FAQs about my village in Malawi

Are there other Peace Corps Volunteers in your village with you?

No, I am the only PCV in my village.  I do have PCV friends who live fairly close (5-10 miles away) and we visit with each other often.  I like living in the village by myself because it forces me to be involved with my community.  I have made many friends in my village and I’ve learned a lot because I had to step out of my comfort zone.

How do you manage to communicate?

I communicate to friends and family back home with letters and e-mails (I have a modem that I can use anywhere there is phone service).  I have a cell phone which I use to send texts or calls throughout Malawi (calling home is very expensive for me).  All phone calls are pre-paid – there are no service contracts.  Phones have sim cards and you can purchase “units” from any vendor.  Communication is not very different from the communication in the States, but it is slower and less reliable.

Does anybody speak English?

Many people speak English, especially in my area, as more people receive education in the North.  In my village, the hospital workers all speak English, so I never really struggle with a language barrier.

What language do you speak?

In the first two months of Peace Corps we go through extensive language training.  I learned to speak Chitonga, which is the language of the Tonga tribe that is found on the northern lakeshore of Malawi.  It is actually a very rare language; less than 1% of the country speaks it.  When I travel to other parts of the country, I am able to get by because I know a limited amount of Chichewa, which is the national language of Malawi.

Is the language difficult to learn?

I wouldn’t say it is difficult to learn, but it does take practice.  The best thing to do is to learn the basics and then to chat with people in the village to pick up new vocabulary.  Some words come from English words, since a lot of technology came here from the British.

What are the customs?

It depends on where you live, but there are many customs that seem to be universal throughout Malawi.  Some customs are obsolete, as Malawi is trying to be more westernized.  It is customary for women to wear skirts that cover their knees.  You should bow when greeting elders.  When you shake someone’s hand, it is important to use your right hand to shake and your left hand crosses over to your right arm (this shows that you are not trying to hide something in your left hand – like a weapon – a custom from many, many years ago).  It is important to always greet the chief.  If you see tree branches on the road, that means there is a funeral and you should walk your bike (if you are riding one) and take of your hat (if you are wearing one) out of respect for the deceased.  These are just a few that I can think of at the moment.

What type of currency do you use?

We use Malawian Kwacha.  $1 USD = 380 Malawian Kwacha

What sports are popular? Does everyone play soccer there?

Malawians love to play sports.  Where I live, men play soccer and women play netball (which is like basketball, but there’s no dribbling and the rules are similar to Ultimate Frisbee).  I have a youth group that plays soccer and netball on Saturdays and in school the students love to have tournaments between the classes.  Last year the freshmen beat the seniors at football and the seniors never heard the end of it.

Do you have large community parties?

Yes, we do have community parties.  I am a part of a women’s group who takes time to meet and greet new members of the hospital community (there is a large turnover with hospital employees), so we often meet up and dance and sing and bring nsima to new members of the community.  We also have community parties when something important happens, like we get a new chief or group village headman, where people danced and honored the new chief.  I have been to a 6 year old’s birthday party where the entire community came together for cake and celebrations.  When I first came to my village, we have celebrated HIV Awareness Day with a day of music and skits and snacks.  My community comes together quite a lot – they love a good reason to dance.

Are there cars there?

There are cars in Malawi, but very few people own cars in my village.  The best way to get around is taking a big bus (like a greyhound, but not as comfortable…many people stand in the aisle), a mini bus (a large mini van that seats 15, but usually crams at least 20 people), a matola (the bed of a pick-up truck), or hitch-hiking with semi trucks or private vehicles.  In no way do I condone hitching anywhere, but in Malawi it is a matter of necessity.  There are very few cars on the road where I live, so I take whatever I can get.

What do you do for fun?

I enjoy swimming in the lake, which is only a 20 minute walk from my house.  I also like to hike – there is a waterfall about an hour walk away from my house, it’s beautiful!  I enjoy going around to meet people in my village.  I carry my camera with me and chat with them for a while and take some lovely candid photos.  I want to bring these memories home with me.

Do you like it there?

Very much, yes.  I have some bad days where I don’t want to live here anymore (and usually these days involve me sitting on the side of the road for several hours before I get a ride somewhere) but when it comes down to it, I have truly enjoyed my time here in Malawi.

