Pre-Service Training in Chisazima

PST

The first week ("week zero") was spent at MIM - a small collection of rooms, conference halls, and cafeteria. The whole time there felt like vacation; nothing like the weeks to follow living in the village. During the day we would learn about what to expect in the following weeks as well as Peace Corps basics. After class I played hackie sack ("whack sack") with friends or played banjo with the other volunteers that brought instruments. We all got a crash course of Malawian food during meal time (and a special surprise of "pizza" and ice cream one night!) and had cold soda available multiple times a day.

However, after week zero life changed dramatically. We arrived in Chisazima (a small village about an hour or so outside of Kasungu) to all the mothers of the village singing us a song of arrival. The moment we heard their voices was magical beyond words - never have I felt so welcomed! We sat inside our "School" (the Roman Catholic Church) across from the Malawian families that would be our future host families, and one by one names we read and we left the church for our new home. After my name was called there was a roar of laughter as I was paired with parents over a foot shorter than me. They warned us that the first night would be the most difficult, but I found the first night to be the beginning of a great friendship with the family - especially my "abambo" (father).

The weeks between then and now have been filled with classes from 8am-5pm, a hike up the nearby mountain, hours of hackie sack, laughing, and building friendships with people as crazy ("adventurous"?) as me. Typically pre-service training (PST) is 3 months, but in Malawi they like to cram it all into a little over 2 months. 

My abambo, Hamitton Mbeta, has become one of my closest Malawian friends so far. I'm going to be sad to have to leave him in May, but I'm sure I will come back to Chisazima to visit him. He's 70 years old, has worked as a brick layer (currently is a farmer), and is a devote member of the local church. Although he dropped out of school at a young age (about the equilivant of middle school in the US) he's by far one of the smartest people I've met here. He's lived all over Malawi, and is fluent in Chichewa, Chiyao, Portuguese, and English. Although he's 70 years old every day he gets up early to go work in his gardens - he says it's what keeps him strong (and he's right!). Most nights after school I sit on the porch with him and the rest of the family (3 boys, 3 girls, and a seemingly endless number of other relatives) and practice chichewa or swap stories about life in America/Malawi. As the sun sets we sit together and eat dinner (usually nsima, a protein, and a vegetable - as requested by Peace Corps). Usually families like this would not get a protein every meal, and often times nsima might be eaten alone. Nsima is a staple in Malawi made from ground maize mixed with water (it comes out slightly firmer than mashed potatoes, and shaped into patties). By itself there is almost no flavor, but I actually like it with other foods. Everyone in Malawi knows how to make nsima, and a meal isn't complete without some nsima ("nsima is food, and food is nsima"). 

I've just visited my site for the first time (I will be living in Kalembo!) - but more on that will come in the next blog post!

Here's a list of my accomplishments so far:

- Hitched a ride on a broken down truck being carried on a bigger truck ("truck-seption")

- Cooked the Malawian favorite, nsima (in Malawi nsima IS food, a meal without nsima isn't a meal)

- Made soya milk by hand

- Planted a garden

- Navigated a market and bought things using Chichewa

- Learned EXTENSIVELY about HIV/AIDS, malaria, nutrition, and more'

Here's a list of my failures so far:

- Said "I am food very much" on accident to my family; they couldn't stop laughing

- Tried to explain that in America we eat tacos ("taco" in chichewa means butt cheek)

^View from the top of a nearby mountain we hiked up

^Me and some of the local kids that hiked the mountain with us

^Frogs in Malawi are super cool looking

^Early morning at MIM

^ (Blurry; sorry) My room for week zero at MIM

^After class we would spend a lot of time at the local soccer field.

^ My walk home from class everyday

^ On market visit days we would always try to grab some food and drinks at KJP's

^ I spent 7.5 hours at this church. ~200 people; I was the only white person (took communion in Malawi!)

^ This is how the announced our sites; we were blindfolded and placed where our future homes would be.

^Me teaching about building handwashing stations

^Me and my homestay family (one brother was missing - he was away at school)