Blog

Chiptala Avenue Our house is off of Chiptala Avenue.  If someone asks, “Where do you live?” The general area is Ginnery Corner, (maybe they made gin here in colonial times.)  The house is just past the hospital and the ambulances pass multiple times a day.  No sirens, quiet passing.  My son asked why the ambulances…
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Gogo is the Chichewa name for grandmother.  It is endearing.  The grandmothers here may have had ten or more children and more than 50 grandchildren.  They are generally poor and loving.  They are revered and dearly loved.  In the hypertension clinic, a grandchild may have escorted his or her “Gogo”.  The doctor may say, “the…
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The University of Malawi is opening a new campus in Lilongwe the capital of Malawi.  This is the political capital and the place where the US embassy is located.  The decision was made to move the third year class to Lilongwe and they start this week.  It is the beginning of clinical medicine for the…
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  What to cook for dinner, an age old issue.  I decided to cook chicken in peanut sauce.  I found a great place to buy chicken near the house.  You can get any pack of any parts you want frozen.  The lady who runs the store is named Beatrice.  She has the same name as…
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Toil Took all day to wash and dry all the laundry by hand.  The washer was the appliance I missed the most the last time I was in Africa and no surprise it is again.  This trip it involves 4 people.  I worked and the electricity went out so I washed and rinsed and when…
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Garden When you are white and live here you are expected to hire a gardener.  We hired the brother of the gardener across the road.  We like him very much and no surprise we like his brother too.  So if you have a gardener who cuts the grass and waters the flowers and plants the…
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Architecture Appropriate architecture uses local material where possible and meets the needs of the local people.  Nice appropriate housing here is made of a red brick that is locally made.  The ceilings are high for the heat and the places are usually one room wide for ventilation. The windows are metal. Courtyards are common.  People…
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We have a Malawian singing dog named Mishak.  He is an outdoor dog.  He barks when folks come to the gate and wakes up the guards did I say wakes up?  I should say alerts the guard.  He sometime sings and the neighbor dogs sing too and they sound like coyotes in an old spaghetti…
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