It seems perfectly fitting that on my second to last morning in Malawi, regardless that this is a Sunday, I should wake at the ever famous 4:30 am hour. The morning has changed a bit since the far off days of heavy rains and muddy roads - I find myself now clutching a hot cup of coffee to warm my fingers and fight off the chill of this African winter morning. I am somehow comforted by the incessant honking of the minibuses (even at this hour!) that I am hearing now for one of the last times. The nostalgia is hitting now, my last night sleeping in under the protection of my bright blue mosquito net, the last time I'll shop in Blantyre market, the last time I have to say no when a vendor tries to convince me that, "looking is free madam. Just look. Nice things, cheap prices. Looking is free." Here I am, pressed up against the window to keep my internet signal, already missing my African mornings. I have one (maybe two) runs remaining to feel like a celebrity ("azungu! azungu!" I run with you!"), one night to cook a big dinner with my friends, and one last day to drive past the curio market and hear, "Daniel, Daniel!" from every vendor. I suppose I'll have some serious adjustments to make as I re-acclimate to American culture- I'll have to start thinking in dollars and not kwacha, and I'll probably have my work cut out for me to catch up with the current fashion styles. Somehow, I don't think chitenjes came into fashion in the US while I was gone...
I wrote an entry a few days ago and intended to post it, but never managed to load it. It had a political flair to it, though I am certainly no one to make any insightful political comments. However, I must share the funny part of that post. As I have probably mentioned in previous posts, Kathleen is also wrapping up her days here in Malawi. She has been working hard to get all 1,350 interviews translated from Chichewa to English so that she can do some serious data analysis when she gets back home. She has had three people helping her with the translations, and she has been furiously typing their handwritten transcripts into word documents. In doing so, she has come across some really funny responses from her interviewees:
Q: Do you support any political party and if so why?
A: "No. I support nsima and G-d." (recall that nsima is the staple food here, made of corn flour and water only).
Absolutely perfect answer.
Dr. Manary and his son arrived yesterday, and another medical student, Meg came a few days before. The house is filling up, and I'm sure it will be nice when I get all my stuff packed up and out of the house. I know saying goodbye will be really difficult, but I know it will only be temporary before I come back to this neck of the woods. I will probably write one final entry, maybe my last in Malawi or maybe from home...I'm going to miss the blog!
-dkm
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Home Stretch
Last night, while enjoying an awesome thai-inspired coconut curried chicken dinner prepared by Kathleen, Zach, Rachel, Kathleen and I had a pretty good bout of the giggles as we reminisced about our childhood days in the school cafeteria. We started by debating which candy is best (Reese's Peanut Butter Cups had the majority, but I fought hard for Swedish Fish and the whole Twizzler family). This quickly moved into the best snacks in your lunch box - Chips Ahoy being far below Mallomar's and the ultimate treat being Hostess Cupcakes (the ones with white frosting swirly decoration on the top). Kathleen complained that her lunchbox was never decorated with such great things - "The best I got was carrot sticks, my only hope was to trade..." To which Zach replied, "How did you pull that trade off? Trade with the blind kid?!" Perhaps it should not have been funny, but it did send us into roaring laughter for a minute or two, more for the thought of the poor kid who got convinced to trade a Hostess cupcake for a carrot stick.
All the talk of home - cookies and candies, sandwiches and huge cups of coffee to go - made me realize that I am ready to be back and get into the grind of American life, but that I also really had a huge experience abroad. I do miss some of those things, but really, being abroad has been everything I wanted it to be. I can appreciate the luxuries of home in a whole new way, but I will also miss my life in Malawi. I will miss the fresh produce, the incessant greetings, the formal hand-written letters, having children around every day bringing smiles when you're stressed, the beautiful landscapes, the chance to make a tangible difference in a person's life. Maybe this post is too cliche, but the truth is - I have done something that I know has changed my life. I have seen people come and go, and I've met many people who are very committed to working in global development. But I have also learned that working in this exact environment is not for everyone. I know that this is a world were I could work and be happy, and that is quite a realization.
So as I pack up my bags, wrap up wood carvings, pull down pictures, and take my last drives through town, I am only half sad. I know I'll be back - something I didn't know at the end of my time here in the summer of 2006. I remember leaving then and having tears well up as I wondered if I'd ever see my friends and colleagues again. I don't need to get upset like that again, I know for sure I'll be back.
I probably have one or two more blogs to wrap this year up, hard to believe. Thanks to everyone for reading, I know I've had fun looking back through old posts. I'm glad that I kept this going, and I hope that it gave you a sense of what my year has been like. I never knew this thing was searchable by google (naive I suppose - had I known, maybe I would have paid more attention to my grammar!), but I hope even you random people have enjoyed learning about PPB and St. Louis Nutrition Project.
