A letter from Malawi

Hello Sisters,

For the next few weeks you will be reading from me from Southern Africa. I give you a peep into my diary for the week ending October 31st, 2008. I write from the city of Lilongwe (Are you wondering where the hell that city is?) Wonder no more, it is the capital of Malawi in Southern Africa. A city that appears to be lightly populated with virtually no traffic, if you compare it to the city of Accra not to mention the city of Lagos, you are virtually in heaven. I arrived in the afternoon of the 27th of October, after about 6.5 hours flight to the city of Jo’burg and a wait of about 4 hours in transit. I could not help but soak in my first impression of Malawi, a dry and low densely populated land (At least from my impression on the long stretch of the highway leading from the airport to the city centre). I was also caught off guard with the left hand drive system in the country. I can never get over the fact that some countries drive on the left, I always get the impression that the vehicle in which I am riding will be involved in a headon collision with oncoming cars. And how do they manage to change gears with their left hand especially for right handed people? Anyway it all has to do with diversities of culture and systems.

I go straight into a meeting with one of the partners after I have managed a quick shower and eventually get to enjoy my hotel room at about 7.00pm dead tired, not before I have had a brush with a young Indian guy with an attitude, whose vehicle I was hiring for the next day’s trip to another city, Blantyre. It was one of the times I regret not taking lessons from Bisi on how to do the “dance”. Questioning me as if I was highly out of his league of customers or that I had the trait of somebody who was going to escape without settling the bill. It was only after I had retorted sharply to him that I was paying in cash that he changed his attitude. Malawi has a large Indian population and they appear to dominate the business landscape in Lilongwe. I had earlier tried to fly to Blantyre only to be told by Air Malawi that they had unilaterally decided that there was not going to be a flight to Blantyre the next day. I guess they are not really different from our very own dear erratic Ghana Airways or Virgin Nigeria; it must be a kind of virus on the continent.

Malawi really stands up to its slogan “Warm heart of Africa” the place is warm in all senses of the word. The weather is actually hot and the people friendly. The city of Lilongwe is very well set out into sectors with clearly demarcated areas and well numbered and named streets, there is no way a visitor will miss her way around the city (Remember it is a comparatively new city built after independence).

The next day is another marathon for me rushing to the Mozambican embassy to put in an application for an urgent visa (There is no Mozambican consulate in Ghana) through to attending a convening with some very dynamic women which was quite refreshing, to meeting with another grantee in her office immediately after. I finally picked up the Mozambican visa and headed for the city of Blantyre which used to house the capital of Malawi during the colonial era. By the time I arrived in Blantyre after 6.00pm I was ready to collapse. The trip to Blantyre was however eventful for me. Just outside the city of Lilongwe in the Dedza district are these awe inspiring, very nicely arranged and cultured range of mountains as if a gardener has the task of keeping them prim and proper with clusters of huts beneath their base. As usual, traveling along country roads you do not miss the quest of man to be seen and heard. I saw the ingenuity of (wo) man with product adverts carved into the hill sides and huge boulders, as well as all kind of billboards. Some interesting ones that caught my attention include “herbalist of the century” and “Beerman cave” you can imagine what happens in those two places with its resultant effect on women.

I also saw some of the effects of colonialism when in the town of Nhyehox, my self- imposed tour guide points out to me that the right side of the road is Mozambican while the left side belongs to the people of Malawi. But wait a minute, if you want to fly from Malawi to Mozambique, you will have to fly for two hours first to Johannesburg before connecting to a flight to Mozambique which is likely to take about one hour and ten minutes, that is Africa for you.

The city of Blantyre appears more densely populated and bursting with activity than Lilongwe. After a radio interview and a convening with women’s groups the next day, I go to visit one grantee and I noticed that the elevators in Malawi appear to work better than those in Accra, perhaps they do not have the power problems Ghana perennially experiences. After, I endure the long drive back to Lilongwe (About 4 hours) that afternoon and for the first time after arriving in Malawi I appear to have some respite, your guess is very right this is about 7pm. I recheck into the hotel Cresta Cross Roads, collect my luggage from storage and decide to take a stroll around the vicinity of the hotel which is within a huge complex of other businesses (Malawi is a comparatively safe city). The next morning I get an anti climax when I visit a grantee in Lilongwe who has over under performed, I just could not keep myself in check, well God was good as usual, He helped me to control my disappointment and after a lengthy discussion in their office I request to see the shop AWDF is suppose to be supporting. The shop has been so abandoned, infact it has never been put to use, and after wasting time and fuel to go to the place they could not open the doors to the shop so mission unaccomplished, remember this is a live grant. After this anti climax I had to rush to the airport enroute to my next destination.

The next time you read from me I am probably going to have another identity, till then hold the fort tightly.

With all the warmth I can gather in Malawi,
Beatrice