but well worth it. On Monday everyone went on an evening drive in the South Luangwa National Park. As our pictures will show, we had the unbelievable experience of watching a pride of lions eat a giraffe. Catching such behavior is an incredibly rare experience, especially in the rainy season. We also saw elephants, hippos, wild dogs, impalas, hyenas and lots of monkeys! The ride to and from the park was long but well worth it.
We arrived back here at the house last night and after a quick turn around we were up bright and early getting ready for our forth camp. We have two more camps and then most of the group departs. The time is sure flying by, but we have plenty of work to do, so keep your eyes peeled for further updates. Uploading the pictures is taking a while, but we will get some up when the internet decides to cooperate. Thanks!
- Your friendly program coordinators Daisy and Scott
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