Until my last post,
-dkm
All the talk of home - cookies and candies, sandwiches and huge cups of coffee to go - made me realize that I am ready to be back and get into the grind of American life, but that I also really had a huge experience abroad. I do miss some of those things, but really, being abroad has been everything I wanted it to be. I can appreciate the luxuries of home in a whole new way, but I will also miss my life in Malawi. I will miss the fresh produce, the incessant greetings, the formal hand-written letters, having children around every day bringing smiles when you're stressed, the beautiful landscapes, the chance to make a tangible difference in a person's life. Maybe this post is too cliche, but the truth is - I have done something that I know has changed my life. I have seen people come and go, and I've met many people who are very committed to working in global development. But I have also learned that working in this exact environment is not for everyone. I know that this is a world were I could work and be happy, and that is quite a realization.
So as I pack up my bags, wrap up wood carvings, pull down pictures, and take my last drives through town, I am only half sad. I know I'll be back - something I didn't know at the end of my time here in the summer of 2006. I remember leaving then and having tears well up as I wondered if I'd ever see my friends and colleagues again. I don't need to get upset like that again, I know for sure I'll be back.
I probably have one or two more blogs to wrap this year up, hard to believe. Thanks to everyone for reading, I know I've had fun looking back through old posts. I'm glad that I kept this going, and I hope that it gave you a sense of what my year has been like. I never knew this thing was searchable by google (naive I suppose - had I known, maybe I would have paid more attention to my grammar!), but I hope even you random people have enjoyed learning about PPB and St. Louis Nutrition Project.
Until my last post,
-dkm
Friday, June 6, 2008
Buying a beast and then some thoughts
With the current price of gasoline at home, I will probably never again have the satisfaction of buying a beast. The days of enormous, 9 seater, four wheel drive vehicles with tires that reach my hips are over. But first thing Wednesday, I woke up and wrote a check for a million-ish Malawian Kwacha and bought just this. I took the Toyota Land Cruiser 4WD Turbo home complete with automatic locks, power windows, seat heaters, and a CD player - on top of being a diesel engine and automatic transmission. Quite a posh vehicle... probably makes the other 7 cars in the fleet feel incredibly antiquated.
On Thursday, Franklin, Zach and I headed out to a district to the west of Blantyre called Neno, the site of Partner's in Health's new healthcare facility. Franklin was once a student of Paul Farmer, the famous founder of PIH and known for this work in Haiti (and the book Pathologies of Power). We met up with Liz, who was out in Neno visiting her boyfriend, and then had a tour of the new hospital, the lab, the outpatient facility, and the housing from the country director, Keith Joseph. Keith is a native of Harlem and a real down to earth guy. It was interesting to see the construction progress, but even more interesting was hearing Keith's comments about working in Malawi compared to his previous work in Lesotho, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic. Our visit was very brief, but enough to get a picture of what PIH is all about, at least here in Malawi. Meanwhile, Mike (MBA student from Duke) came back down to Blantyre for some business meetings. I was able to fit in a good run with him in the late afternoon, and then had a chance to chat about some non-work stuff over dinner, which was nice. One of the best parts of working in development is meeting people from such diverse backgrounds who are all so committed to improving the world. It's pretty neat, and I will really miss meeting these people. I think I'll be a bit spoiled when I get home... dumb guys in bars better save the small talk, lol.
Now, as the days before my return narrow, my main focus has become preparations for my departure and making sure that everyone else here feels as oriented to Blantyre as possible. I took all my extra clothes, shoes, and miscellaneous goods to the curio market to try to trade for novelty items. I found some fun gifts and am excited to bring it all back :) I am really looking forward to a brief break before starting medical school, and can hardly believe how fast time has passed. I am still waiting for WashU, but in the meantime, I am getting excited for Stony Brook. My next move is to find housing and a roommate in the area...that is, after I get back from here...
I can't wait to see everyone at home.
