I wrote this yesterday, but because of the internet and computer issues here, I couldn’t post it. I’m having a colleague press “Publish” for me, since I can’t seem to do it here now that I’m in Malawi.
I left Vancouver on Sunday, February 12 and now it is Tuesday, February 14. Three flights (about ~18 hours worth), a great 3 hour tour of London [thanks to my Leave for Change colleague, Darran Fernandez for the advice on this], a handful of sleep crammed into a plane seats and I have arrived.
I have some great pictures to share but right now the internet is down in the hotel (but it works in their office? I don’t understand but I think I’d best get used to not understanding), and I’ve also discovered that the plug I bought to use here with my laptop doesn’t actually fit my laptop (brilliance!). So I am sitting in the “business centre” of my hotel.
I arrived at 1 pm this afternoon (around 1 am Vancouver time), got searched twice at the airport {fun times!], showered (I even got a hot shower) and turned on the television, started watching a bad romantic Hollywood comedy and then promptly fell asleep. When I woke up, I discovered that I should have purchased a travel clock because I didn’t know what time it was and I don’t wear a watch. So I meandered down to the front desk and discovered that I had caught up on 7 hours of sleep, which (now that it’s around 10:30 pm) makes me wonder if I’ll sleep at all tonight.
I ate dinner in the hotel restaurant: a beautiful spot (pic to follow) overlooking the small pool. It was pretty good- I got chambo (a local kind of tilapia) and rice. The problem though is trying to get food without dairy in it because of my food sensitivities since I’ve been stuck eating plane food for a few days now- I could really use some vegetables. But there’s a risk about eating raw vegetables so it’s a toss up. I at least am taking extra vitamin C to boost my immune system since there was a lady and her daughter who were really sick with some form of flu-type illness, luckily sitting in the row in front of me on the first long flight from Vancouver to London.
I will update again soon with some pictures, but I wanted to wish you all a happy Valentine’s Day, and reassure you that I have arrived safe and sound in Lilongwe. I’ll be here for two days training with the WUSC and CECI. One of the WUSC employees, Steve, was really nice to come and meet me at the airport, and it seems they’ve assigned a driver to me for the couple of days while I am here (I will have to remember her name!). She drives a really nice new WUSC Toyota SUV and will be here “sometime between 8:30-9 am” (we’ll see what time that really means!) tomorrow, as I start work at the WUSC country office at 9 am.
Hopefully tomorrow I’ll get my travel clock, my laptop plug for the outlet and some internet to upload some pictures! But we’ll see what happens…
All my best,
Suzanne
