Mwaya Mondays- Vol. 27

Mwaya Mondays- Vol. 27, Monday 10 December, 2012

For the second week running, our team in Malawi has been struggling with very poor internet service and as a result this week’s Mwaya Mondays blog arrives on a Tuesday. We hope you enjoy it all the same! This week’s instalment by RIPPLE Africa’s Monika.

“Another week at Ripple….
Everyone enjoyed going to Makuzi Lodge for dinner which was served on the deck overlooking the beach. White table cloths and candles made it feel special! Phoebe, Lindsey and Monika went early to enjoy some snorkelling and kayaking.

Another early morning Sunday swim at a much more civilized time of 7:30 a.m. was followed by a fabulous breakfast with everyone pitching in. Always a treat with bacon, eggs, hash browns, toast and veggies.

Volunteers are heading home. Ashley left on Tuesday ( Dec 4th) ; Phoebe left Sunday ( Dec 9 th) Monika and Lindsey are the only volunteers here over Christmas so they have decided to book a chalet at Kande Beach Dec 24-25th. They are hoping to go horseback riding on Christmas Eve and be in the water at sunset. Christmas Day they hope to canoe to the island and explore before relaxing on their deck enjoying a bottle of wine before the Christmas Feast. And then Geoff, Susie and Charlie, all RIPPLE Africa staff, are leaving next Tuesday (Dec 11th) and head home for Christmas.
A whole day was spent visiting villages around Mzuzu to see how the RIPPLE Africa Changu Chungu Moto program is working. The CV’s (community volunteers) and RIPPLE were pleased with the feedback from the women who are now using them instead of the three stone fires. Positive feedback included: using less wood; takes less time to cook so some have been able to feed their children before school and safety was a very important factor in eliminating accidental burns.

Another village we visited was high in the mountains so we drove for miles through Vizara tea plantation with tea plants as far as the eye can see. An amazingly beautiful site! At the village Geoff got all the locals singing the Changu Chungu Moto song with everyone joining in.

Collins, RIPPLE Africa’s fantastic Disabilities and Rehabilitation Project Manager, arrived at camp on his new motorbike. Monika and Collins now able to spend more time with patients. Some of the kids were afraid of the noise when we arrived so scrambled away. Monika and Collins put up a swing for Issac which will hopefully be enjoyed by the whole family and surrounding neighbours.