-dkm
On Thursday, Franklin, Zach and I headed out to a district to the west of Blantyre called Neno, the site of Partner's in Health's new healthcare facility. Franklin was once a student of Paul Farmer, the famous founder of PIH and known for this work in Haiti (and the book Pathologies of Power). We met up with Liz, who was out in Neno visiting her boyfriend, and then had a tour of the new hospital, the lab, the outpatient facility, and the housing from the country director, Keith Joseph. Keith is a native of Harlem and a real down to earth guy. It was interesting to see the construction progress, but even more interesting was hearing Keith's comments about working in Malawi compared to his previous work in Lesotho, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic. Our visit was very brief, but enough to get a picture of what PIH is all about, at least here in Malawi. Meanwhile, Mike (MBA student from Duke) came back down to Blantyre for some business meetings. I was able to fit in a good run with him in the late afternoon, and then had a chance to chat about some non-work stuff over dinner, which was nice. One of the best parts of working in development is meeting people from such diverse backgrounds who are all so committed to improving the world. It's pretty neat, and I will really miss meeting these people. I think I'll be a bit spoiled when I get home... dumb guys in bars better save the small talk, lol.
Now, as the days before my return narrow, my main focus has become preparations for my departure and making sure that everyone else here feels as oriented to Blantyre as possible. I took all my extra clothes, shoes, and miscellaneous goods to the curio market to try to trade for novelty items. I found some fun gifts and am excited to bring it all back :) I am really looking forward to a brief break before starting medical school, and can hardly believe how fast time has passed. I am still waiting for WashU, but in the meantime, I am getting excited for Stony Brook. My next move is to find housing and a roommate in the area...that is, after I get back from here...
I can't wait to see everyone at home.
-dkm
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Girls Weekend Retreat
With just 17 days to go before I head back to the States, Kathleen, Liz and I decided to take a short weekend retreat to a small town 60 km northeast of Blantyre called Zomba. Zomba was once the capital of Malawi and is set at the base of an incredibly scenic plateau. The streets at the bottom of the mountain are lined with very tall blue gum eucalyptus trees and as you proceed up the plateau, the landscape becomes decorated with lush greenery and strikingly red flowers. Young boys wait along the side of the road with freshly picked strawberries, raspberries, gooseberries, and passion fruits, as well as crystals harvested from the mountain rock face and decorated wicker baskets. We saw several baboons and a few other monkeys as we made our way along the very windy road to the top. Kathleen has a family friend who was once in the Peace Corp in Malawi (in the 60s) and now is directing an NGO based here in Zomba. He is back in the States for a visit, so he offered to let Kathleen stay in his enormous house as much as she'd like while she wraps up her research.
At the top of the plateau is an enormous lodge and restaurant called the Ku Chawe Inn. It has several levels, with low ceilings and many archways leading from room to room. Walking through the darkly lit rooms with dark wood furniture and brick walls is reminiscent of a gothic castle in Western Europe. The house staff are extremely accommodating; drinking tea and looking out this brick arched window makes me feel extremely colonial. We came up to the Inn in order to access the internet - because what would a retreat be without a little work and a little stress? There is no internet access at the house where we are staying, so we took advantage of the excuse to trek up the mountain.
This afternoon, we'll head out for a run along the very narrow and windy roads (don't worry, there aren't many cars around so this is not dangerous). I am looking forward to a quiet and beautiful run, in stark contrast to the runs I've had in Blantyre through crowded streets, dodging little kids, cars, piles of sugar cane and peanuts, or minibuses. The steep grade of the mountain will certainly give my butt an extra kick today...
After the run, I'm sure we'll open some wine, cook a great dinner (we brought chicken, corn, green beans, and lots of salad stuff with us) and probably fall asleep watching some classically girly movie like "Mona Lisa Smile," or possibly something light and humorous like, "Hitch." Tomorrow morning we'll make oatmeal pancakes (recipe ala South Beach Diet...they come out great!), squeeze in another pretty run, and head back to Blantyre. I have a lot of work to do for my research report and with all the commotion of the newly arrived project members, my hands will be full for the next few weeks.
-dkm
At the top of the plateau is an enormous lodge and restaurant called the Ku Chawe Inn. It has several levels, with low ceilings and many archways leading from room to room. Walking through the darkly lit rooms with dark wood furniture and brick walls is reminiscent of a gothic castle in Western Europe. The house staff are extremely accommodating; drinking tea and looking out this brick arched window makes me feel extremely colonial. We came up to the Inn in order to access the internet - because what would a retreat be without a little work and a little stress? There is no internet access at the house where we are staying, so we took advantage of the excuse to trek up the mountain.
This afternoon, we'll head out for a run along the very narrow and windy roads (don't worry, there aren't many cars around so this is not dangerous). I am looking forward to a quiet and beautiful run, in stark contrast to the runs I've had in Blantyre through crowded streets, dodging little kids, cars, piles of sugar cane and peanuts, or minibuses. The steep grade of the mountain will certainly give my butt an extra kick today...
