Saturday, March 16, 2013

180 Days of Awesome: My Last Trip South


Day 92

My first real date in Malawi was classic – dinner and a movie!  Katie, Jake, Christian and I went out on a double date in Blantyre.  We went to a mildly disturbing movie called Ted and followed that up with dinner.  We snuck candy into the theater and bought popcorn with lots of salt and artificial butter.  It was incredibly American and so much fun. 

Day 93

There is a second-hand store, called DAPP, that sells clothing for very cheap – maybe even cheaper than the markets.  Since it was an end-of-the-month sale, Katie, Christian and I had to rummage through piles and racks of clothes.  We each found a few things, but the best was a bright orange dinner jacket that Christian found and will probably wear to football games when his college plays.  It’s completely obnoxious, but for $1.50, why not?

Day 94

After a quick game of Scrabble (...that I won! I never win!), Katie and Jake made a fancy spaghetti dinner that we ate on Katie’s rooftop.  It was complete with wine and candles and the soft sounds of a bagpipe playing in the distance.  After dinner we drank fancy drinks at a nearby bar that serves western drinks with our new friends that work at Plumpy Nut.  Ahhh...mojitos!

Day 95

Christian and I enjoyed our last dinner in Blantyre with the most beautiful sunset over the city.  We drank cold beers, he played pool and I sang along to the Barenaked Ladies they were playing on the speakers.  Blantyre provides an amazing mini-vacation, so we cheers’d to our last night and wished for a good journey back to reality.

Day 96

Hitching in the South is like nothing else.  You stick out your hand and you get a ride in less than 20 minutes.  I am amazed and impressed with the speed and ease that Southern PCVs have with transport.  Once we go to Lilongwe, we enjoyed a home-cooked dinner at Irene’s with Cassie, Katie and Miriam.  Irene is an amazing cook and an incredible hostess.  It’s nice staying with her – it doesn’t feel so much life staying in the city. 

Day 97

I received my Basic Life Skills training from the embassy, which is awesome as I prepare for nursing school and beyond.  Free and fun class, just as my certification was expiring!

Day 98

It was necessary that I go to the bank.  National Bank and I have had very few positive run-ins so I was dreading the task.  I had tried a few times this week, but it was always packed.  In Lilongwe, the bank is so busy that they have a “take a number” machine and people sit in chairs like it’s the DMV.  Today I went to the bank right as it was opening and followed a herd of people in as the doors unlocked.  My number was 27, but there were about 10 tellers, so the line went quickly.  When I went to the teller, I received minimum questioning, only service!  And it was speedy!  Hooray!

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