Would you rather live at home in the US?

I think the US is where I belong, but it doesn’t mean I did not enjoy living in Malawi.  They are two completely different places and cultures.  After two years in Malawi, I graciously say good-bye.  I look forward to some of the people and things I’ve missed in the US, but we’ll see how soon I will start to miss Malawi once I leave.

Do you get homesick?

Sometimes, yes, especially around holidays or birthdays.  I have made the most out of the holidays here in Malawi, but there’s nothing like an Ackerman Family Thanksgiving or sitting around a Christmas tree with my siblings or celebrating the 4^th of July with fireworks and a cookout.  I have missed these things and all the people I have celebrated with, but I did create new memories and traditions for these holidays.

Have you been courted by anyone who wanted to give your father 4 goats?

No, I have not, but I can say that this is a true cultural norm in many parts of Malawi.  However, goats are very expensive, so sometimes people use chickens or water buckets to symbolize a relationship.

What is there to do?

Malawi has many great things to do!  The lake has many amenities - I got diving certified here and there are plenty of beaches to visit, not to mention canoeing, kayaking, snorkeling, etc.  There are several national parks where you can go on safari and see lions, elephants, zebras, hippos, and rhinos.  There are many hikes, including Mount Mulanje and Rurawe which take several days to complete. 

How hard was it to make the change from electricity and good food to no electricity and eating the same food everyday?

Well, I did not have electricity for the first four months, but my house was wired and I got electricity very early on.  The first four months were not terribly difficult – I cooked on fire and charged my phone at my neighbor’s house.  When I got electricity, life became much easier.  Making meals no longer took me two hours each meal and I was able to listen to music or watch movies on my computer, which was a nice treat after a long day.  “Good food” is a matter of opinion, but I would have to say that I was able come up with creative meals after eating the same thing over and over.  I learned how to make different types of soups, tacos, Chinese food, bean burgers and finally in my last few months I started splurging on meat – steaks, sausage and minced beef.  Food really improves morale so learning how to make fun or interesting food definitely made me happier.

What is an average day in Malawi?

An average day in Malawi for me is difficult to explain.  I have worked with many projects over the two years, but I will give you the best description I can. 

I wake up early, usually because of roosters crowing at 4 am.  I start my day with yoga (which I never really took seriously in the States, but now I find it to be an incredible stress-reliever) and breakfast.  I like drinking tea in the morning, even when it’s hot outside.  After breakfast, I usually teach three mornings a week.  The school is 3 kilometers away, so I typically ride my bike to school and teach two or three classes and ride home before lunch.  If it is a day that I am not teaching, then I do chores around my house.  I carry about six 20-liter buckets on an average day and the water is kept in larger buckets until I need it to drink or to do dishes or laundry.  I sweep and mop often – I feel like my house is never clean.  In the afternoons, I usually go to a meeting.  I meet with many groups including three women’s groups who are starting businesses, seven HIV support groups, a Girls’ Club, and a Youth Club.  I try to make myself available in the community.  Sometimes groups ask for trainings or assistance with small projects.  Later, I cook dinner and I wind down at the end of the day watching a movie on my computer or reading.

Malawian women typically stay at home and do housework all day.  They are amazing and incredibly strong.  They walk half the day to chop firewood and then carry it back to their home the rest of the afternoon from miles away.  They are usually working in the gardens in the early morning and then set off to carry water, do dishes and laundry, pound maize, and cook.  If there are children at home, they help their mother with some of the chores.  The women who do have jobs are nurses, primary school teachers or they own shops in my area.  When women go to the borehole, they chat with other women and that is their social lives.

Malawian men might have jobs or they might not.  Some men in my community are nurses or teachers or shop owners.   They share in some of the gardening.  Some also fish in my area, since I’m close to the lake.  It is clear that they do not do as many household chores at the house.  Often you see men playing a board game with other men in their free time.

Malawian children can attend primary school for free, but secondary school requires fees.  Many students drop out before secondary school because they are needed to help with chores or gardening.  It is very competitive to get into university in Malawi and there is a lot of political reasons for it, so many students are bitter about going to school and getting decent grades but still not getting accepted into college.   

How do you feel about the equality between men and women in Malawi?