After the run, I'm sure we'll open some wine, cook a great dinner (we brought chicken, corn, green beans, and lots of salad stuff with us) and probably fall asleep watching some classically girly movie like "Mona Lisa Smile," or possibly something light and humorous like, "Hitch." Tomorrow morning we'll make oatmeal pancakes (recipe ala South Beach Diet...they come out great!), squeeze in another pretty run, and head back to Blantyre. I have a lot of work to do for my research report and with all the commotion of the newly arrived project members, my hands will be full for the next few weeks.
-dkm
Saturday, May 24, 2008
The Art of the Bucket Shower
It seems as though in my final few weeks, I am returning to the days of the bucket shower. Over the past 10 months, there have been days here and there where the water has refused to run from the tap, or the electricity conveniently gets cut just as dinner is about to hit the stove. But this week, the shower really put up a fight, relentless for 6 days, and leaving me, my bucket, and my red plastic cup to face-off with shampoo and conditioner. Fortunately, the electricity has mostly cooperated this week.
If you don't have the proper technique, bucket showers can be messy activities. Water gets splashed in all the wrong places, any efforts to shave your legs are in vain because you keep getting goosebumps from the cold, and you can find yourself stuck with shampoo in your hair and your bucket dry. You need a sizeable bucket filled 3/4 of the way with water (that you would have certainly been keeping for these emergency situations in large drums in the kitchen), and 1/4 with boiling water. At least you won't freeze. Then you're aiming for speed and efficiency - somehow get the shampoo out and the conditioner in, spread the suds, and conserve the water as you rinse off. Unfortunately, if you are reading this from somewhere in America, you probably will not ever get to practice. I'm sure you're thoroughly disappointed.
* * * * *
In other news, the houses are slowly filling up... On Saturday, Franklin arrived. Franklin is a pretty accomplished guy, undergrad and PhD at Harvard, med school at WashU, and now matched to Mass General Hospital for residency in internal medicine...all by 31. Things have been very low key since his arrival as Sundays in Blantyre tend to be. We did go by the trade fair, an exhibition type thing where several countries displayed their artisans' work and sold some great gifts.
On Sunday, "my boys" all came by - Yohane, Antony, Luca, and some new boys - Chisomo, Chikondi and Julio. Chisomo is an adorable 13 year old boy whose father has passed away and whose mother lives in a village where she has no land to farm or job to do. He came here looking for "ganyu" - small job that he could do for some cash- in order to buy fabric to sew his own school uniform a few months back. Yesterday, he came unexpectedly and hadn't eaten anything in 2 days. He is living on his own with his sister, in a slum area near Blantyre. Yohane and Chikondi helped me in the kitchen to prepare nsima, spinach relish and eggs to feed Chisomo. I also found some sugar, oil, flour, ground nut flour, and washing soap to give him, in addition to a clean shirt, a pair of flip flops (as he has no shoes), and 20 Kwacha (14 cents) for a hair cut. It turned out to be a fun afternoon, cooking, playing bawo, and practicing Chichewa.
It is now early on Monday morning, exactly 3 weeks until I come home. I am going to take Franklin to the Malawi Bureau of Standards, as one of his charges while he is here is to figure out a way to measure protein and fat content in RUTF in our own factory. Franklin is going to try to see what machinery is available in Malawi and how we could adapt it to run these tests. Additionally, he is going to assess the hospital lab to see if a blood-gas analyzer would be a relevant and useful piece of technology, or if it would be more of a waste of money with no real use. Blood-gas analyzers are routine in the US, but each test costs $9 to run and usually is done when you are going to ventilate a patient. Malawi would have a lot of trouble running a test that cost so much per person, and also does not really ever use ventilator machines.
Tomorrow two more guys are coming - one from Duke (business student) and one from UNC (MPH program). On Wednesday, Zach and Rachel will join me here as well. Zach will be running the factory so Liyaka may take a break, and Rachel will be doing a stool collection study for the summer. Daunting projects for both of them! Finally, we have Meg coming on June 10, and Dr. Manary and his son Micah coming on June 14. Hard to believe I am already preparing for all these guests (I bought bunk beds last week to stock up on sleeping places!).
21 days til I leave Malawi, 22 days til I touch down in America.
-dkm
If you don't have the proper technique, bucket showers can be messy activities. Water gets splashed in all the wrong places, any efforts to shave your legs are in vain because you keep getting goosebumps from the cold, and you can find yourself stuck with shampoo in your hair and your bucket dry. You need a sizeable bucket filled 3/4 of the way with water (that you would have certainly been keeping for these emergency situations in large drums in the kitchen), and 1/4 with boiling water. At least you won't freeze. Then you're aiming for speed and efficiency - somehow get the shampoo out and the conditioner in, spread the suds, and conserve the water as you rinse off. Unfortunately, if you are reading this from somewhere in America, you probably will not ever get to practice. I'm sure you're thoroughly disappointed.
