I flew into Lilongwe, the capital, but then we had an 8 hour
drive north to the district of Chitipa.
Malawi is not a big country comparatively speaking for Africa, but it is
long, north to south. Fortunately, the
Chinese have been working on a new road that covers the last 90 kilometers to
the provincial capital. The road used to
be so bad, it took 3-4 hours just to travel this distance. Chitipa is at the end of the road, so for
years it seems that nobody cared enough to keep the road repaired.
Day 2 - Our assignment was to look at the seedling nurseries
for the daisies being grown by local farmers.
Well, to grow daisies and get good pyrethrum you need altitude and
cooler weather which means, up the mountain we went. We left early enough to beat the heat, or so
I thought.
It was a good 30 minutes driving just to the first
site. We took the office manager Joseph
with us as he had never been to the ag project sites. He was in office clothes and street shoes, and
so were the other three guys. We picked
up an overweight government agriculture extension agent along the way.
Our first two sites were near a village so there was easy
access. At the third site, we parked
along the edge of a road and hiked over the hill. “You see the nursery over there?” one of the
guys asked. Hmm, quite a hike and the
hillside was pretty steep. Glad I had my
tennis shoes on for that one. It was
challenging.
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To get to the fifth site we drove through some remote
territory and parked under a tree. When
we got out, one of the guys asked if I wanted to carry some water with me (it
was a hint). Nah, I thought I was
ok. We started walking and the trails
were pretty level, but went on and on.
Then it got steep, going up and then way down. Where is that nursery? We have been walking 30 minutes. It took another 10 minutes to arrive and
inspect the nursery. Our government friend
was still with us.
It is mid-day and the sun is hot, now to get back to the
vehicle. Another 40 minutes, climbing and
walking on the baked trail, the insoles of my feet could really feel the
heat! I was surprised they were not
blistered. I was surprised the
government guy made it. We had to wait
for him, but he survived. Back at the
hotel, there was no power and only a dribble of water, enough to rinse off and
cool down a little.
Day 3 - The next morning there is no running water. It seems that Chitipa is still the end of the
road and when power cuts have to be made, those farthest away get cut
first. The development workers can
scarcely do reports as there is not enough power to keep the computer batteries
charged. At least there is a bucket of
water, but taking a bucket bath in the tiny shower stall is a new
challenge.
Looking at plant nurseries is still the main agenda, but not
necessarily the most exciting thing in the world. After all, they are all growing the same
thing! Still there is the beauty of the mountains, seeing the unexpected, like a steep road, rough as a staircase and in the distance, the mountains of Tanzania. Some people are surprised to see us too. Some give gifts like tomatoes and onions, a bunch of bananas. Ah, we enjoyed a salad for dinner, where rice and meat are what they normally serve. Still no running water.
Day 4 – Buckets baths again, but the promise of a shower
tonight in Lilongwe. We say goodbye to
the team and hit the road for another 8 hours.
Some beautiful sights along the way, but it is still a long drive. Back in the capital, the shower is wonderful!
