Sunday Night Check-in

A lot has happened in the past few days! We are slowly getting settled in and are feeling a bit more comfortable with our surroundings.

Wednesday afternoon after showering up and shaking off the jet lag we set off to volleyball with the rest of the UNC Project Crew. Volleyball happens each Wednesday night at the Shack, a bar with outdoor sand volleyballl courts. The play is pretty competitive and while Suz was brave enough to play with the big dogs I sat out and enjoyed a beer while watching the action unfold. Don’t be fooled Suz also enjoyed a cold one. We met a few expats from various NGOs who explained that the bar was a regular hangout each Wednesday and got more ‘club-like’ as the night went on. After a few hours the jet lag started to set in and we made our way back to the compound for a much needed nights rest in a real bed.

Thursday after handing some administrative stuff at UNC Project we made our way to town where we bought some groceries and exchanged some cash. UNC Project employs several drivers and they are available for us to use during the week as long as it’s convenient for them. The drivers will also pick up patients for their research appointments and return them home if they’re not finished until after dark. Like at UNC in Chapel Hill, everyone tries to make it as convenient for patients as possible so that their participation in the research activities can continue.

While at the grocery store, we learned the Kwacha is in transition and the exchange rate changes daily…on average about 265 per 1 dollar. As expected, the Euro exchange rate is much better than the dollar at over 350:1, so thanks Mom for those Euros.

After talking with some people at UNC project we quickly realized having a cell phone was a necessity. After shopping and the bank we were approached by a Malawian selling minutes for cell phones. After Suz’s quick phone hand gesture, aka the international sign for "I need a phone not just minutes” our friend took off running for the next corner. Upon his return, he presented us with a brand new phone, in the box mind you for 3500 kwacha . We wheeled and dealed and settled on 7000 Kwacha ($26.50) for the phone, sim card, and a bunch of minutes. Quite a steal if I do say so myself!

                                                      The hottest cell phone technology

As many of you know from our previous post, Friday was when we were to visit the Nurse’s and Midwives Council to figure out if we were in fact going to be allowed to work while in Malawi. Turns out, much was accomplished. After about 3 hours of walking from office to office, waiting on a bench and smiling politely, Gertrude, the administrative assistant from UNC Project and our new favorite person, secured a meeting with the head of registration and education. As we walked in to the huge office, we spotted a small but stern woman sitting behind a gigantic desk. After a little Chichewa from Gertrude we were instructed to sit. “What do you want to do in Malawi?” she asked. Suz and I looked at each other and I attempted to choke out a semi-coherent answer. I expressed our interest to help in any way we could, but that we were particularly interested in helping in the maternity wards as well as with HIV care. “Will you be returning to Malawi to work after your education?” We made sure she knew we would be back just as soon as we graduated (you never know…). With that she seemed pleased and after barely glancing at the extensive application forms we were required to fill out, we moved on to lighter subjects. She asked what we thought of the weather and Malawi’s people. I remarked how nice everyone was and she said, “Of course! You are in the Warm…” And then I blurted out “Heart of Africa!!” With that, we ended our interview with a high five and a smile. At the end of a long morning, we left with official letters in hand allowing us to work at Kamuzu Central Hosptial. Fingers crossed we will be working some time this upcoming week.

                               Suz & I holding our official letter in front of the UNC Project house

We then returned to the compound to have lazy afternoon reading and getting to know our fellow house-mates from the house adjacent to ours. From the picture above, you can see that we have a huge front yard, so I thought it would be a fantastic idea to get a towel and lay in the sun to enjoy some light Glamour reading. It turned out to be a terrible idea when I found approximately 100 little black ants crawling all over my body, including in my hair. Note to self: not a good idea to lay in the grass, no matter how appealing it may look.

After brushing all of the ants off my body, Suz and I regrouped in the house to begin our gameplan for dinner. Brian, a med student from Vanderbilt who is doing some research at Kamuzu Hospital, stopped by the house to see if we wanted to go over to the burn unit with him. We both quickly changed clothes and walked over, not quite ready for what we would soon be seeing. During the walk, Brian explained that his research was looking at depression in burn patients, particularly amongst their care givers. Most of the burn patients at KCH are children who have had kitchen accidents right behind their mothers’ back, and so their mother feels incredibly guilty for their children’s burns.  With Brian and a Malawian counselor, we walked through the unit and heard the story of each patient and their burn. It was difficult to see – there were flies buzzing around the rooms and a smell that was unfamiliar to both of us.  Patients in the hospital rely on their family to help care for them, bring additional food and blankets for the cool nights. It was definitely the beginning of what is sure to be an eye-opening experience here in Malawi, and we were so thankful to Brian for his help.

We then returned to the house and started to cook up some dinner for our side of the house.  The day before at Spar (the expensive grocery store) they only carried lasagna noodles and no other pasta. So our spaghetti idea was quickly adjusted into a lasagna night – we like to keep it flexible. Everyone was a little leery of lasagna in a foreign country with an oven in Celsius, cheese we weren’t so sure about, and bag sauce. However, with a few “borrowed” vegetables from the communal fridge and some South African red wine (thanks roommate Amy), the sauce wasn’t half bad. And really, is the combination of starch, cheese, tomatoes and garlic ever that bad? After impressing our roommates with dinner, we all made our way over to Harry’s, an expat bar a few km a way.  Below you’ll see a picture we took with our suite-mate Alex, a med school student also from UNC.  We made it an early night – our parents will be proud to hear that we were home before our high school curfews of midnight (Hi Mom & Dad). 

                                                             Lasagna Lilongwe style

                             Me, Suz, & our super cool med student friend Alex at Harry's Bar

That's all for now! We will make sure to post again soon. Thanks again to everyone for reading!