* * * * *
In other news, the houses are slowly filling up... On Saturday, Franklin arrived. Franklin is a pretty accomplished guy, undergrad and PhD at Harvard, med school at WashU, and now matched to Mass General Hospital for residency in internal medicine...all by 31. Things have been very low key since his arrival as Sundays in Blantyre tend to be. We did go by the trade fair, an exhibition type thing where several countries displayed their artisans' work and sold some great gifts.
On Sunday, "my boys" all came by - Yohane, Antony, Luca, and some new boys - Chisomo, Chikondi and Julio. Chisomo is an adorable 13 year old boy whose father has passed away and whose mother lives in a village where she has no land to farm or job to do. He came here looking for "ganyu" - small job that he could do for some cash- in order to buy fabric to sew his own school uniform a few months back. Yesterday, he came unexpectedly and hadn't eaten anything in 2 days. He is living on his own with his sister, in a slum area near Blantyre. Yohane and Chikondi helped me in the kitchen to prepare nsima, spinach relish and eggs to feed Chisomo. I also found some sugar, oil, flour, ground nut flour, and washing soap to give him, in addition to a clean shirt, a pair of flip flops (as he has no shoes), and 20 Kwacha (14 cents) for a hair cut. It turned out to be a fun afternoon, cooking, playing bawo, and practicing Chichewa.
It is now early on Monday morning, exactly 3 weeks until I come home. I am going to take Franklin to the Malawi Bureau of Standards, as one of his charges while he is here is to figure out a way to measure protein and fat content in RUTF in our own factory. Franklin is going to try to see what machinery is available in Malawi and how we could adapt it to run these tests. Additionally, he is going to assess the hospital lab to see if a blood-gas analyzer would be a relevant and useful piece of technology, or if it would be more of a waste of money with no real use. Blood-gas analyzers are routine in the US, but each test costs $9 to run and usually is done when you are going to ventilate a patient. Malawi would have a lot of trouble running a test that cost so much per person, and also does not really ever use ventilator machines.
Tomorrow two more guys are coming - one from Duke (business student) and one from UNC (MPH program). On Wednesday, Zach and Rachel will join me here as well. Zach will be running the factory so Liyaka may take a break, and Rachel will be doing a stool collection study for the summer. Daunting projects for both of them! Finally, we have Meg coming on June 10, and Dr. Manary and his son Micah coming on June 14. Hard to believe I am already preparing for all these guests (I bought bunk beds last week to stock up on sleeping places!).
21 days til I leave Malawi, 22 days til I touch down in America.
-dkm
Friday, May 23, 2008
Thursday, May 22, 2008
MOUSE IN THE HOUSE!
With five minutes of me shrieking having past, I am now calm enough to share the gross reality that my cat is a hunter. Some innate switch has turned on making her a ruthless feline on the prowl. Yesterday there were little yellow feathers strewn haphazardly all over my apartment and in recent days past, lizard tails abandoned in the corners. But by far, the least pleasant little guest is Jerry. At the exact moment, Jerry the mouse is trying to hide under the couch...but...wait, I have to pause to jump on top of the chair....
...I'm back. Ella has now caught Jerry in her mouth, and yet there is one smarter than the hunter...Kathleen. Please refer to the blog with the terror of the tarantula a few months back, when Kathleen braved the beast with a Maasai warrior carving. Unlike my skittish self, Kathleen caught Ella by the butt, leaving Ella to dangle with Jerry in her mouth. I think situations like these remind me that when searching for a roommate I should note, "Looking for someone who can act composed in situations of crisis, such as when a mouse is in your cat's mouth or a large spider invades your space."
Now that the lioness and her prey are safely outside, I have taken some photos of this fiasco. I'm being told to applaud her for a job well done. Gross, Ella, gross.
-dkm
...I'm back. Ella has now caught Jerry in her mouth, and yet there is one smarter than the hunter...Kathleen. Please refer to the blog with the terror of the tarantula a few months back, when Kathleen braved the beast with a Maasai warrior carving. Unlike my skittish self, Kathleen caught Ella by the butt, leaving Ella to dangle with Jerry in her mouth. I think situations like these remind me that when searching for a roommate I should note, "Looking for someone who can act composed in situations of crisis, such as when a mouse is in your cat's mouth or a large spider invades your space."
Now that the lioness and her prey are safely outside, I have taken some photos of this fiasco. I'm being told to applaud her for a job well done. Gross, Ella, gross.
-dkm
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