A little delayed in posting...sketchy wi-fi situation. So, from yesterday...
We meet the WM technicians who are loading our first tower bound for Chitala.
Sam and Ellis review the contents of the crane box with Nixon and Doug and make a plan for the next day.
We head out to Mpatsa Lodge in the Salima district where we will be staying for the next several nights. The lodge will be maybe an hour drive from our project site in Chitala. Transit times seem to be a little hard to determine, we are finding out.
As we pass, we are struck by the distances people seem to be walking. Nothing in front. Nothing behind us, for miles. Many are carrying heavy loads on their heads.
The sunset is priceless.
Forty-eight hours after departing, our entire crew arrives
together in Lilongwe, capital of Malawi and home to one of Water Mission’s many international offices. (Check out where in the world Water Mission works. https://watermission.org/our-solutions/where-we-work/)
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| Craig, Sam, Ori, Addie, Natalie and Ellis |
We are met by our buddy Nixon, the WM Malawi country director, and given a briefing at headquarters.
We meet the WM technicians who are loading our first tower bound for Chitala.
I regret that I don’t have a photo of all of the lovely ladies we met at WM headquarters who are furthering the effort through community outreach, WASH training and administrative work. These ladies lay the groundwork starting with the community assessment phase, then return for each stage—assisting with formation of the safe water committee and constitution that will govern, determining the costs of water and budget, managing hygiene training and providing follow up and support after water start up.
We will see these ladies again at the Chitala water system commissioning.
Sam and Ellis review the contents of the crane box with Nixon and Doug and make a plan for the next day.  |
| Ellis and Doug Lawson, WM Regional Director—Kenya and Malawi Programs |
Doug has come down from Kenya to join us. He and his family left South Carolina fours years ago to work for Water Mission in Africa across territory from Uganda to Kenya and Malawi.
As we pass, we are struck by the distances people seem to be walking. Nothing in front. Nothing behind us, for miles. Many are carrying heavy loads on their heads.
Along the way, we peruse the snack options including this Chewa delicacy. These seven mouse snacks can be had for a mere 550 kwacha total (exchange rate is 720 kwacha to 1 dollar). We opt for a few handfuls of the 10 pounds of snack mix that Craig prepared for the trip.
Lovely sunset. But I would recommend passing on the mouse snacks unless of course they have some Grey Poupon mustard and a chilled bottle of Riesling. And possibly some crackers.
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