Africa a la VSO

Another P2V/SKWID-type VSO training day over and the feeling is one of neutral contentment- neither happy nor sad, neither isolated nor stifled, neither enthusiastic nor listless about anything. Partly jetlagged I suppose, yet somewhat more complex. Transition, I guess, is the word I seek, and the exact emotional meaning of it will manifest itself to me in due course.. in the way it normally does.. like a timebomb.
On a practical note, today has been quite productive. It started with a daunting language exercise, which rapidly eased into a more rewarding task once the words started coming back to me. I can now ask “Dzina lanu ndi ndani?” again or ‘what’s your name?’! We progress into more advanced territory tomorrow... the supermarket (let’s just hope it’s neither TESCO nor ASDA, nor their local counterpart Shoprite!). Which brings me to my pet hate, rather early as one might have guessed. We got taken on our first shopping trip today, as a team of “progressive, poverty-challenging, opportunity-creating, enterprising change setters” and guess where we ended! You guessed right. We chose the single biggest corporate, economy-winding western institution to pay our first tributes to. Yet there were quite a few decent-looking, well stocked Malawian shops on the 15min drive to it and even round the corner from it, as I found out by going there. But nobody else seemed bothered.
However (besides shopping-forgive my rant!), VSO's obectives, I have to agree are overall quite inspiring as outlined during the rest of our induction. Their early results are rather promising in all of their main programme areas: health, HIV/AIDS, secure livelihoods and education. My general programme for the next two years was also clarified today and I will be starting with a Lilongwe-based training for 4 months. The Ntcheu programme seems really exciting from the outset, with lots of scope for me to customise it to match my skills. The potential for bringing about life-changing improvements (mutually)is certainly there to see.
Today also saw my getting connected to the airwaves finally. So get your pens and paper (or mobile phone) out and get jotting: +265993583902. Your calls and texts will be much appreciated. I should be on Skype too by the way, even I though haven’t yet had a successful call to verify that. My nick is Ashwall2.
As a crowning of today’s developments, my luggage also arrived this afternoon. All three bags and their 64Kg’s worth. I can at last get into those shorts and T-shirts and feel like I’m in Africa properly now.
Tsalani buino (or Ciao for non-Chichewa parleurs)!
Ash