It’s difficult to see the inequalities here in Malawi.  It makes me appreciate the respect women get in the U.S.  I have experienced many sexist remarks from Malawian men who do not think it is my place to be offering advice, especially as a young, unmarried female.  It has put a toll on my working relationships with people and many projects were not completed because of it.  There was an unfortunate incident last year where a gang of men in Lilongwe began undressing women in the middle of the street in the middle of the day if they were wearing trousers, instead of long skirts.  It did not last long, as the government stepped in, but it was a scary couple of weeks.

I can say this: Malawi is starting to close the gap.  Slowly at first, but women are starting to make an impact in the working world.  Currently, Malawi has a female president.  And more recently, the American embassy sponsored a business seminar for 30 female entrepreneurs in Malawi.  Women are getting more opportunities and I think it would make for a happy, healthy Malawi if they had more women invested in their programs, politics and businesses.  It’s good to have diversity and different opinions – it’s how we grow.   

We learned that men buy their wives for 4 goats, does that mean women do not have a choice in who her husband is?

While this is a practice in Malawi, I would not say it is a common one.  For the most part, in my area, women have a choice in who they marry.  In more rural areas I think that marriage is used to gain things rather than true love.  Again, it depends on where you live in Malawi.

Are women looked down upon in your area?

In the north, the tribes are very matriarchal so women are not exactly “looked down upon” but respected.  However, women still do most of the house work, while taking care of the garden and the children while men often have an outside job, or play a marble game called bao.  There is a lot of sitting under mango trees and I would say the housework is uneven.  This is purely my observation.  I am not trying to disrespect anyone and I am not saying that it is every where.  It's just something I've noticed and the girls in my girls' club have mentioned quite often.

 

 How are Malawians different or alike to Americans?

Well…that’s difficult.   How about I just describe Malawians and you can figure that out.

Malawians really enjoy American culture.  They watch American movies (but they really love kung-fu films), dress like Americans (mostly in the cities) and enjoy American pop music, especially Celine Dion, Justin Bieber, Katy Perry, Rihanna, Lady GaGa, and Michael Jackson.

Malawians are more communal than Americans.  Americans like their privacy and hardly know their neighbors, whereas Malawians adopt everyone into their family.  They share food from the same plate and eat with their hands.  They attend funerals of people they have never met. 

Malawians are very dramatic.  They love to act, sing and dance.  They also laugh constantly at everything.  At funerals, they cry loudly for days.  Every experience is shared in a public way. 

Have you seen any cool animals?

Monkeys live in the mango tree behind my house (quite often I fight them for fruit) and last November I went to a Liwonde National Park and saw elephants, zebras, water buffalo, hippos, crocodiles and impala.  One time I saw a black mamba.  Not cool.  Animals don’t really roam around Malawi freely.  They stay in protected game reserves throughout Malawi.

How much has it changed your life?

It’s hard to say.  I’ll let you know when I get back and notice the changes.   I think for one, I have changed my views on aid work in Africa.  Some of it works but a lot of it doesn’t and it’s difficult to pinpoint the real issues behind it.  In any case, I feel more confident in my abilities to do public health work and I know I am a strong, confident woman after I have faced so many challenges.

What is the main form of religion?

I think 95% of Malawians are Christian (Catholics, Methodists, Baptists, Presbyterian, Evangelists).  The other 5% includes a breakdown of Muslims and tribal religions that I do not know much about.

Do you have a lot of spare time?

Some days, yes.  I did a lot of reading in the beginning of my service.  Now I’m trying to find time in my day to do laundry, say good-bye and write reports for Peace Corps.  I think my second year got a lot busier once I found my groove in the village.  I think that is the way for most Peace Corps Volunteers and that is why Peace Corps is a two year commitment – you find your way second year.

Are the schools teaching the basics or do they venture into higher learning?

Typical classes in a public secondary school include: English, Chichewa, Mathematics, Science, Bible Knowledge, Social Studies, Agriculture, and Life Skills.  Some of the expensive private schools offer more classes, such as French and Latin and computer skills. 

At my school, there are four classrooms.  Each classroom has anywhere from 120 students (freshmen, Form 1) to 50 students (seniors, Form 4).  Teachers walk from classroom to classroom depending on the period.  Students sit on benches or share desks.  Since there are so many students, so few teachers and very little resources, it is difficult to venture into other subjects.